Occidental Papagayo: Guest Services Huge Disappointment

The rooms were mediocre, especially the bathrooms. Housekeeping could have been better and replacing used toiletries would have been appreciated. We were short towels a couple of times, called Housekeeping and nobody showed up to bring the towels we were missing. The grounds were ok, pool needed to be cleaned better. The best resort feature was the restaurant and bar staff. They were all very courteous, friendly, and eager to please. Food in the a-la carte restaurants was very good. Buffets at [... read more] breakfast and lunch were good, but dinners could have been better. Lots of rice, beans, potatoes, cassava, and the same vegetables everyday. We could have overlooked all of this if we hadn't received such horrible and disrespectful treatment at the guest services desk. Trying to make dinner reservations was a nightmare! Saturday and Sunday reservations could only be made the day of. We would go first thing in the morning, line up, only to be told there was NOTHING available at any of the restaurants. They suggested we try again in an hour, so we did and again NOTHING was available. Some days we had to make 3 trips and still did not get reservations. We were told that on Monday we could reserve for the entire week. However, when we lined up on Monday we were told we could only reserve for 2 days. Although we did manage to get reservations for a few dinners during our week stay, the time and effort involved was ridiculous. On Wednesday guest services said there was a problem with his excel program, come back in an hour and he would give us a reservation. Once again, we go back only to be told there was NOTHING available. To add to this, errors were made with reservations we did get on other days. One evening we received a call to go to the buffet, since the Grill was closed, and order from the Grill menu. We were given reservations for the Grill for Thursday and it was closed when we showed up. When we went to speak to guest services AGAIN we were given the blame. This was our last evening and we had had enough and asked to file a written complaint, (as stated in the guest book in our room), and guest services said NO! We reminded him that this was clearly written in the guest book as the only procedure that they would follow up on regarding complaints and he insisted that he would not allow us to file a complaint. We asked to speak to the manager and he REFUSED to let us speak to him!!! We have travelled extensively all over the world and have never been treated in such a manner at any of the places we have stayed at. When we informed him that we would be writing to Air Transat and Trip Advisor, he got on the phone with someone and then offered us a bottle of wine. We told him we were leaving in the morning and had no room for a bottle of wine in our luggage and couldn't bring it in our carry-on. Needless to say, this was a terrible way to end our vacation, especially after all the hassle we went through all week. Worst Guest Servive ever!!!

Barcelo Gran Faro Los Cabos: Best Mexican cuisine!

First and foremost the food was really good. Loved how they mixed it up nightly and it was always fresh and very flavorful at the buffet. The best was the food at the Mexican Restaurant. When traveling to Mexico it was a pleasure to eat Mexican cuisine at its finest without leaving the Resort. Hands down the best bartender we had the pleasure to be served by was Jaime at the Mexican Restaurant. He was efficient, warm and welcoming (despite how busy he was serving the restaurant staff). The reso [... read more]rt was very clean and the staff were friendly and helpful when asked. The only disappointment was the housekeeping was hit and miss. When we arrived our room was not properly stocked. For the week we were there the inconsistency of stocking of the room was sub-par. On a few days we would not have coffee and/or cream/sugar restocked in our room. The next day face clothes/hand towels would not be restocked. Despite putting tip money out (hoping that this would entice them to take the time to properly due their job and service the room complete) To be proactive with the coffee/cream issues I stocked up from the breakfast buffet and stored it in my purse/hand bag on the counter in the bathroom. When I returned late in the day the maids had removed all of the cream/sugar from my bag that was sitting on the bathroom counter. This was VERY concerning to me and was very upsetting. We enjoyed having coffee in the morning so we could sit on our patio enjoying the view before heading down with the masses to eat breakfast. Removing these items from my purse/bag was upsetting. I believe the resort should have a "no leaving your towel unattended" at the poolside. I did not see one sign yet at 5:30-6:00 am most of the chairs were taken with towels and tables flipped upside down to reserve the seating yet there was not a sole around the pool. Even after going and eating in and around 8/9 am there still were no guests sitting in the loungers. We did speak with many guests who had the same frustration. We had many excursions outside of the hotel so this was was merely an annoyance if anything. Perhaps signs would be helpful. This was my first resort experience (we usually take cruises) and despite the inconsistency of the maid services and the poolside towel issue I would recommend this resort (and have) to friends.

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: Great resort with lots to do on site!

