Cancun, Mexico
We stayed at the 5 star Secrets the Vine which offers the AM Resorts all inclusive "unlimited luxury" concept. It is a beach front hotel with 4 pools, 6 gourmet restaurants, a spa, free Wi-Fi and 24 hour complimentary room service. The drinks are premium brands and although this does not extend to the wine the offer a good house wine selection with the option of pay for vintage wines at dinner. There is a full entertainment program that included pool side bands and dancers, comedy and music nights, water polo, aquarobics and Pilates and yoga classes to name but a few. We took part in Tequila tasting - there was not a shot glass, salt or a slice of lime in sight and it tastes more akin to scotch than I expected, and wine tasting - who knew Mexico produced such tasty wines!
Leaving Tim to enjoy a days deep sea fishing which he found good value and very enjoyable I joined colleagues on a couple of hotel inspections of the new Dreams the Sands, this hotel is in a very central location in the Cancun hotel zone and commands a beautiful beach front with much calmer lagoon style waters than that in front of The Vine, and the boutique Zoetry Villa Rolandi which is on the small Island of Islas Mujeres (the island of women). We arrived at the 35 room property by private catamaran and were treated to a gourmet lunch in the world famous restaurant - both were equally beautiful and the meal delicious and I would love to go back for a longer stay.
When my colleagues departed Tim and I filled our days with our own day out to Islas Mujeres taking the public bus and ferry and hiring a golf buggy to tour the length and breadth of the island and at the most easterly point in Mexico - Acantilado del Amanecer (Cliff of the Dawn) we were treat to the rare sight of mating leatherback turtles in the water. We had a days diving with two contrasting dives - one was the Jason de Caires Taylor underwater sculpture museum (Museo Subacuatico de Arte) which was quite something, too new to have much more than algae and coral polyps yet but we did see a green turtle, a large sting ray and an Electric Ray which I had not seen before. The second dive was a drift dive on the Manchones Reef where we saw more turtles, Tarpon, Angel Fish and Barracuda to name but a few. We had an early start for a bird watching trip where we saw several species endemic to the Yucatan Peninsula including Orange Orioles, a Yucatan Jay (blue), a Rose Throated Tanager, a Yucatan Woodpecker and a Ferruginous Pigmy Owl. We hired a boat and captain to take us on a tour of the Cancun Lagoon in the hope of seeing more bird life and were treated to a few marine bird sightings.
On our last day we hired a car and drove south along the Riviera Maya passing the resorts of Playa del Carmen and Puerto Moreles to the Mayan ruins at Tulum - this is the only walled Mayan city known to exist on the seashore and a major port-of-call on the Mayan Maritime trade routes. We also popped in to the Dreams Tulum Hotel for a quick tour of this great family hotel and a delicious lunch in their Seaside Grill Restaurant before stopping of a the Dos Ojos (two eyes) Cenote for a swim in one of the freshwater filled sink holes.
Tim and I are not shoppers or night clubbers but if you want to take part in theses activities there are several options on offer with everything from designer and duty free shopping malls to local flea markets and clubs such as Coco Bongos which offers and dance and cabaret experience rolled in to one. There are excursion options for all the family and culture vultures can be satisfied too with Coba, Valladolid and Chichen Itza just a bus or car ride away.
I think we may have to go back some day....