04-27-2010
|
#1 (permalink) |
|
way into it
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Mustang/Yukon, OK
Posts: 109
|
Our rainy trip to the Royal Playa del Carmen 4/14 - 4/19, 2010
Let me preface my report by saying, I am doing this for 2 reasons: #1 because I am grateful to those who did this before me. Reading trip reports was a wonderful way for me to get to know the place where I was going before I ever left. It helped put me at ease and prepare me for my trip. Thanks to all the others who have done trip reports - you are my inspiration!! #2 I want other newbies to get an idea of what Mexico is like from a first timers perspective. (this was my 2nd trip to Mexico (other than a few border crossing trips) and my husband's first. My 1st trip was 10 years ago, so this may as well been my 1st trip.) I especially hope it is helpful to those heading to the Royal.
Day One: We had to be at the airport around 5 a.m. for our 6:30 flight. This was just about the right amount of time for us. We were flying out of OKC, which is pretty slow that early in the morning. We got checked in and went through security and had enough time to eat breakfast at Sonic before boarding the plane to Houston. Flight to Houston was short and sweet. Layover in Houston was short and we were on our way to the Cancun airport. The flight was very turbulent and took 30 minutes longer than it should have as they were experiencing a lot of rainy weather. They gave us a slip of paper on the plane from the Mexican government which serves as your visa. We filled that out on the plane to save time once we landed. Once we were in Cancun, we went through immigration first. This is where they checked our passports and stamped our visas. They also tear off part of your visa that you must keep during your stay in Mexico. We were told to put this in our hotel safe along with our passports, as the fee for losing a visa is $50 USD, plus it takes some time to get a new one. The guy that helped us in immigration was very friendly and courteous and spoke great English. (Which was common of pretty much all the locals we met.) After immigration, we picked our bags off of the luggage carousel and went through customs. Customs was really no big deal. We got a green light and went sailing through. We were told that our airport transfer people would be waiting for us outside. Thankfully, I had read enough on this board and knew to walk right past all those time share sharks in the airport. They will try to act like they're offering their help or whatever, just ignore them and keep walking. From what I could tell all of the legitimate airport transfer companies and the taxi drivers were all outside. As soon as we got outside, we saw our airport transfer people in their red shirts (your travel documents should tell you what their airport transfer staff will be wearing.) I asked to check their itinerary for our names, which they had. (Just gave me a warm and fuzzy secure feeling to see my name on their list.) The guy said it would be like 15 minutes, and believe it or not, it actually was only like 15 minutes. They loaded our van to capacity. However since my husband and I were the last 2, we had to sit apart on the van. This was not cool, because the people in our van were complete squares. Only one couple was talking and they were just whispering amongst themselves. Everytime I said something audible to my husband I felt like a teacher my call me down. It was the most awkward ride of my life. I could tell the driver was following the signs to PDC and figured out real quick that we would probably be dropped off first. The ride through town was very neat. I felt like in those 10 minutes, I got a real picture of what life is like for the people of Mexico. It looked like the kids were just getting out of school. There were lots of school girls in their school uniforms. (It seemed like a nice upgrade from some of the slouchy clothes American kids wear to school.) The stores and shops were also very interesting. When we arrived it the Royal it was a bit of a shock. Just 1 or 2 blocks from there we were in Mexico. I mean real Mexico where things aren't so nice and pretty and American. And then, there is the Royal in all it's glorious beauty! As soon as we got out of the van, the bell boys were right there to take our luggage. We were immediately whisked away by concierge to a private romance concierge. We had to wait a bit for someone to be available to check us in. However, in the mean time the staff members took care of us and brought us some cervezas!! When we were checking in, the lady in concierge asked if it was our anniversary. We said no... to which she informed us that our reservation said otherwise. It appears that our travel agent (who is a friend of the family) told them it was our anniversary. And so, we got a little special treatment...  We got checked in and got our bracelets, but were told that our room wasn't ready yet.... (and after staying for a week and talking to others, I figured this was to be expected.) However, it wasn't a big deal. They let us go have lunch and by the time we were back, our room was ready. We also walked around the lobby and pool area and a little down by the beach and took a few pics. You'll probably notice the gloomy weather in these pics... Lobby Area  Lobby Bar  Speaking of lunch, our first meal was at Pelicano's. This is their a la carte restaurant that sits on the beach near the pool. We frequented there for lunch almost every day. While we were sitting there it began to rain, and then pour. In fact, it was pouring so hard and with the wind, it made it kind of hard to sit out there. (See pic below)  Garden Area  Pool bar (gloomy day, before it started pouring rain)  Standing at the end of the pool area looking toward the beach  Everytime we ate at Pelicano's they automatically brought out chips and guacamole. My husband hates guacamole, but I LOVE IT!! I convinced him to try it on this first day and now he likes it too... (which is good, but also bad because now I have to share!)  