Family-Oriented Hotels by Bob Brooke
Cancún is leaning more toward families. Today, more hotels cater to kids with water park-like pools and kids programs. Dazzling hotels line Paseo Kukulcán. Large, airy lobbies feature atriums filled with plants and fountains soaring to faceted skylights. Deluxe rooms, fitted with mahogany, brass, marble, and handpainted tile, have private terraces overlooking the sea. Many have lavish interlocking pools, while others are half-hidden under thatched palapas (thatched-roof shelters).
JUST FOR PARENTS
While most major hotels offer baby-sitting services, they're usually extra, even if you've booked your kids into the hotel's Kids' Club.
Club Las Velas (Km. 3.5)
Reservations: 800-223-9815 (U.S.), www.all-inclusives.com A 285-room spacious all-inclusive on a lagoon and designed like a Mexican village, with brick-lined streets, a gazebo, and bubbling fountains. Water sports and a children's program make this a great place for families.
El Pueblito Beach Hotel (Km. 17.5)
Reservations: 998-881-8800, www.elpueblitohotels.com A deluxe all-inclusive with 350 rooms in twenty-nine colonial villas clustered around flower-bedecked courtyards. Five pools with cascades and three restaurants add to the natural beauty.
Fiesta Americana Coral Beach (Km. 9.5)
Reservations: 800-343-7821 (U.S.), www.fiestaamericana.com With 602 split-level suites, this is one of the best hotels in Cancún. Located at Punta Cancún, in the center of the Zona Hotelera, four restaurants, a spa, a free-form pool with water slides, and the kids' club make this a good family choice.
Hilton Cancún Beach and Golf Resort (Km. 17)
Reservations: 800-445-8667 (U.S.), www.hilton.com With the largest layout of any hotel in Cancún, this 426-room hotel has commanding views of the Caribbean and the lagoon. It offers several pools, five restaurants, lighted tennis courts, water sports, a golf course, and a kids' program.
Hyatt Regency (Km. 9)
Reservations: 800-233-1234 (U.S.), www.hyatt.com This 300-room hotel has a fourteen-story tower rising above a glass atrium and open-air lobby. It has no beach, but its split-level pool with waterfall makes up for it. The hotel has live entertainment evenings and a Camp Hyatt kids' club.
RAINY DAY FUN
Take a tour of the hotels. Each has its own personality and architecture. Who knows? You might find a new place to stay on your next trip.
Meliá Cancún Resort and Spa (Km. 16.5)
Reservations: 800-336-3542 (U.S.), www.solmelia.com This huge resort has 492 rooms in a sleek concrete and glass pyramid with a spectacular atrium and lobby on a wide beach, a beachside pool plus one other, five restaurants, lighted tennis courts, golf course, and health club.
Royal Solaris Cancún (Km. 19.5)
Reservations: 866-289-8466 (U.S.), www.clubsolaris.com This 500-room family all-inclusive features two towers, one Spanish and one modern, as well as eight restaurants, five snack bars, and a kids' club. Four swimming pools, jacuzzi, and tennis courts offer a variety of activities.
Moon Palace (Km. 36.5)
Reservations: 800-868-2802 (U.S.), www.palace-resorts-cancun.com This super-luxurious all-inclusive resort features 2,031 rooms on fifty-five tropical acres, with deluxe jacuzzi suites, three interconnecting pools, and an eighteen-hole golf course.
