Fire at the Bahia Principe Akumal last night has temporarily closed the Arlequin a la carte restaurant and the nearby main buffet. The reason for the fire has not yet been disclosed (although it’s thought to be due to a short circuit of some kind) and luckily no one was injured. While the entire restaurant was gutted, the buffet is expected to reopen within a short period of time. Here is a link to the story.
Riu fans take note–Riu Tequila is now reopen for business since its closure in April. There have been lots of major renovations including the pool areas; take a few moments and read the Riu blog post complete with pics. Click the link here.
I took notes since I arrived/departed from the new Terminal 4 at the Cancun airport during my spring vacation. Here are the confirmed airlines operating out of this new terminal: Continue reading
Use caution when choosing to take a colectivo/combi in the Riviera Maya; there has been a recent report of a robbery of a driver/passengers in the route from PDC to Puerto Aventuras on a Saturday night around 9:15 p.m. Three individuals reportedly stopped the vehicle on the pretense of wanting transportation, got inside, then threatened to use force/guns if valuables including cell phones/purses, etc. were not handed over. The robbers got away, so if they were successful once they may decide to do the same crime again. Others may also see this as a quick way to make money and follow suit.
While everyone expected the Mexican government to give the official OK to a DreamWorks theme park in the Riviera Maya, they have instead decided to authorize the building of a Mayan-inspired amusement park and resort in the area of Punta Maroma in the Riviera Maya (located north of Playa del Carmen).
A short circuit was to blame for a fire which broke out on the 4th floor of the Grand Oasis Cancun hotel. While the flames spread to several rooms, the three responding fire units helped to keep this one under control with only room damage. The last big fire this hotel experienced was in 2013 when the entire hotel was evacuated.
Mexican authorities have recently done an investigation on 31 resorts, restaurants, and nightclubs in both Cancun and the Riviera Maya in order to see who may be serving illicit/bootleg alcohol. Their investigation resulted in the following findings: Continue reading
Following alcohol related lab tests done by COFEPRIS (Federal Commission for Protection Against Sanitary Risk), it has been determined that the Iberostar Paraiso del Mar is NOT serving any tainted alcohol to its guests. This comes after allegations made by a Wisconsin family earlier this year that the resort had given their 22 yr. old daughter adulterated alcohol which resulted in her subsequent death.
There is a pilot project beginning in Mexico City’s airport Terminals 1 and 2 which signals a significant change to the current Customs and Immigration procedure currently in place at Cancun and other Mexican airports. Mexico wants to do away with the Declaration Form and instead have everyone’s bags X-rayed between connecting flights or prior to unloading baggage onto carousels; also, the dreaded red/green light at Customs entry points is also going to be a thing of the past. No more will travelers need to stand in line wondering whether they will get the red light and have their bags randomly searched–I’m all for that! Traveling can be stressful enough without adding a procedure which purposefully induces more stress.
There is a new visitor attraction in Cancun’s Hotel Zone which will be opening sometime next week–it is called Gran Rueda Cancun and it is located at km. 9 in the Hotel Zone. Grand Rueda Cancun is a 200 ft. high ferris wheel with 42 climate-controlled gondolas; the entire ride lasts approximately 20 min. and will give visitors a panoramic look at the Hotel Zone and Nichupté Lagoon. Admission prices have not yet been listed.