I know that there are glowing reports about the new, almost finished Cancun Palace. Not to be the grinch, but here are a few shots of the immediate surroundings of the hotel. While things may be nice, posh and cozy inside, the project continues to exact its price on we poor fools who have been suffering through its reconstruction. The noise and dirt continues. Public access to what used to be one of the best beaches in the ZH has been destroyed and the beach ruined with debris and filth. Visitor parking is impossible during the day as workers and trucks consume every inch of Retorno del Rey. This has been going on for over a year, making it one of the longest lasting Wilma recoveries. I only hope they will clean up when and if they ever finish and give us locals back our beach and our street. The "Public Access Road" to Playa Ballenas. The beach in front of the pool, with Caterpillar. Some nice tanks outside your window. The Kulkulcan Blvd. Entry. Retorno del Rey, one of the glamour streets in the Southern HZ, or at least it used to be. More of the occupation of the public beach access.
Thank you for the "honest" photos. I agree that I cannot believe it has taken so long for this remodel. While we are all encouraged with the opening, the continual postponing of the resort makes one wonder if they should in fact be open for business. Is it safe?? What are those tanks that sit outside the window area? The equipment on the beach could be very dangerous to kids I would think. We, are arriving March 31st and have decided to go ahead and cancel our reservations we had at the Tucancun (just in case). Hopefully, being 6 weeks away they will continue to clean up and improve. Again, thank you for the pictures. I am sorry you have had to endure this for such a long stretch of time.
how close to the tucancun is this place...i mean i saw the map, but are we gonna see this crap from the beach at the tucancun :?
What the he!!, What is taking so long? Now I am wondering what I should do. I am planning my trip to the Cancun Palace for June as we speak and I do not want to see construction equipment or debris!!!! And I do not want to go to a different Palace resort. :evil: I guess I will wait another month to see what happens, before I book. Now that they are open, if I book there I will probably have to stay there - even if they are not completely done. Thanks, ELLABEAR424
I am here to tell you that those photos are very deceiving. That huge bulldozer digging up rocks is behind the JW Marriott, not the CP. I just left there yesterday and there is no construction equipment in sight. The other photos are of areas around the Cancun Palace, not on the property. I know that this reconstruction has taken a long time, and I'm sure there has been some damage to the local access road, but those photos do not represent what the property actually looks like. If you want to doom and gloom, that's fine, but the reality is that they are working like hell to get the property finalized. In the upcoming weeks all of the workers will be gone and the surrounding areas cleaned up/repaired. DaveT
When were pictures taken? mixz1, I'm curious as to when these pictures were taken. I have read where the Marriott Corporation decided to go ahead and repair the beach themselves and not wait on the Federal Government's assistance with beach recovery. I do not believe my wife and I would appreciate a large backhoe on the beach as we try to relax. If these are recent pictures ; it will be a while until the clean up is complete. As far as the local access to the beach for the folks of Cancun; all I have to say about that is; " A temporary inconvenience for a permanent improvement". Wilma created a tough situation for the locals but it is what it is. I remember reading articles , right after Wilma, stating ; it may take ten years for Cancun to be fully recovered from Wilma. I know there are hotels, and the El Pueblito comes to mind, that have not even started to renovate and they may be looking to sell. I guess for now the locals will have to go to other public beachs for a while. Playa Delfines is a nice beach with great access. I live in Massachusetts and the residents of Eastern Massachusetts have been putting up with the "Big Dig". A monstrous, costly ( $14 Billion USD = $250.000 an inch) for over 10 years. The irony of the "Big Dig" is ; it was supposed to make the commute easier. Well , it cut off 4 minutes, on average , on the commute from the South Shore. At least Cancun is moving ahead faster than we are and we have had to put up with a lot of inconienences which were man made and not created by Mother Nature. I hope things move along fast and everyone is again content with the beautiful beaches of Cancun. Peace!!
