Trip Report May 5-10, 2016

[Mr_big60564]

We are Desire veterans and frequent readers of this Forum so we feel like we don't have a ton to add above and beyond the excellent trip reports that others have written, especially as it relates to describing the flow of a day at Desire, the restaurants, the theme nights, etc. But we just got back today so we'll try to provide some (hopefully) helpful updates while it's still fresh on our mind.

In no particular order:

Staff: Since our last trip to DRM 11 months ago there seems to have been a fair bit of turnover among the entertainment/animation staff, but we think the current group is wonderful, friendly, and sexy fun to be around. No complaints at all. The bartenders and waitstaff were mostly familiar faces, and they're excellent as well.

Breathless Resort next door: It's a big place, that's for sure. We saw some people saying it looked kind of like a cheesy Holiday Inn on the water. We disagree. It' looks pretty cool. One of their pools (there appear to be multiple pools) has a glass wall and an infinity edge on the ocean facing side. So basically if you were walking the beach past the resort you can see into the pool horizontally. Looks like they have great swim up bars and entertainment facilities as well. The place looks like it will be ready soon. They were installing beach furniture, palapas, etc and the pool was filled up with water. In terms of the ability for certain rooms there to "peek" into Desire here is our take: There are a few (5?) rooms at Breathless that will have a partial view of the Desire pool if no further blocking is installed. The more we thought about it, the more we think it's no big deal. As far as we've heard, Breathless will be an adults-only facility with a topless pool and will most likely have women in skimpy thongs and whatnot (and let's get real, nobody wants to perv the men). If somebody is going to perv, it will will be *much* easier for them to perv the other patrons at Breathless than it will be to possibly catch a fleeting glimpse of a bottomless woman at Desire from afar. And there is no view of the DRM Jacuzzi lounge or Jacuzzi beds from Breathless.

Demographics: We were there during a transition where one large group was leaving (as a trickle, they didn't all leave on the same day) and was being replaced by a couple different smaller groups and people unaffiliated with any groups at all (as was our case). We would say this: if you are *specifically* going to DRM to try to fraternize and/or swing with people in your own age range, then do your homework, find a group that seems to fit your ideal, sync your trip with them and don't leave it to chance. But if that isn't the primary criteria which dictates whether you're going to have a good time, then don't worry about that. During our stay we met people from their late 20s to their 70s. Some had toned bodies, some did not. Some wore some type of clothing at/in the pool, many did not. Some were timid/shy, some were loud/proud. How many of them were complete assholes? None of them. It's all good in the hood. Don't sweat this stuff.

Packing: We always overpack. Pack less! Don't fall into the trap of "ok, I need one casual outfit for daytime, one swim outfit, one workout outfit, one dinner outfit, and one disco outfit multiplied by the number of days I'll be there." We always do that, and we are waaaay overthinking it! Shit happens. We skip a workout, or we have too much fun at the hot tub in the afternoon and don't want to go get ready for a fancy dinner, or we don't need the casual outfit because we go to a late breakfast in our swim clothes, or whatever. And nobody will notice if you wear the same pair of shorts more than once! Take 1/3 of the stuff you've earmarked for your suitcase and just leave it at home!

Weather: This was our first time going in May, after having been there previously in June and July. Maybe we got lucky but we found the humidity to be noticeably lower in May. The high temps are pretty much in the 80s no matter what, but the heat was much more tolerable this time. And we didn't experience a drop of rain (that part *was* luck, as it was due to rain a bit in the days after our departure).

USA Transfers: no issues. A smooth operation as always. Highly recommend.

Membership pitch: Expect it to come up at check-in. They will attempt to use Jedi Mind Tricks on you to sign you up for an appointment to hear the full pitch. Be ready for it and be prepared to firmly say no if you do not think that you'll be interested. That's what we did and they somewhat playfully tried to get us to change our mind but after 2 or 3 firmly worded "no thank yous" they dropped it and let us go. That being said: We have gone to DRM 4 times in 4 years so we're clearly starting to fall into the category of "regulars" who might actually come out ahead if we get the Membership, and that fact isn't lost on us. We just aren't quite ready to be married to Desire just yet, even though we love the place dearly.

Anyway, we had a great time. We may be due for a break from our routine, so we'll strongly consider our first ever visit to Hedo instead of Desire next year just to experience it for ourselves. Our expectation is that Hedo will pale in comparison in terms of the facilities, staff, and food. But we want to experience the Hedo scene and the vibe at least once in our lives. The "Desire vs. Hedo" topic is definitely a polarizing one, and we strongly suspect that we'll make our way back to Desire before too long.

Hope this helps! Let us know if you have any questions/follow ups.

[Mr_big60564]

A couple other random things we forgot to include:

Mosquitoes and no-see-ums were a bit of an issue, particularly after dark near the Lobby Bar. There is a reason it is nicknamed the "mosquito bar". Bug spray can help somewhat, bring some.

Seaweed: Our last morning (today) the wind and the surf was up and it seemed to bring an increased amount of morning seaweed onto the beach. But the workers do a good job of raking it up and carrying it away. After the daily cleanup procedure, the beach is fine for use.

[Wills19839]

Great report! We are headed there tomorrow for 5 nights. Quick question, did the men participate in dressing up for the theme nights or were most just in jeans/slacks? Thanks!

[Mr_big60564]

Great report! We are headed there tomorrow for 5 nights. Quick question, did the men participate in dressing up for the theme nights or were most just in jeans/slacks? Thanks!

A little bit of both. Honestly it doesn't really matter. We saw men in tuxedos on glamorous night but we also saw men in khaki shorts and a golf shirt. A few men had masks for masquerade night, most did not. I personally didn't dress up for the themes. I usually went with nice jeans/slacks and a nice shirt. But my wife looked smashing in her theme outfits every night.

[bmerryman]

We visited RM for our first trip in January and we did not anticipate the real fun of theme nights, so we weren't prepared to dress up at all. Our next trip in January 2017 we will be prepared! We saw lots of folks, mostly women but some men dressed up for the theme and they were having a blast. So we will be ready for our next trip to participate fully!

[koolcpl69]

Thanks for the report. My concern with Gawkers at Breathless, last year the construction workers would gather on the roof and the higher floors to check out the scenes at Desire. Seem the construction is almost done, is there a direct view to the Desire pool, lounge chairs and poolside beds. Or would they have to go out of their way to view these areas.

[Mr_big60564]

Thanks for the report. My concern with Gawkers at Breathless, last year the construction workers would gather on the roof and the higher floors to check out the scenes at Desire. Seem the construction is almost done, is there a direct view to the Desire pool, lounge chairs and poolside beds. Or would they have to go out of their way to view these areas.

In addition to what I wrote in my original trip report up above, I would add that CokeMann (who runs the Desire Forums) spoke directly with Desire management who stated that blocking screens would be installed to prevent Breathless patrons from being able to see into the Desire pool area. Last I heard it was just a matter of determining who would pay for the screens. Even without the screens, you could avoid being seen from Breathless by remaining near the south (pool bar) end of the pool. It's really the middle and north end of the pool that are most visible from Breathless. But with the screens in place, nothing should be visible.