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During my recent trip to Cancun, Mexico I was treated to a great visit to the RIU Palace Las Americas.  What a fantastic resort.  It is in an area close to shopping, restaurants (although RIU Palace is all-inclusive), and nightclubs.

RIU Palace is perfect for a destination wedding.  Families are welcome, so you can have all those nieces and nephews at your wedding!  The resort is a moderate size at 400 suites, so you’ll have plenty of elbow room, but not so expansive that you have to plan your trip to the beach!  The gazebos at poolside offer the perfect venue for your wedding!

All of the suites at RIU Palace have RIU’s signature liquor dispenser and mini-bar included and complimentary!  None of those $5 Diet Cokes or $10 mini bottles of rum!  Of course, the resort also has 5 bars, including the swim-up bar called Cun.  The pool bar is named Can!!

Since RIU Palace is an all-inclusive resort, a variety of cuisine is necessary.  Never fear!  RIU Palace has an Italian, Gourmet, Japanese, Spanish, Brazilian and Steakhouse with fantastic ala carte menus.  The Don Roberto restaurant features a buffet serving international and local specialties.  I have eaten at many buffets in Mexico and the Caribbean.  RIU exceeds all expectations.  From made to order omelets at breakfast to the chocolate fountain in the evening, you will enjoy this buffet!

Entertainment is on the daily docket for adults and children.  From live music to talent shows, and RIU Theme Shows, you will enjoy the variety.  For those who enjoy late evening music and dancing, there is a great disco at the neighboring RIU Cancun!

Of course with all the food and drink available you will need to keep active.  Sports and activities are available for every age group and endurance level.  Aerobics to Ping Pong; sailing to water polo; tennis to volleyball.  A full service fitness center, as well, with state-of –the art equipment: treadmills, elliptical machines, free weights, etc.

Please give me a call or email sandi@totemtravel.com to plan your wedding, honeymoon, or family vacation to the RIU Palace Las Americas.

Get personalized help from a travel expert, at no extra cost!

Our next Sandals Night will be Wednesday May 13 from 6-8p.  Join us for resort reviews, tips and the best prices on an all inclusive vacation at one of 12 Sandals Resorts on 4 tropical islands in the Caribbean.  Attendees are eligible to receive a $250 spa or resort credit in addition to savings of up to 60% and free nights in selected suite categories.

Call or email Linda@totemtravel.com or RSVP 425 821-4100.

Can you travel before summer vacation?  If so, there are some really great deals to Hawaii.  For example, roundtrip airfare from Seattle and five nights at a moderate condo or resort in Honolulu is less than $600 per person.  So if you’d like to have some fun in the sun and score a great deal on a Hawaii vacation please call Sandi at Totem Travel  for more information or email sandi@totemtravel.com.

You can be the first to book a cruise on the newest RCCL ship - Allure of the Seas!  The Allure will make her maiden voyage on December 12, 2010, doing an Eastern Caribbean itinerary to include:  St. Thomas, St. Maarten, and the Bahamas.  Diamond and Diamond Plus Crown and Anchor members can begin to book April 2.  All Crown and Anchor members are able to begin booking on the 8^th of April and the general public can book beginning April 13^th.  Call or email Sandi Moore sandi@totemtravel.com

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While visiting St. Lucia to see the three Sandals all-inclusive resorts for honeymooners I was lucky to stay at Sandals Regency La Toc Resort. I arrived early afternoon and landing in St. Lucia is such a treat, we flew right by the Pitons, those much pictured mountains that rise out of the azure Caribbean Sea.

One of the first things I noticed was the warm welcoming people.  On the hour’s drive to Sandals Regency La Toc I saw beautiful gardens, the drive is filled with winding roads, climbing hills, spectacular views of the scenery below, and the “travelogue” delivered by our driver.  It’s also a bit of an adventure since they drive on the left and the roads are narrow….you might also see goats, cows, and chickens crossing the road in front of you, they seem nonplused and so should you; the driver’s are actually very experienced.

Once I arrived at the resort I was whisked up the hill to the Butler Suites where I was checked in and met our butler. I wasn’t sure of the whole butler thing and felt kind of funny, what would I use a butler for anyway? Well, one of the 1^st things was to make all our dinner reservations, we chose the restaurants we wanted and gave the butler an idea when we’d like to eat and voila, we had reservations for all the nights of our stay, not only at the Regency, but we also ate at Sandals Grande St. Lucian and the Sandals Halcyon since as a Sandals guest we had full exchange privileges with complimentary shuttle transportation between the resorts.

The next day we headed to the main pool and spent a good part of the day there and on the beach. It’s a beautiful beach but with some pretty big waves rolling in, being the swimmer I am I decided to venture out anyway, the water was warm and we swam for a while, I got knocked down a couple times and ended up with quite a bit of sand in my suit trying to get back to shore but I can say that I swam in the ocean.

That evening before dinner we asked Sydney, our butler, to schedule a few morning snorkeling sessions and an afternoon massage, so the next day we snorkeled, checked out the upper pool and ate at Armando’s, the Italian restaurant for lunch, had a massage in the afternoon and then headed to La Toc French restaurant for dinner before turning in as we were still tired from traveling. About 10pm we decided that a bit of chocolate would be nice, however we had already changed our clothes so I rang up Sydney and he brought us some chocolate and hot tea, the perfect way to end another night in beautiful St. Lucia.

The next few days are filled with snorkeling, beach activities, more lounging by the pool with a book and visiting the swim up pool bars and of course over the days we found that Sydney was available to get to the pool early and reserve chairs for us, usually with a cooler full of refreshments. We also returned to our room to find bubble baths drawn with flower petals for decoration or chocolate covered strawberries or some other such treat before dinner or bed and on our last evening there we had a message written in flower petals on our bed saying ‘come back soon’. I guess having a butler wasn’t as strange as one would think. He was there to make our stay just that much more special.

I’ve now been to all the Sandals Resorts and I always leave feeling special and like the staff truly wants me to return, that’s why Sandals does such a good job for honeymoons, everything is just a notch up from other inclusive resorts.

If you are ready to plan your Destination Wedding, honeymoon or just a vacation away for you and your honey call me. I’ve been to all the Sandals resorts and I would love to help you plan your time away. Call Totem Travel at (800) 321-7907 and ask for Jennefer, the Gold Sandals Specialist, or email me at jennefer@totemtravel.com