"I here to tell you that those photos are very deceiving.", says Dave T. Another reader asks when these picture were taken, ignoring the title of the post. Interesting. I knew when I posted the pictures that there would be some vociferous defenders of the Palace. The pictures are of the Palace property, with the exception of Retorno del Rey, which is immediately adjascent to the property and affected by it. The huge Cat is indeed working on the Marriot property, which is immediately next to the Palace and its exhaust and noise impact the Palace property, including the beach and pool. The Kulkulcan side photos are of the driveway of the Palace and the construction is directly in front of that part of the main building that is completed. The noise and work are there in plain sight from every Kulkulcan side window. The rusty tanks are in plain sight from every Retorno side window. As for the comments in the tone of it being for the greater good, come on down and live here. Do you think this is/was the only reconstruction project? Onviously not. But this one is eggregious in its disregard of the community. The Meridien, Parnasus and to a lesser extent the Ritz, all in a row with the Palace on the same street, completed their repairs with a much higher regard for their residential neighbors and fellow community members. And as I said in my original post, there is no question that inside the hotel things sound terrific. So you can sit up there where ever you are and plan your vacations. Just be aware, my intent is not to deceive. Pictures don't lie and each and every picture I posted shows something either on or immediately next to the Palace property. If a snorting Catapillar 50 feet from your beach towel doesn't upset you, fine. If a pile driver beneath your window doesn't interfere with your post-prandial nap, keep snoring. If your idea of a Caribbean vista includes stacks of sewage pipes and 3, two storey tall rusting tanks, go for it. If you enjoy watching hordes of welders and iron workers assembling, welding and riveting directly in your Lagoon View, bring the binocs and enjoy. And, just as an aside, what would be my motive for posting "deceiving" pictures? Am I a one man campaign to put the Palace out of business? As a full-time resident of this wonderful city, it's in my best interest to have everything working here, because it's the income from these hotels and the tourist industry that provides the money that makes this place the paradise that it is. I'm sure that there are any number of people who will come down to the Palace and never notice anything wrong. They'll enjoy the indoor amenities, sit on the back side of the pool and never venture onto the beach or the street. Fine. I wish them well. For others, I'd advise them to wait. Read what Expedia and others have to say about the status of the completion. Then make your plans. Although the Palace is accepting reservations and people are indeed staying there, their "official" website says they'll be finished in June, 2007 and from the looks of things, that may be correct. I, for one, can't wait.
Pictures mixz1, Let's get something straight. First of all I am not a defender or apologist for Palace Resorts. Secondly, the flip remark regarding ; "Another reader asks when these picture were taken, ignoring the title of the post. Interesting. " That would be me. In your original post you never mentioned when the pictures were taken. I did notice the title and your post was on February 19th. Leading me to believe this is how you post. Be specific when posting and remove the ambiguity. As far as dealilng with the situation; deal with it ! People all around the world do albeit; New Orleans, Mississippi coast , Indonesia, etc.etc. . You still have your home. Be grateful there are other beaches in Cancun you can enjoy. You had a Level 4 hurricane hit Cancun. You're lucky anything is still standing. Be grateful for what you have and go to another beach. I'm sure it is taxing to have the restoration take so long but that is how it goes when many properties are affected. Your post was venom pointed at Palace Resorts and not for the better interest of the readers on ths forum.You zeroed in on the negative and never once showed anything positive. A bit biased I would have to say. As I said ; I am not an apologist for anyone but it does appear you have an axe to grind and that was the reason for your post. Peace!
Re: Pictures Pardon me for redacting some of your post. To deal with some particulars: I don't know how much clearer the title of the post could be. Would I post 6 month old pictures with the current day's date? Deal with it? How absolutely high-handed for you to say that. Do you live on the gulf? Was your home damaged by Wilma? Do you live next to a 15 month old continuous 24/7 construction project? Or do you just read about it and watch it on TV? I am dealing with it. My neighbors and I have been dealing with it for over a year as we repaired our homes and our healed our wounds. Don't presume to lecture me unless you're living with this yourself. I have participated financially and physically in the recovery of my community and I've observed 3 other adjascent properties (Meridien, Parnasus and Ritz) recover and rebuild, all with less negative impact on life and health here, than the Palace. As far as my post not being for the "better interest" of the readers, I've received far more positive feedback than negative. I've pointed out deficencies in the overall recovery of the Palace that have the capacity to diminish the expected experience of a Cancun vacation. I've also mentioned that I want nothing more than for the Palace to complete its rebuild and succeed. I don't know what qualifies you to comment at a distance on what I am living with on a daily basis, but if you're not an apologist for the Palace, what are you? I mentioned the pleasantries cited by others about the Palace and I am sure that the completed areas are world class. But the pile driver and tanks are still under the windows, the big Cat is still smoking up the beach, and the steel is still going up on Kulkulcan Blvd. These are facts, not conjecture, seen up close and personal. If you want to comment constructively, come on down. I'll buy you a drink and show you around. Until then, although you're entitled to your opinions, in my opinion, you are being less helpful than I.
