sounds like your wife deserves the Royal Hideaway or Le Blanc to me ;)!

Have you considered that yur TA gets a much larger commission from a Palace Resort such as Moon Palace? That could explain why TA is giving it such high marks.

Here's an aerial of Moon Palace:
http://www.cancunmap.com/assist/moon_palace.html
It looks like a monstrasity to me.

Here is Royal Hideaway:
http://www.cancunmap.com/assist/royal_hideaway.html

Sounds to me...you should consider Azul near Puerto Morelos. The beach is better than Moon Palace, but not as great as Royal Hideaway.
http://www.locogringo.com/pto-morelo...Beach%20Resort

Wow, the more research I do the more confused I get. In looking at different travel sites I've found the Dreams Cancun Resort & the Riu Las Americas 4 star AI resorts for around $2500 for a week including air. Le Blanc & Royal Hideaway are at least 2k more(RH is actually 3k more BEFORE AIR). Secrets Capri was voted the best AI by Apple Vacations and I found prices around $3300 with limited searching. I'm lost as to what to do. I'd pull the trigger on a higher priced resort in a second if it really is "superior" but all of the places mentioned are rated the same in my travel magazines/brochures. Moon Palace has dropped in the list as I trust the opinions of the public more than 1 TA, because I've found out better options THANKS TO YOU !! I need a break my head is spinning(and yes Frankie there is plenty of empty space in my head for my mind to spin around)

badger, sounds like you're moving in the right direction. I personally would choose either Dreams or RiuPalace Las Amercas over Moon Palace...read a lot of reviews of these places on tripadvisor.com, and you'll get a good feel for these places.
You'll also want to decide if you want to be in Cancun or down the coast just a bit...I personally like both, and would rather stay in Cancun than be at a huge resort like the Moon Palace and be isolated.
Is a nice beach important?
Is nightlife important?
Do you like good food?
How much luxury do you expect in your lodgings?

I'd like us to have a nice beach so you could enjoy the water/view/fresh air and be able to take a walk without stepping on rocks all over. Nightlife isn't important as we are both "morning people"(I actually get up for work at 3:15 am so if I make it to 10 pm that's late!!) We want "good food" however it doesn't have to be some gourmet specialty that we can't figure out what we're eating.(hard to beat a good steak) Quality of resort is important because we have been SPOILED by the Sandals resorts. We've never been treated so well and enjoyed the "resort property" very much. That's what's making this so tough... we feel we know what to expect from Sandals and we were leaning towards Royal Bahamian but our TA suggested looking at Mexico's top rated AI's and this is where I'm at. If we choose Mexico and it falls well short of expectations I don't get a 2nd chance at our 25th anniversary(I'm a ZERO), however if it DOES meet our expectations I'm a HERO(well maybe a 1 or 2). So many choices, so little time.

I would just go back to Sandals with what you know to be what you like.

It sounds to me like you'd be really happy at LeBlanc. Check out reviews and pics on tripadvisor.com ...

Take a look into Royal Porto Real.

I like the Royal too. Beautiful, close to town (actually in town) and a great long beach to walk on.

BadgerRedd,
This is your 25th wedding anniversary trip. The posters on this board have recommneded what they think are wonderful AI resorts in Mexico, but you have to choose what you think is best for you. I have never been to Sandals, but if you have wonderful memories there and are concerned that another resort will not live up to those experiences, go with your gut feeling. You can always go to Mexico next year and make new memories.

tripadvisor.com
Helped us a lot.
Love the Palladium. Stayed there three times in MX and once in Punta Cana. I'm not sure if it would suit your needs, but check it out! ;)

The Palladium is not in the same category as the Royal Hideaway or LeBlanc...definitely a notch below, with mixed reviews.

After reading all the positives about the Le Blanc resort it has moved to #1 on our list. However, I have a couple more questions, are bugs a problem?(do I bring mosquito repellent?) and when should I book the trip?(What are the chances air prices go lower?) Any particular airline to avoid?(flying out of O'Hare, next May) Thanks to everybody for the tips/advice to help in planning our 25th anniversary trip!! We're looking forward to it already !!

Bugs should not be a problem.