Head Tale

Last year, I did a list of 10 highlights of our winter vacation. We stayed at Moon Palace for two weeks instead of one week like we did at Hyatt Ziva this year so I think the math works out if I only do a list of five highlights instead of ten. 😉

1. First View From Lobby
   I mentioned this in my review but I can’t help but reiterate how stunning this resort is.  We’d read about it ahead of time had but until you arrive, you can’t comprehend how unbelievable the views are from the lobby, the stairwells, the balcony and pretty much every other spot you might have your eyes open! 🙂
2. First Supper on Beach
   The fact that Hyatt Ziva Cancun had a taco/ceviche restaurant right on the beach was one of many things that drew us to this resort and I’d earmarked it for our first meal.  After a full day beginning at 5am, the constant “wait and go” of airline travel and finally arriving at our resort in late afternoon where the kids, not as hungry as we thought they’d be, dragged us to the pool first, we finally got to Habaneros in early evening after the sun had gone down.  And what a magical setting – a table in the sand, the kids able to go play in the ocean while waiting for our food to arrive and various hotels (including the very distinctive Riu Cancun where we’d stayed fifteen (!) years ago), lit up in front of us, it was amazing.  Oh, and to top it off, the food was pretty damned good too!
3. Foam PartyWe’ve been to resorts that have had foam parties but never managed to make it to one – either because we were doing something else and forgot or the party got cancelled (I never thought of this but someone pointed out that, at least at Hyatt Ziva, the party which has been on Saturday afternoon lately, often gets moved or cancelled if they have weddings in the nearby gazebo.  Hard to believe a bride wouldn’t want a bunch of dancers from Coco Bongo and dance music blaring in the background of her special day!) 😉
4. Double Decker Cabana
   We’d read lots of commentary online that said it probably wasn’t worth paying extra for since you could get poolside cabanas for free and drinks and food service were provided all over the resort as well.  But I decided that it still might be a nice way to surprise Shea with a belated birthday gift by booking a double-decker cabana on the “wide beach” for one day during our trip.  This got us access to the top and bottom levels of the cabana, a nearby sunbed, a personal server for the day and a special food menu for the afternoon.  I asked ahead of time if the staff could decorate for Shea’s birthday and they did an amazing job.  I also brought a bunch of Dollar Store games/toys/books to ensure the kids would be occupied for a full day (mostly) in one location and it turned out to be a very relaxing, enjoyable day.
5. Narrow Beach
   We were desperate for a decent beach after a couple years at amazing resorts that had amazingly crappy beaches.  And the choice was extra hard with non-stop stories of really bad seaweed plaguing the Mayan Riviera and Cancun areas.  But the “narrow” beach on the north side of Hyatt Ziva Cancun was one of the best beaches we’ve ever been at – minimal seaweed, crystal clear water, beach chairs steps from the beach, close proximity to Habaneros for lunch and its wonderful swing bar for drinks (to supplement the servers on the beach) not to mention hammocks over the water.  Perfection.
   

In the end, only having one week instead of two and with it being a much smaller resort then we’d stayed at in the past few years, honestly, we spent most of our time lounging – by the narrow beach, the pool and the wide beach so we didn’t have a lot of things that stood out as unique highlights.  But, at the same time, the overall combination of what was available to us (as I said in my review) created one of the most perfect weeks we’ve ever had.