Stayed at Maya Beach Resort and the beach in this section is better than at the Palace. Beautiful pools especially like the Adult only pool for a late afternoon cocktail. Lots to do on the resort especially good spot for teenagers. Swimming with the Dolphins a huge hit with our girls. Service was very friendly and food is very good. Only issue it was difficult to get good reservations at the a la cartes. We'll be back!!

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Truly a hidden gem!

This was a resort worth more than the star rating because of it's proximity to Xcaret, allowing you to go back and forth during the day for meals and to clean up before the night show. Resort itself was lovely, food was great, Mayan ruins and wild animals on site! Small details to improve like the wifi, long time to get hot water and broken soap dispensers in the showers, rocky beach because it's man-made without natural waves. However, overall it was great value for the money and the per [... read more]fect short holiday for our family of 4.

Occidental Caribe: Amazing Resort-Great Value

Met all of our expectations-4 years in a row to the same resort. Great food choices, very friendly and accommodating staff and you cannot beat the beach! A la carte restaurants also great with exception of the French restaurant which had slower service and not as good food as the other a la cartes

Barcelo Karmina: Relaxing Resort

We spent a week there as part of a Sunwing package March 8-15. Hotels representatives were waiting outside of the airport to welcome and check-in us. They gave us all info for our room and pre-booked three à la carte restaurants for different evenings and time. We were generally quite satisfied with the resort. It is lovely inside and out. The resort is beautiful and has wonderful architecture and the grounds are landscaped to perfection. Rooms are large suites, comfortable and fully stocked wi [... read more]th marble floors that are nice and cool after a hot day. There are little balconies on each room to sit on and overlook the resort and ocean. Staffs are working hard all the time. Pools are beautiful. Beach is small and in a man-made cove which is perfect as you don’t get slammed by waves, kids can swim safely and many little fish hang out there for all to enjoy. Sunwing rep Miguel was so helpful and answered all questions. Drinks are plentiful, with many bars throughout the resort with no lineups. We enjoyed variety of food, fruits, desserts and their great coffee.This was the most relaxing holiday we had ever! We’ll be looking forward to going back again and definitely recommend this resort to everyone. Also check-out was smooth.

Occidental Punta Cana: Rough start but ended ok.

Our stay started off poorly when the check in staff gave us the wrong color of bracelet. We had purchased the First Club option and the bracelet was for a lessor value vacation. We found this out quite quickly when the staff at the first club desk told us we didnt have first club bracelets and so we had to go back to the check in area and get the proper color. For us the First Club option was very much worth while. A separate bar area at the beach and on the resort made getting a drink very eas [... read more]y with no line ups and better brands of alcohol. As well they served breakfast, lunch, and appetizers at supper time. You needed to eat supper at the ala cart restaurants or main buffets though. Our room was in one of the newly renovated complexes and was very nice and clean. The most annoying part was this resort has been bought by the Barcello company and all of the front line staff will hammer you on going to a timeshare/vacation club meeting. They are very friendly until you turn them down. After a couple of days they leave you alone so you can actually start to enjoy your holiday. The beach is beautiful as advertised and we never had trouble finding chairs. Most staff are friendly with only one surly bar maid and restaurant welcome staff. The resort is kept very clean and the food for the most part was reasonably good. If not for the timeshare pressure I would rate this resort 4 out of 5 but can only give it 3.5 out of 5 because of it.

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Excellent Vacation

The whole resort is remodeled and has modern look. The rooms are spacious and bed is very comfortable. The staff are very friendly and helpful. The food is great. Lots of animals. Kids enjoyed the trip!

Occidental Punta Cana: Average Resort

Rooms very nice (modern, clean with jacuzzi on balcony). Beaches are clean, wide and impressive. Grounds ok as not many flowers (season). What we were NOT impressed is service, very disorganized, confusing, rude, long and not very customer oriented. They do NOT for the extra mile for the customer We've been to Punta Cana 5 or 6 times, worst hotel on service.

Barcelo Huatulco: Great place

Resort is older but refurbished and very clean. Service was excellent. Food was very good. Great location, close to the airport, town and right on a great beach. Lots of beach activities. We enjoyed our vacation here and would return.

