Secrets review Feb 9-16 (long!)

[Zoe]

Well, 'the three girls from England', as we became known, got back yesterday to a cold, grey London and I really wish we were back at Secrets!

The whole trip was a dream, right from the private transfer from the airport (arranged by our travel company - we walked right past the three coaches that the rest of our flight had to pile onto!) to the last cocktail at the Rendezvous bar (which we decanted into water bottles to drink in the cab back to the airport!)

Check-in was easy - and the cool towels and champagne made it even better! We had been given adjacent rooms (one twin and one single) as we had requested, but they were at the back of the hotel - they call it 'tropical view', we called it 'swamp view'!! - so we asked if we could change to a better view. The hotel was full and there were no 2 ocean view rooms together that day - but the very helpful check-in staff sorted it all out. I was given room 253 (north side of the hotel - still 'tropical view' but with a diagonal view of the ocean - the very first room along the north wing) and the other 2 were put in a temporary room on the south side - and then moved to room 252, next door, the next day. The staff couldn't have been more helpful - and the rooms were great! Every night I drifted off to sleep listening to the waves. I didn't have a problem with the bed - guess I'm used to a firmer mattress! It was nice to have the end room with my mum and aunt on the other side - so no strangers next door! Good choice of TV channels and we even watched some UK shows on the People & Arts channel.

The resort is truly beautiful. We loved the furnishings - marble everywhere, beautiful furniture, fresh lilies in the lobby, huge gilt mirrors adorning the walls - and everywhere was spotlessly clean. The pool area is huge and very attractive with plenty of sun loungers both around the pool and on the beach. Even with the hotel full, we always managed to get three together, even after coming back from half day excursions. We also loved the foam floaters in the pool - the swim-up bar was for us the 'float-up bar' - who needs to swim when you can just glide along and grab a cocktail?!!

Valentine's evening was fun - they made a big heart out of balloons and one on the floor out of red rose petals and we all got a single red rose. Also one of the staff members was walking around in a giant heart costume! Some stupid, thoughtless people trampled all over the rose petals taking pictures, but we tidied it up and made it look nice again! Hi to Deb and co (who didn't mess up the rose petals!) - hope the picture turned out OK full size!

Our favourite restaurant was Himitsu - we ate there four times out of seven! The beef tenderloin teppanyaki is divine. The Riviera buffet restaurant was lovely for breakfast with lots of choices from traditional eggs and bacon to beef stew and quesadillas! You can order a la carte breakfast at the Seaside Grill too, which we did on our first morning. The Seaside Grill a good choice for lunch although we had great fajitas in Riviera one day. They also do a barbecue by the pool every day - usually burgers and hot dogs with fries and salad which you could take onto your sunbed.

We went to the Valentine's dinner in Riviera (three ladies, how romantic!) which was delicious. There was a violinist playing (a regular feature on Saturdays) which made it very atmospheric. It was a set menu - duck salad, then filet mignon followed by strawberries with little chocolate tuxedos and bowties!

The Rendezvous bar in the lobby is very elegant and they make the best Cosmopolitans! We'd usually come down from our rooms, get our names on the list for dinner (there was always a short wait as the hotel was full) and then get started on the cocktails! We ate most nights at about 9pm and the wait was usually about 20 mins. As we like to eat late, we missed most of the shows, but we enjoyed the bands in Desires bar.

The staff couldn't have been more friendly or helpful - two we particularly liked were Rosa Maria - one of the waitresses in the lobby bar, who was lovely - and Cesar, the head concierge. One of our party felt unwell one night and wanted to stay in her room to eat, but didn't fancy anything on the room service menu. A quick word with Cesar and a tray of her favourite delicacies from Himitsu was sent up. The activities staff were also great and were always stopping to chat to us. They loved that we were from England and that I could speak Spanish.

We got massages and pedicures at the spa and both were great. The Swedish massage was blissful but if you like a lot of pressure, go for the deep tissue. The Swedish is more of a relaxation thing than a real muscular therapy. There's a 'hydrotherapy' room with sauna, steam and a Swiss jet shower. We didn't use the gym, but it looked well equipped. No problem with availability in the spa - and we were able to make changes at short notice without incurring charges.

We did the Tulum half day trip, booked through the tour desk in the lobby. Highly recommended - we really enjoyed it. Our guide was great and it was nice to have everything arranged for us. We also took the shuttle into town to shop. On the journey, Carlos our driver told us there are 2 jaguars in the forest around the hotel. Sadly we never saw them. Definitely pre-book the shuttle. We had to take a taxi for our 2nd visit into town as the shuttle was full.

We had a truly fantastic week and would definitely go back - despite the 11 hour flight! Everyone else there seemed to be having a pretty good time too - this is a hedonistic playground for adults! Let me know if you have any questions...

Zoe