Catalonia Riviera Maya: if beach is important to you, find another resort

The resort is a long way from airport and is rather small. Nowhere to take a walk. The beach is next to the pool where all the activities (talking/loud music/silly games) are, so no peace. There is just a small window of opportunity to enter the ocean on sand, with no rocks. We paid for the "privilege" package and our room was great and we also received a bottle of champagne, chocolates and fruit as a welcome gift. Other then that did not feel like there any benefits to it. The "privilege" b [... read more]each is a joke, a very small place looking across another hotel, not the ocean! Our room was close to one of the bars where they had live loud music late into the night. The back door had a broken lock, never got repaired. Lots of COVID precautions, constant cleaning, painting etc, good measures. When we left, the minibus took us to the airport with 4.5 hours before our flight. They didn't check that the flight was delayed an hour, so we spent 4 hours there, so much fun! Food is ok, the restaurants were good, we enjoyed the experience.

Las Brisas Huatulco: Las Brisas Huatulco

Excellent stay, well deserved break Truly impressed with the resort and their upscale Covid cleaning and sanitization. This resort made our stay very pleasurable and went beyond the call to make our stay memorable. Again, Thanks to the many staff members that make this possible Ray, Rick in Edmonton, AB

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Natures Paradise

Beautiful resort, well kept, clean, and lots of wildlife just outside your door. The salt water pools were just the right temperature to feel nice and refreshing when needing a break from the sun. The staff were super friendly, and the drinks excellent. My only issue was with the buffet restaurant. there was hand sanitizers placed at various locations, but rarely did people use them. No gloves were offered for the handles throughout the assorted food trays, therefore basically no Covid protectio [... read more]n at all except the mandatory mask rule and the temperature check upon entry. Also found the food temperature was a little cool, basically room temperature by the time I got back to my table. The coffee, juice, wine service was hit and miss, some days were excellent and others required getting up to find someone. Otherwise I fully enjoyed my stay.

Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya: Enjoyable Resort

This is neither a pro or a con but it is approx. an hour and a half bus ride to the resort although, as we arrived during rush hour and took an hour and 45 minutes. In regards to Covid protocols, all the staff wore masks at all times, both indoors and on the beach. If you forgot your mask one was provided at every venue and you were also provided a plastic glove at the entrance to the Buffet and Beach Restaurants. The Resort This is a very large resort comprising 2 resorts rolled into one [... read more]. The largest part is the Riviera and the other section is the Mayan. Overall it is a lovely resort with an abundance of natural foliage and very small areas of manicured landscaping. You have the feeling of being in the jungle. There are very few shortcuts and you really have to stay on the walkways. There is a lot of walking involved in getting around this resort. This resort is very handicap aware and we found quite a few quests getting around on motorized wheelchairs. As an observation, getting to the water at the beach might pose a problem as the sand area is in 2 tiers but the pools are lovely and there are 3 available to use. Rooms Pros: large, well laid out, beautiful decor. Bathroom is also gorgeous. Waterfall shower is unbelievable and the water pressure and hot water are great! Beds are comfy. Plenty of seating and sleeping room. There is also a built-in desk for your laptop. The rooms also have a 45 inch flat screen tv with lots of channels. They like soccer in Mexico so you can always catch a game from most of the mainstream leagues. Cons: The rooms have a long built-in shelf under the tv which is nice for holding small stuff but there are no dresser drawers so you have to use your suitcase to hold things like t-shirts and underwear. You will also have to bring a face cloth (flannel for you Brits). I know Guest Services says they are supposed to be in every room but Housekeeping says not so. It’s hit or miss as to whether or not you get any.This is an observation only but the bathroom doors with the exception of the main door shut completely or lock, which makes getting ready a little more difficult when you're staying with children, or people other than your spouse. The shower doors also have a gap, which can make a mess if you aren't paying attention. Food Pros: between the buffets, snack bars, a la carts, room service and pizzas, you won't go hungry. You can always get pizza or burgers and fries for the pickiest eaters. There is a lot of variety. Breakfast for buffet, pizzas or beach snack bar for lunch are always a win. Breakfast Buffet, if you want waffles you will have to get your server to get them if you are in the buffet before 8 am. The omelets are good, just made differently than in Cuba. Here they ladle the egg mixture onto the grill and saute the vegetable fixings separately. They then add the fixings onto the cooked egg and then roll it up to serve you. Of note are the smoothies, the green one was fabulous and I had one every morning, At all the buffet sittings you will find a wide variety of appetisers. We didn’t use the buffet for lunch as we elected to stay on the beach and used the beach restaurant. You could get a large assortment of items ranging from pork chops, grilled vegetables, stewed tomatoes (delicious), to hamburgers (very good patties), hotdogs, a full range of salad items, fresh fruit, and tortilla chips with chili sauce, cheese sauce and refried beans. The dinner buffet was similar to the breakfast buffet with a large assortment of appetisers and then a large assortment of entray items. You could also get something freshly grilled from pork chops, chicken and once or twice fresh fish. I should mention the desserts are extremely good, cakes are moist, rice pudding of a very high quality. The chocolate ice cream was the best I’ve ever eaten.There are lots to choose from so you can always find something you like to eat. They don’t use alot of spices so you might find the food under seasoned and not really hot, just mildly warm. You won't starve, but don't expect to be saying the food is great all the time. It's good and edible. Some things are hit and miss. Con for me is that there is very little in the way of fresh grilled fish either in the Beach Restaurant or the Buffet. The Restaurants We got to eat in all except the French Restaurant as it’s for members only. My ratings are as follows: The Japanese was by far the best. The chefs were skillful and very entertaining in their presentation. I had the octopus. Fantastic. The Mexican I had a dish native to the area, it was roast pork and the flavours, omg. The Mediterranean, both of us had the seafood platter, featuring a full squid (calamari), mussels, shrimp, clams, a fillet of fish and an oyster in a sauce. One serving would have fed us both and still had left overs. The Steakhouse My partner had the T-bone steak and it was cooked perfectly to a delightful medium rare with the medium slanted to the rare. I had the beef rib which was tough and dry. They are getting better at cooking beef but they have a long way to go. The Italian was good, I had the lasagna, it was very meaty and I elected not to have the soup as it was just too much food for me. My partner had the ravioli and really liked it. The Brazilian restaurant was good but it's a lot of meat. You get chicken wings, then 2 different sausages, chicken breast, beef tenderloin, pork tenderloin, brazilian beef, and cooked pineapple. It was too bad that they over cooked the brazilian beef as it is known to be some of the best beef in the world. The Thia This was the worst meal I had at the resort, Simply awful. My partner had the fish dish which he liked so not everything on the menu is bad. Beach Pros: water is nice. Beautiful view. Nice location. Snorkeling was ok, but to be fair I believe there were storms at sea most of the second week which made it a little hazy, but def had a good time when we went. Cons: I reserved our beach chairs and umbrella each morning by getting to the beach at 6 am and usually by 6:45 all the lounges were reserved. Of note, I saw a lot of sunrises. They need more chairs for the beach. There's just not enough to accommodate the crowd they have even by half or less. Pools/games Pros: pools are large and well taken care of. They had multiple games during the day and entertainment. Animation team organized lots of beach volleyball and the ball was always available for anyone who wanted to organize a game. Bars Pros: The drinks are strong and the service is great. The bartenders and waitresses will NEVER let your drink go empty, even on the busiest of nights. That also includes the beach service. My favourite place in the evening was the patio in front of the Coffee Shop, great coffee, live entertainment and you can smoke your cigar. It was lovely. Cons: Not every bar made good mixed drinks, Lobby bar was the best. I asked for a gin and tonic in the Sky Bar and it was made with sprite, not nice. As I’m not much for a mixed drink I was disappointed in the alcohol that was available. If I stay there again, I will bring a bottle of my preferred beverage and bring a flash to the bar. Entertainment,There is a large theatre, it has many tiers so it will accommodate a large number of people. There is a show every night on a 7 day rotation. I only watched the Rock show which I enjoyed. Starting at 7:30 there is a singer or small duet at the coffee shop stage, at 9 is the theater show and then at 10 there is some entertainment in the Sky Bar.There is usually some entertainment in the Lobby Bar. The other night it was a sax player. Overall the staff is impeccable. The grounds have for the most part been left in it’s natural state, the wildlife is fantastic. There isn’t anything that would make me say don’t at least try this place out and decide for yourself. The minute complaints I have can be out weighted by all the positives. We would more than likely return if our travel companions wanted to go to this resort and I would anticipate anyone else who tries it would also.

Allegro Playacar: Beautiful grounds and beach !

As nice and clean pools, grounds, beaches are, the rooms, dining, and evening entertainment still need more work to be done. Television sets and phones, not in a good functioning state. Most people are accommodating and friendly at the resort. Grateful for all the assistance whit fixing things, not in order ie water leaking from the bathroom above, air conditioning, and tv.

Crown Paradise Golden: Great beach & Hotel

We really enjoyed the Crown Paradise Golden - this resort has 2 sides, one for families and an adult section - you have access to both areas. The family side looked like great fun for the kids and parents - the buffet was large and they took into consideration the appetites of kids as well there seemed to be a great selection for their parents also. The adult side was also very nice - clean, great service, friendly staff and really good food, the rooms had air conditioning and ceiling fans an [... read more]d were nice and cool. What we really enjoyed at this resort was the beach. Puerto Vallarta's beaches can be quite turbulent - however this hotel is right in the green zone - so quite safe and it was fabulous. When you first look at the pool area and the beach you will notice that a lot of chairs have been claimed by early risers who have put their towels on them but they don't use them till quite late in the day which is a bit disappointing, however when ever we went to the beach we never had a problem getting chairs. The only things that I could suggest for this hotel would be a coffee maker in the room and perhaps more lounge chairs for the pool and beach areas - or that they don't allow people to claim them for the day ( I have seen other resorts that do not allow holding chairs). Would I recommend this resort Yes definitely!

