Terri and Kate go to Mexico - Day 7

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Day - 7 Riviera Maya

We travel to Puerto Aventuras for a breakfast stop at the Catalonia Riviera Maya. The resort has a pretty marina and lovely beach. We liked this hotel as it actually looks like a tropical resort with palapa roofs and real wood beams. The breakfast restaurant had wonderful views of the pool and sea. For a 4 star hotel we thought this was of really good standard and we would definitely chose it for a couples or family holiday. The rooms here are really nice especially the suites which were very modern and stylish.

We leave the hotel for the resort of Playacar, driving past the golf course and some fabulous looking hotels. We come to the Sandos Playacar Beach and Riviera Resort, which was definitely impressive. The Riviera part has just recently been added so the complex is really big with lots to do. The main pool was busy with everyone soaking up the glorious sun and the beach here was lovely too, with lots of canabas and hammocks to relax in. There was a good choice of restaurants and bars, and a disco. The thermo pools at the spa are free for eveyone to use as well.

We were in danger of jumping in the sea to cool off so we headed on to our next stop, the bohemian resort of Playa Del Carmen, for a visit to the Magic Blue Boutique Hotel. Very trendy, very cool and definitely the best place to stay to enjoy the resort of Playa Del Carmen. This hotel is understated luxury and a perfect place to chill out and enjoy paradise. 5th Avenue is just a few minutes away and is a pedestrianised street running parallel to the beach with a selection of shops, and some great restaurants.

We just squeeze in time to visit the Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda Resort, which is our most popular hotel. Much bigger than we imagined it to be, each block of rooms had its own concierge. As its one of the cheapest 5 star hotels we sell we didn’t think it would be that good but we were really surprised with this one. The rooms were really nice with views of the surrounding area, there was a huge pool and plenty going on to keep families and couples occupied. All in all we were impressed with the whole complex.

This was our last night so we decided we couldn’t leave without sampling the nightlife in Playa Del Carmen. Much less frenetic than Cancun, this is all about chilling out with your feet in the sand, sipping a Mojito whilst listening to a band singing or a live act. There are some really great bars here on 5th Avenue and a fantastic atmosphere. The clubs are mainly open air playing a mix of Latin and Caribbean music under the stars until the early hours.

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