We spent the week at the Beach Palace the week prior to the swine flu outbreak being announced. We did not get sick, and I wasn't surprised. The hotel puts obvious effort into service and cleanliness. It was not overrun with people despite being a busy week, and our two boys ages 10 & 12 felt at home there. They made friends with other kids their ages and went from the pools to the restaurants to the sports room with total ease. We took a few tours -- Paradise Snorkeling (which has a lovely beach for non-snorkelers), boat day trip to Isla Mujeres (what a fun party boat!!), and ziplining (included but not mentioned on line. Our boys loved it ,and I highly recommend it. They rented segways there too). We ate at the Beach Palace most every day and night with the all-inclusive, and it was great. The food is different from the US (reminded us a bit of when we went to Spain) but it was very good. We loved everything we ate at the Japanese and most at the Italian (try the risotto with beef - yum!). The flank steak at the outdoor restaurant was terrific... very tender and the grilled shrimp was great too. You would have to be very picky to not enjoy the food! We enjoyed rich, foamy lattes and made-to-order omelets most mornings at breakfast. The kids had ice cream from the machine by the pool every day and were in heaven. Bingo and water polo in the afternoon by the pool was a daily favorite. The social directors are awesome!!! They run the pool activities, play billiards in the sports bar with you and even entice you to sing on karaoke night! The staff at the Beach Palace love their jobs and seem to be taken very good care of by the hotel. We had such great conversations with the staff members who were taking English classes before work provided by the hotel. They are so excited to learn a new language and be able to speak to you, so be friendly and talkative! As far as evening entertainment, the kids loved the sport bar billiard games (with yummy munchies right there), and we all enjoyed the fire show on Thursday night... really entertaining out in front of the pool! The mall across and down the street which you can walk to (cross the street carefully) has loads of good shopping, an aquarium, a bungee jumping game for the kids and a climbing tower Great to do at night or during the day. In closing, we had a great week at the Beach Palace and would definitely return!