Second time here and second time in Mexico! We absolutely love this resort. Did not like how they sent a letter to my room no smoking on balconies. 10/10 otherwise Food always hits, Workers are amazing!! Staff always so nice to us. Do not go if you do not like wildlife. This is their home, do not wish death on them. They are so sweet the Coatis, and iguanas and such. Staff do their best so patrons aren’t bugged by them. But it’s their home remember this. Sad that the prices will be going up due to Marriot Purchase, will most likely not be returning if too expensive but this is well worth 1200-1500 CAD for 7 days

This was our second time.to Bluebay , once again grounds are still dated with leaks on building 4 but with that being said food was good , drinks were cold and staff was great. Great budget resort. We even made friends with one of the waiters and enjoy a day at playa del carmen with them. We will be back again in the future.

I would not go back to the Mayan... The coatis are everywhere steeling food right out of plate... Population of those things is totally out of control .... You can't sit outside these things try to get into your room.

If it was a five star hotel it downgraded to a three the transportation was terrible around the resort you had to wait for half hour to be picked up on the little shuttles. The food was mediocre and the beach was terrible. It was dirty. The water was disgusting. The only good thing was certain servers were great.

We recently stayed at this resort and had a mixed experience. On the positive side, the staff were all very friendly and the food was consistently good throughout our stay. However, our vacation got off to a rocky start. As soon as we arrived, we were pressured into attending a timeshare presentation, which ended up wasting three hours of our first day. It was not how we wanted to spend our first moments relaxing. The initial room we were given had a noticeable mold issue. We brought this to the staff's attention, and to their credit, they moved us to another room right away, which we appreciated. The resort is surrounded by lots of wild animals, which can add to the atmosphere for some, but might be a downside for others, depending on your comfort level. Overall, while there were some definite positives (especially the food and friendly staff), some unfortunate issues took away from the experience.

I had high expectations for this resort, but unfortunately it was one of the worst resort experiences I’ve had. We arrived after being up since 4:00 AM to catch our flight and reached the resort around 11:00 AM. When we finally got to our room, the lights didn’t work, making the room unusable. On top of that, the patio offered virtually no privacy, as it wasn’t properly separated from the neighboring room. As two young women traveling together, this made us feel very uncomfortable. After reporting the issues, we weren’t moved to a new room until around 5:00–6:00 PM. Instead of enjoying our first day of vacation, we spent hours waiting in the heat for a solution. The replacement room wasn’t much better. The bathroom flooded every time we showered, and the safe malfunctioned and beeped throughout the night. The beach was another huge disappointment. The water was full of seaweed and debris, making it impossible to enjoy or even comfortably swim. We actually had more fun leaving the resort than staying on it. To make matters worse, it was my birthday weekend, and nothing about the stay felt special. We were also unable to book à la carte dinners at reasonable times, even though the restaurants appeared to have plenty of empty tables. The servers were friendly and hardworking, but the overall customer service and management response were extremely slow and disappointing. Between the room issues, lack of urgency, disappointing beach, and poor dining availability, this resort did not provide the relaxing vacation we were looking forward to. I have stayed at many all-inclusive resorts, and this was by far one of the most disappointing. I would not recommend staying here.

The room was comfortable and everything we could have wanted. The grounds were well kept and very pretty. The wildlife was not 'wild' but not approachable either. It was nice to sit out on our deck and watch deer, coatis and raccoons walking by foraging. The food was good but the staff were beyond belief exceptional. Virtually everyone employed at the resort is always smiling and helpful; they were a joy to be around. The resort was fantastic but a swim-up bar would have made it perfect! I love how their carts pass by every 10 minutes or so, and you never had to call them and then wait until they got around to fetching you. Would be happy to return! The one downside was the seaweed or sorghum that was rampant and stank up the beach. It is the Mexican government's job to clear it, and they weren't doing their job. According to the Internet, this has become an issue since the summer of 2025.

Myself boyfriend daughter and my sister had a wonderful stay staff was perfect food was great only thing we where disappointed with was the beach you could not swim in the ocean as there was so much seaweed the walk to the lagona is about 10 minutes from resort beautiful I would definitely recommend this resort

I travelled with family from may 3 to may10 . We had a great stay. The staff were amazing always there to help. The food was good and the drinks were great. The hotel is older and needs some updating. The beach was terrible you could not swim as there was to much sea weed. There is a luguna a short walk down the beach that you can swim. The is two large pools which are very nice Over all a great stay at the blue bay

Overall our trip was good but we won't be back to this resort. We were in the furthest building from everything so it's a 10-20 min walk to the lobby, food, drink and beach. In the hot sun with no place to rest and little shade. The trolley car that makes a loop of the resort is inconsistent. Sometimes it would go by every 20 min and sometimes not at all for an hour. Our room was musty and clung to our clothes. The food was mostly good. The a la carte were excellent but the buffet was so so. Some dishes were great, others were inedible. Same with the drinks. Early in the day the drinks were great. The later it was the worse the drinks were. The bar staff were run off their feet and let syrups run out on the soda gun. The pools have no shade while in the water but do have some shade for loungers. However, the only way to get a lounger is to sneak a towel in the middle of the night on one. Don't worry about the No Reserving Loungers signs because they are just for show. The activities during the day can provide nice bits to your vacation. If you can find where they are. The nightly shows were good or terrible. Mexican night and fire show were excellent. Pop stars and Disney night can be missed. The sand on the beach was fine sugar sand. We didnt go in the ocean because there is currently a bloom of seaweed in the area and there were massive amounts in the water at the shore.

Most of the staff is pretty good but everything else was we’ll be low standard. The food was average, the alcohol was terrible. It is old outdated and in poor shape. You get what you pay for with this resort.

This was a trip for me and my husband, strictly for sunshine and relaxation! It was a great pick for us and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I had been here before, section of rooms by the lobby, this time we were closer to the beach. I do prefer the rooms closer to the beach, big pool and buffet was all nearby. We didn’t spend much time at the evening shows at the Black & White bar but it seemed most people enjoyed them. The food was great, highly recommend the Steakhouse restaurant. It’s a good idea to get the App on your phone work b when you check in. Through the App you can book your own hotel reservations instead of lining up for the concierge. We originally intended to travel to Cuba but that plan didn’t work out, however we were very happy that we booked this instead. The beach was not super spectacular but the water was nice to swim in. The issue with loungers was a problem but we were up and at the beach by 7 and never had any problems to find two together. I highly recommend this resort to people looking for a budget friendly, great value resort!

firstly, it was seaweed season, so the beaches were practically un-swimmable for the whole week, and smelt terrible. this was also, quite obviously, a very smoke friendly resort, with ash trays on top of every trash bin, and smokers puffing away everywhere. including poolside. i rarely got a hot shower in my room, even the friends that i went with were all complaining about the inconsistent water pressure(if any) and temp of the showers in their rooms as well. the rooms themselves were nice, bedding was very comfortable, but the doors allowed for a lot of noise from the resort to come through, making ear plugs a necessity for a good nights sleep. the buffet food was pretty good, though the steakhouse was disappointing. thankfully, the italian and mexican restaurants were very good. the app kept failing on us and we were not able to book the french restaurant, but we heard great things. the pools were great, the staff was incredibly kind and overall our experience was really good. though, i doubt id ever go back due to the amount of smokers literally everywhere.

This hotel was listed with 4 star reviews. I do not agree. The rooms were dated, buildings falling apart, areas of the resort smelt like sewer, every few hours the bathroom toilets were plugged, toilet paper floating in the pool, very little night entertainment, they didn't rake the seaweed like other resorts, and not enough seating for the amount of guests.

The grounds on this resort were impeccable and well maintained. The food was great, minus the seafood ragout. The steak house was superb, filet was cooked perfectly. The service was above board. The variety of the buffets was great! Our ac worked intermittently, but for the most part worked when we needed it to. The rooms and resort is dated, but clean and welcoming. Front desk staff was fantastic. Pool was a perfect temperature. They do what they can regarding the seaweed.

