Hey Savvys!

This spring really started off to a sunny start, even though we’ve been experiencing wintery weather here in Canada. I had such a lovely experience traveling for the first time with all of my girls overseas! Growing up, we’ve always talked about vacationing and traveling the world together, but with our differing schedules (some of us working full time or still in school), it was always a challenge to find time together.

Earlier this month, we finally had the chance to travel together! We celebrated my sister’s bachelorette in style in Tulum, Mexico! We stayed at the gorgeous Grand Bahia Principe Tulum. I’ve stayed at this chain a few years ago in the Dominican Republic, so I already had an idea of what to expect in terms of the layout and resort amenities. But what I didn’t realize was how GRAND this resort in Tulum really was!

The resort: The actual Grand Bahia Principe Tulum resort is quite large in itself, but actually sits in a little community connected to 2 other resorts: the Grand Bahia Principe Coba resort as well as the Grand Bahia Principe Akumel resort and golf course. This resort is so large that there is even a disco and market on site! There is also a little train that picks you up from the front lobby of each hotel and can bring you to the different areas of the extended resort, as well as bring you to your Villa if you don’t feel like walking.

I also love that this resort seemed to be operating as sustainably as possible.  There were no more uses of single-use plastic cups or straws on site.  Everything was replaced with plastic reusable cups and compostable plates and cutlery outside of the restaurants.  They also had an extensive explanation of their recycling and composting programs in the lobby, which I was very happy to see being executed when we were at the snack bar on the beach.

The Rooms: I’ve been to resorts before where we had to take an elevator to our room since the resort consisted of hotel buildings. I love that we got to stay in villa type rooms, as it really adds to the beach atmosphere, really maximizing the amount of fresh air we can get. We stayed on the second floor of unit 25 which looked out onto the garden.

Since we were a group of 8, the resort concierge was so accommodating and had our 3 rooms all next to each other.

Our room did have a few problems: the front lock had some technical where the key wouldn’t work. It took 3 times for a staff member to come fix it which was a bit annoying but luckily since all of our rooms were next to each other, we didn’t have any issues hanging out in each other’s rooms. Our shower also didn’t drain properly, but while we were out to dinner, someone came and fixed it. The shower also took a bit of time to warm up, which felt like we were wasting a lot of water having it run till it was warm enough (our unit was 2513).

We received a 2L water bottle each day of our stay, which was great because we always had water on hand when going to the beach and pool. We also had access to the mini fridge, but didn’t really take advantage because it contained colas and beer, which we could get in the restaurants.  The toiletries were typical as well, with shampoo, conditioner, soap and a sewing kit readily available in the bathroom.

The beach: It should be noted that the beaches of Mexico tend to have a lot of seaweed washed ashore from the ocean.  There were crew there every day shovelling as much of the sea weed they could.  Other than that, the beaches were not rocky at all and the waters of course were gorgeous.

The food: I was a bit disappointed by the food based on my expectations from previously vising Mexico as well as Bahia Principe.  There was definitely a lot of food to eat, but since I was trying to eat as plant based as possible, I was disappointed to not be able to find beans more readily available.  The snack bar had lots of selections to make your own tacos and always had guac and salsa readily available, but I would have liked to have seen more bean selections for non-meat eaters.  There was always lots of fresh fruit like papaya, pineapple and mango which we indulged in with every meal.

We only visited Tulum for 3 full days and we never left the resort, but it was a great way for us to recharge after the long winter we had.  I would recommend visiting another resort if you are looking for more of a typical bachelorette style energy, but we were pretty laid back and just enjoyed relaxing in the sun and each other’s company.

Don’t forget to check out my video below!

Now set forth and be savvy!