The obligatory sausage leg type holiday instagram shot.
When we arrived at The Hard Rock Hotel in Riviera Maya back in March, I couldn't help taking this picture to make all my friends and family back in the UK a little jealous.
It was 30 degrees, you could swim up to the bar and frozen strawberry margaritas were on tap, perfect.
A really good friend of mine was getting married in a little town called San Miguel de Allende (I'll talk more about that later) and we thought, if we are travelling all the way to Mexico we might as well make the most of it and check out the popular area of Riviera Maya while we were there. Neither me or my husband had been to Mexico previously, so we were super excited.
We even had his and hers personalised passport covers (from Aspinal of London if you're interested).
The hotel itself was HUGE. There were two halves, each with their own reception, set of restaurants/bars and pools. One was adult only and one was for families. We were put in the family side of the hotel which, as a young couple, we weren't too impressed about at first (cue babies crying, we thought) however, it was absolutely fine. We did spend most of our days by the adult only pool, but when we did venture back to our room there were no issues with noise or anything whatsoever.
In typical Hard Rock style the hotel was adorned in pieces of music history. The only Hard Rock hotel I had ever been to previously was in Ibiza, and I must say that this hotel was worlds away from it's Ibizan sister. We were greeted at the front door with warm towels and water to freshen up and then at reception with a classic Margarita, before led to our room...which, by the way, had been upgraded so that we had our own terrace with a jacuzzi. Good start.
The adult only pool had lots of music and entertainment throughout the day but, if you wanted something a little quieter, they did have these little 'lagoons' that were just so pretty and peaceful. There was a wall of natural rocks the whole way across the water, forming a barrier so that when the waves hit the rocks they didn't come all the way up the beach, keeping the water calm. They also had these fabulous canopies and loungers to relax in.
The hotel operated this credit system which I hadn't seen before. Depending on how long you were staying you were given a $ value of 'hotel credits'. You could then spend those credits on various things in the hotel, including the excursions. Upon checkout you would then pay 20% of the total cost, with hotel credits, to cover the full cost. So, for example, we had a couples massage in the spa and the headline cost was $140. However, paying with hotel credits on checkout, the cost was reduced to just $28...I know, AMAZING.
Not all of the excursions were included in the credits and you could pay extra for the ones that were not. We booked one where we done rappelling, zip lining, swimming in a cenote (said seh-no-teh) and snorkelling with sea turtles (and a few sting ray). Cenotes are natural swimming holes that have been formed naturally in the limestone rock. The word Cenote means 'sacred well' and The Mayans settled villages around these wells believing they were portals to speak to the Gods. The water was fresh and so clear...it definitely made me jealous that I hadn't invested in an under water camera, like some of the others in our group. Note to self for next holiday!
We also went on a sunset catamaran tour and the views were just beautiful.
In total we were at the hotel for one week, we ventured away from the hotel on just one day to Playa del Carmen, but for the majority of the time we were happy to just relax and enjoy the excellent service and drinks on offer.
I almost forgot to tell you about the food...the hotel was all inclusive and it was a lot better than all inclusive hotels that I have been to previously, in that there was so much choice on offer and you could go to each restaurant as many times as you wanted. I know some hotels only let you in certain restaurants maybe once during your stay. There was an Argentinian barbecue type restaurant, a Teppanyaki (which was our favourite but not very Mexican), and also a little French one. They did have Mexican restaurants too but as we knew we would be eating only authentic Mexican food in San Miguel de Allende we decided not to focus on those whilst in Riviera Maya.
San Miguel de Allende is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is a beautiful place to visit for those who want to explore more of real Mexico.
Our accommodation there couldn't have been any more different to the Hard Rock. Up these beautiful little steps...
...was a cosy little one bedroom apartment. With the most beautiful views over the city.
It was called Hospedaje El Colibre. The owner was really friendly and actually had a hotel in the area too. Well worth checking out if you are planning a visit.
What I loved most about San Miguel was that the locals actually didn't speak much English, and so I was forced to practice my Spanish a little (or un poco)...
...but the Margaritas and Mexican food were close second favourite.
I'll have one in every flavour please!
There are so many pretty roof top bars and our apartment was a short walking distance from the cutest little square, El Jardin, which was lined with beautiful Fica trees and home to a few mariachi bands and the most stunning gothic church La Parroquia de San Miguel Archangel.
The surrounding streets were so pretty and colourful and full of cute shops with local made items and art pieces.
The wedding that we were attending was also within walking distance of El Jardin, at Templo de San Francisco.
The interior was just stunning!
Following the ceremony, we were met outside the church by two giant bride & groom puppets, a donkey, a band and lots of tequila. We all then danced to the wedding reception venue, this is a Mexican tradition known as a "Callejoneada" and it was so much fun. If you ever get a chance to go to a Mexican wedding, you must!
Mexico, I can't wait to see you again...te veo pronto!
Love Jade
xxx
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