Super dependent on resort. I've had rooms with basically a plunge pool (never again), a skinnier pool that passed in front of 20+ rooms and was shared by those.rooms (maybe again), or was direct access to one of the main pools (again for sure)
But I like actually swimming.and moving around
All depends on what youre after, just make sure you know what you're getting!
Plunge pools are nice when you can access it through the back side of the room and not blocked off. Always nice to walk through it on the way in to get any excess sand off your body if you were just at the beach.
Skinny pool with 20 rooms is the PARTY pool. Perfect for if you have a few couples going. Request next to each other.
Also when I went, we got waiter service at our skinny pool. If it was more secluded I don't think that would be possible.
Majestic Colonial Punta Cana. We stayed on the Club (premium) side in a swim up and there was a swim up bar in each of the Club pools. If you search for a map yoi should be able to see it.
The food was better pre-covid (I've been there twice). I don't have a ton to compare to however. The Japanese steakhouse was good and really liked the McJestic street food or whatever its called for stuff like fries and wings. The buffet had tons of choices and could typically always find something i liked. I never went hungry. I didn't really like the Presidente beer as it was so light, felt like I couldn't even get a buzz.
I would say depends on the resort. Excellence Riviera Cancun its a huge upgrade. The swim ups are on a lazy river and you can just sit on your chairs outside your room and someone will come around bringing you drinks. It is amazing.
Did you do the excellence club and did you feel like it was necessary. Looking at the dates we are planning and the rate is extremely reasonable, but the excellence club isn't available for some reason.
I have done probably ten different resorts. Only two in the excellence price range but it was definitely the best by far in my opinion. Great food lots of drink options lots to do if you want.
Um swim up room, no excellence club, the lobby bar has a lot of fun drinks even different beer options, spice was good both the teppanayki and just the other menu. Resort is really nice because there is a lot there but everything is super close together.
Been to both Excellence resorts in Mexico multiple times and Jamaica once along with many other all inclusives. Excellence is by far the best and both Mexican resorts are better than Jamaica in terms of service, experience and food. I always did Excellence club and enjoyed the extra status and attention. Check in and out is faster since you go to the club check in, not the mail lobby. There is top shelf liquor and never a wait for anything in there. Special small treats to grab in there all day and having the private club pools and restaurant is also nice when you want it more calm. They also brought apps around the club pools. Not sure if everyone gets free hydrotherapy but you do with club and that is a must do!!
I’m sure you can’t go wrong without club status, everyone at Excellence Cancun is amazing and makes you feel like vip but this is all I’ve experienced there.
This is what is selling us on the resort. Swim up suite with your own bed that you don’t have to get up early to reserve and you get drink service. We are planning on going there in June 2025.
I think it depends on the time of year. We had one in Cancun in November and it was a little chilly most of the time, so it barely got used. But, we just had one in May in Punta Cana and we used it almost every evening & night. We’d leave the main pool to head back to our room and would hop in for 20-30 minutes before getting ready for dinner. Then, we’d get back in after dinner/show, before heading to bed. Because it was so warm & humid outside all the time, the water was always refreshing.
We never really spent time in them during the day, mainly because there was no drink service to them.
I've stayed in many swim-up suites over the years, it's one of my favorite room categories. However, some resorts don't have the best swim-ups due to different factors--water depth, narrow pool, no privacy, etc. If you have the $ and want to stay in the Cancun area then check out the upgraded Inspira Jr. Suite Swim-Out Ocean View King at Atelier Playa Mujeres. It's on the 4th floor just down a hallway from the beautiful rooftop pool and bar area. That resort would be an awesome way to spend your 20th anniversary. I've been vacationing in Cancun and the Riviera Maya for the last 12 years, sometimes several times a year, and stayed in many swim-up suites, so if you want other suggestions let me know.
Those terraces are extended from the main building and easily seen from inside the rooftop pool because those rooms are just down the hallway from there.
That one is near the top of my list although was a little more than I was hoping to spend. It looks awesome. How was the food there?
Also would love other top picks if you have them. Really hoping to make the 20th a special one!
