Ocean El Faro

Erik was very friendly helpful and pleasant to talk to the bar people were very gracious the restaurants were clean with a great variety to sample the Japanese and steak were the best.The spa was great for the massage and scrubThefrontdesk was helpful when we got locked out of our rooms Ìt was a great relaxing holiday Thanks All

Frequent washroom runs

The grounds were great, the beach rocky and secluded and the entertainment ok. However the biggest issue we had was diarrhea. We had constant runs to the bathroom. We witnessed staff cleaning cups with water alone, no soap. Would not recommend it to others.

Amazing Resort is right.

We visited the resort Dec. 15-22/23 and we had a wonderful time and we would go back in a heart beat, the pools and lazy river were very clean and the water temp was just right. the grounds, public washrooms were also very clean, great job. the food and service at the buffet was outstanding and also the a la carte restaurant, so good. i cant say anything wrong with the resort and we will return our next trip.

Loved every minute

This resort was beautiful, clean and well maintained. The food was absolutely delicious. The staff were attentive and friendly. We loved the pools and entertainment crew. The bowling alley was so much fun. I would suggest more pool tables please. The casino is unnecessary in my opinion. I loved the a la carte dinners.

Great Resort

We stayed 7 days at the Ocean EL Faro which is a great resort. I don't consider this hotel to be a 5 star, 4 stars for sure. Our stay was enjoyable, comfortable and very relaxing. At first I thought the resort was going to be huge, but its not. We stayed in building 9 and to get to the lobby it was a 5-8 minute walk. Our favorite spot was Mike's coffee, every morning we had a nice latte, the staff are very hard working but sometimes its very slow. Usually, they have one, sometimes two people ma [... read more]king coffees and you can imagine it can get busy. The food was tasty at the buffet, there's always something for everyone, there's a variety of different items that you can have for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We aren't picky eaters. The a la carte restaurants are great, we did all of them except for Blue Moon.....didn't want to wear pants. I think our favorite was the SteakHouse, Margarita and Sakura. At times it was difficult to make reservations, as we wanted an early dinner and they book up fast. You have to be on right at 8am and be quick about it booking your dinner. The app worked great the whole time we were there except for one dinner......I wasn't able to bring the menu up when ordering so they provided a paper menu, a few minutes later it was working again. We stayed by the pool most days, as the kids enjoyed it. The beach is nice but the waves were big the whole week, its also very rocky, great for exploring with the kids and finding fossils. They ended up brings some fossils home. If you have a family, this a great safe place to visit.

Only for families with children

Although this is a beautiful resort and well taken care of, we found that it was mostly meant for people with small children and people that wanted to pay to be privileged. We felt if we ask questions we were bothering them the only staff that seem to want to help the male staff. They were very pleasant and never said no to anything that was asked the cleaning staff was also very helpful and made sure you had everything you needed.. Food was OK. Nobody would serve, but it definitely could have [... read more] been better. It was the same thing all the time and always make sure to get the food from the back because the chaos that went on in the buffet with children running around and even adults grabbing food, taste testing and putting it back on the plates Was disgusting !!!!! We observe this many times through our weekday had to have food removed many times because of it and this is what we mean when we say it was chaos people pushing people, shoving nobody had manners Overall, I would not return with me and my husband, but if I was to bring my grandson along, this would be the resort for him. Everyone makes their own judgements on a resort. This one is definitely a resort.

Nice resort

This resort is beautiful and clean. Room was amazing with large bathroom, kingsize bed & sitting area with sofa, chair, coffee table & desk. No room clock or facecloths. The food was OK. Getting reservations for the a la carte restaurants was a nightmare! The H10 app wasn't working so had to line up at 7:15 a.m. (along with dozens of other guests) to make same day reservations! No welcome drink or cool cloth upon arrival & only one reception desk employee to check in our busload. Had to beg a be [... read more]llboy to take us to our room. First time at this resort & it was midnight! He dropped us off in front of the building & just pointed us to the building. Hubby's wristband/room door access didn't work. Had to get a card for him. No email sent to us to advise of the transfer pick up time for departure. Didn't see a Sunwing/Nexus rep the entire time we were there. Due to these many small details and the shier size of the resort we would not be returning to this hotel.

