We had never been to Cancun. Told it was just Florida/Miami. But this year the airfare from NYC to Florida was so high (and I did look at many options) that we decided to go to Cancun. Stayed at JW Marriott. Delighted at how nice it was. Excellent rates, lovely room, wonderful service and best of all... fabulous beach. I don't know how much it cost to redo that beach but it was worth it. Crystal clear water, soft (but not too soft) sand, no steep dropoff, nice gentle but fun waves. Who could want more?? Well, the buffet breakfast at the hotel was beyond excellent and we have had hotel buffet breakfasts in many, many countries and at Four Seasons, Hyatts, Tajs, etc. I think this was best. Wow! Maybe it is also because we like Mexican food.
While people we met at the hotel liked/loved the other hotel restaurants, we thought they were just ok.
Cancun is fun. We are not party people but we did like that there are lots of restaurants, malls, and other stuff. Easy to get to places beyond the hotel.
We did a private trip to Chichen Itza and while it was very costly to go privately with car, driver and guide we were happy we did . It was so hot, hot, hot at Chichen we had the option of leaving as soon as we wanted. Also went to cenote where it would have been fun to swim but did not want to do the 90+ steps down and up. Remember, it is 2 hour plus drive to Chichen from Cancun and that long back. The toll road is unbelievably expensive. We will go to more of the Mayan sites when the weather is cooler. But Chichen is amazing and a must see!
After enjoying the Marriott we stayed for three days at Zoetry Paraiso de la Bonita , an upscale all inclusive. It is a beautiful, beautiful property. The rooms are enormous and lovely. Huge living room, big bedroom (with the hardest beds this side of Bhutan), bathroom with sunken tub for two, two patios, a small private pool. Great for those who want to spend lots of private time in their room. The food was ok except for the whole grilled fish at lunch which was excellent. Very generous with alcohol, but we do not drink much. The surf has fields of seaweed growing under it which does not make pleasant swimming. They charge $55 to go to reef (5 minutes from shore) for 1.5 hours with a group of 4 to snorkel. I think that is expensive. And a real feeling of isolation. Could not walk to anything. We liked the Marriott better.
In short, we have already booked our hotel in Cancun for Christmas.
Only downer...getting thru the Cancun airport on arrival. They re-x-ray your luggage which creates long lines and then the novice is "attacked" by streams of timeshare salespeople on the way out. Walk fast, do not talk to anybody.