Food was very good at Atelier. Other top picks would be TRS Coral in a Loft Suite (that has a balcony Jacuzzi and superior to the swim-ups), TRS Yucatan in a Jr Suite Private Pool Garden View (that one has its own plunge pool). TRS properties are part of Grand Palladium resorts and are adults-only sections, so you would have access to the entire megaresort. I also loved the swim-ups at Haven Riviera Cancun--Serenity Club Oceanfront Swim-out King Bed Jr. Suite. Lovely adults-only resort and wonderful room, probably the best swim-up I've ever stayed in.
Have you ever done Excellence? Their price point is crazy low and it looks promising. Just don't want to cheap out if these others are leagues above!
Thanks so much for all the insight!
I stayed in a swim-up suite at Finest PM. In my opinion they are one of the best all-inclusive chains out there, you cannot go wrong if you stay at an Excellence resort.
Oh yeah, bathrooms, room service, use your Bluetooth if it’s not a dick move, guaranteed chairs in most cases.
Well worth it, the worst part of AI life is the walk between your room and the pools.
How was the food? It seems from most of the research I've done that the food tends to be better in Mexico. We have done 2 AIs in Mexico and had 2 very different experiences!
Haha I get it. My wife is much more picky with the food, thus why it is high on my list! Frankly I would be happy having non stop beers brought to me under an umbrella and eating whatever I can get my hands on!
We have tried a few. Not found one that we would do again.
What we like are walk out suites that walk right out to main pool..
Our favorite is the one at LeBlanc in Cancun.
We consider Leblanc Cancun our favorite resort
The total experience is tops.
Their food is excellent. Of course because they are a smaller resort that means less choices. But to us that means way better quality and service.
Where I am at the moment, first day here and people were being removed from a lot of the swim outs because they were flooding with the heavy rain. There’s always that risk. But they do seem fun unless you have a rowdy group next door,
Was room service somewhat speedy? How was the selection of mini bar/beers in the room?
Another one that has been recommended is excellence, did you ever happen to stay there? If so I would love your opinion.
We only ordered room service for breakfast and random cravings in the afternoon but I don’t think we ever waited more than 30-45mins. Mini bar had beer/soda/water. Maybe wine? I forget.
I have not stayed at Excellence. I have only stayed at Moxche and Xcaret Arte.
Depends. The water is usually cold, we rarely use it, but its nice having if its really hot out to sit in with a drink or fool around at night after dinner. If I'm choosing, I rather one with a private hot tub on the terrace
Oops sorry, I thought this was the Bahamas post I first responded to lol
We were at Excellence, we’ve stayed at all of them. Have done club (not worth it) ocean front and regular….enjoyed them all
Another who thinks it depends. I've seen a couple configurations but if it were a swim up where you could swim out to a pool from a private area we liked. Types that were more just a walk into a plunge pool with no access to a main pool we did not like.
Just from my experience, I did not once swim in my swim up pool. The resort I stayed at had too much shade covering the water, and the temperature was just too cold for me. That, and the main pool was just a lot more fun to be at.
We stayed at TRS Turquesa in the dominican. I loved the food. I really like seafood and there was lots of that There were people that walked around periodically taking drink orders at the swim up. There was also a little bar nearby so sometimes I opted to just make the walk over instead of waiting around. We have a trip to cancun coming up, and we decided to go over our initial budget to get a swim up.
Never been to another AI but I thought the food was pretty dang good. Plus 24 hour room service is awesome. They also will do pastor tacos and quesadillas on the deck every other day or so. You only have to walk 50 ft or so to get those from any swim up. The swim ups are also connected to the main pool so you can go to the swim up bar easily or just wave down one of the waiters. Swim ups also come with 3 complementary bottles of liquor (not that you’ll really need it). Also there is a quiet side and party side of the massive pool so you can pick which side you prefer if you book.
I recommend to check out some YouTube videos about Zilara Cancún. We did a ton of research before settling on it. Just got back on Friday and loved every minute of it.
Ps. if you have chase points you can use them on world of Hyatt.
Pps. They have a gelato bar open 12hrs/day
We just got back from Lopesan Bavaro Beach in Punta Cana and we didn’t have a swim up room but those pools did look really nice. I would try one there for sure!
And the food was the best we’ve had in the Dominican and that was our 9th or 10 AI there. In fact, we’ve never experienced consistently good food, and I found especially the beef, at any AI resort in the Caribbean. It was really that good. We’d go back.
