| de sonhar voltar um dia |
| Hotel Catalonia Riviera Maya |
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todinho_20056@hotmail.com >
1 contribution(s) PORTUGAL |
| Aug, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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| este hotel e de 5 estrelas somos bem tratados sao amigaveis e tem uma ekipa de animacao espetacular com pessoal da pesada pra nos rirmos e divertirmos vale a pena irmos pra este hotel k e de 5 estrelas. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| ekipa de animacao espetacular paola jimenez 5 estrelas e a ekipa tbm.noite de tekila...futbol,danca,ping pong,byke.....etc nao paramos e nao percam nada com eles k sao demais |
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| Arrival |
| fomos bem recebidos com um coktail e foram rapidos a acomodarnos pk eramos muitos mesmo e no estante o pessoal desapareceu da recepcao sao muito amaveis com os portugeses venham aeste hotel k e um espetaculo |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| espetaculo de corais e peixes de todas as cores mergulhem com a mascara de mergulho e desfrutem da beleza k eles teem a frente do hotel nao percam esta oportunidade. |
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| Other Comments |
hei-de voltar a este hotel k vale a pena ir
voces sao 5ESTRELAS
ABRACOS ....SAUDADES |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| comer ate fartar tudo de varios gostos nem sabes onde comecar ou acabar e graca e os passaros k tem a voar la dentro mesmo a moda tropical k ate da gosto de tar ali dentro |
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| Rooms |
| sempre arrumados frescos e ainda por cima com enfeites k eles deixavam em cima da noxas camas muito bem feitos tudo a maneira |
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| had the best time |
| Hotel Sandos Caracol Eco Resort & Spa |
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karen >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jul, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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I hear all the bad things about royal elite but in really life. My husband and myself went they in early 2009, after a 6 week trip to jamaica that end witha friend getting hurt. We had a great time and did buy a one bedroom, since then we have had a couple hickups but all has been worked out. We returned to sandos caracol in december and had no problems. no problems booking or with are stay. the have changed thing and are working hard to make it all right. we love the staff and the staff loves us no are money. like we found in jamaica they love your money not you.
cant wait to get back there |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| lots |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| clean and nice |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| fast, good and clean |
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| Rooms |
| nice clean and cleaned everyday with towel animals on the bed |
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| A beautiful place, but.... |
| Hotel Riu Palace Los Cabos |
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P >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jul, 2010 | Leisure | With friend
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| Check in went smoothly and our room was very nice - overlooking the pool and Sea of Cortez with the beautiful arch in the background. A cruise ship was there when we arrived. The drink served upon arrival is delicious! "Tropical martini" ? After 2 1/2 hours we called to see where our bags were and they finally brought them up. On to the pool - awesome! Trouble is, it closed at 7PM !! :-( so much for unwinding at the end of the day. The variety of foods was tremendous though what we ate was very bland. Roast beef WAS delicious! Reservations for "specialty" restaurants- a joke. You had to get up early to make one but then when you got there, it was half empty. For our last night there we again went early to make a reservation for the steak place. The woman told us you had to make reservations days in advance. When told that we had been making them daily she said "well now you have to make them days in advance" The front desk was friendly though you got different answers from different people. Concierge? HA - unless you were male or a cute little "thang", they were no help. Cecilia and Noberta at the main lobby bar were awesome! The male bartenders at the same bar during the day would not even acknowledge our presence if men were around. When it was obvious there was no one else to wait on, then they would ask. The real workers - maintenance, grounds, wait staff and housekeeping worked their tails off. We came upon a housekeeping person being fussed at by a supervisor who was on her hands and knees with a white glove telling her it was not clean! The place was immaculate but this was proof that their standards were set very high. I am thrilled to have taken the vacation, but will not return to the Riu Palace. Not that the experience was that bad, just that there are other places to be seen. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
Lots of activities - in the pool - IF you wanted as well as shows at night - for different ages.
Cab rides (in vans) are $12.00 each way while the public bus was only $2.00. Yes, the bus is hot but you are not on it that long and I'd rather spend my money elsewhere.
The Margarita Sunsset cruise was great! Great music and people. It does NOT run on Sunday night, so plan accordingly.
Make reservations for any dolphin encounters/events as soon as you get there or you may miss out as we did.
HIt the markets in downtown Cabo!! Catch the guy on the street painting sea shells - clam and conch. He does beautiful paintings as you wait and will even personalize it. The scenery he does is unbelievable!
Other ideas - ATV rental and parasailing.
They even have WAL MART, Sams and Costco there! lol |
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| Arrival |
| Arrival went pretty well. We got our room shortly before 3 but it was almost 6 before our bags were brought to the room. My daughter finally went down to get them and only then were they brought up. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
Beautiful and immaculate!!
The surf is too rough to swim in front of the Riu. Beautiful sands though! |
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| Other Comments |
Do NOT let anyone convince you to stop until you get OUTSIDE of the terminal. You think you get through, go out the first set of doors and you are free - NOPE, there are other time share people. To catch your shuttle/transportation, just keep going until you are outside of the terminal. THey are smoooooooth talkers.
We were there from July 8 - 13. The weather was very warm, but not humid and there is always a breeze. (FYI - we are from Houston, Tx so we are used to the heat) The weather was gorgeous. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
The restaurants were nice though the reservation system stinks. We made reservations daily until the last day and then were told we had to book a place days in advance - the exact opposite of what we had been doing. When you went into the restaurants they were half empty. The buffet locations varied from one meal to the next. Didn't make sense to me but I guess there is a method to their madness. Wait staff did great jobs.
We mainly dealt with the pool bar and the main bar in the lobby. Pool was great. Main lobby bar was great at night - NOT during the day - different personnel. |
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| Rooms |
| The room was very nice and clean. Ours was an "ocean view" that overlooked the Sea of Cortez and the beautiful Land's End arch. Housekeeping did a great job. We had 2 very comfortable full sized beds. |
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| Better than I expected |
| Hotel Royal Decameron Puerto Vallarta |
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Paula >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jul, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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reading some reviews before my trip I was not expecting a whole lot from the Royal Decameron Resort, when we got to the hotel I was shocked the service from the staff was GREAT check in took no more than 15 mins the bell boy took the bags right to our room !!!! When we got to our room I was floored AGAIN the room was big, CLEAN and it smelled great !!!! i loved our room
The food was good overall it is the same thing every day so yu get use to it
I suggest that you make reservations to the resturants on the resort ( the Italian resturant in Block 6 ) is the best !!!!! what a chef !!!! the bar tenders were friendly all the time and they made great drinks
The beach is great but you just get harrassed by the sellers on the beach so you can really relax
Watch out in the night time ( crabs are every where so watch where you are stepping ) The crabs come out around 2 or 3 in the morning
The shows were entertaining and fun but get there early
the pools are great and very clean I would recommend this resort to everyone and you know what I think my next trip I am going back
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| Splendid resort.... |
| Hotel Iberostar Paraiso Beach |
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Yvan >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jul, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| What a delightfull pleasure to have chosen this resort. We have travelled to many Iberostar resorts, this one being one of the best we stayed at. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
We went shopping to Playa del Carmen with the shuttle from the plaza of the hotel, 4$ each way for a 20Km trip very reasonable I would say, found the presents we needed on 5th avenue.
