II read all the reviews on all the sites about this hotel and was very nervous because so many of the reviews on this hotel were iffy. After staying here, I disagreed and really enjoyed the location and the hotel.
Cost:
I did my research and decided that it was in the best location in Cancun and a deal for the price. I booked on Travelocity six months in advance. We were able to book a Junior Suite room for $98.67 per night for 9 nights and with taxes only a low $31.05 total our grand total for the vacation was $919.08 total prepaid (with cancellation/refund allowed up to 24 hours in advance.)
Junior Suite Room:
The room was gorgeous. We stayed in room 102 in a Junior Suite Room and were literally STEPS from the beach and the main pool both. Our view was of the sand and the turquoise waters - and there were parasails rides going on right by our room. Opening our sliding glass door there were two lounging recliners with cushions. The deck was shared but was rarely used by other guests. There are also lots of other recliners with and without cushions spread around by the pools and on the beach, and of course, those had even less privacy, so this was just fine for me. While the beach was public, it was never crowded and normally the only people there were from the hotel. Our room had a king sized bed (that I admit was a little too firm, but we got used to it) with nice fluffy down pillows and bedding changed daily. There was no clock (as another reviewer stated), so I brought a clock from home. The hotel also has excellent wake up service if you forget to bring a clock. The bed was surrounded by fluffy white sheer curtains that would make the room appropriate for honeymooners since it was very romantic, but did block the TV and ocean view from bed. We actually tied the curtains up so that it didn't block our views. The floor was marble in the room, and the countertops on the two end tables and the desk/dressing table/dresser and the end table in the 'living room' area were also covered in matching marble. The TV was not a flat screen but it was a 32 inch screen and it could swivel between the living room area and the bedroom area. The living room area held a built in couch with pillows and cushions (excellent for afternoon napping), a coffee table, a small table and two chairs, as well as a small refrigerator that held a case of soda and numerous water bottles, as well.
Other rooms:
I did see into some standard rooms while the maids had the door open when cleaning, and the standard room did not appear to have a couch or a refrigerator. The standard rooms also had a private deck (in most cases) but no recliners only plastic chairs and a plastic end table. My take on this is to book a Junior Suite and forego the All Inclusive option (more information on that below).
Internet access:
We brought our own laptop and easily connected to the wireless connection in the lobby. While I tried to access it from the room, I could not get a connection. There was no charge, so while it was a little inconvenient, it wasn't bad, and I just coordinated my visit to the early evening and sat in the bar where the music/band was. We don't drink, but the bar was open in the evening and you could have a drink while you sit comfortably at the table next to the lobby where all the action is.
Cleanliness of hotel:
The room was cleaned daily - and the maids did not mind if we were relaxing in the room when they cleaned. I tiped them $3 a day which was well worth it because without asking we received extra towels - even with the note in the bathroom saying that they did not provide extra towels. They changed the sheets and swept and mopped the floor every day. The shared areas of the hotel, including the inside and outside hallways were also cleaned every day - and some of the cleaning staff started at 6:30 am. I saw that the cigarette butt stands had decorative sand which was cleaned and 'reorganized decoratively' in petal/shell shapes at least once a day. Steps were washed and cleaned daily. This was probably one of the cleanest hotels I've ever seen.
Other hotel items:
The hotel staff was very pleasant and most spoke some English. Do not be fooled, though, this is a Mexican hotel and has some quirkiness that you will not find in American hotels - for example, restaurants close daily between 5 pm and 6 or 6:30 pm. Be flexible - it is your vacation after all, and you came to another country, you have to be adaptable to their ways of doing things. At the front of the hotel, the concierge office is basically trying to give you coupons that will give them some kick backs (take the coupons they are for free items such as a Del Sol bag and are worth it). They will also try to organize a free breakfast if you go see the time share next door. Since my husband and I did not bring our credit cards - only cash, it turned out we were ineligible for the time share presentation so once we told them that we didn't use any credit cards, they dropped the issue - but at the beginning they were pushy and we just firmly said we were not interested. The concierge did give us some information about tours and bus transportation (which complemented what we had read prior to our trip). We booked two tours in the hotel with the local travel agency in the lobby. I had read a lot about the private and public tours from other places, and heard some people saying they booked tours at the airport, but the prices were all about the same and the tours we went on (info below) were very good and not expensive. I saw no problems booking through the hotel - and when weather caused a delay on one tour - they called our room to tell us very promptly so I would recommend using them.
