Mexico Travel Secrets: Best Resorts, Safety Tips, and Insider Advice
Get ready to plan the ultimate beach getaway! In this episode of Her Travel Expert, Kirsten and Meagan share their extensive experience traveling to Mexico—having visited nearly 50 times between them. They dive into everything you need to know before you go, from safety tips and the best resorts to must-know advice about drinking water, booking excursions, and even how to find the best deals on shopping. Whether you’re dreaming of an all-inclusive escape, an adventurous trip exploring cenotes, or a budget-friendly stay in hidden gems like La Paz, this episode has you covered.
Meagan Wristen
Hey, y’all, welcome back to an episode of Her Travel Expert. Today, we are talking all things Mexico. Between Kirsten and I, we have spent an enormous amount of time in Mexico and I am headed there in it two days. We’ve probably been 50 times.
Kirsten Maxwell
I think everybody’s starting to think about their winter and spring travel plans. So Mexico is one of those places that comes up quite a bit in different conversations I have on my website.
And so I’m happy to share what we know because like you said, we’ve both, I mean, I can’t remember a time I didn’t go there. It’s always been a constant.
I know I go at least once a year and that’s probably happened for the last 20 years.
Table of Contents
Direct Flights
Meagan Wristen
It adds up. I mean, after a while, and so we’re both based in Texas, which means it’s an easy direct flight. I can head to DFW airport and be down there and on the ground two and a half hours.
It’s just quick and easy. And for, for a lot of the United States, it’s a real quick and easy flight. Now, if you’re flying in from like Portland, Oregon, no, it’s awful. There’s no direct flight. You’re going to have to connect. It’s an eight hour journey.
So it may not be worth it, but then there’s the West coast of Mexico and you could be down there super quick down to Cabo or Puerto Vallarta. I think no matter what part of the country you’re in, you can get to some part of Mexico super easy and direct.
I’m a big fan of direct flights.
Kirsten Maxwell
Same. I used to have to, if I went to the West coast of Mexico, when we lived in Chicago, I always had to change planes somewhere. It’s nice to just be in Dallas and just grab a flight, get there.
Like you said, I mean, you leave at breakfast, you’re there for lunch. Who doesn’t like a buffet Mexican lunch with ceviche and tacos and all the good things?
It’s a really easy trip.
I’m anxious to dive in and talk about what we know and share it with you. We want to cover what you need to know before you plan your next Mexico vacation.
Is Mexico Safe?
Meagan Wristen
Don’t you think the number one question is, is it safe?
Kirsten Maxwell
Always, always. I’ll defer to you. I mean, you’re traveling a lot. I think both of us have visited as single travelers or, you know, with friends and then we travel with family as well.
Everybody has a different opinion on what they think. But I think you would probably agree with me that it’s not an issue. I mean, most people will go not have any instance.
Unfortunately everyone hears about are those unfortunate incidents that do indeed happen. I’m not going to act naive and say nothing happens in Mexico because things do happen.
There are safety precautions I think we all need to take before we undertake a trip to Mexico, whether it’s solo or with a group.
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, I would never tell someone not to go there. I think the only time I ever hesitated was a friend of mine. Her daughter was going on a college trip and all college students, it’s their first time like out of the country.
So that is where I’m a little more cautious. I would just say you’re a tourist for a reason. Do the touristy things. Sign up for the popular day trips to the to the Mayan ruins or go ziplining or, you know, pick a reputable company. Don’t just randomly flag somebody down.
There are certain countries, like say I’m in Italy, where I will walk off a cruise ship. There might be a cab driver there and he says, oh, for 200 bucks, I’ll take your family to Portofino. And I’m like, let’s go. Not in Mexico. That’s not what we’re doing in Mexico.
In Mexico, we’re booking through a reputable company, either the resort you stay at has somebody they work with, or a company that they know. I don’t think you go off the beaten path.
Don’t make too many poor decisions. I mean, look, there’s a lot of drinking that goes down and you have to know when to cut yourself off. If you’re a petite woman, don’t start taking shots.
Also, remember to drink lots of water every time you decide to have that cocktail or that shot. Drink eight ounces of water to counteract it. And keep in mind that if you’re out there in the heat of the day in the pool, you may not feel like you’re overheating or getting too tipsy, but it can hit a lot harder depending on weather.
Just something to keep in mind. But yeah, I think you just don’t go looking to score drugs and you’re probably going to be ok.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah, so speaking of drugs, we have encountered it once in Mexico.
