We arrived in Mexico around 630ish the night before and didn't get in to the resort until around 8, grabbed a quick bite of completely forgettable food at the "International Buffet" before heading back to our rooms and sleep.
SIDE NOTE: we NEVER went back to the Int'l Buffet again, not even for breakfast. My suggestion if you're visiting Sandos Caracol Eco Resort, stick to La Toscana (the Italian restaurant) for breakfast and lunch, and visit La Riviera (Mediterranean), Los Lireos (Steak / Fish), Fogo de Brazil and El Templo (Asian) for dinners. TRUST ME. Or even better, venture off resort to somewhere local and get some delicious Mexican fare!
Mommikins and I spent the morning of our first day getting acquainted with the resort, figuring out where our rooms were in relation to restaurants, lobby, the beach. A quick lunch and then we were picked up for our first adventure - parasailing! We had booked all of our excursions prior to leaving Canada to ensure we were able to do everything we wanted and I'm glad that we did. Through Trip Advisor / Viator, we went with some smaller companies that ensured a more personal experience than the large tour companies the resort was recommending. For our parasailing experience, we went with Parasail Cancun.
They picked us up early (yay!) and we were the only ones in the van, so we settled in comfortably for the almost hour long ride to Cancun. We didn't think much of it, figuring we'd meet our fellow adventure seekers at the dock. Were we in for a surprise! Turns out, we were the ONLY ONES to book a parasailing trip that morning. With a fabulous crew of three headed by Captain Leo, we set out onto the ocean alone. It was fabulous!
 |
| The view from the shore (Punta Norte location in Cancun) |
I have to say, if you're going to visit the Yucatan / Mayan Riviera, go in late January / early February. A common theme for our excursions as you'll see in upcoming posts was the very small group size. I don't think for any excursion there was more than 10 of us at a time. I digress.... (get used to it).
It didn't take long to get to a spot far enough off shore to send us up into the air. We climbed onto the platform at the back of the boat after getting strapped into safety harnesses, and were clipped onto a bar attached to a giant smiley-faced parachute fluttering behind the boat. Before we knew (or could prepare ourselves) we were swooped up by the air filling the chute and began climbing into the sky! Now, our family isn't all that great with heights and neither Mommikins or I enjoy carnival rides all that much so its a bit of a wonder why we originally chose to do this. However, once we got up in the air, the lurches in our stomachs were well worth it. The view of the ocean from 90 metres up is breathtaking.
 |
| Photo courtesy of Parasail Cancun (go ahead, buy the photo/video pkg when they ask you) |
Because we were the only two customers, they let us stay up for double the amount of time we normally would have had - a full 20 minutes of flying time! WOOOOO! Mommikins took a little longer to become comfortable in the air but eventually settled in. They had hooked up us with a walkie talkie to let them know when we were ready to come down. We did try to use it a few times but they either couldn't hear us or chose to ignore us so were pretty much at their mercy. Again, totally worth it!
It was a great experience and it get the opportunity to give it a try, DO! As you can see from the picture of Mom below, she had an awesome time. Either that or she was just so excited to be back at sea level...
 |
| Mommikins loves the ocean. Or she's making google-y eyes at Pedro who's behind me... |
No comments