All Inclusive Beach Vacation

Nothing to add, but to say "Wow! I'm jealous!" Have a great trip!

C.
www.littlebitquirky.blogspot.com

I am the "queen" of all-inclusives and try to do at least 3 a year (in fact, I am in the middle of planning one right now!). I love Mexico - in and around the Cancun area. I have been to Jamaica twice and was disappointed both times (one was a Sandals). If I were you, I would stick to the adults-only resorts. There are actually quite a few in the Cancun/Riviera Maya/Playa areas. I have NO idea what your budget is, but luckily you are in TX where flights go to Cancun all the time.

I will throw a few out there so you can start looking around:

LeBlanc - #1 in Cancun. Spendy but worth every penny. Adults only. On the strip.
Sun Palace - Couples only. Higher end cost but again worth every penny. On the strip but way at the south end by Club Med. Cheaper than LeBlanc.
The Royal in Cancun - staying there in May, but all reports are good - a little cheaper than Sun Palace if you can snag a deal. Timeshare pitch is more prevalent here (have stayed at sister resort). On the strip.
The Excellence (Playa Mujeras or Riviera Maya). Outside of Cancun so more of a ride from the airport but a private/gated property. No pushy vendors on the beach. Many restaurants and bars. Lush properties with lots of vegetation. If you want to go to town, plan to spend$$ to get there.
El Dorado Royale - Not my favorite, but others really like it. I thought it was too spendy for what I got - unless you can afford to upgrade to a casita - then I would go for it.
Temptations - Haven't been yet. Sort of a risque' place but not hedo or anything.

Let me know if you have any other questions :)

The El Dorado Royale, between Cancun & Playa del Carmen in the Mexican Riviera.

Once you decide on some places you want to look into further, go to oyster.com - See the truth before you travel -- thousands of undoctored hotel photos, professional hotel reviews, reviews by real travelers, and shows you the pros and cons of hotels. Also, will show misleading and deceptive hotel marketing photos. oyster.com/hotels/photo-fakeouts. I use it all the time now before I decide on a hotel or destination!

My husband and I stayed at one of the Secrets outside of Playa and LOVED it - adults only - all inclusive. The food was good and the pools were nice. We stayed and week and we barely left the resort. If you're a big beach person that part was a little disappointing - there were no waves there at all - but the water is beautiful anyway. If you haven't - check out tripadvisor.com - it's a great site with reviews from real people. I always check there before I book anything! Good luck!

My husband and I went to Couples Swept Away in Negril Jamaica for our honeymoon and I dream of going back one day =) It is not your typical high rise resort it is small bungalows, very intimate and beautiful. The people were all amazing, no kids, and white beaches... http://www.couples.com/12sw/index.html

My husband and I went to Couples in Ocho Rios Jamaica for our honeymoon 5 years ago. It's been redone since then and looks awesome. We had a great time, the food was amazing.

http://www.couples.com/14cs/index.html

We have done a few all inclusives in Jamaica and St. Thomas (sorry, but names escape me right now). My advice when choosing is read the reviews on the food. If the food gets rave reviews, you'll have a much better time. Also decide what you want to be "included". Our last stay in Jamaica included snorkeling and scuba trips, at other resorts we had to pay extra for that. Have fun!

Oohh -- we are doing this in May for our 15th anniversary and we decided to go to Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton in Jamaica. It's all-inclusive and they have 'romance suites' that are in an adults-only section of the resort. We will be there for a week and CAN NOT wait.

We also looked at the Sun Palace resort in Cancun. However, with everything going on in Mexico with the drug cartel, we opted for Jamaica instead. But the Sun Palace has VERY high ratings according to Trip Advisor and looks super nice.

When I checked on the Grand Palladium on Trip Advisor, I was concerned because there are mixed reviews. However, it looked like there were some people who are just determined to find something wrong with anything. :) So, I found a website www.palladiumaddict.net that gave me more info than anything else.

So, we decided to go for it! We'll be back at the end of May, so I'll have an honest review to share at that time.

We are leaving our 4 kids with their grandparents... WOOOOO!! I literally told my husban that I don't want to hear anyone say 'mommy' while I'm on vacation!! LOL