Nice resort, but

The resort is very nice with lots of entertainment. We really liked the silent disco event in the main lobby. Bowling was fun and pool activities were good. The lazy river was fun. BUT booking restaurants was a pain. You have to get up at 6:30 to be in line before 7 then wait in line TIL 8 to make a reservation and if you are not in the first ten to twenty good luck getting a time before 9pm. It appears the privilege and El Beso adults only sections get to book ahead of the normal guests, even f [... read more]or the restaurants that are listed as no reservations required. It kinda makes you feel second class. The resort is big. Some rooms are a 15 minute walk to the lobby. Food in the restaurants was pretty good but the buffet was hit or miss. Pools were good, The beach had weeds and is rough.

Big improvement from our stay in 2020

First time we stayed at Ocean El Faro was Jan 2020 and noted several concerns in a review. Well we just got back from resort last night after a week with other family members.. I can say they really have made considerable improvements.. Had a swim out room family side again and noticed daily attention to cleaning pool vs no cleaning before. (there was dust clouds when you walked in pool 2020), Main common pool had lots of chairs and many umbrellas , walk around bar service. Beach set up with lo [... read more]ts of chairs and thatched palapas. For softer sand to vs some stoney area, the unused property to the left is better. This is an example of attitude and attention given by most of the staff we encountered this trip. There was a difference in service levels between Family side and Adult side of the main Buffet and the family side staff were quick to serve coffee and refills etc and were very friendly, not so much on adult side. It seemed the quality of food in the buffet was a bit low this trip...maybe grocery store inflation ? All the other restaurants, bars etc were very good to excellent. Food as described on menu was delivered cooked just right, in timely manner, drinks provided and quick for refills. Staff very friendly.. we see they seem to enjoy their job. Room was cleaned daily bed change mid week, asked for extra towels first day and they kept that up daily. (however my daughter had to ask several time) Good friendly service fairly consistent all around the resort. HIGH Score for Steak and Italian and Sekura. I may be remembering wrong but, there was a beach side restaurant we used on first visit but all three near the beach are restricted to El Besso or Privileged. We inquired at all 3 and told no for us. Only beach area food is BBQ Burgers and Hot dogs for lunch (precooked and siting around) Ocean Blue and Sand opens their Villa Marina for lunch for everyone (stayed there last year) Fairly consistent shuttle from lighthouse to lobby and stops anywhere in between with a double cart. Really like the new wrist band / key card. Happy to recommend Ocean El Faro to anyone who asks.

Great resort!

For a new hotel it’s definitely showing wear already, mostly from poor design. For example, the width of the shower door didn’t account for the depth of the tiles so tiles have been omitted and water is just soaking into the edge creating mold and wear. Whoever thought designing a sink with joints in the sink that need caulk should be fired from designing. Water leaks when sink is filled. The look of the hotel is gorgeous. It has a very midcentury modern design. The waterpark is located in a [... read more] great central location unlike other resorts. Staff were all awesome. Food was great. You could always find something. Never got a reservation at the al la carte’s that required one. App never worked & didn’t want to line up at 7am to reserve outside the buffet. Coffee shop never had anything more than black coffee and smoothies. Only had mint for mojitos the last half of our trip. Route 66 was disappointing-nothing like a typical diner menu. Vacation Club (white shirts upon arrival) were always hounding people. Beach was nice but the lagoon to the west was even better for swimming.

Ok tesort

The hotel was ok lots of room but found that our clothes were always damp feeling, Food was ok wasn’t very hot and not much for kids to eat for lunch or supper!! Pool was nice beach was not nice at all!!

Avoid Ocean el Faro

The service at this resort was terrible…. Rooms were barely cleaned… Mini bar and coffee not stocked… When requesting more beer in the mini bar (only allotted 2 per day) told I had to pay for it some all inclusive that is… I was walked in on in my room twice after the mini bar was stocked and the room cleaned so not necessary for anyone to be entering my room. Bar service was very slow everywhere and orders forgotten numerous times.

A one time

Hotel is nice, food not what I expected. Canadians…no bacon for breakfast! Only a handful of staff enjoy their job. As the the rest, service is horrible. Poor management I would say. Staff turn their backs towards a line up of customers and they chit chat, their conversations are more important than your presence.

