Vacation destination in the caribbean/mexico on budget

July 20, 2010 10:17 AM

Looking for all inclusive caribbean/mexico vacation on a budget of 2000 CAD in a good hotel

I am turning to the wisdom of the crowd to tell me some vacation spots in the caribbean region and/or mexico.

I've been to Jamaica and Cuba before, and now i'm looking for a destination in either Jamaica or Mexico, and, most importantly, on a budget of 2000 CAD for 2 person for 7 days leaving from Vancouver (preferably) or Seattle.

I've heard a few good thinks about Mexico, but after a brief look around i've discovered that there are a few regions and more than a few hotels in each region. I do not know anything about the regions, but this is what i would like:

- 4-5 star hotel, Good food and drinks (quite important to me), and nice beaches. The night life is secondary as i intend to go there to relax, but a little partying wouldn't be out of the question. I'm planning on travelling from 1st of September for 7 days (the departure date is flexible into september).

So, where have you guys and gals been, and liked and recommend?
Which hotel made you gasp in delight?

Which sites out there provide the best deals?

Please don't be shy and spill the beans on the best places out there

Cheers! :)

posted by victorashul to travel & transportation (8 answers total)

Addon: Nice beaches are a bonus, but most important, good pools, swim up bars, and a good selection of restaurants, at least 4-5.
posted by victorashul at 10:22 AM on July 20, 2010

Watch travelzoo. There are Yucatan deals like this constantly.
posted by k8t at 11:01 AM on July 20, 2010

online travel agent with lots of info on the area south of cancun (riviera maya). Have some good hotel deals and lots of user trip reports to the area.

playa del carmen website with more info concentrated on the playa del carmen area.

We have stayed at the Barcelo Maya Tropical in Puerto Aventuras and loved it. Awesome, awesome beach. Awesome pools. Typical AI swim up bars. THe concierge goofed with us and we got a la carte tickets for every night and really like all but one of the restaurants. There are 5 or 6 that you can eat at if you book teh Tropical. Can't eat at all of them if you book the lower end side, Barcelo Maya Beach or Caribe. I would not say i was wowed by the rooms themselves but they were nice enough and the common areas were very nice. They have a fancier section, the Palace that was more on the wow side but the beach was better down in the other sections. IN that respect not worth the extra money for a little more marble.

Recently stayed at the Fiesta AMericana Grand Coral in Cancun and was wowed by the service and rooms. Not all inclusive though but very very nice. You would never know when you are on the resort ground there are extremely drunk people dancing on tables a short walk away. It got expensive quickly though, buying 6 dollar beers. Beautiful place though.
posted by domino at 11:26 AM on July 20, 2010

ay yi yi, screwed up the links

loco gringo

www.playa.info
posted by domino at 11:28 AM on July 20, 2010

I have been to the Dominican Republic for my brother's wedding (Punta Cana), and my other brother decided to go back because we had such a great trip - he stayed in a resort in Puerto Plata. My understanding is that, as these things go, prices to the Dominican are pretty cheap. And, at the time (2007, I think), Canadians didn't even need passports to go. We found that there were lots of Europeans at our particular resort (Iberostar Bavarro), a few families with younger kids, and not a lot of rowdies. It made for a very relaxing vacation.
posted by purlgurly at 12:00 PM on July 20, 2010

I had a nice time in the BlueBay Grand Esmeralda. It has about 4 or 5 restaurants. You must walk about 10 minutes to reach them, if I recall correctly, but I don't mind walking. The food was the best I've ever had in an all-inclusive resort. I don't recall if it had a swim up bar.

My mother in law stayed recently at a Riu hotel in Cancun and had nothing but good things to say about it. There are three Riu hotels there and I'm not sure which one was it.
posted by clearlydemon at 12:10 PM on July 20, 2010

Flight Centre - Packages from Vancouver

You're not going to get 4/5 star 7-night packages for less than CAD 1000 all-in, but 3/4 star packages are quite doable.
posted by randomstriker at 2:03 PM on July 20, 2010

Thank you all for the information :)

We will probably be standing by for last minute deals.
posted by victorashul at 11:07 AM on July 23, 2010