3 girls in late 20s - Punta Cana or Riviera Maya?
Jan 9th, 2003, 09:41 AM
#3
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Lots more to do/see from Akumal to Playa del Carmen to Port Allen in Mayaland than in DR;also, you're not locked in to a resort like in DR, with travel outside the resort difficult,and quite little to see,with greater safety considerations. DR is a great cheap package destination, good beaches but awfully touristy;drink bottled water,tho, in either destination 
Jan 9th, 2003, 09:53 AM
#4
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Hi Laurie,<BR>I agree with Tiv.<BR>The beach at Playa del Carmen is absolutely one of the nicest in the Caribbean and PDC is a fun and funky place to go.<BR>There are lots of places for live music and/or dancing, lots of neat little shops that sell cute clothes and jewelry, and very good restaurants.<BR>The places to eat are so good, in fact, that I would never recommend an AI to someone going there. <BR>Look at the website locogringo.com to get some more ideas about the places to stay all up and down the coast from south of Cancun down to Tulum.<BR>(Plus, in PDC, you can always go up to Cancun for the day to check that out.)
Jan 9th, 2003, 10:27 AM
#5
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I totally agree with the Playa del Carmen in the Riviera Maya recommendation. I'd bet you'll have a lot more fun there than DR. Much more to see and do off the resort.<BR><BR>Sorry, don't have a resort recommendation. The ones that come to mind either accept children or are geared towards couples. Not that they don't exist - I just don't know - and new resorts are being built like crazy.<BR><BR>From PDC, you can take a ferry to Cozumel (about 45 min. and $7 each way if I remember correctly) and spend the day there. It's a little more Americanized than PDC (if you want to call it that), at least when I was there 4 years ago. They have a Hard Rock Cafe and I believe some other franchise operations. But at the same time, it's definitely Mexico and has that latin charm.<BR><BR>Go! You'll have a blast!
Jan 9th, 2003, 10:46 AM
#6
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Laurie: I looked in my Mexico Apple Vacations book for resorts. This was Winter 2002 which I believe I got in 2001 so there may be a few more resorts to pick from today.<BR><BR>But from that book the Adult only AI's were the Aventura Palace (which was rated 6 golden apples - the best you can get) and Spa Palace (6 "regular" apples). Just to give you an idea of price which included hotel, airfare, food/drinks, and airport transfers, a week at AP was $1,700 and a week at SP was $1,930. There are less expensive resorts but they would accept kids. But depending in when you go, it may not be an issue. When we went at the end of October we hardly saw any kids so it wasn't an issue at all.<BR><BR>We stayed at an AI when we went. We did lots of things off the resort and still felt like we got our money's worth. Especially if you're drinkers
Jan 9th, 2003, 11:21 AM
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If you are single girls who like to party a little bit ,you would not want to go to adults only resorts like Aventura Palace & Spa...people who go there are mostly couples , honeymooners...and that place is far far away from Playa Del Carmen ( the ONLY town in the Mayan Riviera that has some shopping & nightlife ! ) The 4 hotels that you listed - I would choose the Gala , it on a nice beach toward the end strip of Playa Del Carmen ,so it's a little more relaxing , but yet you're close enough to go in town when you like a change of pace . Second choice is Copacabana ,nice beach too ,but much much further down South.- Barcelo is nice but it is also far from Playa Del Carmen & by itself ,nothing around , and Marival is on a bad beach , rocky , shallow, not for swimming. Hope this help
Jan 9th, 2003, 11:22 AM
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Laurie, I've been to both Punta Cana and PDC and, contrary to what most are writing, I consider them both to be great beach holidays. PDC is MUCH more commercialized and also much more expensive to go to. Yes, it has more "outside the resort" stuff but don't forget that each time you do "stuff" off the resort, it costs loads of money. If you want to do all that "stuff", your vacation costs will be a lot higher than Punta Cana and even basic package costs will be higher in the Mayan Riviera. <BR><BR>There's also the issue of weather. In the Mayan Riviera, the weather from June to November is hurricane season and the weather in December/January can be quite cool/sometimes very rainy!!! When do you plan on going? We've given up on the Mayan Riviera for anything but the spring break time frame (probably February to May would be great). We've paid sky high prices to be there are Xmas/New Year's only to have moderate/cool weather for 75% of our vacation....more than one year!!!! From now on, if you want better weather and it's mid-winter, we will always pick Punta Cana!!! It's always a bit hotter than the Mayan Riviera and it's the driest part of the Dominican Republic....you're almost guaranteed nice beach weather. As far as activities, there's PLENTY to do off the resort in Punta Cana....we took Quad rides, day diving/snorkelling trips, shopped in the local plaza as well as at the beach "tents" locals have set up along the empty stretches of coastline (no hassels on your actual resort beach). <BR><BR>If you still want to see the Mayan Riviera and it's NOT mid-winter, the best resort for you would be the Barcelo Maya....it's a lively, young resort.<BR><BR>If you pick the Punta Cana area, try SuperClubs Breezes or the Iberostars or the RIU's. Any would be great choices although we found SuperClubs more active (rock climbing wall, flying circus trapeze, ice skating rink on artificial surface, beach volleyball, bocce ball, etc.). <BR><BR>If you want "no children", you'll have a problem at both locations since your choices are far fewer!!<BR><BR>Whatever location you pick, both have their own charms and pros/cons. Enjoy the trip.
