Tips if you go to Cancun

lanoxrehab

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Just got back from a seven day trip. We stayed at an all inclusive resort and I was able to get out and get 2 rounds in. Just wanted to give some tips for anybody traveling first time to Cancun. I spent more money than I should of, but I'll know better next time.

1. The resort I stayed at offer a complimentary "free" round of golf daily. It is why I chose this resort. I mean who on this website doesn't like free golf ? There was an asterisk which I was aware of *got to pay for the golf cart of either $85 or $55 a round depending on the time of day. So I played in the afternoon and paid $55. Afternoon golf near the equator is....hot and humid. Not remotely like the high elevation Salt Lake City.

Another thing I learned is that the resort is not near the golf course so I had to pay $30 round trip each day to get there. So my "free golf" was $85/round. Not bad, since I'm on vacation, but next time I'll stay at a resort that offers "free complimentary round of golf" that also provides "free complimentary transportation".

2. Tips. You tip everybody for everything. Bring lots of $1 bills. I brought fifty of them and ran out.

3. To me, the excursions were not worth the money. I did a all day catamaran trip and another one visited Tulum Ruins and then went to a water park afterwards. My wife and I are late fifties and wasn't our thing. The Tulum/waterpark ran us $300. I kept thinking I'd rather have $300 and play golf three times.

4. You have to wear long pants and dress shoes to go to the restaurants in an all-inclusive resort. Gaberdine wool pants don't mix well with Cancun in July.

5. We packed WAY too much. Light pants, nice shoes, swim trunks, sneaks and flip flops and two pair of shorts and shirts is all I needed.

6. Bring your own Advils/Motrin/diarrhea pills. 6 Imodium's ran $25 (when you got to have 'em you got to have 'em at any cost)

Overall we had a blast and signed up for a vacation package, so I'll be going back at least once a year.
 
Tips if you go to Cancun

I’m still here in Cancun until Monday. Hot and humid is understatement. No golf just too humid.
Having blast riding boat. Kids love water activity. Did some shopping at Market 28.
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My wife and had a wonderful time there a few years ago, and were planning to go back. However, there seems to be an increase in crime. How do you feel when out an about? Safe? Of course common sense comes into play here, but wondering from those that have been there recently


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We did the Tulum & Xcaret tour, and I would have much rather taken a cab to Tulum and spent the day walking around.
- the tour of Tulum was super short, and you had maybe 10 minutes spare time
- Xcaret is tubing and swimming and stuff like that.... great if you want to do that. We went because we thought it was more of a nature thing...... sorely disappointed.
 
Tulum is cool, but from what I remember it is really small. If you want to do a tour I’d recommend Chichen Itzá. They don’t let you climb the pyramid anymore, but when I was young we got to and it was incredible. The view was outstanding and something I’ll never forget. Too bad you can’t do it anymore. If you like clubbing I’d highly recommend The City. Still one of my favorite clubs I’ve been to (even if it was a scam with “free drinks” but they will refuse to serve you and ignore you unless you tip). Idk if it’s changed though, I last went to Cancun about 6 yrs ago
 
Went to play del Carmen for honeymoon in June a couple years ago. Can confirm may of the suggestions

Some excursions are cool and you can negotiate price I believe. We did xcaret (the huuuuge park that has a lot of attractions, animals, cool aquarium, and a not so lazy river through caves and such). We also did snorkeling.. tip for that, get an empty water bottle and stuff it with bread that morning, bring it out into the water then open the cap to take in water, and squeeze out the bread... Fish come right up to you for the bread

Of course my wife is petrified of things like that so I dumped 3 bottles of bread right on her in the nurse shark "tank" and there were just a hundred fish surrounding her for a good few minutes

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My wife and had a wonderful time there a few years ago, and were planning to go back. However, there seems to be an increase in crime. How do you feel when out an about? Safe? Of course common sense comes into play here, but wondering from those that have been there recently


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It wasn't even a thought for us, but we are not adventure types and stayed in the crowd. I did get approached four times to buy pot.
 
Tips if you go to Cancun

We’ve done the DR and Puerto Vallarta numerous times over the years. Learned early- it’s a vacation from everything including golf. Just too much hassle to bring the clubs to maybe play once. I can rent a surfboard there for a few bucks a day if there are any waves.
Tipping is an art at “all-inclusive” resort. First night tip everyone well, especially the bartender you will see the most in the evening and the beach guy during the day. Greasing the wheel will get you better service for the rest of the week. Almost every time I gave each of them a 10 the first day AND asked for their names, they would have our drinks ready as we walked up to the bar or to our palapa on the beach. And even before all this DR stuff came up lately, we NEVER drank liquor from the in-room self serve dispensers. Only sealed beers or the small wines in the room fridge. The only excursions we would do were the Quad bikes or Horseback riding. I think I did a half day offshore fishing trip in the DR and all I caught was a buzz from all the beer.
Only real issue I ever had was getting dragged over the reef after a wipeout. Luckily, it was a dead reef so no little organisms to cause infections. Just back to the bar for lots of limes to squeeze the juice into the cuts and scrapes to initially clean them up. After that, just used the Purell that is everywhere.
Other than that- even attempting to converse in my limited Spanish went a long way to getting much better service than the ‘ugly American’ who just yelled louder in English trying to get what they want. Yes, I KNOW most of them can understand English, at least a little- but treating them with respect as opposed to servants will make your trip so much better.


