Occidental Cozumel: Good Holiday!

Grounds were well taken care of and staff were very accommodating to our needs. Food became repetitive by the end of our stay but still enjoyed it for the most part. Room request was granted which made us all very happy! Could have had more activities to get the teenagers together but not having that ensured more time spent together as a family. Perhaps an option to pay a premium rate for the first club privileges would be a nice option instep of having to buy into that as vacations for us a [... read more]re few and far between.

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Great resort with amazing grounds

The entrance area and view are stunning! The tile work at the front desk is incredible, and the service was friendly, fast and efficient. Our room had been redone and was very clean, fresh, comfortable (great bedding), had everything we required (minibar, safe, toiletries, etc.) and everything operated perfectly. We enjoyed the grounds and wildlife immensely. This was our sixth stay in the Mayan Riviera, and the first time we've experienced deers and monkeys on the grounds of our resort. Th [... read more]e food was good and the service in the buffet, Paco's Taco's and the oriental a la carte was excellent. Great snorkelling at the beach, and we enjoyed the adult and the quiet pools. The location next to Xcaret Ecopark and so close to Playa del Carmen was terrific. We spent a day at Xcaret and we will definitely return to this resort because of both our experience at this resort and because we want to spend more time at the park. Thank you!

Occidental Arenas Blancas: Excellent trip

I was a little bit nervous as to what the resort would be like after reading some reviews, however the negative reviews I read were totally off in my mind. Rooms were large and clean AC worked no problem, shower pressure was good and water was warm. Could have used clean towels more then once, and ran out of toilet paper one day we asked for more and got more no problem. Front desk people we nice, money exchange at the resort was a rip off better rates at the bank. Lobby and beach bar were great [... read more]. Pools looked fine but I never went in spent my time at the beach instead. Beach was amazing plenty of chairs and shaded areas if needed. Chairs were a mix of older and newer ones we never had a hard time finding new chairs. There was one man who served drinks on the beach to your chair it was amazing. Food was good at the buffet I think food quality in Cuba has improved over the years. Ate at the oriental and Italian a la cartes and they were also great. I didn't see any beach activities which was a bit of a let down but they could have been on the solymar side of the beach I always stayed on the blancas side. The location of this resort is key we never had to take a taxi we could walk to shops restaurants and bars no problem. All in all great time great place it is what you make it.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Great Resort

We had a AWESOME time here! The staff were courteous,hard working and very attentive. The grounds were well maintained,the gym was well equipped with equipment. The Sports lounge was a great place to watch sports on there BIG screen in a theater setting, & had a 6 lanes of bowling also. The Restaurants meals were very good, especially the Japanese. The resort was very clean, & never a shortage of loungers or towels. You could book all the restaurants @ once, & you never had to hand in a card to  [... read more]get a towel each time. They had lots of pools(with lap pools also),activities & a FREE Dolphin show on the property.The resort is 1 of 5 on the grounds, so you could walk or jog along the beach on sidewalks. If you wanted they also had a double decker bus available for use, but you could walk almost anywhere under roofs that provide coverage from rain. Free papers were available @ guest services & trained Raptor birds kept all other birds away.

Occidental Cozumel: Gret resort

Amazing resort, rooms were just renovated, beautiful beach and pools. Really good food and friendly crew. Second time in the resort and both ocations had a great time, specially after the room renovations.

Allegro Cozumel: Excellent Resort

The Allegro Cozumel was excellent!! This hotel is very clean and the beach was beautiful and clean. Our room was in the 47 building so it was half way to everything very convienant. They are definitely a four star and working their way up. The staff were amazing very friendly and if there was a problem with anything they would fix it right away.

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Gorgeous resort, staff just okay

The resort grounds are beautiful and our room was nice and tidy. There are many pools and the different kids pools are awesome and great fun for everyone. Don't let the all inclusive fool you though. The internet isn't included and the pirate ship with wave pool is additonal. It's not expensive per day, just not included. The a la carts aren't the greatest. The Japanese place was good though! We had the best luck in the buffets. For lunch the steakhouse buffet on the second floor is the best [... read more]. The beach is gorgeous!! We spent a lot of time there. Since the resort is so big the service lacks for sure. They don't remember you because of so many people so they don't rush to serve you. Smaller resorts are better if service is you must have. The daycare was great. Our kids had a great time there. The night entertainment is pretty good. They put on big productions nightly. The start off early with a kids dance where they end with balloon animals.

