Barcelo Maya Tropical: Fabulous week away

We loved everything about the barcelo maya tropical. The beach was beautiful, pools were great, friendly staff (front desk, housekeeping, bars, buffets, restaurants). The food was very good and there was no issue getting restaurant reservations at decent eating times. There was never an issue getting beach chairs either at the pool or beach. Lots to do if you wanted - overall, a great week away

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Forgot how amazing Mexico is...

We had an amazing week. The food was good and plentiful. The staff are so energetic and ready to get you anything you could possibly want. The beds were comfortable. Only complaint is that the Theater went a little late...my room faced the theater. If you wanted to turn in early there was no way you could sleep until it was done. Unfortunately, our flight there was delayed making a long day almost unbearable and then our flight home was also delayed. Be prepared for quite a long trip from the [... read more] airport to the resort.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Love this Resort!

Everything about this resort is wonderful! The pools, the beaches, the food, the rooms....it's all great. There are plenty of attractions nearby and right on site as well. The spa is awesome, there is surfing, snorkling, and deep sea fishing. The staff are super helpful and very nice. We really enjoyed ourselves and definately going back!

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: Fantastic Vacation @ Barcelo Maya Beach

Beautiful and well kept grounds with fantastic pools and a prime beach location. Great for family/friends getaways! All a La carte restaurants we booked were fantastic. The buffet was a bit lacking for dinner but was fine for breakfast and lunch. The room was slightly dated but functional and any issues were immediately resolved.

Barcelo Maya Caribe: wouldn't book again

This resort is very big. It is 619 acres. Be prepared to do lots of walking. If you do choose to stay here, be sure to book 'Premium.' Even though this is a 5 star resort, the 'superior run of the house' rooms are extremely dated and need a thorough renovation. Our room was on the second floor and air conditioning worked well. Bathroom had peeling paint in the tub. The food is excellent. We had read reviews about bland food and did not find that. The a la cartes are hard to book and we could [... read more] only get dinner times between 5 - 6 pm. I don't know if they did that as well as we had an 8 year old. Seems like all the kids were with parents at this dinner time. The resort's entertainment around the pools and activities are lacking. There are 4 main pools and most of the action seemed to be happening at Tropical. That was 2 resorts away from us. The shows are too late. All started at 9:30 pm. With a 8 year old we just couldn't make it to them. We have enjoyed other resorts where the entertainment is more geared towards children (having some children's shows). The Barcy club is too hard to access. They are too strict with drop off times and they only allow you to book in 50 minute increments. The pools and beaches were great. Alcohol was very watered down. The staff work very hard, especially the grounds crew. The resort exterior is immaculate. Very commercial resort, too many stores. Miss quainter resorts with less shopping options. No one is selling you anything on the beach which is nice but you almost miss it too. We used collectivo to explore, but be prepared to be in the middle of nowhere.

Occidental at Xcaret Destination: Naturally Beautiful Resort!

We loved the natural jungle setting. Seeing monkeys everyday was a highlight! Bambi the deer, Coatis and Agoutis, Iguanas and Flamingos! Everyday had animal excitement. I would have liked to have seen the Flamingos in a better spot with more stimulation but they looked very healthy. There were also beautiful macaws by the lobby area. I felt bad that their wings were clipped, but then found out that they come over from Xcaret everyday. Xcaret has a successful Macaw breeding program where they are [... read more] helping to repopulate Macaws back into the wild. I was very happy to hear that! We absolutely loved the natural pool. Another highlight! The beach is small but it’s beautiful and very clean. It’s perfect for kids because it’s an inlet that’s sectioned off from the rest of the ocean. It’s also great if you are new to snorkelling. You can also snorkel by the natural pool but only on a calm day - check the warning flags. I went when the flag was yellow, and don’t go by yourself. It’s technically off the resort. We brought our own snorkel gear, I never figured out if they offered it. Best to bring your own. My daughter and her friend had a lot of fun at the pools playing trivia and cornhole. They are 18, and also really enjoyed the nightlife. Our room was nice, loved the balcony! That’s where we saw the most monkey action. AMAZING!! We were in building 18, 2nd floor. Our information hosts Ashley and Camilla were so kind and helpful. The cleaning staff was lovely. Checkin was quite a slow process, but not a big deal. The lobby was beautiful to look at while we waited. All of the staff were friendly, fun and there to help. We had such a great experience! We bought the unlimited Xcaret passes, which I think was a good idea. We walked over to the park almost every day. The Aviary is outstanding. And the underground /cave river was really fun and relaxing. The food was a mix of ok and good. You found what you liked and stuck with it. My daughter and I are vegetarian so we were limited to begin with. Fresh fruit was great. We liked the pasta bar. And again, the staff was lovely. It was an expensive vacation but when you get there and see your surroundings you understand why. A lot of work goes into this place. We had a really great trip!

