Club Med Ixtapa, Mexico: A Winning Formula For Family Vacations

Looking for a family-friendly Mexico vacation? Club Med Ixtapa Pacific beckons with a spectacular beach, gorgeous sunsets and loads of fun activities; and it has been beautifully renovated and upgraded, too. The resort looks more like a 5 star hotel. The rooms and suites are very spacious and nicely appointed with all sorts of amenities ( many with robes, slippers, thick towels, soft linens, very cheerful and modern furniture). There was daily turndown service, with chocolates on your pillow. Quite a change from our previous stays.

All rooms have safes, a mini fridge and plenty of storage space. I loved the deluxe family “rooms” (actually two rooms separated in the middle by the bathroom area [with separate toilet, shower and tub.] We had a partial ocean view with balcony that was really enchanting. There is even a suites-only building with a private pool and concierge service.

The grounds were lush, and full of flowers , with birds and iguanas wandering around. There was an alligator in the pond, but I never saw it. Some of our family members did.

The beach was beautiful, with chaise loungues and cabanas. Tall trees provided shade from the hot sun rays. The water was so warm, like I had not experienced in many years.

Club Med Ixtapa has several pools, with exclusive ones for the children, and one for adults only. Here too, the water temperature was super. I enjoyed doing the aqua gym.

There are so many activities, that one can be busy from morning till night (tennis, power walk, various exercise classes, soccer, ping pong, volleyball, trapeze, water polo, etc. Unfortunately, I never got to try many of them.

The food was very good and a nice variety. The restaurants staggered their hours, so that if you slept past the closure of one, you could get something at one of the alternative ones. El Encanto, the big main dining room with its buffet meals (was subdivided into several rooms, which gave it a cosyer feeling]; Miramar (an Argentine steak restaurant) with only outdoor seating right by the beach, and Luna Azul partially outdoors, with a roof and serving more of a fusion cuisine. The latter two were not open every night, and one needed to reserve the previous day. Sirena, a children’s restaurant was not open during our stay. The tropical fruit was amazing, and the Mexican cuisine was outstanding. Cooks were making tortillas from scratch, so the tacos, enchiladas and quesadillas sure tasted good.

There is a small boutique, selling some clothes, Mexican crafts, and sundries.

Club Med is great for family travel. The children’s clubs are run extremely well. The GOs in charge are dedicated and well trained. Our grandchildren loved participating in their activities. Everyone was welcoming and concerned with the guests well-being. And Eduardo Jonas was the friendliest chef du village I have ever met, paying equal attention to the little ones as well as grown ups.

For those who like to keep up with world news, there was a daily printed newspaper in French and English, as well as schedules of activities for everyone and those pertaining to the children’s clubs. Also there was TV5 (the French channel, to my delight), CNN, and other stations.

Club Med Ixtapa is about a 30-minute ride from the airport. Very picturesque, as you drive past the old city of Zihuatanejo, hills, fields, some hotels in Ixtapa, and travel along a nice highway. Everything was very clean and in good condition everywhere.

There are many Club Meds around the globe and this was my ninth stay at one. This was by far the most luxurious of any. We were very impressed with the level of accommodations and service. They exceeded our expectations. All of us are ready to go again.