Barcelo Maya Caribe: average resort

rooms dated and need of repair, selection of food not the best due to running out of items. Asked to be located near the beach but near the mall-- entertainment in the mall in the evening echos through the mall very loud so if you want to have shut eye anywhere from 6pm to midnight good luck. terrible sewer smell in bedroom asked for someone to take a look on 2 occasions told by front desk they had checked and it smelled of food I informed them NO--- poop. Beach was very good. mall a wast [... read more]e of time overpriced Sports bar good and not a bad section of snack foods

Barcelo Huatulco: disapointed

Had booked a room with a king bed and a view. What we got was a ground floor with double beds. When asked to upgrade we were told that it would cost $60.00 U.S per night. The staff was great, hotel itself was fairly small, the beach was good and the weather was also great. Don't know if I would go back just for the fact that when booking we didn't get what we expected.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Amazing place for people with small kids

Great servie massive place many water parks, you will never get bored the entertainment was also ok i like the towel service and how nice and quiet everything was the gym was awesome Will definitely want to go back got 5 nights of

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: nice resort, unbeatable beach

this was our second time to the Barceló Bavaro Palace in 1 year and it did not disappoint. Resort is fairly big, but is well situated, so nothing is too far. they have a cute train going around the resort, which my kids loved. the grounds are extremely well maintained, but for me the beach is the biggest draw. wide, powdery sand, and tons of free chairs at all times. The Japanese restaurant is a must, the rest of the la carte ones are just ok. I have been to many different 4+ resorts all  [... read more]over the Caribbean and would say this one is best all around. my only negative comment would be the air transat tour guide was very pushy on trying to sell us tours, and failed to do the one thing we needed from him which is to tell us the bus pick up time on way back. So 2 groups were given the wrong time and missed our bus as a result, but thankfully another transat bus came and ended up taking us to the airport. So I'd say air transat can work on improving the transfer to/from airport, too much time wasted on both ends for what is a 15 min ride.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Awesome resorts

Very good,clean hotel and facilities,restaurants are high class and very good and clean with amazing variety of food and drinks,pools and bars are also very good and well designed,all details are beautiful and carefully designed and maintained,especially high quality Gim and Spa . House keeping crews where working very hard to keep facilitiy clean and good looking. Entire personal was friendly and smiling all the time.

Barcelo Puerto Vallarta: True Mexican 5 Star

Had the unfortunate room just over the bar that struck up with the live band at 10:00pm and closed down at 1:00am. Upon speaking to the front desk they were willing to move us to a room above the nightly entertainment room. Really!! The pillows on the beds were the worst I had ever slept on! The food was ok, not fantastic by any means! If you didn't tip the buffet table service staff right at the beginning you could sit and wait for water,coffee or other drinks for your entire meal! The reso [... read more]rt grounds and pools were beautiful and well maintained! Not much of a beach to lay on, the waves got crazy later on during the day but the sand was amazing! It was a great family resort out of town so if your looking for nightlife this would not be the place for you! There was definite inconsistency when it came to service at the front desk! We needed a late checkout and other guests paid $50 USD for a late checkout while I paid nothing. No free WIFI! You had to be a Premiun Guest for WIFI, where is there not free WIFI?? It was a long ride on a windy road into town so if you want nightlife and hustle and bustle this is not the resort for you!