Riu Caribe Cancun: Nice Mid Tier Resort Where the Staff is Great But the Food was Mediocre

My boyfriend and I were here the first week of December 2021. I think we got a much better room than we paid for because it was huge so that was a bonus. Pros: -Good COVID protocols (all staff masked at all times, mandatory masking for guests in public areas, high touch areas were wiped often) -Clean property -Not very noisy -A+ staff who were all very friendly and helpful, especially the serving staff at the pool and beach -Decent daytime and nighttime entertainment on the property (a [... read more]gain, their entertainment staff were great) -no matter what time of day, we were able to find loungers both poolside and on the beach -huge pool Cons: -food quality and selection, while serviceable, was disappointingly mediocre at best (avoid the Asian themed restaurant in particular) -the built in liquor dispensers in room were never refilled during our week -water in the mini bar was not refilled automatically each day. The tap water here is not potable so clean drinking water is very important and we had to ask for more water twice. Luckily they were generous when we asked and provided 4L at a time but it's not ideal to return to your room after a day in the sun and discover you have no drinking water.

Valentin Imperial Riviera Maya: Beautiful Resort

Very beautiful resort. Great beaches with soft sand and warm water, with fish swimming all around. Nice huts and lounge chairs on the beach. Great party pool and nice quiet lazy river pool area. Drinks at the piano bar were amazing. Food was really good. Loved the new coffee and dessert bar. Grounds are beautiful being very lush and forest like. Good nightly entertainment with piano bar and house band for dancing. Service was great. Never had an issue finding someone to answer questi [... read more]ons or manage needs. Covid test was easily scheduled at the hotel and completed on site with no issues. Our second time at this resort and we were very pleased.

Iberostar Selection Playa Mita: Great vacation

The resort is less than 10 years old so it has all the modern amenities including good wi-fi throughout. Rooms and common areas very clean. Beach very nice with no seaweed...water warm and clear...waves so boogie boards popular...staff at the ready with chairs, umbrellas and bar service. Pool area very large, lot's of chairs and palapas. Found food very good and varied but burgers, fries and pizza always available for the Domino's / MacDonald's crowd. Staff friendly and most speak Eng [... read more]lish and wear masks at all times. Our first trip since Covid and we felt comfortable. Guests do not need to wear masks on beach or common areas but must wear masks when interacting with staff and at restaurants (except while seated). Covid testing available on site for $. Golf course on site and is a nice layout which includes some ocean views (+/- $100.00 USD per round with cart and a bucket of balls). It has been sold recently and transitioning to new ownership which may explain why greens were very nice but traps were not maintained.

Valentin Imperial Riviera Maya: still set a high standard

pros - grounds and beach are beautiful - staff is top notch - room was modern, comfortable with daily cleaning thorough and efficient - essentially no reservations in al la carte restaurants cons - mixed drinks seemed a little watered down from what we remember

Excellence Playa Mujeres: Great to Travel Again, Nice Resort

This resort, like the other Excellence Resorts is very nice, well kept. Staff super friendly and caring. They have sanitizing stations through out the resort, masks optional. PCR testing ran smooth, pretty well organized. Overall I would go back after covid cases lower and restrictions decrease again. A lot more restrictions implemented while away making it hard to decipher what was required upon returning home.

Planet Hollywood Adult Scene Cancun by Royalton: Planet Hollywood Adult Scene

We arrived at the hotel to find out that our reservation clearly said Adult Scene, but the hotel reservation was for family side. The hotel said our issue is with Air Canada to speak with our travel agency. Which we did immediately, and was advised to see the Air Canada Rep in the morning which we did at 9am the next day. The rep at the hotel said their reservation clearly say adult scene. The hotel did not accommodate us the Adult Scene which we paid through Air Canada Vacations. We paid  [... read more]the hotel 540 US funds for the bands to access the Adult Scene, and now are dealing with Air Canada. The hotel has zero authorization with your reservations even if they clearly state it on your confirmation. The manager did move us room not over looking the kiddie pool 2 days later. He was great at helping us book all of our reservations for dinners. We loved the resort but were not happy with the miss communication between Air Canada and the hotel reservations. I will not book with Air Canada for an all inclusive resort again and would recommend that you contact this resort your self to make sure your reservations are what you think you are paying for and getting.

