Lance Bailey's Mexico

04/08/2024

Smoking good deal for a 3 day couples weekend to Cancun on the direct out of Kansas City on Frontier. You can do a Thursday through Sunday flight and stay at the new adults only Beachfront at the Fives for only $640 per person available most weekends through June. This is a small, boutique adults only all inclusive that I've been dying to stay at. You can use the Fives resort next door too. Available as a package through orbitz.com.

Hotels and restaurants in Mexico City, a luxury resort in the Riviera Maya enjoy beaches, food, drinks, and the best places to visit Oceanfront this 2022

04/02/2024

I’ve noticed that Mexico resorts are really rising in price lately especially in Cancun and Cabo. One thing contributing is the rise of the peso vs the US dollar. Once you could about get 20 pesos to the USD now it’s down to about 16.5 pesos to USD. That’s a major drop in buying power for tourists from the US. Unfortunately, I don’t see that changing anytime soon and if anything it will likely get worse.

04/02/2024

April is a great time to head on a vacation to the tropics and I’m seeing some great flights out there direct on Delta out of Minneapolis. A variety of dates but it’s $335 to go to Cancun, $408 to puerto Vallarta and $457 to Punta Cana.

03/03/2024

It's crunch time if you're still looking to head to spring break next week. Deals are hard to come by but here's a few I've seen. These are priced as a family of 4 (I did two adults and two kids ages 17 and 12 as an example) and they are all inclusive!
1. $1200 per person on Expedia to stay at the family selection Grand Palladium in Puerto Vallarta from March 7-March 13. This is on Sun Country direct flight out of Minneapolis. We stayed at this resort last year and liked it enough. If I was to go back I'd only stay at the Family Selection section as it has some upgrades. You can book this through expedia, orbitz or travelocity,
2. $1350 a person to stay at the Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay in Mazatlan from March 7-13. This is also on a direct flight out of Minneapolis on Sun Country. I'm a big fan of this resort and this deal comes with a master suite ocean view room.
3. $425 to fly RT to Cancun out of Kansas City on a direct from Frontier Airlines from March 7-12. I've taken this flight many times and like it even though Frontier is a budget airline.
4. $1301 Per Person you can fly March 7-12 out of Minneapolis to Cancun and stay in a 1 bedroom oceanfront suite at the upscale Generations resort. Also gets you 1 free entrance to the Nickelodeon water park next door. I love this deal and I'd probably take it if I had kids and was looking! This is available through cheapcaribbean.com.
5. $1250 per person to go to the Riu Guanacaste in Costa Rica. Direct flight out of Minneapolis from March 11-16th on suncountry.
This deal is available through Orbitz.com.
6. $1400 per person to stay a full week March 11-18th at the Cozumel Palace in Cozumel. This is out of Minneapolis on Delta direct into Cozumel.
Get a hold with me if you have questions or need more information.

02/07/2024

Spring break flights are still expensive in the Midwest but there is a $495 direct flight from Minneapolis to Los Cabos on Sun Contry airlines I see. It’s 5 nights from Friday March 8 to Tuesday the 13th.

02/03/2024

Hard to find decent airfare for spring break this year but I do see suncountry has directs to Montego Bay from Minneapolis for $584 for 6 nights March 8-14.

01/20/2024

Saw an amazing deal on Orbitz today for the Iberostar grand in the Riviera Maya south of Cancun. You can get the 2,000 square foot villa all inclusive for $587 a night at the end of October.
While I’ve never paid that much myself that’s an amazing deal at maybe our favorite resort.
More description of the resort:

I was looking for Iberostar hotels and I thought you might be interested. Take a look.

