Bahia Principe Explore Akumal: Great Resort to Stay at!

The hotel was great and the view was amazing. The staff were always very kind and answered all questions we had during our stay. The food and beverage selection was also great at every meal. Staying at the Luxury Akumal also gives you access to all of the other 3 resorts so you can really never be bored. For the price, you cannot go wrong with this resort!

Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya: What an experience!

Amazing in every way! Amazing, courteous and helpful staff. Amenities and restaurants are top notch! Even though gratuities are included you will surely want to tip your servers due to the top notch service. Not too big a resort and lots to do.

Barcelo Maya Palace: Beautiful 5* resort

The resort is beautiful, speckless, the staff and service is great. Food was amazing. Beach is beautiful with white sand, but like in every resort in this area it seats on a lime stone so it is not as soft like in other Caribbean destinations. Snorkling is amazing, sea turtles are right there every day and they will come and say hi to you if you snorkel a little further away from the shore - don't take bananas or other food with you, as they can attack you. Snorkling around the pier is a must do [... read more] as well - lots of fish out there. The resort is huge, and it is a fair distance to get anywhere. In fact they have a shuttle, double decker bus running through the resort. Rooms are beautiful, spacious and clean. Room service is great. With access to other parts of the resort you get to experience so much more i.e. free dolphin show every day, access to other water parks and kids pools (there are so many of them with two biggest at Palace and Colonial sections of the resort), casino, shopping mall and other paid attractions. The only complaint I have is the luck of evening entertainment. Other than a show at 9:30 every evening, the Palace section is really dead. There are no shows for the kids earlier in the evening. We did not feel like going to the discotheque every day and would appreciate a general hanging out area were you can listen to Mexican music, maybe dance while enjoying a drink after or before the show. The lobby bar is very formal and is not very inviting. My second biggest complaint is the background music. We stayed there in the second week of December and all they played was Kenny G christmas music - literally 24/7 from every speaker in the resort, even along the pathways along the beach. That was the most dreadful thing - I will never want to listen to his music again. I wish they played Mexican music instead. Overall it is a beautiful, very well managed resort minus the evening entertainment and Kenny G!

Barcelo Maya Grand Resort: Amazing resort!

There is so much to discover at this wonderful resort. The setting, the state of the art fitness centre, the friendly staff and excellent food. What's not to like? The only down side is the front desk that is very slow.

Catalonia Riviera Maya: Almost five star.

Nothing to fault other than (being over 75) having to negotiate a narrow strip of submerged rock at the beach edge. After that, swimming and snorkeling great. I just think that setting aside a beach area, a pool and restaurant for the "privileged" willing to pay extra is a bit snobbish.

Occidental Tucancun: Good resort

This was a lovely resort, not really big, but very nice. The staff were outstanding. Geraldo and his staff at the buffet closest to the pools were very welcoming and were genuinely happy to help and take a moment to chat. I cannot remember all of the staff names, but they were great. At the Italian restaurant a Mr. Chan gave us excellent service. The pools were lovely and the beach unbelievable. We even saw baby turtles. My only negative was the front counter. Very slow and not terribly friendly [... read more]. Our key card had to be activated daily, and sometimes more than once a day. I really did enjoy this resort.

Villablanca Huatulco: Beautiful Stay

We loved our little trip to Hotel Villablanca. The gorgeous gardens poolside were inviting and even the iguanas were friendly. Best breakfast options which changed from day to day was a highlight for us.

Catalonia Riviera Maya: Very Nice

This hotel was very nice, it lacked a cafe and more snack bars, but other then that it was great for my family. The restaurants were just ok, the buffet was way better. The beach was small but the staff were excellent.

Bahia Principe Escape Sian Ka'an: Luxury Bahia Principe Sian Ka'an

Although the room is not as deluxe as we expected, it is clean and quiet. However, we do think that it need to have more hanging rack or shell for us to keep our wet clothing and stuffs after swimming and snorkelling.

Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya: The good and the bad

Rooms were big. Bed was really comfortable but pillows a bit too high which I’m not used to. All lower level doors should have flaps on the bottom to ensure hugs don’t get in with that gap. I have a bug on my night table when i woke up one morning so i jammed a towel each night thereafter. Room cleaning was good. Free WI-FI which was great not to have and pay extra. Decent reception in rooms. The room safe was also free of charge. The coffee shop and ice cream parlour is awesome.  [... read more] The pools were clean and we didn’t feel cramped even though the resort is HUGE. We didn’t have trouble getting chairs. Lazy river was cool. A la cartes ; we tried the mexican. Didn’t like it. The steakhouse was decent but long wait time. The japanese was the best one of the best meals I’ve had. Buffet......what can i say. Not a 5 star I’ll leave it at that. Grounds well kept. I didn’t like that they shoved us in the furthest building and tried to upsell our room to have a better location. They wanted 560$US for the upgrade. I declined. Midway through the stay they emailed a survey and wrote that the mexican restaurant was bad and the upsell for the building was revolting. They called back the next day and asked what was wrong with the restaurant. The 6th day they offered to move us and give us an extra restaurant but we had a reservation already and were leaving the next day......great coincidence. We declined as that would’ve been a hassle. Be prepared to walk quite a bit..... it’s a really big resort... i can’t say that enough. I would try another resort if I’m going back to mexico.