Barcelo Huatulco: Excellent resort at a great price, except for the alright food

We spent a week at the Barcelo Huatulco (13-20 Dec. 2016) just before prices rose for Christmas. Overall we very much liked the resort: for everything but the food I’d rate it as a 4.5 star; for regular eaters I’d rate it as maybe 4 stars and, for those with special diets (e.g. vegetarians), a 2 to at most a 3 star. Things we liked. Resort. Like most resorts in the area, this one was built maybe 30+ years back and so it is not the most modern. That said, it is compact, well designed,  [... read more]easy to use, with nice gardens and large palm trees, and the views over the beach and ocean from the lobby and many rooms are beautiful. There are two adjacent pools – one for children and the other (with a bar) for adults. Water levels are never deep – this is not a place to do laps. There is a well equipped gym, tennis courts, a mini-golf area, a games room (pool and ping pong tables…) and I believe that the use of all including equipment (not verified for tennis rackets) is free. There is the main buffet and four restaurants which are not always open every night (Italian, Spanish, Mexican and a small sushi restaurant that did not require reservations). There are a lot of places to lay down around the pool and overlooking the ocean but, despite that, at the end of our stay just before Christmas the idiotic towel game – people getting up at 7AM to “reserve” chairs - was in full swing. Beach The beach is one of the largest in the area. Facing the beach, at the far left past Dreams, is an area where there are many fish – take some bread to feed them. The beach goes down fast to the water and then beyond – the water gets deep fast. When we were there waves were moderate, other beaches in the area have much more violent surf (Chahue) or less so (Santa Cruz and Entrega), but you will need to take taxis to go there. The hotel has some equipment for water sports (small sail catamarans, plastic kayaks…) that they can show you how to use, and water skidoos you can rent for a I think $60US per half hour. Entertainment Every evening there is music in the lobby bar (pretty good musicians and singers), followed by a show in the theater (varied and better than most I’ve seen in AI resorts), and mostly Mexican dance music starting around 11PM or so in the bar across from the Japanese Sushi restaurant. Clients were over half Mexican, with a lot of Canadians, a few Americans and a handful of other nationalities. Rooms have been recently renovated and are nice. If you pay considerably more for premium status, you get an ocean front room (plus better food and drinks); otherwise you get an ocean view or garden view room (like us). Higher rooms give better views (rooms on the inside of the U shaped buildings have views of the pool area and sea). The beach and resort face almost directly south. Rooms with odd numbers give you better sunrise views while those with even numbers have the afternoon sun. Staff As is often the case in Huatulco, the local staff are wonderful. A suggestion to guests: tip the staff well – they do their jobs very well and their salaries are not high; the area is not well-off. Excursions We went twice to the small town of la Crucecita (fixed price taxi 43 pesos) – a pleasant place, with good jewelry and clothes shops including one behind weaves being used to make local tablecloths. They have ice cream at one corner of the zocalo (central square) – you choose the ingredients that are combined and then “fried” in an extremely cold pan in front of you – neat. Two places to hang out for snacks, pizzas and drinks are on the second floors overlooking the square – one above the ice cream place (only open in the evening) and the other diagonally across the square (open all day long). Prices are good and they are great places for people watching. Santa Cruz (fixed price taxi 43 pesos) is a smaller town with a marina, with a real nice small organic open market the 1st and 3rd Saturday mornings of every month. There is a fair sized tourist souvenir area (hats, tee-shirts, etc.) and elsewhere some good stores and restaurants (including a few right along the waterfront where you can eat guacamole and have a margarita with your feet in the sand). One day we took a taxi outside of our hotel (excellent safe driver who speaks very good English and knows the area very well – Fernando, taxi 045, phone 958-109-5001 – spent 1200 pesos for the day plus a tip of 150 and we bought him lunch too) to travel first to the Santa Cruz organic market, and then onto the turtle center in Mazunte (a 75 minute drive up the coast), and the lagoons in Ventanilla (huge iguana, crocodiles…), and finally to drive through other nearby beach towns on the way back. It was an excellent day and cost less than half that of a regular tour for the four of us. Another half day we went snorkeling with Hurricane Divers (located in Santa Cruz) – saw some fantastic fish and paid somewhat less for the experience than a tour bought in the hotel. Worth the experience. Now the less good – the food. The food was of variable quality, and we most liked breakfasts (and the omelette ladies who often also could cook small quesadillas with added mushrooms…). Loads of fruit, juices and breakfast food. Coffee was pretty good (and we are picky). For lunch (buffets) and dinner in the main buffet, there was an overwhelming number of choices of generally low-quality meats (pork slices, fish fingers, hamburgers…). There was a good number of salads, a few vegetable side dishes, and some good natural fruit drinks too. But for people wanting to avoid eating much meat, other options were often very scarce. We only tried the Italian and Mexican restaurants. The Italian one was quite good but had a pretty limited menu (as they were often out of some items, like green salad) but their entrées (hors d’oeuvres, salads…) were pretty tasty and well presented, as was the pasta. The pizzas, however, were lousy. It had the best reputation of all a la carte restaurants and from our experience we agree. That restaurant is located outside beside the pools, and so they allow men to wear shorts and sandals – in the other a la carte restaurants you need long pants and shoes. The Mexican restaurant was hit-or-miss – excellent poblano soup, just acceptable mushroom soup, quite good cheese chili rellenos (a special order), just alright tlayudas, etc. Service (as always) however was excellent. There were vegetarians in our group and, despite really liking the resort, their problems were such that we may not return. A resort that offers maybe 40 meat and seafood main dinner dishes in the buffets can make an effort to have a couple main dish veggie options for those who prefer to eat otherwise. They often use chicken stock in soups and rice, lard in beans… and this is not marked, making it real hard to know what a vegetarian can eat. This was a problem even in the a la carte restaurants, with the exception of the very good Italian one. Luckily for us there was no limit on the number of times we could eat there – we ate dinner there 4 nights out of 7. (That said, this is our second trip to the Huatulco area and our general impression is that, unlike some other resort destinations, most restaurants and resorts in Huatulco make little effort to accommodate vegetarians...) Finally, we were drawn to this resort in part because of the advertised $500 bonus coupons being offered. These were moderate reductions for expensive room upgrades and for spa treatments – things we never used. So don’t count on these being all that useful when you make your resort choices…

