Occidental Arenas Blancas: Close to souvenir shopping if that's what you like

The overall place was fine. Not too much for kids to do unless they are young and go to the day program. The weather was not great so that really dampened our spirits as we like to travel for the sun and heat never expected so much rain and wind. Beach was beautiful even though we weren't able to go in much due to the weather.

Allegro Cozumel: Nice resort

Very nice resort. The grounds were nicely manicured and kept clean. Staff were helpful and friendly. The beach was nice but you had to be quick to get your chair in the morning. The pool area was very nice and they also had a childrens pool and play area. The food at the buffets was very good as well as at the à la cartes. Would recommend this resort.

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Barcelo Bavaro Palace - better last year

We enjoyed this resort last year and decided to return again only to discover that several things had gone downhill since then. Our first criteria when going down south is a great beach and this one definitely has it. There was never a problem getting chairs at the beach and the Barcelo chain keeps the beach natural with lots of shade from palm trees as opposed to man made palapas. The beach itself goes on for miles and although there was a bit of seaweed at this time of year they are constantly [... read more] cleaning it up daily. The grounds are beautiful and very well kept. We stayed in a junior suite in the 4000 block which is very convenient to the beach and main buffet. The rooms are nice and large with a hot tub on the balcony which we didn't use. The cheaper rooms are quite a distance from everything but would probably be convenient if you were a golfer. I would recommend a room that is not on the ground floor to avoid any insect or humidity issues. The main difference we found from last year was that the service level was lacking. The hotel was less crowded but the service was very slow or non-existent in some cases, particularly at the buffets. This was by no means a fault of the staff who work very hard but the fact that they seemed to be very understaffed this year. Compared to the Barcelo Palace in the Mayan Riviera (we were there 2 years ago) it was like night and day with regards to the level of service . We were able to get a la carte dinners every night which was a bonus, normally I believe you are only allowed 4 per week. The favorite in our opinion was Las Brisas in the adults only section and La Fuente (Spanish). The steak and seafood were ok, Italian not very good but the worst part of the latter three was the ambiance. I can accept the "cafeteria" look in the buffet but not sure why it would be the same in the a la carte restaurants. No one feels special eating dinner in sheet lighting. The food at the buffets is especially good at breakfast, pastries and breads are to die for. I wish I could remember the man's name at the omelette station - he was awesome. We are not huge liquor drinkers although enjoyed some wonderful cocktails at the Carey bar but were greatly disappointed with the house wines in the a la cartes. We are by no means wine snobs but both the red and white house wines were basically not drinkable. It looked to us like most people were ordering bottles of wine in the restaurants, probably costing at least $60.00 a bottle. I feel that for the price we paid for a 5 star resort we should be able to have a decent house wine. Again, this was much worse than last year. Compared to last year the wifi was terrible. We paid $45.00 US for the week, reported twice that it wasn't working. My husband tried to send an email once that took over 2 hours. If you have to rely on the internet I would not recommend going here. Upon checkout we discussed this with the reception who said that he would contact us but I am doubting that we will ever hear back from them. Last year we found the clientele to be mostly Spanish which is understandable since this is a Spanish chain. No problem with that. This year the resort was overrun with Russians who I imagine believe they are superior to everyone else based on how rude they were. The bartenders are so busy and work so hard that they cannot be expected to keep track of who is next in line for a drink - that should be up to the patrons. I cannot count the number of times that a Russian shoved himself in front of me to order a drink. I read a number of reviews that had the same complaint. If the resort is offering some sort of discount that is attracting Russians they may want to re-think that strategy. Overall we had a nice vacation but based on some of the things we experienced this year it is unlikely that we would return unless some of these issues are addressed.