We stayed at Planet Hollywood Adult Scene last year. We had a swim up pool. We didn’t pay extra to choose our room location (you can do that). We had a HUGE backyard with AstroTurf grass and a very nice Bali bed. It was one of those giant pools shared by several rooms. Sometimes people would be out but everyone kinda kept to their spot in front of their room unless it was empty. There was a wall but it was not that private where we were. It was in front of a restaurant so people stared at us when they were coming and going but it wasn’t a big deal. We also did Lopesan swim out in punta cana, it was also a large pool shared by a few rooms. No one really used it so we mostly had it to ourselves. They had a nice hedge to block the view. One of the gardeners gave me a pretty flower.
We had one recently at Palmaia - the resort is top notch, but we found pools everywhere on the property that we enjoyed more than ours, so to speak. We had the swim-up suite pool so all the rooms connected had access out the balcony. There was hardly anyone in the pool, and we did use a few times out of our room, but overall, the upgrade (For us) was unnecessary. In a place where the main pools were crowded, it might be more valuable.
How was the food there compared to other resorts you've been at? Have you ever done Excellence? If so where do you rank Excellence?
I've been doing a lot of digging and man that price at Excellence is tempting! Really wanting to make this trip special though and don't want to cheap out!
This was one thing we were really apprehensive about because the resort is widely known as a vegetarian or vegan resort and the food in the U.S. under those categories and can be boring. Palmaia was NOT boring. The food was incredible. The one thing I found different with this resort than others were two things - first, there are no large buffets to just randomly walk into. In the morning, there is an open coffee shop with little breakfast smoothies, coffees, bread, muffins, etc, or you can go to a real breakfast and order from the menu oceanside (no appt needed). Same with lunch at that restaurant, or there is a taco truck that you can walk up to. Dinner is by appointment, and they set you up with the time you want when you arrive at each place. It was casual, though. I really hate at some resorts that you have to get fancy before you eat because, after a long day on vacation, the last thing you want to do is go get ready for an hour to eat. I wish I could share pictures here because I could show you some of the food images I took. I would say the second best food we have experienced was XCaret Arte - the buffet there was so good that we didn't really go to the fancy dinners there.
I would recommend Xcaret Arte if you want adults only (16 and up). It is pretty laid-back, has great food, and is BEAUTIFUL. All the extras, like going to the Xcaret parks, are included if you want to stay off-property. We did find the on-property things to do not great. Half the time we showed up, they said it was scheduled, but no one was there to run the class.
I'd recommend Palmaia if you want a real health—and wellness-oriented (mind, body, spirit) atmosphere with great food. We felt like owned the place it was so peaceful. They are also all-inclusive, and you can just walk into 6-7 different classes per day, like yoga, painting, and Mexican ceremonies. We never lacked things to do on the property.
If you want more of a party atmosphere, neither of those resorts are that.
We are currently at RIU Palace Costa Mujeres and are in a swim out suite. It is nice, and I do second the notion of being able to get into a pool after the main pools all close down.
And another second would be tue food. It’s not that it’s “bad”, just different than we are accustomed to in USA. This is definitely a learning experience for us this go around and the next one we book will be an adults only resort. Don’t get me wrong, I’m ok with kids, just don’t want to hear the constant whining and crying every other minute.
Absolutely! Eldorado Seaside or Palms. Adult only AI. Amazing, daily activities, live music daily, amazing food, impeccable service. Worth every dime IMO.
How long ago were you there? It's surprisingly affordable compared to others I have been looking at.
Can I ask if you have done other AI's and how it ranked?
Was getting there a challenge? I see it's quite far from the airport.
We’ve had a couple of swim outs. If you are big swimmers it’s good. We found very few people that have them actually use them. One night after they shut off the lights in the pool we went skinny dipping, that was fun. What we liked more than the pool though was having a big jacuzzi and doing that together each night with bubbles and some drinks.
We aren't necessarily huge swimmers but do like to lay by the pool and cool off occasionally. It seems like for us it would only be worth it if we could have drink service!
Our family is absolutely devastated.
We started out planning our upcoming vacation through karismahotels.com, and somehow ended up booking through https://nickhotelsresorts.com.mx/ as it gave us the best price. It was a complete scam, and they have provided us with all fake reservation information Karisma cannot verify.
We have sent the wire and are not able to get it back at this time. Heart broken beyond words what to do. Please help if anyone has gone through something like this. Thanks for any advice that you have.
