Caribe Real Resort & Spa( formally Contiental Villas Plaza) and Info On Tours and Clubs

There is plenty to do in Cancun. It was our first time there so we decided to do as much as possible. We went on a few tours. Isla La Mujeres (I explained my experience there in another section so I won't bore you). We did the Jungle Tour, which is great if you like snorkeling. You drive about 45 mins to a spot in the middle of the ocean and snorkel for 45 mins than drive back we used the speed boats(better than the jet ski everyone was complaining there butts hurt). We also did an ATV tour at the La Bonita Ranch, you can also go horse back ridding there. Great for an adventure seeker! You drive through a tree filled beach, take a rest and watch the people that went horseback ridding take the horses into the ocean for a dip. You also see a Mexican Army Man watching the water to make sure no one tries bringing there boats with illegal thinks onto the island. There are many clubs in Cancun the best being Coco Bongo and Senor Frogs (read my journal for more info). If you want to do some jewelry shopping take the bus to downtown to Mercado 28, you find great little stores with plenty of jewelry and room to bargain. In the mood for American food go to the Outback (prices are almost 2x they are here though) food tastes just like back home. While at the airport pick up the Cancun Map and coupons, inside you will find coupons for 2x1, free t-shirts at clubs, and coupons for free drinks and some restaurants. I loved the fact that you can take your drinks with you anywhere you go from your hotel, just ask to have it put in a plastic cup. The ocean is awsome, warm and the waves are usually calm.

Quick Tips:

Get the Cancun 2x1 Entertainment Card. 2x1 dinners at lots of restaurants and discounts on tours (www.entertainment-plus.net). That’s the best one to use. The guy, Brant, doesn't have you pay for the tours until you go on them, or for the card until you’re in Cancun and on a tour (.00usd for the card, which you make your money back in just one meal out). When going to clubs, the entertainment staff in the hotel usually goes to a different club every night - buy tickets through them. For about -30, you get free bus transportation from the hotel to the club, VIP seating, and a drink-all-night-and-admission-to-the-club bracelet. Also, the best Travel Company to use with the cheapest prices is Apple Vacations (Applevacations.com). I have done a lot of research and no company is cheaper (and they are way cheaper, like a few hundred bucks). For 2 weeks we are paying 1184 each, flying non-stop with Continental.

Best Way To Get Around:

Buses!! You have to be careful with taxis - make sure you set a price before you get in or they can charge you what they want. 60 cents for a bus anywhere in Cancun - can't beat that. Also, to go to many places in Mexico, you can take the bus anywhere in the Hotel Zone to Downtown Cancun - there is the main bus station in downtown. To Playa Del Carmen, it’s about each way. Renting a car or scooter, you have to be careful - without insurance, they can blame anything on you. If renting a car, make sure you and a person working there look for every nick or scratch and BUY INSURANCE. Walking is also good, just wear flip-flops. You can walk to many places. From this hotel to the center of Cancun where most clubs are, it was about a 15-20 minute walk; the best thing after a night of drinking is a nice walk home.

Awesome! Stayed at Continental (now called Caribe Real). It was good to know I would never starve or go thirsty,and its about the same price as if you would take a European Plan.

The hotel is beautiful and has a Mediterranean style. When you walk in, the lobby is huge and beautiful. It’s an open area with high ceilings. Big rooms, marble floor, we had a king size bed bigger than I have ever seen before, big tub and separate shower in the bathroom, separate seating area with a coffee table and couch, a great view of the ocean and walking distance from downtown.

Great staff always did what we needed. The main pool provides towels, and has a great entertainment staff. They had aerobics in the pool and would play tequila volleyball. There were four restaurants in the hotel - two buffets, one seafood lunch, and a reservations-needed Italian restaurant. They also have a late-night snack bar with burgers and hot dogs till 5am (perfect after a night of clubbing). Two bars, a lobby bar and main pool bar; I have heard that they also have a new beach bar. I spoke to someone from Real Resorts and also found out they opened a new 24-hour snack/drink bar for all-inclusive guests. They have also put in mini bars with drinks, soda and water in the remolded rooms.

Also, with the new name change, you can now visit the sister hotels and eat, drink, and use all the facilities. Go to for hotels you can visit. We plan on going to Playa Del Carmen for the day to visit their hotel. The Costal Real is the sister hotel in Cancun. I hear it has great food and a nice pool, but I do hear the ocean is not as great.