Barcelo Gran Faro Los Cabos: Barcelo Gran Faros Los Cabos- GREAT VACATION

My family and I traveled to Los Cabos January 28 2017-February 4 2017. It was my first time to Cabos and WILL NOT BE my last! My son, daughter in law and grandson have been before. Reviews: FOOD- great selection. I was never disapointed and the snack bar at the pool (opened from 11-6pm) was great food!! Hamburgers were delicious, fruit, fajitas, The buffett at lunch and dinner always had a great selection as well. Fish grilled to your perfection as well as a meat (beef, pork etc) Pas [... read more]ta. Breakfast buffett was also very delicious and the setting on the ocean was a fantastic place to start the day. Pool was warm and perfect. Rooms needed a little upgrade, but for the amount of time spent in them, they were just fine. We had ajoining rooms which was fantastic. Front desk accomdated us which was very nice. Check in was fast and easy. Hotel size was perfect. Everything is so close and exactly what i needed. Didnt have to walk to far to get anywhere. Ive been to resorts with 600-1000 rooms and this resort was only 350, and it was perfect!!!! The staff was super friendly. The ladies at the restaurants that greeted us were always so friendly and loved the grandson so much. Waiter Victor at the lunch buffet and seafood restuarant was amazing!!! He deserves to be a manager thats how fantastic he was!!!! Always on top of things, bringing drinks over before even finishing. He jsut went over and above. All in all this was a fantastic place to visit and i highly recommend it to everyone. The strip right outside the hotel was nice to see at night time and was great place to just walk around for a change. I dont really have anything bad to say about this resort.. Everything was perfect. Great vacation and amazing memories made. Thank you BARCELO!!!!!

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Always a nice time

This was our third visit, and once again we were mostly happy. This time, however, we weren't ready for the concerts on the "new" stage. We stayed in the building beside the main theatre, and would hear the music on our balcony like we were sitting near the stage. This is very upsetting at 12:30 am when you have children in your room. I realize the resort is looking to expand its client list, but if they don't fix this problem we'll look for another way to spend our vacation budget.

Barcelo Maya Caribe: Had a Great Time 28 Jan - 4 feb 17

This hotel complex is a large hotel with the Caribe being 1 of 4. They share amenities like restaurants, beach activities and theaters. This hotel has a little of everything from toddlers to seniors. There seems to be activities for everyone. I took a Hobie Cat course on day 1 and was able to take one out every day there after. We snorkeled off the beaches and saw stingrays, turtles, squids, eels and even a shark. A little one about 3 ft long and it was cruising along the sandy beach among the w [... read more]aders. Did a catamaran trip to snorkel a reef. saw a turtle, octopus, star fish, puffer fish and many colorful ones I don't know the name of. The beaches are fairly good. There seems to be a windier side and a calm side so you can pick what you prefer. There are lots of chairs so you never had to get up early to reserve them. The pools are plenty and have activities and swim up bars. There are plenty of a la carte restaurants to choose from. We like the Sea Food one best as it had grilled lobster and seafood crepes. We had an Ocean view room which is kind of misleading because even thought the rooms are facing the ocean and are closest to it, you can really only see the pools but the palm trees prevent you from actually having a good view of the ocean. The rooms are nice and balconies have a bubble tub on them on the second and third floors. 1st floor rooms have a swim up pool shared by all the 1st floor occupants. The staff here are great. At the sea food restaurant we were given a flaming coffee show by Mario. Gabrielle at the beach activities is extremely pleasant and helpful. Barcelo has a stage built on the property to the south of the complex. We arrived on the last day of a concert fest called Los Muerto con Queso. I understand that there are concerts here frequently and you should be aware of when they are happening from both a positive or negative perspective. We got to enjoy the concert from our balcony but if it was not my type of music it could have been a less pleasant experience.

Occidental Cozumel: Super!

Fantastic staff, good location, beautiful siteseens, good value for money, amazing beach. Rooms are clean and spacious. Gardens are well taken care of with a lot of wildness. The sunset is breathtaken.

