Riviera Maya’s Xel-Há Park is set to debut the world’s fourth tallest waterslide this summer. Faro-Tobogán will be 141 feet tall, and riders will travel at 26 feet p/second; toboggan riders will end their ride in a cenote. In addition to the waterslide, the Faro-Tobogán water park will include tunnels and submerged sculptures, so the waterslide is part of a new attraction within the existing park.
The Karisma brand will be opening its fourth property within its Villa Collection, part of its esteemed Connoisseur Collection, in the Riviera Maya this June. Villa Casa Del Mar is situated next to Azul Beach Resort Riviera Maya and will consist of the following amenities: Continue reading
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.
I found a nice link concerning the most recent info about snorkeling in Akumal Bay–it even has a small map so that people can get an idea of where snorkeling is allowed. Just follow this link.
Akumal Bay snorkeling tour groups are once again allowed to enter the water to swim with the turtles under the following conditions: Continue reading
As of March 28, 2017, these are the most up-to-date and concise rules concerning snorkeling in Akumal Bay: Continue reading
While the snorkeling tours in Akumal Bay continue to be halted by PROFEPA, the newest info suggests that individual snorkelers are being strongly discouraged from wearing fins as well. This is being done in order to help prevent snorkelers from standing on the coral (which kills the coral over time) as they adjust their masks, etc. For the least amount of disruption to your snorkeling experience, be prepared to snorkel in front of the Secrets resort instead of further north, and please respect the buoys/markers for now.
The famous Blue Parrot Nightclub in Playa del Carmen will remain permanently closed after the investigation of January’s shooting is completed. Instead, a new hotel will be opening in its place along with a concert area. The nightclub was actually purchased two years ago and the new owner had been waiting for the current lease to expire. Work on the hotel will begin in approximately four months along with an extensive renovation of 12th Street. The new hotel’s name has not yet been mentioned.
Vacationers traveling to Akumal in the next few weeks should be aware that PROFEPA (the Federal Environmental Protection Agency in Mexico) has temporarily suspended tour group snorkeling in Akumal Bay. The agency determined that the original ruling of allowing only a certain number of tour group participants to snorkel had been grossly ignored by tour companies, so PROFEPA is trying to determine how to permanently resolve this issue while protecting the turtles, coral, and other sea life in the bay. At the present time, individual snorkelers, for the most part, are allowed to swim and snorkel in front of Secrets Akumal and ABBWR without being harassed, but snorkeling north of this area may result in being told to get out of the water (the northern end of the bay is where most of the sea grass beds are and where snorkel groups typically have entered the water in the past). There are buoys marking these areas, but there is a lot of confusion right now about who is allowed in the bay and exactly where people are allowed to snorkel. Some reports state that snorkeling is allowed as long as life vests and fins are not used, while others state info to the contrary. If fins and life vests are not allowed, this seems to be a very unsafe snorkeling practice unless it is done immediately offshore.
Apparently there was a fire at Grand Bahia Principe Tulum which started in the evening hours yesterday, Jan. 13 2017. The fire began in the Circle lobby bar area due to an electrical short circuit and has destroyed the bar area. While some initial reports stated the lobby and theater were gone as well, these areas were not greatly affected and the resort has put up a temporary bar in the theater area. Thankfully, no one was hurt in the incident.