6th Stay at The Royal (RPDC) - Feb 15-22, 2012 - Page 2

Y2YTraveller · 03-03-2012

Feb 19 was gorgeous, sunny and hot right from the early morning. We skipped our usual trip to spice and opted for a room service breakfast instead. The room service department at the Royal are very accommodating and will make you a wide variety of off-menu items on request.

The huevos rancheros were great, as always.

Once breakfast was done with, it was time for the beach:

Truly a beautiful place....

We grabbed a couple of drinks at the lobby bar before heading down 5th to pick up some gifts and such. After returning to the hotel, we headed for the 24 hour lounge, grabbed a plate of cheeses & deli meats and unwound with a beer and a good book in the pleasant coolness.

We showered up and had a drink or two at the tequileria before heading to Maria Marie's for another excellent dinner. This time, I had the venison, which was served in a port wine reduction, while my wife had a half-order of chateaubriand. This was accompanied by an interesting Italian white called Greco di Tufo, which was probably a bit too acidic, although it balanced the port reduction quite nicely. We lingered over a creme brulee style desert and a couple of glasses of 43...each. (For a description of 43, see my previous trip report here.)

Our extremely attentive waiter, Juan Carlos, continued the fine standards of service we have come to expect at Maria Marie's. He went so far as to bring several more glasses of 43, which resulted in us being among the last to leave the restaurant.....

We happily drifted back to our room in order to get a good night's sleep before the highlight of our trip.

Coming up: Feb 20 & our trip to Sian Ka'an.

Y2YTraveller · 03-04-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Y2YTraveller

We showered up and had a drink or two at the tequileria before heading to Maria Marie's for another excellent dinner. This time, I had the venison, which was served in a port wine reduction, while my wife had a half-order of chateaubriand. This was accompanied by an interesting Italian white called Greco di Tufo, which was probably a bit too acidic, although it balanced the port reduction quite nicely.

Apparently, I got our dinner menu wrong - on this occasion, we both had a chicken dish in a port wine reduction. The chateaubriand & venison were a couple of days later.....

I'll get to the Sian Ka'an photos soon.......

Y2YTraveller · 03-04-2012

February 20 was the day of our one and only excursion on this visit - a full-day trip to the Sian Ka'an Biosphere reserve, which included a Jeep safari and snorkelling as well as a very nice beachside lunch.

We booked the trip through Best Day and were picked up at the resort at around 7:00 am. We stopped at a couple of additional resorts on the way down to Tulum, where we met our various guides and transferred to the Jeeps.

Surprisingly enough, out of the 30 or so people on this tour, ourselves and a family from England were the only English speakers in the group, the rest speaking French, Spanish, Russian & German. After a brief orientation, we purchased our passes for the Biosphere Reserve and grouped off into a set of Jeep Libertys. We shared ours with a couple from Montreal who are quite well-travelled in Mexico and, as it turned out, share a common interest in off-roading in remote, northern areas. They spoke decent English, so in spite of my lack of French, we had an enjoyable time.

It was about an hour or so to Punta Allen down a reasonably well-maintained gravel road, although there were a couple of rougher stretches. I was more concerned by the alarming sounds coming from the Jeep's sketchy suspension, and by the fact that it was only a 2-wheel drive vehicle. I am, admittedly, biased against Jeeps, being a loyal Toyota fan.

Here are some shots shortly after entering Sian Ka'an:

When we arrived at Punta Allen, we stopped in a beachside palapa restaurant for a quick snack before heading off in various boats in pursuit of Sian Ka'an's wildlife treasures. After some patience, we were rewarded with views of a loggerhead turtle:

These shots were a bit challenging given the constant pitching & rolling of the boat. After the turtle was through with us, we headed further out to sea where a group of dolphins was seen loitering:

At this point, we headed in among the mangroves, to an area called Black Lagoon:

Snorkelling pictures to follow......

Goodtobehere · 03-05-2012

Beautiful pictures of Punta Allen.....another place on my bucket list!!

Trev · 03-05-2012

Great trip report so far, can't wait to see more!

Y2YTraveller · 03-05-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trev

Great trip report so far, can't wait to see more!

Thanks!

I'll get the next installment up as soon as I get the shots developed from the underwater camera we purchased.

Y2YTraveller · 03-05-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goodtobehere

Beautiful pictures of Punta Allen.....another place on my bucket list!!

I'd been planning to head down there for a couple of years before we made the trip this year, but it never seemed to fit into the schedule.