We took the visit to the ruins of Tulum, I was impressed with the place, ruins and by the knowledge of the guide we had for our trip. you must remember that it is very hot there, dont forget to bring water. They also gave us about 1hr to enjoy ourselves on the beach at the bottom of the hill.
Since there are no secure place to leave your things, keep an eye open, I noticed many.... people looking for an occasion to pilfer.
All and all a very pleasant and instructive excursion. |
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| Arrival |
We arrived via Westjet airlines from Toronto, my spouse being somewhat apprehensive about flying, this trip was superb, smooth all the way, nice updated aircraft, exit row seating with tons of leg room, video display in every seat which gave us a choice of various tv or movies to choose from.
We arrived Cancun ahead of schedule, after baggage reception and clearance through customs, we proceeded to the chaos outside the terminal, IMHO, very poor service from Best Day travel as far as arrangement of transportation, we had to wait outside in suffocating heat, for our transport to be ready, even though the bus was in place and air conditioned, they made the group wait until complete before boarding. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
The beach is very nice, lots of huts and chairs for one and all, a few large rocks near the entrance of the beach, however, the water being so clear, it was easy to navigate around them and never did we have any problem with them. Unfortunately the first two days of our stay, the beach had a red flag waving, the water was quite agitated and not recommended, we still had the choice and I realy enjoyed the large waves/breakers comming to shore. Did not do the pool, as a general rule, since it is secluded and protected from the ocean by vegetation, way too hot for my liking and during the late afternoon much too noisy for us, the animation crew and pool bar were the culprits.
As all the IB resorts we have visited, the grounds were impeccable, an army of groundskeepers were at work everyday it seems everywhere to make the looks of this place so great. |
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| Other Comments |
I would greatly recommend this resort to anyone that wants a clean, well maintained and pretty quiet place to relax and enjoy a vacation.
I would certainly return in a heartbeat.
We hope everyone enjoy the place as much as we did. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
We were given 4 restaurant choices, we made the gourmet, japanese, italian and steak. All were excellent, the food always hot and cooked to order, if a complaint was to be made, the Italian restaurant is situated in one of the pool snacks, not air conditioned so a little uncomfortable but nevertheless, the food was very very good.
The Buffet breakfasts were what we are accustomed to having in all the resorts, excellent choices of fruits, pastries and the omelet bar was manned by a lovely lady for our entire week, she made it a pleasure to see her smile every morning.
Suppers at the buffet was always thematic, changed every night and the food was always good, the catch all was always there, if you did not appreciate anything being served, the pasta bar was excellent.
This was our 6th visit to an IB resort, we have never been let down anywhere by the food. |
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| Rooms |
| We arrived the resort 20 mins later, to the friendly Iberostar reception, well organized, the check in took no more than 5 minutes, since we are many times guests of an Iberostar resort, they even gave us a free upgrade to a junior suite, the staff being polite, friendly and spoke english and french quite well. We even took time to go to the concierge desk to make our restaurant reservations for the week all in less that 15 minutes we were taken by cart to our room, building 31, very near the beach to a wonderfull room with good a/c, clean and well prepared, everything we have been accustomed to by the Iberostar chain. The maid service for the week was of all thing done by a male worker, what a pleasant surprise, superb service, the fridge always stocked full, and room decorations, figurines and flowers galore. My wife was in awe for the entire week. Of course, daily gifts and a couple dollars must surely have helped. Clean, well air conditioned, no bugs. |
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| dining out in Mazatlan |
| Hotel El Cid Castilla Beach |
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Gary >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| Don't carry a tab outside the resort pay as you go, we went to Joe's oyster bar after carrying a tab for drinks for a party of 4 from about 7.30 to 10 15 pm the bill was just under $200 US. We were being charged $15 US for a rum and coke in contrast we payed $20 US at senor frogs for all you can drink from 9.00 to closing and its right next to the El Cid |
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| Fabulous Family Resort |
| Hotel Iberostar Cozumel |
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Shannon >
2 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Our family enjoyed our stay here at Iberostar! We especially enjoyed he staffs friendliness and willing to help. The resort is a beautiful paradise with beautiful flamingos, peacocks & big iguanas!
The swim up bar was a plus with our son as well as his father :)
We enjoyed most of our time in Cozumel at the resort, the daily games, shows and other activities were fun & entertaining!
Thanks for a memorable vacation! |
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| Wyndham big Mistake |
| Hotel Wyndham Cozumel Resort & Spa (formerly Reef Club) |
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Shannon >
2 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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We purchased a 'vacation club' in 2003 and traveled to Cozumel almost every year and enjoyed our stay here UNTIL we arrived this year with our son (8 years old) and are told we are limited access to the resort bc the hotel has gone 'ALL ADULT'!!!!! We were NOT notified of these changes and were told 'sorry' upon our arrival & that we could leave our kid in 'kids club' in order to enjoy the 'all adult' area of the resort. Yeah right, who is going to leave their kid in a foreign country with complete strangers for hours on end to enjoy other areas of the resort!!??? We were limited to less that half of the resort and there were big signs posting 'No one Under 18 Beyond this point'...needless to say we caught a cab to find another resort to spend the week!!! We lost our maintenance fees and are currently trying to receive our all inclusive money back...we didn't stay/eat/drink there so it's only fair for a refund, right? Waiting for my apology that has yet to come!!!