Beautiful Resort

Hotel was beautifully kept. Staff not so friendly gift shop overpriced. Food was good desserts amazing Mikes coffee shop is fantastic, the Italian ala carte horrible. All other restaurants were great. You need to wake up early to book tese for the al a cartes

Worst experience

Walking in the hotel on the first day and seeing the lobby was beautiful however, everything from that point onwards was terrible. The rooms smell musky and mouldy, the sheets felt dirty and the bathroom did not have face cloths. I had to change room when I got there because the room smell really bad and I was traveling with my 3 years old. I also travelled with my dad and 3 days into the trip, I had to take my dad to the doctor because he could not breathe in the room which cost my brother and  [... read more]I $430 US after which as soon as he was out of the room, he immediately started breathing better. My brother looked at the air filter that is supposed to be white and it was black. The food was terrible, if you are not traveling privilege, please don’t go there. This is the worst experience I have had in all my vacations over the years. I have requested to talk with a manager 3 days before leaving and I was not able to because he was not available. One morning I woke up and my entire body was swollen ( my skin get swollen and itchy when exposed to dirt). The room feel damped all the time, your money and clothes feel damped and if the bed. I will not ask anyone to travel to this hotel ever

Not a 5 star but a wonderful vacation

I'll start by thanking the people who helped us through out the vacation Nicky the receptionist who gave us the best swim up Teresa the housekeeper and here friend who took over Luis the tram driver who was amazing .Then i would like to thank all the bar staff at the swim up bar by the lazy river . All the staff from ground keepers servers pool cleaners you are amazing helpful friendly and not at all nasty like some of the reviews have said .The room was amazing best swim up we've had the vide [... read more]o reviews are 100% accurate however the patio door was really hard to open and shut it is very heavy even the house keepers had trouble so resident animals two cockroaches both taken care of very efficiently and quickly by the staff a crab(Ernie)and a family of Gecko's. The pools are great food not so much if your a foodie you'll hate it however it is good for everyone else , themes at the buffet sometimes hit and miss best restaurant blue moon worst dolce vita best vibe Sakura and the steakhouse is good too .Wifi is good no problems with or the hotel app which makes it easy to book restaurants and see menu's programs etc ok shop expensive aren't they all gym didn't go or spa again too expensive for us casino is it? tiny bowling great fun bars good mike's coffee bar great no problems getting served entertainment good not great but they all work their butts off to make it a good evening no the cons beach not great to much seaweed and very rocky plus the sellers drive you nuts now the big no no the Premium guys they will not take no for an answer and when you say no at the end of the pitch they get real nasty!!! so if they come up to you just tell them to f off they understand that . ! will finish on a positive we had a great ten days and would come back in a heartbeat

Disappointed

Sadly my experience at Ocean El Faro did not meet my expectations. The service is slow. I received the wrong room type on arrival and had to wait until Monday evening for a room to be available. I had an terrible experience at Route 66. I ordered a burger and fries noticed my burger was under cooked and found a worm larva wiggling on my finger. I thought I was going to vomit. My App was not working for the first 2 days so I was unable to book a reservation at the restaurant. Upon arrival  [... read more]no one mentioned that everything is done using a QR Code scanner. It was so frustrating, I spoke with 6 different people trying to get my issue resolved, however they did not know how to help me. I finally threatened to file a complaint and that is when the customer service rep took action to help me get my issues resolved. Once my issues were addressed the remainder of my stay was OK. The resort is beautiful. however the service is slow and the process of booking reservations needs to be improved

Average Resort

This hotel has a lot of improvement still to do. The Hotel is nice but the rooms smelled like Mold and the food is horrible. The night Entertainment was horrible and needs improvement. I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.

Soak Up the Sun, Relax and Unwind

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Ocean El Faro. We did most of the restaurants and found all to be excellent! Mike's coffee was a gem as well! Bowling alley was so much fun. Good time was had at the lazy river, pools, water park and ocean. Our room was plenty big enough for the four of us. We took in a few shows and did an excursion. The grounds were well manicured. The staff overall where very kind, hardworking and helpful.

Fantastic time!

Spent a week at this resort and had an amazing experience. We were told the resort was 98% capacity but there were still enough chairs at the pools/beach for everyone. The service was top notch and the entertainment team is excellent. Can’t say enough good things about them. Highly recommend!