sgregs

My husband and I are considering a Mexican adult vacation. We're open to all-inclusive, or not. We are thinking about going in early December, and don't really know which part of the country to target. Is the Pacific side better? The Carribean?

We are looking for a relaxing, small, luxruy resort (which isn't too pricey) where we can relax, drink, and enjoy the beach. Not interested in "hedonism", crowds, or a big party scene.

Any ideas? We don't really know where to start!

Thank you.

suze

The ocean/beach is prettier on the Caribbean side. There is also a larger selection of All-Inclusive resorts available. Look at the "Mayan Riviera" area, flying into Cancun then south towards Playa del Carmen and along that coastline down towards Akumal and Tulum.

Personally I love the Pacific coast (Puerto Vallarta is my favorite place) but the ocean/sand is not as picturesque on that side. If you might be interested look at Villa Premiere, it's the nicest hotel in downtown PV w/ an optional AI available. December is usually perfect weather in PV.

suze

I'm surprised you've gotten no more suggestions. I'm wondering if by "adult" in your title, people thought you meant the other kind of adult-type resort (like a Hedonism or clothing optional)?

JoniC

Check out The Tides Riviera Maya located south of Cancun. It is a beautiful place. Mostly honeymoon couples. Very quiet and relaxing, and incredible staff who will cater to your every whim. Not a party animal or disco in sight (or sound).

Food and drinks are excellent and everything is purified so no worries about getting sick.

The only thing you may not like is the price, but personally I'd go for less time just for the experience. We stayed 6 nights and loved every minute of it.

JoniC

shirleyk

Maroma Beach Resort and El Dorado Maroma are both small luxury hotels south of Cancun. Maybe 60 - 70 rooms each. The Caribbean side of Mexico is calmer and bluer than the Pacific side which IMHO is rough and gray.

KVR

We are returning in December to the Playa del Carmen area. We have chosen the Mahekal Beach Resort. They are bungalows directly on the beach. They are modest accomendations. No phones, TV's or other electronics. They offer a modified AI plan that includes a full breakfast and either lunch or dinner. Alcohol is not included, but in the area it's much less expensive than other destinations. It's located about a 15 minute walk from 5th Avenue, where you will find tons of resturants, bars, entertainment and shopping. It's not adults only, which we prefer, but have found that before the Christmas break there really aren't that many children.

http://www.mahekalplaya.com/

Other options to look at: Las Palapas, Playa Maya, Le Reve, Petit Lafitte

KatW

I'd add that if you're at all interested in a SWIMMING beach (and I am!), then you'll want the Caribbean coast of Mexico. Most of the Western Mexican coasts (including Baja) just are not safely swimmable -- rip tides, undertows, dangerous currents, etc. I, too, highly recommend Mahekal in Playa del Carmen.

I do love the western Mexico coasts but not for swimming. Favorite places are Case Que Canta in Zihua, Las Alamandas on the Costa Alegre, Casa Natalia in San Jose del Cabo.

liamw

I've been to the Pacific coast and to the Mayan Riviera in several occasions. Both places are romantic and somehow magical!
My last trip to Mexico was in May, stayed in Cancun for a couple of nights but then to a beautiful resort just 15 minutes from Playa del Carmen, luxurious and surrounded by a lush jungle and a nature park, the place is called Hacienda Tres Rios (http://www.haciendatresrios.com) and in my opinion, is perfect for a romantic getaway.
If you decide to visit the Pacific coast, stay at the Banyan Tree Cabo Marques in Acapulco. It's a great hotel!
Good luck and have a great trip to Mexico.

thumper56

I perfer Playa del Carmen. The caribbean ocean is beautiful and great for swimming, snorkling and just plain having fun.
I have stayed at a few resorts there. The Royal was by far the best! It's AI but there are several restaurants to choose
from and all of them are outstanding! It is literally a 3min.
walk to 5th Ave. where there is lots of shopping, restaurants
and interesting people.
You can also take a ferry to Cosumel and check that out. We rented a car and drove around the Island. The shopping is a bit cheaper there.
I have also been to Tullum. Other than the ruins(which are fantastic) Tullum is kinda boring. The beaches are rocky and the town itself is rather small.
That's my 2 cents. Have a great trip!

school_gurl

The El Dorado Resorts at are an AMAZING OPTION! The El Dorado Maroma is going to be the smallest of the resorts, but probably more expensive than the El Dorado Seaside Suites or El Dorado Royale. If you're going in early December, I highly recommend calling up one of the travel agents at Fox World Travel (gofox.com) because I just got an email that they are offering a free room upgrade to anyone who books by next week and travels before December something. They were also giving you free candlelight dinners and free massages, so hey, sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me! Another option I've been told is amazing is the Secrets Maroma or Secrets Capri for adults-only. Otherwise The Royal Cancun.

KVR

If you want an adult's only AI, I agree with school_gurl. We have stayed at the Royal Playa del Carmen and the El Dorado Seaside Suites (back when it was the El Dorado Resort and Spa) I would love to stay at the El Dorado Maroma as the beach there is fantastic and that hotel is very small compared to some others, but the price is outragous (at least for us)

The El Dorado SSS is out in the middle of nowhere, so if you don't mind not being close to the town of Playa or 5th Avenue it's something to consider. They beach there wasn't that great either.

I also second the Secrets resorts. Secrects Maroma gets great reviews, but again more money than we are willing to spend.

We've done the AI thing there so many times that we thought we'd do a boutique hotel this time and compare. Either way, I don't think you could go wrong. It just depends on your preference.

schmerl

You may also want to look into the Catalonia Royal Tulum. It is a smaller adults only all incluusive resort on a BEAUTIFUL beach. Good food and service. It's a quiet resort...not much going on at night.

slz289

Hey my boyfriend and I are going mid-December and wanting to go to Playa Del Carmen to an adults-only resort for some relaxation and to check out the cenotes again!