Money at the hotel and elsewhere:
All expenses at the hotel are in Pesos not in US Dollars. The hotel exchange rate was 12.70 Pesos to the USD which was about average or slightly lower than I would see elsewhere. (The highest exchange rate we saw was actually across the street at one of the stores in the Flamingo Plaza - 14 Pesos to the dollar. Make sure you ASK what the exchange rate is wherever you go before you buy anything - prices might seem low in Pesos, but if the exchange rate is bad, it is not a good deal for someone paying in US Dollars.) I would not bother to exchange money at the hotel. If you buy anything elsewhere you can pay in USD although most places will give you change in Pesos.
Hotel Locations:
The hotel is located right across the street from the Flamingo Plaza - a very good location with lots of nice restaurants. It is 20 minutes from downtown and 20 minutes from the airport. A quick bus ride gets you almost everywhere you want to go very efficiently. I drank the water in the hotel zone and had no problems whatsoever, but I made the mistake of having a 'coconut milk shake' drink downtown which had ice in it (at Market 28) and got slightly ill. Lesson - only drink the tap water/ice in the hotel zone. The La Isla shopping center - a very fancy shopping center with Planet Hollywood and other American restaurants is about a kilometer or so away towards the airport, and there is a flea market nearby several nice restaurants (including Hard Rock Cafe) about a kilometer or so towards the city. You could walk to either of these but remember it can be warm and humid in Cancun - even in April - and you may want to just take the bus. After riding on the bus up and down the whole Cancun area and visiting downtown, i would say that the Flamingo Hotel is in the best location of any of the resorts.
Food:
We did not buy the all-inclusive plan. I do not think it is cost effective and you are stuck in the food at that hotel. There are three restaurants at the Flamingo. One is the main buffet type restaurant and one is an ala carte restaurant on the ocean. There is a pool bar and lunch restaurant which serves hamburgers and miscellaneous other picnic type food. We ate at all three places and the food was fine. We received several (I believe it was 5 or 6) coupons for 20% off at the Flamingo hotel (if spending more than 150 Pesos ($12 or so) and we used them all. But, I wouldn't want to eat there all the time, so I'm glad we did not get the all-inclusive plan. We bought the Enterprise Plus discount card and also received the coupon books from the airport. We did not pay full price for any of our meals at the restaurants in the hotel zone - getting items free or 10-15% off every time. With these discounts, and granola bars we brought with us for most breakfasts, we were able to average about $45 a day for food for the two of us. In addition, some of the tours include lunch, so that should be factored into your decision whether or not to do the all-inclusive plan - you would be double paying for that meal with all-inclusive. In the morning, coffee could be purchased to go from the main restaurant and we did that every day for a total of 30 pesos. It was excellent coffee and well worth it. To be frugal we did sometimes have appetizers instead of a full meal, but never went hungry. We learned NOT to purchase drinks at Bubba Gumps at the Flamingo Plaza - the lemonade was 'sold' to us by the waiter and we did not ask the cost and it was about $10 a glass. This is why we frequently drank water at the restaurants - we had no problems with any food or water we had in the Hotel Zone. Do be careful if you buy food from a street vendor or order drinks elsewhere, though. Another note - waiters will not bring your check until they are asked to do so - I believe they think it is rude to interrupt while you are sitting there - remember this and do not get irritated, this is their custom and you are visiting their country.
Transportation:
We used buses up and down the hotel corridor and into downtown Cancun. We gave the bus driver a $1 bill each although it was really only 7.50 Pesos - because there was no change, we were giving quite a big tip. We could have paid in Pesos, but felt that the tip was worth it because the drivers were helpful. After getting off at the wrong exit a couple times, we learned to ask the driver if they were going to the location we were heading to, and they were nice enough to stop and tell us when to exit if we didn't know where we were. Obviously the tip had something to do with that. When we went to Market 28, we got on the wrong bus (look for ones in the hotel zone that say Market 28 on them!) and had to walk quite a ways. We took a taxi back, which in the heat and with the tired feet it was worth it - $11 for the two of us to the hotel door. Transportation to and from the Airport was with Entertainment Plus and it was excellent. I booked it online six months in advance and received excellent communications over email and also confirmed the return with a local call from the hotel (5 pesos from the room) which was answered by someone who was obviously an American. The drivers were on time and standing at the exit to the airport with a sign with our name on it - and stopped at Walmart downtown on the way to the hotel for an extra $30 and we bought water and sodas and snacks at the Walmart price which was much less than in the local convenience stores. We prepaid most of our return and they were early for our 4:15 am pickup. Having private transportation was much easier and I would greatly recommend the $55 round trip (plus $30 for Walmart stop). I tipped $10 each way, as well.