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: The resort was beautiful but the beach was not! Lots of sea weed and rocks. Very hard to walk any distance on the beach.

The room was satisfactory as far as sleeping but the maid service was iffy. We had an incident where the maid broke the coffee pot glass in the bath tub/shower and never even cleaned up the glass only got rid of the pot handle and ring. When I phoned the front desk to report this, they said sorry but that was it They never even sent anyone one to pick the glass out of the tub or off the floor and if I had not noticed the glass before getting into the shower, they could have had a problem wit [... read more]h someone could have had a very bad cut. We cleaned the glass up ourselves.The cleanliness was not up to my standards but realize we were in Mexico. Some of the restaurants in the resorts were very nice and we really enjoyed them.

Occidental Cozumel: Truly awful

When I say everyone was ill, I am not exaggerating. It was clear when we arrived something was going on and sure enough 2 days later we were all sick with fever, vomiting, diarrhea. People throwing up in the bushes, sheets with vomit on them. The poor staff was doing what they could to help while management repeated nothing was happening. The grounds are lovely, rooms spacious and Norovirus or who knows what abound

Barcelo Huatulco: Loved it!

Loved this Barcelo , very clean public areas and rooms ! Staff was friendly , easy to understand and seemed to love their jobs! Great evening shows , dancers and singers were very talented. Was there 10 years ago and would go back again! Please pass along my thanks for a great vacation .

Barcelo Maya Tropical: Huge resort with lovely grounds

Best feature is the grounds and pool, Lots to do but really an all inclusive plus....lots of things were added costs. Kids pools were great and the one with the Pirate ship was nice as not as busy as it was 20 AM dollars each unless under 6 and over 60. No alcohol served there though. Buffet was better than the restaurants except for Japanese, it was fabulous and not to be missed. Rooms were okay but not as large as other resorts. Had garden view which was fabulous, quiet and lots of animals sho [... read more]wed up which delighted my grand daughter. The place is so big you spend a lot of time lost., they do not give any paper maps and the ones on their website and on line suck. Most people wander around asking others where everything is. Lots of staff do not speak enough English to help you out. Staff was great otherwise. Pool really lovely but be prepared to get your drinks at bar and there is no service at beach. Beach is beautiful with lots of palms but its rocky so bring water shoes. It was very rough for week we were there but still enjoyed the beach. Room was really clean when we got there but the cleaning after that was not great. No face cloths and bath mats were size of a cell phone! Had to call for more coffee, water and beer. We left a note for more beer and we got some so that was great. We booked 2 beds as there were 3 of us, but got one bed and no compensation or apology. My daughter and grand daughter swam with the dolphins and it was well organized with little wait time and good viewing. You can go into the area and just watch if you like. There are 2 large red double decker buses that go from one lobby to another and to the 2 malls in the place. No matter which way they go they will get you to your lobby and from there you walk to your actual 3 storey building. Each hotel on site has a different lobby and then their own buffet, kids pool and accommodations, restaurants and bar. Some you can go to no matter where you stay and others are exclusive....you could swim in the pool but they will not serve you in the bars or buffets. It really takes 2 or 3 days to figure out the place and you pretty much have to go to your lobby to find out what and when the shows are. The kids club was nice and each activity was about 40 minutes and you can leave the kids there and pick them back up.Shows were not till 930 so did not attend but kids shows were at 8.We took a private day trip thru Kay Tours to ruins, lunch and Cenote with Juri....highly recommend them and ask for Juri too. She was great.

