Are you glad you upgraded or would you rather have stayed at the Lindo? Would you do it again? Thanks.

Also forgot to ask, did you hear a lot of construction noise at the Maya from the new resort being built next door?

We will be traveling to Play Del Carmen in January. Can you give us some insight on the beach conditions? Last year it looked like they lost about 20 feet of beach. Thanks!

What was your impression of food quality? Was the Maya a true upgrade from Lindo? Would children (8, 10) prefer the Lindo? How was the beach at both for swimming/snorkeling/lounging? Thanks for your help.

Oops, my last post was for emtlady and/or any

one with Iberostar Lindo/Maya experience.

Is this the resort right next to the GALA?

We stayed at Gala right after Emily went through and I wandered over early in the am one day to check out the resort, but didn't remember the name. It looked wonderful!

I don't have any experience with the Lindo/Maya yet...we don't get there until November 26th, so I am curious too and have a few ???'s! I am sure either will be nice, but it seems like more people prefer the Lindo for some reason, partly I am thinking because it is a little closer to the middle of the resort and I am wondering if it is worth the trouble to upgrade, especially with the possible construction noise for the new hotel going up next door.

Puppa-

I am not sure where the GALA is. We only ventured off the resort once to do some shopping in Playa. Does anyone else know if the Maya is close to the GALA?

I am pretty sure the Gala is located next to the IB* Tucan/Quetzal which is closer to PDC.

emtlady -

I e-mailed the Lindo in advance, and also had my travel agent request a 3rd floor room in Bldg. 51 or 52 at the Lindo. We wanted a 3rd floor room with a king bed.

When we arrived, I was somewhat disappointed that they could not accomodate our request. Although I know it may be impossible to accomodate all requests, I thought we stood a chance considering occupancy levels at this time of year. When we arrived, they said they had a 3rd floor available in Bldg. 55 with 2 double beds. We didn't want doubles and I knew from previous posters that Bldg. 55 was loud due to its proximity to the theatre.

In order to compensate, we were offered a room at the Maya for no additional charge. Although the view was jungle view, it had a king bed. We took it, as I knew the Maya guests had a few more priveleges and we were ready to relax. (From what I've read, we probably should have pushed a bit harder for what we wanted....good advice for next time).

We ended up in Bldg 65 at the Maya. I never heard any noise from the construction (and I must admit I am pretty sensitive to noise!). I definitely will request a 3rd floor room if we go back, as we could hear quite a bit up there on the 2nd floor. All we could see were trees from the room, but we weren't in there much.

The Lindo rooms are definitely more central to almost everything. We did get to eat at E'toile, the Maya gourmet restaurant, but I am sure the Lindo gourmet restaurant is just as good. We had access to private pools at the Maya, but we didn't use them and I am not sure they actively secure those for Maya guests only. There are pros and cons to each, depending on what you are looking for. I would definitely request a Lindo room again, and would not pay any extra for a Maya room upgrade.

Please let me know if you have additional questions.