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Here is the Akumal webcam. The Palladium webcam is blurry.
Akumal webcamYes there was a very rude (intoxicated) person yelling that he wanted more alcohol. V just kept pouring!
Great report Lindsay! I feel like you as soon as it’s getting close to leaving “home”. SO Sad.
I agree the food has been “streamlined” but quality seems better. My daughter loves the food at Punta Emilia for lunch.
ValenTin is great. Always remembers people and what their preferences are. Always smiling. I once saw a person “yelling” at Valentin for more alcohol and he handled it professionally never losing his smile. I wanted to yell back at that guest.
THANKS FOR SHARING! Any plans to return?
We are fine.Cold rain today but at least I don’t have to shovel! My daughter tells me New York is shutting down.
Thanks for doing that Brenda. If anyone has any suggestions/additions please post. This list can be downloaded.
Brazilian food porn for carnivores…chicken, sausage, pork, beef filet, vegetables (for omnivores), more beef, lamb, pineapple (darn omnivores), filet mignon, and more pork. All this served by one of my first Palladium friends, Ysabela, who I met in 2011. And of course, a little dessert.
Re dress code Brian says:So I have been here 4 days now. And it appears that any kind of shorts are being allowed. I have seen jean, cargo, dress, and regular khaki. I have wore pants every night because it has been somewhat cool. But if you are confused on what exactly you need it doesn’t look like it matters. This is the RM location.
Spa day..and boy did I need a haircut. And then, I ran into the wedding coordinator. Carolina was checking up on her bride who was getting her hair done.
Ah thanks Blueskies. I though it was some kind of tweetng.
Peter posted some food pics; snapper, mignon & scallops
It’s hard to say.Usually weekends are busiest in terms of people coming and going but maybe the fact that your dauhter arrives at night will make it less busy.
It can also vary from hour to hour. My daughter and I arrived on Wednesday in December. She arrived an hour ahead of me and had a longer wait as two other planes came in at the same time. I arrived with no other planes and was outside the airport in 20 minutes.
Dinner at the Japanese restaurant. This is the seshian shrimp. Very good. Some guys got in wearing cargo shorts ?
Peter says: “Who’s a dirty monkey? Obviously I am. After twerking on the beach with some of the animation team, I require refreshment. A dirty money!!!”
From Lyndsey: “Again, another lovely day in paradise. I need to remember to rotate as now only my right side has color lol I just get so into my book I don’t remember ☺ back in the room to get ready for dinner. Thinking of going to the Japanese restaurant. We’ve had 2 phone calls. One asking if everything was good and if we had any complaints (of course not ?). Second, to ask if we needed anything. Very good customer service. Ttfn ?”
Akumal webcam
Akumal webcamLyndsey on food: “We’ve had nothing but great food so far. I did see the difference in the dinner buffet last night but nothing we still couldn’t find that suited us. Be open to new things and relax, you’re on vacation “
Peter reports,”Just had an amazing dinner at Le Chanterelle. Carol had warm goat cheese with nuts and I had the Bouillabaisse soup. Then we shared Chateau Briand for two. As good as the food was, seeing all our friends again was amazing. I will make a concerted effort to take food pictures…for all you food porn addicts.”
Anne: Yum!!
Lindsey reports:”Had our first full day. Weather was gorgeous. 29 Celsius so I’m guessing upper 80’s Fahrenheit? Either way it was lovely. Spent most of the day at the beach. They had the seaweed cleaned up by the time we got there (10am). The tide is higher than last year. Fajitas at punta Emilia snack bar are delicious as usual. I see they added more seating there and the plates are actual plates. Then we went to the colonial pool for a few hours. Bryan played volleyball with some people from Argentina. Now cleaned up and ready to watch our Packers in the sports bar. It’s really quiet here today. Lots of chairs still available at the beach and pool. In the past we use to get to the beach by 6am to lay towels out to get chairs”
Lyndsey reports it was sunny & 86 degrees.
Last night she had a visit with Valentin who remembered her.
Thank you to all here and on FB for my birthday wishes. I am blessed to have so many friends tohelpmelive vicariously!Hopeto see some of you overthe next year at the P.
That is tooo funny! Hopefully we’ll meet this year!!
My wonderful neighbors made me dinner and a cake. I made them erase the # on the cake!!!
I was hoping I’d win the lottery last night and then everyone would be my guest at the P!
When you send in a room request (a week or less before you go) mention that this is your 2nd visit. You may get a room upgrade (no guarantees as it depends on availability), fruit basket or other acknowledgment.
My daughter loved Vallarta. Have a fabulous time.
Welcome. They do try to honor repeat guests but nothing is guaranteed.How many times have you been to a Palladium and which Palladium are you visiting?
Ivan says Yes,the next members Party will be at Jamaica 09/16/2016
About the topic for the party, you can vote to choose the topic for the next members party.
The vote are on the reception of Palladium Travel Club at Riviera Maya Vallarta Punta Cana and Jamaica and coming soon on Facebook
We really look forward to hearing about your experience with Brian, his exprience with food (I wouldn’t worry) and the kids club. Great staff there so hopefully he’ll give it a chance. Happy for you.
