Planning your Dream Vacation in Mexico the Easy Way

Picture this: crystal clear blue ocean water, the warm breeze brushing past you, and a frozen pina colada in your hand. You’re in Mexico. Mexico is a place that’s become very close to my heart over the past couple of years. It’s absolutely beautiful, relaxing, and has the warmest and most inviting people. It’s a country you just can’t miss in your travel plans! Last week I was blessed enough to spend a week in Mexico soaking up the sun, drinking *all* of the frozen drinks, and hopping in the ocean every other minute. While I for one know traveling and making travel plans can be stressful, I’m here to show you just how simple it can be! I know it’s easy to push off vacations due to the stress of planning, etc, but trust me, if I can do it, anyone can. Today, let’s dive into Planning Your Dream Vacation to Mexico…the Easy Way.

How to book your trip:

When it comes to booking trips, you can go a number of different ways. You can hire a travel agent, go through a few different websites for flight, accommodations, etc, or go through one site that bundles it all. As someone who likes to take the easy route (at all times lol, who can blame me?), I went with the site that I knew I could get everything done in one fell swoop: CheapCaribbean. Through the CheapCaribbean site, you can book your trip, your specific accommodations (the type of room, etc.), round-trip flights, and more in a super-simple bundle package. Personally, there’s nothing worse when you’re traveling and have to flip through countless different reservation numbers and websites to find the correct info, so booking everything in one place makes it really simple. While on CheapCaribbean there’s plenty of vacation package options, I think it’s best to start by filtering exactly what you what. This means choosing:

• All-inclusive vs. European plan
• Your desired destination/hotel
• Price range
• Length of stay

Starting off, I knew I wanted to travel to Cancun, Mexico, in an all-inclusive resort so this is where I started. I clicked on the “all-inclusive” tab at the top, then scrolled with to Mexico. Pro tip: if you’re never been to Mexico, choose an all-inclusive resort. Basically, all-inclusive resorts factor your meals and other additional fees into your base rate, which means you never have to take out money on vacation and everything is paid for upfront. The other plan that is often available, is the European plan. This means everything is a la carte, and you pay as you go. After having spent time at both types of resorts, I would definitely recommend all-inclusive packages over anything else. They are so seamless, easy, and low hassle. Plus when you’re running around in a bathing suit all day, you don’t want to have to be whipping out cash left and right every time you want to eat, drink, or do an activity. Take it from me, all-inclusive is the way to go! After you’ve selected your destination, scroll through the list of amazing resorts and see what will best suit your vacation needs!

Resort 1: Secrets the Vine

The first resort I checked into was Secrets the Vine. Let me just say, I was blown away the minute I entered. The resort is like new (opened in 2012) and so beautiful down to every detail. From the high ceilings in every room, to the ultra-chic architecture, I felt like I was in a palace. While many resorts in Mexico are laid out horizontally and very spread out, Secrets the Vine is all one high-rise building. While I wasn’t sure I would like this at first, upon entering our room, I decided I loved it. The hotel staff informed us that since the resort is built vertically, it allowed for the most amazing views of Cancun, and boy was he correct. This also made navigating the property really easy, since everything was accessible from the elevators. You could get to the pools, restaurants, and night-life all by heading down a few floors! I loved this – especially on the nights that I was wearing less than practical shoes haha (all for the sake of fashion!). Having everything close by really allowed us to explore every amenity the resort had to offer.

Food: As someone who has a more specific diet than most, food is something that stresses me out on vacation. Thankfully though, Secrets the Vine made it SO easy. On every menu, there was a dedicated vegan section, and the waiters were so knowledgeable when explaining how certain things were prepared. They truly made it feel like no matter what you asked for, they were happy to accommodate. It was amazing. Nightlife: In terms of the nightlife, Secrets the Vine had a few different options. One of my favorites was the Piano Bar! Each night in the Piano Bar, the resort had performers of all kinds. Our favorite was Broadway Night there they played the Four Seasons. It was so fun to watch, and they really got the crowd involved. You could easily pop in and out every night just to see what was going on. There was also a Sports Bar. While everyone knows I could care less about sports (lol), I’m always down for a drink and games! The sports bar had pool tables, popcorn machines, and lots of fun bar food and drinks to entertain when you weren’t in the mood to watch a show. Pools/ocean: Let me just say, Secrets the Vine had one of the cleanest beaches I’ve ever been on. I’m talking virtually no seaweed, and crystal clear water! This is a huge plus for me as at home on the Jersey Shore I am not as blessed haha. Getting to see a clear ocean is a dream! The pools were also great. They are all really spread out so you never feel like you’re crowded in, and they are maintained miraculously! There are also plenty of seats which is a huge plus so you don’t have to fight for a good spot early in the morning. Audience: This resort was an Adults Only all-inclusive which made it super relaxing. Spa: Here, since I did not get to use the spa, I can’t speak to it, but when I took a tour I saw that it looked beautiful! My rating: 9/10. This resort was nearly PERFECT in my eyes and I would recommend it to absolutely anyone! The service was impeccable, and it’s impossible not to be blissfully happy in a place like this.