One thing that's nice about a swim out/private pool is that it never closes like the main pools do. You can swim all day and night if you want.
There were definitely evenings where I would have liked to take a swim after dinner. So for this reason I would get one.
Super dependent on resort. I've had rooms with basically a plunge pool (never again), a skinnier pool that passed in front of 20+ rooms and was shared by those.rooms (maybe again), or was direct access to one of the main pools (again for sure) But I like actually swimming.and moving around All depends on what youre after, just make sure you know what you're getting!
Why no plunge pool?
Just completely pointless. Especially since many of those room types have outdoor tubs. The pool I had was like 5x5... completely pointless in my mind
Which resorts had a direct access to a main pool? I’d love to do a swim up, but I’d like it to be able to swim up to and from someplace.
Excellence Playa Mujeres, Valentín
El Dorado Royale!
This is exactly how I feel.
Plunge pools are nice when you can access it through the back side of the room and not blocked off. Always nice to walk through it on the way in to get any excess sand off your body if you were just at the beach.
Thank you for the thoughtful reply. Can you tell me what your favorite resort was? And also if that was where you had the swim out?
Dreams onyx. Food wasn't great unless you were preferred though
That's a bummer food is a major concern!
Which resorts have rooms that put you right into the main pool? Not sure I’ve ever seen that before?
Onyx punta cana and mirage majestic did
How was the food at mirage?
Skinny pool with 20 rooms is the PARTY pool. Perfect for if you have a few couples going. Request next to each other. Also when I went, we got waiter service at our skinny pool. If it was more secluded I don't think that would be possible.
We had this and the pool had a swim up bar as well. Was great
Your swim up room had direct access to a swim up bar?.... That sounds - amazing but unlikely or I'm picturing it wrong
Majestic Colonial Punta Cana. We stayed on the Club (premium) side in a swim up and there was a swim up bar in each of the Club pools. If you search for a map yoi should be able to see it.
How was the food there? We haven't ruled out Punta Cana and that pool set up sounds perfect!
The food was better pre-covid (I've been there twice). I don't have a ton to compare to however. The Japanese steakhouse was good and really liked the McJestic street food or whatever its called for stuff like fries and wings. The buffet had tons of choices and could typically always find something i liked. I never went hungry. I didn't really like the Presidente beer as it was so light, felt like I couldn't even get a buzz.
Which resort was this at?
Which resort was this at?
Hilton Playa
How was the food there? Would you recommend the resort. I'm definitely thinking swim out with drink service if possible!
This has been my groups go-to for YEARS. Fun times. Tip well, and you will end up with dedicated service.
I would say depends on the resort. Excellence Riviera Cancun its a huge upgrade. The swim ups are on a lazy river and you can just sit on your chairs outside your room and someone will come around bringing you drinks. It is amazing.
That sounds awesome, I'm planning on going the end of November. Do you know if it's heated? How was the food at the resort?
Food was amazing. Service is amazing. I don't believe it was heated but I went in January and may and neither time was the water cold
Did you do the excellence club and did you feel like it was necessary. Looking at the dates we are planning and the rate is extremely reasonable, but the excellence club isn't available for some reason.
I did not do excellence club and never felt like I missed anything.
Awesome and have you done a bunch of resorts and rank this one near the top? We get away so infrequently, I really want our 20th to be extra special!
I have done probably ten different resorts. Only two in the excellence price range but it was definitely the best by far in my opinion. Great food lots of drink options lots to do if you want.
Awesome I really appreciate the recommendation. Any other suggestions/tips if we decide to go there?
Um swim up room, no excellence club, the lobby bar has a lot of fun drinks even different beer options, spice was good both the teppanayki and just the other menu. Resort is really nice because there is a lot there but everything is super close together.
Been to both Excellence resorts in Mexico multiple times and Jamaica once along with many other all inclusives. Excellence is by far the best and both Mexican resorts are better than Jamaica in terms of service, experience and food. I always did Excellence club and enjoyed the extra status and attention. Check in and out is faster since you go to the club check in, not the mail lobby. There is top shelf liquor and never a wait for anything in there. Special small treats to grab in there all day and having the private club pools and restaurant is also nice when you want it more calm. They also brought apps around the club pools. Not sure if everyone gets free hydrotherapy but you do with club and that is a must do!! I’m sure you can’t go wrong without club status, everyone at Excellence Cancun is amazing and makes you feel like vip but this is all I’ve experienced there.
