Playa Paraiso: Iberostar Playa Paraiso (March 2001)

My spouse and I stayed at the Iberostar Playa Paraiso for seven nights in late February 2001. This hotel is located in Playa Paraiso, halfway between Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen. (In later years, additional hotels were built as part of the resort complex called Iberostar Playa Paraiso Resort, which includes the following five hotels: The Iberostar Paraiso del Mar, Iberostar Paraiso Beach, Iberostar Paraiso Lindo, and the Iberostar Paraiso Maya.) The resort is designed to complement its natural surroundings. The resort boasts an attractive lobby, main restaurant with open kitchen, six specialty restaurants, two pool bars, a theater bar, cigar lounge, lobby bar, sports bar, and nightclub, spa, salon, disco, convention center, and golf course. There is also a creatively designed pool area, purportedly the largest on the Mayan Riviera (at almost a mile long), with two swim-up bars, separate children´s pool, and extensive sunbathing area. All lounge chairs, umbrellas, and beach towels are complimentary. Accommodations here include 388 tastefully decorated guest rooms and junior suites, each with one king size bed or two double beds. All rooms are equipped with private bath or shower, air conditioning, ceiling fan, hairdryer, telephone, satellite TV, alarm clock, coffee machine, mini-bar and safety deposit box. Each room also has either a balcony or terrace, and the junior suites include a living area. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are offered at several buffets, and the main restaurant boasts an open kitchen. Dinner reservations can be made for the specialty restaurants, with a guaranteed table 3 times a week. The dress code requires that gentlemen wear long trousers. Snacks and all drinks are complimentary 24-hours a day. House/table wine is offered with lunch and dinner, and guests can request a special wine list for an additional charge. Room service is available from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm. Guests can take advantage of the free shuttle bus service to Playa del Carmen. Restaurant choices include La Dorada (Mediterranean, dinner only), La Hacienda (Mexican, dinner only), Don Alfredo (Italian, dinner only), El Puerto Steakhouse, Harishu (Japanese), and El Colonial (gourmet). The Japanese restaurant was good (be sure to request seats at the hibachi table or you may just get a regular table). We also enjoyed the Brazilian restaurant, which had a unique way of serving food carved off the rotisserie. The seafood restaurant was pretty inside, but the food was not great (although I'm not a huge seafood fan and there weren't many other choices). Don't forget to make your reservations ASAP after arriving. We also enjoyed the cigar bar and lobby bars. Drinks at this resort were better than at some AIs. The pool is fantastic--must be seen to be believed! The entertainment was typical for an AI, and the property has a nice theatre for the shows. The resort is pretty--lots of marble walls and floors, foliage, etc. Be prepared to do a lot of walking--this resort is huge!