Barcelo Montelimar: Could not be any better

This is the best resort I have been to yet. The only down side was no direct flight from Edmonton Alberta. The hotel staff were wonderful a bit of a language problem that In my opinion will be over come soon as the staff is working hard to learn English and French we managed to understand each other. The recreational staff are the best and are very good with children and all the tourists at the resort. There are activities for everyone young and old. They put on a show every night I admit I [... read more] did not go because it was way to loud for my ears. It is a large resort 80 acres, I did not get to see all of it and I was there for 2 weeks. There is the best mini putt golf course I have ever seen, the best golfer would be challenged by it. There is also a golf course, a tennis court a badminton court, darts, volley ball by the pool and in the pool also basket ball in the pool. The resort is so clean they pick all the leaves, they wash every thing they even wash the streets. The pools are filtered and refreshed every day in the early morning. There are no bugs, no flys no mosquitoes lots of dragon flys I saw in the evenings. No nasty sewer odors all smells nice and clean and is nice and clean. The food oh wow the food is way to good, the beef cooked to perfection, steaks roasts pork pork chops chicken roasted and deep fried to equal Kernel Sanders. Salads vegetables fruit any kind one could want. The drinks are the usual resort drinks nothing special there. The ocean is good for people who like to jump in the waves, the sand is dark with black sand in it. One must go to the beach in the early morning by 10 A.M. the sand is to hot to walk on. If one could pick this resort up and move it to the Caribbean side of Nicaragua it would be perfect in every way.

Barcelo Karmina: Amazing Resort

This resort is just a nice as it shows in the pictures. We could not have asked for a better stay. All the restaurants, including the buffet were excellent and we would recommend to all. Our only downfall for this trip, was that even though we requested for the 2 couples to be together, we originally ended up in 2 different area's of the hotel. They were good enough to change rooms for us to the same section, but different floor. The pools were all very nice and had enough chairs for all. I mu [... read more]st say, the water temp was a little cold for some of us. It took us a bit to get into it, but once in, it was very refreshing. The beach, was small and not as inviting as I like. We did see quite a few people using the beach every day.

