Playa Paraiso Vacation Rental house

Casa April -

Nestled between the Grupo Mayan and Iberostar Paraiso Resorts, this Villa is about a 30-45 minute drive from Cancun Airport. This was our first trip to Mexico and despite our not speaking any Spanish, we had no problem communicating with the people there. They were all laid back, friendly, and helpful. Overall I'd rate the Villa a 8.5/10 and we'd most certainly consider going back there. Would recommend renting a car if you're planning on staying here.


Pros --

- Private Villa - Very secure and comfortable, with lots of open living spaces, tree shaded, and lots of flowers in the gardens. Comfortably housed 8 adults and 5 children.
- Barbeque grills by the Pool, upstairs outdoor living area, and on the Terrace.
- Great Private Pool in the back.
- Beach is about a minute walk away.
- In-house massage service was great.
- Maid - Marcela was simply wonderful, doesn't speak any English but this did not stop her from helping out and smiling all the time. Her husband helped out with setting up the BBQ and the clean-up. Also helped with unloading bags and groceries. Eva and Denise were very helpful too.
- There were lots of condiments in the Kitchen cabinets, so be sure to check supplies before running off to the grocery stores in Playa Del Carmen. We left back beers, wine and bottles of Vodka, Tequila, and lots of cooking stuff for the next visitors.

Cons --

- Not that we missed it but didn’t have a DVD player as advertised, although each bedroom had Satellite TV with most American Channels (+HBO/MAX). Upstairs has a multi-disc CD player which used the TV for speakers.
- Bathrooms - Adequate - Wished each bedroom had an attached bathroom. Also, bathroom fixtures had some calcification and could use a scrub down.
- Could not get the Jacuzzi to work.
- Inside Playa Paraiso, the access roads to Villa had lots of potholes - thanks to the ongoing construction in the area. Made access specially bad when it rained.
- Could hear music from nearby resorts late evenings, didn't bother us though.
- Mosquitos in the area were specially attracted to the little ones, so do bring repellents.
- No outdoor tap/shower to wash feet or beach sandals. One by the garage was mostly meant for watering the garden and wasn't easily accessble.

Golf --

- The nearby golf course at Iberostar was absolutely gorgeous. The $190 green fee included food and drinks (including alcohol), which was quite a deal compared to the other area golf courses. The grass tees at the driving range at iberostar was also very nice, was open until 8 pm, with grass tees. The $10 bucket of balls included beers and sandwichs at the clubhouse. Personally I thought that Mayakoba at $250 was overrated. The Hilton Golf Course was a bit of a drive but turned out to be a very nice course. Be sure to ask for discounts while at the Hilton.

Nearby Resorts --

- For the most part you cannot use the facilities at the nearby resorts without a Day Pass. The shopping mall and its two restaurants at Iberostar are open to public but were overpriced and too commercial. Would recommend a trip to Puerto Morelos, a 15 minute drive, which is a quaint, laid back little town with a townsquare and nice little boutiques. Specially recommend Pelicanos, the Seafood restaurant. Also tried out Hola Asia which was surprisingly delightful.

Day trips --

- A trip to Tulum which is about an hour and half south of the Villa and Xel Ha or Xcaret
- A rather long drive on a safe four-lane toll highway to Chichen Itza - which as impressive as it was left us wanting - they don’t let you climb the Pyramid anymore - nor do they let you enter it. You're left looking at the Tour guide's picture book and walking the grounds and admiring things from afar. New Seventh Wonder of the World - True - but a three-plus hour drive each way for just that might make some think again. If you do go you might want to consider picking up the Mayland hotel p