Valentin Imperial Riviera Maya: Great Resort

Resort met all our needs ,,, great beach, clean pool, great food and good service. Lobby staff and concierge were especially helpful. One negative lack of hooks, cabinet or some kind of shelf to place toiletries in the bathroom. This is a problem at most hotels. Also, likely due to COVID rules, foods are individually proportioned which tends to allow some food items to lose freshness more quickly since they dry out easily.

Riu Emerald Bay: Great resort

Everything about this hotel is awesome. The rooms are very clean, the maids are on it everyday. The restaurants are really good especially the Bamboo. Our favorite waiter in the buffet is Pedro such a wonderful person and I’d like to call him our friend. Hesus would take care of us at lunch and he was very funny and personable. The front desk were always helpful. The elevators get a bit busy so you have to learn to work around the busy times (eg…checking out, breakfast and dinner.

Buenaventura Grand Hotel and Great Moments: Great all-inclusive resort close to town.

Everything was kept spotless and all staff were masked at all times. Too bad many of the guests were not as considerate. Room was renovated and very nice. I was on the 4th floor and some intermittent HVAC noises but I think they were working on that. Food and beverage service was great and the wait staff were fantastic. Our only complaint was the fee charged gor the PCR test. Their website advertises 2500 pesos but they were charging 3000 pesos cash or 3150 pesos on credit card. Quite $$  [... read more]for the convenience. Next time we will go to the airport and pay $1500 pesos. Other than that the Buenaventura is awesome and we are going back in Feb 2022.

Riu Tequila: A Beautiful Resort Geared for the young

First of all, with all Covid concerns, they did an excellent job. Masks worn, temperature taken, continuously mopping and wiping things down. The resort is beautiful, almost like beings in a forest. The food was pretty good. Lots of vegetables and fruits. If you had dietary restrictions, I think you could find a good variety of food here. The pools were nice. Entertainment was pretty good, REALLY LOUD. My only complaint would be. The ocean is far away. One shuttle that seats 7. Can't  [... read more]understand why you don't have at least two shuttles taking you to the beach. Also why not offer a shuttle to take people from their unit to dinner. I have knee issues so found the walking painful many nights. I would not recommend this resort to someone with mobility issues, it is big and an effort if you like a beach, plus quite a step down when you go into the water. Tons of chairs and shade at the beach once you get there. Overall our vacation was relaxing and enjoyable despite the amount of rain. My Trip Central consultant was amazing.

Planet Hollywood Cancun by Royalton: We loved it !!!

We absouletly loved our stay at this resort. In this crazy time we had our much needed break from routine life. Our suit was very comfortable with all amenities and cleaned everyday. All staff was very helping and professional. Food choices were amazing with coffee shops and burger point. It was not that huge as stayed in the past in different resorts but all nice things were compressed in a beautiful way. Beach, swimming pools and food places were at very comfortable distances so no long wait f [... read more]or rides. Staff was strictly following covid 19 protocol wearing masks all the time making sure to clean & disinfect all places after use. We booked our PCR test on the site and result was delivered early next morning via email.

Royalton CHIC Cancun: Was ok

The grounds are beautiful. The service was good but not consistent. We upgraded to diamond and where told that we where invited and booked by our butler for a diamond dinner. We where excited about going got dressed up and up to the 18th floor we went only to be told that unfortunately the dinner was over booked and you where cut .That was on our second day, there was not an apology from Arron the big boss only a shoulder srug. Food was ok nothing special. Maid service was nothing special the [... read more] bed was made . No animal out of towels. Yes we tip...around 250 for fair service that week. I'm disappointed with the royalton and will not return.

Bahia Principe Escape Sian Ka'an: Great time spent

We enjoyed our time at Bahia Principe Sian Ka'an very much. The entertainmemt was diverse and great. The only downside was the room that we experienced some issues with. For example, there was construction noise in the mornings or there wasn't some essentials provided (klinex, laundry bag, ...) that we had to ask for separately. Overall the room needs some upgrades in terms of decoration, ... A la carte restaurants were hard to book.

The Fives Beach Hotel and Residences Playa Del Carmen: Beautiful Resort

Hotel and grounds were absolutely breathtaking. We loved the "jungle" in the middle of the resort with monkeys, coatis and birds. Watch your step while walking on the boardwalk going through it. I tripped on an uneven board (in the dark) and fell flat on my face - OUCH! We only managed to enjoy the Thai restaurant as everything else was booked solid. The buffet restaurants were pretty good, food was luke warm. Definitely try The Olive tree restaurant by the beach! It was amazing! Ou [... read more]r only complaint was the annoyingly BAD 70's disco type music at the pools. It was at every pool - there was no escaping it. We would much rather listen to the waves and some Mexican or top 40 music. We did also miss having a nice big lobby to sit and have a drink. The outside area by the lobby lacked enough seating.