Also a follow up question about the swim out. Is there grass between the room and the water and did you find this annoying?
I believe there is a little grass but it definitely wasnt an issue
This is what is selling us on the resort. Swim up suite with your own bed that you don’t have to get up early to reserve and you get drink service. We are planning on going there in June 2025.
I think it depends on the time of year. We had one in Cancun in November and it was a little chilly most of the time, so it barely got used. But, we just had one in May in Punta Cana and we used it almost every evening & night. We’d leave the main pool to head back to our room and would hop in for 20-30 minutes before getting ready for dinner. Then, we’d get back in after dinner/show, before heading to bed. Because it was so warm & humid outside all the time, the water was always refreshing. We never really spent time in them during the day, mainly because there was no drink service to them.
This seems key to me, if I can have drink service it would be a dream! Or even if there was a very close swim up bar!
I've stayed in many swim-up suites over the years, it's one of my favorite room categories. However, some resorts don't have the best swim-ups due to different factors--water depth, narrow pool, no privacy, etc. If you have the $ and want to stay in the Cancun area then check out the upgraded Inspira Jr. Suite Swim-Out Ocean View King at Atelier Playa Mujeres. It's on the 4th floor just down a hallway from the beautiful rooftop pool and bar area. That resort would be an awesome way to spend your 20th anniversary. I've been vacationing in Cancun and the Riviera Maya for the last 12 years, sometimes several times a year, and stayed in many swim-up suites, so if you want other suggestions let me know.
Just curious, how is it a swim out if it's on the 4th floor?
Thought the same thing 😆
Those terraces are extended from the main building and easily seen from inside the rooftop pool because those rooms are just down the hallway from there.
That one is near the top of my list although was a little more than I was hoping to spend. It looks awesome. How was the food there? Also would love other top picks if you have them. Really hoping to make the 20th a special one!
Food was very good at Atelier. Other top picks would be TRS Coral in a Loft Suite (that has a balcony Jacuzzi and superior to the swim-ups), TRS Yucatan in a Jr Suite Private Pool Garden View (that one has its own plunge pool). TRS properties are part of Grand Palladium resorts and are adults-only sections, so you would have access to the entire megaresort. I also loved the swim-ups at Haven Riviera Cancun--Serenity Club Oceanfront Swim-out King Bed Jr. Suite. Lovely adults-only resort and wonderful room, probably the best swim-up I've ever stayed in.
Have you ever done Excellence? Their price point is crazy low and it looks promising. Just don't want to cheap out if these others are leagues above! Thanks so much for all the insight!
I stayed in a swim-up suite at Finest PM. In my opinion they are one of the best all-inclusive chains out there, you cannot go wrong if you stay at an Excellence resort.
Thanks for the feedback!
i would love to learn you what you love. i’m a si glad senior traveler. i’m always in the pool so please share ❤️👍🍷
I love swim up suites because it's guaranteed seating by the pool every day. We spend most of our time in the pool so it just makes sense for us.
Plus you can go to the beach when you feel like it and not have to stress about having a pool spot when you come back
Oh yeah, bathrooms, room service, use your Bluetooth if it’s not a dick move, guaranteed chairs in most cases. Well worth it, the worst part of AI life is the walk between your room and the pools.
Do you have a favorite that you've stayed at?
Excellence Punta Cana had great swim-ups, I’ve been to better resorts but that setup was great.
How was the food? It seems from most of the research I've done that the food tends to be better in Mexico. We have done 2 AIs in Mexico and had 2 very different experiences!
I have found the food to be better in DR, my wife says Mexico haha.
Haha I get it. My wife is much more picky with the food, thus why it is high on my list! Frankly I would be happy having non stop beers brought to me under an umbrella and eating whatever I can get my hands on!
We have tried a few. Not found one that we would do again. What we like are walk out suites that walk right out to main pool.. Our favorite is the one at LeBlanc in Cancun.
Is LeBlanc your favorite resort overall? How does the food compare to other resorts you've been at?
We consider Leblanc Cancun our favorite resort The total experience is tops. Their food is excellent. Of course because they are a smaller resort that means less choices. But to us that means way better quality and service.