Barcelo Maya Palace: Gorgeous Resort and perfect for families!

This was our second time going to this resort. Love the setting and location. Staff are friendly and beach/pools are gorgeous!! So much to do and see. The buffet is too die for. Fresh food and selection for miles. Food is absolutely fantastic all around!! This visit the housekeeping was terrible. Forgot to replace things in our room (mini-bar, towels, body wash, etc.) daily and forgot to clean or room three of the days we were there. Entertainment was disappointing. Was hoping for my  [... read more]kids to see a beautiful Mexican show with Mexican music, instruments, dancing and flamboyant costumes... but they had singers perform barely understandable renditions of Disney movie theme songs that were so boring that my kids asked to leave part way through. Shuttle bus that is supposed to run every fifteen minutes often takes over an hour and made us very late for one of our reservations (feet were too sore by then to run). Don't scrimp on packing your sunscreen. We ran out and it cost us about $100 CAD to purchase one cream and one spray (and two bags of chips) from the resort store. We were disappointed that they didn't recognize us as repeat customers. Other resorts always have... with an upgrade or a little token/note in the room. We will book elsewhere next time due to this and because of the housekeeping and poor entertainment.

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Great time

Went here on my honeymoon, I asked at the front desk about the honeymoon package and the worker was kinda rude about it, never ended up given the information about the honeymoon package. But overall it was a good week. But i was also surprised by some of the workers not friendly or seemed to want to be there, entertainment wasn’t the greatest, food was good, but service wasn’t the greatest it took forever to get food at the restaurants, was ignored a few times. Wifi was great you could get i [... read more]t pretty much anywhere! They had a train to get you around, I do wish they had it labeled because it went to the adult only side too and you never knew where you would end up.

Barcelo Huatulco: Wonderful people!

The staff at the resort made the experience fantastic. Everyone was singing and happily working. The resort is clean and the beach is beautiful. I recommend this spot due to the fantastic people who work there. Especially Alberto Reyes who watched over us and made sure we felt safe and looked after.

Occidental Cozumel: Sick and Sicker

Breakfast was ok, lunches were hit and miss, and dinners were terrible. Food was tainted and both my wife and I were I’ll and required medical attention which we paid for. Many fellow travellers were ill as well as staff. Definite problems with poor food handling and preparation. Pool area crowded We started with a cancelled Westjet flight and had to book and pay for our own. More to come on our travel problems by way of a separate email.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Amazing resort!!

The Barceló is a beautiful 5 star resort! The staff are friendly and work very hard. Onesimo is an amazing manager. The whole resort is kept very well and the food and entertainment were amazing! The beautiful Caribbean waters and beach are so gorgeous. I recommend this resort to everyone!!

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: Great beach

The resort is very big. Lots of pools, the mall and markets are fun for shopping. A La carte restaurants were ok, rooms needed updating, buffets were good. Lots of fresh food and we loved the Mexican coffee! Entertainment was good but too loud. Wish they could have turned the volume down a bit. We were a family of 5 and booked two rooms and were disappointed they would not give us two rooms with double beds instead we had to settle for a king and a couch (not a fold out!) We booked two double ro [... read more]oms so our teenagers would have their own beds. Maybe they need more rooms with double beds? My daughter had to sleep on a couch which after paying so much didn’t make us very happy.