Barcelo Huatulco: Great place

Everything was great a few minor problems that were corrected as soon as we mention then. Highly recommend. We will return. Very clean, well maintained. Great view Awesome wait staff especially Fernando Worked hard to make sure our stay was top notch

Riu Dunamar: Great resort!

We really enjoyed this resort, the food was fantastic, the beaches were nice and the pools were warm. We really enjoyed the individual sun shades that we could open or close as we wanted. We had a room with 2 double beds for the 4 of us but the beds were pushed together which was odd. On the first day our water was never replenished in the fridge, we tried calling the front but they never answer the phone, I had also noticed while seated in the lobby that the phone just rings and rings and t [... read more]he staff do not answer. We went on an excursion to isla mejeures which was a lot of fun! Given the resort is secluded it was not a short trip to get anywhere so we opted not too as we were with a 3 year old and an 8 year old. The kids loved the water park however the fact that they don’t have a bathroom in that area to use was quite a pain as it was quite a distance to the nearest facility. The kids water park does not allow drinks in, we even got in trouble for having soda, this makes it really hard to hang out in for any length of time given how hot it is. The pool bbq was amazing, they should offer some kind of fruit or salad to have with it, the first day with burgers, fries and chicken was ok, but after the 3rd day We were feeling malnourished, We did end up going to the buffet, but a fruit or veg would have been nice with the bbq. The photographers going around the resort were a nice touch, but became very pesky always looking at us to take photos, at the end the we priced out the packages and they are completely insane which is too bad. If they lowered the prices all of the hours that the photographer spent taking photos wouldn’t be such a waste. Our room was on the 4th floor above the restaurants around dinner time we noticed our room smelt like fish which was a little gross. We had the thermostat set to 21 at night, but it seemed much warmer in the room, the system would turn off and on but we would all wake up sweating in the night. On the last day we paid to extend our room until our 6 pm departure, check out being at 12 we wanted to enjoy the last hours at the pool and know our belongings were in the room and we could shower before we left. After we paid and went to the room, we went up to the room and the room key didn’t work so we had to go back down again to get the key programmed.. it was never extended. The resort is excellent for couples who don’t mind kids or people traveling with small kids as it’s easy to contain them, my 8 year old was getting restless on the 3 rd day as the big water slides were a little intimidating for her and the small ones were a little too small.. all and all it was a good resort, but could use a few things.

Bahia Principe Escape Sian Ka'an: Three Times A Charm!

This was our 3rd visit in as many years to the Bahia Principe in the Mayan Riviera. I can’t say enough about this place, but briefly, they have customer service down to an art. When we arrived, they offered us a room change from the Sian Ka’an to the Akumal, as the Sian Ka’an was nearly full. We accepted and were rewarded with a box of chocolates and a bottle of champagne in our room. The food was delicious and all the restaurants we went to were good, including the buffets. The beach [... read more]es are on the small side but the staff keeps them clean. Lots of swimming pools to choose from. A nice addition is the sports bar at the Akumal. One morning while on a walk, I took a different route and noticed a sign that said “Crocodile area. Do not interact or interfere with these animals “. I kept on walking until I saw another warning, then hopped aboard a passing shuttle. The driver was amused! Lovely place and lovely people.

Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya: Hats off to the Grand Sirenis

For the moment that our bus stopped at the front of the lobby till the bus left 7 days later! The resort lived up to its rating. It was amazing and fun. The staff are friendly and kind. Mini Cooper and his side kick Zouhair rocked the activities at the pool. The kids had a great time! The buffet had a different theme every night. We booked at the restaurants but always ended up eating at the buffet because it was that good.

Solmar Resort: Amazing quiet family resort!

