September 2014 Trip Report (RM Portion)

Discussion in 'Desire Resort' started by GoGoBlanco, Sep 30, 2014.

  1. GoGoBlanco

    GoGoBlanco Banned

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    Desire RM September 9th-23rd 2014.

    Our 4th trip. We took advantage of the 35% discount on offer due to the pool being closed for renovations, and the lure of free transport to and from Pearl every day. All the makings of our perfect holiday, as we have always preferred the days at Pearl, but the nights at RM.

    This is how it was……

    I’ll get the negatives out of the way first. We were promised at the time of booking, via Desire’s website, free transfers to Pearl between 10am and 6pm, but when we got there the goalposts had been moved to 11am until 5pm. Annoying, as it meant we were pretty much kicking our heels for an hour or more in the morning waiting for transport, and couldn’t really take advantage of any significant amount of time at Pearl’s fabulous Jacuzzi before it was time to leave. Still, we weren’t going to let this bother us too much.

    However, on Saturday, Pearl’s Foam Party day, we all received a letter in our rooms stating they were only going to let 8 couples from RM go to Pearl at 11am, and another 8 at 12am! I imagine there were a lot of disgruntled guests, as eventually 35 couples went over, and it was a blast! While I understand they didn’t want to compromise service for Pearl’s guests, they should have thought about this beforehand, and not promised us something they later figured they couldn’t deliver.

    Another peeve of mine is that we now have to make a reservation to dine at the Sahlo restaurant (this was not so in December). And not only that, we couldn’t actually make the reservation until 10am on the day. I’m on the beach then! Our entire mornings seemed to be spent clock watching. “is it time to book a transfer to Pearl, is it time to make a reservation for Sahlo, what time are we dining tonight?” I absolutely detest clock watching on holiday, and previously at Desire, have never had to do so.

    Ok, now the good stuff……

    In the absence of the pool, the staff made a very good attempt at compensating. An extra bar was set up to service the beach, beach beds were readily available, Sarah69 (a most welcome addition from Temptation) leading the entertainment crew, kept us amused.

    Dining: Excellent as always, nice to have Javier looking after us again, and Angel. We also had the opportunity to speak to the new chef Luis, who has great plans to overhaul the menus with a bigger emphasis on healthy eating

    Nightly entertainment: Great fun as always, lots of opportunities to dress up in something scandalous and strut our stuff on the packed dance floor.

    Staff: Wonderful. Always. I (GoGo) was unfortunately taken ill in the hotel’s grounds, and before I knew it was being attended to by 2 (or 3?) members of staff, including a medic who took their time to ensure I recovered sufficiently before escorting me back to my room , by which time a doctor had already been summoned. Fortunately it was nothing too serious, but I felt very safe in their hands.

    Jacuzzi Lounge : Another little niggle. There were “No Smoking” signs everywhere, not enforced at all. Even guests smoking large cigars in the Jacuzzi. The “No Smoking” rule IS enforced at Pearl….. Besides that, this area was as entertaining as always. Just when you thing you’ve seen it all, something/ someone surprises you ……… ;-)

    Pearl: I have posted the details of the Pearl portion of this trip under a separate thread

    To conclude:
    Due to the nature of this trip, with the transfers between resorts, it felt at times a little disjointed, but that was to be expected. Overall we had a great time, as always, and hope to be back in January, splitting our trip between the two resorts.
    :daisy:
     
  2. Steve

    Steve Administrator Owner

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    Thanks for taking the time to write the report GoGoBlanco.

    I hope the free return airport transfers included for booking via the Cancuncare link worked out better than the between hotels transfer from Desire!

    Just curious though, couldn't you have got a taxi instead of hanging round to depart and then having to leave earlier than you wanted to? The resorts are close together and a taxi probably wouldn't cost more than a couple of dollars.
     
  3. GoGoBlanco

    GoGoBlanco Banned

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    USA Transfers were a dream as always Steve, thanks!
    They were being a bit crafty with the whole transport thing. You pretty much had to go with the hotel transfers so they knew when you were arriving, as when you got there you had to fill out a form, and they kept your ID until you left, and if you overstayed they would slap you with a $150 night pass charge!
    Taxis between RM & Pearl are $20.
    :daisy:
     
  4. Steve

    Steve Administrator Owner

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    I do hope that's Pesos and not Dollars! I'm not 100% sure how far apart the two resorts are but I thought they were pretty close together. A $20 USD taxi ride should get you about 15 miles.
     
  5. Cokewithlime

    Cokewithlime Guru Registered Member

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    Steve, by road it's about 9 miles between them but outside of Cancun - ie along the Riviera Maya - CNOP Sindicato De Taxistas rules with an iron hand - the going 2014 Sindicato De Taxistas posted rate from Desire RM to Pearl one way is currently 250 pesos (pre 2012 it used to be 130 pesos). The increased Riviera Maya taxi rates have been a frustrating and ongoing issue since 2012 with all tourists in the RM

    You can check for yourself, one of the shops in PM has the current 2014 CNOP Sindicato De Taxistas rates posted on their page http://www.almalibrebooks.com/taxi/taxi_rates.pdf these are from PM centro to the listed destinations.
     
    Last edited: Oct 2, 2014
  6. Steve

    Steve Administrator Owner

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    Oh thought the two resorts were closer than that. But yeah I heard about how the Puerto Morelos taxis overcharge compared to Cancun and also how they react against private transportation companies.

    Got to love the Mexican way of business - monopolise, price fix and overcharge for the few services you manage to get. Rest of the time, hang out under a tree and shoot the shit with your buddies.

    I guess that's why they make the big bucks ;)
     
  7. Cokewithlime

    Cokewithlime Guru Registered Member

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    If you hoof it along the beach between the resorts it's just under 3 miles, but by road the only route is via 307 for most of it. The taxis only accept a 10:1 conversion from USD ie to them 250 peso = $25 USD. GoGoBlanco found out there are exceptions in that Desire management has pre negotiated a a sightly better rate of only $20 USD with them for travel between the properties, IMHO still a major rip off....but not many other options.
     
    Last edited: Oct 3, 2014
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