Barcelo Maya Palace: Excellent vacation at the Barcelo, as usual

We had a great time - loved the room, which was updated and had great amenities. We left a note asking that the air conditioning be left at a higher temperature, where we set it (as they kept turning it down to 20c which we found too cold). Only issue with the room was the Wi-Fi router (?) which had a very bright green/yellow/red flashing light facing the bed - bright enough to keep us awake. We fixed this by draping a facecloth over it to dampen the light. The food was great - especially a [... read more]t the buffet, which also had a nice atmosphere (better than most we've been to) - our favorite was the outside dining space, right beside the ocean. We went to four restaurants, our favorite was the French, followed by the Steakhouse, then the Brazillian. We also visited the Seafood - which was okay, but we wouldn't return as the menu options weren't as good as we'd hoped. Beach was great - a bit rocky at the Palace end, but we took water shoes which worked well. There was sea weed, but the staff were really good at clearing it, both early morning with tractors and during the day with wheelbarrows. Most days it cleared up quickly, and wasn't an issue. Last couple days were stormy, so there was more, but they managed it well. There were loads of beach chairs, and the palm trees have grown well, so there's lots of shade available. We spent time at the pools in the morning, before the spring breakers got there - then we moved to the beach, so had the best of both worlds. Although there were a lot of spring breakers there, the hotel staff managed them well - kept them entertained, and very quickly dealt with any behavior issues. It would've been nice if the dress code was enforced, and also if there was a dress code for women, as some of the outfits were totally inappropriate.

Barcelo Maya Beach Resort: Barcelo Maya Beach

The grounds were beautiful and well kept, rooms clean, buffet could be better, ala cartes are great. The biggest problem was the spring break kids partying till 4am every night, slamming doors, screaming etc. I didn't mind one night of it but by the 5th night it was enough.

Barcelo Bavaro Beach: Good value but.....

We've now been to Barcelo Bavaro Beach all adults at least half a dozen times and have noticed there's still some catching up to do since COVID. Some of the rooms are getting tired with A/C problems, very heavy sliding doors to your balcony, no USB charging ports, limited electrical outlets but they are kept very clean. The pool is brilliant with easy access and is not very crowded except the same old problem of people reserving chairs early in the morning and then hustling off to the beach to  [... read more]reserve more chairs. The beach is wonderful with plenty of space so you're not crowded in. The food choices means everyone can find something they like however, the Dominican's for some reason like (or don't realize) near raw potatoes. They often offer roasted in various sauces but the potatoes just aren't cooked as we know it. And french fries? Same thing. Under-cooked, floppy and generally barely warm. There was always fresh cooked fish, roasted chicken, hammy's & dogs, pizza, pasta station, breakfast omelet station, crepe station etc. No-one goes hungry at this resort. Covid is no longer a going concern and only a few servers and cooks wore masks. One problem we had concerned my wife who is handicapped with MS. Although I did notify the resort prior that she could NOT climb into a bathtub fitted shower, we had to wait two days until their very limited (5 rooms out of ~600!) handicapped rooms became available. If you are handicapped and need a sit-in-the-shower, make sure you notify them well in advance. This concerns me and will undoubtedly become more and more an issue as the majority of the WORLD is now over 65. Help me and others if you can by noticing and advising the chains of their impending situation. As I told the manager, a non-handicapped person can use a handicapped room but it doesn't work the other way around. As long as you don't expect this 4-5 star resort to treat you like a seven star, I would and have recommended this resort to many of our friends.

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Always a good stay

My husband and I have been to this resort 10 times and always have a great stay. He loves the golf and I enjoy the spa. The grounds are well kept, the rooms clean and the beach is amazing. The only complaint I have that has become more of an issue as time goes by is being able to get dinner reservations at a decent time. We tried to book our a la cartes they day we arrived for the week and had a difficult time getting anything before 8pm or anything being available at all. The buffet has a good  [... read more]variety but I did find that serving utensils were sometimes missing or people were using the same utensil for multiple dishes. Due to food allergies and sensitivity I started using my own utensils from the table. The staff work very hard to keep things running smoothly. This year we travelled during US spring break and will definitely make sure we do not travel during that time again.