Privilege Aluxes Isla Mujeres, Mexico December 2009
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Introduction
Privilege Aluxes is a 124 unit luxury hotel in Isla Mujeres Mexico. The island is accessible by ferry from Cancun. The hotel offers 2 rate options. Breakfast or All-Inclusive. It is a lovely quite hotel located on the north side of the island close to town. The
island is charming and the people are very friendly. The majority of
them spoke English and were very tolerant of our attempts to speak
Spanish.
Transfers
For those of you that are not familiar with it, Isla Mujeres is a very small island off the cost of Cancun. Privilege is a brand new resort that opened in February 2009. I visited the resort to help plan a clients destination wedding set for July 2010. The resort arranged for our transfers from the Cancun airport. The transfers were seamless. After we collected our luggage and exited customs and immigration we exited the airport and there was a gentleman holding a sign with our name on it. He explained that a taxi would take us to the ferry and that everything was indeed pre-paid. He gave us our ferry vouchers and in 25 minutes we were at the pier. The ferry runs every 30 minutes so we did not have much of a wait. The ride on the ferry is only 20 minutes. We were again greeted by a gentleman and taken by taxi to the resort. The resort is only 7 blocks from the pier but a taxi is a good idea with luggage.
The lobby of the resort is very modern and simple in design. We were greeted with glasses of champagne. There was no wait at check in and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful. We were in our room within minutes.
Rooms and Suites
We were given 2 rooms. A Superior and a Suite Deluxe. The superior is a simple but small bedroom with a large bathroom that had a good size shower. The room was well equipped with a flat panel TV, iron, bathrobes, and a safe and a mini bar. The balcony had a jacuzzi large enough for 2 adults. The views for the superior room are mostly a city view. We were in building 4 which is set back from the beach but you could still see the water. The view was not the best and take note that at night you can?t control the lights on your balcony. The lights remain on for several hours after dusk, so the balcony jacuzzi is not private. The curtains in the room are room darkening so the light does not disturb your sleep. If you are looking for a better view the Suite Deluxe was an excellent option. The suite was enormous. In addition to the bedroom there is also a living room with a wet bar and a mini fridge that was stocked with drinks and snacks. The bedroom was identical to the superior room. The suite was in an L shape that was connected by a balcony in the center. There was no jacuzzi on the balcony but in addition to the shower there was a jacuzzi in the bathroom.
If you are looking for the perfect view then I suggest you book a Suite Premium. They are all ocean view suites. The Grand Suite and Presidential Suites also good options are on the top floor and both have your own private pool. They are very large and well appointed.
All the rooms and the entire hotel were immaculate. The housekeeping staff did a great job keeping the sand out of the rooms and the common areas.
I have noticed some comments on the web regarding views of a cemetery behind the resort. Some of the Suites have bedrooms that face the cemetery. In all honesty it was a non issue. If it can be said that a cemetery is charming this one was. If you looked down you could see it but if you looked off in to the distance you saw the ocean. Again if you want the perfect view you should book a Suite Premium but I would not hesitate to book any category so long as you understand what you are getting.
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Pools
The hotel offers 2 very nice pools that were never crowded despite the fact that the hotel was nearly full. The pools were also at a good temperature not too hot or cold and again they were very clean. They offer bar and food service at the pool and beach. The Cafe Del Mar is the restaurant that services these locations. The waiters were very attentive.
Beach
The beach is just across a small street. The beach had plenty of padded lounge chairs and several living room style sofas and chairs. They had more than enough palapas for anyone that wanted some shade. There were some beach vendors but they were not aggressive at all. You could go for a very long walk on the beach which was nice.
Restaurants
The resort offers 3 restaurants as well as 24hr room service.
Sabor - Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The food was very good and the breakfast buffet was abundant. We ate there for dinner when they had a buffet and it was also very good. For a buffet the food was displayed very nicely and they had made to order steaks, calamari, ship and chorizo. The breakfast buffet offered made to order eggs.
