Thought it would be worth sharing since most probably have the same questions we did about how the reopening is going.
We are Desire regulars, although mainly RM and this is our first trip back to Pearl since 2012. Yopu can read in other psots about all the safety measures the resort is taking so I won’t dwell on that. The facility looks great and the staff is fully engaged - super attentive and anxious to please. We had heard that the hotels are being limited to 30% capacity by Mexico health authorities, but that this goes up to 50% this weekend. Last couple of nights 25-30% seems about right. This makes for a decent crowd in the pool & hot tub but the disco scene is a little light. Fortunately we have had plans for months (had to reschedule from April) to meet friends and they along with my beautiful wife never fail to bring a party. Meeting others has not been a problem either as everyone seems to be escaping from the isolation back home, and like the typical Desire guest anxious to find a circle of friends. I wont go into a critique of one recent poster that was discouraged by the lack of lifestyle or even nude guests because every visit is different and every lifestyle experience is situational, but we are having the exact opposite experience this week.
the food has been fine - we ate at Suki on Wednesday and what the food might lack in that extra wow factor at really good restaurants the ambience and service more than make up for. Last night (Thursday) they did dinner around the pool and had a very extensive buffet setup that was really well done and again the service was over the top. We bypassed the hot tub last night and brought new and old friends back to our room after the show (very entertaining Latin band - it was Latin night) and dancing in the disco and it was definitely a night to remember. I assure you Lifestyle adventures are alive and well at Desire.
We are in a penthouse (passion) suite and while not luxurious it is spacious and comfortable. We got a tour yesterday of the mansion and it is a great addition but feels a little isolated. We certainly can see the appeal for those that want to be members. For almost 15 years we have completely stiff-armed the Original Resort folks about any kind of membership or timeshare after sitting thru a presentation back when we were newbies. This time we changed our minds and listened to the spiel - really because we wanted to tour the mansion - and we pulled the trigger and bought a membership. It’s a completely different program from the old timeshare model. Everyone has to determine if it is right for them but it made economic sense to us, driven largely by discounted pricing right now due to the Covid downturn.
The beach is - put simply - not great. Huricanes/tropical storms have taken a toll on the width of the beach, and the seaweed problem was really bad when we first got here. It really stunk, although our friends, both of whom have recovered from Covid with no smell, didn’t notice it!!! There was some kind of breach in the barrier to keep the seaweed out that failed but they fixed it yesterday and it is noticeably better this morning. BTW, the issue with the beach is not unique to Desire.
Well - that’s it for now. In over a decade i think this is our first trip report, but again somehow now it seems important given all the uncertainty we are living with and if you are like us the desire (pun intended) to get back to having fun. Will try to update after the weekend.
L&D