I'm glad we made the trip down there this year, & I suspect we'll explore more of Sian Ka'an on future visits. Our guide was quite knowledgeable about the area's flora & fauna and so the entire visit was very informative. I didn't know, for example, that mangroves form a natural barrier; in the event of a hurricane or major storm, local fishermen simply pull their boats into the channels and lagoons among the mangroves, and they are safe.

The biosphere reserve is intended to preserve an example of what most of the Mayan Riviera looked like before development.

Emmy · 03-06-2012

Thanks for all the pics. And that's great that you two get to have a trip every year by yourselves

Funny how no matter what resort though we stay at we get "over-served" at least once

Jwright · 03-06-2012

Great pictures

and report Thanks for sharing your trip.

Y2YTraveller · 03-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emmy

Thanks for all the pics. And that's great that you two get to have a trip every year by yourselves

Funny how no matter what resort though we stay at we get "over-served" at least once

It's what keeps us sane!

We have six of them at home.........

Y2YTraveller · 03-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jwright

Great pictures

and report Thanks for sharing your trip.

Thanks! The last 2.5 days are on the way....

btodd · 03-09-2012

Looking forward to the rest.............great pics!!

Y2YTraveller · 03-09-2012

After Black Lagoon, the boats motored over to the reef and we had 45 minutes or so of snorkelling. We had purchased a $20 underwater disposable camera at the time we bought our passes to enter the reserve. The photos are about what you'd expect for $20 with only the sun for lighting, but they're worth sharing:

After the snorkelling, we headed over towards the shoreline just south of Punta Allen to a broad stretch of shallows where the water was waist-deep and bath-warm:

We pulled up to the beach and walked a few metres to the same beachfront palapa restaurant we had stopped in at earlier, where we enjoyed an excellent Mexican lunch washed down with a couple of ice-cold Pacificos. After drying off, we headed back into the Jeeps for the drive back to Tulum. We ended the tour with a shot of reposado before boarding the bus which took us back to the RPDC.

We were both pretty tired when we got back to our room, so we ordered room service burgers & spaghetti, which arrived within 10 minutes or so, hot from the kitchen. We tied into the minibar for a couple of Tecates before calling it a night.

Sian Ka'an is a must-see in the Riviera Maya, although it's probably just as well that relatively few tourists venture into it.

Day 7 coming up...

TAPPY · 03-10-2012

Love the report and pictures...
What room did you stay in ?

Goodtobehere · 03-10-2012

Love, love, love those beach shots just south of Punta Allen...

03-03-2012	#16 (permalink)
Y2YTraveller life=playa Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 594	Day V Feb 19 was gorgeous, sunny and hot right from the early morning. We skipped our usual trip to spice and opted for a room service breakfast instead. The room service department at the Royal are very accommodating and will make you a wide variety of off-menu items on request. The huevos rancheros were great, as always. Once breakfast was done with, it was time for the beach: Truly a beautiful place.... We grabbed a couple of drinks at the lobby bar before heading down 5th to pick up some gifts and such. After returning to the hotel, we headed for the 24 hour lounge, grabbed a plate of cheeses & deli meats and unwound with a beer and a good book in the pleasant coolness. We showered up and had a drink or two at the tequileria before heading to Maria Marie's for another excellent dinner. This time, I had the venison, which was served in a port wine reduction, while my wife had a half-order of chateaubriand. This was accompanied by an interesting Italian white called Greco di Tufo, which was probably a bit too acidic, although it balanced the port reduction quite nicely. We lingered over a creme brulee style desert and a couple of glasses of 43...each. (For a description of 43, see my previous trip report here.) Our extremely attentive waiter, Juan Carlos, continued the fine standards of service we have come to expect at Maria Marie's. He went so far as to bring several more glasses of 43, which resulted in us being among the last to leave the restaurant..... We happily drifted back to our room in order to get a good night's sleep before the highlight of our trip. Coming up: Feb 20 & our trip to Sian Ka'an. Last edited by Y2YTraveller; 12-20-2012 at 03:57 PM..

