Suenostulum Nov 14 - 19

[Solita]

Thanks to all who recommended Suenostulum - we had a lovely time. We walked up and down the beach and didnt find a place we thought we would have preferred. Those of you who know the family at Suenos I'm sure agree - they took great care of us and made the whole experience great.

As for November... could have used a bit more sun, our last day (of course) was picture perfect with sun and warmth, tho we did have a fair of amount of that here and there. We did NOT rent a car, and I'm not sure we would have been comfortable with our navigation skills. But-it would have been cheaper for sure, and I think in the future I would figure out the bus from Cancun airport to Tulum to save some $$ (tho we loved our driver and would recommend him if anyone needs a reliable driver for airport runs or tours).

As for excursions - we went to Ek Balam and Cenote Tamcach-Ha. Pictures to follow. We had lunch at a Hotel El Meson del Marques in Valladolid - great place, atmosphere--highly recommend if you're in the area (?).

[Solita]

Here we go--

Pix of our room in the Selva ("Jungle") themed bldg, a view of the ocean from just outside our room, Joanna and our new friend David (who was making his first trip as well) by the Suenos pool, and pic of me, Joanna and David on our last morning, our last dip in the ocean!

[BP.]

Muy bonita, Solita!

[Lynnette]

I'm glad you loved Suenos as much as we did. I'm so envious...Suenos is our all time favorite hotelita...ANYWHERE!!! Any more photos...I really need a Suenos fix right now.

[Solita]

I have more photos... but I am a bit of a bozo... when I try to upload more, I get an error message that I've exceeded the size amount for attachments. Advice?

[heenan]

Muy bueno!
More pics!

Here's the advise I got on posting pics (it allows you to link to a photo posting site and avoid the board's size limitations):

HOW TO INSERT PICTURE:

Click on the picture button above this text box..... [in the row under font type, size, etc. where you see B I U and outher choices...there's a box with mountain in it...].

Click on the picture and PASTE the http: location of the picture...

OR JUST TYPE AND BEFORE AND AFTER THE HTTP ADDRESS....

FOR EXAMPLE http://MYPICTURE.COM/PRETTYPIC.JPG

[PhyllisB]

Yeah! Another Suenos convert! :D I can't wait to go back there!!! Did you have any meals there besides breakfast? Remind me which building Selva is.... is it one of the oceanfront buildings?

Yep, most of us use the photo sites to link photos -- Photobucket is one that I know works, and then I think you can also use flickr or shutterfly or smugmug. I thought there was one site that didn't work with the forum posting -- can't remember if it was shutterfly or snapfish. I think it was snapfish actually.

It can take a long time to upload photos depending on how many you have, but once you do that, the photo hosting site will generate the link text for you so it's easy to insert. I think there are some detailed instructions over on the FAQ part of the forum.

[Solita]

Okay, here's hoping this works!!

http://s477.photobucket.com/albums/rr133/caroline573/

:wave:

[Solita]

Phyllis -- Selva is closest to... everything else? On the far right if your back is to the beach. I think the top two floors of each bldg have ocean view, we were on that middle floor, which I belive is the only level w/2 queens vs one king. We had a nice view--the back wall was a screen/glass door facing the ocean, so we could listen to it roar!

We did have other meals at Suenos, everything was great. I dont eat meat/poultry, so unless it was a fish day, we did have to try other places. We went to Om a couple of times, Zebra once, Posada Margarita once, and into Tulum town once at Pequeno Buenos Aires (they offer a vegetarian quesadilla). Oh, and that hotel in Valladolid, where I had the strangest vegetarian meal yet - cottage cheese enchiladas in a mole sauce. I thought for sure it couldnt be as strange as it sounded, but believe me, it was. Also had guacamole and black beans, so I left full and happy regardless!

My friends did yoga at Shambala once (yoga was the original purpose of the trip, which got exchanged for sunshine and relaxation on the beach!)... it seemed cute there, tho many of the rooms dont have private baths. They are building a new yoga palapa at Suenos now, and will host a yoga retreat (not sure when)....

[AdGuy]

Nice shots...btw, can you give a bit more detail on your cenote visit? I've not visited Tamcach-Ha and wonder what your impressions were. Was it crowded? Costs?

[Solita]

The cenote was NOT crowded (nothing was tho--I think we were a little off season, and started our day early -- we had Ek Balam mostly to ourselves as well, even at 10am).... I am not a big swimmer or adventurer, but it was pretty cool. You really are down in a cavern -- I think some of the other cenotes are more open-air. It puts you in the mind of something in an Indiana Jones movie (imminent peril!). You can dive off a couple of different levels of that stairwell (the adventurers can!) or on a giant rock. The cost on the ticket for the cenote is 40 pesos, but I think we were charged 30 each.

[PhyllisB]

Thanks for the pix!!! They're great! I think we actually stayed in the same room you did. I just had no recollection of having a room below us!

How was the view from the patio? It looks like there's a wooden structure on the Selva-side of the pool (wasn't sure if it was for yoga or just for chairs/hammocks or what), and that wasn't there when we went in '05. We loved having a clear view and just being able to hop right off the patio onto the sand. I guess it was something like this:

http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/pb2131/PB050009.jpg

Back then there was nothing next door! You can see a palapa hut poking up through the trees, but it was an abandoned place. I think they were doing some work clearing out the brush back then, probably in preparation for the new construction. It felt so private, though, without having an operating hotel right next door.

[Solita]

That's the same room for sure... In my mind, there were more plants and less sand than in your picture... our view was good--I think there's a pic from early morning that is the view from our patio.

As for the structure - it's sort of a mini yoga palapa -- it just has chairs in it now, but they may bring someone in to teach classes. I think they used it for a wedding too (one of the ones that got displaced when Casa Magna was seized). A bigger palapa is forthcoming - we saw men working on it.

I double check my pix - I bet I didnt upload one of the structure - I'll see if I can add it.

[Solita]

view from the room-

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr133/caroline573/TULUMNov2008064.jpg?t=1228080318 (javascript:void(0);)

[PhyllisB]

Hmmm, I'm not sure I'm thrilled about the idea of an even bigger structure. I loved our little spot there, with all that room! But I guess it didn't seem to obstruct your view, so that's good.

[Solita]

The new palapa isnt on the beach -- it's behind (towards the street) the building on the far left if your back is to the ocean -- sort of in the mini-jungle of the Suenos property.

The little structure didnt get in our way either... I guess in theory it must have blocked the ocean view from the round window on the side of the room, but we had full ocean view from the back of the room, so it wasnt an issue.

The pix I have of the little structure arent very helpful--either super close or super wide....

[Solita]

actually, you can see the structure with the flat roof --

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr133/caroline573/TULUMNov2008260.jpg?t=1228081146

[PhyllisB]

Oh, ya, it's more like it's behind the room, huh. Okay. That makes sense. Thanks for setting me straight!!!! :D I can't wait to get back there!!!!