This day my husband, Lucas, had the flank steak and I had the chicken. We were both very impressed and knew there was good things to come on this trip (food wise) after eating that meal! Flank Steak  Chicken  After eating our meal, we went back to check on our room and found out it was ready. My husband went to meet the bellboy and get our luggage and I went to the ATM to get some cash. I consider myself a pretty intelligent person, but this ATM got the best of me. First of all, all the screens were in Spanish and I did not see an option for English. Now, I had actually practiced getting money out of an ATM using the Spanish option here at home. The trouble is that their ATM's have different screens. In fact, there was one screen asking if I wanted to donate money to a charity. I would suggest finding someone bilingual in the hotel and getting their assistance. There were plenty of bilingual people working in our hotel so this shouldn't be a big deal. Anyway, long story short, I got so flustered with the ATM, that once I was done I grabbed my cash and receipt and ran off to meet my husband who was waiting for me to go to our room. Then I suddenly realized that I didn't get my card out of that ATM. By the time I realized, it had already sucked my card back in! Arrgghh!  Luckily, my husband had his ATM card or we would've been stuck like Chuck!!  Anyway, I had to call my bank and have my card cancelled. This was an 8 minute call which is at $1.49 per minute on T-Mobile!  Tragedy handled, I was now off to meet my husband who by this point had gone on to the room without me.... We reserved a Royal Junior Suite. I didn't know what type of suite our travel agent had reserved for us until a month or so before we were to leave. I was a little bummed that we had the bottom tier suite until we got there... now I realize that it was more than wonderful enough for us. I probably wouldn't spend the extra cash in the future... Bathroom Vanity  Toilet and Shower  Entry Area... they left us a bottle of wine and dessert since it was our "anniversary."  Close up of the wine and dessert  The bed  One of the coolest things about our room.... it had an iPod player. So glad we had our iPods with us. The stereo on this thing was awesome. We loved listening to music at night and in the mornings... and also some romantic stuff when we used the in room hot tub.  In room hot tub  Liquor dispenser - which is neat, but really we only used it once or twice...  Since it was raining there wasn't a lot to do... we had a few chores to take care of. One of which was talking to our airport transfer company's hotel rep about our ride back to the airport.... (really didn't want to think about this on our 1st day!!) We also went to the gift shop. I bought some t-shirts for my kiddo and my husband bought a Cuban cigar. He wanted a Cuban to smoke while we were in Mexico and we figured we could trust our resort to deliver authentics better than we could anyone on 5th Avenue. Lucas and his Cuban  Me and my t-shirts...  Since it was our first night, we decided to do dinner at Spice. This is one of their buffets. I thought the food at Spice was ok. However, now that I know what the food is like at all of the a la carte dinner restaurants, I would not waste another dinner at Spice (however, lunch would be ok.) They have pasta where you choose your own pasta, sauce, and toppings and they make it right in front of you...  Lucas' food... he had everything from calamari to shrimp and steak that night...  Inside Spice  After dinner we planned to meet us with Candy and Courtney, 2 girls from Dallas that we met earlier in the day. This was their last night in Playa. While waiting outside, we took a couple of pics...  The night carried on until after 3 a.m.... I'll be back later today or tomorrow to continue the report. Hope you like it!
__________________
Royal Playa del Carmen - April, 2010:  Trip Report RPDC April 2010 Barcelo Palace - July, 2012: 
|
|
|
| register to remove these adverts | |
|
04-27-2010
|
#3 (permalink) |
|
aņejo
 Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: South Shore of Baahhstun, Massachusetts
Posts: 23,227
 |
Thanks for taking the time to write this up and share your vacay with us!!!
Enjoying it so far!! I hear ya on the ATM.... I got totally "ohmygawwwdohmygawwwwd" when I used one for the first time and I think it actually timed out on me - talk about pressure!! Looking forward to more of your report - you and your hubby make a cute couple! 
|
|
|
|
|
04-27-2010
|
#6 (permalink) |
|
reposado
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Colorado
Posts: 1,492
|
I am amazed that you met a friendly immigration agent. I've been to Playa 12 times and I don't think I've ever encountered a single immigration agent that was friendly.
So happy to have a trip report to read! Love the detail. |
|
|
|
|
04-27-2010
|
#7 (permalink) |
|
way into it
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Mustang/Yukon, OK
Posts: 109
|
Still day one - nightlife activities
We met 2 girls (Courtney and Kandyce) at the Royal earlier that evening. They were cousins and one was going through a divorce and in PDC to celebrate. We all decided to go out that night (on their last night in town). We agreed to meet up at 9 p.m. in front of Asiana.
