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I have never considered, thought of or desired to stay at an all inclusive resort, but recently Ike and I had the opportunity to travel to Cancun, Mexico to shoot a wedding and joined the bride and groom and their families at Excellence Riviera Cancun in Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo., Mexico and there's a little part of me that feels like I may have played myself with my position.
When I travel, I love to take in as much of the local scenery, food and people as possible, but there was something so serene and peaceful about finding a spot and settling into really good from arrival to departure.
Although our stint to the Caribbean was short, I had the weekend of my life, but I wouldn't recommend traveling 16 hours RT for a weekend stay, but if you have to choose to spend a weekend in rainy Seattle or a weekend in Mexico, this is how you do it. We took an early four hour flight out of Sea-Tac International Airport, had a layover in Atlanta and travel another two hours before landing at Cancun International Airport. Upon our arrival, we met our driver, provided by At Your Service Cancun, and headed off to the resort.
When traveling to Cancun, I 100% recommend hiring a driver and loved how prompt and accommodating At Your Service was. Drivers are also available for excursions and traveling around the city, although we didn't take advantage of those services this trip, we will next time we are visiting Quintana Roo.
When we arrived to the hotel, we were greeted like superstars. Champagne in hand. Bags whisked away and we were told during our welcome "from this moment forward, you are on vacation. Do not worry about a thing." A weekend away from your kids, those are the exact words you want to hear when you arrive somewhere. Because we arrived so late, we walked around a bit, got the lay of the land, drink our champagne and then headed to our suite, ordered room service and settled in for the night. When we woke up the next morning, we got a chance to really see the resort and wow, were we impressed.
The resort was beautiful. Pristine even. Every detail considered and thought out and someone to tend to your every need. There really was an answer to everything and someone available to find the answer if it wasn't clear. There were 11 restaurants on site at our resort, pool & beach service and room service available for dining options - and it was all inclusive which means that it was free. In addition to the dining options, there were at least 6 different swimming pools plus the beach and a full spa.
When you wake up in the morning, you can visit what I would refer as the central point of the resort to see a schedule by hour of everything available on and off site for entertainment. Those options included snorkeling, cooking classes, dance lessons and excursions. It was really amazing and the best part of the resort was that it was adults only. Because Ike and I were in Cancun to shoot a wedding, our downtime was limited, but we still found time to enjoy breakfast every morning on our balcony, fly the drone, create content for Youtube, blogs and social media, swim and let the sun kiss our skin and feel the sand between our toes.
We had such a lovely time in Cancun and truly what took the cake was seeing this beautiful girl get married. I have known Makenzi since she was 5 or 6 years old (just a few years younger then my eldest daughter). I met her parents my first year of college. They were my dorm parents. All of these years, through all of the changes of life, we have kept in touch and when it came time for Kenzi to marry the love of her life, we were so honored to get the call. What a blessing to get to do life with people you love and to provide a gift that they will cherish for the rest of their lives and leave as a legacy to their families and doing in cool places like the Caribbean absolutely DOES NOT hurt.
So, although we have never done an all inclusive resort, I know this will not be the last time. Ike and I had such a wonderful time in Mexico and being with one another and re-connecting sans children was something we both needed. I would ABSOLUTELY go back and look forward to it. My only caveat is that the room service food was trash, but such a small complaint to make when in paradise. I certainly didn't go to Excellence for the room service food.
Have you ever been to an all inclusive resort? If so, where? Was it family friendly or adults only? Would you do it again? I need advice for our next one. Comment below and give me all the tea.
With strength, courage and wisdom,
Tash