A Great Birthday Getaway – El Dorado Casitas Royale, Riviera Maya, Mexico

Ok…so to start things off, I won this trip at my company conference in May.   YAY!  Because I knew I would be celebrating my 30^th birthday this year, I decided almost immediately that this would be my gift to myself (ok fine! It was technically from WestJet Vacations & Karisma Resorts).  Happy Birthday to me!  I was also fortunate enough to be able bring someone along so I brought a great friend of mine as I knew she would be a great travel buddy.  Plus, our birthdays are around the same time so it worked out quite well.

Arriving at the resort we were whisked away on a shuttle to the Casitas Section of the resort.  I turned to my friend and said “I think they have made a mistake…we were supposed to have a room in the Royale.”  In my head I’m thinking that this may be a bit of an embarrassing moment when we try and check into the Casitas and they tell me “oh sorry…your supposed to be in the OTHER section” but I was pleasantly surprised to see that they had everything all set for us to stay at the Casitas.  Gotta love surprise upgrades!  I was totally shocked and was in awe of our room and the fact that we had our own concierge!  This birthday vacation was getting better by the minute.

Not only did we have our own concierge (Allen btw was great!), we had our own pool that is shared with around 14 casitas and our own pool bar & bartender.  It was awesome!   We ended up spending most of our time there as it was such a relaxing atmosphere.  They really do think of everything at the resort.  While we lounged around our pool, a pool butler came up to us at various points in the day offering bottled water, boxed lunched (that come in their own little cooler with sandwiches, fruit & juice) & real fruit popsicles (seeds and all).  They even have a cook that came around with a BBQ stand so if you don’t want to bother getting up and going to one of the restaurants for lunch, you can have a cheeseburger by the pool.  Everything seemed to be right there when you needed it.  These little perks are only in the Casitas section and whether you use them or not, it’s just nice to have people waiting on you hand and foot.  I don’t know about you but it’s sooo different from my regular day to day life and I love it!  If I were to go back there (which I can definitely see myself doing), there is no question in my mind that I would stay in the Casitas section again.  Yes, it's a bit more money but I really feel that it is totally worth it!  A little bit more to feel like a King or a Queen, YES I’ll take it!  The Casitas really feels like your own little resort within a resort.   It’s a perfect spot to relax and recharge your batteries. 

The Casitas rooms are just gorgeous.  They are absolutely perfect for couples as they all have 1 King bed.  Great decor, Jacuzzi tub, indoor and outdoor shower and a great balcony with a massive bed to laze on.  The casitas are not just for couples as we did meet a group of girls that were there to celebrate a friend’s birthday and they were all staying in the Casitas as well.  As long as you don’t mind sharing a bed the Casitas is the place to be J

The grounds to the resort are beautiful.  The resort is massive so it’s kind of overwhelming on your first day.  I know when we were walking around to explore and find our bearings we couldn’t get over how large it was.  It felt like the never ending resort but you quickly figure things out and find where everything is.  Once you do that the resort seems to shrink…a bit.  They do have shuttles all over the resort so if you don’t feel like walking, you don't have to (you lazy buggers!).  You will find that there is a shuttle usually around the corner that will take you to where you need to go.  The shuttle doesn’t run all night (until midnight I believe) but being girls and walking back to our room in the wee hours of the morning, we would just ask the front desk for a shuttle and we would have them take us back to our room safe and sound!

 Because the resort is so large, there is a large waterfront as well.  You can walk the path along the beach from one end of the resort to the other.  The path is great as you can walk or bike your way around the resort but the beach isn’t as walkable unfortunately.  There is a lot of rock and coral along the beach so it does prevent you from walking a distance on it.  If you’re a beach person, as I am, you may be a bit disappointed.  It’s still quite beautiful and nice but don’t expect a long stretch of perfect white sand.  They also have barriers in the water that do take away from the beauty but are essential to keeping the coral safe.  It’s a great green thing that they are doing so I can’t fault them on that at all. 

Ok…so let’s talk about food!  Oh my god…super impressed with the quality of food.  To be honest, I’ve never been overly fond of the food at most all-inclusive resorts.  Yes I tend to eat a lot at these all-inclusives but I’ve never really said “wow, that was a great meal”.  Karisma’s resorts have what they call a “Gourmet Inclusive” meal plan and that’s exactly what it is.  All of the restaurants are a la cart and everything from the presentation to the service, you get the full gourmet experience every time you eat.  I definitely have a whole new appreciation for Caesar salads after this trip.  I’d have to say that I’ve never had a better Caesar salad in my life.  As you can see from the pic…even the presentation is amazing.  They add an extra little bit of yummy goodness to it too…warm goat cheese!  YES!

The restaurants are throughout the entire resort.  Some are in the Casitas section and some in the Royale section.  Everyone has access to all of the restaurants (wheter your are staying in the Royale or Casitas) and reservations are definitely recommended for each.   You don’t need reservations but it is advisable as then you will not have to wait for a table.  The beauty about the Casitas is that your concierge will arrange all of your reservations for your so it’s literally no skin off your back at all.   Thanks Allen!  My favourite restaurant was Kampai.  This was the Asian fusion restaurant and it was absolutely amazing!  All of the food was to die for and we pretty much ate there breakfast, lunch and dinner for the last couple of days.  We needed to get our Kampai fill in before we left.  My other favourite restaurant was the Italian Casitas.  That is where I had my birthday dinner and it was fab.  All of the portions are really small so you’ll want to get a couple of mains.  I really enjoyed the portion size as it allowed you to try multiple menu items and you didn’t walk away completely stuffed.  The other restaurant that is an honorable mention is the Fondu restaurant.  It's not something that you see often so it was a fun experience with yummy fondu.  I also liked the convenience of it as it was litearlly 10 steps from our Casita J

I could write forever about my week here as I had such a great time!  To sum things up, here are some of my favourite highlights of my trip and some more pics!

Karen's Top 5:

1. My surprise Moet and birthday cake from my family!  The hotel will go above and beyond for their guests so if you're trying to surprise a family member or friend with a gift while they are there, the hotel is more than happy to help

My birthday surprise from my family

2. Sky Massage!  OMG this was a great experience and fantastic birthday gift from my travel buddy!  It was so great that we both had another one before we left.  Nothing can beat a massage outside with the ocean waves crashing in the background.  Oh...and make sure to ask for Jorge.  He was amazing!  For such a little guy, his hands pack a mean massage!

3. Hydrotherapy Circuit.  Ok I know it's in the spa category again but it's truly a great treat for your body.  Such a beautiful setting too.  Sooooo relaxing!!!!  Oh, and I really liked the hibiscus water they had to drink in there too.

4. The Health Bar.  This is where I started every morning.  Apple Ginger Juice please and thank you!  There were lots of other juices and smoothies to choose from but I do love my ginger :)

5. Great friends by your side that help celebrate your birthday in style (or on a swing in the Guacamaya bar)

If My Passport Could Talk...

                                              "Where to for your next birthday???"