I am looking for a hotel in Cancun for my family. Has anyone ever gone with 2 children ages 11 and 13 (or close)? <BR>Does anyone have suggestions? <BR>Are the all-inclusives the way to go? Or EP and eat anywhere at your leisure?<BR>I am doing this on a budget so I cannot get to spendy!<BR>Thanks in advance!

AI would come in handy especially if they eat a lot as some teens do. I would look into PDC area. Not sure when you are going but this area has many AI which may fit into your budget. Try applevacations.com for package deals.

I stayed at the Intercontinental Presidente hotel which is on the best beach in Cancun. It is not AI but the hotel is very reasonable. It is also near a supermarket where you can buy many snacks and drinks for during the day and it is in walking distance to many restaurants that are in all ranges including fast food and medium priced plus a great all you can eat place for breakfast called Sanbornes. I found this to be much less money than AI.

I have been to both Cancun and the Rivera Maya. I must say that I think that for a family the rivera Maya ( south of Cancun) is a much better palce with better beaches and more opportunities for adventure and activities. As for the hotel, there are many great resorts in the area, your best bet may be a package deal . I used Sunquest and was extremely happy with them, and I also recieved a great price. All inclusives are great, but there are so many great restaurants in the area. However, nothing is really cheap , including food , so an all inclusive may work best if you are on a budget.<BR>Have a great time !

If I am able to take my kids to Mexico one day - 15 and 10, I would definitely do AI. For them to have all the virgin fruity drinks they want, would just make their vacation. I am more confident in not getting sick with eating at a big resort than the smaller privately owned restaurants. Depending on the deal, AI is definitely cheaper than eating out. My husband and I returned from Porto Real in Playa Del Carmen and in low season paid a total of $135 for two (not airfare) per night. With eating and drinking, we felt like our overnight stay was free. I know prices are higher now though. Have not been to Cancun but would take my kids to Playa in a heart beat. Excursions closer like Xel-Ha and Xcaret. Good luck!

One more thing, I said I prefered Playa Del Carmen. Whether it matters or not if you have boys, on the beach occurs in Playa Del Carmen but not as much in Cancun.

I think Laurie left out part of her post and she was referring to the fact that topless ladies are common in PDC and that the teenage boys may be distracted by that. Not so common in Cancun.

Oops yes - topless was left out - either by me or can my home computer delete it if I have cybersitter? Wierd - but yes not so likely to find topless in Cancun I think. Thanks Louis.

Try renting at one of the Royal Resorts in Cancun. They are full condos and you can prepare your own meals in the regular sized kitchen with full facilities (grocery store on site). Even if you only prepare breakfast and lunch, and have snacks/sodas on hand in the refrigerator, and eat out for dinner, you can save a lot of money. Check out the websites: www.royalresorts.com, www.royalresortscancun.com, www.royalresortsvacations.com. Also you can rent from www.cheapcaribbean.com. We have travelled to Cancun with our three children of comparable ages (and older) 3X and we love it. Best beaches around!

Hi there. We just returned from a family vacation at the Omni at Cancun. IT WAS WONDERFUL... the staff was superb and the facilities, albeit a bit dated, were very very clean. We rented a three bedroom, three and a half bath villa on the ocean #1001... it had a large kitchen, dining room, living room with cable tv and three large bedrooms. Kids used the pools and beach all day... we did NOT do all inclusive because during the holidays it was $100/person a day. Call DIRECT to the hotel for best rates--I spoke with Alma in reservations..

Definitely Moon Palace. Our family (incl. 2 kids, ages 10 and 13) went last April with 2 other families with similarly-aged kids. Everyone had a blast -- the adults could sunbathe and visit the swim-up bars, the older kids took scuba lessons, and our 10-yr. old and his buddy went to the on-site miniature golf course nearly every day. There was a lot to do -- beach and pool volleyball, soccer, water aerobics etc., plus every water sport you can think of. All the Palace resorts are AI and it's definitely worth it, esp. with kids. Then you don't feel bad when they want a soda every half-hour or a hotdog at 3 p.m. You can get food &amp;/or drinks literally all day and all night. After a couple days the older kids were going off in a group to eat where they wanted (@ 6 restaurants on-site), and we felt comfortable with that. The Moon Palace beach is NOT nice but they offer free shuttle transportation to their 2 other properties down in town, where the beach is really nice. Our AI plan included 2 excursions -- we did boat ride to Isla de Mujeres, which was a lot of fun. If the Moon is too pricey you could stay at the Sun Palace (nice) or Beach Palace (not as nice), then take the shuttle and go spend a day at the Moon.