You can check out the amazing trip deals currently available for Secrets the Vine here.

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Resort 2: Dreams Sands

The second part of my trip was spent at Dreams Sands, another resort only located about 12 minutes away from Secrets the Vine. For this trip, I thought it might be fun to visit 2 different resorts to see what each had to offer as they looked a little different but are owned by the same hotel group. Upon entry at Dreams Sands, I instantly felt at home. There were no less than 5 people there to help with your check-in, bags, and I never once had any question on what to do. They made everything so easy. A neat thing about this resort is that it’s located only a few steps from the ocean. When you first walk into the doors of the lobby, the beach lies only about 50 ft in front of you. Everything is laid out really close which makes it convenient to walk around and get to each place quickly. The same goes for all of the restaurants/amenities at Dreams Sands. They are all in close walking distance which I found really convenient when navigating the resort. This is especially awesome if you’re going with family so that even if everyone is in a different area, you’re all still relatively close and can keep an eye on one another. Let’s get down to the specifics!

Food: Just like Secrets, Dreams was amazing at accommodating all diets! While they didn’t have specific vegan options on the menu, it was really easy to create diet-friendly items off the regular menu. The Dream staff was really helpful with this! They also could make most things gluten-free. Nightlife: For the nightlife at Dreams Sands, there is a bar called Desires. It’s basically a music lounge/sports-bar. I spent a few hours here one night and had a lot of fun. It’s a great hangout spot. Aside from Desire, there are some nightly shows/entertainment that they display on a daily calendar every day you can look to at the resort. Something I did notice however is that most of this entertainment ends pretty early (10 pm or so) which I think is because it’s a family-friendly resort with lots of young families. Pools/ocean: Dreams Sands has a totally different vibe than Secrets in terms of the ocean! The location of the hotel is located on an area of the beach that doesn’t have waves, so the whole thing feels like a large pool. This was actually amazing since you could just float and relax! It’s also great for kids or less experienced swimmers since it’s so calm. Aside from the ocean, there were also 2 pools. While I didn’t use the pools as much as they were often a bit crowded with families and I prefer the beach, they always were kept very clean and pristine! Audience: This resort was a Family-Friendly all-inclusive. Everyone is welcome! During my stay, I did notice a majority of the patrons were families with small kids, but it never felt like there wasn’t a place for adults as well. Spa: Here at Dreams Sands, I did take part in the spa. I got a massage, as well as used the hydro-therapy machines. It was amazing! The prices were really affordable and I’d definitely do it again. My rating: 6/10. This resort was absolutely beautiful and the people were so warm and accommodating. While it wasn’t necessarily as new and renovated as Secrets the Vine, I really enjoyed how comfortable and at home I felt.

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Important things to note:

1. There is a preferred club option at both resorts and most all-inclusive resorts. Look into this!

• The preferred club is something you sign up for upon booking that gives you extra perks. At Secrets the Vine, this meant access to a private rooftop pool, as well as restaurants. At Dreams Sands, the preferred club gave you access to a private beach area and restaurant options. I really enjoyed being part of the preferred club if the other areas of the resort got busy since it gave you special access to more private areas.

2. Look into excursions ahead of time to see what you want to do!

• As I’ve been to Mexico a few times in the past and done excursions then, this time I didn’t do any but there are tons of fun activities coordinated by the resorts. Some of my favorites include ziplining in the jungle, visiting the beautiful Cenote’s (big sinkholes of water – so pretty), and Chichen Itza (it’s a wonder of the world!). If you’re there for about a week, it’s great to get away from the resort for the day and have a neat cultural experience.

3. If you have flexible options for travel, try out different date ranges.

• I’ve found that often times when booking travel, certain date ranges tend to be a lot more affordable. While this is obvious when it comes to peak season/slow season, I’m talking more specific days of the week. Instead of booking your typical Saturday-Saturday, try a Tuesday-Wednesday range. If you are flexible, this is a good way to ensure you get the best price.

4. Read the reviews.

• You ALL know I’m huge on reading reviews, and this doesn’t stop at regular shopping purchases. Reviews are so helpful and important when it comes to travel as you can really get down to the nitty-gritty after hearing other customers’ candid experiences. CheapCaribbean lists hundreds of reviews for each of their properties, and this really helped me to narrow down where I wanted to go.

4. LOOK FOR PROMO CODES.

• As a budget shopper, I am always on the hunt for promo codes to help me save money when traveling and CheapCaribbean was lovely enough to offer one for those of you looking to book a getaway soon!

Use the code “Kat100” to get $100 off ALL resorts

This code is eligible for a 5-night minimum stay, minimum double occupancy, travel between October 24, 2019 – December 31, 2020, and will expire November 15th, 2019, so be sure to book before then so you don’t miss out!

Sincerely, Katerina.

This trip was sponsored by CheapCaribbean. All ideas and opinions are my own.