Fairmont Mayakoba Riviera Maya Family Activities

RU Ready?
Rolled out in March, the new fitness program for ages seven to 17 aims to get kids moving. Kids follow instructions on drill cards that outline a specific activity such as jumping over obstacles. By doing these exercises or "tricks" as they're called, kids strengthen athletic skills needed for baseball, skateboarding, soccer and other sports. After training for an hour or two with an instructor at the resort, participants can opt to come back to be tested as well as continue to improve and post their scores once at home.

Because the resort wants to encourage kids to continue to be active back home, the "tricks" largely employ common sports items kids are likely to have. For example, kids practice running to catch a ball and then throwing it to a teammate 20 yards away.

Biking
You and your 'tweens and teens can also keep up momentum by borrowing one of the resort's complimentary BMW bicycles to pedal around the property. This program has proven so popular that the resort is obtaining more bicycles, including ones designed especially for women.

Water Play
We find it wonderful that all five of the resort's pools are heated; it takes away that initial hesitancy -- for us -- of getting wet on an overcast day. Although the beach area features a pool, most families tend to hang out at the laguna pools, the main pools, one of which has a waterslide. There's also an adults-only pool. Conveniently, the laguna area offers plenty of lounge chairs, two eating options -- an inexpensive cafe and a restaurant -- and is home to the resort's multi-room children's facility.

Then there's the beach, a reasonably wide, but not too long strip of sand. Despite the resort's size, we did not find the beach crowded; of course, we tended to show up early in the morning or late in the afternoon. The sea's gentle slope and typically calm waters make it a good place for kids to splash under the watchful eyes of their parents.

Kids' Clubs
The gated children's complex, which has an outdoor pirate ship for young kids to climb, plus another air-conditioned main room, also houses an air-conditioned teen lounge with a Nintendo Wii, billiard table and air-hockey. We are not certain how many teens show up since they'd have to walk through the entry to the children's program, something most teens won't do no matter how tempting the fun is on the other side. When teens aren't present, the older kids in the supervised program use the room.

Both the Fairmont Mayakoba's program for ages 4 to 6, the Discovery Club, and the Adventure Camp for ages 7 to 12, operate out of the same facility. Hours are from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. The resort recommends you reserve a space at least 24 hours in advance. Currently, children receive three hours of complimentary time. After that, a full day costs $29 per day, a relatively reasonable cost compared to other programs.

We like the fact that kids are taken around the property and not confined to the kids' area. Children go on nature walks to feed the resort's turtles, swim in the pool, slither down the water slide and build sandcastles at the beach. Back in the air-conditioned room, kids craft mini-pirate boats, create Mexican style bracelets, have their faces painted, find out the secrets of fashioning balloon animals and watch movies.

Cooking Classes
Something special to try: the family cooking class, a bargain at $25 per person. Under the tutelage of Executive Chef David Andrews, my daughter and I learned how to prepare bento boxes, part of the resort's spa cuisine. Even though the hour-long class conducted in the resort's kitchen consists of mixing ingredients rather than actual cooking, we have fun combining, drizzling and garnishing the prepared elements as well as looking around the large facility. Our meal consists of couscous with bell peppers an olive tapanade with crostini and salmon with a papaya relish. Afterwards, we carry our boxes to the Laguna restaurant to lunch on what we put together. The chef is happy to work with families about any dietary restrictions.