Great fun pool restaurants Food excellent Thankyou Great staff Bus drivers well done Sunwing staff said thankyou for clothing for Mexican male kids and Female donated We enjoy our Sunwing ,and westjet flight s

The hotel is starting to show signs of neglect. All buildings are in need of new thatched roofs or as a minimum, patches. Many fridges don’t work, fixtures are rusting and showing signs of age, water pressure is poor at best, elevators don’t work and rooms are in need of paint. Our room was not very clean either. The good news is that the beds are comfortable, rooms are spacious, staff are wonderful, and the pool is large enough to hold a lot of guests. The food is good. Entertainment is average. While the beach is nice, there is little to no shade and serious lack of lounge chairs. I have no idea where the photo on the side of this review came from as there are no structures with shade. Overall, this resort is average and will start having return guests in a year or two.

Old resort rooms rundown we were locked out of room for over 4 hrs.when we arrived lock on door would not work had 4 different people come and could not fix lock finally changed lock then waited another 2 hours fer security to come and program the lock asked for different room were told they can’t change room because we didn’t like i we told them it was because the lock was not working we had not even seen the inside of room at this time lots of people complaining about the same problem.we complained to main desk and were told they could not change anything.this was our 3rd.trip to blue bay got worse each trip then we kept getting more hidden taxes will never be back plus never recommend it to anyone. Prob. Never return to Mexico again to many nicer places to see

The hotel itself and area are quite beautiful. However, upon entering our room we were hit with a massive smell of mold and mildew. It was so strong and it was worse when the AC was on (which was always as it was 29 degrees outside) By day 2 We couldn't take the smell any longer as we were feeling sick. When we went to the lobby to ask for a new room we were told we had no choice but stay in that room for the night. We were staying in building 8 which is closest to a water/waste treatment building. You could very clearly smell the treatment plant at the back end of the resort. the next day when we were told our new room number, I was a bit upset that they were keeping us in the same building. They moved us from the ground floor (our room was at the front corner of the building) up to the 3rd floor and in the back corner (nearest possible room to the treatment plant) The room did not smell, however we could not spend time out on the balcony due to the smell from the plant, our room phone was not working and the fridge was so covered in ice that the bottom was full of water. Also there was no coffee for morning. When I asked for the phone and fridge to be fixed, and coffee to be brought to the room, it took 3 days!!!!!!!!! Each bar at the resort only staffed 1 bartender so you were always standing in line for at least 30-40 mins!!!!!!! And the concierge guys were relentless!!!! Every single time we entered the lobby they were on us to upgrade to cirlce one status. No matter how many times or even how polite we were, they NEVER listened. If someone says "No thank you, we are not interested" then leave them be!!!!!! Lastly, I'd like to say that the seating available at the beach and pools was atrocious!! If the resort holds 5000 people, there was only chairs/spots for aprox 1250 people. There were clearly signs posted saying that saving of chairs was not allowed, but almost everyone there was up between 5-6am just to put their towels on chairs to save them. We will never stay at a Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda Resort again!!!!!

The grounds were beautiful, pools were beauftiful, staff was amazing and drinks were good. That being said, rooms are very dated, but were clean. We were on the second level in section 8. The big concern was lack of loungers at pools and beach. There are only 6 palapas at the beach (unless you are a Circle One member). No shade. That was a BIG disappointment.

Rooms smelled too musty Service was not very good À la carte restaurants took over an hour to be served not enough staff to look after all the guests Definitely not enough loungers at the pool and beach area too many people complaining that they don’t have enough loungers and there were even altercations due to not enough loungers I will not be returning to that resort

The food was good, friendly staff. This resort requires more maintenance upkeep. There were not enough pool loungers and people were fighting over them because of this problem. There were no chairs or umbrellas around the pool areas, had to carry own chairs from our room to these areas. Not enough shaded areas around pools. Main check-in, not enough staff present to handle the arriving guests and the process took way too long.

Most Staff were good and very thankful us tourists. Some Staff in Lobby were not that helpful and not always helpful, language could of played part possibly. The Staff that shuttled us around when was good especially Antonio our peep, peep guys we loved. NOT ENOUGH LOUNGERS AT POOL SIDE, along with no shade should be lots of umbrellas available if people needed to get out of sun without leaving the pool area. Also no chairs if you could not get a loungers. Had to carry down our chairs from our balconies to sit on. Nevermind Staff in early morning removed our towels and bag but left lots if others people's (was the first time we were able to get loungers under shade out of 7 to 8 days.) Food was good, room was clean. Beach was not the greatest but we enjoyed being around the pool.

Just returned from 11 days at Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda. Overall it is a good resort - family friendly. Pool was awesome although do prefer a pool that has a deep section as well. Staff friendly and provided great service. On the negative side, if you are used to the beaches in Cuba this one was horrible - full of sargassum which i understand is a problem right now so might improve. Stayed at the pool. Overall cleanliness was good except for the washroom near the pool - need more washrooms. Room was overall nice however the bathrooms need updating as it is impossible to just step into the tub to take a shower - need to sit and swing legs over. Some rooms had showers only so recommend booking one of those. Food was plentiful and good. I was surprised that there was not more variety of fruit. If you are on a budget, I would recommend this resort.

This resort was amazing! The food was incredible, the views were stunning, the staff were very friendly. My only complaint, twice while I was in the shower at 4pm getting ready for dinner, housekeeping came in to clean the room. Meanwhile, I come out in just a towel unknowing that they were there. It’s too late in the day to be cleaning the rooms. Even though that happened, I would definitely return. The place was wonderful.

This hotel is a 3 star at best. After check in the time was around 10pm and there was absolutely nothing to eat. We were tired and hungry but when trying to ask no staff could speak English. When we got to our room (7106) the smell hit us like a ton of bricks. The smell of rotten cabbage and sewage was horrible. Not only the smell but we were missing a hairdryer, hangers, clean sheets and an extra cot that was ordered months in advance. I called the front desk right away and and was told we could move if we wanted to pay for an upgrade. I was not paying more to a hotel that was not willing to help in the first place. The room was also VERY outdated and full of mold. All the nobs on the closet doors fell off and same with the shower handle that was never fixed. Food was the typical 3 star resort food. Nothing 5 star about it! Chairs- If you want one get up very early to reserve one. I traveled with my mom who has mobility issues and there were times we couldn't enjoy the beach or pool because there was nowhere to sit. She also has a hard time with the loungers and there are no chairs. We ended up renting a mobility scooter so she could sit. I wouldn't go back and there are a ton of other places that are amazing for the same price.

The Blue-Bay Grand Esmeralda Resort (all-inclusive resort or room daily) is a large size property near Playa del Carmen, an hour south of Cancun city or 40 minutes from the airport, unless there’s a detour. We recommend this resort which offers many usual “all-inc” amenities for moderate cost. We're satisfied with clean sheets, good food, convenience and value. One of many Mayan Mex-Carib resorts, facilities include private beach, 3 large swimming pools, 6 restaurants, numerous sports facilities and Miniclub for little ones, as well as complete services making your stay a pretty decent vaca. The buffet restaurant is white-tablecloth elegant, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner with excellent variety; we enjoyed all our meals there. Soup lovers like me appreciate cream soups of mushroom, spinach, carrots, tomato, potato, all which were nicely flavoured. Fish soup too. Desserts were delicious, daily variegated. Service for beverages was prompt and courteous. Five a-la-carte dinner restaurants offer excellent choices provided your selections are thoughtful. Reserve easily on the app. Examples: in the Steak restaurant, we liked filet-mignon, in the French restaurant, we liked something, in the seafood restaurant we liked the braised salmon steak; in the Italian we liked everything, especially the stuffed veal with prosciutto and cheese (Valdostana style); and the Mexican restaurant was passable. The Black & White bar scene in the hotel is happy, always active and intellectual (...just kidding!). And there's live music to compete with revelers' loudness. The Theatre Shows were serendipitously excellent, offering nightly different, entertaining shows: magic, mariachi, Mexican folklore, Disney, Broadway, Fire Show on the Beach, and more. After the show, there's live latin or other music for listening or dancing. It’s fun to watch fun dancing, and to join in if one likes to dance. We do! My vacation advice: don't retire to your room if you're not yet gently full, sloshed and tired. Three fresh pools are available. The usual pool-side lounge chair hide & seek situation prevails. Now don’t gird your bikini in a knot; same at many economy resorts. If you're challenged by walking, know there are long walks to get around and down to the beach. There are electric cart shuttles, if you can catch. The landscaping is beautiful and well groomed. Also, wildlife, by which I mean French Canadians and … coatis, agouti, iguanas, lizards, many kinds of birds, and (wait for it...) cats and dogs. Finally, regarding staff invitations to a “presentation”. Yes, annoying, distracting and time consuming when your time in the sun is limited. Calm..., don’t gird your bikini in a knot, just say politely no! Me, I’m empathetic, because resort workers are just trying to make a living by upselling you to their “club,” offering $50 per person gifts. I know people who have participated and survived and even purchased. Buy your friends $100 of gifts. Take it easy on your vacation.

