Which Iberostar- Tucan or Paraiso???

[ntengwall]

Hi there--I am new here and know that we are going to go somewhere in Riviera Maya--just not sure where It will be me, my husband and our 3 boys (ages 2, 6 and 8). I am looking at either the Iberostar Tucan or the Paraiso Del Mar. We will be going the first week in Feb 2005. Any advice on which one? I am leaning toward the Tucan since it seems to be a bit smaller (and this counts with a 2 year old!). We don't put our kids in the clubs since we enjoy being with them and vice-versa so that is not an issue with us. Do you think I will have any problems booking right now--I thought I read somewhere that the Lindo was sold out already for March 2005--is this correct?

[skigirl]

I think I would go with the Tucan. We've been there and also to the Lindo, so we of course walked around the Paraiso. They're all lovely and you really can't go wrong. But with young kids the Tucan's jungles are just so great, and I think the Tucan really has a charm of its own. The one thing we preferred about the Lindo was being able to eat in air conditioned restaurants every night. DOn't get me wrong, we also loved the food at the Tucan. I think the Paraiso system is like the Tucan's - you get so many restaurant nights and then can either do buffet or wait list for restaurants at the other. The other thing about the Tucan is that it is a lot closer to Playa del Carmen - either a 20 minute walk or a $5.00 cab ride.

Have fun whatever you decide.

[Phil in Ottawa]

Hi ntengwall,

We've been to both the IB* Paraiso (2003) and the Tucan (2004) and we preferred the Tucan. Here's why:

1. The Tucan is in Playacar where the colour of the water is just breathtaking. It's picture postcard perfect. At the Paraiso the water is also very nice but not quite as beautiful as in Playacar.
2. The Playacar beach is nice soft sand everywhere. At the Paraiso there is an area around the pier which is rocky. Although this adds to the charm of the Paraiso resort it also means you really can't swim in that area.
3. The Tucan is much smaller than the Paraiso so there is less walking involved. We did not mind the walking at the Paraiso because the grounds are very nice but when we forgot something in our room we much preferred being a couple of minutes away at the Tucan.
4. At the Tucan you can sit and eat lunch at the beach/pool restaurant and have a beautiful view of the ocean. At the Paraiso the restaurants are removed from the beach.
5. The Tucan is close to Playa del Carmen. It's about a 5-minute cab ride or 30-minute walk. Also there is the Playacar mall 5 minutes away which is a nice alternative to shopping in town.
6. The staff at the Tucan was friendlier and more outgoing, although this can change with the staff turnaround.
7. The jungle setting in the middle of the resort is quite interesting. And the resident monkeys are a nice bonus.
8. We stayed in Bldg 11 and we had a view of the ocean from our balcony without paying the extra to get an oceanfront suite. At the Paraiso none of the rooms except the oceanfront suites have a view.

Pretty much everything else (rooms, buffets, a la cartes, bars, entertainment) was almost identical at the two resorts.

Probably the only thing where we thought the Paraiso was better was the pool. It is gigantic and there are three big swim-up bars. Even though the pool at the Tucan is nice, if you really like pools the Paraiso would be better even though you don't have a view of the ocean from the pool like you do at the Tucan. The swim-up bar at the Tucan is quite small and located in a small,separate adult-only pool. And since the Tucan swim-up bar pool is set in a sunken pit area it tends to not get much sun during certain times of the day.

If you are interested I have pictures of both resorts here: http://www.pbase.com/pgammon

We had great vacations at both the Tucan and the Paraiso so I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time whichever resort you choose.

Hope this helps.

[staceylc]

wow!!

you're pictures are fantastic!!

[kaykee]

Phil,
My daughter is planning to go to the Tucan/Quetzal in Oct of HM. Your room view was beautiful!! Do you know if they had King rooms available on your floor. Were you on the Tucan side. I think they are on the Quetzal...do their rooms face the ocean?
Can you give them suggestions for snorkeling...Cozemel,YaHu,Xe-ha, or ? not the most expensive but a great experience...also swimming with dolphins?
Would appreciate any suggestions for them. thanks.