They left us alone. We carried on. But it it did kind of make us do that gut check of oh, we need to pay attention. I mean, we’re traveling with teenage boys who are impressionable and you just want to make sure that everybody kind of understands the risk and what’s going on.
And like you said about the drinking even with your kids, because obviously the drinking age is 18. Many resorts are very good because they give you a band if you’re under 18, but that doesn’t mean that the kids won’t skirt around the issues and try to find their own way to the alcohol.
It’s something to keep in mind. It’s not like the U S as you said, from the very beginning, you have to be mindful of the fact that you’re in a different country, that they have different laws, that your personal safety comes first.
So just always being aware of your surroundings, I think, is super important. I mean, it’s anywhere you travel, but I think in Mexico, just because it’s this contained environment and it’s a party atmosphere at a lot of different properties, you just have to be on your guard a little bit more than normal.
Meagan Wristen
Oh, yeah, for sure. Now, I’ve never been offered anything anywhere in Mexico.I don’t think I’m the kind of person you would approach to like for any, any reason.
Shopping in Mexico
Meagan Wristen
So, but I do get the jewelry people, you know, the people that walk up and down the beach and they sell the jewelry. I’ve gotten a ton of jewelry that way. It’s a really good deal in my opinion. If it’s real silver, it’ll be stamped. So you just have to check it, like flip it over and see if it’s been stamped.
And then, you know, you’re getting a really good deal. So I loaded up the last time I was in Puerto Vallarta.
Kirsten Maxwell
That’s a good tip.
Meagan Wristen
I don’t necessarily go to like a shopping mall because I know a lot of people like to shop in Mexico. The only thing I like to get is prescriptions or like Latisse. You can get Latisse for super cheap at Walmart.
Kirsten Maxwell
My mom always would go to Mexico to get Retin-A because it’s cheaper and you can get it direct at the drugstore without a prescription.
The other thing I was going to say that earlier you touched on drinking the water and people do have concerns.
Can you drink the water in Mexico?
Kirsten Maxwell
And my answer is no. It’s not super environmentally friendly, but they do have water bottles typically at the hotels. I always recommend bringing your own water bottle.
Sometimes you’ll find they have different water dispensers throughout the property that you can fill up throughout the day. I think it’s important.
Meagan Wristen
I was at a newer resort in June and they have the water bottle refill stations built into the different buildings. I thought that was so great. That’s the first time I’ve seen that.
Mexico on a Budget
Kirsten Maxwell
The next thing we were going to talk about was budget because for everybody that’s traveling to Mexico, it’s kind of hard to know where to begin.
Price point is usually a good place to start because when you have less money to spend. Look at the properties that are going to give you the all in one package for a better deal versus having to spend all the money in the world. Or maybe you have that and so you can go to some of the higher-end properties. But where do you think is a good place for people to start if they maybe don’t have the highest budget?
Meagan Wristen
I think any of the destinations that haven’t gotten super popular yet are definitely way more affordable. I think Tulum is still pretty affordable. There’s a lot of smaller places where you can stay, boutique-y hotels where there might be like eight rooms or something, and you can pick up a really cheap room there.
Where to Stay in Tulum: 15 Accommodations for All Budgets
Also, VRBO is really popular throughout the area. So if you don’t want to do the all-inclusive thing, then even in the resort towns that are more expensive, you can find a cheap VRBO.
Meagan Wristen
And it’s pretty affordable to eat around the area, regardless of where you’re staying.
Kirsten Maxwell
As you’re saying that, I’m thinking I’ve never planned on renting a vacation rental in Mexico, just because I think it was a couple of years ago, there was somebody who had like the carbon monoxide detector issue and they actually passed away in their rental.
So for me, I would do that, but I would make sure that you have some really good conversations with your host. Make sure you know what’s included, what can expect to find, what’s in the neighborhood surrounding your lodging.
Getting Around Mexico
Kirsten Maxwell
There’s just important things to consider. How do you get around? Like what’s transportation like? Are you going to be walking everywhere? I mean, cause there are smaller places like whole box, which is, you know, up North of Cancun and it’s an Island and you get around on golf carts.
I mean, you could technically go there and just park yourself there, but there are other places where you’re going to want to be able to get around. Do you rent a car? I never have rented a car in Mexico by the way have you?