The room we were in was moldy smelling we did tell them but they didn’t care. No service around the pool at all. Would if been nice to have that at least and of course the chair game ever day, being a family resort you would think that the shows would be around 7took 3 days to get extra blanket I wouldn’t go there again

The room we were in was moldy smelling we did tell them but they didn’t care. No service around the pool at all. Would if been nice to have that at least and of course the chair game ever day, being a family resort you would think that the shows would be around 7took 3 days to get extra blanket I wouldn’t go there again

The food was good service also but we didn't had ice cream nore guacamole. The interning was good drink and special café was cool. I woul recommend d this resort to everyone. Beach its wasn't cuba but nice and the lagoon wish is 10 min walk it amazing . Loves my experience ❤️

We stayed for a week Feb 5th to 12. This is my second stay at the resort and I come because of the people. The resort staff are outstanding from the trolley drivers consideration to everyone's needs to the restaurant staff they are working hard but still approach with a smile and kind word The rooms are getting outdated it they are clean we needed some towels and within 10 minutes they were at the door We always had a full minibar and 3 bottles of water The other thing which was important to me as I have mobility issues there is a elevator in each building The food is good variety but if your picky it may challenge you There are 3 restaurants open for breakfast when we were there when I was there a little off season only 2 were open There is a coffee shop that is included that make great coffee and various drinks much like Starbucks Speciality restaurants are excellent there is a ap so you can sign up for your convenience just go to the concierge they will str you up Entertainment varies throughout the week There is a central bar in the evening with entertainment in the theatre right there The beach is smaller and there is during peak season loungers are required to be claimed early in the morning this in all resorts I have experienced There is the beach with a large pool where activities are all day long a restaurant for breakfast andunch A smaller Pool is at building 7 and is quieter you will have to put at 6 am to get a chair There is shuttles that run all day long as it is a big resort If you like walking you will definitely get your steps in As well a well appointed gym is available and the spa is in the same building I love this place but I am not high maintenance and what's important to me might not be for you I enjoy happy helpful friendly staff which with.a smile you will find here Oh yes don't forget to tip they work really hard

Rooms were not great, toilet ran the entire time we were there.Al a carte restaurants were great, Buffett was just ok. Bar service was very good, entertainment was good but the Black and White was very loud. Staff were friendly and most went the extra mile.

It's warm in the sun, but for cheap. Resort is dated and rooms are musky, there are no umbrellas around the pools so be up at 7 am to save your pool spot under a cabana. Staff friendly, rooms are clean, food is good. Positive is its warmer than at home.

The hotel and grounds were immaculate, staff were friendly, food was good and lots of selection of drinks. The beach was disappointing, almost impossible to get a chair unless you were willing to pay for an upgrade, and a long walk to get there.

The resort was fine. The grounds were beautiful. Our room was perfectly fine. Shower was good no mould as stated by other reviewers. Because the resort is a family resort I understand that they have to accommodate for kids eating, however, most of the food was not appealing to us. The fruit was adequate however, most of the time it was not ripe enough to eat, the food at the buffets was hardly ever hot. There were such a shortage of beach, loungers that people had to put their towels on the sand. We enjoyed ourselves, but we would not return to the same resort.. also it was frustrating to find out so many people paid so much less for their trip and had much better rooms closer to the beach. We paid the most of anyone we spoke to and our room was the furthest away.

Staff very friendly at all times. A bit of a walk to other areas of the resort , but a cart service is available. Food was ok at the buffets , always found something to eat . A l carted was ok. Could use more seating along walkways as sone areas far to walk. Sad thing is the snack shacks were not open . On our side of the resort so we always had to go to the other buffet

The beach was very nice with almost white sand, seaweed like always but was cleaned as needed. Surprisingly the food was good and top notch service from young Maria, and the restaurant really good specially the Italian and the steak house, the bar service was very good and the coffee house was excellent, hats off to the guys who worked there. The front desk guys could not change rooms from first floor (noisy ) to higher floors. The room on first floor needs some upgrades like new mirrors and a fresh paint. There’s a 5-10 walk to the beach from the room which was fine for us, no shuttle taken.

Very nice pools and all the staff in the bars and restaurants were friendly and great to talk to. The room we had was showing its age, for sure. We got sick at the end, possibly from the clogged filter in the air conditioning, maybe there was mould in there? The Black & White bar and the Swing Bar were lots of fun, and the nighttime shows were very good. The food in the main restaurant was pretty good - we were impressed, as there was quite a variety over the time we were there. The Special restaurants were also good. As with most All-Inclusive places, there was a shortage of chairs at the pools, and no one followed the "do not reserve chairs" rule. They eventually brought out a few more chairs.

I would rate this place seven out of 10 we didn’t mind the walking at all. we found there was a lot of rude people people butting into lines where you get food and at the bar, they need to start doing something about this. There was a lot of fighting and arguments going on.In our room and around some of the buildings there is a foul odour, no hot water and some of the dated items in the room,

Staff provided great service! Resort is quite run down though. There was no hot water at all, just luke warm for showers. Be prepared for a lot of walking! The snack bar by the quiet pool was closed so it was quite far just to go get a snack. Probably wouldn’t return due to the amount of walking and the overall condition of the resort. We were told it is going through an ownership change so it may improve in the future.

The hotel is old and outdated Room was clean maid was very thankful for tips .In 12 nights we had two warm showers . Common complaint for all buildings . Lack of chairs around the pool and at the ocean . The buffet was good . The restaurants excellent .The staff work very hard at the restaurants . Lack of staff at the white and black bar common for twenty people lined up for drinks in the evening . ,The west Jet rep. Was excellent . The pools excellent .Ocean from ok

Hotel Staff were very friendly and accommodating, dated needs some tlc but otherwise we had a wonderful time. Lots of wildlife and good food. Beach is taken care of and the entertainment was very good.

