Akumal Christmas Service

Turtle Bay Christmas Menu's

Akumal Sur

As the highway construction continues, its becoming safer and more clear all the time. Akumal is clearly marked however its a bit more difficult to get to Jade and South Akumal Bay's. The turnaround to get into South Akumal (Akumal Sur) is past Bahia Principe hotel just before the overhead pedestrian walkway. As you U-turn and head north on the highway, you are approximately 1 mile to Akumal Sur entrance. We're all very happy to see a sign there!

Lol-Ha Holiday Menus!

The first of the Holiday Menus that we would like to share with everyone visiting Akumal over the Holidays.

CHRISTMAS MENUS
Lol Ha Christmas Eve Dinner Menu
· Grilled Shrimp and Plantain Banana skewers with Mango Sauce $145
· Seared Scallop Ceviche- with thin sliced cucumber, fresh orange segments and shallots $145
· Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail- tangy cocktail sauce spiked with horseradish $120
· Quesadillas Lol ha - Mushroom, grilled sweet peppers and manchego cheese. $69
· Fresh crab quesadillas $99

· Cream of Potato Soup with Smoked Salmon and Rosemary flatbread wafer. $79
· Lol ha House Salad $68
· Mixed Field Greens Salad- with blue cheese crumbles, carmelized pecans, and pear slices. $68

· Prime Rib – Served with garlic mashed potatoes and Broccoli Cheese Gratin $340
· Roast Duck with Sweet Onion Port Marmalade – served with Garlic mashed potatoes and Broccoli Cheese Gratin $220
· Grilled Salmon with Sweet Thai Chili Sauce and Shrimp skewer – served with Jasmine Rice and stir fried vegetables. $220
· Stuffed Chicken Poblano - Lightly breaded and stuffed with Manchego Cheese, chorizo and poblano peppers. $179
· Caribbean Lobster Medallions with Pesto Sauce – served on a bed of Linguini $399
· Roasted Vegetable Linguini- in Pesto sauce, with eggplant, roasted peppers, sundried tomato, olives, oyster mushrooms, and toasted garlic bread on the side. $159
Kids!
· Hawaiian Quesadillas – grilled pineapple, cheese, and smoked ham inside $69
· Chicken Strips on a Stick- served with Marinara sauce and a side of macaroni au gratin $69
· Make your own Ice Cream Sundae- any ice cream, with a tray of toppings for you to choose! $59
To reserve please email laura@hotelakumalcaribe.com . Once the reservation is confirmed, they will need a $10 USD per person deposit sent by check to our US reservations office.
Check made out to Laura B. Wolfe, address: Akutrame, Inc. PO BOX 13326 El Paso, Tx 79913. Atn: Liliana

LOL HA NEW YEAR'S EVE MENU
Seatings available 6:30, 6:45, 7pm, 9:00 and 9:30
Second seatings (9:00 and 9:30) will enjoy music to dance by starting at 10:30pm. The DJ will play music from the 50's, and 60's, Latin, and Rock n Roll. Playlist will be on each table for special requests!
MENU
· Seared Scallops with Carmelized Leeks and Caviar Sauce $145
· Ahi Tuna with Tropical Salsa- bite size pieces, lightly seared with a Pineapple Soy Ginger and Avocado Salsa $120
· Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail – With Tangy Horseradish Spiked Cocktail Sauce $120
· Fried Green Tomatoes –Lightly breaded and served with a smoky chipotle cream sauce $68
· Tuscan Style Onion Soup – with Crispy Prosciutto and Parmesan Wafer $69

· Lolha House Salad $68
· Mixed Field Greens and Arugula Salad – with Dried Cranberries and Fresh Shaved Parmesan in a light Champagne Vinaigrette Dressing $68

· Prime Rib- Served with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Zuchini Gratin $340
· Rosemary Rack of Lamb – served with Mint Jelly, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Spinach Soufflé $240
· Caribbean Salmon with Guava BBQ Sauce and Mango Salsa – Served over a bed of Linguini and Fried Bananas $199
· Seafood Risotto- Safron infused Arborio Rice with clams, mussels, lobster, scallops, Spanish Sausage and oh so much flavor! $240
· Chiles en Nogada – Stuffed Poblano Pepper with Ground pork and beef, spiced with raisins, nuts and capers. Served with walnut cream sauce and fresh pomegranate $179
Kids:
· Quesadilla Trio- Combo plate of Hawaiian, Cheese, and Peperoni Quesadillas $79
· Mini Meat Lasagna - $79
· Make your own Sundaes $59
To reserve please email laura@hotelakumalcaribe.com . Once the reservation is confirmed, they will need a $10 USD per person deposit sent by check to our US reservations office.
Check made out to Laura B. Wolfe, address: Akutrame, Inc. PO BOX 13326 El Paso, Tx 79913. Atn: Liliana

What's the weather in Akumal?