It's not Mexico's fault that some owners at a resort are scumbags with no customer service skills!!! We love Cozumel...Wyndham Reef Club not so much! I believe Wyndham has made a big mistake in going All Adult!!!! And we will never stay there again as long as it's all adult! |
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| Other Comments |
| Wanted to leave a ZERO flower rating but required something which explains my ONE flower rating. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Restaurants and Bars in the 'family' area close and you will not have access to drinks or food after dinner time...where the all adult area is open later in the evenings. No late night snacks or drinks by the pool!! |
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| Your Arrival |
| No customer service skills whatsoever!! |
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| Great beaches and dive shop and boats on site!!! |
| Hotel Wyndham Cozumel Resort & Spa (formerly Reef Club) |
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peter >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Solo
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| I went to this resort right after being seperated and went with the purpose of diving and putting my past behind me. It was a great place with a dive shop and dock right on property . The drinks were always cold and the food hot and good. what else could someone ask for while on vacation. Staff were accommadating and the rooms were nice(not amazing ,but not just clean) |
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| Wonderful Family Vacation - something for everyone! |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Beach |
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mary >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Barclay kids club - kids spent 1-2 hours each afternoon doing an activity or craft. This was good as it got them out of the sun for a couple of hours and allowed the parents to read/swim by the pool |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| smooth sandy beaches. Pools were great. Grounds were wonderful. Water park is amazing for kids. never a moment when there is nothing to do |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Only did the buffets - this is the second time at the resort and we felt the a la carte restaurants offered same food as buffet but took 2 hours to complete dinner. Easier with kids to remain at buffet |
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| Rooms |
| Spacious - club room - master king room - with living room - one single bed, and a futon bed - comfortable for 2 kids. Very clean. Stayed at the Tropical - room was directly close to waterpark **** |
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| Your Arrival |
| excellent - no line ups - efficiently moved rooms. Down time so we upgraded upon check in to a deluxe sweet for a third of price. Well worth it when travelling with 2 little children. |
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| By far the best all inclusive hotel out of four stays in Mexico |
| Hotel RIU Vallarta |
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Douglas >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Solo
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| I arrived at this resort and found out my wallet had fallen out of my carry-on luggage on the aircraft. The desk manager Tony Braun was extremely helpful and spent a long time helping me locate it. The staff were very friendly and helpful and were cheerful and extremely hard working. The resort was spotless. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| The catamarans, hobie cats were a great time to sail and if you used one it was a good workout with the wind and waves. I thoroughly enjoyed them thanks to Pancho's excellant service. It is too bad all were not servicable, as it would have been a lot more fun to have others to sail with. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Pools were great, swim up bar was awesome thanks to Jesse, Tere (Happy Birthday) and of course Manual, the entertainer. The grounds around the resort and pool areas were kept pristine at all times, the only thing I noticed was one afternoon there was a huge mess on the beach, probably due to a lack of security guards ensuring people used the garbage containers. |
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| Other Comments |
| Out of all the resorts I have stayed at in Dominican & Mexico this one is the best one for the price charged and the service, food and general resort shape, activities and entertainment. I would definitely stay at this resort again, and would recommend it |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Restaurants, were reasonable, the food was good, with a good selection of variety, although one may get tired of the sausages floating in grease, in general it was the best of the resorts I have stayed at. The specialty restaurants were from good to excellant, especially Sir Georges with really great food. The asian was westernized more than any oriental restaurant, but still featured good tasting food. |
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| Rooms |
| Someone made a comment about the beds being hard. Yes they are firm mattresses but reasonable to sleep on and not worn out like other resorts that I had stayed at. The room was fully stocked with a bar fridge with bottled water, beer and beverages as well as a liquor cabinet with dispensers for it. The cleaning staff were extremely hard working and never once overlooked anything in the room. |
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| Your Arrival |
| I checked in with no problem whatsoever, the majority of the clientèle of the resort were Mexican nationals, which is totally understandable at this time of the year. I was always treated with respect and courtesy, and made to feel welcome as a guest of the resort. |
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| Most amazing place ever |
| Hotel Grand Riviera Maya Princess |
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Tanya >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jun, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Don't listen to any of the bad reviews people write. They have nothing better to do then complain about everything.
Honestly, this hotel resort, was the most amazing place to stay at. It is always super super clean, the staff work very hard all day keeping the place as clean as possible.
The rooms are beautiful. my room was always cleaned to perfection, i left money lying around, it was NEVER stolen and my safe in the hotel was never missing anything and no one ever came during my sleep to steal stuff so please don't believe anything this couple is saying about the hotel because these people that work here are the most amazing people you'll ever met in your life.
the staff is always smiling and greeting you everywhere you go, always willing to help and serve you. They have the biggest hearts i've ever seen in my life and they arre very hard working people. I recommened Gerando at the buffet. he was such a nice guy and served us with the best service you can get.
The food wasn't amazing, but it was good.
breakfest in the morning is very very goood!!!
never really ate lunch there, but im sure its good
and supper depends what you get, but i grantuee you its eatable not like in cuba!!!!
resturants.. miso is a waste of time, very satly
the best ones are grill and fondue!, very very good!!!!
im telling you youll fall in love with the staff and hotel and never wanna leave.
I really enjoyed my stay at this hotel and will be coming back for sure!! |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
AMAZING!!!!!
LOVED THE ACTIVITIES,
VERY FUNNY STUFF
KEEP YOU BUSY AND ENTERAINED
I REALLY ENJOYED IT |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
GROUNDS, YOU CAN LICK FOOD OFF THE GROUND FOR HOW CLEAN THEY ARE
BEACH, DIDNT REALLY STAY THERE, WAS MORE AT THE POOLS AND I LOVED IT
SUPER CLEAN AREA! FUN PLACE TO BE! ALL THE ACTION IS AROUND THE POOLS |
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| Rooms |
VERY VERY CLEAN!!!
BEAUTIFUL ROOOMS, BEAUTIFUL VIEWS |
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| Your Arrival |
VERY GOOD !
STAFF WAS VERY HELPFUL , SMILED ALWAYS |
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| great for families |
| Hotel Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret |
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terry >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| May, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| we stayed from 4/25-5/2/10 resort was beautiful.people were very friendly ,always willing to help.I ate at the seafood restaurant on Monday ,ordered Red Snapper well done,I think I got Grouper raw...got food poisoning.I did'nt get really sick till Thursday..ate chili after that I was down for the count.They have a doctor but the charge you for the food poisoning.I went to a doctor at the airport on Sunday free of charge & he wrote me a prescription for cipro 500....The steaks were tough, no fillets & the booze is all cheap mexican .nothing but Corona on tap & that was not cold.All the reserve restaurants are a waste of time.Stick to the buffet or the beach buffet..I have been to Cancun 8 times & never got sick.I can give you names if you like, thanks Terry |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| fair |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| goodfair |
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| Other Comments |
| playa del carmen was great .I reccomend staying close by |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| bad restaurants good martini bar |
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| Rooms |
| good |
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| Your Arrival |
| good |
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| Complain |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort |
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Mark >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Just came from Sirenis.Nice resort.Good food and beach,only problem Premium Travelers club.Stay away from this people. |
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| We all loved it! |
| Hotel Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret |
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Chris >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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| A group of family and friends flew from Halifax, NS, to the Myan Riviera on April 4th, 2010. Our group consisted of children, teenagers, parents and grandparents. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
We took a taxi to Playa Del Carmen to go shopping. It was a lot of fun to barter and see all the sights on Fifth Avenue! We went to Xcaret Park to the show and that is indeed a must see. For 2 hours you are spellbound by the performers (200 in total)
There is a golf cart with "cars" to take you around the resort.
You will be asked to check out the Time Share. Very expensive and the promise of 1.5 hours of your time always stretches to 3 hours. Sometime the compensation is worth it. See what they have to offer and then made your decision.
We also went to the silver factory. Some items were reasonably prices while others were extremely expensive. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
There were so many pools that we didn't see them all! The grounds are beautiful but if you had mobility issues, this isn't the resort for you. It is BIG and there are a lot of steps. Xcaret Park is only steps from the resort and there are deer grazing on the property and other wildlife as well.
The only draw back to this resort in my opinion is the beach. If you like waves and a beach to go to walk on, this isn't for you. The beach is a man made lagoon. It does have beautiful tropical fish and there is a restaurant and bar there. |
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| Other Comments |
We had a wonderful vacation with 7 straight days of nothing but sunshine and hot temperatures.
