Help request, first trip to Mexico Cancun area.
 

Can anyone help narrow down the options? We'll fly into the Cancun airport & would like to stay right on a good beach. We're looking to travel in Feb. and only have 1 week, budget about $2,500 - $3,500 for airfare & hotel. This trip is all about R & R. We'd prefer a quieter environment, best case scenario would be a smaller resort or hotel, adults only & a kitchen but would consider an AI. We'd like to avoid renting a car. Should we be looking in the Rivera Maya area? Does anyone have a particular favorite place to recommend?

You can stay right in the hotel zone of Cancun (which is a little more like Miami Beach than Mexico). Or you can head down the coast to the area around Playa del Carmen. It's only an hour and you can get busses and shuttles, you wouldn't need to rent a car. Taking the ferry and staying on Isla Mujeres is another option for a more laid-back place.

suze, thank you. Do you have any resort or hotel suggestions? Can you tell me how long, with ferry, to Isla Mujeres once we clear customs? Taxi prices? It will be a long travel day & we won't be up to navigating the bus system right off the plane.

We could enjoy the hotel zone if we can find the right place. I know what you're saying about Miami Beach, but with only a week it might make sense to minimize extra travel. We had a great time in Miami Beach, stayed at the National, a nice older art deco hotel a 10 minute walk on the beach from Ocean Ave., and that was fine. Something similar would be wonderful!

We're staying at Hotel Bel Air in Cancun for three days in April. Haven't actually been there yet, but it is adults only, smaller minimalist decor hotel on the beach, a bit south of the main beach hotel strip, and there is an AI package available. The infinity pool and beach seem to be very nice. You can google "Bel Air Collection Cancun" and get an idea of what it looks like.

Nope, sorry. I'm no help. I usually vacation in Puerto Vallarta, the west coast side. I just know a bit about the lay-of-the-land over that area from trips I've considered and from reading travel forums. Hopefully the real experts will chime in soon.

Different areas provide different benefits. Cancun provides great restaurants, shopping, nightlife, swimmable beaches, and Isla Mujeres. First place south of Cancun is Puerto Morelos, a sleepy little fishing town with great reef diving. At the other end of the Riviera Maya are places like Akumal and Tulum, which are beautiful, laid back places.

The message board at Locogringo.com is an invaluable resource for planning a trip to the Riviera Maya. All your questions will be answered there.

I've only been to the area once, but the further south you go down the coast, the quieter it becomes. You can find quite a few small, adults only, AIs I believe that will suit you. If you do go south of Cancun, do be sure to visit Akumal - I absolutely fell in love with that little beach town.

Katie,

Here is the website for a travel agent who is something of an expert in that area. Her name is AnnaLynne and we used her last time and she was great. She is a contributor to many travel forums for the Riviera Maya and is a wealth of information. She can definitely point you in the right direction. Check it out.

http://www.lonepalmtravel.com/

Book a pickup with a transfer company like USATransfer and you won't have to worry about gettting to your destination. They will greet you at the exit from the airport and take you to your resort and then schedule a resort pickup for your return. We used USATransfer last week and they were great.

You can also look at the TripAdvisor Playa del Carmen forum. It's very active.

Thank you all for this wealth of information! I'm heading off to work and will set aside time this evening to follow all these great suggestions. Birdie, thanks for the recommendation for USATransfer, it's just what we'll need when we get off the plane. And gmoney, I took a quick look at lonepalmtravel & look forward to reading through the site this evening.

Katie,

There is another really good website called:

www.playa.info

there is a wonderful forum on this site. AnnaLynne is one of the moderators on this site. Her screen name is Shammy and if you do a search on her screen name you will get a wealth of information on both her and the area. I went to this site many many times when I was researching the area. I have been there twice and have stayed at Barcelo both times. We loved it there but it is not Adult only. Hope you have a great trip!

We're close to booking, thanks to all here. I contacted AnnaLynne and she was able to offer a non-stop charter out of our small, local airport. That's very attractive to us - usually have at least one stop over and got bumped overnight in Philadelphia last year on our way to Barbados. We're considering Secrets resorts (probably Capri or Silversands, it's a "square deal" where you don't find out which until just before), anyone have any first hand experience with them?

Neither Capri or Silversands has a good beach. They have a beach but IMHO I would not consider them good. If looking for a good beach, look at Secrets Maroma or Iberostar Grand. Also, next to Secrets Maroma is Catalonia Playa Maroma and further south is Catalonia Royal Tulum, both on good beaches.

I am staying right now at LIVE AQUA, which has a gorgeous wide beach, and a mostly adult,quiet, spa-like environment,with 8 pools and fantastic health club. It's a five-star hotel, but I got a very good deal on it at SKOOTCH.com. Anyway, I can't rave about it enough. JETBLUE also sometimes offers this hotel with one of its vacation packages. Definitely worth checking out! I am already planning to return next winter.