Second trip to HBR...and may not return!!!
We just returned from HBR and have some positive and, unfortunately, negative things to report.
We arrived and were treated very well by Lomas once again. We took a private car and it was worth the extra money. After our one hour drive from Cancun airport we were greeted with champagne and shoulder massages at the front desk, Excellent wind down from our flight.
We had a little scare from Karisma as they did not forward my deposit to HBR.
This was corrected within a day. Double check your reservations before you leave. We received a cell phone call ON OUR WAY THERE asking us for the balance! Very Weird!
Our swim up room had a slight mildew order upon arrival. We soon got used to it. Our room also had a leak in the ceiling from the room above and was never corrected. When on the throne, we got dripped on for 6 days.
Our AC also crashed for a day but was fixed pretty quickly.
Service was very good at the restaurants and pool bar. The waitress around the pool should get a big raise for her efforts. Always had a smile too. My glass was bottomless. Some scheduled activities never happened, but it was no big deal. We went to veg and relax.
Our relaxation, however, on our first full day, was stifled by one of the "Rowdy" group members. You can find more about them on MSNgroups. His name was Tracy. A real first class [censored]! He was vulgar and insulting to some of the women and made many people upset. One guy looked like he was going to jump over the pool bar and ring his neck. Not the kind of atmosphere we had last year. Perfect set up for serious (naked) fist fighting. Some complained to management and he seemed to quiet down on the third day. Jeanne, his wife, was a sweetheart. Power to you honey!
They sat with another couple that were quiet, except for a camera they were toting for a couple of days.
Mary had to avoid the lens a few times. Doug and Sandy were very nice "Rowdys".
Someone told us that some of the quests used to go to CRC, which closed down, or were Hedo regulars. They are the lifestylers, or lifestyler want-to-bes. These people were definitely into PDA's. One couple was seen doing it on the beach in broad daylight. Others were having a "good time" in the disco. Even the staff activities director was encouraging this over-the-top behavior in the disco at night. Fun is fun, but this went to far for us to witness. Not our thing. Mary also had to avoid a few guys in the hot tub, disco and pool area on several occasions. There were other guests, however, that couldn't be nicer. They were there to relax, have some fun and not be offensive to others.
These are the kind of guests we found last year and always find at Club Orient.
The resort was no different than last April. Rocky beach and unopened new pool area. All the meals at HBR were as good as last year. Drinks were also great! The wine list is expensive, but we had some anyway. Lobster, of course, is the best. Nightly entertainment wasn't bad but HBR is in desperate need of new cd's for the bar and disco. I left them with 3 cd's and they continued to play them for days. I think we heard "I Love This Bar" about 50 times! One night was karaoke. Another was lingerie night and another was "Ideal Couple" night. We never made that one because we decided to sleep out on the beach in the huts. We got a little scare around 1am when four Mexican solders with machine guns passed by. They were looking for drug drops off the beach. The hot tub is a great way to end the day at around 11pm with a bottle of champagne.
Our days were spent by the pool and next door at the ElDorado. Lunch at ElDorado was great. Dinner was a disappointment for me. I never got it! We went to the International restaurant and they never served half my meal. I ended up calling room service at 1am for a (cold) burger. Room service is not that swift at HBR either.
They have made some renovations to the ElDorado since last year. The lobby is gorgeous!
We took advantage of massages on the beach by their spa service. They were excellent. The price went up a bit from last year, but is worth every penny. We played some pool volley ball, ping pong, fed the fishies, did some body painting and Mary did some ceramics and water aerobics. I checked out the gym only once. We had been to Tulum and Playa DelCarmen on our last trip so decided to hang at the resort exclusively. We were very happy we did.
Our checkout was quick and easy and we received two t-shirts for our return visit. Our Lomas trip back was very comfortable and on time. We highly recommend Lomas.
We plan on returning to SXM in October. We feel more comfortable there.
I think HBR is opening themselves up to the swinger type. I hope I'm wrong!
Before we ever think of returning, we will watch the bulletin boards for more trip reports to see what goes on.
There are too many places to choose from and don't need the garbage on our vacation for $500 a night.
I think the rooms need to be renovated. We saw one of the ElDorado rooms, and they are much nicer and have a hot tub in the room. HBR plans to expand to the other side of the new pool. God only knows when that will happen.
Last year HBR rated a 10 in my book........this year I give them a 6!
Until next time....see you in St. Somewhere.