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The food was amazing. This part of Mexico is very Americanized so the food was for the most part, food we eat at home. There were 4 a la cartes, 2 buffets, a snack bar buffet, a pizza and tacos place that alternated nightly. The Steak House was exceptional! |
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| Rooms |
| The rooms were spacious, extremely clean and the bathroom had an amazing shower that would have held 6 people (no bathtub) No problems with a lack of hot water as I have experienced in other resorts. We had a King Sized bed which was comfortable. Towel vouchers were given to us at check in and the room contained a digital safee (both free of charge) The room was cleaned daily and the maid left "towel animals" every day as well as a fruit tray and refilled the frige with beer, 4 bottles of water, a pepsi and a 7-up daily! |
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| Your Arrival |
| When we arrived at the airport I was pleasantly surprised by the simplicity of going through Customs and Immigration. Our buses were waiting and we were on our way within minutes. It was an hour drive to the resort. When we arrived we were headed cold non alcholic drinks and our room was ready, although some of them in our party were not. Check in is 3 p.m. so no fault of the hotel. The staff at the Main Desk spoke perfect English so it was a breeze. |
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| Fantastic Vacation |
| Hotel Dreams Resort and Spa |
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Derek >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| The Dreams Riviera Cancun was a perfect blend of service, atmosphere and enjoyment. Yes there are children at this resort but we went as a couple knowing this and were able to still have a wonderful vacation. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Lots of energy and activities if you wished to participate. Not overly agressive to gather people for events and the noise from them was never really annoying. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Beach was unfortunately not that great due to the weather during our stay. Winds were strong and had a storm front for a few days of our vacation. |
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| Other Comments |
| Excellent service, attention to detail and memorable experience. Would highly recommend and we plan to return soon. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Food was excellent...we really enjoyed the Japanese and French. Plenty of bars to accomodate a thirst of any nature. Good selection of liquors availble. |
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| Rooms |
| Exact replications of what they portray on their websites. We found them stunning and almost all have some sort of oceanview. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Nice and close to the airport with about only a 30 minute drive. |
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| Wonderful and relaxing |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort |
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Lorraine >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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I stayed at the Grand Sirenis for 1 week with my daughter who is 6 and we had such a wonderful time. The pools were amazing and were we spent majority of the time in the pool swimmming and playing. I was able to sit on the side and read a book while she swam and jumped off the waterfalls.
We spent a fair time on the beach and what was nice is that there were lot's of kids making sand castles and collecting shells from the coral that came in from the tide. Snorkling was fantastic and the fish were a sight to behold. Feed them bananas and bread- the schools come ten fold right up to you. They were brilliant colours and shapes. You could be in the water for hours. (if you don't have your own gear rental is available)
Drinks were plentiful and eating at the buffet had variety everyday. Children are well taken care of with all types of food- the coffee was so delicious!!!!
rooms are spacious and the bathrooms very desirable. Our Room was used for sleeping and changing!!
Need to have some down time...go paint pottery- $10-$40US to create a masterpiece that has memories forever-(he will glaze your piece and make it magical-just try it and you will see...!)
I would go back again-no children and only adults and my vacation would be 1000 different!
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
We did 2 tours and it rained all day. Do tours that are close and rent a car for advenuture.
We went to Coba to climb a Temple and it was cool and a very neat experience. We also went to Xel Ha and that was nice. PS. there is no coral reefs here-lot's of fish and you cannot swim in a "centote" advise- wear your bathing suite and water shoes all day- PS they may ask you to buy their own sunscreen-$15 US..we chose not to. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
Clean, fresh and paradise like. Not a complaint. Nice to swim up to the bar for drinks!
Fresh flowers made my day! |
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| Other Comments |
| Want to and will go back! sold! |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
Yummy great good food. Healthy choices and variety and the best guacomle ever-my plate was always green!
Very kid friendly the buffett and service was fast and very efficient. |
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| Rooms |
| clean, nice and spacious- would not choose a room by the pool again- no privacy and noisey |
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| Your Arrival |
| Nice plane ride and landing into Cancun-waiting to go through customs on a Sunday-2 people working and 5 flights that had arrived around the same time-hours waiting..............not soo cool, but we had a nice ride on the bus and to the resort in 90 minutes |
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| management needs to draw a line in the sand - show compassion 4 cats, don't 'get rid of them.' |
| Hotel Iberostar Paraiso Lindo |
| User Rating:
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pat >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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The security was second to none - I was really worried, as my teens were out and about, but after seeing the property at night, and all the lighting, and staff about, even then, I felt 100% OK about letting them wander around.
You have to see it to understand how secure it is. During the day, as well as all the staff, who were always around, there is a security 'guy' in a formal uniform, who patrols the grounds.
This is Mexico - I understand this, but, with Iberostar and all the money it takes in, they should have a compassionate, caring attitude about some of the starving cats on the property.
As a guest, I felt conflicted - they actually have signs telling us not to feed the 'animals' then they have a (stupid) huge stir-fry on the beach, which of course attracts the animals. I don't get it - they have way 2 much food - a person could gain tons of weight - then they have a gigantic stir-fry on the beach. I thought it was very excessive, unnecessary, and silly, with all the food that is available.
So, there are a few skinny, starving cats which are terrified of all the workers, who either kick them, if they see them, or if, God forbid, some stupid guest is 'offended' by the sight of a cat on the property, they call the manager, who calls a company, who comes and gets them, and 'DISPOSES OF THEM.'
wE NEED TO LET MANAGEMENT AND OWNERS KNOW THAT THIS IS UNNACCEPTABLE. U can have the best service, best food, then ruin it all by not adopting a compassionate and caring policy.
To management - u should not be trying to please everyone!! It is callous, and sad that you do not take care of these animals. They serve a purpose - they keep the bug and lizard population down at the resort.
Think about spaying the cats, and feeding them. Yes, I reallize that there are lots of cats in Mexico, but think what great P.R. it would be, instead of your present policy!!! |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
the cleanest pools I have ever been in - and I am really really picky about this. The ocean was beautiful and clean, but the stir-fry on the beach was really silly and excessive.
Unbelievable, beautiful, too clean grounds - so many workers dedicated to every little thing on the grounds.
