wendy14

My husband and I want to take an all-inclusive vacation early next year.Any suggestions as to which are best and affordable. Carrib. or Mexico, any suggestions. We are in our late 50's.Thanks in advance.

schmerl

Not everyone's "best" is the same thing.
What are you looking for..adults only,.beach, ativities, night life, pools, gourmet food, etc????
Also, what price range do you consider "affordable.

wendy14

We really like snorkeling alot. Also sailing, canoeing etc. We are not really foodies but do like GOOD food. We prefer adults rather than families with small kids. (Ours are all grown) I don't really know about a price range. Preferably on the less expensive side.

jiffer21225

The most resonable option for AI is Dominican Republic or Riviera Maya,Mexico. I like Mexico better out of the 2 choices. There are lot more to do and you can feel very safe leaving the resort and going into to Playa Del Carmen by yourself.

A couple of great AI that fits your needs are Iberostar Grand, Iberostar Maya, Secrets Capri, Valentin Imperial Maya,RIU Palace and the Grand Sunset Princess All Suite Resort.

I am not sure where you are flying out of but a few tour companies that are resonable are Funjet and Apple Vacation.

schmerl

The Iberostar Paraiso Grand is one of the best adults only all inclusive resorts in the Riviera Maya. However...it is quite expensive.
The Royal Playa del Carmen is also adults only and is right i the town of Playa del Carmen. It is less expensive than the Grand.
The Barcelo reosrt in Riviera Maya has a great beach, but is not adults only and does not offer as many ala carte dinner options.

Kimberly

Try Sandals Regency in St Lucia you will love it. Very tropical,lush and beautiful.Any ? feel free to email me.

girlonthego

sorry to cut in on the post, but schmerl,do you like the Barcelo's for families with teens?Or is the Iberostar chains better?
Thanks

schmerl

I have stayed at the Iberostars, but not at the Barcelo. I just know people who have been to the Barcelo and the beach is beautiful. They also have a water park that children love. The barcelo doesn't offer as many ala carte dinners as the IB Lindo/Maya though. They both have acitivities to keep teen s busy.

girlonthego

Thanks. We have never done all inclusive and are considering it for next year. I have only been to Cancun and wasn't crazy about it, but have read nice things about the Riviera Maya and Playa del carmen. Did you have issues with the drinking water? Is safety an issue?
Thanks.

jiffer21225

All of the resorts in Playa Del Carmen/Mayan Riviera area have drinkable water. Some people still will drink bottle water that is included in the AI but I have drank it many times and have been fine.

I can say that PDC area is very safe feeling. My hubby and I stayed in PDC at a little hotel and I went for a walk every night to window shop and check things out and I felt totally safe walking by myself.

schmerl

The resorts provide bottled water for drinking. The resorts also have their own water filtration systems, so ice and frozen drinks are safe.
We brushed our teeth with the water and were fine.
We never felt that we were not safe. The resorts have their own security and the town of Playa del Carmen is safe. Just use the same common sense precautions you would use anywhere.

girlonthego

Thanks. I appreciate the info!

Cooper

I'm in my mid 50's and had a great two weeks at Majestic Colonial in Punta Cana last summer.Seven restaurants,great beach,casino,4* food,biggest pool you will ever see,and Cheap Carribean seems to always have it on sale. Read the reviews on Trip Advisor,you won't go wrong.

poss

Cutting in here: We're interested in this question also. But good snorkeling is a must. Many decades ago, we did Club Med Punta Cana and enjoyed it, but there was no off-beach snorkeling. One had to go out with boat. What's snorkeling like on the Mayan Riviera, please?

chgeeb

hey poss,
in Playa del Carmen you can go to places like Xel Ha or Xelcaret to do fun snorkeling.
Also, Playa has some really interesting cenotes you can snorkel in. Check this out:
http://www.locogringo.com/
and look for the snorkeling parts!

poss

Thanks for reply,chgeeb. In fact we did snorkel at Xel ha quite a few decades ago. What I'd really like to know is whether there are any resorts (esp AI) where the snorkeling is great right off the beach. Not interested in "going" to snorkeling these days; much prefer just strolling into the water and plop ourselves face down for next 3-4 hours.

KVR

Poss, we are huge AI fans and have been to many. However, right off the top of my head I really can't think of any that we've been to that the shore snorkeling was better than boat snorkeling.

We found the best snorkeling in Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Cozumel has a few good AI resorts and we loved Chanakaab Park. Grand Cayman has one AI on 7 Mile Beach and one on the West End, but they won't be anywhere near the calibur of an AI you'll find in Mexico or DR.

We enjoyed the snorkeling in Aruba at Baby Beach and Mangel Hatos. This was a tour in which the snorkeling was from the beach, but not a hotel beach front.

We have been looking into Curacao and understand also Bonaire may have some of the better shore snorekling, but you're not going to find any real good AI hotels there.

dbledewars

Check out the "Couples" resorts on jamaica. Way better than mexico.

dbledewars

schmerl

IN the Riviiera Maya the Barcelo resorts have some snorkeling right off the beach.
The Akimal Beach Resort has very good snorkeling from the beach, but it is a three start resort. Very clean and nice, but not the glitzy amenities many AI resorts have.

schmerl

That should say Akumal Beach Resort.