Jan 9th, 2003, 11:31 AM
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Just read the reply from moi and have to disagree about Copacabana vs Barcelo...both are a bit south of PDC but the Copa isn't nearly as good for young, single people. The Copa is much smaller (less chance of finding others your age) and much less active than the Barcelo. The Barcelo is widely recognized as having the best beach in the entire area. I've been to these resorts and think the Barcelo is better for your ages. Haven't been to the Gala but I understand it's a lot more $$$'s???? You can check out resort reviews at these websites:<BR>www.debbiescaribbeanresortreviews.com <BR>www.caribbeanopinion.net<BR>www/cancunandrivieramaya.com
Jan 9th, 2003, 12:15 PM
#12
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The best beaches in the Mayan Riviera are in Akumal - Akumal Beach hotel( casual but good , clean ) and also Oasis Akumal( not a good hotel )all wide , soft white sand , calm , sparkling clear aqua water , no rocks , no seaweed , lots of colorful fish ,nicer than beaches in Playa's or the Barcelo's (parts of that beach is rocky )but Akumal town is not much to do & see, way too small ,you would be closer to the ruins though .
Jan 12th, 2003, 04:23 PM
#13
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Hey Ladies, three single "boys" heading back to the DR 2nd week of march. Was there last Jan. at the Iberostar Bavaro All Suites and it was ab fab only problem was there was'nt any single people there so we made the best of it. But we said never again. WELL, how things have changed. 4 friends of ours just got back and said the place has totally turned around, partying every nite, lots of single people, not too many europeans, and just an all around great time. So we're heading back to the same resort, the Bavaro. I've been all around the Caribbean and DR was just as beautiful to me as was Mexico and Jamaica. Hope this helps.<BR>PS Last time we went to PDC we wished we stayed in cancun.
Jan 12th, 2003, 05:45 PM
#14
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I went with a girlfriend (both 28) to Playa Del Carmen last March - we had a blast! Playa was what we were looking for - relaxation, beautiful beaches, good town/nightlife. We stayed at the Riu Yucatan AI, which was nice and the food was acceptable, but there were a lot of couples and older people. The bonus is that you have access to 3 different resorts (but we never went to). Quick cab ride to downtown, but there are resorts that are much closer to town, so that might be more amenable to your needs if you're going to party, b/c nightlife at the resort wasn't that great and was usually quiet by 10. PDC is definitely recommended though!
Jun 13th, 2003, 11:31 AM
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Laurie, try posting your question on playadelcarmeninfo.com. It's a pretty good message board for things to do in Playa. If you are looking to do some heavy duty partying/clubing you may want to consider Cancun. We've been going to Playa for the past 10 years to get away from the <30 singles crowd. You will find many children in the AI resorts because most of them are free for kids and enterain them all day. I do know that The Gala had the best kids club so you may not want to stay there. My single friends stayed at one of the Rui resorts and had a blast. Then again if you are not going in the summer when kids are out of school you may not have such a problem. Playa is a cool place. Enjoy it.
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