Trip Review by Tom and Bonnie from Texas Players

We just returned from the new Desire Resort and Spa in Cancun. This is a new couples only, swinger friendly, all inclusive resort 20 minutes south of Cancun, Mexico. The resort has 110 rooms, two pools, a nude rooftop Jacuzzi, five bars and three restaurants.

Bonnie and I visited this resort about two weeks after they opened with a group from Swingers Date Club. We were not compensated by the resort or SDC for this trip report, although we did receive a 50% discount for our rooms as well as a certificate for three days and two nights to give away at the club.

First off, we must say that arriving in Cancun was much more pleasant than our last time. The airport has undergone some extensive remodeling and now includes jetways instead of deplaning on the tarmac. Entry via customs and immigration took us less than 10 minutes instead of the hour and a half it took last time we visited.

While the resort is less than twenty minutes away, you might want to make sure you have transfers already arranged as the throngs of taxi and shuttle drivers at the airport had never heard of the resort.

As you arrive at the resort, you will notice that a lot of work is going on at the entrance. While we were there, workers were busy cleaning out the “swamp” in front of the resort to make it a scenic lagoon with crocodiles, turtles and fish. The current entrance is thru a delivery gate but the new covered bridge is near completion and will make for a classy entrance.

Upon arrival at the resort we were met with a cool, damp towel to freshen up with and a glass of champagne. The lobby area has, in addition to the front desk, a concierge, gift shop, jewelry store and computer room. The internet connections were slow, the browsers were in Spanish and charges were $5 per half hour, however we were never charged... Check in took less than 5 minutes and we were soon being escorted to our ocean front room.

On the way to our room we were shown the Lobby pool (which never saw anybody in) and the Lobby Bar. Affectionately nicknamed the Mosquito Bar or The Gecko Bar as the latter were after the former! Right next to the Lobby Pool was a series of four futons with gauze curtains hung from a frame. These were very handy for late night play time with another couple or for relaxing out of the sun during the day.

A few steps further and we were at the Spa. Here you will find an exercise room, private Jacuzzi, several massage rooms (as well as a couples massage room), a coed dry sauna and men’s and women’s locker rooms with wet saunas. Future plans include a beauty saloon as well. Just beyond the spa is the tennis courts. I don’t know if anyone ever used it, perhaps it could become another nude pool or love pit in the future!

Literally 6 steps from our room was the beach, but first... Inside the rooms you will find either a queen or king bed with cloth canopy and new comforters. In addition there is ample closet space although the attached hangers need to go and they need more shelves. A wall safe, stocked refrigerator, coffee maker new room air conditioners and a satellite TV with XXX porn on it! The floors were tile throughout and the bathrooms contained a bidet and open shower. Towels were huge and you could easily bring more from the pool if you needed them.

Back to the beach... Desire has a fabulous au natural beach with little palapas and new lounge chairs spaced all along it’s length. Once near the nude pool though there is a beach volleyball court, horseshoe pit and area for the Kayaks, sailboats and windsurfers that are available free of charge. The beach is kept very clean as it was raked every morning we were there. The water is clear and warm, no rocks and no waves as there is a large reef just offshore. While the beaches in Mexico are public we never saw many people walking down them given the few developments in this area. However, don’t be alarmed when you see the Mexican army soldiers patrolling the beach. Just wave and say hola!

The large pool is where you will find most of the guests, especially if there is a large swingers crowd in attendance. There were activity directors organizing games like tequila Volleyball, water polo, etc. The pool is only 4 1/2 feet at it’s deepest part. The shallow end being separated from the deeper part by little concrete pillars, makes a great place to set your drinks. Adjacent to the pool are two buildings, the first being an activity center where you can arrange scuba diving, fishing charters, site seeing trips, etc. Next door you will find Pablo’s Place (the Bar) and the pool side grill serving hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, ceviche, nachos, chips and queso or guacamole etc.. Both opened up around 10 am and stay open till 5 PM.