01/16/2024

Some feedback on my Mexico trips this Fall and Winter:
August trip with just our kids at the Riu Palace Mexico in Playa Del Carmen (45 minutes south of Cancun) - this was a great hotel though I do not recommend going to Cancun in August as it's hot!!!, but it was the only time we could do a family vacation with Olivia's internship last summer. We loved this hotel for the beach (one of the best in the Cancun area in my opinion), the resort is just the right size for us as it's not too big and basically just a "U" shape, service and while the food/drink isn't great the Rius are always consistently good. Rius are a chain and they are always constantly deliver in all the locations I've visited. The ala carte restaurants weren't outstanding but there was standout meals (you could get surf and turf and actually get lobster). The Resort was also lively and fun and you could use three other Riu resorts that were in walking distance.
End of October we went to the The Fives Beachfront near Playa Del Carment - this time we were just with Q and another familly came with us. Loved this place. We were able to get a one bedroom penthouse suite which came with a separate king bedroom and a pullout sofa in the living room - we also had a kitchen even though it's all inclusive. Beach is very nice here but not the best to get in (though fine), there are lots of pools and food/drink was very good. It was a lot of walking and the activities weren't great, but the positives definitely outweighed the negatives.
Platinum Yucatan Princess adults only, also near Playa Del Carmen - this was a quick three nights boys trip after Thanksgiving for a buddy's birthday. I've been to this resort before about 10 years ago when it first opened. It was a fun spot for a guys trip and you could use the resorts next door to. Its a great spot for fun but food and drinks aren't great (though I did have one of the better steaks I've had in Mexico there).
Christmas trip we went to Grand Palladium Riviera Maya Family Selection - this was a resort that recently reopened (we were the third family to check into this newly opened section). While it had it's hiccups it certainly had some positives like the beach, giant pools, great volleyball court and an awesome sports bar. Food wasn't great and the nightlife wasn't that active though it had a great sports bar (which did have good food like burgers, fries, chicken strips etc,). Family selection rooms were nice and redone and they had nice amenities but the rooms were really small. This is the second time I've visited this resort and both times were decent but I feel this place could be better.
Lastly we just stayed at the El Dorado Royale south of Cancun for an adults couples trip with 26 friends - Great place and a classic Mexico resort feel with lots of palm trees and well manicured grounds. Beach isn't great for getting in the water but plenty of places to spread out and listen to the ocean, tons of private areas, lots of pools, great entertainment options and decent drinks. It would have probably made my top 10 ever if the food would have been better. Ironically, they had great hamburgers (which is always a struggle to find in Mexico), but everything else was subpar and they consider themselves a gourmet resort. Plus there was no buffet option at all which is fine, but you can never just grab something quick and sometimes I don't want to spend an hour plus in the middle of the day grabbing something to eat.
Bottomline - all were great places and we really got lucky with having good weather on all our trips which is not always the case in Cancun this time of year. I haven't been to Cancun that much lately but the prices have been right lately and the flights affordable. Seaweed on the beach can be a problem in the Cancun area but it's usually gone by fall and doesn't come back heavily until March. Anxious for spring break and to head back to Puerto Vallarta!

12/17/2023

Some absolutely killer deals to Cancun in January. Packages to the El Dorado Royale. Jan 10-14 only $1067 per person. Upgrade to a beachfront honeymoon suite for only $1265.
This is a higher end, adults only all inclusive. Airfare in January is the cheapest I’ve seen in post Covid from Des Moines to Cancun.

09/02/2023

Frontier is now flying direct to Cancun this fall and winter (schedule is out through mid Feb) from Minneapolis. Flights are as cheap as $250! You can search dates on their site: flyfrontier.com. It’s about $200 per person cheaper than their direct flights out of Kansas City to Cancun currently.

FlyFrontier

08/14/2023

Also should mention we flew Frontier down here on a direct flight from KC. It goes on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Usually has great prices though you have to factor in other costs like luggage and seat selections. We travel light enough to just fly with personal items so we avoid the luggage cost.
Frontier has its schedule out till early January and most flights here are under $500 direct from KC.

08/14/2023

With Fall/Winter coming I need to get better at posting on this page! Currently I’m in the Riviera Maya staying at the Riu Palace Mexico. I’ve never come to Mexico in August and wouldn’t generally recommend it because it’s so hot and hurricane season. However, we wanted to getaway with kids for a few days prior to school starting back up (plus it was cheaper to go here than most places). It’s been awesome, Riu is a chain and I’ve stayed at enough to know basically what I’m going to get. The upper end resorts are called “Palaces” and they tend to have some nice touches (like Q was able to get lobster for dinner each night).
This stretch of beach is part of the Playacar” development in Playa Del Carmen. It’s a gated community that feels very safe. There are a number of resorts on this strip of beach. I’ve stayed at the Sandos Playacar, Iberostar Tucan, the Riu Playacar and now the Riu Palace here. I walked through some of the other resorts and they look okay - there are a couple of Wyndham properties that look decent, there is an upscale adults only called the Royal Hideaway and a couple of Riu properties (if you stay at a Riu Palace you can utilize any of the other Riu properties here). Whichever resort you choose you get one of the nicest stretches of beach in the Cancun area in my opinion.

