In the Planning Stages, but....

Hello, just spent the afternoon reading many many posts. Mr. Swensbud and I, along with 2 or 3 other couples are going to be celebrating 10 years of "Wedded Bliss" in 2006. We have been talking about a Caribbean vacation. We have a travel agent (TA) that suggested La Riviera Maya...specifically, the Moon Palace. All of us have small children, (7 or younger) and we'd like to go somewhere where there aren't a lot of kids. An AI has also been a request of more than one of us...I've seen lots of posts about the Aventura Spa Palace and mentioned this to the TA and she said that she's sent lots of people to the Palace resorts and has had success almost every time. So here's a few questions:

1. What's the deal with using all of the Palace resorts? If there's no transfers provided, how easy is it to just go to another resort? Is it a few minutes walk? a long walk? a short ride? a long ride?

2. Is it truly no kids at ASP? I'm a teacher, and have my own too. I would like to have a break from kids. Perhaps they can vacation at another location.

3. What's the difference between the Moon Palace and the ASP? Also, how close is the Xpu Ha Palace? can we do a beach day or days there since the ASP is beachless?

4. Is it safe to go to town and how far is it? I"ve seen that it's a 20 minute walk or so...and am I correct in saying that by town I mean Playa del Carmen?

5. Which part of the ASP is the best to stay in? We mean to have fun, but we would also like to sleep, A LOT!

OK, that's it...I have become totally consumed with planning this trip. I am the official planner for this vacation and I want everyone to be happy. We are a diverse group, but we all have fun on a regular basis and look forward to celebrating our 10 anniversaries together!

Thanks for all of your anticipated help and I look forward to letting you know what our countdown will be!!!!

[MWC]

I can't answer all your questions, but to get you started:

Don't go to the Moon Palace if you expect to have easy access to Playa and points south. The Moon Palace is south of Cancun, just south enough to qualify as being out of Cancun and onto the Mayan Riviera. It will be a long cab ride to anywhere you want to go.

Could you clarify the issue of kids? Are you bringing your own, but you don't want to see anybody elses'? Are you looking for kids' activities?

ASP, I believe, is no kids. Also, Puerto Aventuras puts you in a much better location for "off-campus" activities than the Moon Palace would. It's not too far from Playa, and is close to Akumal, Tulum, Xpu-Ha, and convenient to 307.

I'm not sure where you're getting the "20-minute walk into town" thing. But you won't be walking from Puerto Aventuras to Playa, that's for sure!

To get you oriented, try www.cancunmap.com. There is a resort map you can access online, that can show you where resorts are, and give you a general idea of how far things are.

Also, do a search of "Palace" or "Palace resorts". Your questions about resort-to-resort privileges should be answered in the results.

[JimmyR]

I golfed with a couple in January who stayed at Xpu Ha Palace, they thought it was very nice, they also stayed a couple days at Moon Palace. The biggest draw for them was that they were keen golfers and wanted to play everyday without having to pay at the courses. From what they told me it sounded very pricey. I have stayed a few times in the Mayan area and love both the Palladium Colonial and the Bahia Principe Akumal. the Colonial has a nice adult pool that seats about 30-40 people and not kids. Also nice and quiet if you want it. The town of PDC is safe and you can take a taxi or the collectivo relatively easy and enjoy the adventure. It's about a 20-25 min drive into town.

MWC...Thanks!

Don't go to the Moon Palace if you expect to have easy access to Playa and points south. The Moon Palace is south of Cancun, just south enough to qualify as being out of Cancun and onto the Mayan Riviera. It will be a long cab ride to anywhere you want to go.
Thanks for this information...


Could you clarify the issue of kids? Are you bringing your own, but you don't want to see anybody elses'? Are you looking for kids' activities?
We have two kids...a boy...3 1/2 and a girl 18 months. Not bringing them, and I don't really want to hang out with anyone else's either...Sorry if that's offensive!