Loved the lazy river pool - my favorite place. |
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| Other Comments |
| I would go back every year, if management changed their policy about not getting rid of every thing that moves, that irritates the guests. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| fabulous restaurants, even 3 teens loved every one of them! And the bottles of wine were very nice quality. Service, second to none, always. |
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| Rooms |
| surprisingly quiet. be prepared for hard beds though. Very basic rooms. |
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| Your Arrival |
| The only staff who were 'non-responsive' were the front office staff, when we didn't get the rooms we booked. I understand they could not do anything, but it wasn't a gd. way 2 start. |
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| Un pays magnifique, un hôtel irréprochable, le paradis !!! |
| Hotel Gran Bahia Principe Tulum |
| User Rating:
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sandrine >
1 contribution(s) FRANCE |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Nous avons séjourné au Gran Bahia Tulum du 11 au 19 avril, tout était présent pour nous faire passer des vacances de rêve. L'hôtel est magnifique, très bien entretenu comme les jardins qui sont très fleuris. Les chambres sont bien décorées, et la salle de bain toujours très propres, de plus la femme de ménage nous offre des pliages de serviettes représentant des animaux chaque jour de la semaine. Les nombreux restaurants sont très soignés et la nourriture y est riche et variée. Les nombreuses piscines sont aussi très bien entretenues, nous n'avons jamais vu autant de personnes être aussi "travailleuses" de vrais petites fourmis !!! Le personnel est charmant surtout un grand merci à Laura MOULEDOUS qui a sû être présente pour le soucis que nous avons rencontré pour notre retour sur la France. Et un moins pour Rosie notre Déléguée Nouvelles Frontières qui n'a pas êté à la hauteur du tout. Il en reste néanmoins que nous avons passé des vacances paradisiaques. A refaire dès que possible. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Nous sommes arrivés le 11 avril 2010 |
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| Fantastic |
| Hotel Royal Solaris Los Cabos |
| User Rating:
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Helene >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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| Just returned from a week in the Royal Solaris. Couldn't ask for a better vacation. The hotel was very clean , the rooms were spotless, the staff were friendly, and the food was great. They have an amazingly talented group young people called the entertainment team who's goal is to keep you entertained by the pool side daily and who put on a dance show almost everynight. The hotel is not one of those mega hotels where everything is a hugh distance. The other guests were a nice mix of families, couples and young people. For those who want the night life the entertainment team organizes a bus to Cabo San Lucos a couple times a week and accompanies the guests. it is just a short walk to town. i would definately recommend this resort.
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| Your Arrival |
| Arrived April 23 and left April 30th,2010 |
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| Fabulous Vacation |
| Hotel Azul Sensatori |
| User Rating:
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Christine >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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Our group stayed at the Sensatori Azul at the beginning of April 2010. There were 11 of us in total. No one had any complaints. Vacationers travelling the earlier flight times should always remember that 90% of the time, rooms are never ready much before 3:00 (just like here @ home-don't forget - All Inclusives deal with many more people) I have noticed that this complaint is on many reviews and I don't feel it should be relfected on the resort itself. The beach @ the Azul is nothing to brag about - we hit the "seaweed" time and it was very rocky, but if you wanted to walk - you could walk for hours and go swimming in different areas where it was nicer.
The resort is isolated, therefore, you do need transporation to go to either Cancun or Playa De Carmen (approx 1/2 hour either way)there are buses scheduled for both. The staff were great and went out of their way to make our stay a very memorable one - that it was! The grounds are kept immaculate.
The main buffet is very "noisy" as that is where most families seem to go & eat and they have a very good selection. It was nice not to have to make reservations, although sometimes, due to us having a large group - it was difficult to sit altogether, but again, the staff tried to accomodate the best they could. We stayed mainly @ the Wave Swim-up Bar (Adults only). If you want the "beds" by the pool you do have to get up early to reserve, but ensure one person stays with the bed & your stuff til at least 8:00 a.m. There were many that reserved by throwing their towels, etc on the bed, but never showed up til much later in the morning. A complaint was lodged, and the security was on top of it and kept a close eye on the "reservations made with nobody there". After 15 minutes, towels, etc were removed and returned to the people later. I believe that was a fair decision made by the resort.
Food overall was very good - no complaints - only a fussy person would find something to complain about. Would we stay at this resort again or suggest it to others - YOU BET WE WOULD!
Michael & Christine
Ontario
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| staying @ the Adults only pool - the anitmation team would do a quick walk thru once to advise what was going on and left it entirely up to you if you wanted to join. Very good schedule board thruout the resort. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Le Chic was definitely different, but very interesting. We were all surprised that no one was hungry after due to the small "sample" portions. |
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| Rooms |
| very spacious and clean. Always fresh towels, etcs. |
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| Your Arrival |
arrival was very quick and in good order.
everything was explained to us with no problems. |
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| Had a wonderful time.... 2 aprils in a row... |
| Hotel Grand Riviera Maya Princess |
| User Rating:
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J >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| Gee, lots of iffy reveiews but my family and I had a great time! The staff are great, Alvaro at the front desk was exceedingly helpful... I tipped everyone single greenbacks and everyone was delightful. no trouble. never robbed. My kids loved the self-serve soft ice cream at the pool bar and the restaurants were very good. Breakfast and lunch buffets were great too; plenty of fresh fruit to balance off all the ribs, chicken wings and fresh baguette. the "butter" is that whipped margarine mexican jazz but shut up and have another mimosa! April is end of the dry season and so it's not so freakin sticky hot, less bugs too... but yeah, the DDT cart goes by every evening... |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Playa del Carmen is the usual walkers' mall trap, but when in Rome.... |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| damn nice... the gardeners never stop maintaining an almost other-worldy display of beautiful garden... |
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| Other Comments |
| if you're a resort rookie... here's whatchado... every morning you get up early and hit the right-hand side pool bar for cappucino then get to the beach, claim a chair with your towel and a couple a rocks so it don't blow away... do whatever, but always get to the buffets early... get a freshly made egg breaky and linger, drinking by the pool begins at ten. Have the lovely Jacqueline fill up your overly large thermal mug with beer and get two tropical coconut and two mojitos, to start... maybe ask yer wife what she wants too! after that who cares... when you done hanging at the pool, head down to the ocean... actually, don't sweat it... you'll be fine... don't get married there though, that's cheezy... |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| damn nice |
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| Rooms |
| well, like any other it's a freakin hotel room... the filtered water is restocked every day... but, leave the litre bottles behind every morning, they are cleaned, refilled and resealed in you room.... beds are alright, real nice bathroom too... nobody anywhere seems to know how to work a tube of freakin silicone.. so don't worry about it... |
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| Your Arrival |
| ocean breeze made the lobby... the place is big enough to have that nice anonymity, but human enough to make check-in great... leave the bags and stroll to your room, no worries... |
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| Very Enjoyable. |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort |
| User Rating:
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Paul >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Nice rooms, good food, good service.
Pools are beautiful.
Beach is very nice but you need shoes.
Great snorkeling.
Lots to do both day and night. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
Tons. Kayaking, snorkeling, volleyball, archery, lazy river, disco, shows at night. Swim with turtles.
Did an off resort boat ride where they have a BBQ, booze, snorkel and then they let you dive off the top of the boat.
A real blast.
Took about 5 hours and cost $80.00.
Highly recommend it.
Book it right on the resort at the Dive shop. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
Pools are beautiful.
Sparkling clean and surrounded by vegatation which makes you feel like you're in the jungle.
Beach is really nice.
Some people bitch and moan about it but I thought it was beautiful.
You need water shoes and the snorkeling is fantastic. |
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| Other Comments |
It's the second time we've been there.
I doubt I would go again but it's a great place.
Some people will always find something to complain about (someone said the pools were too cold) but it's a very nice place.
It deserves to be a 5 star.
The Spa is amazing.
Try and upgrade as soon as you check in. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
There are a lot and I managed to visit all of them.
Can't remember some but the ones I do, they were terrific. |
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| Rooms |
Very nice. Clean and spacious.
Bathrooms are pretty neat.
The design is quite unique. |
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| Your Arrival |
Late at night but they kept the buffet open for us because they knew we were coming.