How exciting to share Paradise with Brian. I’d go with a Colonial Jr Suite. Ask for bldg 20 or 21 as those are super locations.Probably ground floor. Sofa beds are new. Happy for you!!
Here is the Royal Suites Room Service menu
https://unofficialpalladium.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Menu-2.pdfWelcome Springer, I have this email address.
reservations@palladiumtravelclub.comI know with non-members rooms are not assigned until it is close to arrival dates. In the hospitality industry things change frequently so it may be that they do not assign TC rooms until it is closer to your dates.
I LOVE the Kantenah MS! Have fun.
There is a newish undergound Bano near the international shops at the south end.
Ha ha my daughter got the line,”I give discounts to beautiful girls. For you it is free.”
Thank you.It is a way to keep current information flowing as well as to keep in touch with new and old friends
Joan I remember how toe first weeks of the empty nest felt! Clad your dauhter can koi you in Feb
Aramos do you have plans to go back to the P?
I have spoken via email to the sports bar manager.He is waiting for a new menu to be printed. Should be similar.
Yes, must go back for my lamb chops, a ride on the pontoon boat and a visit to the spa. We got very lazy and missed doing some things.
This suggestion was given by a number of baby boomers who travel with young aduts and are on different sleep schedules. The Jr suites in the Royal are lovley but the open concept presents a problem when traveling with an older child or partner who has a very different sleep schedule.
Yup I saw a few men who looked like beach bums in the ala cartes.
They ran out of lamb chops on my last night. Guess i need to go back!!
We were disappointed with the beef broth in Adelita which was very good in the past.Otherwise very good.They served a very nice appetizer which we didn’t order.
It would be great to have anther sleeping option with our girls One night Abby stayed out til 5am! Yikes.
Yes, Abby wanted to eat outdoors the first day but once we tried Hacienda and Kabah we ate there most days.Much nicer.
Part 3 food
Gracis to these great staff for all of the wonderful food!
Food is subjective. As the resort is preparing food for various cultures and thousands of meals a day, nobody will like everything but there is certainly plenty to choose from for even the most discerning diner. Menus are now in Spanish, English, French, German & Russian.We usually ate breakfast at El Jardin which we enjoyed as it wasn’t crowded. They have a buffet there, an egg grille, and a menu. We usually had freshly made omelets and a selection from the buffet.They also have fresh juices and Blood Mary fixings. You can eat inside or outside.
They have a nice selection of fresh juice and all the mixings for Bloody Marys.
For lunch we tried El Gran Azul over the main pool on the first day as Abby wanted to eat outside. Personally I thought that they did not have the selections available previously but that really didn’t matter to me as after a search I discovered that they still offer freshly grilled items which is what I have for lunch every day. They didn’t have any signage indicating this thus the confusion. (They do have signage in other buffets.) Abby had a chicken burger (they have a selection of burgers) and I had grilled chicken with a selection of salads.
After that day we ate in either La Hacienda on Colonial or Kabah on Riviera. These are much larger and IMHO food quality has greatly improved. Atmosphere is very nice with linens and fresh flowers. (No wet bathing suits.) It seems that they improved quality over quantity which is fine with me. They had three kinds of paella, large paella type pans with shrimp and mussels as well as the standard pasta station, variety of pizza, salads, cold cuts, hamburgers,hot dogs fresh made bread & rolls There were two grilling stations offering a total of 6 items to choose to have grilled including chicken,steak, pork ,salmon and more.
One day Abby ate at Punta Emilia beach bar as she enjoys the Mexican food there. They also now offer fried fish filet and whole fried fish which I enjoyed.
“Flying fish” (Flew off my plate one day in the wind)
For dinner we mostly ate at El Jardin choosing lobster with steak or lamb chops.
Juan with deserts
We also went to La Adelita where the food was very good
and Punta Emilia. I enjoyed the seafood platter (and they kindly substituted for a fish I can’t eat). Abby had the pepper veal steak (which is beef) and it was extremely tender.
On Christmas Eve we attended the Gala dinner which was wonderful.Nothing was spared. When entering we were given a Kir Royale (champagne with cherry liquor).
The ladies were given roses. Decorations were tastefully done including ice sculptures, Christmas trees, and a live Santa. Food included unlimited lobsters, shrimp, fish, roast beef (prime rib), beef filets,turkey, roast pork, chicken, many veggies, salads, fruits and deserts. Beautifully done.
We did not eat dinner in the buffet but we visited and I thought it looked to be a good variety and a high standard for a buffet. In addition they have the grilling stations for those who can’t find anything to their liking.
Overall I found the quality and variety of food very good to excellent. I rarely found something I didn’t like but considering the vast number of guests and the various cultures they are serving I wouldn’t expect to like everything. I honestly can’t understand people who complain that they can’t find anything to eat. I can’t imagine what their expectations are.
Great ice cream resort wide
For Royal guests various plattersin the room
This took the place of Rodizio. The new Spanish Tapas restaurant took the place of the Asian. We didn’t try it as there were just too many other good choices!