Tipping:
We read the reviews and brought with us $100 in ones for tips. I used this for tips to the maids, our transportation on the buses and also gave ones when buying small items in stores. In 9 days, we used all $100 but it lasted well and the last of it was used for our maid as we checked out. Tipping in restaurants is usually less in Mexico than in the US - 10 to 15% is the normal. We frequently used the Pesos we received in change for tips - but make sure you use a calculator or currency translation table so you do not over or under tip if you are doing it that way.
Negotiating:
You can negotiate in the flea markets, Market 28, and the vendors in the centers of the mall, but the majority of stores in the hotel zone do not negotiate. When negotiating, always start really low, and be prepared to walk away if the price they are offering is too high - they see US dollars and Americans as a challenge, so make sure they understand that you are not prepared to pay their first offer. If the price is not posted on the item - and you have to ask them what it is - I always consider that a starting point and I never agree to pay that price.
Tours:
We previously had been on a cruise to Cancun and taken a tour to Tulum and had seen the pyramids there, so had no interest in seeing the other locations with the pyramid ruins. We also are older and were not that interested in snorkeling or other water related sports. We decided to just spend the majority of our time sightseeing and relaxing at the resort. After reviewing all the materials, we opted to only take two tours - a submarine (glass bottom boat) tour of the reef and fish in the shallow areas off the coast of Cancun from Aquaworld. That was excellent tour - but if you get seasick at all, take Dramamine before you go - it got very rocky at the end as we were trying to transfer from the submarine back to the boat that carried us to the location. We paid $39 per person which included drinks before the trip and during the boat ride to the submarine. Our second tour was really good - probably better - and it was a boat ride from Cancun to the Isla Mujures (Island of Women) which included lunch on the island as well as drinks to and from the island. We did the basic tour for $39 each - which included that mentioned plus the use of the facilities there (including a children's playground and a beach area with recliners) and did not include drinks while on the island except at lunch time, nor any tours on the island. We boarded the boat between 9:30 and 10 am and departed from the island somewhere between 4 and 4;30 pm. Line up early and sit on top - the view is better and they have activities on the ride back that made the time pass quickly. My husband and I rented a golf cart from the tour proprieters when we landed at Isla Mujures location and did not go with the standard golf cart tour - we drove on our own for two hours. It was $25 and well worth it. We drove down to the tip of the island (it is only something like 4 1/2 miles long by 1/2 mile wide) and walked around the Galafron area where there were some magnificent views. We did not eat there but did buy some souvenirs at their store because they were very reasonable. We stopped at several places to take pictures and to buy something cold to drink and bought a few souvenirs at some of the stores in the downtown area. We rode the golf cart on a pier over to a snazzy hotel and got some gorgeous pictures of the bay where it was located. I admit it was a scary ride, but looking back at the pictures it was great fun. There were some gorgeous houses on the ocean and also some junky shacks, but all in all it was a fun golf cart ride. Both tours took our pictures at the beginning and we had our picture taken on the golf cart as well, right before a bump in the road (the Isla Mujures has lots of bumps to slow down traffic). The pictures were $5 each on the Isla Mujures tour, and $10 on the Aquaworld tour and since the only pictures we had together were self-portraits, well worth the cost.
Summary Recommendations:
1. The Flamingo Resort was excellent - STAY HERE!
2. Do not book All Inclusive - it is more fun to try other places and you do not waste money when taking a tour that includes lunch.
3. Transportation around town - use the bus. Transportation from the Airport - book in advance using Entertainment Plus - they were excellent.
4. Take small bills with you - not just $20. We took $100 in $1 bills, but if I had to do it again, I would bring another $100 in $5 bills.
5. Don't drink the water or have ice in a drink outside of the hotel zone.
6. There is no need to book the tours in advance - I recommend booking from the hotel - but do your research and check prices and have them with you so that you can book elsewhere if you find something better/cheaper.
7. Have fun - be flexible. Remember you are not in the US, do not expect the experience to be like a vacation in the US and have patience. You will have a great time.