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, we have. So, I mean, ah I mean, a lot of, so a lot of the most popular parts of Mexico are so much like America. It’s the same driving laws. You know, you’re driving on the same side of the road.
It’s pretty simple to get around out there. I mean, work on their highway system all the time. So to me, the worst strip used to be Cancun to Tulum because they’re doing so much work expanding it or putting in a bridge.
Meagan Wristen
The last time I was there, that was all done. I mean, we zipped right down the, I mean, we made it from like the airport down to Tulum in an hour, which I thought was pretty good because it could be upward of two depending on traffic. So, but with that said, it’s also super cheap to get transportation.
So if you just want to get an Uber or a taxi, that’s not going to break the bank, even if you’re on a budget.
So you could probably do it either way. I will say if you’re in like Riviera Nayarit, the resorts are super spread out.
You’re not going to walk around that area. If you want to go into Puerto Vallarta, that is a haul. So you would have to have a car at that point or sign up for a day trip or something because it is so spread out.
So I think a lot of that comes down like if you’re in La Paz, you and I were in La Paz a few years ago and we walked almost everywhere.
We did do a few things out of town and that you had to have transportation for. But, when we were in the downtown area, you know, the beach is right there.
The restaurants are all right there. All the bars are right there. There were, I think there was a museum there. I mean, everything was right there.
Kirsten Maxwell
Very walkable. La Paz is a little bit more cost effective, where the US dollar as currency hasn’t caught on as much as it has in the big resort towns.
So La Paz was mostly pesos everywhere. It’s the first place in Mexico I’ve been to that I felt they were almost stepped back in time and they were very, very reasonable price wise.
I think that finding those destinations, like you’re saying, that i have not maybe hit the tourist market as hard so far are probably your best bets for saving some money.
Meagan Wristen
Okay. Yeah, I remember the last time I went to Puerto Vallarta, I had been told by a handful of people that it was still super cheap to go there. And honestly, that’s just not the case. I mean, everywhere I went had American prices and they took American money.
So my youngest child is 17 years old now, which means that some of the resorts, he is an adult, which means we just did our very first adults all-inclusive vacation so because uh it was 16 and up is considering an adult and we had the best time it was a Hotel Xcaret Arte but they have a sister hotel right next door that’s just ex-correct and then that’s for families with younger kids So the huge benefits of staying there was the food is really top notch.
Kirsten Maxwell
Let’s jump to the part that most people were looking forward to hearing about our favorite resorts for different ages, different trips, properties that we’ve seen. You know, you want to kick that off?
Meagan Wristen
I always see these funny things online about like, oh, well, you know, it’s all you can eat.
It’s all included, but it’s super cheap food and it’s cheap alcohol. And that wasn’t the case at those resorts at all. Like it was the the food was top notch.
That was one of of the highlights of of staying at that resort and then it’s an arte art so there were art experiences included which for teenagers was super fun so Eden and I did a pottery class which I made a junky bowl that looked like trash and it was it looked like somebody with no hands made it but then Eden made a real elaborate dog and it’s like next level.
And we had the exact same amount of time to create it. I was like, okay, thanks. I look like an idiot, but okay.
Kirsten Maxwell
Wow. Nothing like that.
Meagan Wristen
I’m not crafty. And then what was really neat about that one is because it’s not just all inclusive at the property with alcohol and the food, but it included all these adventure parks.
They happen to own a handful of adventure parks in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, River Maya, and Tulum so I think they’re up to eight or nine parks at this point so one day we’re ziplining one day we’re snorkeling with tropical fish we’re off-roading we’re just doing all this and we’re a really active family so I like that so I know there’s some slower resorts where you’re not like go, go, go.
But then the next day I got to have something to do or I get antsy.
Xcaret Parks
Kirsten Maxwell
So let’s, well, I was going to say, let’s go back to Xcaret because I was going to ask you, what parks did you tour?
Meagan Wristen
What’s a good one you’ve been to?
Kirsten Maxwell
Because I think that’s another thing people hear that name and we’re saying X-C-A-R-E-T and they have all these different parks, but how do you know which one to choose? So I was going to say, we’ve done two of them.
We’ve done Xel-ha and Xenotes, I guess is how you would say it with an X, but it’s the word Chenote. So it’s all the swimming in the different water holes.
I would say for teenagers and young adults I would probably do Xenotes. The driver took us to different cenotes throughout the region. They were all different, one was a river, one was in a cave, and then one was cliff diving, one was zip lining.
