At Lagunamar

[Ken555]

GREAT price!

How long is the flight from LA?

Travel time, or door to door? It's about 4hrs 10 min in the air, but... I spent the night at a SVN hotel near LAX so I didn't have to deal with a car/cab in the morning, got to LAX ~7am for a 9:30am flight...flight didn't leave LAX unitl 11am... so... how long was it? MUCH easier to fly to Hawaii.

How did you get from the airport to the resort?

http://www.entertainment-plus.net $55 RT plus tip. They did a good job.

Are you renting a car?

Nope. I've read too many horror stories about renting here, but it seems lots do. FYI, there's a Dollar rental agency AT the resort, and across the street at the mall there are 4-5 other agencies. I'm tempted to get one next week for one day and drive around... but I probably won't, since not driving is one of those items which qualifies as a vacation for me (I'm from LA...).

 

[Ken555]

Mall across from resort

 

[Ken555]

Chichen-Itza

and, street sign all over the area...

 

[Ken555]

I couldn't resist not taking this picture. After the mid-week tidy:

 

[DeniseM]

Thanks for the info. Ken - I see now that you already posted your transportation info. and I missed it the first time.

I haven't been to Mexico, (except for a short cruise and Tijuana) and I am really intrigued by Lagunamar!

 

[Transit]

Great pics Ken, The resort looks very impressiive.

 

[dakotafamily]

We're going to Lagunamar in January. Any suggestions on the best cell phone option for Mexico? Verizon is our current carrier.

 

[bajohnsons]

We just got back from Lagunamar. Verizon works fine there Dakota. You're roaming of course, but had good reception anywhere in Cancun.
All the water in the villas is purified according to the staff and we had no troubles. Snorkeling off of a sandy beach is never really very good and at the Lagunamar is no different. Supposedly the spa staff from either the Westin or Le Meridien will come to Lagunamar for private spa treatments. Have no idea the cost or how to arrange it, but was told this by several different staff members. They are considering a shuttle as well I'm told. Beautiful resort, very friendly staff.

 

[clsmit]

Wow the picture of the swans is better than the Mickeys you get when staying at the Grand Floridian at Walt Disney World! Did you forget the exchange rate when leaving a tip for the maids?

And how's your Spanish?

We'll be there in April!

 

[tomandrobin]

Great pictures and nice report!

 

[Cathyb]

Ken: Which Starwood did you exchange for Cancun? Did you have to call more than the one time to do the exchange? Did you exchange a 2 BR or what?

One last questions Did you have to catch a taxi from airport or do they have an organization that they work with that you can pay for and get picked up? TIA

 

[Fletcher921]

How about spa stuff?? Anything good (massage, facials, facility) at resort or nearby?

Snorkle equipment and folding beach chairs - can be rented?

Have you tried out the local bus system to get around?

I am planning to visit with my 22 year old daughter for some "ma and me" time in June - can't waiit,

Thanks

 

[Ken555]

Ken: Which Starwood did you exchange for Cancun? Did you have to call more than the one time to do the exchange? Did you exchange a 2 BR or what?

Kierland. I called once. 79,200 SOs. This year I used my Plat WKR to stay here for 13 nights in a 1-bed and WPORV for a week in a Studio, 20 nights total and $60.36/night for MF+Taxes.

One last questions Did you have to catch a taxi from airport or do they have an organization that they work with that you can pay for and get picked up? TIA

http://www.entertainment-plus.net - US$55 plus tip for round-trip, reserve in advance. I'm told taxis returning to the airport will cost ~US$25, but you can't get a taxi from the airport (though you can find lots of shuttles).

 

[Ken555]

How about spa stuff?? Anything good (massage, facials, facility) at resort or nearby?

I plan on visiting the Westin hotel and/or Le Meridian (or both), which is where the spa is located. You can reserve some services here and they send someone from the spa. Prices are affordable, especially at the moment with the exchange at ~13:1.

Snorkle equipment and folding beach chairs - can be rented?

Not at the resort, though I doubt you'll want to snorkle by the resort. I brought my own snorkle and mask, and haven't even opened the bag yet. We're considering a boat and snorkle trip for today...