IF YOU PLAN ON VISITING FROM THE END OF AUGUST TILL NOVEMBER 2004, BE AWARE THAT THEY ARE REMODELING. THE MAIN POOL, LOBBY AND LOBBY BAR WILL BE SHUT DOWN (I was told end of August). I have been keeping in contact with a woman from the hotel that is keeping me posted because we are going the end of August for two weeks. We were going to switch hotels, but decided that it would be okay because the hotel has two other pools and we would like to visit the sister hotels, and hope that construction of these areas don't start till we leave.

This place is great. Eat dinner there and then party there all night. Good food, great party. If you’re looking for a good time in Cancun, this is the place to be. The MC makes sure everyone is having a good time. They have a waterslide on top of the club (which only girls can go down) that drops you into the lagoon. They have the yard drinks, which you can refill all night long for free. If you’re looking for a night of dancing, interaction and games, this is the place to be. The food is good too (if you’re looking to eat some American food) and reasonably priced, then stay afterwards for the party.

Went here on the bar-hopping tour; it was great. The 2x1 card is good here. So we got dinner for 15 bucks for both of us including tip.

I booked through my hotel rep. It cost $45 and you get round-trip ferry and get to spend six hours at the Garaffon on Isla Mujeres. You get a buffet lunch and can snorkel ($2 reef fee and you get a snorkel you can keep), kayak, swim, lie in water tubs, and swim in the pool - and the ocean is gorgeous. Than you can go into town and do some sightseeing, shopping, or do as I did and lay out on the hammocks. Also, you can book with the entertainment card - he offers one for $45 to another part of the island.

The Greatest Show in Cancun. In our 10-day stay, we went three times, and I cannot wait to go there this year. The bartenders were great, dancing on the bars, and the music and shows were awesome. If you like Las Vegas shows, this is the place to be. They have Madonna, Michael Jackson, the Mask, people flying on ropes across the club, and then you can go down on the stage way one top. If you’re as lucky as I was (yeah, right!), you can get gated in by yourself in the front part of that stage and have to dance by yourself while everyone watches for 20 minutes. The light shows are great. While dancing on the bars, the bartenders blow whistles and feed you shots with a flashlight under your chin. If you want a table, you’re going to have to tip a waiter, but be careful - when we were leaving one night, the waiter told us we had to pay $40 for the table. We said “yeah, right” and left (we gave him enough tips). We then reported him the next day.

On this tour you start out at a dock where you have to choose in advance when you book your tour if you want to drive a speed boat or jet ski for two. We booked the jet ski but when we got there we saw how uncomfortable they looked and luckly there was an extra speed boat. It not your normal jet ski, it has a square base where two people sit on and you have to drive for about 45 mins straight. The speed boat you get to sit in this little boat side by side and it just looked way more comfortable. After you drive out through the lagoon into the ocean you snorkel in the second largest reef in the world right in the middle of the ocean. If was beautiful but you snorkel for about 45 minutes and I got tired of if after a while so I sat back in the speed boat. The people who took the jet ski where complaing that there butts hurt and the girls that were holding on to there boyfriends thought they were going to fall off. Than you take you boat or ski back to the dock. Its a short tour if you want to relax during the morning at the hotel and just go out for a little while. Depending on who you book through you meet at a different dock. There is more than one Jungle Tour that goes out to the ocean.

For this tour you have to meet at Plaza Kulikan at the Ok Maugey Resturant. Here you check in and board an A/C bus (you can bring your own beer) where you are taken to the La Bonita Ranch. When you arrive at the Ranch, you are able to eat a small buffet lunch with toquitos, rice and soda (included in the price of the tour).

Then you are separated in groups of ATV and Horseback riding tours. They explain to you the safety and then you go to the ATV and they show you how to ride them. They are semi-automatic. If you feel uncomfortable you can ride with someone. You drive the ATV around this huge obstacle course for about 45 minutes and than take a break by the beach you where can go swimming. When the people that are horseback riding arrive, they have the choice of riding the horses into the water for a dip.

After a break you drive around again for about 45 minutes before you head back. There is an Olympic-sized pool back at the ranch and a huge bull chained to a fence that you can take your picture by. There are also other animals that you can walk around and look at.

I highly recommend this tour for the adventure prone person because I was scared to drive the ATV so I went on with my boyfriend that was a big mistake because he was crazy with it and we lost everyone while we were driving through the beach-y woods. If you don't like getting sand in your eyes, this isn't for you. Bring a hat, sneakers, and sunglasses.