So it was a little bit of everything. And then Xel-Ha is more like an adventure water park.
Like they have water slides and they have a river tubing and obstacle courses and you can feed seals or sea lions. I can’t remember which, but just all different kinds of experiences.
And they had meals were included too. So it’s like an all-inclusive park experience, kind of like Disney, but not the same.
Meagan Wristen
Mexican Disney. We did Xel-ha.
And I thought it was too low key.
Kirsten Maxwell
Oh, really?
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, we did the snorkeling, but so we were going through the mangroves and stuff, but we did that at some of the other parks. I was like, eh, I could have taken her, you know, and then we did do the water slide, that crazy water slide where you’re just like circle, circle, circle all the way down.
And apparently I was on the inside tube and it was slow, but my kids are on the outside and they’re like, that was so crazy. I was like, really? I thought it was boring, but lesson learned, go on the outside for the more adventurous slide.
Kirsten Maxwell
funny. Yeah. There you go.
Meagan Wristen
And if you don’t like that, go to the inside. So, but we did the Xplor Fuego, which you can do explore during the day or you can do it at night.
So explore fuego starts a little later in the day, but I kind of like that because we’ve had the day at the resort and then we’re going to do dinner at explore Fuego. Cause again, the foods included no alcohol, but foods included.
And we did off-roading really, really good off-roading. If you haven’t been there in the last couple of years, they expanded the off-roading course and pretty much and doubled it. So we were off-roading for a really long time.
I wish I had known that ahead of time. I thought, well, we’ll go around once and we’ll switch drivers. Well, we’ve been off-roading for so long. By the time we got done, I was like, I’m done. My back can only take so much. So, so no, you should switch drivers halfway through, which it can be hard to tell what’s halfway through, maybe 20, 25 minutes in switch off.
And then they have a water ride that is the most extreme water ride I’ve ever been on in my entire life. And we are water park people. So that’s really saying something. I have never been more terrified.
Like, I don’t know if I can post a photo somewhere for y’all to see it, but I look like I’m going to die and yeah so explore used to didn’t have this water ride but it’s one of the newest things that they added to the park they have zip lines too uh regular zip lines that you’re harnessed into and then they’ve got like hammock swings that you can zip line in which I know Xel-ha has those zip lines too like it’s kind of like sitting in a basket.
Kirsten Maxwell
And this is the Xplor Fuego?
Meagan Wristen
Um, then the other park we did was Xcaret. And so it gets a little confusing because there’s an Xcaret hotel and then there’s an Xcaret park.
The biggest difference for us going to the Xcaret park is food is not included. So, there were a lot of additional charges.
So there were like five main things included in that park. And then everything else was a little extra. They had a really amazing replica cemetery though. So if you’ve ever wanted to visit a cool Mexican cemetery, you can do that there.
I mean, it’s fake, but it looks perfect and you can get really good pictures.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah, that’s fair. What other kind of off, I mean, we’ve done, a we’ve done another off resort activity in Cancun and I can’t remember the name of the company, but it was right across from that Hilton.
It’s now the Hilton caribe resort and it’s where you go out in the mangroves and we did uh the jet what do you call that boat jet yeah yeah Yeah.
Meagan Wristen
bow, but they have it, you can only go so fast because they have it, they have something on it that keeps it going over a certain speed because I definitely tried to go faster and I could not.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. great Great memories memories. yeah yeah.
Meagan Wristen
You know what?
That’s actually the best snorkeling I’ve ever done on that side of Mexico.
So although the water is so beautiful, I have not found the snorkeling to be on par with some other destinations with that kind of water.
Kirsten Maxwell
I would agree.
Meagan Wristen
that particular excursion hadn’t that’s I thought the snorkeling was really it’s obviously a popular area
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. It was out by the, um, the club med property over there. I’m not sure where that is, but it was out in those waters off of the club med property. cause we, yeah.
And we’ve done a snorkeling in Cozumel that I would not recommend to anybody. That was not fun and not clear. And just, I don’t even know why we did that. You’ve done another off resort thing that’s a zip lining thing.
It’s not the resot, but it was a different company that yeah, that’s the one.
Meagan Wristen
because there were a lot of boats. No fish. We, we did Selvatica and it has like every kind of zip line you could think of. So it’s got the Superman zip line where you lay down. And so you’re, you’re laying on your stomach and they send you head first off of it, which is so intimidating.