I recently traveled with my 1 year old and fiance and got the all inclusive. We got the one bedroom deluxe room which was pretty much a private apartment! 1076 sq ft with a kitchen, living room, master bedroom with an ensuite bathroom and a second main bathroom! It worked perfectly with sleeping arrangements; my son needs his own room with white noise....so we stuck him in one of the bathrooms which we blacked out. The hotel had a crib for us and even stuck it in the bathroom for me before I arr [... read more]ived. Excellent customer service and all the staff are beyond friendly. The only negative I have to say is that it's not a buffet setting for each meal; so there is a wait. And u have to sign a bill for everything even though you arent charged. They will chase u down if u forget to sign a bill lol. It's more of an annoyance really then a negative. You also arent allowed to have food sent and/or taken to your room unless you pay for it....luckily we got away with it due to having my sons bedtime between 6-7pm and wasnt able to enjoy supper with my fiance outside of the room, the staff allowed it but made it clear it wasnt allowed. The waiting for food, signing your bill each time and not being allowed to take food to your room (as in you can't order food and have it wrapped to go) are the only things that would bother a person but doesn't change the fact that we will be visiting again because the positives outweigh all that when travelling with a baby!

Ocean Coral and Turquesa: Very relaxing stay

Our two weeks in December are over. We enjoyed every minute . The staff were attentive and friendly . The food was great . The seven a la carte restaurants provided a great choice . We enjoyed them all. We especially enjoyed walking the beach to the village of Puerto Morales a few times. Next year we plan to return for a week with our seven year old granddaughter . The kids Daisy Club is highly recommended by families we met.

Riu Flamingos: Amazing resort

No complaints, I enjoy every minute I was there, we would definitely love to go back.the food ,shows, people were just amazing, the staff were constantly fulfilling their duties and responsibilities.this is one of best vacations I went on .

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Great resort

Very long check in, what made us very sad. Great hotel otherwise. Good la carte restaurants and good entertainment group. Great girls with at kids club. My daughter loved going over there. I change my car every day because it didn't lock a door.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Meh

The rooms were beautiful. The food was ok. The resort had a nice layout. Our rooms were far from ocean. Disappointed re no music at beach. Service in buffet was horrible. Had to get up many time for service such as receiving water or coffee in the morning. I would not go there again.

Grand Palladium Vallarta: More than you pay for!

We normally travel as a foursome, and generally try to pick a reasonably priced 3 to 4 star resort. We felt a little excited about the Grand Palladium Vallarta, because it's normally not in our price range. When we arrived at the resort we were welcomed with a nice refreshing minty drink. I was struck by how beautiful and spacious the lobby was. Check in was very quick and easy, and the concierge was very informative. The grounds are very nicely landscaped and full of wildlife. We saw iguanas, s [... read more]kunks, birds, lizards and even a bunny from our balcony. There are a lot of stairs in this resort, but there are also pathways. The pathways may take a little more of a circuitous route but would be good for anyone who has reduced mobility. I would not recommend this resort for anyone who is mobility impaired. We tried the activities pool on the first day. On our second day at the resort I spent about 20 minutes blowing up my floating lounger, and then I was informed there were no pool floaties allowed in any of the pools. I was very disappointed that this had not been addressed in any of the reviews I read about this resort. I love my floating chair to keep cool and get a tan! We later learned they don't allow the floaties because of a space issue, which was fine, I just wish I had known before wasting that space in my suitcase. We switched to the Adult pool on the second day and just kept going back to that one. It was so nice to cool down in the pool, and have some nice conversation with other guests. It was especially nice not to have children around. I did note that the adult pool is not cleaned very well. We advised the server at the pool that the pool needed to be skimmed, but nobody ever came in the 5 hours we were at the pool that day. Both my sister and I ruined a bathing suit each from leaning against the infinity side of the pool. There was algae on the wall that stained our suits a nasty yellowish green colour. It did not end up washing out. The rooms were very nice. The bed was OK. The counterspace and lighting in the bathroom could use improvement. The balcony only fit a chair and a small side table. It was comfortable for 1 person, but not 2. I loved that the resort had weddings every day that we were there. Our room overlooked the beach space where weddings happened. It was lovely to watch every night. We were unsure how to access the beach with weddings going on, so we never got to enjoy an evening walk on the beach. The buffet was the best we've ever had at a resort. We love Mexican food, and they had it every meal. My partner is especially fond of tamales, which he had for breakfast, lunch and dinner when we didn't go to the a la cartes (even sometimes when we did go to the a la carte). The A la Carte restaurants were mostly fine. At the steakhouse the meat was not prepared correctly. I ordered medium and got rare, my partner ordered "Very" well done and got medium, so it worked out for me! We tried the Steakhouse, the Asian, and the Mexican. I did not like the Mexican other than the guacamole. You're better off with the buffet for good Mexican dishes. All in all we had a wonderful time at the resort and would definitely consider going back again.