01/08/2023

All - if you're a Central Iowan still looking for a tropical spring break flight there just isn't much out there for the dates. However, there is a Frontier direct out of St Louis to Cancun from March 14-21 for only $437. The flights are the hard part, the resorts are still somewhat cheap if you can just get there.

01/08/2023

2022 Vacation Season has come to an end for the Baileys. We hit up 5 resorts at 4 locations. Here's my summary on all of them:
1. First up was a long weekend over Halloween, we went to the Grand Sirenis Resort in the Riviera Maya (about 1 hour south of Cancun). Paid about $250 a night for the three of us (2 adults and my son who is 15) and booked a package with flight out of KC through Orbitz. We loved this resort for families, it had great snorkeling off the beach, decent food, nice rooms and big pools. Wish the entertainment would have been a little better, but I feel that has languished at most resorts after Covid. It's a big resort - kind of reminded me of the Barcelo Riviera Maya if you've ever stayed there.
2. My college aged daughter and I went on quick trip to Puerto Vallarta over Thanksgiving. We stayed at two different resorts, first at the Occidental for one night and then the next three nights at the Hard Rock Vallarta, both of these resorts are 30 mins north of Puerto Vallarta in an area called Nuevo Vallarta. It was our first time at the Occidental, I had wanted to stay there for awhile and I paid about $250 a night through Priceline. We had a great room and the resort is nice and compact, however the pool is too small and food wasn't good enough to justify a return trip. It was my second trip to the Hard Rock and it remains one of my favorites. Great food for an all inclusive and very comfortable rooms. The vibe is awesome at this place and I feel it would be a great place for families or just adults. However, this place it more expensive than most - I paid $350 a night through Priceline.
3. Next trip was with our family (both kids) and family friends of ours to the Dominican Republic and staying at Ocean Blue and Sand over Christmas. We flew out of Minneapolis on a direct with Sun Country which I'm a big fan of these days because how risky connections and missed flights are anymore. Anyway, Christmas rates everywhere are expensive but I was able to grab this place over Christmas for about $225 a night through priceline! While the place wasn't that updated and the beach wasn't big we really liked this resort. Room was big (had two beds and a pullout couch), food was decent (had a great Xmas eve buffet with even all you can eat lobster tails), service was good and the pools were huge. Really liked this place and I'd go back there if the price was right. I'm liking the DR as much as Mexico anymore!
4. Last trip this year was over New Years with just Shellee. This was with a bunch of other Adults to the very upscale and new Secrets Bahia Mita about an hour north of Puerto Vallarta. This was a crazy deal we got for only about $125 a night all inclusive through Mexvax.com (it was a mistake rate in which we originally booked the Hotel Mousai at the price, but Mousai cancelled us, but Mexvax offered to move us to the equally nice Secrets Bahia - great customer service by Mexvax.com and I'll definitely use them again!). Anyway, we loved this resort. Food was good and so many options for places to eat. Room was very comfortable and beds were great. They also had a variety of pools, heated to different temperatures and most of them had great views of the bay. I'd definitely go back to this place though it's usually very expensive, however I've seen some decent rates through the British web site TUI for this place (and other Secrets properties too).
Now we wait for Spring Break to go back and the next trip (back to Puerto Vallarta to stay at the Palladium Vallarta).

11/04/2022

Great deals out of Kansas City to Cancun in early December and it’s a direct flight! Dec 9-15 for 6 nights for two adults all inclusive at the Riu Palace Las Americas for only $2500, Sandos Playacar Adults only section only $1900 or Grand Sirenis (which I just returned from and loved though not adults only) is only $1800.
Personally I’d rather take the direct out of KC versus taking a connecting flight out of Des Moines.

10/29/2022

Been a solid place to stay so far, especially with this cool snorkeling lagoon you can walk down to.

10/18/2022

Direct Flights to Cancun from Kansas City to Cancun are only $275 from mid November through third week of December on Frontier.
Book through flyfrontier.com and use promo code “Tropical”.
I’ve flown this many times and it’s been quick and easy though know they charge a lot for baggage!

FlyFrontier