The first time you do it, you’re just like, what am I doing? It’s so stupid. I mean, you have a helmet on and it is safe. Like I will say zip line in Honduras, maybe not the best choice.
Zipline in Mexico. It’s totally fine. It’s going to meet the same regulation. I think that the U S has because you have so much U S tourism there. So, but yeah, so they send you head first and you’re just like, what am I doing?
But it’s so much fun. And you’re just like, you have your arms out and you’re like soaring. You’re like flying. It’s a really, it’s a cool experience. And they have really good off-roading too they have pilaris razors and they had a track that was super fun and then they included some cenotes too
Kirsten Maxwell
okay talk about also, I mean, we’ve spent so much time talking about Cancun, but I mean, let’s not forget Cabo and Puerto Vallarta and everything else over there. So do you have a favorite property in Puerto Vallarta, whether it’s for, you know, a girlfriend trip or kids or whatever, do you have a favorite property there?
Meagan Wristen
My favorite hotel in the entire world is in Puerto Vallarta and it is called Hotel Mousai. It’s adults only, so no kids, but you know, maybe that’s why it was so great.
I’m on the rooftop pool. I’m watching the sunset while a jazz trumpet player is playing smooth jazz behind my head. I’m having tacos and chips and salsa, and I’m just like, what is life?
This is a beautiful life. Then when I retire to my room, I go out to my balcony where I could hammock or sit in my hot tub like it was a wonderful experience so I love Puerto Vallarta but kid-friendly hotel I would say it used to be called Now Amber I think it’s called Dreams Amber Now it’s a really beautiful property yeah they
Kirsten Maxwell
Oh, that’s perfect.
Perfect. Nice. Nice. Yeah. Yep. I stayed there. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We stayed there during COVID. So.
Meagan Wristen
had trampolines for the kids they had a great kids club with a bunch of trampolines like yeah yes
Kirsten Maxwell
Oh, yeah. Mine were older. We didn’t look at the kids club. So, but yeah, the, and I thought the, the location was pretty good, pretty central, but we still had to take a taxi to downtown Puerto Vallarta, which was fine, but cause it’s not at the time time I didn’t think it was super expensive.
I had $10 more or less. I mean, I don’t feel like it was super pricey, but we did do a day trip in Puerto Vallarta to, oh my gosh, I wish I had looked this up before we started, but I’ll have to put it in the notes.
It’s an island that you take the boat out to. And it’s one of those elaborate, kind of like the Eskeret parks, but it had kayaking and paddle boarding.
And they did a nighttime show. Your meals were included. They had a spa there. So my husband and I both did massages while the kids were off playing in the ah teen area. They had zip lines.
They had one of those banana boat rides. I mean, it was a perfect full day in the sun. Great off resort activity because I’m like you where I can only be still on a resort property for so long before I’m antsy and need to get out and go see what else is going on.
Meagan Wristen
One thing about like you were saying the cab, the cab was only like 10 bucks or whatever. I will say like one of the things I do in Mexico is when I go to the front of the resort, I get the concierge to get the taxi for me and they negotiate the right.
They’re going to get, they’re going to get a better rate than me. So, and I had a friend that was like super paranoid everywhere we went she would like take a picture of their license plate and then send it uh to her husband back home in Texas because she was like no it wasn’t you it was Lindsay but it if the hotel the hotel knows where you are like they kind of keep tabs of you coming in and out.
Kirsten Maxwell
Would recommend in Puerto Vallarta. Oh, yeah, that’s good. Good point. Oh, yeah. Is that me?
It’s me. It’s me. I’m the friend. I’m the friend who does that. So, yeah. Yeah, I do that. I do that, too. Fair. Fair enough.
Los Cabos
Kirsten Maxwell
Okay. So then let’s move on to Cabo. Any favorites there? Any favorite properties, offsite activities? That
Meagan Wristen
My favorite thing to do in Cabo is fly in and go to La Paz.
Kirsten Maxwell
doesn’t count. You don’t have a favorite resort in Cabo?
Meagan Wristen
I do the Hacienda Encantada. Again, trampolines for the kids. Kids club. Water park for the kids., pickle ball.
Kirsten Maxwell
Villas. Villas you can rent for bigger families.
Meagan Wristen
Mini golf.
So many restaurants. I didn’t try them all. Oversized rooms.