Royal Hideaway Playacar: Amazing!

Just a great adults only resort. One of the best in the Playacar area. The grounds are beautiful with resort amenities not over subscribed. No line-ups here! There were plenty of places to discover a tranquil moment with a special friend or loved one. The food was consistently good; better than many of the other resorts in the area. The staff are very courtious and always made that extra effort to make our stay memorable. We will return there again in the spring.

Barcelo Huatulco: Amazing place

This place is a hidden secret. Staff very friendly from housekeeping to reception and everyone in between. Rooms alway clean and bar fridge always full. Beach very clean (no seaweed ) . Went to buffet and restaurants both had very good choices and tasty food.

Barcelo Puerto Vallarta: Beautiful Place

Pros...Beautiful resort with lots of pools. We loved our 2 bedroom suite, the baby crib that was delivered was perfect, the grounds, pools were awesome! We had to use medical for our sick baby and was promptly delivered via ambulance to the Puerto Vallarta Hospital which also had really great service. Cons... Loud music pounding until 6am, lots of parties for locals, one whole pool was used by the locals to party in until 6pm every day. I was expecting a family resort but the week we went it  [... read more]was a club environment.

Barcelo Ixtapa: Resort was nice. Service was great. Beach was amazing!

I thought that the hotel was nice. However, the rooms were only okay (bathrooms were tiny) and the one that were were in was very loud when a show was on. There was no resting while the party show was on. It felt like there was an upgrade charge for everything wifi, ocean view, etc. I would only stay again in the ocean view room. Although, I also heard that these rooms had a lot of noise as well. That being said we had a ton of fun the beach and in the pools. The staff were great. No  [... read more]issues there.

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Can't beat it!

We had an amazing time! Everything was perfect. We highly recommend the week pass to Xcaret park next door. We went snorkeling everyday in the park and then explored the park for an hour or two longer. We returned to Occidental for lunch and enjoyed the pool and the beach for the afternoon. The staff at Occidental were very helpful and friendly. We would definitely return.

Barcelo Gran Faro Los Cabos: Barcelo gran faro los cabos

This is a great resort if your thinking mexico san jose los cabos..I had booked all inclusive.We had arrived before check in and recieved an upgrade but had to wait for the room which was ok as we were able to go eat at the buffet for lunch and get a firsthand look at the resort.There are 3 big pools and 2 hot tub pools...one hottub adult only. The resort was fairly quiet during the week of dec 11-17..which was good if your looking for quiet without music blasting..and very quiet at night..most  [... read more]nightly entertainment was under an hr and not loud. The pools were all warm and one is a saltwater infinity pool overlooking the beach which was groomed everymorning and very fine sand.The food at the buffets changed daily and was all very good.I found the room to be clean and comfortable..fridge wasnt working on arrival but changed out within the hour only to quit 3 days later..but i never asked to have it replaced..They had wash sponges in the bathroom but washcloths were only seen twice in 7 days.Other than that the service was good by all the staff. I found it odd when the entertainment team was going around asking to write a review for trip advisor in exchange for hotel services.. i wrote a review and they wouldnt honor their deal with me because i never gave it 5 stars.Regardless of that i thought it was a great resort..very quiet and laid back during my stay and food was allways great as was the staff..the grounds and pools are highly maintained and i really had no major complaints. They do have wifi but at a cost and only works closer to main building.I would highly recomend this resort and do have friends going in febuary based on my stay