Occidental Cozumel: Cozumel Occidental Grand, pros and cons

Here is my evaluation of the Occidental Grand Cozumel at which my friend and I stayed January 27 to February 3, 2017. The evaluation is meant to help you guide others who might be contemplating staying at this resort. 1. The grounds of this hotel are quite beautiful and meticulously maintained. The cottages are secluded and interspersed, each sitting in a lovely botanical setting and independent of the others, offering perfect privacy. 2. Our room seemed to have been recently renovated. I [... read more]t was a generous size, clean, and bright. The linen was good quality. Bottled water in our room was always in good supply. I found that tipping the maid ahead guaranteed exceptional service. She was excellent. 3. The bathroom also seemed new, tiled from floor to ceiling in a terracotta large tiles. 4. Hot water was always available, and the shower heads, one fixed and one hand-held, worked well. The safe and the closet were both situated in the bathroom. This is not a practical arrangement. This inconvenience brought my rating of the room to "fair" 5. If we left a request, towels were replaced daily, and in generous numbers. 6. Bathroom items such as soap and shampoo were plentiful. 7. The air-conditioning unit worked; however, the thermostat control did not. No matter at what temperature we set the unit, it ran continuously. The air-conditioning vent was situated in an upper section of the wall in such a way to blow directly onto one of the beds. 8. The fan in the room worked and for my purposes was a perfect solution to nocturnal temperatures. I am a sound sleeper and the buzz of the fan did not disturb me. 9. The main buffet restaurant offered average quality dishes, but there was ample choice, and even a chef making tasty meat or fish dishes to request. Salad choices were ample, vegetables were offered raw as well as cooked, and there were numerous desserts. The desserts to me were mostly inedible, but perhaps my dessert palate is not accustomed to Mexican sweets. For example, their mousse bore no resemblance to mousse one eats at our restaurants. There was, however, always fresh fruit. 4. We were led to believe that we would be entitled to eating at speciality restaurants 3 times during our stay. However, once we checked in, someone told us that the resort is so full that we would be able to eat at these restaurants only 2 times during our stay. Evidence showed that this is a deliberate deception in the brochure, as these speciality restaurants were never filled to capacity. On the contrary, they seemed more than half empty every single day. 4. Food in speciality restaurants turned out to be exactly the same as in the buffet. The chef took a tiny cut of meat or fish (2 square inches), fanned a few slices of zucchini and carrots around it, and drizzled some reduced balsamic over the dish, and presented it as a gourmet plate. The pasta in the Mediterranean Room was really quite horrible, overdone and soggy. The Seafood Specialty Restaurant on the beach was mediocre at best, although the ocean view and the stars made up for the food mediocrity. All in all, one did better to eat in the buffet restaurant and design one’s own specialty dishes. 5. The waiters were all hardworking and accommodating, courteous and professional. 6. The beach was always overcrowded and it was nearly impossible to find two chairs together. 7. The big pool offered no shade whatsoever. 8. The smaller adult pool was lovely with new well padded loungers. Iguanas lived by the pool, sometimes as many as 8. I found the first 2 charming “guests”, but more than that an utter annoyance. I could tell the iguanas were enjoying themselves, making love all day and resting in between. Another negative about this pool was how guests monopolized the chairs by parking towels on them at 7 am and not showing up until after lunch. The only way we could get a lounger was to come out at 7 am as well. We felt no guilt over this tactic because we actually used the loungers all day. 9. My biggest complaint about this resort is unequivocally about the vast number of smokers around the pool and in the lobby area. Since we in Canada (perhaps in big cities only) find smoking to be so passé and so dangerous really, I had a hard time with this imposition on my enjoyment of the resort. For this reason alone, I would never revisit this resort. 10. The gym had new equipment: 3 treadmills, 1 elliptical, 1 bicycle, one rowing machine, and various weights. It was never busy, so I could enjoy 2 hours every day of uninterrupted solitude and alone time. BELOW IS A REPORT ON WHAT HAPPENED TO US BECAUSE WE DID NOT KNOW AHEAD OF TIME OF THE DANGERS OF SALES PEOPLE DECEPTIONS: Immediately as we deplaned and entered the Cozumel Airport terminal and asked for a Transat rep, we were led to a booth where a man claimed to be part of the Transat team. He stressed the urgency of talking to him first, so we will know what the best and most economical way was to arrange tours, etc. Ten minutes into this presentation, we realized he had nothing to do with Transat and dashed outside to be sure we had not missed our ride to the resort. We barely made it. And by the way, everything this man told us was a lie. The first morning of our resort stay, we ventured into the lobby to ask about an upgrade, as you suggested. Since the lobby was populated by many desks and many people in uniform, we asked the first available person how much an upgrade would be. He led us to a desk and ensured us the person sitting behind it would be the best person to arrange this upgrade. This was where our nightmare began. The story is very long and extremely frustrating, but in a nutshell: we were guaranteed by 3 people who were called in as back-ups, that the upgrade would be $US 21/night, but we first needed to speak to one more person to secure this upgrade request. Before we realized it, we were sitting in a large room, being given a time-share sales pitch. We then made it clear that we were not interested in time share. After many, many more little incidents and protests, we were led back to the original “liar” to finally arrange the promised upgrade. Unfortunately, he said this upgrade is no longer $US 21, but $US 37. On and on it went, until the room was actually not available for another 4 nights, etc. etc. I finally realized the lies were getting bigger, and raised my voice to let them know that they were all lying and giving the resort a very bad name. In the end, we did have some marvellous luck that the reception manager Gabriela heard me and called us over to her desk. By way of compensation, she gave us the upgrade for free, although the room itself would only be available on Monday. She also commented that these sales people are not part of the resort, and that they lie continuously to everyone and anyone they trap for their sales pitch. As part of Gabriela’s generosity, we had free wifi in the lobby and in the upgraded Royal Club section, we had access to La Caretta, by far the best restaurant on the premises (where we ate often), we had access to the Royal Club pool. In fact, we had all the privileges of the Royal Club members. On Monday, we decided not to move rooms, as our room was fine and moving seemed at that point not worth all the effort. I felt sincere gratitude for Gabriela’s kind offer and to make up somewhat for the free upgrade, I rewarded the restaurant staff with generous tips when we ate at The Caretta. The waiters were attentive, pleasant, professional, and welcoming. Mosquitoes and other bugs: On our fight back, I noticed a few bumps on my arms and hands, but paid no attention. On Saturday morning when I woke up in my own bed, I counted 19 oversized bite marks—raised red bumps on my left arms, 7 on my right, several on my back, and the itchiness began. I am on Benadryl and confident the marks will disappear. I don’t know what caused them—mosquitoes or flies, but they are not pleasant to live with. The odd thing is that I did not feel the bites when they happened. So, all in all, although this resort has truly lovely and well maintained grounds, friendly and courteous staff, and is well priced, I would not recommend it to people who like pristine open spaced beaches, quiet pool areas, a smoke-free environment, and insect free spaces. I myself would not go back. As well, I would not go to Mexico because of the utter lack of professional work ethics of sales people. Feel free to share my outlook on Cozumel Occidental Grand with your clients. This report in no way reflects your part in this trip (Tripcentral agent), as you were flawless in your arrangements. Thank you. N.B. I would like to remain anonymous in the context of not sharing my email address with anyone other than Tripcentral staff.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Great Family Resort

