I took the kids to Cancun, Mexico, for our summer vacation. I had originally planned a trip to Italy, but with the war involving Iran and concerns about airline fuel disruptions, I decided to stay a little closer to home. Cancun almost always delivers good value at the all-inclusive resorts, so it seemed like the right choice.
I already knew that sargassum (seaweed) was going to be an issue, so my expectations were realistic. Despite it washing up all along the beaches and giving off a pretty unpleasant smell at times, we still had a great vacation. We enjoyed the tropical atmosphere, the wildlife (including monkeys and coatis), the huge pools, waterslides, and all the other amenities the resorts had to offer.
Of the two resorts, Sandos Caracol in Playa del Carmen was my favorite. It had a lush, tropical feel that made you feel like you were staying in the middle of a jungle. Princess Riviera, on the other hand, was more modern and upscale, with large concrete buildings, giant resort-style pools, excellent restaurants, and the added bonus of air conditioning almost everywhere.
We also took a day trip to Cozumel via the ferry out the Playa de Carmen. While the port area water clear, there was still some sargassum in other Cozumel areas albeit not as bad as Playa de Carmen, which was hit hard.
The only real downside to the trip was flying. We had some very long flight delays on both the outbound and return flights with American Airlines, which were unpleasant. Based on this experience, I’d probably choose Southwest Airlines for future trips to Cancun instead.