KVR, you mentioned that you've stayed at two resorts which I am seriously considering and trying to debate between - Royal Playa del Carmen and the El Dorado Seaside Suites. What is your opinion on these two in particular?

Here are things important to me: romantic, ability to request a dinner on the beach, great food, decent options for food 24-7, a decent beach, great staff, ability to hang out with other couples, I want to get a sunset/sunrise picture of the two of us, and I would like there to be hammocks to use. And, we don't want to spend TOO much (the ones mentioned are pushing the limit on the budget) as we are going for 10 days.

If anyone else has any great suggestions, I would appreciate it too!

KVR

Between The Royal and El Dorado SSS, the Royal wins hands down for us. However, when we stayed at the El Dorado SSS, it was way before they did any of the nice renovations they have now. But, I did not like the location or the beach and that's something a renovation can not change.

The food at the Royal was the best of any AI we've been to, but we tend to go low-mid budget. The Royal was a splurge. We had a hammock on our patio, the beach has been re-done since we've been there. Food options 24-7 with a self serve buffet and drink station 24 hours. No reservations for the resturants, which is a huge deal for us. I'm sure the concierge can set you up with a private dinner. A 5 minute walk to 5th Avenue. Excellant location.

Also look at Secrets Maroma or the Iberostar Grand Parsiao. Both get really great reviews. Might be a little more expensive.

Have you checked Orbitz for pricing? Enter the promo code 200ENTERTAIN for $200 off a 7+ night trip.

slz289

Thanks so much for the response. I'll check out those other two you mentioned, but the Royal is now definitey the front runner! Thanks for the tip on Orbitz too!

andrews98682

I've been to Cancun and Puerto Vallarta and I prefer Puerto Vallarta. It has a much more Mexican feel and I disagree about the beaches not being as nice. Particularly where I stayed, at the Barcelo in Mismaloya (site where Night of the Iguana was filmed). The water was great for snorkeling when it was calm; it can get rough on the Caribbean side, too.

travelenthusiast

KVR - I never heard of Mahekal Beach Resort but their website looks great. I'll have to keep it in mind for a later trip.

KVR

travelenthusiast, we ended up not booking there after all. We waited to late to book (waiting for vacation approval from my job) and they ran out of the lowest catagory rooms. Wasn't going to pay extra for the next level. We ended up booking at Playa Palms instead for a much lower price. Closer to 5th and they have TV's. The Mahekal used to be the Shangri-La.

travelenthusiast

Thanks. Playa Del Carmen is on my short list for the next few years.

missesbueno

We had enjoyed Isla Mujeres, Cozumel and Akumal on the Carribe for many years when we took a cruise from Ca. to Acapulco scoping out the beaches all the way up to Puerta Vallarta for new places to go. Since then we have gone over 10 times staying in large and small resorts, private homes with pools and tiny hotels.
For intimate resorts with good swimming, easy beaching and good services I would recommend 2 at the top:
Grand Bay in Isla de Navidad sits on it's own island. Highlight was climbing on a small boat every morning to go have breakfast in Barra de Navidad at the street cafes. The hotel is in a world of its own right next to one of Mexicos quaint towns with lots to do and see. If you want luxuries, comfort and 4star, this is a good starting point for exploring the area north of Manzanillo to Puerta Vallarta.
The next is El Careyes, which has great services, a beautiful pool and quiet secluded beach where the water just laps at your feet calling you to wade. It is north of Barra de Navidad. The layout of buildings is fun to explore and next to a hillside development of homes looking more European than Mexican. You can wander thru this on the winding path between the hotel and the next beach and find a great little spot to have lunch at the other end. The hotel will arrange for sailing, golfing and touring to the nearby villages, but you really don't want to leave except for sailing or golfing at El Tamarindo. We spent an afternoon there also with the guys golfing and us laying by the pool...both first class hotels.
One of the reasons I stopped to read your message was the request for an adult resort which made me smile - I had placed a similar post about 10 yrs. ago and found a very interesting place also in the same general area of Mexico.
Punta Serena is a small resort - 8-10 spacious rooms all with beautiful cliffside views of the ocean. But, it also was clothing optional and I couldn't handle these words as it's not something we Americans are used to. I kept ignoring the site but it was too beautiful to ignore and finally I called and asked what was on my mind: Can I wear a bathing suit and do people walk around naked everywhere? The manager was very patient with my ?'s and tried to explain it, yes, people wear clothes, but if they feel like it they may not and there is a very private beach for doing whatever you choose. He probably was rolling his eyes the whole time at my probing; but, there are plenty places advertised as such and this isn't at all what we had in mind.
We ended up taking the trip, stayed a week in pure paradise. They have huge cliffside hot pools where you can soak and have cocktails brought to you, great pool for swimming in between sunbathing and yes, a private beach to bare it all which felt pretty good.
It was the best all-inclusive ever as the food was to order and a feast for the eyes - they even made fresh ceviche for us when it wasn't on the menu. The restaurant was open air with 360 views. It also included cocktails, so we enjoyed the service in the pools and since there were only 10 people staying the bartender got to know you quickly. They also had a sweat lodge which was a whole experience and another whole story - it, like the clothing is an option and you do not have to participate, but we are glad we were offered this experience and will cherish it along with a boat ride where we saw tons of wildlife. These too were included in our room rate which was very reasonable compared to other hotels.
I apologize for my winded suggestions, when you love places as much as we do these, you want to share.