We had our rooms within 1/2 hour of checking in and they took all our luggage by golf cart. |
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| beautiful resort and harassment free |
| Hotel Sandos Playacar Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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Sherry >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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My 16 year old daughter and I just got back from this resort. We had a fabulous time and enjoyed the facilities immensely. The grounds, room and restaurants are all kept incredibly clean.
Staff where friendly when we needed them and blessedly not there when we did not. Because I was traveling without my spouse I was not bothered by the staff looking to sell packages with the resort ( I think it is funny that this attitude still prevails but it makes for a great "out" if you don't want to spend hours of your time listening to a sales pitch ).
We loved the fact that there was a lot of wildlife roaming about the resort grounds - capybara, coatimundi, iguanas and more birds than I could dream of. If you don't want to wake up early make sure you keep your window or patio door closed because there are enough bird calls to wake you early. I found it a great way to wake up.
Overall an excellent stay and we will definitely go back! |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
We visited Tulum and Xel-Ha one day on a tour. I would split this into two outings next time. We had enough time to look around the ruins and follow our tourguide but not any time to go down to the beach or any extras. Also all of the tours seem to take place in the morning so you are surrounded by tours. Xel-Ha really deserves a day all on its own. We loved it there!
Playa del Carmen is a short taxi ride away and very colourful and fun to explore. I have never felt as safe in a town in Mexico as I did here. Don't miss out on the night activity. Very colourful and everything stays open late.
Cozumel is a short ferry ride away but we honestly enjoyed Playa del Carmen more. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
The beach is excellent. We had heard rumours of construction on the beach but it was all cleared up with no sign of it ever having occurred when we got there. The main pools are busy with activities and kids and we did not spend much time there. One problem with the beach and the pools is that too many visitors "reserve" a lounge chair by picking up a towel early in the day and leaving it on a chair. Anyone who does the math can see that there are not as many chairs as there are guests and this practice is ridiculous. I had one beach encounter with a family that "reserved" chairs at the waterfront and then left to go eat breakfast and came back and forcibly removed my belongings from the lounge chair. It got a little ugly - but they were ugly people. Another time at the pool we found a chair without a towel and shared it and a woman came up and claimed there had been a towel on it. She had 5 chairs reserved for her children who never got out of the pool. The hotel needs to deal with this in a better manner. I know it is more of a guest problem than a hotel problem but it was upsetting.
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Restaurant staff are very attentive and the restaurant managers often drop by the tables to ensure everything is as you wish. This is even true at the buffet restaurants where resorts often offer less service. Our favorite restaurant was the Brazilian one. What a great meal experience! Not only was the food excellent but the service style and structure of the meal made this one of my all-time favorite restaurant experiences. The buffets offered a wide variety of foods- all of which were good quality and enjoyable. The only restaurant we did not enjoy as much was the Italian buffet. The food was not quite authentic enough for me but then I should know by now that if you go to a different country take advantage of what they do best - don't expect Mexico to get Europe right. Having said that the service there was good and we tried a bottle of Mexican wine at the managers urging and I was pleasantly surprised. |
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| Rooms |
| We stayed in a junior hacienda suite which had a small shared pool amongst the 6 suites in the hacienda but always seemed to have it to ourselves. The haciendas are located centrally in the resort so are a short walk to anywhere without dealing with the noise of the pool area or the road area. |
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| Your Arrival |
| We arrived late at night. Check in was easy and the porters were very helpful. We had asked for a specific type of location and it was done just as requested. |
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| awesome |
| Hotel Gran Bahia Principe Coba Resort |
| User Rating:
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faten >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| the animation team is very nice |
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| Other Comments |
alex the MC is a great host. all the best to him.
he is very energetic, helpful,modest,welcoming, entertaining and has a good language skills. |
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| Unforgettable!!! |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort |
| User Rating:
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Sandra >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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| This is the second time I stayed at this resort and I will definitely be returning. We departed Ottawa on March 7 for 2 weeks and we all had the time of our lives, I know you can give 5 stars but if it were possible I would give the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya 10 stars for excellence. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
We didn't do any excursions out of the resort but there were many to choose from.
They also have a beautiful spa and gym. You can take a nice walk there (about 5min) or you can have your concierge call the shuttle for you. The gym is state of the art, we went everyday around 3pm and there was always something available to use. They also provide you with water and towels.
The spa is without a doubt beautiful and the staff is very nice.
The shows in the evening were by far the best entertainment I have seen in Mexico and the animation team is fantastic. Always getting everyone involved.
The Disco at this resort is also very nice. You need to take a shuttle to ge there but it is a 5 minute ride an well worth it! |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
We spent most of our 2 weeks at the beach, however the pools were equally beautiful. The beach can be a little bit rocky but not enough to need shoes although we saw some people wearing shoes.
The pools and the grounds at this resort were imaculate, there wasn't one minute of the day that we didn't see someone cleaning it, very well kept.
There is also a lazy river at this resort, very very fun and a perfect place to get a beautiful tan. They provide you with a floatation device and it takes you through the river very nice touch. |
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| Other Comments |
I would have to say that the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya excels in every way.
A special THANK YOU to the Managment of the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya you have created a world class resort. We thouroughly enjoyed our vacation and will be returning without a doubt next year. THANK YOU again and see you in 2011.
Adios!
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| Restaurants and Bars |
There are 8 a la carte restaurants to choose from:
Italian, Mexican, Mediterranean, French, Japanese, Steak House, Cajun and Brazilian. We manageg to go to all of them because we were there for 2 weeks and they are all VERY VERY GOOD! My favourites would have to be the Steak House and the French restaurants.
The Buffets are equally good. I never had a problem finding something to eat and everything I ate was very good. Excellent!!!!
The staff at the bars are very nice they go out of their way to make everyones experience enjoyable. Look for Gabriel and Joakin these guys know how to mix a drink!!!!
There is also a coffee bar at this resort and you can go for a coffee at any time of the day, very yummy! |
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| Rooms |
The rooms are spacious, beautiful and very clean, nothing to complain about.
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| Your Arrival |
We arrived in Mexico around 12:30pm and went through customs security very smoothly. We had to wait awhile after we got our luggage to go through security but we were in paradise so we didn't mind. We took a bus to the hotel that takes about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Check-in at the hotel was seamless. The bell boys were very friendly and assited us with our luggage. We were then greeted with a glass of chamapgne and guided to reception to check-in. The reception staff were very accomodating answering our questions and helping us fill out all the necessary paper work. We were then given our bracelets and our rooms keys. We then went back to the bell boys and we were driven to our rooms and our luggage quickly followed.