Average Daily Temperature - Akumal

Rental Specias!

La Iguana & La Sirena – 15% off all new reservations arriving prior to December 20, 2007

· Casa Iguana – 15% off all new reservations arriving prior to December 14, 2007
(up to 8 guests) http://www.i-akumal.com/casaiguana.html

· Akumal Breakers - $4000/US week new reservations arriving prior to November 16, 2007 (max occupancy of 10) http://www.i-akumal.com/breakers.html

· Casa Portuguesa - $2000/US per week on all new reservations arriving prior to December 20, 2007
http://www.akumaldirect.com/site/Overview/PropertyID__20182/2267/DesktopDefault.aspx

Time of my life

My boyfriend and I went down to Akumal in the beginning of September and it was fantastic! It was my first visit to the Riviera Maya and I can't wait to go back. We went down with a group of 6 friends and stayed in Casa del Sol. The house was amazing. The outdoor kitchen was a great place for us all to get together at night for dinner and we spent quite a bit of time there. If we wanted a little peace and quite the house was large enough to accommodate us all with room to spare. We were just steps away from the lagoon where we could stand on the foot bridge and watch the fish swimming in the crystal clear water. Some of us, myself included, went snorkeling in the lagoon. It was beautiful. The snorkeling was only topped by the scuba diving. It was my first time and I loved it; easily my favorite part of the trip.

Staying in Akumal was great. The restaurants in town are fantastic with plenty to choose from. The bakery has a great breakfast menu and La Buena Vida is a bar like no other. I could have never left town and been perfectly happy with my 10 days in paradise.

Of course we did leave town, visiting the ruins in Tulum and 5th Ave in Playa as well as Aktun Chen (a great cave system just minutes from Akumal). Staying in Akumal gave us the peaceful time on the beach that we wanted, but still put us within about 30 minutes or less of about everything we wanted to do.

We have been home for a few weeks now and we are still talking about what a great time we had. The only problem with my vacation was that it ended!

A little hurricane debris isn’t going to stop me!

A group of 8 of us went down Sep. 6 through the 16th of Sep. '07', just a few weeks after Dean visited to the south. I just have to say WHAT A GREAT TRIP! We stayed in Casa del Sol and it was spectacular. The house is huge and beautiful with lots of character, perfect for a large group like ours. My girlfriend and I were the first to arrive so we picked out our room and I took her around town to show her around. As a former Akumal local, I knew the good spots, but they aren't hard to find in Akumal. The rest of the group arrived a few hours later and the fun began! We had two birthdays while we were there and what a blast. We had one at La Buena Vida, one of the best bars in the world. The other, we went to La Cueva del Chongo in Playa del Carmen. The atmosphere was like you are in the jungle with a water fall running through it, it's pretty cool.

On the first Sunday we went to Chitzen itza (the big Mayan ruins near Merida). It was the first time most of the group had seen anything like it. The ruins are well restored and well maintained. During the rest of the week everyone enjoyed the activities available in Akumal such as messages at the spa, scuba diving, sky cycling, snorkeling and much more. My girlfriend enjoyed the scuba diving the most, it was her first experience and now she won't quit talking about it.

So, all in all we didn't let a little hurricane debris stop us, it sure didn't stop the fun in the area. There was still a little debris around that was being cleaned up but other than that you would never know that a hurricane like that had been so close. Thanks Sydney and Leslie for the house, it was the best!

Highway Construction on 307

I have been in the Akumal area for the last couple of weeks and wanted to drop a note to let everyone who will be arriving in the next few weeks knows about the construction on Hwy 307 in front of Akumal, Jade Bay, and South Akumal. Having a 4 lane highway is very nice but until it is finished things are changing every day.

To enter North Akumal you will drive past the pueblo entrance and use the retorno right after the second tope (speed bump). This has been completed and will not be changing in the immediate future.

Akumal Beach Resort entrance is blocked off today. You can take the access road which runs on the east side (beach side) of the highway from the entrance at north Akumal. I am sure this will be changing in the next week.

Jade Bay is also only accessible from the access road.

At this time there are no signs of Akumal Sur. The entrance is located 1.7 kilometers south of the north Akumal entrance. There is a large billboard for Bahia Principe on the west side. There is also construction on the west side of the road right now.