Satay - Open only for dinner and requiring reservations. Satay is an Asian style restaurant that offered everything from sushi, pad thai to egg rolls. Although the menu does not change we felt that we could have easily dined there more than once.
Cafe del Mar - Is open for lunch and for those that wish it is open for an early dinner until 7pm. It is in a beautiful location right on the beach. They had several Mexican dishes on the menu. The guacamole and tacos were fantastic. They served a delicious chipotle sauce with the tacos. Again the menu was varied and large enough that I could easily dine here more than once without having to eat the same thing twice. I could not get enough of the guacamole, it was amazing.
Room Service - The room service is included with breakfast for everyone and if you are on the all-inclusive plan all meals are included at no additional cost. They had 3 separate menus, breakfast, lunch and dinner and an over night menu. I’d have to say this was the best room service I have ever experienced. We ordered several times and it came within 20 minutes each time. That is almost unheard of.
Bars - In the evening Cafe del Mar becomes a lounge after dinner. The living room style seating on the beach makes for a relaxed atmosphere. Outside of Sabor is another a patio that also houses a bar. During the day the pool has a swim up bar. We found the liquor to be name brand and premium quality.
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Activities - The resort does not provide any activities. This is a great place to hang with your significant other or with friends and just chill. They have a great spa that was very reasonably priced and if you can work up the energy they had a small exercise room. If you are looking for more activities they have an excursion desk where you can arrange for golf cart rentals (a popular way to get around the island), snorkeling and sight seeing excursions.
I did do 2 snorkeling excursions and to be honest although enjoyable they were not the best I have seen. I am an avid snorkeler and I have been to many islands. I did enjoy the first trip since it was a drift snorkel. They dropped us off at a point and the current carried us for about an hour to our final destination, a lighthouse. The visibility was good but there were more fish and coral the closer we got to the lighthouse. On the second day we went further out and the swells were too much for me and I asked to go back to the shore. They required that you wear a full life jacket and that made me bob on the surface. Diving would have been much better. I could see a great coral reef and there were lots of fish and several barracuda. I do plan on going back in the summer and taking advantage of their snorkel with whale shark excursion which although it is a long boat ride it will be well worth it.
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Weddings
The wedding coordinator Elba was very helpful and the
wedding we witnessed was lovely. They had a beautiful floral arch and
the chairs were draped in white fabric. The housekeeping staff did a
great job preparing the beach and made sure the runner was sand free
until the flower girl strolled down the aisle dropping rose petals on
the runner. The wedding is conducted in Spanish and if needed the
coordinator translates the service. The Sabor restaurant was
transformed into a wonderful reception. They had a DJ and a dance
floor.
Additional Comments
Another note
on the service of the resort. In all resorts you will find problems or
issues that need to be addressed. The key is how they are handled. I
had a problem with my air conditioning. I did not realize that my key
had to be in the slot next to the door in order for the air and lights
to work. I called down to the front desk and they said they would send
someone up. I figured out the issue with the key in a few minutes but
by the time I called the front desk to cancel the maintenance call they
were already at my door. That is impressive!
The resort is
great for honeymooners who want to spend a quite time together and may
want to explore the island. In addition to the resorts 3 restaurant
the island offer may other wonderful restaurants. The resort is so
reasonably priced that even if you do the all inclusive plan dining out
on a night or two will not break the bank.
I would also
recommend this resort for destination weddings. Again the price is
very reasonable and easy to get to from all parts of the country. The
relaxed but elegant atmosphere allows for wedding guests to enjoy their
time together.
A note on the food and water. Many Americans are
concerned about drinking the water and eating the food in Mexico. I
have to admit I do have a bit of a weak stomach but at Privilege I did
not have to worry. I did not drink or rinse my toothbrush from the tap
but I did eat fresh fruits and vegetables with no problems. They offer
bottled water in your rooms but at the restaurants and bars they serve
purified water and ice.
Privilege Aluxes is a wonderful resort and with their current pricing it is a great value.
I would recommend it for anyone but especially couples. I look forward to going back again soon.
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