As of July 15th, 2020, the temporary closure of three properties in the Mexico Caribbean and three properties in Negril officially ended.
Paradise has officially reopened and the soft sands, clear waters and blue skies of the Caribbean have already begun to receive TravelSmart members and guests.
TravelSmart VIP members Sheryl & Charlie are currently enjoying a well-deserved getaway at Royalton Riviera Cancun and they were more than happy to share their thoughts on being some of the first members to travel following the three month temporary closure and why they chose to visit Cancun for the first time.
How long have you been TravelSmart VIP members?
We became members in early 2018, February I think, on a trip to Punta Cana, we stayed at the Royalton Punta Cana and just fell in love with it there. They invited us to learn more about their loyalty program over breakfast and as they say, the rest is history.
Is this your first vacation as members?
Oh no… We love to travel! Since we’ve had the membership we’ve visited Montego Bay twice, Negril, St Lucia, and Antigua last year but this is our first time here in Cancun. It’s beautiful! We also were lucky enough to visit our home resort in Punta Cana again early this year before the travel restrictions came into play.
Why did you choose Royalton Riviera Cancun?
Honestly, we choose it for the great deal we got. It was very much a last-minute decision. Like everyone, we’d been feeling down about the state of the world right now and we just wanted to escape. We had used most of our yearly points on our trip to Punta Cana and we didn’t have enough for another getaway so we had decided to roll over our points for next year until we saw the promotion online for Cancun and with 2×1 points. We looked into it and well, here we are!
How comfortable are you with the new Health & Safety Protocols at the resort?
From the moment we arrived at Cancun airport everything has been so smooth. I’m not gonna lie, we did have some apprehensions about travelling at this time but I can safely say the attention to detail has been out of this world. Impeccable. Our luggage was sanitized by the bell boys after it was removed from the van and we were asked to walk across a sanitizing carpet, gel was then applied to our hands and we were guided to the front desk where there were several signs to indicate the new procedures at the resort and there was a transparent screen between us and the front desk staff. We were upgraded to a room in building 6 of the diamond section which was amazing and a great start to our stay.
One thing I did like was that we were given a choice as to what time we would like our room cleaned and sanitized every day. That was a nice touch.
I do have to say that we were a little disappointed that this is the first time we have visited a resort that didn’t have a coffee maker in the room however when we spoke to the staff they explained that certain amenities had been removed from the rooms due to the safety protocols which is understandable. It’s better to be safe than sorry!
Any recommendations for members thinking about travelling in the near future?
Travel and enjoy life, we have absolutely no regrets about travelling at this time. We understand that there are less staff at the hotel right now, compared to what we are used to, but that didn’t stop us from receiving the whole VIP experience and we understand that the precautions being taken are for our well being which we appreciate immensely. The resort is not even half full, it’s nice to have all that open space to enjoy and the weather is amazing! The staff are going out of their way to make sure we all have a great time and we are so very grateful to them and to TravelSmart for once again allowing us to make such amazing vacation memories.