Overall Verdict: Wouldn't Return or Recommend (Unless on a Tight Budget for Basic Amenities) ​Date of Stay: (support 27- October 4 2025) Travelers: Family Prior Resort Experience: Dreams, Emotions, Royalton, Riu (Varies) ​We booked BlueBay Grand Esmeralda when it was advertised as a 5-star resort, only to see it drop to a 4-star before our trip. As seasoned all-inclusive travelers accustomed to the standards of chains like Dreams and Royalton, we should have heeded this warning. If you are used to a premium experience, this resort will likely disappoint. ​Star Rating & Value: This resort felt like an outdated 3-star property. We paid a premium price and received basic amenities and services more aligned with a budget vacation. While we had an amazing week away (because it's Mexico!), the resort itself was a poor value. ​Accommodation & Room Issues (Building 7 & 4): Our initial room in Building 7 (which is extremely far from the main pool and beach) was dated. The mini-fridge and ceiling fan were non-functional, and the air conditioning was weak. We had a serious issue in the adjoining room when the fan blade detached and struck our son (age 17) in the head. We waited two hours for maintenance before being offered a new room. ​We were moved to Building 4, which offered a fantastic location near the pool and beach, but the rooms were in the same dated condition. We had to cycle through three mini-fridges before one worked, and our patio light was never fixed. While tolerable, these issues speak to a lack of proper maintenance. ​Food & Beverage: The food experience felt like a blast from the past—the kind of standard offered in Mexico 25 years ago. ​Buffet: Blah and repetitive. Options for a nice, cooked-to-order lunch or breakfast outside of the main buffet were non-existent (buffet-only). We rarely saw fruit and only saw ice cream twice. ​A La Cartes: We tried the Italian, French, Mexican, Steakhouse, and Seafood restaurants. They were all just 'okay'—nothing memorable. ​Snack/Room Service: Room service has a $7 fee. The 24-hour Black and White restaurant offered only hot dogs and hamburgers sitting in a warmer. ​Drinks: The bar service is strictly non-premium. The drinks are weak and forgettable. ​Resort Layout & Transportation: The resort is massive and spread out. Buildings 6, 7, and 8 are so far from the main hub that it feels like a different resort. You are constantly waiting for a golf cart (which can take 20+ minutes) or enduring a long, hot walk where the mosquitos are relentless. ​Staff & Service (The Highlight): The staff truly are the resort's saving grace. The people are amazing, friendly, and work incredibly hard despite being visibly short-staffed in the restaurants. Cassey at the pool is full of energy and lovely. The gentleman at the VIP front desk (sorry, forgot his name!) went above and beyond to assist us. The employees are top-notch. ​Grounds & Wildlife: The grounds and wildlife are awesome. We enjoyed seeing deer, a small crocodile, a variety of birds, coatis, and fireflies in the evening. Cats, dogs and did i mention mosquitoes. ​Tips for Future BlueBay Grand Esmeralda Guests (The "Basic" Traveler) ​Restaurant Reservations: Download the BlueBay app and book your entire week of a la carte dinners immediately upon arrival. ​Room Location: The resort will try to place you in buildings 6, 7, or 8 and pitch a paid upgrade for a better location the next morning. Decline and insist on a room in Building 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 upon check-in. ​Drink Service: Tip your pool server, and you will see her more often. Leave a note for your maid specifying what drinks you want restocked in the room (the maid is not the one who stocks the drinks). ​Beach Walk: Walk down the beach toward the "Mexico" sign for a photo op. The walk in the other direction leads to a swampy, unappealing lagoon area. ​Coffee: The coffee house (near the Black and White/Gym) is not open early, but it’s a good spot for a mid-day or evening coffee. ​Locals: The resort is open to locals, and the ratio of tourists to locals felt about 50/50. They tend to dominate certain areas, but we didn't mind. ​Packing Essentials: Bring lots of bug block and sun block! They are ridiculously expensive on-site. ​Room Amenities: The room has a blow dryer and iron, but no hair conditioner. Rooms do come with umbrellas—take them to the pool for extra shade. ​Pool Chairs: Plenty of pool chairs available throughout the day—no issue finding one. ​Walmart: Avoid the Walmart in Playa Del Carmen—prices are inflated. ​In summary, this resort is only suitable if you are paying rock-bottom prices ($1000 or less) and are content with basic accommodations, repetitive food, and non-premium drinks. If you're used to a 4.5-5 star experience, look elsewhere. All in all we had a great week away, but wouldn't return unless we were given circle one treatment. They get better everything ha ha

Overall our stay was amazing could’ve been better. The staff the cleaning people were amazing but the people at the front desk need a little bit more communication I know how to deal with the customers. The beach restaurant was amazing. The bar at the beach was amazing.

This hotel needs to be refurbished but despite that we had a fabulous time Our room was spotless with 3 large bottles if water per day We were in building 7 garden view with its own pool for this area As usual not enough chairs and it was off season Staff were fantastic restaurants were good and festival buffet had a great variety all good The only night was the Asian night which was horrible for me anyways Shopping limited and they need more trolleys as it's quite the hike to beach We paid a reasonable cost for this hotel but wouldn't pay much more for the week Can't say enough good things about all the staff Tip them they work hard for us

Took 2 hours to check in at which time our room wasn't ready so we had to return to the line at 3pm. Buffet wasn't great. Long walk from our room to the main pool/beach. Long lines at bars and slow service, we would wait up to 15 minutes sometimes. Beach is awful, small,smelly and full of seaweed. Chairs are a huge issue. When all reviews are about the lack of chairs, why don't you buy more chairs??? Spend extra money and go somewhere else!

This is the best place that I have visited, food galore Everything was perfect, the restaurants very good You could never ask for better service, and the people are so friendly and loving They make you feel at home The servers do everything they can to make sure you don’t miss anything They brought water and pop and beer every day Changed the towels and cleaning every day A place to take walks and it always seemed that there was never a crowd anywhere but the hotel was booked I recommend this hotel to anyone who wants to relax and enjoy your food

This is the best place that I have visited, food galore Everything was perfect, the restaurants very good You could never ask for better service, and the people are so friendly and loving They make you feel at home The servers do everything they can to make sure you don’t miss anything They brought water and pop and beer every day Changed the towels and cleaning every day A place to take walks and it always seemed that there was never a crowd anywhere but the hotel was booked I recommend this hotel to anyone who wants to relax and enjoy your food

This hotel was everything my wife, 3 year old, 1 year old and myself wanted for our first family all inclusive. The staff were very welcoming and friendly and always quick to help. There were plenty of tasty food options. Both pools were beautifully done and we loved the beach. The rooms were clean and all of the public bathrooms as well. The coffee shop and soft serve ice cream were a big win for us! We hope to return soon. This was a 12 out of 10 experience at the BlueBay Grand Esmeralda for our family!

Pay the extra money for the room upgrade. Nice rooms down on the ocean front. Food was decent, but didn’t seem to change from day to day. Staff is friendly. Especially the ladies serving around the pool. The more you tip the better service you will receive.

Travelled March 25-April 8 2025 Gardenview Dbl Room #6 Bldg Check in - no information package on resort, map of resort, restaurant information. Bell boy asked if we’d like to carry our own luggage (2 large suitcases) to our building instead of driving us. Not impressed. Checkout - had prearranged a pickup to help with our luggage to the lobby. We ended up taking our own luggage anyways. PROS - clean room -large shower, double sinks, hair dryer, makeup mirror -comfortable beds clean sheets -towels are more greyish than white (if that’s what you like) and not soft -patio balcony - average size -wifi spotty at times in room and throughout resort -housekeeping staff kept our room clean -liked the smaller quieter pool close by buildings 6,7 & 8 (snack bar closed down) - bar by small pool (hit & miss with cocktail knowledge) -pool by beach large & clean - restaurant close by -Festival Buffett - great cappuccinos , Mimosas **Highly Recommended these staff who were excellent in service and just wonderful people! *Festival Buffett -Miguel Benjamin, Lidia, Fernando *Ala Cart Seafood Restaurant- Benjamin *The Coffee House - great coffees, soft ice cream - excellent service all the time *The Black & White Bar - bartenders knew their cocktails. The shows here were basic, need to fix stage area. -Grounds - were well maintained CONS ~Room, deadbolt once locked , you had a hard time unlocking it! -ceiling fan didn’t work-no button on the wall to make it go on/off -AC next to none -limited plug ins for electronic devices -all rooms are the same - we checked them all and are in need of major updating done -pillows need replaced as ours were musty smelling -no snack bar or pool service at smaller pool - small pool area had approximately 25 Sun loungers 4 shaded areas only -staff shortage in Festival buffet, seemed overwhelmed in evening service at times -food was average in Buffett with long lineup for omelettes every morning as there was only 1 person cooking (felt sorry for her) -hard to book an ala cart on their Bluebay App, you could only book 12 hrs in advance -again hit & miss on cocktails…margaritas were served with Mescal, not Tequila (prefer flavour of Tequila) other drinks were messed up depending on who was bartending -the “welcome breakfast” is a a timeshare spiel! (Been to a couple at different resorts) learned to not go unless you want to! Ala Carts - Cuore di Rossi Italian Ala cart their salmon dish/spinach ravioli was delicious - Don ISI Steakhouse Ala cart - disappointed in the steaks. They were not grilled, no seasoning on steaks. - Jaal-Ha seafood Ala cart - very good food here Overall, I would not book this hotel or recommend to anyone until major renovations have been done!

