Kicked-back Cancun kicks in

One Response to “Kicked-back Cancun kicks in”

1. Bill Rogers Says:
   January 16th, 2006 at 3:30 am

   Cancun: Coming Back FAST

   When we first strolled the beach on hotel row and took the bus downtown, my first reaction was very negative.

   As of today (Jan 10), Cancun and Hotel Row is operating at about 25%, meaning maybe 3 or 4 hotels open.

   At first glance, I estimated it would be a year of more before they could recover. Of course, my reaction was gleaned from surveying the damages over the weekend.

   Come Monday and the remainder of the week, I rapidly changed my mind. There are construction crews all over the place. Work is being done at a frenzied pace.

   Cancun should be 90% or more by this summer.

   We stayed at the Royal Mayan, so my comments and experiences are mostly from touring the southern portion of Hotel Row and the adjoining hotels which are the Omni, Grand Oasis, Fiesta Americana Condesa and the Hilton.

   Here’s a rundown on the good and the bad:

   Bad – Current situation

   • All hotels on hotel row incurred extensive damage. One exclusion may be the Royal Resorts. More on the Royals later.
   • Most all restaurants on hotel row are closed. Just a few are open.
   • Landscaping took a beating. Many trees and fences are down. Trees on common ground remain uprooted and down.
   • About half of the shopping plazas incurred extensive damage.
   • The beaches have been hit hard exposing large rocks. It is very difficult to get into the water in all areas.

   The Good

   • Most hotels expect to be open this spring. I got an inside tour of the Fiesta Americana Condesa (next to the Grand Oasis). There is extensive work underway with about 250 construction workers working in every direction. Their contract with their construction company calls for a February 15 completion date and I feel confident they’ll make it. During the tour, we viewed a hotel staff training program underway for the “new” Fiesta Americana opening.
   • Many hotels are announcing a March opening date. We’re hearing opening dates for May and June for the J.W. Marriott and the Hilton. • About 95% of street repairs are done.
   • The most important landscaping is completed (those on hotel grounds)
   • Bus service continues as hectic (and fast) as ever, and a real bargain.
   • Downtown Cancun is pretty much back to normal. We could not see any problems or damages.
   • Work crews are working 10 hour days, 6 days a week. Many hotels have evening workers visible.
   • With the extensive damages incurred, the hotel and resort owners are using this opportunity to make many improvements to their properties. For example, one hotel representative said they were replacing all mattresses (about 500) in the hotel rather than the 150 that were damaged. Most building are being repainted.
   • All of the Royal Resorts have been open since around December 1. There is little to no visible damage at the Royal Mayan, Caribbean or Islander. We did not visit the Royal Sands but understand they had little damage. The most visible is some of the landscaping. One of the topics of conversation is how well the Royal Resorts came through the hurricane. While we don’t know for sure, the speculation is the construction and the planning that went into the recovery. The results were excellent. The Royal Resorts are back at 100%. If you’re an owner or a visitor, come on down. I only wish we could stay a second week rather than just one.

   Whoops. I failed to mention the huge rocks on the beach. Yes, all of the Royal beaches were affected by the storm erosion. Swimming in the ocean is limited, but the pools are open and some are now heated.

   Cancun is rebounding fast. The only concern one should have is if you’re coming to Cancun before March 15 and if your hotel is not yet opened.

   While there are fewer restaurants right now, the ones available are excellent…and others are opening each week.

   The water is crystal clear and ranges from clear to blue.

   We look forward to going back to attend a conference there in May.

   Cancun will be even better by this summer.