Crocodiles, snakes, aardvarks and iguanas, oh my! These are just a few of the exotic animals & birds that you may see on the golf and nature safari at Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort.

The Moon Golf & Spa Resort is home to the only Jack Nicklaus Signature course in the area and when it was built in 2002 began to raise the bar on golf courses in the region. This 27-hole facility is currently ranked 12th among the Top 30 Golf Courses in Mexico by Best's Golf Guide.

The Golden Bear's mantra was to ensure that there would be the least amount of disruption to the delicate environment of the area and no impact on the local flora and fauna.

The original 18, known as the Jungle and Lakes nines, opened in 2002 with 7165 yards that intertwines through dense jungle and rocky sloped lagoons. This course has been host to the Mexican Open and is covered in "paspalum", the new salt-tolerant turf grass that has grown in popularity throughout the tropics. In 2005, the Dunes nine was unveiled with a desert feel because of the vast waste areas that encircle most of the holes.

We played the Lakes and Dunes tracks. Both courses have water that comes into play on most holes. The Lakes course is the tighter of the two but The Dunes is definitely the more picturesque of the 2 nines. Both courses had generous fairways, rough was almost non-existent so if you did not hit the fairway there was not much to save you from the jungle that would "eat up" any errant shots.

Some of our favorite holes included #3 on The Dunes, a long 210 yard, uphill par 3 with bunkers and gorgeous canyon in front. With the wind in our face, and after watching a well hit 3-wood come up well short, driver become the club of choice for the rest of the group on this uphill little bear. It proved to be a good choice! You are far better to be long on this hole rather than short, there is a natural backstop behind the green.

The next two holes that circle a large lake are top-notch. Do not be short on your approach to the green on #4 from the fairway you cannot tell just how much water you have to contend with. Your tee shot on #5 is a little daunting, not only do you have a lengthy carry over water off the tee, but water follows down the left hand side. This 438 par 4 requires a lengthy tee ball to the narrowest part of the fairway where Jack placed bunkers on either side.

Moon Palace Spa & Golf Resort is a first class, all-inclusive 2,030 room complex with most having ocean views and is conveniently located just minutes from the Cancun International Airport. Daily fee guests are welcome but like all the courses in the Cancun/Riviera Maya area, it is not inexpensive. You will likely get you best deals through the resorts preferred tour operators such as Gendron Travel. However you decide that you are going to play there, your green fee includes being picked up from and returned to wherever you may be staying. The one thing that was really strange for an all-inclusive resort with a hefty green fee was that they then dinged you $3.00 for range balls. Could not figure that one out.

You will want for little else for the day. Eat drink and be merry, it is all included, you can have 3 meals while you are there if you choose to stay all day and there is a pool.

For more information you can visit their website at www.moon-palace.com. To make a reservation or for a customized quote contact Eve Bordeaux of Gendron Travel at 1-800-561-8747 (www.gendrontravel.com)

Dave Finn is the Co-Publisher of The Traveling Golfer.