We had an amazing trip to Riviera Maya this past weekend!
The new immigration experience at the Cancun airport was amazing and super fast! We breezed through in just a few minutes and were walking out of the airport in under 15 minutes. No more paper forms to fill out!
We all arrived on different flights, and all used different transportation companies. All of us experienced the best service from both USA Transfers and Kalido Travel. They were easy to find outside of the terminal, super courteous, and loaded us up very quickly. The transportation companies all have new safety measures they are implementing currently. They must text the home office a photo of the confirmation, all vehicles have GPS monitoring, and all drivers are monitored for health prior to their shifts. We all arrived into Cancun between 3:30 pm and 4 pm. The traffic was light on Friday night, and even through our resort was very far south, we arrived on resort by 6 pm.
El Dorado Seaside Suites check in was quick, and we were in our Oceanfront Swim Up Suites quickly! We enjoyed the Mexican Fiesta that evening on the beach. The food and entertainment were phenomenal! After a long day of travel, we were ready for bed early! We are often asked about security on site at the resorts. It is interesting to note here, security is very tight. They even vetted the staff we met for breakfast very tightly through management to approve them to be on site.
Day 2-We were up early for the gym and a jog! If you are a runner, you will love knowing that there is a 5k route on site of the resort. We had a breakfast meeting with Lomas Travel to get all the updates on Karisma and Lomas. After that we headed to the pool for some R&R! We experienced quick service at the pool and spend our day eating tacos and lounging. We took a quick dip to experience the foam party before heading to the spa. The spa was beautiful! We all enjoyed facials and massages. That evening we experienced the Asian restaurant. Plates of food kept arriving! Sushi, appetizers, main courses, and we were all stuffed by the time we finished our meal! We then headed down to Guacamayas for a live band and DJ.
Day 3-We were up early to enjoy yoga on the pier. What a great experience of seeing and hearing the ocean during the practice! After breakfast, we headed to the beach for the day. Fun fact, all of the Bali beds are first come first serve at this resort. You may choose the beach in front of the Seaside Suites section, or walk down to the Palms section for a better stretch of beach as well. After some water volleyball, we headed up to get ready for the Candlelight Dinner on the beach.
The Candlelight Dinner on the beach is an additional fee. This is a fully plated 4 course meal that is private and includes a bottle of wine. The setting could not have been more perfect. We elected for the 6 pm sitting to experience the sunset! After an amazing meal (option of beef, chicken, of salmon), we watched the sunset turning the sky beautiful shades of orange and red. After dinner, we headed over to experience the Silent Disco. You are given a set of headphones, and there are 3 DJs playing. You may choose to flip between all of the options. We were initially all unsure, but this was one of our favorite experiences of the trip!
Day 4-It was so hard to leave paradise to head home! Our shuttle picked us up, and there was not any traffic! We arrived several hours early to the airport, so we decided to pay the $39/person to enjoy the VIP lounge. This is an all inclusive experience of a private lounge with food/drinks. Depending on the terminal there are additional services in each lounge.
Lindsay and I flew through Charlotte so that we could complete our Global Entry interview. This was easy to do right in the Immigration area, and only took a few minutes. We were approved quickly. Please note, you must already be conditionally approved to do the walk in appointment.
And, then dang it, our flight from CLT to TUL was cancelled! We headed over to the AA counter, and they were so kind in assisting us in getting to Tulsa that evening. We ended up on stand by on a flight to DFW (and we were approved on stand by), and then on to a flight from DFW to TUL. We got home pretty late, but who can complain after such an amazing trip!
All in all, we had such an amazing trip! The service in every aspect was amazing from the shuttle drivers to all of the staff at the resort.
We know many of our clients are traveling to Mexico this summer. The security level in Cancun/Riviera Maya has not been modified recently and remains the same as it has for several years. There are many news stories that are in circulation that provide slightly incorrect information or confusing information to say the least! The staff of all of the companies we used want to reassure tourist that Cancun/Riviera Maya tourism still has the best interests of tourist at heart and take safety very seriously. In meeting with Lomas, they went over all of the safety details of the shuttles/entry onto the resorts. They also noted, the news that is reported fails to mention that any incidents are not in the tourist area and are all affiliated with local drug members. The people that work in the tourism sector are all amazing people who love their jobs and strive to provide the best experience for their clients. And, this is exactly what we experienced from the beginning to the end of this amazing trip!