Years ago, 21 to be exact, I was invited to the opening of the Barcelo Karmina. I loved it, and last week I was back for the fourth time and fell in love again. I wasn’t the only one, I kept running into people who had been there before; like Lila and Kim from Kelowna who return again. When I asked Joe and Sally from Saskatchewan how they liked it. They responded “We love it, particularly the weather. What’s not to like?”

When the Minister of Tourism for the State of Colima, opened the resort he told us that he was ten when the movie 10 starring Bo Derek and Dudley Moore was filmed at Las Hadas, just across the bay. His father wouldn’t allow him to see the movie. “Too sexy.”

Manzanillo is not just another tourist city; it is Mexico’s busiest shipping port. It brags that it is the sailfish capital of the world. It brags visitors may see the green flash phenomenon, as the sun sets over the water. It brags about a lot of things, and rightly so.

The friendly atmosphere starts at check-in, and continues throughout the resort. Nothing was too much trouble for the staff, even helping me get in line. Waiters were ready to serve guests lounging around the pools… all six of them. Daniel, one of the pool waiters was outstanding, swift, friendly, with a smile to light up the entire pool area.

There are four a-la carte restaurants: Mexican, Italian, Japanese and the Grill. The Grill is a pleasant place for a late breakfast and for lunch. There is a salad bar, and a menu in case guests want familiar pub food. The buffet offers inside and outside dining, and has an elegant feel to it.
We love the Mexican choices at the buffet, and yes, there is an omelet bar, and great smoothies.

My favourite is the Mexican restaurant on the point, with three sides of million-dollar views. The atmosphere is romantic and magical, a “must” for me every time I go.

Landscaping is spectacular and provides very private pool spaces, separated by waterfalls and trees. The landscaping and water falls provide a sound muffler from the 4pm bingo game, if you prefer to read or doze off.

The 324 rooms and suites are spacious, in fact very spacious. Some of the suites have pools on the huge balconies. Our suite had a bar area, and a full fridge in the living room, and a huge balcony overlooking the pools and the ocean with two freighters adding to the vista.

The separate bedroom had a huge bathroom with two sinks, a separate tub, and large shower., and a small balcony off the bedroom was the perfect place to read. While we were there, there were families with little ones, senior couples, and both Mexican and International guests. Not many teens or young adults. Big kids loved the slide, and little kids weren’t jealous, as the ‘Barcy’ kid’s club was popular.

Were the guests happy with everything? No of course not.

The biggest complaint was having to pay for Wi-Fi. Others were unhappy that is wasn’t a walking beach. It was however a cove that was full of fish, perfect for those who were new to snorkelling, and calm enough that little and big kids could relax in the water.

Suggest that your clients bring beach shoes. Every afternoon guests enjoyed the beach, and then had a hot dog or ice-cream at a food stand close to the beach.

Were there complaints about the food? Of course. Some didn’t like it because it wasn’t like home, some felt it wasn’t Mexican enough.

In spite of a sign at every pool that said, “towels don’t save chairs” guests did use towels to save lounges, and other guests complained when they couldn’t find seating in the shade. Staff however quickly helped find chairs in the perfect spot.

There was a wide variety of shows nightly. We loved the songs from the sixties, seventies, and eighties. It was lovely to sit on our balcony, hear the music, and look at the ocean, and then off to the right, see the white condos dotting the hills just like Monte Carlo. Gorgeous.

The Las Hadas golf club is behind the resort and the last hole ends on the green beside the ocean in front of the Barcelo lagoon.

Another thing guests loved was being able to take a very reasonable taxi (CA $3.50) into the centre of town to poke around, shop in real stores (rather than souvenir shops) and buy cheap liquor to take home from Walmart. They also raved about how fast they got through the airport when they arrived.

I’ll be back.