Americans have just finished the first lap in their annual trifecta of holiday events. We all ate turkey and we all watched football, together as if we were all part of one big family. For many of us here, this means that we’re now in the thick of that time of year when we begin wondering why we live in such a cold and windy place. We look out the window and through the snow drifts and think, ‘I wonder how warm it is in Mexico right now?’
If we could get out of this cold and miserable climate, which will only get worse before April finally arrives, and we could all go down to Mexico, perhaps the first place I’d choose to stay would be an all-inclusive hotel on Mexico’s Pacific or Caribbean coast.
The main reason I’d opt for the all-inclusive is that after you’ve paid for the vacation, there is very little else to pay for! I stayed at a hotel resort like this in Cancun in November and it was nice not having to even bring your wallet to dinner.
When you’re wearing a bathing suit most of the time, there’s just no where to fit the wallet or billfold—and no need!
We met, a group of six Americans, at one of the six different restaurants on the property and opened up the thick, leather-bound menus. We settled into a booth, and nobody had any money. It was an Italian restaurant, and we choose among the pasta, the seafood, risotto, and deep rich red wines and we could order any appetizer, any bottle of wine, or as big a plate of linguine with clams as we wanted.
It was fun to be handed a menu and then choose anything and not have to think about how much the bill would be on our hotel bill when we checked out. Nope, it’s all included–how lovely! We left a tip but I don’t think that’s even necessary.
What else can you do on such a resort?
Well for one, get moving! I didn’t realize how much exercise I’d get from simply walking back and forth from the restaurant and lobby to my room. The resorts are so big in Cancun that it takes many minutes of walking to get anywhere from your room. I was jealous when I saw that the staff uses bicycles to navigate-you’d often see a maintenance guy or a maid biking along holding a mop or a rake.
I wanted to ask the gardeners if I could borrow their bikes, but I don’t think they would have said yes.
Moving about is nice in warm temperatures–and there are plenty of activities that will move you, from shuffleboard, to surfing, to playing a few sets of tennis, to setting out on an excursion to Mayan ruins to hike amidst their ancient splendor.
There are also pools which are so big you’d get tired swimming from end to end. If you get thirsty, there’s a free beer or a shot of whisky waiting at the swim up bar, too.