Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

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Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby red88vette » Mon Jul 30, 2018 1:26 pm

We just returned from a great trip to RM July 16-22. This was our first trip to RM as we have been to Pearl 4 times in the past 12 months and wanted to check out RM. The weather was great for the 6 days, though plenty hot and humid. The sargassum still a problem, the staff worked diligently each day to clean it. By our last day they had managed to remove all the sargassum, although there were still some patches, so it was nice to take a swim in the ocean, cooler than the pool. The pool was full over the weekend and thinned out Tuesday to Thursday. The beds and loungers were all in use. We lounged on the beach as there was always a nice breeze. The beach beds and loungers were plentiful. At most maybe 10 were in use at a time. The staff was great and helpful and enjoyed the activities with the Play Makers. The food was great as well. We went to the member’s dinner and the buffet the other nights as we like to check out the various theme night menus. We met with the membership mgr to chat about a few things. When asked about the Cancun north build he indicated it has been cancelled. They are proceeding with the build in Dominican Rep., the Temptations will be built first followed by a Desire facility. For those that may not know, “G” is now a butler at RM and doing a great job.

Ok, so we had promised some of our Pearl friends we would do a comparison of the 2 resorts. No complaints, we had a great time, these comparisons and comments are based on our own experiences, likes and dislikes and the guests while we were there.

Overall Facilities – We like the Hispanic look and feel of Pearl, RM is more contemporary. They both have nice layouts and paths which make for some nice late night strolls. The RM Lobby is smaller. Overall we felt the sexual atmosphere at RM was less than we have been experiencing at Pearl. It was a much younger crowd, which we expected, and were surprised at the number of textile guests in and around the pool area. We thought we were at Temptations.

Rooms – We like the Hispanic architecture of Pearl better. We booked the garden room at RM and mostly use the ocean view room at Pearl. The room at Pearl is bigger and has sliding doors vs a 24” French door to get out on the shared balcony, it was a bit tight. The shower at RM is much bigger, which we loved, however the wife likes the separate stall/door for the toilet and a separate tub at Pearl. We did love the large mirror on the side wall by the bed, made for great selfies and views of the action.

Restaurants – The food was great, on par with Pearl. We like the Breakfast and Dinner buffet at Pearls Aphrodite restaurant better because of the location on the beach. We found El Arrecife at RM to be dark with no beach feel. It is under the same roof as the Sahlo and Suki. The roof inside must be 40-50’ high. The Tentazione is next to the pool and beach for better views for the buffet lunch. We felt that the evening dress was sexier at Pearl. We were surprised at the number of shorts and tee shirts for dinner at the El Arrecife.

Pool – The smaller size of the pool is not an issue, still plenty of room for all. The deck around the pool accommodates a large number of loungers and beds, which were full most of the time. RM does not have an entertainment station like Pearl in front of the pool. The DJ and sometimes the Playmaker were located behind all the loungers & beds. We found it a bit odd at times, when someone was talking but no one was in sight. There is a ping pong table if you need a little exercise.

Bars – The Bartenders were great. We loved the large size of the Lobby bar, and the Melange has plenty of room for everyone to congregate and meet at night. They also have a beach bar, which was shut down for a couple days. The liquors are limited. Not all bars had Grey Goose on hand. Also if you wanted 1921, you had to buy the whole bottle. Missed our 1921 and tequila on the rocks.

Beach – The beach is much better than Pearl, although there is limited walking off the property. Plenty of room to move the loungers around and the beach is not as slanted as Pearl. The sand is very soft, the beach volleyball set up is great. There are plenty of beach beds. There were vendors walking the beach trying to sell cigars and other items. They would go up and down several times before moving on. I have never seen any vendors on the beach at Pearl. There was very little non guest traffic walking the beach. Guards would watch or follow them. Not much action in the beds, though we did enjoy ourselves.

Jacuzzi – Yes, 31 steps and two landings to get to the roof top. The Jacuzzi deck does offer some nice views and a nice bar area. The Jacuzzi was ok, yes smaller and a bit shallow, maybe 3’. We found the area on the deck very hot in the afternoon, there are no trees or bldgs to block the sun, and the glass partitions around the perimeter block the breezes. We did not use the Jacuzzi at night, did not want to take a chance trying to manage the stairs after a few too many drinks.

Entertainment – For the most part, the entertainment was outside in the Melange lobby. With the humid nights it was sticky, winter and spring months may be better. The new Country theme dress was a winner, most were in short shorts, short skirts, boots and a few country hats.

Disco – The Disco is much bigger, DJ music genre was a mixed bag like Pearl. Dance floor seemed bigger than Pearl, however still crowded when everyone was into the music. Stairs are not as bad as the Jacuzzi. They are wider, fewer and better handrails.

Sin Room – This was a plus, much bigger and nicer. A solid door kept out much of the loud dance music and was cooler. We did not notice much use, mostly just ourselves, may have been the time and the crowd we were there.

We thoroughly enjoyed the trip. While the resorts are comparably close there are a few items we mentioned that sway us back to Pearl.
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby beagirl » Mon Jul 30, 2018 1:56 pm

Great Comparison! We have been to Pearl 4 times and are thinking of RM in the spring.
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby jkroha » Thu Aug 02, 2018 1:58 pm

Thank you for the write up, we did Pearl last so it has been 2 years since RM, you reminded us of some things to temper from our recent Pearl visit... but also things we liked better. In our case it was easy decision, was slightly cheaper which did not hurt, but we get 2 foam parties at RM vs one at Pearl on those dates.... WIN :) Nothing like walking in and having a foam party a hour later.... plane BETTER not be late.
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby Explorer79 » Thu Aug 02, 2018 9:51 pm

jkroha wrote:Nothing like walking in and having a foam party a hour later.... plane BETTER not be late.


That's awesome! Stress filled on the way, but awesome. I'm getting stressed just thinking about it lol
\m/
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby latinos28 » Sun Aug 05, 2018 10:52 am

By "G" you mean Gustavo
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby TimandBrenda » Sun Aug 05, 2018 11:18 am

Great trip report. Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with others.
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Re: Fifth trip, First to Riveria Maya July 26-21, 2018

Postby red88vette » Sun Aug 05, 2018 1:30 pm

Latinos28, I have always known him as G, he worked around the pool area at Pearl.
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