Originally Posted by Phil in Ottawa

Hi ntengwall,

We've been to both the IB* Paraiso (2003) and the Tucan (2004) and we preferred the Tucan. Here's why:

1. The Tucan is in Playacar where the colour of the water is just breathtaking. It's picture postcard perfect. At the Paraiso the water is also very nice but not quite as beautiful as in Playacar.
2. The Playacar beach is nice soft sand everywhere. At the Paraiso there is an area around the pier which is rocky. Although this adds to the charm of the Paraiso resort it also means you really can't swim in that area.
3. The Tucan is much smaller than the Paraiso so there is less walking involved. We did not mind the walking at the Paraiso because the grounds are very nice but when we forgot something in our room we much preferred being a couple of minutes away at the Tucan.
4. At the Tucan you can sit and eat lunch at the beach/pool restaurant and have a beautiful view of the ocean. At the Paraiso the restaurants are removed from the beach.
5. The Tucan is close to Playa del Carmen. It's about a 5-minute cab ride or 30-minute walk. Also there is the Playacar mall 5 minutes away which is a nice alternative to shopping in town.
6. The staff at the Tucan was friendlier and more outgoing, although this can change with the staff turnaround.
7. The jungle setting in the middle of the resort is quite interesting. And the resident monkeys are a nice bonus.
8. We stayed in Bldg 11 and we had a view of the ocean from our balcony without paying the extra to get an oceanfront suite. At the Paraiso none of the rooms except the oceanfront suites have a view.

Pretty much everything else (rooms, buffets, a la cartes, bars, entertainment) was almost identical at the two resorts.

Probably the only thing where we thought the Paraiso was better was the pool. It is gigantic and there are three big swim-up bars. Even though the pool at the Tucan is nice, if you really like pools the Paraiso would be better even though you don't have a view of the ocean from the pool like you do at the Tucan. The swim-up bar at the Tucan is quite small and located in a small,separate adult-only pool. And since the Tucan swim-up bar pool is set in a sunken pit area it tends to not get much sun during certain times of the day.

If you are interested I have pictures of both resorts here: http://www.pbase.com/pgammon

We had great vacations at both the Tucan and the Paraiso so I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time whichever resort you choose.

Hope this helps.

[Phil in Ottawa]

Originally Posted by kaykee

Phil,
My daughter is planning to go to the Tucan/Quetzal in Oct of HM. Your room view was beautiful!! Do you know if they had King rooms available on your floor. Were you on the Tucan side. I think they are on the Quetzal...do their rooms face the ocean?
Can you give them suggestions for snorkeling...Cozemel,YaHu,Xe-ha, or ? not the most expensive but a great experience...also swimming with dolphins?
Would appreciate any suggestions for them. thanks.

Hi kaykee,

I can't say if they had king rooms on our floor. Our room had doubles as did our friends' room down the hall. We had requested a king bed but were happy with what we got. When one or the other partner gets a sunburn or is not feeling well it is sometimes nice to have the two beds. And the smaller beds are better to snuggle when you sleep together

We were on the Tucan side in building 11 and our room faced the Gala resort. I'm sure if they get building 21 on the Quetzal side they can get a similar room also facing the outside of the resort and it should have a similar view. Just so you know our room did not face the ocean. We had to look sideways to see the sea. But it was still the best view we had everhad without paying extra for an oceanfront room

There are many places for snorkeling. I personally scuba so I don't do much snorkeling but Yal-ku lagoon just north of Akumal gets good reviews (we plan on going there next year) as does Akumal bay. Chankanaab park in Cozumel is also a place that gets good reviews but of course you have to ferry across to the island and make your way south to the park once there.

There are a few places to swim with dolphins. Again I have not done this so I can only list places. One place is Dolphin Discovery in Puerto Aventuras for which I have heard good things and the other is Atlantida in Parque Nizuc in Cancun. Someone we met at the IB* Tucan this year had done this one and he seemed to enjoy it very much.

Hope this helps.