The other large building facing the pool contains both restaurants. The main restaurant, El Arrecife, “The Reef” is a buffet serving breakfast lunch and dinner till 11pm. There was quite an assortment of both hot and cold entrees, sides and deserts but all could use some work. The wait staff appeared new and inexperienced. Good at cleaning off tables but slow to take drink orders and refill your glasses. They didn’t seem to be bothered at all by me getting up and refilling my and our table guests glasses.

The other restaurant, Il Piacere (Italian for “the pleasure”) was fabulous. I would recommend you plan on dining here frequently, however reservations are required in order to be seated. Plan on making yours before noon on the day in which you would like to dine. While the name is Italian the food is more Continental, expect to spend 2 hours minimum here. You can also order premium wines here although they do require an additional charge.

Located in the building between the restaurant and the lobby you will find one of the more spectacular features of Desire... The au natural rooftop Jacuzzi and bar... This area just has to be experienced. The Jacuzzi is large enough for about forty people and is attached to a bar on one side and a teak sundeck on the other. The far wall overlooks the nude pool below and ocean beyond. Adjacent to the bar are two bathrooms a few cocktail tables and 6 large futons. More about the futons later.... The draw back to this area is that they pull the bartender out around 6 PM or so. This was explained to me by management as being done so that the guests would not fill inhibited later on while having orgies on the futons! That’s right folks... This is a space setup for group activities of the swinger kind right on the rooftop under the moon and stars... I did advise management however, that most couples I know, like an audience and would not be inhibited because the bartender was present. Matter of fact they would probably enjoy it... Either way, after my conversation with management a full bar was left stocked for self serve drinkers...

Finally, the Disco. Located atop the Lobby, the disco is reached by a set of stairs from the outside of the building. After passing thru a rather unique entrance you will find yourself in a good sized room with red and black sofas situated around an unlighted dance pool. At the other side of the room, a rather small and elevated dance floor with poles at either end, face the bar. With the sound system and lights situated directly over the dance floor, conversation is quite possible throughout most of the disco. I did advise management that the elevated dance floor was not as functional as they thought however. Located just behind the bar is a special secret area with large futons, candles and ceiling fans. Just perfect for some on premises activity... Hey, maybe that’s why there were those stacks of towels and little trash cans conveniently located throughout! LOL... Don’t ya just love it... Finally a couples only resort with a Passion Playroom just off the disco. They’re just going to have to change the name of the disco to ”Disco de la Pasion”

What about the downsides? We arrived about 3 days behind the rest of the group and thereby missed some of the earlier problems. Among those reported: Flying trash cans, stuck up models, power outages, broken a/c’s, plumbing problems and bouts of turista...

All these things did happen and where addressed as fast as management could get to them. The problem, as was told to me by management, was that they barely had 2 weeks to get the resort ready from the previous owners and institute there new changes. The power outages were due to the fact that the new Jacuzzi was taking more power than the old transformers could handle, so they brought in a generator to pick up the additional power demand. This took care of a lot of issues including making the ac work in the disco, produce heat in the Jacuzzi and prevent any further brown outs in the resort.

The highlight of the trip for me was when the marketing director for the resort asked me to meet with her over lunch and give her my feedback and opinion on what they need to be doing to target the swinger market. I spent about two hours with her and shared many opinions with her, hopefully they will be listening.

One issue to be aware of that is of primary concern... This is the first such resort to place a play area in specifically for sexual activities. When in the play area, you may come across people who have never been in such an area before and may not know how to act. Gentlemen, keep an eye on your ladies while in these areas. I mentioned to management that they need to ensure that only couples in and couples out in the play area. It also would be a good idea to provide a swinging 101 brochure to visitors as this may be a place where some couples may have their first encounters.

Will we be back? Of course, this place has much more potential than Hedonism does right now. Given the proximity to San Antonio, the space for sexual play and the willingness to target a swinger crowd... This place has tons of potential. We will be planning another hosted trip there in the next couple of months and we expect that most of the earlier problems will be taken care of.