Mexico offers new things to do and see for travelers no matter if you've never been or traveled there annually for a ten year stretch. Take the revitalization project of the Cancun beaches. After Hurricane Wilma rolled over Mexico's Caribbean beaches in October, 2005, the country took advantage of a bad thing and made it better. The restoration project in Cancun widened the beaches and made them whiter, cleaner and even more tourist-friendly. Hotels took the chance to update their looks. In all, the government funded the $20 million project, that's just how critical tourism is to Mexico. And, as expected, deals follow the full opening of the Cancun beach project.
Funjet Vacations (tel. 888/558-6654; www.funjet.com) is always good for specials to warmer destinations. Three such examples to Cancun are affordable for a long weekend or a week-long vacation.
- From Houston, a three-night air and hotel package with accommodations at the all-inclusive beachfront Allegro Playacar by Occidental starts from $499.99 per person plus air and security taxes, bringing the total to $604.92. (Compare this to $699.50 per person if booking airfare and hotel separately.)
- From St. Louis, a seven-night trip that includes air, accommodations, all meals and drinks is based from $699 per person. The hotel on this deal is the Club El Mandarin, built in 1998 and renovated in 2002. This waterfront hotel is a 10-minute walk from Playa del Carmen.
- A similar weeklong trip from Cleveland begins at $799 with accommodations at the Barcelo Tucancun Beach, round-trip air and meals included.
All prices are per person before taxes and security fees, based on two people traveling together. These deals are valid until sold-out.
Northwest Airline's packaging arm Worry Free Vacations (tel. 888/225-5658; www.worryfreevacations.com) also specializes in package vacations to destinations in Mexico. Its "Summer Sensational Sale" offers savings of up to $400 to select destinations in Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica. To qualify for the summer savings, you need to purchase a participating package between by April 22, 2006, use a promo code WF6323 and travel between May 1 and September 1, 2006. Sample trips include three-night packages from Dallas/Ft. Worth with accommodations at the Hacienda Radisson based-priced from $299, or seven nights at the same hotel from $450 from Detroit, $465 from Denver and $506 from St. Louis. Departure dates vary with the three-night trip leaving on a Monday and the seven night trips leaving on Wednesday, Friday or Sunday depending on your point of departure. Round-trip transfers from the airport to your hotel are included. If you opt for another Worry Free deal to Cancun or other Mexican destinations, take a look at the "Destination Specials" pull down menu on the right hand toolbar of the site. Under certain hotels you'll find a list of golf specials, meal specials and other dollar savings on unique activities available at certain resorts such as spa treatments, golf savings and rental car deals.
Vacation Online (tel. 888/205-3315; www.vacationonline.com) has hotel-only and package deals available across Mexico, including Cancun. For a trip from Chicago leaving May 10 and returning May 17, 2006, we found an air-and-hotel deal with all meals and drinks included costing approximately $802 per person based on double occupancy with accommodations at the Oasis Palm Beach in Cancun. The 470-room beachfront hotel is located just two-and-a-half miles from downtown, and includes a full-service spa, two pools and a designated children's area. Other options include a similar trip with accommodations at the Gran Melia Cancun with almost 700 yards of beachfront terrain for $785 per person. The Gran Melia is a four-star resort. A week in Cancun from landlocked Atlanta with mid-June travel starts at $790 with air and hotel included at the Oasis America. This isn't a beachfront resort but two sister-resorts nearby offer beach activities. All meals and beverages are included in the price of the package. For you splurgers, the same week in Cancun from Atlanta with airfare, accommodations and meals at the secluded and upscale Moon Palace Golf and Spa resort costs approximately $1,592 plus departure taxes and security fees.
Cheap Caribbean (tel. 800/915-2322, www.cheapcaribbean.com) has some "Super Savings Specials" to Cancun for the calendar year 2006. From May 7 to June 23, 2006, an all inclusive air, land and food and drink for five nights and six days start at $869 per person. Act fast on this on, it ends this Thursday on April 13, 2006. Accommodations are in junior suites at the five-star Riu Palace Las Americas with a marble lobby, oak bar, and a palatial pool looking out onto the turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Airport transfers in Cancun are also included. In all, we found about 15 deals to different Cancun resorts at Cheap Caribbean, some with specials including children and others to all-adult romantic resorts. For $649, there's a five-night all inclusive package at the Oasis Palm Beach with travel good from May 1 to June 30, 2006. Again, act fast. This special closes on April 13, 2006 as well. The simple pull-down menu on the bottom of the page for each deal has a price listing from about 30 U.S. departure cities, including $749 out of New York and Nashville.
Talk about the return of Cancun on our Mexico Travel Boards today.