Staff were alright ... so make you feel very uncomfortable and rude. Beach was a mess. Did travel to the lagoon very nice watch for rocks. 2 people ended up very sick from the food. Ended up with a bill for 100 American because someone got sick in our room from food poisoning and got a little bit of voimit on the sheets which is absolutely ridiculous ? it was the size of a quarter. Resort is very nice. And drinks very good. Night life is good till about 1am. I wouldn't return. Was scared to eat or drink to much. Cause of the charge on the second day. Heard lots of stories while on vacation and many not so good. Also think our daughter got a concussion from the sunwing drivers on our way to resort from not slowing down for speed bumps and holes in the road got to the resort and her forehead was all cut up from cracking her head on the bus so many times. Thats also could have help with her being sick the first night along with the food.

The hotel was ok, a lot bigger than I anticipated. Lack of lounge chairs at both pools Food was decent and no issues with booking a la cartes Didn’t get to experience beach as well as the red flag was up the entire time and we were not allowed to go in.

Just spent a week at the Blue Bay. Lots of good at this resort. Staff were all great. Grounds were well manicured and full of wildlife (even a deer!). Rooms were clean (ours needed to be remopped upon arrival as they clearly had been mopped with sticky water -- not a big deal). Air conditioning was fully functional, lots of hot water. Fridge was stocked with pop and beer and fresh bottled water daily. There are two centres of activity and accommodation here. Buildings 6,7, and 8 which are close to the main lobby and a quiet pool area; and the buildings close to the beach. It wasn't worth the extra to pay to be close to the beach; it was a short walk regardless and the quiet pool had a bar, restaurant, washroom and activity. The beach-area pool had lots of activity. If there was one issue it was the ocean; the sea bed didn't feel like sand, more like a paste (perhaps from settled algea or other sea weeds. plus there were rocks hidden in the bed -- bring water shoes). The waters by the beach had old doc structures and big sand bags to save sand so it wasn't exactly picturesque. Overall a decent resort -- quiet and a 50+ vide (although the beginning of reading week saw an influx of youth). Food was decent (although they couldn't cook a hot dog. I stepped behind the grill to cook my own hot dogs and burgers). Buffets had a good variety. Lots of great drinks mixed up, and an excellent coffee shop. Only 40 minutes to the airport which was great!

We were very disappointed in our stay at blue bay. Alcohol was water down and the food was horrible the buffet was better than all the restaurants other than the Italian was ok. No night life. If you wanted a chair on the beach or pool you need to get up at 6am or you won’t get one.. Friends we went with had no air conditioning and it took them 3 days to switch rooms. Beds are very uncomfortable We will never stay there again

Deffienetly not a 5 star resort. No pool bars, no shade, can't get a lounge chair unless ur awake at 5am. Food was always cold. Waited in line for 25 minuites a day for pasta. Not very many options. Wouldn't let us check in 1 hour early to our room. Checkout took 1 hours in line.

Fun family vacation with grandbabies (3 and 7 months). Surf was rough this week so we did not swim in the ocean but did play in the sand. The pools were great for the littles. We attended the kids club with older child, there were sufficient staff to children ratio. We did not leave our child there, but she enjoyed the other kids and facilities. The dining rooms offered good variety of quality foods, staff very attentive and friendly. We travelled with a vegan and gluten free and she always ate well (including specialty Mexican restaurant). We only attended one show this week due to littles, it was quite good. Our room was made up every day and fridge well stocked with beverages. We arrived late Tuesday, we had a beautiful welcome tray of fruits and a bottle of wine. On the downside adult male in our party and the toddler both got sick final day, best guess is Norovirus (vomiting and diarrhea). My recommendation to this is to go back to hand sani at entrances to dining areas (reduces but does not eliminate the viral load). I travel well stocked with gravol, immodium and gatorade powder, so mitigated gastro disaster

Not enough beach chairs for half the resort at either pool. One bartender at each bar so the lines were ridiculous. Night entertainment was fun and kept the crowd happy. Coffee bar doesn't open until 10: 00 am. Huge resort with little to no shuttle services to the beach. So if you can't walk long distances forget this place.

Great staff and service. Food was good. Entertainment staff were great, but shows at night were too late of a start. Beach sucked, we went end of January/first of February, the beach water was super murky and was usually red or yellow flagged. Pool water always seemed kind of murky and gross as well, I ended up with swimmers ear on our second to last day. Rooms were alright minus the beds that were rock hard and could def use some tlc. Our second night there one of the ceiling fan blades flew off in the middle of the night and whacked the wall above the bed my kids were sleeping in. Thankfully it didn’t hit anyone. They fixed it by cutting off the broken part and glueing it back in which made the fan unusable, the whole thing would shake if you turned it on. My kids had a puking contest through the entire night halfway through our trip, we’re assuming it was something they ate, but that could happen anywhere. Lagoon 10 mins down the beach was gorgeous!

Overall we had a good time in the resort. We enjoyed the beach, room, pool area and grounds. Food and drinks were decent. Entertainment and service were okey. It would not take much to take this place from okey to very good, but it seems like the resort is focused more on Members Club- Circle One clients than regular clients, which probably make 90-95% of the profits for this resort. It was very disappointing to hear that lack of beach and pool chairs was a selling point to attract more people to join the privileged club. "If you join the club you don't have to worry about not having a lounge chair on the beach, regular people have to get up early to be able to have a chair, for you its always available." This is not right, every paying client should have access to a comfortable lounger to enjoy the beach or pool. Yes, we had to wake up early to reserve chairs and could not relax and sleep in. So many people had to lay on the sand , or they just walked away from the beach upset, because there was not enough chairs. Management needs to look after all customers, not only privileged club members. For that reason I will not recommend this resort to family or friends.

It is a large resort so there is lots of walking. Except for the lack of loungers I don’t have anything bad to say about this place. The workers are great especially Paula who works a lot outside of the Black & White bar. She is friendly and has great English.

We had the most incredible time at bluebay, the staff was very friendly, the food & drinks were wonderful! Our favourite part was the lagoon just 5 minutes to the left of the resort & spending our days at the pool! We will definitely be back.

Black mold EVERYWHERE, black spots all over our sheets, pillows, curtains, tiles, aircon was unusable as it spit black gunk everywhere the second it was turned on. shower heads caked in mold, corners of shower literally growing. They didn't change our sheets all week, we even left tips to telry and make it happen. All 4 water taps fall off when you touch them, the bathroom was almost unusable, the sink was literally falling apart, silicone ontop of silicone in top of silicone, growing mold. No hot water all week. We found cockroaches in our bathroom. Doors/patios don't lock. It was repulsive condition. Everyone got sick from the food. The staff is absolutely checked out- the others in our party, my mum and my aunt ordered a double queen room, were given a king room and they wouldn't change their room all week despite having availability. Never stay here.

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay there, the food was great, drinks were good, the only buts might be the mattress (it was okay, but you can feel it needed replacement) the glass doors for the bathtub need a good scrubbing, and the tabs were bit hard, but nothing that prevented me from enjoying the room and the hotel. The pools were great although they are not heated, the beach was good, as with any resorts, they could have benefit from more lounge chairs but like I said, for the budget the resort was excellent! I will visit again. Do not fall for the presentation, they told me no selling, no money, no time-share and it is true, no time share but some point stuff that required purchasing and stuff.. waste few hours of my vacation there... The spa is great, I had two massages and both times I felt very relaxed. I recommend the Spa. The gym is a bit hot, I don't know if the AC wasn't working or was setup at what temp but yeah, tiny bit hot for my liking. Lots of wildlife so it was a nice experience, my suggestion to the hotel is to have more people at the front desk before/during check-in and check-out hours, update their system because it takes forever to be processed. I read some of the reviews before going and I think those that were discontent were not in touch with reality, you can not have a Ritz experience when you are booking using a budget vacation service.