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Cancun is a favorite of ours!

We loved Tulum and XelHa Park excursion. Incredible day of swimming, cliff diving, eating and just enjoying the outdoors.

Chichen Itza is also amazing....but the long bus ride can certainly be a drain. Worth to do it at least once! Stopping at the little town for lunch on the way down is great as well. Watching Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom made it even better!
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the Xplor park is awesome if you like zip lining, swimming, eating, and enjoying the outdoors. Such a cool experience.
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There's LOTS of stuff to buy....and Negotiating is key! There were MANY things that started out at $50USD and I got for under $10. And most likely, if you don't get it at that moment, you'll see it at the next stop.

Time Shares exist at many of the properties and while I don't recommend buying one, I do recommend spending 2 hours watching the presentation if there's a great gift included. We received a nice gift certificate to a restaurant downtown and also a free snorkeling excursion. Well worth it for us.

Bring sunscreen.... enough said.

HYDRATE!! Alcohol and fruity drinks go down easy at all inclusive resorts. Make sure you're staying hydrated, or your trip may not be so great.... And you hear not to drink the water. We didn't have any issues and there were always signs telling you if you shouldn't drink the water. But you can always get bottled water instead.

Tipping $1 in Mexico goes a LONG way with people. At least $50 in dollar bills will make for great service and a wonderful experience with the staff. Tip the housekeeping. They do a great job and it's even better if they get a buck or two!

Beware of in room safes. We didn't have any issues...but there seem to unfortunately be a LOT of stories...and some of them have been first hand from friends.

Check with your cell phone company as often times they have a cheap international plan that you can use....although we like to be off the grid and use our phones for mainly just pictures during our stay. WIFI is usually not the greatest in hotels from our experiences.

Staying on the ocean side is a better beach experience than staying on the lagoon side.
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It rains once a day usually. But the sun comes back out. :)

Catch the sea turtles laying eggs if you can. It's amazing!
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Now I want to catch a plane to Cancun....
 
Uber is in many parts of Mexico and is WAY cheaper than cabs. The resorts discourage them, so best to walk a block away and then hail an Uber.

Most all-inclusives don't require pants, or if they do, it's limited to the one fine dining restaurant on site. Totally right about the tipping; it's expected everywhere (and VERY appreciated). We get a fist full of singles whenever we go. Also, if you happen to go to a local grocery store, the baggers do not get paid a wage; they are working exclusively for tips.

Typically, you can book excursions outside of the resorts for much cheaper.

We've lived in Mexico much of the past 2 years and we're headed back down for 5 more months in September - we absolutely love it!
 
Echoing the bring sunscreen tip, bring more sunscreen than you think you'll need. My wife and I ran out on our 2nd to last day and it was like $50/bottle in the resort gift shop.
 
Wife & I and another couple went to Riviera Maya Valentin Imperial for 6 days/nights at the beginning of March. Didn't make it out for golf. There's a par 3 course nearby and Iberostar Playa Paraiso is just down the road.

In fact we didn't leave the resort. It was pretty nice. Top notch eats & drinks at an adults only, all-inclusive was just what the doctor ordered. We did have to wear pants to dinners, except the buffets on the plaza which were Monday & Thursday nights I think. There was entertainment every night (magic show, dancers/ burlesque/local dancing/cover bands). The pool was amazing.

Really impressed by the food. Some of the best meals I've had in my life. Its not place to get cheeseburgers or American style food. But if you like French style (smaller portions, heavy on flavor) it was phenomenal...

Tips: I took 20 $5's & 100 $1's and come home with most of the $5 and handed out a majority of $1's... Bartenders/wait staff really responded to a couple singles...
 
Wife & I and another couple went to Riviera Maya Valentin Imperial for 6 days/nights at the beginning of March. Didn't make it out for golf. There's a par 3 course nearby and Iberostar Playa Paraiso is just down the road.

In fact we didn't leave the resort. It was pretty nice. Top notch eats & drinks at an adults only, all-inclusive was just what the doctor ordered. We did have to wear pants to dinners, except the buffets on the plaza which were Monday & Thursday nights I think. There was entertainment every night (magic show, dancers/ burlesque/local dancing/cover bands). The pool was amazing.

Really impressed by the food. Some of the best meals I've had in my life. Its not place to get cheeseburgers or American style food. But if you like French style (smaller portions, heavy on flavor) it was phenomenal...

Tips: I took 20 $5's & 100 $1's and come home with most of the $5 and handed out a majority of $1's... Bartenders/wait staff really responded to a couple singles...

Wife and I have been there twice....great resort and plus 1 on the food!
 
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