03-04-2012	#18 (permalink)
Y2YTraveller life=playa Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 594	Day VI, Part 1 February 20 was the day of our one and only excursion on this visit - a full-day trip to the Sian Ka'an Biosphere reserve, which included a Jeep safari and snorkelling as well as a very nice beachside lunch. We booked the trip through Best Day and were picked up at the resort at around 7:00 am. We stopped at a couple of additional resorts on the way down to Tulum, where we met our various guides and transferred to the Jeeps. Surprisingly enough, out of the 30 or so people on this tour, ourselves and a family from England were the only English speakers in the group, the rest speaking French, Spanish, Russian & German. After a brief orientation, we purchased our passes for the Biosphere Reserve and grouped off into a set of Jeep Libertys. We shared ours with a couple from Montreal who are quite well-travelled in Mexico and, as it turned out, share a common interest in off-roading in remote, northern areas. They spoke decent English, so in spite of my lack of French, we had an enjoyable time. It was about an hour or so to Punta Allen down a reasonably well-maintained gravel road, although there were a couple of rougher stretches. I was more concerned by the alarming sounds coming from the Jeep's sketchy suspension, and by the fact that it was only a 2-wheel drive vehicle. I am, admittedly, biased against Jeeps, being a loyal Toyota fan. Here are some shots shortly after entering Sian Ka'an: When we arrived at Punta Allen, we stopped in a beachside palapa restaurant for a quick snack before heading off in various boats in pursuit of Sian Ka'an's wildlife treasures. After some patience, we were rewarded with views of a loggerhead turtle: These shots were a bit challenging given the constant pitching & rolling of the boat. After the turtle was through with us, we headed further out to sea where a group of dolphins was seen loitering: At this point, we headed in among the mangroves, to an area called Black Lagoon: Snorkelling pictures to follow...... __________________ to our 2nd stay at the GPR and 9th trip to Playa. to our 8th visit to the Royal and 10th stay in Playa! Royal Playa del Carmen: May 2006, Apr 2007, Jan-Feb 2008, Feb 2009, May 2011, Feb 2012, Mar 2013 & Jun 2014 Gran Porto Real: Feb 2010 & Mar 2014 *Playa Grande, Cabo San Lucas:* Nov 2009 & Oct 2011 *Pueblo Bonito Mazatlan:* Dec 2010 Marival Resort, Nuevo Vallarta: Nov 2012 Last edited by Y2YTraveller; 01-16-2013 at 11:24 PM..

03-09-2012	#28 (permalink)
Y2YTraveller life=playa Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 594	Day VI, Part 2 After Black Lagoon, the boats motored over to the reef and we had 45 minutes or so of snorkelling. We had purchased a $20 underwater disposable camera at the time we bought our passes to enter the reserve. The photos are about what you'd expect for $20 with only the sun for lighting, but they're worth sharing: After the snorkelling, we headed over towards the shoreline just south of Punta Allen to a broad stretch of shallows where the water was waist-deep and bath-warm: We pulled up to the beach and walked a few metres to the same beachfront palapa restaurant we had stopped in at earlier, where we enjoyed an excellent Mexican lunch washed down with a couple of ice-cold Pacificos. After drying off, we headed back into the Jeeps for the drive back to Tulum. We ended the tour with a shot of reposado before boarding the bus which took us back to the RPDC. We were both pretty tired when we got back to our room, so we ordered room service burgers & spaghetti, which arrived within 10 minutes or so, hot from the kitchen. We tied into the minibar for a couple of Tecates before calling it a night. Sian Ka'an is a must-see in the Riviera Maya, although it's probably just as well that relatively few tourists venture into it. Day 7 coming up... Last edited by Y2YTraveller; 12-20-2012 at 04:01 PM..

03-05-2012	#19 (permalink)
Goodtobehere way into it Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia Posts: 162	Beautiful pictures of Punta Allen.....another place on my bucket list!!

03-05-2012	#20 (permalink)
Trev way into it Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: up north, eh. Posts: 217	Great trip report so far, can't wait to see more!

03-06-2012	#23 (permalink)
Emmy into ruins Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Ohio Posts: 76	Thanks for all the pics. And that's great that you two get to have a trip every year by yourselves Funny how no matter what resort though we stay at we get "over-served" at least once

03-06-2012	#24 (permalink)
Jwright very sparkly Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: minnesota Posts: 27	Great pictures and report Thanks for sharing your trip.

03-09-2012	#27 (permalink)
btodd añejo Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada Posts: 2,358	Looking forward to the rest.............great pics!!

03-10-2012	#29 (permalink)
TAPPY añejo Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 21,147	Love the report and pictures... What room did you stay in ?

03-10-2012	#30 (permalink)
Goodtobehere way into it Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia Posts: 162	Love, love, love those beach shots just south of Punta Allen...

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