The staff are friendly when you first arrive, but near the end of your trip, they prefer to serve the newer guests, no matter how much you provide in gratuities. The grounds are well maintained however, the lobby and all of the rooms are dated and under desperate need of significant repairs Most rooms, including the lobby are covered in mould and condensation, which is unavoidable due to the humidity in the climate. Our bathroom fauct and tub faucets were not secured to the wall/sink. The tub had been painted and was flaking. There was mold on ceiling and caulking. The food was OK. The beach maintenance is much better than past reviews have indicated. Just don’t get suckered into the timeshare presentation! I would not go back. It’s way over priced. TripAdvisor and Google should knock off one of the stars be sure to lower your expectations if you are staying here

My wallet got lost inside the room safe, nobody knows about it. Please make an inventory of your belongings and sign any form after making sure that your belongings are all complete in there. I am just warning others guest.

Buffet was not great at either location. Very repetitive. A la carte restaurants were all great! Beach is unswimmable due to rocks and muddy water. There are no where near enough loungers for the size of the hotel. You need to be on the beach or at the pool by 6:30 if you want one. There is no spa, just massages on the beach. The theatre is too hot to watch the shows.

This hotel is not kept well, the employees are over worked but manage to stay so kind , food was decent and the shows were ok. Pools are crowded and the room we received smelt of sewage. We stayed in building #7, initially were put on the 4th floor but the elevator didn’t work. The sewage smell was there as well. They ended up giving us another room the next day on the 1st floor and boy the smell it’s stayed in our clothes and luggage. For the amount of money you pay you can find better. Ontop of being approached for timeshare and tour packages at the airport , at this hotel it’s the same thing , the one guy who said he was here to help us , was just trying to sell a timeshare and tours , and he would not take no for an answer and kept on harassing us all week, he even called me a traitor for not purchasing a tour through him, I’ve never had such an experience in my entire life and I’ve travelled for many years. Please don’t waste your hard earned money and find a different resort.

Room was good, food was good, swimming pool was good. Beach was full of sea weeds and it smells very bad. Can’t swim at the beach at all. We can’t even walk along the beach front because of the smell. Very disappointed!!

The resort property needs some TLC. The pool near the beach was not well maintained. But the employees are caring and very welcoming. If service is important to you, that’s the place. Provided red wine was undrinkable so we ordered red wine a la carte. Mixed drinks were good most of the time.

Rooms not good Mosquitos in room had to asked to be moved Air conditioning not great Not near enough beach or Pool chairs Beach worse one I seen and we travel quite a bit Restaurants not open certain nights Italian restaurant horrible

Very disappointing experience. The staff at the checkin counter did not care about the customer experience and were very entitled to say “this is what you get”. The concierge was not helpful at all. The check-in was delayed by 1.75 hrs and the room was smelling sewer with little black flies all over. We had cockroaches in the night. The vacation spirit was ruined by the staff we encountered and the smelly room. The restaurant staff were good and courteous; pool was ok; unclean beach.

This resort was generally ok- decent for what we paid. The food was great and the pools were beautiful. But the beach is unswimmable due to being so muddy rather than sandy. Also the rooms smelled quite musty the whole time. Also when I went to check out the person at the front desk told me that because I had lost my one room key I had to pay 30$ US, which I later found out was not true and I’m assuming he just pocketed that money. Very disappointing.

Grounds were nice pools good our room was terrible flood from AC unit fan and Ac not working moved rooms next day didn’t want to move at 3 in the morning. Food was nice until I got diarrhea 3rd day then food wasn’t so good beach couldn’t swim seaweed and black water . Bad experience

Pros: - great staff - 30 mins from airport - well maintained rooms/property - pools were great - shuttle services - warm weather - shows at night were entertaining Cons: - big resort, lots of walking - food was ok - wifi was awful - not so family oriented resort (other vacationers looked at us like differently with a toddler) - asked to have a room directly beside other family members which they couldn’t do - beach barely got used from what we noticed by others Unfortunately being stuck beside college kids up late, made for long days/nights with a toddler.

The resort was great, the wildlife and lush green nature surrounding the resort was unreal. We did enjoy our vacation, the rooms were ok , but could be a bit more satisfying.. but beds were small. Two double beds are not suitable , they have to be queen at least. That was the biggest downside. The food was great, staff were very friendly and helpful. And I wish the resort was a bit smaller overall.. haha.. some days we ended up walking a lot. But overall we loved our stay. Oh they could have more bars for this crowd. And of course more drinks on the bar menu would be better.

Clean , quiet rooms . my ac worked great that was my saviour when I needed to cool down . Food was great . They were always a help getting a taxi to town or finding destinations for me . Building is older but it’s clean and well taken care of .

The blue bay is beautiful. It seems like and wcoresort with its " jungles" and waterways everywhere. The staff is very friendly and helpful. They enhance your stay. They are quick to accommodate you and ever pleasant. The food is easily the best we've ever experienced on resorts. They do not run short and there is a good variety. We so enjoyed the buffet that we didn't even try the a la Cartes. Also, they mix great drinks! The downfall is the beach; it is nice, but the water off of it is not pleasant. It's very dirty, presumably from the sand bunkers they have off shore to minimize debris. The beaches on either side are nice and not a long walk.

What worked well 1). Food options are good with variety of meals & food items. We found buffet better than dinner restaurants 2). Resort is big hence be ready to walk or use resort rides 3). Drinks are fine but not great but many options available 4). Pools are big and clean 5). Overall service is good, staff is respectable with courtesy What Didn't work well 1). Rooms aren't new, you can see mold on roof/wall or in bathroom mirror, smoking stink , some may have lizards 2). Bad experience at Italian restaurant we went to for dinner. Waited for over an hour for food to come, only to figure pasta was half cooked & sauce was like milky liquid & water. We didn't eat. Were celebrating daughter's 16th birthday there and had ordered cake 2 days in advance but Italian restro didn't have our cake. So we had left the restro without eating food and didn't celebrate birthday there. 3). Beach there can not be used. Means you can not go into the water as water is not clean & reef keeps coming on to the shore. You can walk on the beach but can't sit and enjoy as there is stink in the water. Their pool is right along side the beach so you can enjoy the oceanside view but can't be in the beach water.. If you are looking for a beach to relax in, this isn't the resort for you

10 days in Mexico. No sleep for first 3 nights, European spring break so Spanish students partying, fighting & slamming doors all night. Changed to a different building, 2nd room was mouldy smelling, likely due to leak from upstairs shower when used, and my husband has asthma. Air conditioner quit 2 nights in a row and he couldn't breathe, so moved to a 3rd room for the last few nights.First and 3rd rooms had only a few news channels in English. Mouldy room had upgraded cable tv, including Disney, so more English-speaking channels. Pool was kept clean and tested regularly, room stocked with water, pop, beer, daily. Not enough chairs at pool, always crowded as beach wasn't great. An hour & a half sales pitch for time-share lasted 4 hours, then it rained all afternoon, so one whole day was lost. Part of sales pitch was a "complimentary" breakfast at the beach, which was actually the same restaurant everyone used, so definitely not "complimentary". We had breakfast and lunch there for the rest of the trip, and supper at the main buffet, which was not air-conditioned. My friend lost her phone during the last day or two, staff were not very helpful. It was turned off, so she couldn't track it. Did 1 excursion to Mayan ruins at Tulum, rented a van & guide for the 6 of us so we could see the ruins in the morning when cooler. He didn't listen to us, and we were there at 12 noon anyway, instead of early morning. Two of us use canes, and weren't warned about how much walking it involved, or we would not have gone. Definitely not the best holiday we've ever taken. Memorable for all the wrong reasons.

Service staff are excellent. Grounds are well kept. Food and drinks were good. Pools are fine, but forget about the ocean as the water is dirty. As usual, not enough beach lounges and evening entertainment is way too loud for conversation. Service carts pass every few minutes, so transportation around the resort is great. Rooms need some upkeep which is typical for the caribbean. Love all the wildlife wandering on the grounds!

