No trip is complete without a near-death experience! This time
we got to watch it unfold. Seven teenage American girls dragged a giant unicorn
floaty to the beach. Based on their pale skin, it was their first day on the
beach. Four of the girls climbed on the unicorn and assumed the sun-tanning
position. We were standing out in the shallow water near the bouys. They floated
past us and over the top of the bout line. We noted they were talking,
therefore they were awake. The two moms were also talking and not paying
attention to the girls who were now about 100ft past the bouys. The wind
started picking up and like a sailboat, was taking them out to sea, they
started futilely paddling with their hands. The moms were still oblivious. Now they’re
just a speck on the horizon near the shipping channel… next stop—Cuba. A tour
boat finally took pity on them and threw a rope to them, which they seemed to
have a difficult time hanging onto for some reason. After several attempts they
drag the girls to the shallower water and left them there. The unicorn turned
its horn to the horizon once again… the girls were still unable to paddle in.
Joe took pity on them and swam out to push them in until their feet touched the
ground. Moms? Still chatting and oblivious.
Next year we are bring 10-12 friends and family back here.
The search for the best hotel has been interesting. I’ll share my findings with
you. I’m not going to give the prices to you because those fluctuate with the
seasons. All of these are air-conditioned.
Playa Arena is on the beach and includes the use of their
beach chairs. They do have a tiny pool on the terrace, but the water gets way
too warm to be of any use. The garden is lush and well maintained. It’s a small
two-story hotel with a restaurant on the beach. This is where we usually stay
because of the location and the excellent service.
Cabanas Maria Del Mar is also located beachside. A street
runs between its buildings with Bujo’s restaurant and the “Castle” on one side,
and the “Cabanas” and “Tower” with the garden and pool on the other. The
Cabanas are older with a gorgeous fragrant garden. The pool is in the garden.
The entries to most of the rooms are shaded. The rooms are small and have
traditional tile floors and doubles beds. Some rooms have king-size.
The Castle
is nothing like a castle whatsoever… It’s more like a modern hotel with an
enclosed, echoing hallway. The rooms are spacious with a tiny balcony looking
over the adjacent property. The Towers are also nothing like their name… three
or four stories tall in a long strip. Bujo’s food is mediocre, but it’s beautifully
situated on the sand with great airflow.
Media Luna and Secreto are next to each other. Both are very
private, exclusive places. The ocean is rough on that side of North Beach as
it’s on the eastern tip. If you are looking to be secluded and quiet, these
look like they would suit that need. I walked through the lobby and was
immediately impressed with the view. A small, pretty pool looks out over the
ocean waves.
Na Balam is a large place on the most northern tip. It is on
both sides of the road leading to the bridge going to the Mia Reef island. I
walked around the grounds and was impressed with how peaceful it is. The only
drawback is the water is very-very shallow at their beach… the northern side,
between them and the little island with Mia Reef, is a knee deep lagoon. Around
the western side is waist deep for probably a hundred yards at least. Great for
little kids though. The restaurant facing east is beautiful, but oddly limited in wine and beer choices. They had one red wine and it was terrible. They used to have good fish tacos (back when they had good wine), but we didn’t bother eating there this time because of the beverage choices.
Mia Reef is an all inclusive located on a tiny little island
like a dot at the tip of Isla Mujeres. They have a bridge and a guard. I’ve
never heard anything negative about it.
Hotel Villa Kiin is somehow built amongst the Na Balam
hotel. Either they are one place with two names or Na Balam wrapped itself
around Hotel Kiin. Anyway they share the same review from me since I can’t tell
where one begins and the other ends.
Nautibeach/Mayan Beach Club is right next to Playa Arena.
It’s difficult to figure out where this place begins and ends. I’ve wandered
around a little bit and all I can say is it’s popular. It’s a bustle of
activity. The Mayan Beach Club restaurant is one of our favorite lunch spots. They have
swing-set chairs at the bar and the Baja Tacos are scrumptious. We ate there
probably 3-4 times a week! In the evening they clear the beach chairs away and
set up white tablecloth dining on the sand with tiki torches.
Chi-Chi’s and Charlie’s is an old place. It is pretty well
situated at the curve of the beach. They have a restaurant and a uniquely
organized layout. It appears they are expanding right now. A large building is
being built at its backside. I understand it’s pretty cheap… it looks kind of
dumpy.
Privelege Aluxes is big and white. Otherwise I don’t know
much. It seems to be set back from the beach slightly, but not really a
problem. It looks expensive.
The Hotel Paradise Suites is super cool looking. The rooms
are works of art, not the most functional bathrooms I’ve seen with no
counter-space but gorgeous. The grounds are spread out over a large bit of
property, which is enclosed. It is located about fifty yards from the beach. A
lot of sculptures are strategically placed everywhere. They have a decent sized
pool, and I think they have a gym too. I’m pretty sure it’s an expensive hotel.
Poc Na is a super cool youth hostel. A bulletin board
towards the front gives the times for all the activities and sports, like beach
volleyball. They do have private rooms with AC, but most are shared 4-6 people
(prices range from about 12-35 bucks a night). 75% of the grounds are sand. It
has a popular bar, which I imagine is pretty noisy and rowdy.
I hope that was helpful :)
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