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We needed a break after a long busy winter. In April, 2006 we went to the Riviera Maya in Mexico for a week. We flew roundtrip from Chicago Midway airport to Cancun. Customs in Cancun was quick and efficient, especially if you get a green light. I'll explain. After immigration and picking up your luggage you will press a button next to what looks like a stop light. If it comes up green - off you go. If it comes up red, then they will want to visit with you and may inspect your bags. We got green and so did everyone we saw, but of course we did not wait around long as we had hot sun and cold drinks waiting just a shuttle bus ride away.
We took a shuttle bus transfer from Cancun to our hotel just south of Playa del Carmen - the RIU Yucatan. The drive did not take long - about 45 minutes with a couple of stops to drop off some other touristas.
The Riviera Maya extends from Puero Morelos south to Tulum. A ferry terminal in Playa del Carmen can take you to Cozumel for day trips or to visit all the cruise passengers in town!
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| The RIU Yucatan |
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For our visit, we chose the Riu Yucatan. It is a "5 star" (of course it depends on who's counting) all-inclusive resort. There are Riu properties located all around the world. Just south of Playa del Camen, located close together and within walking distance of each other are the Riu Yucatan, Riu Tequila, Riu Playacar and the fancier Riu Palace Mexico.
Here's the lobby entrance of the RIU Yucatan. Very large, airy and attractive.
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| Here is the view of the courtyard in between buildings 4 & 5. You can see the pool just past these buildings. |
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Here's our room at the Riu Yucatan. It was very clean and very well maintained. Through the curtain area is a closet, bathroom, stocked frig and the all-important "liquor dispenser"!
The frig is stocked every 2 days with water, soda and beer. The stock was plenty for the 2 of us and we were never able to drink it all. The beer is bottled Corona. If you like a lime in your Corona like we do, then get your own stock of limes from the buffet and keep them in your frig.
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| There are 2 pools at the RIU Yucatan (sor t of connected but you cannot swim from one to the other) and a pool bar in each. The seats in the shade near the pool disappeared early in the morning. We saw folks go to the pool very early (6am!) and put towels on the chairs to reserve them. When they did not show up again after an hour or so, the pool attendants took the towels away. |
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| Here's the busiest pool bar. Interestingly enough you cannot swim through the pool to get to the bar - it is directly next to the pool, but not set for movement back and forth. I guess it forces you to leave the bar area and demonstrate you can still walk before you go back into the pool - sort of like a built in safety system. What will they think of next? |
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Open in the late morning and afternoon as a snack buffet this area is located very close to the pool. In the evening 1/2 of the room is used as a steak house alternate restaurant. The main dining facility is La Hacienda and it is in main building containing the lobby. La Hacienda is buffet style for all meals. The other dining options require reservations. They are: Japanese (buffet), Steak house, and Mediterranean. Reservations are easy to obtain - just see the main standing in front of the Hacienda during breakfast.
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Here is the al fresco eating area for the Hacienda restaurant - at the end is the entrance way to Shanghai - the Japanese buffet.
We are not big buffet fans, but the Hacienda food was mostly excellent. We were slightly disappointed that the Japanese food was also buffet style, but it was tasty nonetheless. The steaks were fair (not as good as what we have in the midwest) and the Mediterranean food was very good.
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| The Riu Yucatan has a beautiful lawn space that is used for weddings. It is not a wedding factory - there is only 1 scheduled per day. |
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Here is a close-up of the wedding set up all ready for the new bride and groom.
Couple of tips for you here. Destination weddings are very popular - we have many clients that we have sent for one. Many weddings are on beach locations or lawn locations such as this. Just like on the beach, the lawn is a very awkward place for wearing high heels!
It's a wedding, but it is still a vacation - wear the sandals.
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| Here is a wedding we saw one day. The grooms men look good - but they look hot. At least they decided against jackets. The live music was a very nice touch to add. |
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| Good thing there is an interpretor, otherwise the couple may not know what they have just agreed to when they announced "I do". |
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| Let's introduce the wildlife. This is NOT a rat. This little fellow is an Agoutis. They eat fruit and hang out all around the property. When 2 of them get excited the hair on their rumps stands up. They will not bother you. You are too big to eat. |
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| You may hear them before you ever see them, but they are quite a few on this property. This is a howler monkey. Yes they howl - kind of like a dog barking and quite loud, however they will not keep you awake at night. How cool is it to stay at a property that has wild monkeys? |
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| This guy is waaaaay up in the trees. Here is one of his acrobatic moves. |
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| We are still at the Riu Yucatan - not the local zoo. Look closely and you can see some of the monkeys have babies hanging on. |
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| Go to Page 2 : Riviera Maya |
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