Sam,

As I stated, we just booked our first trip to Cancun, so I am
definitely a newbie to Cancun and to all-inclusives. The favorite trip
that my wife and I ever took was a 4 week trip to Greece in 2002. When
we left the states we had 3 nights reservations in Athens and a flight
back home. After that 3rd night we just took the rest of the trip day
by day. For the most part we stuck to the travel books and what they
recommended, Lonely Planet and Let's Go, and we never went wrong. We
had an excellent time and the part that we most enjoyed was
experiencing a new and different culture. If we were having a great
time in a spot we would stay an extra day or two, and if we saw all
that there was to see and hadn't met any really interesting people,
then we would move on after one day, it just all depended. It is
because of that experience that I am personally very hesitant to take a
cruise. In comparison a cruise seems very antiseptic and regimented.
Keep in mind that I haven't been on one so my opinions are based solely
on perceptions and not at all on fact. Again, I think that they bottom
line for everyone is to do a little soul searching and determine what
attributes and qualities are most important to you when traveling on
vacation, and then find a vacation that suites your preferences and
travel style.

I do agree that your list of basic needs don't seem to be unrealistic
to me either, so it will be interesting to see how Dreams works out for
us.....

Good luck and best wishes in whatever you choose to do on your next
vacation.

Regards,

Slacker