Over the weekend I had the most amazing experience. In case you missed it on social media, I’ve gotta tell you, my first Fly Life Travel event was just perfect. What did we do? Nothing.
Let me clarify. This trip was our “Fly Girl’s End of Summer Sereno”. What exactly does that mean? Well, it means we would do nothing for 5 days but relax and eat chips and guac, play in the pool, sleep in, you get the picture?
This was my first experience with an all-inclusive resort, and I picked a good one I must say.
The location was Los Cabos, Mexico. Los Cabos, also known as Cabo, is comprised of the two “Cabos” – Cabo San Lucas, the lively party town, and San Jose del Cabo, the sleepy getaway side. We chose the latter, and stayed at Secrets Puerto Los Cabos. And I literally mean stayed, never leaving the resort until time to go to the airport. The only downside to the location is that it’s not on a swimmable beach. So you can’t get in the water, except the pools. But there was enough going on to distract us from that downside for a few days.
Now that I’ve had my all-inclusive experience, I can definitely share the pros and cons, when it’s a good option and when it’s not. But first let me say that if you’ve been afraid to visit Los Cabos because of the travel warning, then it may not be for you. But as for myself and this group of ladies, we figure it can’t be any more dangerous than LA, Oakland, Chicago, Vegas or Baltimore which is where we came from, so off we went.
Our resort of choice was Secrets Puerto Los Cabos. Secrets Resorts is part of the AMResorts brand, and all of their resorts are all-inclusive. That means the food, drinks including alcohol (although I seriously doubt the mixed drinks contained more than a milliliter of alcohol) entertainment and gratuities are all paid for prior to your arrival. This does not include lobster, spa services, ordering movies or any excursions. Secrets Resorts caters to couples seeking romance. But a group of 6 ladies seeking serenity fit right in. The ice cold face cloth upon arrival and shuttle to our rooms let us know we were about to be pampered for the next 5 days. Perfect.
Somehow everyone in our group was given an upgrade, most from garden view to ocean view. Nice. But one of us didn’t get the view. Instead she was blessed with a swim up pool. Double nice.
We stopped by the Rendezvous bar for a welcome cocktail and to meet/greet the other ladies in the group. Then we all headed to El Patio for dinner, the Mexican restaurant at the resort, and to celebrate the birthday girl in the group. The restaurant staff surprised her with a bday dessert and serenade in Spanish. While we were at dinner the hotel staff was busy decorating her room so she could return to yet another surprise. Cute and festive. I think she was pleased.
Retreating to the room for the night was a sheer pleasure with that larger than life jetted tub, and one of my faves, the complimentary plush robe for ultimate relaxation.
The next morning I got out early for a vacationer I guess (9:30) and took advantage of the yoga session by the beach. Loved it so much I did it twice. ‘Cause y’all know I love my wellness.
Yoga was followed by a massive brunch including everything a brunch should have (except grits). Brunch got my seal of approval since they also included a variety of fresh juices (I made my own watermelon mimosas). My favorite was the “green juice” which tasted like pear, apple, cucumber and celery. I swear I eat healthier when I’m away than when I’m home. It’s much easier to do when you have someone make the juice for you, for real.
Each night we enjoyed the entertainment of a Cuban band, Mariachi band, dancers, singers, you name it – kind of like the entertainment on a cruise ship actually. This was followed by dancing at the “club” with a dj spinning whatever you asked for while the accompanying video played on an overhead screen. I hear they even showed the fight on the last evening. I chose to turn in early most nights. I like the fact that the rooms were away from all the action so my rest was never disturbed. After all, that was the theme for the event. Sereno = Serenity.
We didn’t have an itinerary for this event, as the goal was to relax and go with the flow. But one thing we did schedule was a private pool party at the swim up pool one of our “Fly Girls” had as her upgrade. Basically you open the patio door and there it is, a pool that you step right into at your back door. It’s semi private, as no one should be floating into your part of the pool. Loved it!
By the end of day 3 I was honestly ready to eat somewhere else despite the fact that we had access to at least 5 restaurants. Yes, the all-inclusive concept is wonderful if you aren’t too picky of an eater, and you don’t need to see the sights. You can literally stay there and not spend a dime beyond what you prepaid for the trip. But on the flip side, if you’re out seeing the sights and decide to stop and have lunch, dinner, a drink, you’ve kind of defeated the purpose of the all-inclusive. (And if you’re a foodie who likes really high quality food, you won’t be satisfied with resort food.) So in my opinion, it’s great if you have no need to get out and do excursions, sight-seeing, shopping or anything. You can truly just make the resort your destination and be totally satisfied. But if it’s the city you want to see, and you’re only going to return to the resort to shower and rest after a long day of enjoying the culture, food and sights, then I think you’d be wasting your money.
Would I do an all-inclusive again? I sure would, for a trip planned exclusively for relaxation I think it’s perfect. But I really would like somewhere that gives access to the swimmable part of the beach, which is hard to come by in Cabo. This brings me to my next Cabo visit. I’m already working on the details. This time we’ll be visiting another part of Cabo called the Corridor, half way between the two Cabos, but this time RIGHT ON THE BEACH. Woohoo! Instead of all inclusive, this time we’re doing all excursions – and I can’t wait. Wanna join us? Then make sure you’re on the mailing list to get the info as soon as it’s available. No staying in the room and hanging around the pool every day on this trip. We’ll be out and about enjoying all that Cabo has to offer. But the resort is exquisite and on a private stretch of one of the most beautiful beaches, so if you prefer to chill you can do that too. Either way, I’m ret ta go, again. See you in Cabo! Oh, and yes, guys are welcome this time. They will LOVE it.
We stopped by next year’s location for a sneak peek.
