
Round trip that’s $55 and you get the privacy of your own cab, you can explore the ruins at your own leisure, and you didn’t have to wait in line at the resort to book the tour. But one can simply grab a private cab outside the resort, pay $25 for a one-way trip to the ruins, and pay $5 for the entrance fee. Now if you like to stay with a group like that and not venture off on your own, then this may be for you. And this is on a crowded bus with other tourists. Tours to explore the Riviera Maya outside the resort are another way that resorts like to charge premium prices.įor example, at one resort I know, the resort charges $100 per person for a tour to a nearby ruin.

The resort knows it has tourists locked-in, so to speak, so it charges a premium for many services. So, if top-shelf alcohol is important to you, inquire with the resort before making your reservations to determine whether they provide such top-shelf alcohol at all their bars or only a select few and how easily accessible those bars are.Īn excellent tool is the Riviera Maya EZ-Locator which will allow you to search for vacation rentals by owner instead of resorts, and locate only those villas or condos that meet certain conditions, such as whether restaurants are within walking distance or if top-shelf alcohol can be provided in your vacation rental on the Riviera Maya.įinally, many tourists do not realize that Riviera Maya resorts want to keep the tourists on the property, spending money at the resort. These bars may not always be accessible or easy to get to. But be aware that some resorts, while they advertise they serve top-shelf alcohol, may only offer such top-shelf alcohol only at particular bars. Some resorts will advertise that they serve certain top-shelf alcohol. So when researching to stay at any Riviera Maya resort, consider contacting the resort and asking their policy for making dinner reservations.Īnother concern if you are thinking about staying at an all-inclusive resort in the Riviera Maya is the quality of their alcohol. This is even more frustrating when in the evening, if you stop by one of the restaurants, you may notice that a particular restaurant has many open tables but will not allow you to eat at the restaurant without a reservation. It is only one line and because of the limited time allowed to place the reservations, the line is often long and requires a long wait, something you may not want to do on your vacation.

If you have been up late drinking the night before or if you have a tour reserved outside the resort in the morning, this can be a very inconvenient time.Īnd then the resort will require you to wait in line for the concierge to make the reservation. So, at the very least, if your resort requires this, you will not be able to eat at a sit-down restaurant the first day of your stay!Īnd they may be able to only take such restaurant reservations during certain hours in the morning, further limiting when you can secure a meal at one of their better restaurants. First, the resort may often require you to make such reservations a day in advance. While this seems reasonable on the surface, it is actually designed to discourage numbers of tourists from eating at the better restaurants.

Oftentimes, the resort will require you to make a reservation if you want to eat at a sit-down restaurant. If you desire more than just buffet food for the length of your stay at a resort, be aware that many Riviera Maya resorts have deterrents in place to not make it too easy to eat at their better sit-down restaurants. This article will aim to show you a few of the snags when staying at an all-inclusive resort and what other options you have in the Riviera Maya.

THE TRUTH BEHIND ALL-INCLUSIVE RESORTS IN THE RIVIERA MAYA – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW The Riviera Maya is one of the hottest vacation spots (no pun intended) and accounts for 40% of the tourism dollars of Mexico.Īll-inclusive resorts line the Riviera Maya coast to facilitate massive numbers of visitors, and these tourists often feel secure staying at a resort in a foreign land such as Mexico.īut in determining whether an all-inclusive resort is right for you, you should consider some little-known facts about such resorts, regarding eating at the better restaurants, the type of alcohol you consume, and the tours outside the resort when you want to venture off the property.
