Nuestra Luna de Miel Mexicana

After mulling over honeymoon possibilities, we settled on a compromise between Gavin wanting a beach to lounge on and me needing to move around and see/do things during vacation. We had also agreed that archeological ruins and Latin America would be neat-o.

We considered Brazil or Chile, Spain, climbing Machu Picchu, but knew we weren’t going to have time to plan and prep for those types of trips while planning a wedding. Also, you can no longer walk around in and climb Machu Picchu’s ruins. We aren’t willing to trek up a mountain overnight just to look for the honeymoon. Some other trip…

We arrived on one surprising destination we had never heard of after Gavin visited a travel agency in Glen Ellyn for ideas.

The Riviera Maya.

Mexico’s Mayan Riviera is a blending of dream trips for us – Mayan ruins, world-class snorkeling and diving, jungle exploration treks, all-inclusive packages and beaches. The Riviera Maya is on the Yucatan Peninsula between Cancun, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen. The only downside is that it’s in Mexico! Not exactly exotic, but perfect on paper.

We are staying half the time at the Aventura Spa Palace because of its proximity to absolutely everything – eco-parks, ferries to Cozumel, day trips, you name it. The resort has a lagoon instead of a natural beach due to crazy big waves at this point on the strip. We aren’t planning to spend too much time at the resort while we staying at this one however, so the absence of beach may not be noticed too much.

For the other half of the honeymoon, we are staying at Tulum Dreams. This one puts us just a five-minute bike ride away from Tulum. Not familiar? Tulum is the ancient ruins site with buildings white-washed from sea salt that sit on the cliff over a perfectly blue ocean that you see in the plethora of travel ads suddenly circulating for the Mayan Riviera. Absolutely beautiful. The beaches are supposed to be fantastic. This second resort will satisfy our young fogey selves. We were embarrassingly excited about bikes, bocce courts, dance lessons and archery. We might have to battle the older crowd for a spot on the shuffle board courts. Don’t judge us.

Unfortunately, all-inclusive resorts come at a premium. Apparently any trip that doesn’t involve all of your belongings on your back and sleeping in youth hostels while eating two meals a day adds up. Our trip will last 10 days so that we can afford housing when we return!

Oddly, the end of the fiesta coincides with Relays weekend at Drake, which I’m supposed to make an appearance at for a meeting. We were going to skip it and extend the trip before we saw the price tag. Instead, after hanging out and relaxing in Mexico, we’ll head out to Des Moines to see everyone there and enjoy the Relays revelry. We’re still considering it our honeymoon.

A honeymoon in Iowa? Now THAT’S unique!