There are some beach chairs on the sand directly in front of the resort. I'm not sure if they rent them, or are for use of the guests. But there isn't much sand/beach, so...

Have you tried out the local bus system to get around?

6.5 pesos per ride on the local bus system. We took it to Wal-Mart and got a cab back (they're directly outside the store). Very easy and frequent.

 

[tomandrobin]

Having a little vacation envy Ken!

I wanna be some place warm!

 

[Ken555]

We're going to Lagunamar in January. Any suggestions on the best cell phone option for Mexico? Verizon is our current carrier.

http://www.skype.com

 

[Ken555]

The "right" side of Lagunamar, from Aqua - the hotel next to us (which, btw, is MUCH nicer than ours...4-5 pools, lots of staff, many lounges overlooking the ocean with covered private areas... ).

From the beach...

 

[Ken555]

 

[Ken555]

 

[Ken555]

Having a little vacation envy Ken!

I wanna be some place warm!

It's very nice but while the forecast says it should be 85F during the day, it doesn't really feel like it due to wind now and then. And, FWIW, the pools here at the resort are NOT HEATED (sound familiar?) and are VERY COLD. They look great... but I can't stay in for more than a few minutes, so forget enjoying the infinity pool very long. At least the jacuzzi is heated now.

 

[DeniseM]

The "right" side of Lagunamar, from Aqua - the hotel next to us (which, btw, is MUCH nicer than ours...4-5 pools, lots of staff, many lounges overlooking the ocean with covered private areas... ).

OK - go over and ask them if you can get a room for:

$60.36/night for MF+Taxes.

and come back and let us know what they say!

 

[OCsun]

Hi Ken,

Thanks for sharing so much of your vacation time with us. I have enjoyed reading about your vacation and seeing the pictures you took. I am very interested in what you are saying about the pool and looking at the condition of the beach. While I am staying at the Royal Sands in February, I planned on looking at the new starwood property. I love starwood properties especially the heavenly beds, but one thing I can't handle when I am on vacation is not being able to enjoy the beautiful pools because they are so cold. A few years back, that was a problem at the Royal Sands until so many owners complained - then they heated the pools. What good is it to have beautiful inviting pools that you can't enjoy? I hope Starwood makes that change.

Enjoy your stay! Pam

 

[Ken555]

OK - go over and ask them if you can get a room for:

and come back and let us know what they say!

Yeah, very true. I just looked it up and nightly room rates seem to be $320-400 for most nights, though you get a $200 stay credit... However, I'm sure owners at Lagunamar will think their property should have as good, if not better, amenities as those for a hotel which charges ~$350/night.

 

[Ken555]

Hi Ken,

Thanks for sharing so much of your vacation time with us. I have enjoyed reading about your vacation and seeing the pictures you took. I am very interested in what you are saying about the pool and looking at the condition of the beach. While I am staying at the Royal Sands in February, I planned on looking at the new starwood property. I love starwood properties especially the heavenly beds, but one thing I can't handle when I am on vacation is not being able to enjoy the beautiful pools because they are so cold. A few years back, that was a problem at the Royal Sands until so many owners complained - then they heated the pools. What good is it to have beautiful inviting pools that you can't enjoy? I hope Starwood makes that change.

Enjoy your stay! Pam

I will ask the concierge tonight about the pool temperature. This seems to be a recurring theme at the resorts. I don't understand why they don't know they have to heat the pool - or at least one of the pools.

 

[dkazanji1]

Hi!

We just arrived home a few hours ago after a weeks stay at the Westin Lagunamar, and we were told they use reverse osmosis to insure their water is safe to drink. However, we drank bottled water anyway.

We're sorry we didn't meet you, Ken. It would have been nice to meet a fellow Tugger. We recognized our balcony in one of your pictures.

We had a wonderful time, but we agree the pool was too cold. We also agree the place looks empty. However, one of the employees told us they had 280 people there this week. I don't know where they were hiding!

We were also told we could use the facilities at the Westin Cancun and Le Meridien Cancun, but we didn't.

Donna and George