They showed up right at 9, and then a few more people showed up that they had met during their stay at the Royal. One of those people was Jonathan, a bell boy at the Royal. Jonathan was supposed to find some place fun for us to go on 5th avenue. We all started walking down 5th Avenue talking about where to go. Jonathan seemed to want us to go to Cocoa Bongo's. (I went to one 10 years ago and thought it was fun.) However, nobody really wanted to pay the $50 USD cover to go to Cocoa Bongo's. And so, we just kept talking down 5th Avenue. After what seemed like hours of walking my husband and I decided to stop at any one of the bars on 5th Avenue and let the group go on.... however, by the time we decided this, we had already nearly reached our destination - Senor Frogs. We really had no intention of going to Senor Frogs when we were planning our trip to Mexico... especially since it's more the Spring break type scene which we planned to avoid by going to PDC. However, in all honesty - we enjoyed it once there. The swing bar was fun and the sound of the ocean waves was a great reminder that we were in paradise while drinking the night away! We danced on the tables a little bit. I also enjoyed one of their famous tall frozen drinks.... I think it was some sort of banana flavor. My husband even found himself in a congo line in order to earn a free shot. Swing bar at Senor Frogs  Yummy Frozen Banana Drink at Senor Frogs  Inside Senor Frogs  Lucas getting his free shot from the congo line...  After spending nearly $50 USD in an hour at Senor Frogs... my husband and I were ready to move on.... luckily, everyone else was too! We left there and found a bar on 5th Avenue... they had a live band that was in the style of Bob Marley. We danced and had some drinks there. We also met a nice couple from Minnesota (I think).... They had mentioned that they were members of this board - so that was kind of neat. Bar on 5th Avenue  The band...  We stayed at that bar for a couple of hours and moved on... We ended up on 1st Avenue. I wish I remember the name of the bar, but I don't. One thing I liked about all of the bars in PDC, is that they were all outdoors... it was a great reminder that we weren't at home! After staying that the bar on 1st Avenue for a few hours, we headed back toward the Royal. Just before getting back to the Royal, we came across a bar on Constiuyentes Ave. There were about 20 guys (all locals) there playing dominoes. There were 5 or so tables of 4 people playing. We stopped and talked with them for a good 30 minutes and had the best time. It was fun drinking tequila with them (for free!) and trying to communicate through our language barrier. Me and one of our Domino's playing friends...  I'm sure I'll say this a few more times... however, the locals in Playa del Carmen were some of the friendliest, nicest people we met. The staff at the Royal treated us like royalty (no pun intended).... But, it wasn't just the staff there. It was the Mexican people all over town. I don't know if it's because they live in paradise or what - but they were all helpful, friendly, and care free. I even joked to my husband and said that it's easier to find someone friendly who speaks great English in Mexico than it is at a McDonalds in the US. We woke up on Thursday morning and had to meet new friends all over again, because everyone we went out with on Wednesday night was leaving on Thursday. That was ok though - since we were able to meet so many people in our 5 night trip! Day 2 coming soon! |
|
|
|
|
04-28-2010
|
#10 (permalink) |
|
beachaholic
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Cumming, GA
Posts: 338
|
Great start. We were at the Royal from 4/11 - 15, so we just missed you. I got a kick out of the picture from Pelicano's as we were sitting there on Wednesday, 4/14, around 11:15 am, when all hell broke loose with the weather. It rained pretty hard that afternoon. Everyone was moving their tables closer into the middle of the restaurant, as the rain was coming in from the sides.
The staff at the Royal was great. Next time you're in town, check out the Dirty Martini. It's a great little place with some fantastic martini's. Mike |
|
|
|
|
04-28-2010
|
#11 (permalink) |
|
aņejo
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Dallas, Texas
Posts: 9,431
|
found a bar on 5th Avenue... they had a live band that was in the style of Bob Marley. We danced and had some drinks there. We also met a nice couple from Minnesota (I think).... They had mentioned that they were members of this board - so that was kind of neat.
this bar is called Fa Bar...part of Siesta Fiesta...glad they didn't pad your tab there like they usually do. they have good bands every now and then...can be fun...just pay in cash.... A' |
|
|
|
|
04-28-2010
|
#12 (permalink) | |
|
way into it
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Mustang/Yukon, OK
Posts: 109
|
Quote:
|
|
|
|
|
|
04-28-2010
|
#13 (permalink) | |
|
aņejo
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Dallas, Texas
Posts: 9,431
|
Quote:
A' |
|
|
|
|
|
04-28-2010
|
#15 (permalink) |
|
aņejo
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada
Posts: 2,358
|
Great job! We have been home since Saturday and I have been too crabby ( and a little busy) to do any reviewing, I will live through yours! We arrived on the 16th in the worst rain I have ever seen in Playa and this was our 7th trip! Looking forward to the rest of your story..........
|
|
|
|
 |
| Thread Tools | |
|
|
Thanks for sharing 
.....I started reading this last night at work!