Great resort. Was large but we stuck to our section. AmaZing for the kids, great water park. Beach was beautiful, shallow entry and great for the kids. Clean property, well cleaned rooms. Justa Great trip. Would go back in the future .

Allegro Cozumel: One week in paradise

We had an amazing time at the Allegro! The hotel was beautifully laid out, and the grounds were perfectly maintained. The staff was friendly, helpful, and we were always greeted with a smile. The beach was gorgeous. Our son had a blast at the kids pool. Beautiful family oriented resort. The food was delicious, with plenty of selection. BBQ everyday by the pool. We enjoyed our stay and hope to return!

Occidental Cozumel: Well kept resort

The grounds of the reset are very well bushed in. Rooms looked like they had recently been renovated. It is a Smaller resort..depending what you are looking for and mostly older residents. The food was amazing but seemed to have to wait in line for 10 min some days just to get a table, espesually for lunch. The beach was not cleaned on a daily basic but still seemed to be okay.

Occidental Cozumel: Beautiful location

Service was excellent, very friendly staff. Beach was very crowded due to a small beach area for chaise lounges. Difficulty getting chaise lounges in the pool area. The food was plentiful, although much of the same menu every day. Warning to avoid salesmen trying to sell upgrades re: taxi service from the airport.very clean rooms, good linens provided.

Allegro Cozumel: Allegro Cozumel

This is a very nice Hotel. The food and drinks were good. lots of pool and beach chairs for everyone. Entertainments during the day around the pool was good but could use more entertainments during the evenings. they have a nice pool for children. We really enjoyed our week.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Very impresses with resort

People were friendly resort was clean and beautiful We loved the food and beaches the staff were always. Top notch We have only good things to say ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,!,,,,,,,,,,,,,,m,,,,,m,m,mm,m,m,mm,mm,mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Barcelo Aruba: Great Resort

