Hey Ladies I am back from my Paradisus site visit and I am thrilled!
Everything was better than I had hoped for. We are officially booked and sat with wonderful Elisa for hours deciding on things which is kind of weird because my wedding is next May but at the same time I am really happy to have several things out of the way since I am so busy with school and internship. So here are my thoughts...
It's a short 25 minute ride from the airport. We were in a shuttle and were the 2nd couple dropped of which I loved because I was so excited to arrive. Upon arrival we were greeted by incredibly friendly staff with cool towels and check in was a breeze. Overall the staff EVERYWHERE in the resort was on point. The bellboy carted us over to our room which was on the edge of the property and VERY quiet. When he checked us in he made sure to check that eveything worked and looked good which it did and even called and told the front desk that we were missing a beer. Ten minutes later we had someone who brought us a few and apologized profusely. We wouldn't have even noticed but it was a nice touch. The staff seemed genuinly happy to help (which is refreshing coming from NYC the land of eye rolling).
The grounds are very well maintained and there are people pruning and cleaning at every turn.
The main pool is huge and clean. There was always generally a quiet spot even though there were a fair amount of kids. Although it was mostly some really loud texans that were making the most noise. I think they were there as a group and I wondered if it was a wedding. They were having a good time. We did not stay in royal service but when I went to the gym I saw that it was very very quiet and well maintained with mostly bali beds set up.
The gym is small but adequate. It has 3 treadmills, 6 precor step machines, 4 bicycles- 2 are recumbent and some nautilus machines and free weights. Everything you need really. They have tv's in there as well.
I was really impressed by the food which was a huge relief. I am not a buffet person. I just don't like them so I was nervous but we ate there twice and thought it was well above average. I have had some bad AI experiences. I try to keep it healthy when I can and I appreciate that on all their menus the paradisus has a "natural" symbol. These are the foods that are grilled, poached, lite sauce etc. This will go over well with my guests as well I think. My FI thought the food was phenomenal!
We ate at Sumire- the japanese restuarant and loved it. I was skeptical of japanese in mexico but it was my favorite actually. The grilled mahi mahi was awesome. Really romantic with the tables outside by the pond and the moon and candle light. It was warm but you still get a nice ocean breeze.
We also ate at the mexican restaurant- tequila grill which had some bad reviews on here- i think but I actually really liked it. FI had the stuffed poblano and could not stop talking about it. I can't remember what I ate (!) but can tell you that I ate it all. There were some tequila shots involved.
The snack bar was great for lunch because it's on the terrace which has a beautiful view of the beach. The food is very easy and american friendly- it's quesadillas, guac, ceviche(yum), salad, burger, chicken fingers and stuff like that.
The beach is great. I love it because it is not crowded at all. There was hardly anyone ever there! Many, Many palapas and as far as the seaweed- it wasn't too bad. They do rake it before weddings. The only annoying thing was that the beach bar closed at 4 i think. We got 2 drinks and then when FI went back for a second round the guy said that he was closed. That was disappointing especially because FI gave him $5 for the last round. He couldn't rememeber if it was the same guy or not. If that's the worst I'm ok with it.
The drinks in general were good. I didn't wait too long at most of the bars and tipping doesn't hurt. I have bartended and that's just how it works. (excep that beach bar guy) The white wine was surprisingly good too!
As far as activities- our schedule was limited becuase we went to isla mujeres for a few days so we were only there 2 nights but there were paddleboats and stuff. The water looked a little rough to me for that though. We did play volleyball and there was a bingo game at the pool that we did not partake in. The activity team seemed chill though. WIth some past experiences I feel like they are trying to pull you out of your lounge chair to play and I hate that.
We spied two smaller weddings while we were there. One was 8 people and the other 15. We are planning for 50 so it will be a bit different but both receptions were held on the terrace which was nice to see. Our concern was for the heat and it's hot but really not a problem. I sweat alot and there was enough of an ocean breeze that it was not a problem.
As far as the WC- Elisa and Perla they are wonderful. It seems like they are genuinely proud of their work and while we were talking there were several interruptions but she was a great multitasker handling any hiccup for that eves wedding in stride. I even overheard her giving the florist a hard time for bringing her lilies that hadn't bloomed enough. She inspected everything it seemed before it went on the tables and did it like a pro. They were communicating throughout our time with walkie talkies. They can basically do anything that you want for a price and once we saw the place and the service we realized that you really do get what you pay for. I felt fine about the room rates and whicle certain wedding amenities were high.... we are going for what we want.
We arranged a tasting for the next day of the entrees we were debating and salad and it was delicious! Elisa sat with us taking notes and asking if we wanted to change anything which was great. Fi thought the veggies on some were too salty and she agreed. She was tasting with us and taking notes for the chef as well. She apologized for the meat being overcooked. We also sampled the tres leches cake which was yums. That will be our wedding cake.
*nobody approached us about a timeshare (i don't even know if they have that - but I hate it from past experiences)
*We weren't hounded by the tour people
This was way too long. I sort of feel like I may have been babbling but these are my immediate thoughts on this place since I just got home last night. I hope that it helps all you soon to be PRC brides! I have to figure out how to do pics and I will upload a few.. I took video and only a few pics but I will post what I have seperately.
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