Barcelo Huatulco: Great Resort

My husband and I traveled with our 4 month old and we were very happy with this resort. The grounds were kept very clean and tidy - we constantly saw staff sweeping, trimming bushes, and doing maintenance. One evening after dinner several staff members were hand washing all of the loungers around the pools. The pools - adult only and children's - were both kept clean. The food was way better than I've experienced at any resort. There are 4 a la carte options - Mexican, Spanish, Italian, a [... read more]nd Japanese. There are no limits to the number of a la carte reservations you can make. We tried all of them and really enjoyed them all. The japanese (sushi) was really great and is a tiny place that won't take reservations and is first come first serve. There are two buffet options for breakfast and lunch and then one buffet option for dinner each night. Loads of options for everyone. I'm a vegetarian and found the buffets to be heavily stocked with meat but still found plenty of yummy options for myself. We didn't get in to the theatre for any of the shows that were put on each night because we had the baby with us (and most of our dinners were later) but there was also musical entertainment each evening outside in the pool/courtyard area. By the pool during the day they had lots of organized water sports/games going on. There also seemed to be lots of things for kids like face painting, the kids club, water slides, etc. There wasn't any rainy days so we didn't spend much time inside but there is also a games room with board games, pool table, ping pong, etc. The majority of the staff was really great but there were some that weren't as friendly and gave slower service. It was really either hit or miss and nothing in between. 90% of staff were amazing so it's too bad there was a handful that weren't. Our room was fine - comfortable clean beds, balcony overlooking the pool/beach, fridge stocked daily (we left a tip for the individual who filled our fridge each day with a note of what we wanted in our fridge ie. bottled water, beer, chips, etc), we were given a pack n play for our baby to sleep in, bathroom was fine. We did see some teeny tiny little bugs in the room either crawling on the bathroom wall or on the dresser for instance. Maybe only a handful and they seemed harmless but worth mentioning. We left a tip for the maid as well each day but some days our room was cleaned impeccably and we had towels and flowers shaped liked an animal left in the room and other days it was as if they half cleaned the room then just left without giving us fresh towels or finishing the cleaning job. So again, hit or miss. Overall I'd give the resort an 8 out of 10 and would recommend to others. My family definitely plans to return to Barcelo Huatulco and would likely book 2 weeks next time because 1 week was just to short!

Allegro Cozumel: Nice resort

Very nice clean resort . Had a show head,and front door, repairs done very quickly . We asked night before and was told yes but did not a coma date us with food for a 6:30 all day tour not even coffee..

Barcelo Maya Colonial: great resort!

Everything was great about that resort. Nice location, nice beach, nice food, nice weather. A lot of activities to do. We love the tennis, basketball court. We love to do snorkeling at the beach in front of the hotel.

Allegro Cozumel: Beautiful Resort

Beautiful resort, not large easy to get around. Nice that you could sit at pool area and also be close to the ocean. Many planned activities. Staff friendly and helpful. Rooms clean . We are not picky eaters however we had some difficulty at evening meal. Breakfast buffet excellent. But evening meal did not appeal to us.Food was never hot just luke warm We enjoyed Italian restaurant. Excellent resort for families , felt very safe and secure.

Occidental Tamarindo: Beautiful sunsets

Beautiful sunsets on the beach. It is a very clean resort with staff willing to go above and beyond to ensure a home away from home. I did not order the wifi and was told it was sketchy due to high winds. Food was amazing. No al la carte restaurant due to private booking and I was entitled to 2 reservations so I was disappointed with the service. Evening entertainment was lacking and very rushed. Do not go to this resort to swim and snorkel as the beach had high winds and rocks, more of surf des [... read more]tination. Lots of touristy things to do within a couple of hours and Tamarindo has a beautiful beach to access via bus 5min or walk the beach when low tide.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Great resort

Beautiful ground. Very good food. Very nice pools. A lot of activities such as mini golf , tennis , kayaking , free catamaran lessons Wind surfing lessons water tricycle paddleboard and so on to keep you busy . I would definitely come back .

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: Amazing Resort

This was by far the best resort I have ever stayed at everything was terrific, if I had to make one complaint it would be that the free WiFi is only available 10.00 to 1.00pm located in the mall, other resorts have had free WiFi in the hotel lobby in the evening, but to be honest it was really nice not be on cell phones the whole time and we had a famous week. The Japanese restaurant was awesome.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Mixed feelings

