First trip--early March 2017, part I

Please contribute Desire Pearl Trip reports here

First trip--early March 2017, part I

Postby Hchoir » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:38 pm

I'm not sure how much information I can add to other posts but it's fun just to write everything down...

Us..60, first time, vanilla.

About the resort:
Lovely. Lobby, restaurants, pool, jacuzzi, rooms all very nice. It's not the greatest of beaches and we were hampered most of our trip by windy conditions which kept us in the pool area and kept lots of seaweed on the beach. They didn't even try to remove it until the wind died down over the last couple of days. Our final day was beautiful and we spent all day on lounge chairs/beach beds.
We splurged for a Master Suite with a plunge pool. We agreed that on any subsequent trip we wouldn't need the plunge pool but would try to book one of the ground floor suites with beds on the patio. Our room was very nice; you can do better for the price I'm sure but that's not what brought us to Desire. We were completely comfortable, but would have had to move had I not brought along our bluetooth player to drown out the noise from the jacuzzi at night. Be aware--if you're in the complex of rooms around the jacuzzi it can be noisy well into the early morning hours. If noise at night bothers you you'll want to have a way to drown it out. You can always request the quiet side but of course it's not always available.

The restaurants were all very good; not great but certainly not disappointing. If you are at all picky about wine I would recommend stopping at the wine store across from Wal-Mart in Cancun and bringing some of your own stash. They have a decent list of bottles for sale but they are pricey, and the house wines get old fast.

The service was every bit as wonderful as advertised. I know it's all-inclusive but these folks deserve to be tipped. We tried to take good care of the folks that took such good care of us...waiters, the pool/beach boys who brought us drinks/food, the bartenders, Victor the towel guy, the maids...the last night I shocked the really nice hostess at Pearl restaurant with a tip and was rewarded with a big hug. That was worth the whole trip! I feel if you can afford Desire you can afford to tip. None of these people are getting rich working there.

The bands in the evening and the disco shows were all very good. We were there an entire week so probably saw everything. I was a little surprised the disco shows weren't a bit more risqué but I know Desire is trying to balance class and sensuality, and I think they do a really good job of that. We do join the critics of the disco playlist...way too much of the same thing every night. There's plenty of sexy music to dance to (etc.) without having to repeat as much as they do.

We're quiet side of the pool people mostly but I think the entertainment staff did a really good job of providing activities without pushing anyone. We were greeted warmly every day and never did any activities at the pool except the foam party which no one should miss! They were equally good at night at keeping the party going without forcing anything on anyone.

We left the resort a couple of times for a bit of variety--once to go into town to stroll, shop and have lunch and then a longer day trip down to Xel-ha to float in inner tubes and snorkel. I know many people feel no need to leave...to each his own.
Part II coming up soon...
Hchoir
Desire Fan
 
Posts: 39
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2016 2:49 pm
We are from: USA
Will be at: Both Riviera Maya & Pearl

Re: First trip--early March 2017, part I

Postby kattynkyle » Mon Mar 20, 2017 6:51 pm

Thanks for the report and the comment about tipping. Can you give us a typical range of tipping for various staff? It will be our first trip there and don't know what people feel would be customary.
kattynkyle
Desire Fan
 
Posts: 43
Joined: Wed Mar 01, 2017 9:04 am
Location: Texas
We are from: USA
Will be at: Desire Pearl
We arrive on: 30 Jun 2017
Swing Site(s) we belong to: Kasadie

Re: First trip--early March 2017, part I

Postby Hchoir » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:04 pm

Sure...we tipped two or three dollars for breakfast and lunch and five or a little more for dinner. For the pool boy and bartenders it was a dollar or two per drink. At the jacuzzi I brought over a couple of tens during the trip just because you don't think to bring money there and those guys work hard and see a lot :!: We tipped the maids $5 a day and did some individual tips at the end of the trip in the $5-10 range for folks who we saw a lot but I thought typically don't get many tips and final tips in the same range for folks that helped us every day and we'd gotten to know. We did the erotic massage and tipped them $20 each and also did shorter massages and tipped $10 for those. This is no official guide, we just made it up as we went along.
Hchoir
Desire Fan
 
Posts: 39
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2016 2:49 pm
We are from: USA
Will be at: Both Riviera Maya & Pearl

Re: First trip--early March 2017, part I

Postby kattynkyle » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:07 pm

Thanks. Helps us have a better idea.
kattynkyle
Desire Fan
 
Posts: 43
Joined: Wed Mar 01, 2017 9:04 am
Location: Texas
We are from: USA
Will be at: Desire Pearl
We arrive on: 30 Jun 2017
Swing Site(s) we belong to: Kasadie


Return to Trip Reports from Desire Pearl

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 5 guests