Kitchen. I had a kitchen in my room.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yes, that’s right.
Yeah. It’s a full, full deal.
Meagan Wristen
the property is so pretty.
And they had an adults only area too. so I could dump the kids and go hang out by myself and relax.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. One thing to mention, I think, about Cabo that comes up a lot is swimmable beaches because, you know, they’re infamous for their strong undertow that happens off the shore because they just, you don’t swim typically on the beaches in Cabo.
There are a few properties that have man-made lagoons. I know that Fiesta Americana has one. I know that, what’s the other one we stayed at?
Meagan Wristen
With that said, though, the day you left, I was still there with some other people and they would not let us get in the water.
Kirsten Maxwell
They have one as well.
Meagan Wristen
So, but they had lifeguards out there to tell you not to get in.
Kirsten Maxwell
So So, it’s it’s heteronormatic. heterogeneous. Yeah.
Meagan Wristen
So you look for a green flag.
All of Mexico has a flag system and they’ll have a sign somewhere that explains the flag system.
And this is worldwide typically, but Mexico is quite good about the flag system.
Kirsten Maxwell
That’s true.
Meagan Wristen
So I, in my opinion, you don’t go to Cabo to get in the water.
The spa, the swimming pools, the food, the atmosphere. Like I took the coolest like educational tequila class at the Hacienda Encantada.
Kirsten Maxwell
That’s right. You go for the swimming pools. Yeah.
Meagan Wristen
Like there’s so many other activities you could do.
It didn’t matter that you couldn’t get in the water there.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah, yeah, that’s true. You got to find those things off property. I did surfing school once. I went to Mike Doyle Surfing School in Cabo, took a lesson. that That’s a fun
It’s so much harder than I ever thought it was going to be.
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, I don’t, I recommend learning to surf in the Baja.
Kirsten Maxwell
You don’t do that.
Todos Santos
Meagan Wristen
So we took a surf lesson at Todos Santos.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. I don’t know if I do it there.
Meagan Wristen
My kids are athletes, and they could barely do it because the waves, I mean, it’s it’s
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. It’s brutal.
it’s true. It’s true. And Toto Santos is a good day trip as well. If you want like a little artsy community, there’s a restaurant up there called Jazza Mongo. That’s like this fantastic farm to table.
Like literally the farm is outside the restaurant and I would recommend stopping there. And then you and I went to, I can’t remember.
Meagan Wristen
I mean, it’s just, in Todos Santos called Dum. It’s beautiful. It’s a French restaurant.
And at night it’s all lit up with all the lights. And during the day they have a pool you can swim at and have a whole daytime experience too but very unique yes did the camel which I
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. And I think there’s, yeah, I think other activities in Cabo, obviously there’s going down, taking the boat right out to the arch. That’s very popular.
And I know you can do snorkeling tours or paddle boarding. So, I mean, I think that, again, it comes back to the whole, if you’re going to go to Mexico, book your tours through a reputable tour company.
I think Cabo Adventures is the one I’ve used most of the time in Cabo. I think they also have a Puerto Vallarta Adventures and they probably have a Cancun Adventures if I were a betting person that I probably bet on
Nice. Yeah, that’s great. Great. You can do that. Anything else we want to touch on as far as resorts that we love? Like, okay, let’s, I mean, you already said Hotel Mousai was your favorite all-time resort in Mexico.
Meagan Wristen
it was really neat. You know what though? Hotel Arte might have beaten it because it had a bunch of rooftop pools.
I love a rooftop pool. I love to have that guacamole. Enjoy the view. Have an Aperol Spritz.
Kirsten Maxwell
There you go. Perfect afternoon.
Meagan Wristen
Big fan.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. I did like, we did a tour, property tour of Fiesta Americana Coral Beach. And I think that another a good good uh way to save money is to go to the properties where the locals stay fiesta americana is a very mexican chain and i think that they give a better value almost for the all-inclusive experience without taking away from any of the extras and bells and whistles they have a gorgeous uh property that sits right on the ocean.
Every room is ocean view and they’re pretty spacious rooms.
They have an amazing spa. One of the largest, I think, in the area.
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, the spa was next level. Hydrotherapy.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah, I mean, it was a great spa. Their were great. That’s the one place where I actually tried a fried grasshopper. But if you put guacamole on it, you didn’t taste anything.
So it’s just one of those properties that I recommend to a lot of people as being very accessible. They have an amazing kids club. It would appeal to all ages.