The maya colonial is an amazing property, very large with plenty of amenities. Unfortunately we did not enjoy our time there as much as we liked and considering the premium we paid for it we had high expectations. Our rooms ( another family came with us ) were unsatisfactory and their explanation was bizarre to say the least ( they cannot garantee the rooms at booking time??) When they finally found us a room with 2 beds they were double beds and we would have expected queens. They were unable t [... read more]o provide us with any ala cartes before 930 pm for the first 4 days, the 5th day was available but was not my prefered choice. We reached out to trip central on 2 occasions and they were unable to provide assistance, air transat was also unable to provide assistance. All staff at the hotel were friendly and professional at all times. Despite the amenities included they were constantly hitting us up for extra charges, in some cases more than what trip central had on file ( pirates island ) . The mini golf looked fun but was only complementary during the day, after 7 pm they wanted 10 dollars us per person to play, i found that tacky to say the least. The resort was full but it never loomed full which speaks to the overall size of the place. I suppose i would stay there again but i would need some better assurances on rooms and ala cartes in advance.

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: A Little bit of Paradise

This was a very nice all-inclusive resort. There are several buildings to accommodate guests. Our room was nice and clean with stocked bar fridge daily! The views from most rooms open out to a balcony that has wildlife literally outside your window. It's a nice size resort in a jungle setting which is a plus if you enjoy watching animals in the wild as you are right in the middle of monkeys, iguana's, parrots and so many other interesting wildlife. There are lots of beautiful pools, an [... read more] adult pool, and a beach inlet that has a net to keep most ocean wildlife out of the resort beach ocean swimming area. Some smaller fish do make their way in, though and the inlet shelters keep the beach goers from some wind - in this inlet is where the snorkeling is - the water was quite murky and smelly on some days - I think it depends on the current that allows the water to refresh from the ocean. The resort's beach area is located at the back of the resort, depending on which building you are in, it can take a good 10 minutes to walk there. There is no ocean front sandy beach this was a huge drawback for us. The resort allows you 1 free hour of snorkeling a day, but we had to carefully climb down the rocks and carefully swim out to snorkel to avoid the sharp rocks. Food was great, selection at the main buffet was amazing, they even have the specialty teas and a cappuccino machine! The food is upgraded at the Specialty restaurants, which include a Steak house, Italian, Mexican, Seafood & Asian. Our favorite was the Seafood restaurant - the bonus is there are no reservations at any of the restaurants - and you can go more than once! There is the Pizza Grill and Paco Taco's which is casual dining open until the wee hours of the morning. Staff was very nice and pleasant. Entertainment - the best show we thought was "Mexico" - which had dances and costumes that represented the whole of Mexico. A truly beautiful relaxing place to stay. The only downfall of this place is the staff that try and sell upgrade packages - and do not take no for an answer. This unfortunately put a damper on our vacation - as there is someone who sits at the entrance of your bldg all day - so trying to avoid them is almost impossible, which they know. We made the mistake of agreeing to see the club package - we were asked for deposit of $20US - 2nd mistake, we were told this reserves a spot and you get funds back after presentation. We were also offered the Xcaret park entrance at a discount, we told them we were not interested in that then the rep Carlos mentioned some other tour packages and asked what we were interested in only after this we were allowed to leave and head to breakfast and we were late for our presentation meeting with airline rep (which they are fully aware of too). They gave us this bright pink beach bag as a token. We felt we were literally forced - after this playing on our minds most of day, we went back to tell that we would like to cancel as this does not interest us. There was a different person at the desk - he said he would have to call his supervisor. We waited for the supervisor - he arrived and went over everything we had heard in the morning - we told him several times we felt we were rushed this morning we had another meeting to attend which we were late for due to this - we simply want to cancel. This supervisor Christian Muniz became quite rude - and told us it will affect Carlos numbers and we are taking away from him - this is his bread and butter! We apologized and again politely told him we would like to cancel we have already wasted so much time. Eventually, he said ok but wait till you speak with Carlos when he returns tomorrow am before your presentation. Again, we reinforced that we just want to cancel and would like our $20US back. He started getting upset and said you were given a beach bag....we told him he can have that bag back! Then he said that he does not have funds and they can be reimbursed tomorrow! He took the form we had been given earlier that day - I asked to take a pic before he took it and that's when he literally lost it - he took out his wallet and slammed the $20.00US on the table !!!! Needless to say, we avoided coming in and out of our building during the rest of our stay!

Occidental Punta Cana: Ok Resort

All in all I can say I had a great vacation, staff is slow especially on checkin, at the main lobby bar Leandro was the man, and in the buffet, Franklin Cedano, and Roberto, you guys rock.. but would I come back to this resort.. NO