In today’s Testimonial Tuesday post, Dora shares with us her first business trip as a Weddings By Oceans’ Cyber Maid of Honour! She’s just come back from visiting Mexico to personally review resorts in Cancun and the Mayan Riviera for your consideration when choosing a property for your destination wedding.
Hola las novias futuras!
On November 7th, 2009, I had the pleasure of taking part in my very first FAM (Familiarization) trip to Cancun and Riviera Maya to inspect 14 resorts. Being new to the industry I had no idea what to expect, never the less, I was fully pumped with adrenaline and eager to begin this learning experience.
The FAM was lead by Transat Holidays and the Transat Team (comprised of a member of their sales team, reservations team and product training team) did an exceptional job. Their friendly, outgoing personalities, upbeat energy and organization skills all supported the positive reputation of the Transat/Nolitours Company.
Even the check-in staff for Transat at Pearson Airport was super friendly and made the check-in process smooth as butter!
The resorts inspected on this trip are among Transat’s “top seller” properties:
- Moon Palace
- Sun Palace
- NH Krystal Cancun
- Barceló Costa Cancun
- Bahia Principe Coba/Akumal
- Grand Palladium (Colonial/Kantenah/White Sands)
- NH Riviera Cancun Le Mirage
- Occidental Grand Xcaret
- Catalonia Playa Maroma
- Ocean Turquesa
- Allegro Playacar
- Aventura Spa Palace/Cove Palace
- Ocean Maya
- Barceló (Maya Palace, Colonial, Maya Beach)
All the properties I inspected met and exceeded their reputations. They were clean and well-kept, and I recommend all of them to anyone looking to visit Mexico.
However, special mention goes to 3 properties that blew me away. More specifically, the main reason I fell in love with them is because they are all perfect for holding a destination wedding!
The Bahia Principe Riviera Maya Resort
This property is a true gem and made up of 3 sections: the Akumal, Tulum and Coba. Transat offers the Coba (Royal Golden) section which includes full access to the other 2 sections, excluding some of a la carte restaurants.
All sections are accessible with trams running from section to section approximately every 10 minutes. The resort is well maintained and clean, and features authentic Mayan architecture in its large open air concept lobbies and restaurants.
T
he resort has a very long stretch of beach with powdery white sand and turquoise water with minimal amounts of seaweed, tons of palapas and beach chairs, making it a perfect spot for beach lovers.
For those who prefer to lounge by the pool there are 7 pools to choose from, 2 of them located in the Coba section, 3 of them in Tulum section and 2 more in the Akumal section.
The accommodations are set up in low-rise buildings, the rooms in the Coba section are junior suites and all have a main bedroom area with a separate sitting area. As soon as you step in the door you get that wow factor because of the beautiful warm colours of the room typical to Mexican design.
The Royal Golden service in the Coba section is exclusive to Transat Holidays and it gives guests amenities that they wouldn’t normally get, such as 4 a la carte dinners at the specialty restaurants (Italian, Mediterranean, Japanese, and International), slippers and house coats in the rooms, and 24hr room service.
We had the pleasure of dining at one of the buffets at this resort and it was the best food I’ve eaten at any all-inclusive resort by far. The selection of food was endless, including a wok station, a section dedicated for kids and another featuring healthier choices. This was the first time I’ve seen a buffet that caters to niche markets.
The service is excellent, staff is friendly, food is amazing and the lush gardens and wedding gazebos make this resort the perfect place for wedding groups looking for a beautiful place to get married on the beach.
The Aventura Spa Palace Resort
This is by far the most breath taking resort I’ve visited. This is a couples resort, as the price point is higher than other resorts in the area, and the Spa section is Adults Only (18+). The other section of the resort is the Cove section and caters mainly to families.
The luxurious accommodations feature wireless internet (at no charge), specially designed Palace© beds, double Jacuzzi , satellite TV, 24hr. room service, bio silk toiletries in every bathroom, fully stocked mini fridge, liquor cabinet and free long distance calling to Canada and the US.
The Advertura Spa Palace encompasses about 85 acres of spacious lawns, colourful gardens and charismatic architectural features like the cascading fountain in the central courtyard. The interior of the resort is very stylish and is reminiscent of Mexican hacienda style construction. It offers an exotic outdoor location ideal for weddings or indoor facilities that feature personalized banquet service.
Lagoon-style beaches surround the property perfect for snorkeling and kayaking, in addition, there are 5 pools, 2 outdoor pools with swim-up bars, a separate lap pool, a cross current pool with a sun terrace and an indoor liquid sound pool. Other facilities include a rock climbing wall, 14- obstacle fitness course, yoga hut, and meditation garden.
A must mention is the resort’s renowned spa facilities featuring 95 treatment rooms, with about 12 massage rooms that are located in enclosed outdoor palapas with water views creating the ultimate feeling of tranquility. The Spa facilities offer a hydrotherapy room with a eucalyptus-scented sauna, cinnamon-scented steam room and a Jacuzzi for the ultimate relaxing experience.
Overall, the friendly, attentive personal service that is found here distinguishes Palace Resorts from other 5 star chains.
The Barceló Maya Palace Resort
Like the saying goes, save the best for last!
The Palace is the latest and most impressive section of the Barceló Maya complex and truly offers the most value for price. This section of the hotel is exclusive, so guests staying at the other sections do not have access to the Palace section; however guests staying in this section have full access to the entire resort.
The Palace section has almost 800 junior suites. The rooms are a bit larger than the standard junior suite and are very tastefully decorated with subtle colours, modern furniture and a bathroom that features a tub and stand-up shower.
This property has the widest beach found in the Mayan Riviera, with soft white sand and crystal clear water. There are numerous pools including an adult’s only pool with a swim-up bar and children’s water park. The pools are large clean and offer many lounge chairs.
The hotel has 8 restaurants 3 a la carte featuring gourmet food, 2 buffets and 1 beach grill as well as 2 more restaurants that open during high season. Having sampled the food first-hand, it is absolutely remarkable and the service to go along with it is first-rate.
The wedding packages and overall architecture and design of this section distinguish it from the others and make it a highly attractive spot for destination weddings.
Conclusion
The overall experience I had on this trip was unforgettable. My expectations were surpassed and I met a lot of amazing people in the travel industry.
It is time that everyone put aside their worries about H1N1 because let’s face it: Mexico is no longer the only country dealing with this flu virus. The same precautions we have been using in Canada to avoid the spread of the virus are being used in Mexico. For instance, they have hand sanitizer easily available to guests around the resort.
I highly recommend Cancun/Mayan Riviera for anyone planning a destination wedding. It is among the most beautiful locales in the world with some of the loveliest resorts guaranteed to please any Beachside couple and their guests!
Have you been to any of the 14 resorts mentioned in this post? Please share with us your personal experience in the comments below.
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