Thanks Simon thats just what I wanted to hear really. I agree its what you make of it and I bet the people complaining were nit picking. I would imagine that for the prices that i've been quoted that it's excellent value for money, after all you get what you pay for!
I've been looking at the virtual tour on the hotel website and even the buffet restaurant has tables with plenty of space around, table cloths etc , from some of the reviews i'd read I was expecting something resembling a roadside cafe! lol!
Its ticking all our boxes so far and i'm getting really excited now, just a long time to wait
Thanks for your help and words of reassurance
Mel

I've been looking and there seem to be a few good deals for xcaret hotel still so it seems that theres no need to rush into booking for next year. I suppose as its so big that helps too, would you agree?
mel

Hi Crocker girl,
When you make your (nearly final ) decision and have a price, it may be worth double checking with the Caribbean Warehouse as they do the hotel and may be able to offer relevant advice if you have your desirable requirements to hand.

I used them last year as I just could not get a suitable holiday/time/cost together using the main TOs.
I had seen previous recommendations and checked the site out but was put off by having to actually phone!
I decided to call and see what was recommended in case they had a more suitable idea for me. I found them very knowledgable and helpful, even if I did ignore most of their advice!
My major problem was my 2 year old grandson who was getting priced at anything from £600 to £1100 by the main TOs - a few were charging more for 2 adults and a 2 yo than for 3 adults - totally unjustifiable which led to a lot of my frustrations.
The Caribbean Warehouse people talked me through everything and we selected hotels and flights to suit us. They managed to get a good deal for my grandson and told me exactly what I was paying for him and why. As an unexpected bonus, it turned out that the price per adult was also considerably cheaper than the best I could get from the main TOs.
At my time of booking, they appeared to have excellent current knowledge and when they "disagreed" with my choice they backed it up with sensible arguments which turned out to be a very fair assessment of what actually happened later judging from reports from other holidaymakers who stayed in the original hotel I selected at the time I was proposing.
I did have queries and minor problems with the booking but unlike the main TOs I did not spend forever and a day on the phone and everything was dealt with rapidly and to my satisfaction.

I will have no qualms about price checking them for my next Caribbean holiday.
BTW the final holiday I booked was in a different country at a different time and there was always pleasantness whenever I phoned and changed my query.

Thanks for that , very helpful imformation.Hopefully we should be ok as its just 8 adults that will be going.
We are more or less set on the hotel xcaret now but i'm still confused as to when we should go for the best weather .
I'm just about to send apost asking for help on the subject.
Thanks again I'll give them a ring
Mel

One of the bonuses on our holiday was the fact that not being a massive TO they didn't use large coaches, only taxis and minibuses. As we were larger than a taxi we always ended up in a "private" minibus. There were 9 adults and a 3 year old, leaving just enough room for the rep so apart from the transfers, even the excursions were private and we controlled our own timescales!

hi all, my family and i went to this hotel october 06 and loved it. we and a few others are hoping to book again at the end of september for october 09. october is the back end of hurricane season but we had beautiful weather for the whole 2 weeks so hope we will be lucky again.i dont drink but all rest of family are drinkers and they would have known if drinks were watered down. we didnt find it at all crowded either and easily booked a la cartes. as you say some people complain at nothing but we honestly loved everything about this holiday including the free pass into xcaret park. i am going to contact carribean warehouse to see what kind of price they come up with as we are a party of 9 adults and 2 children so are going to try and get a free child. we went with first choice in 06 and upgraded to star class premium for the flight and will be looking into this again as it starts the holiday off. cant wait now.

Hi
I priced up caribbean warehouse and it was quite a bit more than directline holidays so it may be worht you checking them out.I think it looks like its going to be november of next year for us (toooooooo long to wait) so i'll definatly leave it till nearer the time. I have my heart set on xcaret now though!
Mel

I'm looking to stay here for next year in maybe October or Nov ( bit worried about the weather is oct too early?)
I will probably go throught the Caribbean warehouse after some helpful advice from a guy reccommending them on here but we'll probably wait till the new year to do so.
The only thing is I spoke to a friend that has stayed here (loves it)for one week but had her second week at the bahia principe and loved that! So now I can't decide which one to go for should I have a week at each ? but then can I be bothered to pack up half way through and move on?
I have read that the bars close early at the Bahia (11pm) does anyone know if this applies to occidental grand too? (this could be the decider lol!)
heellllllp
mel

Hi Mel

With answer to your question about the bars closing early at xcaret there are a few bars that do close at 11, but there are 3 bars That do stay open till 2am, I dead read on another site that the sports bar and disco was closed can't remember when but it was recently. That leaves on more bar that does stay open tuill 2am where you can order pizza uptil that time. Sorry not sure about the weather.

just found this:-
Hurricane season in the Atlantic Basin (which accounts for hurricanes on the Caribbean shore of Mexico) starts June 1 and ends November 30. Maximum activity is between August and October, with the peak activity generally being in early to mid September (as determined by the U.S. National Hurricane center

Simon

Thanks thats really helpful. I'm so set on this area its just which accomodation really to decide on and it sounds like it will have to be nov and not oct now (There will be quite a few of us going and most of them can't get time from work in the early part of the year)
We would really like a hotel where the staff are friendly and welcoming but from reading other reports that seems to apply to most of the hotels in the area
Thanks again
Mel