I hope this helps! Please feel free to email us if you need more information at info@akumaldirect.com. Have a great vacation! Leslie

The animals of Dean

My feet are back in the US, and we covered a lot of ground. My hat changed and I accompanied the Disaster Services Team of the Humane Society and Humane Society Int’l, we went to assess the situation of Dean’s path and its effects not only on the animals but on human health as well.

We spent some time in the town of Limones before heading to Xcalak and Mahahual. The road between them had been passable for a few days but had downed trees and electric poles. Xcalak had minimal damages, nothing compared to the destruction Mahahual endured. The evidence of the path was visible miles out; it makes you realize the severity of the surge. Crocodiles have been displaced as the water pulled them from the bay. Structures are gone or badly damaged and a good amount of the coral reef is on the beaches, horrifically loaded with trash.

It doesn’t resemble what we know of the town, but it is amazing how far they’ve come in just 2 weeks. The governor had finally arrived (on Sunday) bringing trucks and military to help clear the road. People are tired but they are positive and have pulled together as a community. They are living in tents and under lean-to’s and it was common to see their dog hanging around as well. The help coming in the way of food and supplies always warms my heart. We were able to bring over 1250 lbs of food down to the distribution center set up in Mahahual. Thank you Scott & Gary for helping us get it there!

For those of you who don’t know me, we do spay/neuter clinics here in Quintana Roo. Sterilizing is the only long term solution to an animal overpopulation problem. With the amount of animals roaming and surviving, populations will flourish and there is already evidence of packing in Mahahual. Understanding this is a human risk issue, I did get to experience one such meeting. It was a happy gathering as lone dogs realized others were out there, they found friends to frolic with!

HSI is hoping to secure funding for a 4 year program to include the communities of Limones, Mahahual and Xcalak. Our plan is to have a clinic sometime in Nov/Dec, help is always welcome in the ways of volunteers, supplies, food, accommodation, and of course contacts. We will have local vets attending and the municipality has already proven supportive of such programs.

We set up base in Chetumal, where there was more evidence in some places than others that Dean strolled in. One such place not so fortunate is what’s known as the Chetumal Zoo. We were thrilled to hear that they are more of a refuge, or sanctuary because their animals are rescued. I love to hear that! There is a lot of damage to their outdoor enclosures and all of the residents have been in their feeding and holding facilities. Large cats, primates and others wandering in their small cement cages has prompted HSI to secure immediate funding.

http://www.hsus.org/about_us/humane_society_international_hsi/hsi-disaster-response/dean_mexico_report1.html

From Chetumal, we crossed the border to Belize City and a few area towns affected. We visited the Belize Humane Society and Animal Shelter, and a typical scene we see all too often. Limited resources, a surplus of dogs, minimal homes to be found and disease spreads quickly. Shelters need to have an adoption program for them to function, and HSI hopes to help them institute that. We will also help with putting together a spay/neuter campaign, I do love Belize!

Included in the assessment was the Sian Ka’an Biosphere and down to the quaint little fishing village of Punta Allen. We weren’t sure the road was going to be open so we ventured down finding it to take us the normal 1 ½ hours from Tulum. The road was washed in places but passable with care. The one sight that amazed us, after seeing the surge as far up as Akumal; the stretch of road that has natural mangroves looked virtually untouched. Leave it alone and it will survive, it was a very sad realization seeing what we’ve seen the last 4 days. Punta Allen was cleaning up the usual sand and debris, but it looked good overall. We did our first s/n clinic there last year and will plan on getting back again soon.

I took a lot of photos, not only of the properties. I’m sad to say they will have to wait another few days until I can get them from my “field” friends – I’ve had my camera taken, well, my sisters camera which is even worse!! I will share them soon.

www.HelpAfterDean.com

Life after Dean

I've just returned from Akumal and my trip south to Mahahual. Its amazing to see how much was accomplished in just 1 week. Pools are cleaned and filled, gardens cleared of debris and tourists moving in. The road in front of La Buena Vida/Vista del Mar continues to improve but this is where the waves washed through. The rest of the Akumal road is as it usually is in the rainy season, pretty bumpy.

La Buena Vida is ahead of schedule and they opened last Thursday night. They have a new menu, new staff and an overall new feel. This combined with its usual charm has Akumal a bit more lively these days.

All of the properties are opened, except Akumal Beach Resort which will open September 15th. It was nice to see the amount of cleanup work they are doing, and the beach looks untouched.

All restaurants are open as are all local businesses. The beaches took on the power of Dean gracefully, and once again persevered. We've gotten up, brushed off the sand as we gear up for high season. We were fortunate, but in the storms path, others were not.