Club Med Cancun - REVIEW

I'm back and ready to tell all!

Okay, how was it you ask? In a word, FANTASTIC! Quite honestly, the whole experience far exceeded my expectations.

This is a top notch facility in every possibly way. The facilities are beautiful and well-designed. The service is personalized, warm and friendly. Club Med resorts are not the least expensive option out there - but I would gladly pay more for the value and experience you get. Club Med is not like the others.

First - CLUB MED

Club Med has figured out how to provide service in a completely different way. They staff over half of their resort with "GO'S" or Gracious Organizers (something like 250 GO staff in Cancun I think I was told). These are for the most part well-educated, professional twenty-somethings either taking a break from their careers or are specialized in the hospitality field. They are interesting, friendly, service-focused and committed. They give the resort an International cosmopolitan flavour and it is impossible to not become friends with many of them.

They will normally have a particular job (bartender, reception staff, kids mini club, etc) but they are also responsible for greeting guests at the airport, showing new arrivals to their rooms, serving cocktails and drinks, and even helping to put your luggage on the bus when you leave. They live at the resort, they eat in the same restaurants, they go dancing at the bar and they watch the nightly shows. They are participating as well as serving.

In the end, the whole experience feels more like you are being hosted. It is a very warm, gracious and friendly atmosphere where you feel pampered and appreciated. It is hard to completely explain how they do it, but its this genuine enthusiasm on the staff's part that takes this from being a great experience to a fantastic one. It is completely addictive and now I understand now why so many people are repeat visitors once they go. I'll be going back. It redefines the whole resort experience.

Next - the resort itself.

They invested 24 million dollars into the resort and the result was beautiful. They renovated every room, every public space, stocked the resort with new equipment. The result - a very sophisticated and cool space. The rooms are smaller than what you might be used to in Mexico, but if you have been to Europe lately its on par with what you might find there. Club Med is a French owned company and this European influence is seen with modern bathroom fittings, European pillows and bedding, and well-designed space saving features in the rooms.

If you want to indulge - try one of the new suites. They are gorgeous with ocean views, a spa bathroom to die for, room service, an espresso machine and other nice amenities like morning newspapers, private car transfers from the airport and more.

One of the biggest changes was to the pool area. They have created an outdoor lounge area with stylish sectionals and covered divan sun beds. The pool area has teak loungers with large sun umbrellas. The overall effect feels like you were in some exclusive spa resort in Europe rather than Mexico. And poolside drink service is pure decadence!



FOOD

The food at Club Med was impressive. Fresh, imaginative, beautifully displayed. I loved that you could find Mexican food as well as other cusines at all times. I love Mexican food and hate that you have to wait for a theme night to enjoy it. In fact, Club Med has a separate restaurant that specializes in Mexican cuisine along with a new Tapas style restaurant. The buffet restaurant was well designed and it featured chefs preparing fresh and hot specialties right before your eyes. Always plenty of fresh fish, seafood, fruit and salads along with desserts that are both gorgeous to look at as well as eat. Honestly, I think alone is one of the reasons why I stay away from all-inclusives, but with Club Med I was consistently surprised by the quality and creativity.

Commitment to the area.

Local staff are treated well, given training and language lessons. The resort is tastefully decorated with Mexican furniture and artwork showcasing the areas' rich history. Every guest will have the opportunity to visit a set of Mayan ruins as a means to learn more about the destination you are visiting. They support UNESCO's guidance around responsible tourism and they organize their excursions with this in mind, supporting local tour operators so that profits stay in the region as well as designing a number of eco-tourism options. In a nutshell - they are a complete anomaly to almost every resort you will find in Cancun or the Mayan Riviera. If nothing else, this should be enough to want to support them.

Location and Sports

They have the best location in Cancun bar none. Compared to the row of highrise resorts down the beach, Club Med's buildings are no taller than three stories. The resort is tucked between the beach and the lagoon. Every room either looks to the ocean or towards the lagoon which is more like a private lake at this end of Cancun. In fact, Club Med uses the lagoon for free waterskiing and wakeboarding.

In addition, the resort also fronts a reef which is the best location in Cancun for snorkeling. While visitors at other resorts have to sign up and pay to snorkel, you simply walk down to the snorkel centre and grab yourself a mask and fins and you are in snorkeling heaven - all day, every day if you want!

Club Med prides itself on its sports programs and I can see why. All the equipment and instructors are top notch. The resort offers tennis, sailing, snorkeling, waterskiing, circus trapez and can coordinate golf and scuba diving. You will not find a disinterested water sports employee here - all are highly qualified instructors offering free lessons and tips for your enjoyment. For example, one of the sailing instructors was invited to train with the New Zealand America's Cup Team, but decided to work for Club Med instead. I felt more than safe when she took me out on the Hobie Cat for a sail! The point is that the GO's are there to teach, to encourage, and to play along with you if you need a partner or assistance. I didn't know how to sail, but that didn't stop the GO from taking me out so that I could experience it. That's part of the Club Med difference.

Evening entertainment.

I don't know about you, but evenings can get pretty grim at most all-inclusive resorts. Not so at Club Med. Every night they bring in professional entertainment from around the world. While I was there we had acrobats, a terrific Cuban salsa band, a flamenco guitar quartet, and a Mayan traditional dance troop. I felt like I was on a cruise ship. I looked forward to heading to the outdoor lounge for pre-dinner cocktails by candlelight to listen to the live band. Then it was on to a lingering multicourse dinner, followed by a show in the theatre or straight to the bar for more drinks and dancing. Every night had a buzz about it like you were going out on the town.

Children's Programs

I should point out that Club Med offers all children's programs now at this resort. It used to be more a singles party place, but now it is a grown up sophisticated resort. I love that Club Med takes children's programming very seriously and uses qualified child development GO's to staff the facilities - yet at the same time, the space doesn't feel like Disneyland. I think they have figured out the right balance of how to have a resort that specializes in both child and adult facilities. Baby Welcome kits with all the equipment (bottle warmers, highchairs, cribs, etc.), baby sitting service for children up to 4 years. Then supervised MiniClub activities and specialized teen programs.

CONCLUSION

All in all - it was a one-of-a-kind all-inclusive resort experience. For the money, you are getting unbelievable value. More over, if you want to feel pampered and special, this is the place for your vacation. I mean, when you arrive at the airport, the GO's are waiting with cool towels and cold water before you get on your transfer. Its just little thoughtful things like that - but they happen all the time.