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| Great Hotel - Great Experience! |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Beach |
| User Rating:
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Ron >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| We did take part in one off-site tour - Coba ruins. We enjoyed the ruins and the visit in a Mayan family home. On site, we took part in water aerobics and enjoyed the use of the kayaks and the large tricycles. We also snorkled next to the resort at the far point (it was too rough in front of the Palace where we heard there was good snorkling) and there was a decent reef there to check out with plenty of fish. The evening entertainment was decent with a cultural flair in all shows but the circus show on Friday night. We went into Playa Del Carmen on the one afternoon that the weather wasn't great. If you go, be prepared to be 'bothered' as you shop with 'deals of a lifetime', etc. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The pool area is very nice, with crystal clear water (albeit a bit too cold for many people). The grounds are immaculate - the nicest I have seen at a resort. The beach is nice and you can walk a decent distance in both directions. There are rocky/weedy areas in the water in spots which makes swimming a challenge in some locations but there was a large rock/weed free area for swimming that was very nice. The water is shallow for a decent ways, so great for kids swimming. |
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| Other Comments |
We are a couple in our 40's and have travelled extensively in the caribbean. I would rate this hotel as one of the best I have stayed at, anywhere. The staff were fantastic in all locations of the hotel and did everything they could to help. I was surprised by the number of older teens at the resort (man, where do they get the money?! :-)), but other than at the bars in the evening, they weren't very noticeable. If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a line at scuba24@hotmail.com
Best of luck as you research your ideal vacation! |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The food was above average compared to other caribbean resorts I have been to. Something for everyone. Desserts often looked better than they tasted. Highlights for us were the varieties of fresh bread each day and the salads. We went to the Italian restaurant and the Steakhouse and found both very good. We had beef tenderloin and it was very nice. The flatbread in the Italian restaurant was awesome dipped in the oil/balsamic. |
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| Rooms |
| We had a room on the 3rd floor in Building G, on the far side of the property. We had a king bed - fairly firm but comfortable. The air conditioning seemed to only have one setting - cold! I didn't check it out with management; perhaps it could have been adjusted somehow. I ended up shutting it off and on a few times each night. Overall the room was very nice - large enough with a couch, clean, updated and a very nice shower. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Arrived on March 13, 2010 - just in time for the Canadian March Break crowd! Check-in was quick and uneventful. We had to wait for an hour or so for our room to be ready, so picked up some food, a beverage and took a brief tour of the property. The property is breathtaking. If you exchange US funds into Pesos, be aware that the hotel will not convert back to American funds (you can do this at the airport, if they are open!). The other option is to do it at a bank in town. |
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| not bad for first trip to Mexico |
| Hotel Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret |
| User Rating:
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krista >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| Upon arrival in 3/21/10 we were informed that the resort was over booked. At first we were annoyed. We had a long flight then an hr. bus ride to the resort. We just wanted to check in and relax. The staff offered to send us to one of their "sister" resorts. We were very apprehensive but didnt want to wait for a room to become available so we took a chance and accepted the offer. It was the BEST decision ever! they sent us to "Royal Hideaway" Playacar. It was an adult only 5 star resort and believe me, it deserved all 5 stars! they only let us stay 2 days until a room was available back at the Grand Flamenco. If by some chance that offer comes your way, take it, you wont regret it but you will be disapointed when you return to Xcarat. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Xcarat park was awesome, plenty of shows in the hotel. deff. more family type resort |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| pool was beautiful and well maintained, plenty of lounge chairs and staff around to get you what you need. the beach area they created was small but im more a pool person anyway. |
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| Other Comments |
| I can not say enough about the staff. Everyone was ALWAYS smiling and friendly. very accomodating. I brought $100 singles and used them all. These workers deserved tips. I dont care that its all-inclusive, it drove me nuts when people didnt leave tips. You dont get service like that anywhere else that iv ever been. show your appreciation people. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| the buffet's were average, steak house was disapointing. |
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| Rooms |
| Large size room and bathroom, plenty of closet space. smelled a little musty wish i would have brought some air freshner. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Sunday March 21 at noon, then bumped to The Royal Hideaway Playacar for 2 days due to over booking at Grand Flamenco. |
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| Handicapped Accessility EXCELLENT |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Beach |
| User Rating:
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Dixie >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| This resort has exceptional handicapped access to restaurants, theater, activities, pools even the beach! You will not feel like you are the only one who is handicapped at this resort –many people with varying disabilities have been repeat visitors to this resort. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The sand has a hard paced base so both strollers and wheelchairs can get down to the beach. At the foot washing stations you just roll right in-you can also use the rain shower option to rinse off the salt water. The foot washing stations are everywhere. The beach restaurants have low-sloped ramps, all wash rooms have handicapped facilities and are close to the beach and pool. The pool has many different types of entrances - hand bars, low slopes beach like entrance you could roll your wheelchair right into the water if you wanted. All pathways are well cared for. The walk ways to the main lobby are marble so its smooth sailing watch for a drop of about four to five inches on the marble surface- there are only a few in the day you might not see them but at night they are lit up. |
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| Other Comments |
| I would recomend the Barcelo Maya to others who are handicapped or with a wheelchair or a family with a stroller. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| All totally accessable the staff are happy to carry your plate to the table, get something from the buffet, etc. |
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| Rooms |
| A ground floor room is fine if you are able to transfer there is plenty of room with only a sliding door track to get over to your balcony. The bathroom has a tub with two lower grab bars with an angled bar on the wall. There are also handicapped rooms available with roll in showers. |
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| Resort is big, clean but not a five star. |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort |
| User Rating:
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Kathy >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Spent much time at the pool, the activities there weren't that great, the music wasn't the best, the staff tried to get people to participate but because the area is so big and pool not used, there wasn't many people close to the entertainment (or what should have been). |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Pool was COLD! It was my first time to Mayan and I was a bit disappointed with the sand on the beach, was in Punta Cana last month - the beaches there are amazing!!! Everything was clean, the pool is huge, but empty due to how cold it was.. guess that's one way to have it clean. The Resort has a great spa... the gym there was pretty good too, had everything you need for a decent work-out. |
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| Other Comments |
| I had 2 big issues with the resort, one being there was no water one day from 7:30 a.m. to around 2:30 p.m.... the toilets wouldn't flush (I'm guessing they shut down the pumps), there was no water in the room at all (bottled water), the staff had no idea when it would get back on when we called. The people were told to use the Pool Washroom & Lobby - imagine what a resort full of people can do to 2 areas, 5 toilets (female) in total!!! My other issue was the construction next door... banging away one night - all night. When we asked for a late check-out, the Resort wanted to charge us for the 2 hours... I brought up the issues we'd faced & they did give it for no charge, but only after plenty of discussion. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Ate at the Steak House (al-a-carte) only is ok at best, the buffet was abundant and changed up a bit each day... plenty of choices, no complaints there. Had to request for a better brand of alcohol, only a few bars offered domestic brands only. |
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| Rooms |
| Previously read reviews regarding bathrooms, but was pleased to see doors and obscured glass fitted to all areas which previously had been open. The room was spacious, clean and well looked after. |
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| Your Arrival |
| On arrival, we were greeted with champange, check in was quick, luggage assistance was offerred. |
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| Had a great time at the Tucan |
| Hotel Iberostar Tucan |
| User Rating:
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ALAN >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| Stayed: Feb 8 – Feb 15. Had a great time at the Tucan. We've been to other Iberostar’s and liked them, and really liked this one, with it's "jungle" setting. Great atmosphere, facilities, food, and drinks. Our weather was comfortable, with temp topping out at around 79F but the evenings went down to the 60’s. Had a variety of days from sunny to partly sunny to cloudy and a little rain. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Worth mentioning: Along this stretch of beach, the Tucan and several other resorts are located in a gated community containing private homes, condos, etc. It was easy and very safe to go outside the resort for a walk or jog, even bike-ride, and lots of people from the various resorts were doing just that. You could also walk all the way to Playa although we took a taxi for $5. Playa certainly worth a morning or afternoon visit. Best Tequila prices we found were at Walmart! |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
The beach is back at Iberostar Tucan, and the other resorts on that stretch as well. It is now very wide with lots of room. Apparently our trip timing was good - we were told that the big project to lengthen the beach has just been completed through the entire area. No more sand bags. The pools were also spacious and well maintained. The pool bar is in its own separate adults only pool you entered down a stairway. It was nicely shaded but the water was a little cold, not unusual for this time of year. Should be a great bar location in hotter weather.