This was our 5th visit to Aruba and this "all inclusive" resort. It was previously the Occidental Grand and just recently changed to a Barceló resort. We have always booked the "Royal Club/Level" which allows access to the Royal Level lounge where breakfast, lunch and dinner can be ordered a la carte. It also includes priority check in on the 9th floor, name brand liquor for drinks and priority reservations at the four specialty restaurants and a concierge service to assist you during your s [... read more]tay. Meals can still be had at all the buffets if desired. The hotel has been going through some upgrades and the bar area was enlarged and now has a lot of seating and a large dance floor area where there is live music nightly. The casino was removed from the hotel but they are setting up a small area with some slot machines in the bar area. There are casinos available at all the other hotels on the strip. The rooms have always been very clean and seem to be getting some upgrades. The shower heads were upgraded to rain shower heads with an added shower head for the front of your body. The only downside might be that rooms that have the shower in the bathtub might be difficult for older guests to climb into as the side seems very high. As with other resorts there is always a first come first served system for lounges around the pool and at the beach. The first come seem to go out very early in the morning to reserve their lounges. If you don't mind paying for a lounge (with an umbrella or palapas for shade) there are vendors on the beach by the hotel who allow you to reserve lounges each day. We have done this each year as you really need the shade as the sun is very hot! The hotel is situated in an area which is very nice for walking out at night. There are lots of restaurants and touristy type shopping. The casinos in the other hotels are all easy walking distance and at the back of the hotels on the beach side there is a walkway that is lit up and you can walk along the back of the hotels at night. Oranjestad is a short bus ride from the high rise hotel area. All in all we have been very happy at this resort and plan to return again next year.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Barcelo Maya Colonial - Two Weeks Fantastic

Two weeks at Barcelo Maya Colonial - January 17 - 31/2017. Fantastic holiday. Air Transat: Direct Ottawa to Cancun. Five hour delay at departure due to system malfunction. Solution - bring in another plane from Toronto to move us to Cancun. Thanks to the Air Transat Captain and crew for discovering the problem while were still on the ground. Ground Transport: Direct transfer Cancun Airport to Barcelo Maya Colonial and back. Ten passenger van. Good trip both ways. Hotel: Beautiful grou [... read more]nds and gardens. Very clean room with nice balcony overlooking a beautiful garden. Buffets: Excellent food and selection. Great service. Prompt and friendly. A la Cartes: We ate at the a la cartes ten evenings during our two week stay. Wonderful service and food. Pre and post dinner drinks. Each of these dinners would have been a $200.00 bill in Ottawa. Great value. Bars: Lots of bars over the property. Very prompt service for the most part. Beach: Beautiful beach. Lots of chairs. Wonderful white sand. Snorkelling: Great snorkelling right off beach. We have been travelling to all inclusive resorts all over the Caribbean over the last ten years. We would definitely return to the Barcelo Maya Colonial. Very enjoyable holiday.

Allegro Cozumel: Lovely resort!

What a beautiful resort, the grounds, beach, pools, rooms, food, and especially the people. It is not a large resort so getting around was easy and you didn't feel over crowded. It looked like a great place for family vacations even though we didn't have children with us. Great kids pool area. The other pool areas were very nice. Everything very clean and landscaping beautiful. The sunsets were gorgeous every night. The food was also very good, pretty good selection to choose from. The a la cart [... read more]s were excellent and an experience. They always made it very enjoyable an extra special. The staff worked very hard for everyone to enjoy their vacation. They were always there if you needed them. Friends we were with had planned a beautiful private dinner on the beach with the group of us, he proposed to his bride to be. What an amazing meal and beautiful setting! Definitely recommend this! The waiters and the chef did an excellent job, best steak I have had! Our friends then got married on the beach later in the week, how beautiful it was! The staff did a fabulous job setting up and making sure it all worked out. They were amazing. Overall this was an amazing vacation and I would definitely return again.

Occidental Costa Cancun: great resort!

The resort was smaller than we normally go to but ended up being a plus. There was no waiting for drinks, no holding lounge chairs, no line ups for omelets or fajitas. It was clean, friendly staff, fun entertainment, no language barriers. Very pleasantly surprised and would go again tomorrow.