So I think those are good properties to look at if you don’t want to pay the higher level because Hotel Xcaret and Arte both come at a higher price tag.
So if you’re looking, yeah.
Meagan Wristen
A huge price tag, but it’s a trade-off because then you’re not paying for excursions. So, you know, you kind of have to like factor in all the costs. I will say one thing that we haven’t touched on yet is babies.
Baby Friendly Resorts
Meagan Wristen
You know, if you have a baby, I’ve got two different places I’ll recommend. The first one is Grand Velas, just because they have a lot of baby amenities.
They can bring you a crib, a baby bath, a baby, a bottle warmer, strollers, like you can show up with your baby and they have everything you need. And then when I was at the breakfast buffet one morning, there was a baby that was just miserable.
And one of the workers picked the baby up, walked him around the restaurant.
So the family continued on with their meal. And when they were done eating, brought the baby back. I mean, the baby was always within mom and dad’s line of sight, but I was just super impressed with the staff.
And then the other one I was just at, they just launched a family selection. They called it the family selection. And that was the Grand Palladium in Riviera Maya.
And they had a kids club, they had a teens club, but but they also had a baby club and the baby club was for one to three year olds now it was limited it it wasn’t like a kids club where you could just drop them and you don’t have to see them the rest of the day it was only for a couple of hours but in that couple of hours you could go to the spa or you could hit the beach or do whatever do whatever it is want to do for a couple of hours and have a little break.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. that reminds me that one of the other places I’ve been that has a great kids club is Finest Playa Mujeres. They have a great kids club. They have suites with swimming pools for families.
They have an adults only pool and they have a family friendly pool, but they also share restaurants with two properties that are adults only. one is beloved and one is excellent.
And I’m not a huge Indian food person, but I went to one of their restaurants there and thought it was hands down stellar. Now, mind you, this was a few years ago, but the time I thought it was a great offering to be able to stay at a hotel that allows you access to other restaurants within their their their collective group.
So that might be something worth looking into. I think the Moon Palace resorts do that too.
Meagan Wristen
Yeah, the Grand. I’ve never stayed at Moon Palace, but I stayed at the Grand at Moon Palace. So I had access to all the restaurants, all the pools, all the beaches.
And there was a Lebanese, I had Lebanese food that was phenomenal.
Kirsten Maxwell
Oh, yum.
Meagan Wristen
So, and you were just not expected.
I really go to Mexico to eat tacos. I don’t really want the other food, but you know, sometimes every day Yeah.
Kirsten Maxwell
But sometimes it’s like, how many days can you do tacos? I don’t know. You know, so yeah, that’s the right answer. That’s why we’re friends. So we could do it every day together. Margaritas, tacos and chips.
Beach Packing Tips
Kirsten Maxwell
I mean, we could talk about kind of our packing, what we usually bring along or things that you don’t want to forget if you’re going to Mexico.
Meagan Wristen
Cause I, I don’t know about you, but when we go to Mexico, we go to the beach.
So we’ll have to save Mexico city for a different time, but, but, and that’s a completely different experience.
That’s completely different than everything we’ve just talked about. So, so with it being sandy, dirty, wet, flip flops that you can wash off and that will dry quick.
So, you know, I’m a year round flip flop wearer.
Kirsten Maxwell
That’s true. To be fair. Yeah.
Meagan Wristen
So I have some really nice like leather flip flops with arch support. Those are not my flip flops for going to the beach and getting dirty. So instead I have like some plastic cheap ones.
So every year old Navy will have like $2 flip flops or $5 flip, like super cheap.
And they’re always like rubber. That’s exactly what you want. If you lose one, who cares? If you ruin one, who cares? So, um, and then my, I do, I love dry bags.
Kirsten Maxwell
right. right. And I think you were going to talk about your dry bag also. Oh
Meagan Wristen
I love them so much that I have them in three different sizes.
Kirsten Maxwell
my goodness. How many do you have? Oh my gosh. I love that.
Oh, I need that.
Meagan Wristen
So I use them for a couple of reasons, right? If we do a day trip and we’re out on a boat, you don’t know where you’re going to put your stuff. So that’s what the big one’s for because then the whole family can just dump everything in so but oftentimes what I use it for every time is you know let’s say you’re checking out late you still use the pool so your swimsuits might be wet so I just throw it in the dry bag roll it up and then throw it in my suitcase so nothing else gets wet and you know yeah so so sometimes I use it to keep things from not getting wet
Kirsten Maxwell
Nice. Perfect.