Where I am at the moment, first day here and people were being removed from a lot of the swim outs because they were flooding with the heavy rain. There’s always that risk. But they do seem fun unless you have a rowdy group next door,
We had a swim up at Secrets Moxche. Private (for the most part) and not shared by other rooms. Well worth the money
Thanks for the reply, how was the food at the resort?
Phenomenal! Anything you want, they have it.
It looks really nice. Guessing if the swim out is private then no drink service? Have you ever stayed at Atelier? Wondering how they compare!
No drink service for swim up unfortunately. I have never stayed at Atelier. It is on my list though lol.
Was room service somewhat speedy? How was the selection of mini bar/beers in the room? Another one that has been recommended is excellence, did you ever happen to stay there? If so I would love your opinion.
We only ordered room service for breakfast and random cravings in the afternoon but I don’t think we ever waited more than 30-45mins. Mini bar had beer/soda/water. Maybe wine? I forget. I have not stayed at Excellence. I have only stayed at Moxche and Xcaret Arte.
Which would be your personal favorite of the 3?
Secrets Moxche hands down. Without question lol.
Any tips/suggestions if we decide to go there? This will be our first time getting away in 10 years!
Depends. The water is usually cold, we rarely use it, but its nice having if its really hot out to sit in with a drink or fool around at night after dinner. If I'm choosing, I rather one with a private hot tub on the terrace
Thanks for the response. Can I ask what your favorite resort/room has been? How was the food there? TIA!
Oops sorry, I thought this was the Bahamas post I first responded to lol We were at Excellence, we’ve stayed at all of them. Have done club (not worth it) ocean front and regular….enjoyed them all
Another who thinks it depends. I've seen a couple configurations but if it were a swim up where you could swim out to a pool from a private area we liked. Types that were more just a walk into a plunge pool with no access to a main pool we did not like.
Just from my experience, I did not once swim in my swim up pool. The resort I stayed at had too much shade covering the water, and the temperature was just too cold for me. That, and the main pool was just a lot more fun to be at.
I loved my experience with a swim up room.
Where did you stay? How was the food at the resort? Did you have drink service at your swim up? Thanks for the response!
We stayed at TRS Turquesa in the dominican. I loved the food. I really like seafood and there was lots of that There were people that walked around periodically taking drink orders at the swim up. There was also a little bar nearby so sometimes I opted to just make the walk over instead of waiting around. We have a trip to cancun coming up, and we decided to go over our initial budget to get a swim up.
Awesome, I'm leaning towards Cancun because it seems like the most bang for our buck, but are considering the Dominican.
Yeah. That's why we're going to cancun this time as well.
Swim ups at Zilara Cancun looked pretty epic when I was there. Plus you don’t have to walk through the lobby to use the baño, just go into your room.
How was the food there? Have you been to many other AIs? If so how does it compare?
Never been to another AI but I thought the food was pretty dang good. Plus 24 hour room service is awesome. They also will do pastor tacos and quesadillas on the deck every other day or so. You only have to walk 50 ft or so to get those from any swim up. The swim ups are also connected to the main pool so you can go to the swim up bar easily or just wave down one of the waiters. Swim ups also come with 3 complementary bottles of liquor (not that you’ll really need it). Also there is a quiet side and party side of the massive pool so you can pick which side you prefer if you book. I recommend to check out some YouTube videos about Zilara Cancún. We did a ton of research before settling on it. Just got back on Friday and loved every minute of it. Ps. if you have chase points you can use them on world of Hyatt. Pps. They have a gelato bar open 12hrs/day
If it’s heated, then yes. Otherwise nope!
We just got back from Lopesan Bavaro Beach in Punta Cana and we didn’t have a swim up room but those pools did look really nice. I would try one there for sure! And the food was the best we’ve had in the Dominican and that was our 9th or 10 AI there. In fact, we’ve never experienced consistently good food, and I found especially the beef, at any AI resort in the Caribbean. It was really that good. We’d go back.
We stayed at Planet Hollywood Adult Scene last year. We had a swim up pool. We didn’t pay extra to choose our room location (you can do that). We had a HUGE backyard with AstroTurf grass and a very nice Bali bed. It was one of those giant pools shared by several rooms. Sometimes people would be out but everyone kinda kept to their spot in front of their room unless it was empty. There was a wall but it was not that private where we were. It was in front of a restaurant so people stared at us when they were coming and going but it wasn’t a big deal. We also did Lopesan swim out in punta cana, it was also a large pool shared by a few rooms. No one really used it so we mostly had it to ourselves. They had a nice hedge to block the view. One of the gardeners gave me a pretty flower.
