Slow Down on the Riviera Maya in Mexico
By Holly Reich

By the second day of vacation on the Riviera Maya in Mexico, I was feeling very brave. After trying on a couple of bikinis at our resort’s gift shop, I edged out of the dressing room.

"Don’t you have anything a little fuller, I asked the young salesgirl, blushing. "I’m too old to wear one of these Brazilian types."

Her answer was nothing short of life affirming: " A woman is allowed to look sexy at any age." I bought it – and wore it -- without a second thought. Viva Mexico!

We were staying 30 miles south of Cancun in Playacar on the eastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. While Cancun itself has a reputation as a teeming playground for college kids and tourists, this area is still relatively undeveloped. Gratefully.

Untouched beaches, silky and cream-colored, stretch for miles. The turquoise Caribbean invites snorkelers and divers to explore a Mayan Reef that is noted for its hidden caves yet to be discovered. Another attraction, the Mayan ruins of Tulum and Chichen-Itza, are favorite stopping points for tours run by resorts and cruises.

Like the renowned Dunns River Falls in Jamaica, these ruins are something to see. To get the most out of the tour, I wanted to try something different for my active and adventurous family. We picked the Chikin-ha Altournative Expedition because it had all of the right ingredients – exercise, spirituality and food.

After meeting our German group leader Claudia I wasn’t so sure. She scolded me for applying sunscreen to my face. "We are swimming in sacred Mayan waters and it will pollute them!" she exclaimed. That was the first time that I ever had to consider angering the gods a risk factor!

Our excursion started off in a van that ferried us to gated Mayan-owned property. Once parked we mounted sturdy bikes for 1/2 mile of ‘off-roading’ on dirt trails that lead through local farmlands. We stopped along the way (baking under the hot Mexican sun, swatting off annoying bugs) so that the ever-vigilant Claudia could point out the different Mayan plants and tell us stories of divers getting lost in the maze of caves on the property. It scared the kids sufficiently so that they didn’t want to part from us when we parked the bikes and cooled off in a shaded cove surrounded by caves and steamy jungles.

After a few minutes floating around in tubes and trying to keep the disappearing tourist stories from our thoughts, we were on to the next parts of the adventure. First, we strapped on harnesses and took a series of three zip lines that took us from low in the jungle to a high tower that was a real workout to climb. Exhilarating! I could have done that all day. Next we snorkeled through underground caves. Gliding silently over staggering stalagmites and stalagmites and seeing scuba divers lights below us was both spooky and exciting.

And there was more!

Joining another group of tourists, we entered a cave lit with candles for the Mayan purification ceremony. A humble shaman followed us in, lit some incense and began praying and dousing each of us with the non-irritating smoke. Later, we found out that Claudia was getting married in the Fall by that very same shaman to a Mayan man half her age. He came from a family of 14 children that lived in authentic Mayan community. No wonder she was so invested in the culture!

After the christening we had a snack of a traditional Mayan lunch of chicken, rice, vegetables and tortillas cooked with a hit of hot spice. It was by far the best meal I had in Mexico.

With full bellies we biked back to the van, bug bitten, sun burnt and exhausted and more than willing to chill out at our resort, the Viva Wyndham Maya.

This all-inclusive with 400 guest rooms is next door to the Viva Wyndham Azteca, a property with 230 rooms. The Viva properties, which partnered with Wyndham in December of 2003, are going through a rebirth and revamp. Known for nightly entertainment put on by a young and eager staff that speak a minimum of three languages each, the resort has a mostly European clientele. French, German, English, Italian, and Spanish spoken everywhere.

These shows are major productions. We saw the Madonna Show, Chicago and a Mayan show that was put on pool side with fires and canoes. Even though some of the productions were lacking in finesse, the energy that they put into it was joyful.

The resort has a variety of restaurants. The reservations-required La Fortuna has a delicious pasta with white sauce and local mushrooms, coffee drinks flambé and a subtle tiramisu. The pool side Mexican Restaurant serves up tamarind margaritas and a creamy corn soup. Overall, the food was fresh and there were abundant choices, which I found unusual for an all-inclusive.

For those who tire of the Viva Maya, the Azteca also has an Italian style bistro, La Scala and Bambu, an oriental restaurant. Multiple bars on both properties offer everything from a mean espresso to a heady margarita.

The beach was the best of the Caribbean -- white sands and calm waters -- but in order to get a spot either at the beach or the pool, we had to be unfolding our towels by 8 AM. The resort has everything one comes to expect from an all-inclusive, such as non-motorized water sports, a disco, beach volleyball, a kids’ club and tennis courts.

However, the Renova Spa (Renova is Spanish for "renew") was unexpected. I had the best 2 hour (and $90) massage of my life from Manuel who observed that I was too hard on myself. That was all I needed to hear. From then on, I took it easy.

One evening we walked into town to eat at the Wyndham owned Viva Cafe, part of the all-inclusive plan and just a few dollars extra. The Cafe was a delightful surprise: very modern with low lighting, denim covered couches, hanging lights, lofted ceilings and a live jazz band. The bathroom even had perfumed hand towels.

After dinner we walked around the town of Playa del Carmen--the largest city in the Riviera Maya -- with regular ferry service to Cozumel. The town has some charming side streets with unusual shops, but the main boulevard is crowded with too many tourists and the usual "1/2 off" shops hawking t-shirts, cotton blankets and jewelry.

A few days longer and we would have hopped a ferry to Cozumel or Isla Mujeres. But, for July in Mexico, the bathing suit, the Mayan ceremony, the resort and the town were plenty. After all, my massage therapist told me to "go easy."

For More Information:

VIVA WYNDHAM MAYA
email: viva.maya@vivaresorts.com
1-800-WYNDHAM

VIVA WYNDHAM AZTECA
Email: viva.azteca@vivaresorts.com
1-800-WYNDHAM

Also see:

Viva Wyndham Tangerine: All-Inclusive For A Bargain By Holly Reich

Holly Reich is a travel and automotive writer based in Manhattan.

All text copyright Holly Reich. No part of this article may be reproduced without written permission from the author.