Pat, welcome. I have heard from a number of baby boomers like me traveling with mileniums that there is a need for two bedroom suites. You have added to this suggestion.Thank you.
Ater arriving we went to the pool for a while and decided to have dinner at El Jardin where we both ordered lobster. Service was excellent. After dinner we went by to say hi to Filiburto and Valencia.
As we had both been traveling since 3 am we decided to make t an early night.
Daily routine
We developed a routine.I usually got up early and went down to the Royal lobby for coffee.(Must say the beds are very comfy and it was tempting to “sleep in”.) The Jr. suites are lovely but one drawback is that if you are on different sleep schedules it is difficult to move around the room, put lights on, etc without disturbing the other person. The open concept bath also raises some noise issues. For those traveling with young adults you may want to consider a suite which would give you two rooms and a private bath.One of the rooms has a sleep sofa though. I would add to my wish list that the resort consider a two bedroom suite for those traveling with young adults. Usually I waited in the lobby for Abby and we had breakfast together at El Jardin We really enjoyed breakfast there. Sometimes, if Abby had gotten in late and she missed El Jardin, we walked to Punta Emilia where she had some Mexican food.
After breakfast we usually spent an hour or two on the beach, went to Kabah or Hacienda for lunch, and then spent the remainder of the time at the Royal pool. We did attend the Foam party on Thursday at noon and tasted the coconut drinks served. Both the foam party and the kids’ pool party were very well attended.
As the week wore on it got windier so we spent more time at the pool and less at the beach.
The Kantenah end of the beach is still lovely. There is some erosion at the White Sand end, probably due to wind and seaweed being cleaned up. All is all still very lovely.
We also had some quick but major downpours so we could usually hide under a palapa for those. The resort must have gone through a huge amount of towels during those rainy days.
The Royal pool is very relaxing, quiet and peaceful. They now have some floats there. Food, fruit kabobs, ice cream is available. Yvonne serves guests with a smile as do Jose Luis, Antonio & Freddy,
We usually went up to the room around 6 where Abby enjoyed a jacuzzi bath on the deck.
”
There was always a new treat waiting for us, i.e. a cheese platter,cookies, chocolate covered strawberries and more. So much food!
We ate dinner around 8, listened to music in Riviera, Hemingway’s or Colonial then Abby went her own way to meet friends and Mom went to visit with Filiburto. Abby did attend the White Party on Monday night were she met some young adults from the US and Canada. She said it was “fun”. On another night she met an interesting gentleman from Texas and they sat at the beach bar until 5 am talking! Mom looked at the clock often on that night.
On Saturday night they have a “Fiesta”on the Riviera side before the show. That was quite fun.
Next: Food
I read several books over vacation. These two stand out:
Boston Girl by Anita Diamant A Jewish family immigrates from Europe to New York in the early 1900s. This is the story told by one of the daughters from 1915 to 1985. Very interesting and well written.
A Cup of Friendship by Deborah Rodriguez
This is the 2nd time I read this book and love it. Story centers around a remarkable coffee shop in Kabul Afghanistan run by an American woman. Great characters and lots ofiteresting details about life in Afghanistan.I also read this author’s true memoir entitled “Kabul Beauty School”.
I just saw 2 back to back bad reviews, both by authors as their first report. Suspicious. I would not put any weight in these. This one was just posted and seems more realistic
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g499445-d596646-r336071968-Grand_Palladium_Riviera_Resort_Spa-Akumal_Yucatan_Peninsula.html#CHECK_RATES_CONTMy daughter met some young adults who were staying in the Riviera last week and loved it. Tell the kids to go by the White Party at the salt water pool on Monday nights, the Foam party at the Colonial pool on Thursdays at noon. The disco is on the Riviera side and gets lively after 11.
For lunch we often ate at Kabah, the indoor buffet on the Riviera side or Punta Emilia beach bar, a short walk from Riviera rooms
I sent you an email. Send me your info about a week before you go and I’ll put in a word. As was suggested, ask for a third floor room if there are no mobility issues. Some third floors have views. While the Riviera rooms are not refurbished they are immacuate and in a nice quiet area.You’ll have a great time.
Welcome. Just back today. I know some of the reporters on TA are paid to write bad reviews.You have never seen a more immaculate resort You can eat off any rest room floor Which resort are you at? I was there with my 25 year old this week and cried to leave today. We’ve been going there for 13 years. Tell me where you’re staying and I’ll see what I can do to help.
Sadly home. Only positive is seeing Murh as he stopped eating while I was gone. Happy boy now.
Jennifer I can assure you there is TONS of kids food for even the fussiest kids. Lots of kids there over Christmas. They all looked happy & well fed.
Aw I’m getting “nostalgic”. Had a nice conversation with Pedro at 6:30 this morning. He’s been at the P since the beginning.He and many staff call me “Annie”ad follow our sites. Thanks to Pedro who actually knocked on my door to wake me up this morning! then got me some coffee and got to my transfer and to all of the wonderful staff at the P. Too many to mention, all so kind & helpful with beautiful smiles.
I know you’re not keen on going back but if you are a 4 time returnee you get three a la carte reservtions.