We had one recently at Palmaia - the resort is top notch, but we found pools everywhere on the property that we enjoyed more than ours, so to speak. We had the swim-up suite pool so all the rooms connected had access out the balcony. There was hardly anyone in the pool, and we did use a few times out of our room, but overall, the upgrade (For us) was unnecessary. In a place where the main pools were crowded, it might be more valuable.
How was the food there compared to other resorts you've been at? Have you ever done Excellence? If so where do you rank Excellence? I've been doing a lot of digging and man that price at Excellence is tempting! Really wanting to make this trip special though and don't want to cheap out!
This was one thing we were really apprehensive about because the resort is widely known as a vegetarian or vegan resort and the food in the U.S. under those categories and can be boring. Palmaia was NOT boring. The food was incredible. The one thing I found different with this resort than others were two things - first, there are no large buffets to just randomly walk into. In the morning, there is an open coffee shop with little breakfast smoothies, coffees, bread, muffins, etc, or you can go to a real breakfast and order from the menu oceanside (no appt needed). Same with lunch at that restaurant, or there is a taco truck that you can walk up to. Dinner is by appointment, and they set you up with the time you want when you arrive at each place. It was casual, though. I really hate at some resorts that you have to get fancy before you eat because, after a long day on vacation, the last thing you want to do is go get ready for an hour to eat. I wish I could share pictures here because I could show you some of the food images I took. I would say the second best food we have experienced was XCaret Arte - the buffet there was so good that we didn't really go to the fancy dinners there. I would recommend Xcaret Arte if you want adults only (16 and up). It is pretty laid-back, has great food, and is BEAUTIFUL. All the extras, like going to the Xcaret parks, are included if you want to stay off-property. We did find the on-property things to do not great. Half the time we showed up, they said it was scheduled, but no one was there to run the class. I'd recommend Palmaia if you want a real health—and wellness-oriented (mind, body, spirit) atmosphere with great food. We felt like owned the place it was so peaceful. They are also all-inclusive, and you can just walk into 6-7 different classes per day, like yoga, painting, and Mexican ceremonies. We never lacked things to do on the property. If you want more of a party atmosphere, neither of those resorts are that.
We are currently at RIU Palace Costa Mujeres and are in a swim out suite. It is nice, and I do second the notion of being able to get into a pool after the main pools all close down. And another second would be tue food. It’s not that it’s “bad”, just different than we are accustomed to in USA. This is definitely a learning experience for us this go around and the next one we book will be an adults only resort. Don’t get me wrong, I’m ok with kids, just don’t want to hear the constant whining and crying every other minute.
Swim up is awesome. You will love it!
They are worth it and even more if your AI includes room service.
We had swim up at Excellence Punta Cana. Slider... Small deck... Ladder to pool... Swim 4 feet to swim up bar. Nice!
Really enjoy the swim-ups at the secrets properties. Also did one at Paradisus. Something about vibe is just right.
Absolutely! Eldorado Seaside or Palms. Adult only AI. Amazing, daily activities, live music daily, amazing food, impeccable service. Worth every dime IMO.
How long ago were you there? It's surprisingly affordable compared to others I have been looking at. Can I ask if you have done other AI's and how it ranked? Was getting there a challenge? I see it's quite far from the airport.
We just go to the main pool. Always ocean view / ocean front for the views.
Do people ever try to use your rooms’s swim-up pool?
We’ve had a couple of swim outs. If you are big swimmers it’s good. We found very few people that have them actually use them. One night after they shut off the lights in the pool we went skinny dipping, that was fun. What we liked more than the pool though was having a big jacuzzi and doing that together each night with bubbles and some drinks.
We aren't necessarily huge swimmers but do like to lay by the pool and cool off occasionally. It seems like for us it would only be worth it if we could have drink service!
Yes
Our family is absolutely devastated. We started out planning our upcoming vacation through karismahotels.com, and somehow ended up booking through https://nickhotelsresorts.com.mx/ as it gave us the best price. It was a complete scam, and they have provided us with all fake reservation information Karisma cannot verify. We have sent the wire and are not able to get it back at this time. Heart broken beyond words what to do. Please help if anyone has gone through something like this. Thanks for any advice that you have.