After years of technological advancement, I am prepared to declare that humanity’s greatest invention is not the printing press, the automobile or the internet.
It is the swim-up bar.
Last month, we stayed for six nights at the Hilton Cancún Mar Caribe, an all-inclusive resort in the Hotel Zone. The pool was warm enough that there was no slow, torturous entry. You simply walked in, swam toward the bar and began wondering why every difficult conversation in life could not be conducted from a submerged stool while holding a piña colada.
My children consumed more virgin piña coladas that week than I could count. I regarded this as good parenting because they were hydrated and quiet.
Originally, I had booked one room with two queen beds. The plan was for my 12-year-old son to share with me while my wife shared with our 16-year-old daughter.
Almost immediately after booking it, I regretted it.
I did some research and concluded that my best chance for an affordable upgrade would come at the hotel, where an unsold suite at the last minute is worth less than a customer standing at the desk prepared to negotiate.
For once, my strategy worked.
We upgraded to a beautiful suite with a king-size bed in a separate bedroom and two Murphy beds in the living room. The bathroom had a separate toilet room and an opaque shower door, small architectural choices that become major achievements when four family members are trying to get ready at once.
Best of all, our patio had a plunge pool, chaise lounges and a hammock. It was shaded in the morning, which made it the perfect place to recover from the tremendous strain of eating breakfast and drinking my morning mimosa.
Occasionally a waiter would appear on our patio and ask whether we wanted another drink, just in case relaxation had begun to feel too demanding.
The service throughout the resort was extraordinary. From the bell staff to the front desk, restaurant hosts, waiters, bartenders and busboys, employees appeared to take genuine pride in caring for guests.
I hadn't traveled overseas in many years and I was a bit nervous whether other countries would be as accommodating to allergies. My wife has celiac, but every restaurant at our resort identified the numerous gluten free options.
I also tried something that has become increasingly difficult for me: I did not carry my phone everywhere. I brought a physical book. I read. I napped in the hammock. I resisted checking email and Slack as often as I normally would.
Our biggest excursion was a full day at Xcaret, a vast park in the Riviera Maya that is difficult to describe. Imagine EPCOT, a nature preserve, an aquarium, a cultural museum and a water park merged into one enormous Mexican showcase — without the amusement rides.
The first major attraction was an underground river running through caves and tunnels while visitors floated through it while wearing a life jacket.
Near the entrance, I made the mistake of saying aloud that I hoped there were no bats.
My son immediately became concerned.
“There aren’t any bats, right, Dad?”
“No,” I assured him.
Approximately one second later, I looked up and saw bats.
Fortunately, they wanted no more to do with us than we wanted to do with them. We continued through the caves for what felt like an hour, surrounded by underground passages and shafts of natural light. It was spectacular.
The river eventually opened near a lagoon, where we floated on our backs in salty water. In another protected area, we snorkeled among colorful fish. The whole experience was curated enough that we always felt safe.
Throughout the park, we saw crocodiles, a leopard, sea turtles, birds and butterflies. Then we spent a half hour swimming with dolphins.
Dolphins are astonishingly intelligent animals, and meeting them at close range was unforgettable. We touched them, interacted with them and watched the trainers work with them. The experience was one of the highlights of the trip.
The day ended with “Xcaret México Espectacular,” a roughly two-hour production in a huge amphitheater. Through music, dance, elaborate costumes and pageantry, the show told the story of Mexico and celebrated the traditions of its different states and regions.
Not every adventure in Cancún was an unqualified success.
We learned the hard way that nobody golfs in Mexico in the dead of summer. Also, the beach at our resort was affected by heavy surf and sargassum, the floating brown seaweed that can accumulate along the Caribbean coast. It made ocean swimming difficult. In hindsight, we should have spent one afternoon at a calmer beach on the north side of Cancún.
These small details are why I should have called my very good client, Erica Terry, of Friend Like Me Travel. Next time Erica!
This was our first true family vacation. We had visited my parents at their condo in Florida. We had taken long weekends to Washington, D.C., and at Skytop Lodge in the Poconos. But this was the first time the four of us boarded a plane, left the country and spent nearly a week together with nowhere else we needed to be.
That mattered to me more than I can explain.
My daughter is 16 and beginning her junior year of high school. That is the point when childhood’s calendar suddenly becomes visible. College visits begin. Conversations about the future become more specific. The departure that once felt theoretical appears on the horizon.
Parents spend years overwhelmed by the daily work of raising children. There are practices, homework, doctor’s appointments, school events, meals, arguments and an endless need to be somewhere else. You sometimes forget that the chaos is temporary.
Then your oldest child reaches her junior year, and you begin measuring time differently.
There are only so many more summers when everyone will be living under the same roof. Only so many trips when the four of you can simply go away as one family, before internships, college schedules, jobs and adult lives begin pulling everyone in different directions.
On our last day, none of us wanted to leave. The children were sad. My wife was sad. I was sad.
That sadness was the best review the resort could have received.
The suite was wonderful. The service was remarkable. The dolphins, caves and XCaret show gave us stories we will tell for years. And of course the swim-up bar deserves its place among civilization’s highest achievements.
But what I really purchased was time.
For six nights, my children were not racing toward whatever comes next. They were still with us — sharing meals, laughing in the pool, drinking virgin piña coladas and sleeping on Murphy beds in the next room.
I wanted to give them a memory of their childhood.
It turns out they gave me one, too.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here