An All Inclusive in Cancun

 

To celebrate our wedding anniversary, my husband and I wanted a relaxing, tropical vacation. The kind where you don't have to plan much, think much, or do much. We have been enjoying fun and exciting, but sometimes tiring, vacations recently, so we wanted to relax. So an all inclusive was the way to go. We have been to an all inclusive together in Cabo before, and I liked the idea of the quick 2 hour flight from home. But my husband had never been to Cancun, so that's where I began my focus.

Being based out of Phoenix, Cancun took a little more travel time than our prior quick jaunt to Cabo. But it wasn't much further. For our flight there, we were able to secure a direct flight with our miles on American Airlines. Flight time was around 4 hours.

We arrived in Cancun around 3pm. When we arrived at the airport, since we were traveling without children, we were able to use their new electronic passport lines. This did allow us to avoid a rather long line for those doing traditional screening. To use this system, you scan your passport on an electronic reader, enter a vestibule to take a photo, and then grab your receipt and you're good to go! 

Since I had previously reserved a transfer through Unit Travel, we made our way directly outside the airport (ignoring all the hagglers along the way) to look for our driver. After making our way through the crowd, I couldn't locate our name on a sign. Luckily, other drivers were anxious to help and pointed out where a Unit Travel employee is usually standing. I then was easily able to find an employee who quickly helped us and took us to a driver. The drive from the airport to our hotel took about 35 minutes. Upon arrival, there was a little issue with payment for the ride. My reservation clearly stated that I could pay with a credit card upon arrival, but this caused a little chaos. Ultimately, the driver did take credit card but it came with a 6% transaction fee. Next time, I'll pay cash. The good news is that I booked a round trip ride and the pick up was smooth sailing when we were ready to leave. In fact, our driver was early and waiting for us!

The all inclusive we decided on was the adults only Valentin Imperial Riviera Maya. It was a great choice. We were greeted with champagne and checked in quickly, where we received our electronic keys. This is the first hotel I've been to that has ever provided this service! We had to download the free JustIn app, and our phones became our keys. I really liked the convenience and not having to worry about a separate key to carry around. 

We were then walked to the bar by the lobby to grab a drink while we waited (it didn't take long), for a golf cart with driver that took us and our luggage to our room. We were starving by now, so we headed to the casual restaurant on the beach for our first meal. But not until after we checked out the Sunrise Bar down by the beach!

After a beer (or two), we headed to the casual restaurant Mar y Tierra and enjoyed a late lunch. Only 2 of the restaurants at the resort serve lunch.

 

Following lunch, we changed and headed to the main area of the resort. Most restaurants and entertainment take place near the lobby. The walk there provided us with our first encounter with coatimundis.

 

 

 

We were surprised to find a live band entertaining us outdoors along with a churro cart!

 

The churros were delicious. This cart was set up every night from 6-10 pm. They offered plain, vanilla, and caramel. I was surprised to find I enjoyed the caramel the best. We ate the churros while enjoying the music, and then headed into a quick sushi dinner before we called it a night.

Besides the coati, we also saw a lot of iguanas sunbathing each day.

 

For the rest of the vacation, we usually ate the buffet breakfast, then headed to the pool for some R & R and people watching.

These blue floats were quickly taken each day and usually used as a table rather than a person float. Chris and I generally hung out in the shade under this bridge.

The pool is definitely the largest I've ever seen at a resort. 

Every day at 3 pm, the pool offered some sort of entertainment. One day it was belly dancing, another is was a foam party, and another was bull riding. 

 The people watching during the activities certainly kept us entertained. 

The pool has 2 swim up bars and a taco cart on each side of the pool as well. We ate from the taco cart twice, and it was so good each time!

 

We started a day or two out on the beach. The waves are too rough in this area to enjoy the ocean, but watching and listening to them was just right from the shade of our palapa. This beach area was right outside our room and another beach bar was right there as well.

The hotel made our anniversary extra special by announcing it in their hotel newsletter and leaving us these pretty towel swans the night before.

As I mentioned, we had an ocean view room which included a hammock. The hammock proved to be unused, save for taking this picture. It was nice to be by the ocean, but I think I would've been happy with any room at this resort.

The restaurants were all very good. I think one of our top two was the Mexican restaurant, La Hacienda, where we enjoyed their small patio and some margaritas. The patio had a small water feature, and this was the only night that I noticed some bugs. I also noticed some bug spray at the hostess table as we walked in.

We shared the molcajete for dinner here which was phenomenal.

Our other top choice is their French restaurant, L'Olivo, but honestly, they were all good.

Each night we enjoyed the live music which started after the show they put on. At 9 pm, there was a different show offered. We saw the Circus show and the Fire show which were both entertaining. We didn't make it to the others, such as the break dance show and Mexican night.

We stayed four nights at the resort, which I think was just what we needed. A night less and we didn't get enough relaxation, a night longer and I would've been exhausted.

For the flight back, we paid cash through United as it made the most sense for scheduling, and we didn't have enough miles with American to cover round trip. We had a short layover in Houston which added about 2 hours to travel time. Since we were returning from an international flight, Chris was able to quickly complete his interview for the Global Entry program. He was already conditionally approved and this was his last step to complete the process. There was a short line and the interview took about 15 minutes.

While I definitely enjoy seeing all the local sites a destination may have to offer, the simplicity of an all inclusive at times makes the most sense. Staying at one (very nice) location and relaxing is sometimes what is needed in a vacation. Valentin Imperial Riviera Maya definitely fit the bill. I would recommend it!