This resort was probably a great place to vacation when it was built in 2006 but today it was pretty dissapointing. Starting with the good. The food was pretty good, especially the specialty restaurants. The staff were very nice and the grounds were beautiful. There were ample shuttles from the lobby to the beach/ pool areas. Now the not so good. The beach is unswimmable. Some years ago the beach was destroyed, probably due to heavy weather, so currently there are large sandbags and some dock structures offshore. The result is the sargassum weeds become trapped in the swimming area and make for a brown murky mess. Most of the beaches in this area are the same. As for the rest of the resort, it's pretty tired and needs more than maintenance. Depending where you are walking on the resort there is an occasional wiff of sewage. The room needs help as well, tarnished mirrors, worn fixtures, sloppy patch jobs and paint on the walls and ceiling. We made many calls to the front desk for towels, water, a working clock radio, missing patio chair, etc. Having stayed at a few all inclusives over the years, getting loung chairs around the pools is always a challenge. But at Bluebay there are clearly nowhere near enough and plenty of empty space. We did not feel like getting up at 6am (literally) to "claim" the few loungers by placing towels on them so we chose to carry our patio chairs to the pool every day. Had we done our due diligence and read more reviews online we would not have chosen this resort.

We really liked the resort. It has two tennis courts surrounded by trees (shade + no wind) so we played tennis almost every day. They have fun entertainment in the afternoon and dancing on the beach in the evening. The resort is a bit ran down but overall clean. The drinks are fantastic and the food quite good. The only thing that I would complain about is the Air Canada rep. He was not there when he was supposed to be there. He gave us his cell phone number but when we called we got "phone number no longer valid". There was no information on the bus back to the airport so we had to figure it out ourselves and then the bus was 40 min late. So a long wait. Also, resort management, please buy more beach chairs! They are not that expensive but if you purchased another 50 or so, people would not have to book the chairs at 6:00 am.

The pool at this Resort has been updated. There are no umbrellas for protection from the sun. It was sometimes difficult to find chairs to sit on. Everywhere we went there was a consistent sewer smell. Daniel, our waiter was excellent as well as our maid service. Watch out for the luggage staff. We were missing some items from our luggage when we got to our room. When we were leaving the hotel, luggage staff moved our luggage from a public location to a small closed door office. I confronted the staff and demanded they bring it back out immediately. I had some resistance but they did bring it back out. It was happening to other travellers but they were not paying attention. Rooms are dated and run down. Food at the steak house is terrible. My husband's steak was less than an inch thick and instead of a baked potato he was served cold black bean puree with a stale tortilla chip.

The food was good and the service was great. The pool's were really nice, but need more stairs to get into it. They also need new chairs, plus no umbrella's to give you a little shade. The area near our room smelled like a sewer pit, because of the swamps all over. Thanks Murray Schroeder

I would definitely go back! The grounds are beautiful and well kept, the staff are friendly, the food is great, and the drinks are even better! I do usually love the beach but there was quite a bit of seaweed so we stayed by the pool most of the time but would make our way to the beach by late afternoon, after they had cleaned it up a bit. Our room was okay but I loved our view because we had the sunset. However, our shower was a bit leaky and required a bit of cleanup after each shower. The food was amazing, everything that I ate was delicious. Overall, it is a great resort.

The hotel was nice and clean. Huge resort and lots of greenery and golf carts to help with getting around. Rooms were clean and spacious and beds were comfortable. The drinks in our room were not replenished and needed to ask 5 times. The food was good .. you won’t starve. Entertainment was ok as well. Beach was horrible.. extremely dirty this was a huge let down. We made the most of it and had a nice time but I would not return. I prefer Dominican

super nice hotel great beds in the room, great trips also phone and coffee machine a little outdated. So calling for room service was quite fuzzy all the pool and food were great ? don't expect to swim in the ocean there though .... very murky water. Beach and sand was wonderful tho.

Mike was really great. Helped us along the way, kept in touch and was very responsive. Was happy to have him as we were travelling as a group and with children. Will use him in the future for sure and would recommend him to anyone

The grounds of the hotel were very spread out and travelling with a mobility challenged person was hard as 1/2 elevators did not work! Very quiet not real sociable or a lot of activities. Food was plentiful and very good. Entertainment was very little. They did have golf carts but the wait and the occupancy was very busy. they pushed their timeshares apon arrival but if you avoided the lobby, you were fine and not harassed. Hotel room themselves were run down but you did get what you paid for! water pressure not very good and internet not reliable having to refresh the code using many different ones daily. I would recommend for a quick cheap getaway but not for any length of time.

Our family of four (7yo and 9yo) went for a week with another family (11yo). We have travelled extensively and been in the area multiple times. Here’s our here. Pros: Friendly staff that worked whether you tipped or not (but they definitely appreciated tips) Shuttle was frequent Food was tasty, fresh, and a great selection Drinks were ample and a variety and the swing bar by the beach was my kids fav to have their virgin pina coladas. Lots of pools to enjoy and a quiet pool tucked in the back for those wanting to avoid the loud music Elevators was nice especially for luggage or after a long day at the beach The ac worked great, showers were warm enough, the fridge was always stocked. Decent entertainment. The kids loved it and that’s all that mattered. Cons: It’s a big resort. I don’t recommend if you have mobility issues as you will still need to walk a bit with or without shuttle The beds are older and “bouncy” and a double. They would benefit from platform bases versus screws on legs and some variety in room set ups to be more family friendly. The leg kepts falling off and they never came to fix after multiple calls. We ended up sharing a bed each with one kid as pretty small for two grown adults They are skimpy on towels and lacking spoons. They made up for it with plastic spoons but it’s weird to get a plastic spoon for a soup in a restaurant when you have regular cutlery for everything else No towel animals. This may seem silly but it’s something kids look forward to. Limited change. We brought money to tip but could never get it broken down. This made it a challenge to tip as often as we liked as some days they had no change! App wouldn’t let us make group reservations for dinner so had to go every morning to make reservation for the following night. Need more spaces for groups to hang out and play cards without loud music. This was something people kept looking for and we enjoyed but it was hot and sticky behind the black and white bar Intermittent wifi. I didn’t mind disconnecting but I know it was frustrating to send a quick message and it not send when you needed it. Chairs at the pools or beach were limited during peak season. Once people left jan 7 we could find seats much easier

I stayed at this resort twice about 10 yrs ago and booked it thinking it was the same quality. Was very disappointed we had 11 of us and was looking for a wonderful family vacation. Start out bus picked us up almost 1 1/2 hours late with a bunch of different excuses. The rooms had some mold and we never got any refills of water or pop only the first day we checked in. Towels they sometimes did not provide any some days only one for the two of us. Called down to the desk everyday but nobody showed up with towels after they said they would bring them unless my daughter in law called who spoke Spanish Showers had litterly no hot water ours sometimes did not even have any water would stop in the middle of your shower. The pool and ocean had very little seating available most loungers were broken they seem to take them all away at night and than very little available the next day. Food was good not great but didn't have any issues other than they did not want to accommodate our large group. Public washrooms other than the lobby and spa were not clean toilets broken and overflowing and not cleaned properly. Was told my manager at front desk that it has been bought out and no upgrades were being done till new owner takes over. This resort should not be a 4 or 5 star.