And my, and my, my idea is something that’s the opposite.
It’s to keep you dry, but so this is, well, the same kind of thing. So I use a Turkish towel. So they sell these on Amazon and, they’re perfect because they’re, they’re, this one’s fairly big.
I’m not going to show you on camera, but take my word for it. And it dries super quickly so I can just hang it out over a chair at night and it’s dry by the morning. It’s the sand comes off of it really easily.
And I also if it’s not dirty, I’ll use it like as a shawl on the airplane because it gets super cool on some of these planes. And so, especially if you’re sunburned and you’re coming back, so you might want a little something to, to keep yourself warm.
So I’d recommend one of those Turkish towels. So, yeah. Anything else?
Educational Opportunities
Meagan Wristen
You know what we didn’t talk about though? Like educational.
So if you, cause I, I know a lot of families families I would say that’s a question I get asked a lot it’s like the adventure stuff like is there anything like a learning opportunity or let’s say your kids skipping school I let my kids skip school all the time I’m the worst but we’ll go do something educational to make it feel like.
And Mexico has some interesting opportunities because they do have such well-preserved Mayan ruins.
So you take a tour of those, you’ll learn a ton. We actually went to this really neat immersive experience in Cozumel called Pueblo del Maiz.
And when you get there, you become a Mayan. And so we painted our faces. We made chocolate. We participated in a dance.
Like we learned about where the gum comes from and then we picked it and chewed it. And so it was like this really, it’s like burnt in my kid’s brain.
So we played, we played one of the ball games that they played, which was really hard.
So I have a video of me just getting madder and madder.
And then you never know when you can find something kind of unexpected. Cozumel has a really good planetarium. And because it’s an island and because their light pollution is so it turned out to be an incredible experience.
And they’ve got an amazing telescope. And so.
Kirsten Maxwell
We did the Coba ruins when we were in Cancun. And when I say we, we all signed up for the tour, but then we had an allergic reaction issue with my youngest.
So I stayed behind while the other three went. And my husband, I’m kind of glad I didn’t go. but but I don’t know if you’ve hiked any of these pyramids, but there’s no reeling.
It’s super steep. The stones are slick. And I’m just thinking, I don’t know if I would have really wanted to climb up and down those pyramids. but they had a great tour guide who, to your point, gave them the whole educational background about the, you know, the development, how it’s laid out and how different things could be found on the property.
Same with the ruins in Tulum as well. So, yeah.
Meagan Wristen
So one of the changes since recent, very recent, is you can no longer climb Coba because it did get so slick.
And they put So. out a rope to help people up and down.
And then it just got to the point where you couldn’t do it anymore. So as far as I know, that is no more.
Kirsten Maxwell
You can’t. Okay. Well, there you go.
Meagan Wristen
You can go way further out to, is it Elk Balam?
And I have climbed those.
Those are incredibly steep, but not as slick, but just so steep, you know.
Yeah. Yeah. So, but I mean, it’s culture, it’s learning about, you know, people that came before us, which I think is um important.
Kirsten Maxwell
I think we’ve always put that as one of the priorities with traveling with our kids is that they are getting something educational and Mexico has plenty of opportunities. Like you talked about, there’s the chocolate, there’s the Mayan experience and a lot of different places will try to incorporate that into what you’re learning when you’re visiting their property.
So I really appreciate that. And the other thing I was going to say is the, the turtles, the sea turtle release programs and stuff like that i know they have one i think in cabo maybe okay yeah right yeah
Meagan Wristen
They definitely have one in Puerto Vallarta. I’ve never gotten to participate in one. And you do want to… I learned a lot after participating in one.
You’re not supposed to touch the turtles. So they should provide like something for you to scoop the turtle up if you’re going to participate and release it. It is a really, so I got to do it in Sri Lanka, not, not Mexico, but it was well worth it.
And I know that there’s a handful of hotels that have areas roped off to keep them safe.
Kirsten Maxwell
Right. Yeah. Yeah, not Mexico. Yeah.
Meagan Wristen
And you can participate in a program where you release some in the evenings and it’s definitely worth it.
Kirsten Maxwell
Yeah. So I think those are all good ideas for families who are traveling there and, you know, want a little bit more from the destination. I think those are all good examples of things they can do.