ASP, I believe, is no kids. Also, Puerto Aventuras puts you in a much better location for "off-campus" activities than the Moon Palace would. It's not too far from Playa, and is close to Akumal, Tulum, Xpu-Ha, and convenient to 307.
Thanks again for THIS info...

I'm not sure where you're getting the "20-minute walk into town" thing. But you won't be walking from Puerto Aventuras to Playa, that's for sure!
I didn't really know how these two places were situated so I...

To get you oriented, try www.cancunmap.com. There is a resort map you can access online, that can show you where resorts are, and give you a general idea of how far things are.
checked out this web site and got a better idea of where things are!

Also, do a search of "Palace" or "Palace resorts". Your questions about resort-to-resort privileges should be answered in the results.
I will do this...Thanks again for all of your help! I truly appreciate your input!

Swensbud

Jimmy R...Thanks for your input!

I golfed with a couple in January who stayed at Xpu Ha Palace, they thought it was very nice, they also stayed a couple days at Moon Palace. The biggest draw for them was that they were keen golfers and wanted to play everyday without having to pay at the courses.
Neither one of us golfs, so the courses aren't really the draw for us.
From what they told me it sounded very pricey. I have stayed a few times in the Mayan area and love both the Palladium Colonial and the Bahia Principe Akumal. the Colonial has a nice adult pool that seats about 30-40 people and not kids. Also nice and quiet if you want it.

This is definitely what we are looking for...QUIET! But we still want to have fun and get a little crazy !

The town of PDC is safe and you can take a taxi or the collectivo relatively easy and enjoy the adventure. It's about a 20-25 min drive into town.

Because we're looking to stay in Puerta Aventuras, I would like to know how far we are from PDC. I have checked out some maps and it's probably just like you've said.

Thanks again, I really appreciate it!

Swensbud

[SunDowner]

We are heading back to the ASP for our fourth stay in April

I'll try and answer your questions as best as I can. There are several others who frequent this board who will also contribute.

1.) Very easy getting a cab to the other Palace resorts. Short ride south to Xpu-ha. 30 minute ride to Moon Palace. 1 hour ride to Sun, Cancun, and Beach Palaces.

2.) The ASP is Adults only. No one under 18 allowed. I think this reason as well as the Spa is why my wife keeps us going back.

3a.) Moon Palace is Huge....Very Huge. Very much larger then ASP. Also children at Moon Palace.

3b.) Xpu-Ha Palace is probably about a 5 minute taxi ride to the south. We spend a 'Beach day' there each year.

4.) Town is right next door, if you mean Puerto Aventuras. If you mean Playa Del Carmen, it is about a 20 minute taxi ride north. Very safe in Puerto Aventuras, as well as in Playa.

5.) Buildings 4 and 5 are in the middle of the resort, equally close to either the Spa side or Aventura side. We always shoot for one of these two buildings. Rule of Thumb....Aventura side = more active......Spa side = More relaxation.


Hope this helps. feel free to message me if you have any more questions or post them here. There are several people who will chime in on ASP questions.

[KevKaos]

Ok, I know I am starting to sound like a salesman for the Iberostar Lindo, but you might want to give them a look. They should be cheaper than Moon Palace, closer to PDC even though it is still about a 20 minute cab or shuttle bus ride away. It has a really great beach. Three other IB resorts located togehter with it so you would have access to the facvilities of all of them except for the Mayan. When I was shopping around for resorts last year, the Lindo had something like 7 al carte restaurants which is more than most other resorts so you can pretty much eat ala carte every night if you want. For the kids, there is a kids club. There is a huge pool area, a wave pool and a lazy river. I have a pretty long review posted on this site if you are interested.
Another resort that seems to be very popular is the Barcelo Maya. Alot of people say really great things about the Barcelo.
If you want an AI, but reaaly want to be close to PDC (which is what we are doing this year) you may want to look for something in Playacar.
If it hasn't already been mentions, go to mapchicks website (just do a Google search for Mapchick), buy the new Riviera Maya map and maybe the PDC map. You will not regret it. More information than you can imagine.
Good luck in your research.