We planned a family vacation over the Christmas break to celebrate the New Year. 11 of us went to this resort which is rated as a 4 star resort. It is NOT a 4 star rating maybe 2-3 star rating. Bus to pick us up at airport was 2 hours late. We were told there was an accident then told bus a mechanical trouble. Driver showed up wearing an under shirt and had to clean out bus before we could board. We were not the only people waiting few other families were also waiting. One family got a taxi and left. Resort was run down traps on roofs, no water at times from taps, no hot water at anytime. Wanted to charge us for everything possible a new wrist band for my under aged daughter who was served alcohol all the time! Elevator did not work at all, was left to find pour hotel block in the dark, shuttles to drive guest around resort may pick you up if they feel like it. No chairs at either pool or beach have to get up before sun comes up to secure chairs. lounge chairs are broken, one restaurant didn't even open for the day no notice that is was closed. Beds are has hard a rocks, no towels or very little one person in your room. Lifeguard takes belongings off your chairs if you leave to go for lunch and gives them so someone else. Was told this resort has been sold and you can tell. Tripcentral should be reimbursing clients for false advertising. Wll Not book again with tripcentral and will not go back to this place again. Westjet was the carrier and they gave us a swoop airplane to fly from Toronto to Mexico and back thats like sitting on milk cartes for 4.5 hours. No notice that the plane was not a true Westjet plane. Was told our dutyfree was part of our carry ons in mexcio we were scrambling to get all our belongings on the plane and not hold up other passengers.

The grounds were impeccable especially for such a huge resort! There is a lot of walking as it is 444 acres. Sand fleas were a problem for me but other than that, the beach area was massive and a great walk. There were 8 complexes, two huge buffets and 5 restaurants so there was always somewhere to grab food and a drink. The best takeaway from that resort was the staff. They were helpful, friendly, always smiling and worked very hard to keep us "tourists" happy.

This hotel was way overpriced. It was poorly maintained, no hot water in rooms, rooms were not properly cleaned etc. Front desk tries to charge for EVERYTHING. The rooms were not sound proof. You could hear everyone around you, including the cleaning staff rolling their cart up the hallway. Food was okay. Not the best. Beach was terrible. So much seaweed and again not maintained well.

To begin our holiday, Air Canada informed us at 11:57 pm on Dec 18 that our flight on Dec 19 at 3:30 pm was delayed four hours. This meant we arrived at the resort at 3:00 am on Dec 20 th - not off to a great start! There were two staff to greet us in the darkened lobby and we were given our room keys and discovered our teenagers would be five rooms away from us despite the travel agents request for adjoining rooms. We were told to show up in the morning to see if we could switch. We were given and a map with the promise of a golf cart pick up to bring us to our rooms. After a long wait, we decided to find the rooms ourselves. We located the building and found our rooms. When we opened the doors, the putrid stench of sewer gases overwhelmed us. Opening the balcony doors, turning on the ceiling fan and covering bathroom drains, spraying deodorant and cologne did not remove the stench. It was overpowering despite being on the seventh floor. At 8:00 am, I went to the front desk to request a change and was told to return at 3:00 pm as there would be people checking out. At 3:00 pm, I returned and the front desk person offered me two rooms in building 6 but one room was on the first floor and the other was on the fourth floor- no adjoining rooms were available. I explained we were travelling as a family with minors, bus she would not budge and said we could keep our current rooms. I asked to see the supervisor and was told it was not possible. Finally, she flipped the paper over and offered a suite in the 4 the building but we’d have to use the sofa bed as there was only a King bed. They would provide another bed for us. We accepted and retrieved our luggage from the smelly rooms. By 8:00 pm, after several calls to the front desk, we got sheets and a blanket for the sofa bed but no additional bed was available. The sofa bed had seen better days about 10 years ago and the flat piece of foam did not provide any comfort from the bars and wires. After an uncomfortable night, we put the mattress on the floor the next day as there was still no extra bed available again. The suite’s saving grace was a swim up pool and two bathrooms with no sewer gas smell. On our fourth night, I flagged down a staff person in the hallway and explained our situation about the bed and later a twin bed was delivered. There are things people should know before booking: The smell: The stagnant sewage water and smell does appear unexpectedly throughout the resort. Guests in blocks 6 & 7 complained of the smell. Walking: The resort has many pathways to walk and tons of greenery making it very beautiful. The walk can be long depending on where your room is located. There are three golf carts that randomly stop to shuttle people to and from the beach. The VIP cart drives fast and can run you down if you aren’t on the lookout, and often drives empty despite people requesting rides. Poolside Chairs: There are limited chairs and waking up early at 6:00 am to save chairs is necessary. We witnessed people bringing snack bar chairs, and several arguments over chairs that were saved, then taken. This is unpleasant and unnecessary. The management could provide more chairs. The beach: Not. There are breakwater walls and 3 piers, 2 without access, and brown water over a rocky bottom. It just looks neglected. To swim, walk down either direction to the next resort’s beach. Entertainment: The evening entertainment venue is small and very hot. We tried to attend each night and left early very disappointed by the quality. The Staff (other than management): The bar, poolside server staff, poolside entertainment and buffet staff are exceptional people who make up for management’s shortcomings. Overall, there are simply too many negatives at Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda!

I had several problems with the resort but I’ll stick to the two main ones. It’s stunk in lots of areas and a lot of the time we were moved three times to try to get a room that didn’t stink and lots of times had sewer smell even around the food. The second biggest issue I had was the food, I basically survived on some fries I watched them do things like pics something out of my egg something as simple as potatoes were either cold or not even cooked. I found all of the food to be bad.

We went the week before Christmas and the resort wasn`t what we were fully expecting. I`ll start with the good. It was only 40 min from the airport so the bus ride was pretty good. Check in was fast and the people at the front desk were very friendly and efficient. We were in building 5 which we thought was a great location, close to the pool and beach and quiet. The rooms were big and comfortable. Ac worked great, big balcony and lots of drawer and closet space. The pools were nice and the water was a good temperature to cool off. The food at the main buffet and beach buffet were ok but the same type of food everyday, which is to be expected. The grounds are lush with lots of trees and grass, and wildlife. Ok now for the not so great: The rooms although big and fairly nice they had a few things that needed repairing. Not a big enough nuisance though to complain about. The beach was horrible since the hurricane last year and there is so much seaweed. Any wind and the water is a gross brown. If you walk down the beach 10 minutes its better. The pool finish on the bottom is very rough, which I get makes sure you don`t slip but it ripped up my bathing suit and my kids knuckles. The bathrooms by the pool were horrible in that at there was never toilet paper and always i unusable toilet. it was the same in the mens all week. If you wanted a chair by the pool or beach you had to be up before 7am to get one and if you leave it unattended for literally 20 min(we went for a beach walk) people move your stuff and take them. The resort was not full and there was space for more chairs they just didn`t have any to put out. The a la carte restaurants were ok but not amazing like the Barcelo ones we have been to. We had an okay time but would not return to this resort again. I personally wouldn`t go back to that area again just because of the beaches and ocean water.

Lobby didn’t invite us for 4 or 5 star resort as advertise. Initial service was chaotic, took them around 45 minute or more to get us a room. We did get to our room quite late in the evening, didn’t check anything until morning. Room was specious, but that’s all the positive I can say about it. It was smelly, bedding old , bathroom with greyish towels, not enough toiletries, we have to ask for it every time. Balcony doors are barely able to open. Wanted to forget all these negatives ( resort ground were beautiful , another positive ) and we were going to spend 14 days all inclusive , but unfortunately day 4 after a nice dinner in Italian restaurant ( I believe Romeo was our waiter and he was great ) walking around main pool I tripped and fell into poorly lit shaver pit, broke my wrist and end up in the local private hospital. Emergency physician recommended surgery in their hospital, but our insurance decline that due to very high cost and send us home to Canada for surgery. Hotel / Resort ( concierge ) promised us that they will reimburse all the cost told us just ask and keep all the receipts. They paid once for the taxi. The next day after meeting I guess with finance person in the resort she gave us email address to their insurance company to send our expenses. Nothing about reimbursement from them. Resort treated us very poorly, didn’t ask how we are or if we need anything until we filed report with WestJet, then they asked, but that’s all. And very low point was that resort ask us to pay for medical emergency, even if that happened on their property, with poor or no lights there. It is a big shame.

We were there for 10 nights. The first night we got there no rep present or let us know about orientation. The food was always cold and not 24 hour snack only 24 drinks unless you pay $8 usd for food. Rooms needed fixing some had major water damage. Washrooms always smelt like sewage issue. This wasn't the resort I enjoyed and never go again.