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| Other Comments |
| The “jungle” landscaping really is different. This gave the Tucan a different feel from other resorts we’ve been to, very unique and enjoyable. Although the jungle path is hilly you can also walk around on flat wide paths that are on the outside of the buildings. Overall, very easily to get around. The Tucan is not as large as some of the other Iberostars. We saw that as a plus. Thumbs up for the IB Tucan! |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Buffet was good with lots of choices. It is true that the Buffet offerings were about the same every day. However, the variety was immense. No one had trouble finding plenty of choices to like. The buffet on the Quetzel side had a more scenic entrance with a walkway over a grotto with waterfalls. The specialty restaurants we went to were very good. We ate at the steak, Mexican, Tropical, and Japanese restaurants. The Japanese was the most fun, as they essentially put on a Benny Hanna type cooking show. Good premium Tequila to be found at the lobby and show bars. Also surprised to find they had premium Caribbean rum brands as well. |
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| Rooms |
| Room was very clean and typical of a usual Iberostar room. The bed was very firm, perhaps our only small gripe. Would have liked a slightly softer bed. Not a deal breaker though. Bathroom had a nice tiled walk in shower. Each day, different towel art was left on the bed, always fun to see. Had to call one day for more bottled water, and received it with no problems. |
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| Your Arrival |
| We used Apple Vacations and flew direct from Chicago O’Hare to Cancun on USA 3000. Went with 2 other couples. Flight was on time and went well. Air conditioned bus took us to the Tucan, part of the Apple package. They are doing roadwork on the main highway close to Playa Del Carmen, so we lost some time due to construction and traffic at the lights. They are putting in an overpass or two at intersections so that the thru traffic won’t have to stop for lights. When the roadwork is done (don’t know when) travel will be much faster. Check in – we had to wait until 3pm, but one couple had to wait until 4pm, I think because we asked for our rooms to be near each other, which they were. Otherwise no other problems. All of us were in fact placed in building 17, which was a fine location. |
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| Hotel ok but issues with maintenance of rooms and service definitely not more than 3 stars |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Mayan Beach |
| User Rating:
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Kay >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Beautiful Resort
Lots to do with Kids... crafts, swimming, games etc
Great nightly entertainment
Rooms needs attention and maintenace - tv not working, locks in the rooms, concierge outside the room not too helpful more worried about timeshare sales
Staff need more english training
Beach very disspaointing too many rocks in the ocean and seaweed
Front Desk not too responsive
Overall i would rate this resort good but not great |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Lots of choices for activities, but very disspointed in the beach compared to Cuba |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Rocks make it hard to swim...Pools very nice and clean, great choices for pools for kids especially lazy river. |
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| Other Comments |
| I am not sure i would return back... very disspointed at Service, and ofcource the beach with rocks. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Food choices excellent and fresh everyday. Service is great, lots of variety of foods! Buffet restaurant excellent choices and hot food! |
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| Rooms |
| Tv not working, Beds really hard, Great Housekeeping, Staff not very helpful and cannot understand.. they nod but do have a clue of what you are saying. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Too Slow at the Front Desk... cannot understand English, very slow to respond,Service is satisfactory but not great! |
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| Marival Disappointing! |
| Hotel Grand and Club Marival Hotel |
| User Rating:
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Jay >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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Stayed at Marival Mar.14-21.
Decor, furnishing, architecture, landscaping was disappointing. Reception, lobby, bar areas could be found in any mid value hotel in Seattle or Vancouver. Very little in way of Mexican themes, art or architecture.
Room very disappointing. Looked to be 20 yrs, old. Door had old style key lock (which you had to carry around your neck when you left) instead of newer magnetic card. Room furnishing similar to any good Motel 8, bed was short (I'm only 5' 10"), no fan in bathroom (was like a sauna after showering), blow dryer wall mount kept falling off with each use, and had to pay $2/day for use of room safe. The rooms need a serious upgrade and renovation.
Biggest complaint was NOISE in the room in the evening. Stayed on 2nd floor. Main floor/ lobby area had a large bar/sitting area that was used every night 9-11:30 for small bands, karaoke, singing, games ect.. Speakers were turned high and it was so noisy that it was impossible to sleep or relax. Seemed like the speakers were in the corridor outside the room. Many people in the building bought and used ear plugs, which they sold in the shop. Not what I paid for.
The entertainment was not of a high standard and the building, stage and seating that it was presented in had a high school feel to it.
Marival positives- good food, drink and service, excellent pools and beaches. Marival is very good for families with children and has an excellent water area for them.
Overall, it was OK during the day, but not a good value in my estimation. Last year I stayed at the Iberostar in Cancun for about the same money (maybe $400-500 more for the two of us) and it was exceptional compared to Marival.
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Didn't participate in any activities. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Good! |
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| Other Comments |
| I wouldn't come again, as, for similar money, there are far better resorts available. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| OK! Breakfasts were fine as were the restaurants. |
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| Rooms |
Clean but basic! No fan in bathroom, bed was short and the furnishings were motel 6 quality.
Noise in the evening was atrocious, with music, games, karoeke, ect. playing full volume on the main floor below and echoing up through the cement building. Many guests resorted to buying earplugs, available at the shop, to enable them to sleep. This is not what a 4/5 star resort is supposed to be! |
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| Your Arrival |
Arrived after a quick 20 min. trip from the airport. Tour guide on the bus urged us to take various excursions from the hotel and reminded us to tip if we were happy with the service.
Reception area was clean, basic and quick. was surprised that we were being charge $3.00 a day for the room safe.
When we completed the check in, a representative sat us down to give a overview of the resort. This was just a push to sign up for a time share presentation. Extremely annoying and a waste of our time! |
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| Clean resort, very spread out. |
| Hotel Sandos Caracol Eco Resort & Spa |
| User Rating:
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Gary >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Our stay was very good. The staff were excellent. We were bumped up to the select club because there were no other rooms left. (not worth the $ difference) Our room was too far from the beach and all three buffet restaurants. lots of walking. Our two boys aged 15 and 11 liked the grounds and animals, and pool tables. The food was what you'd expect at buffets. Our only true complaint was the smell of sewer everywhere on the property. It was by the restaurants, pools, rooms, etc. |
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| excellent place |
| Hotel Barcelo Los Cabos Palace Deluxe |
| User Rating:
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glen >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| there were some activities on resort but we did not participate in any, just vegged and drank by the pool or on the beach. off the resort we went on the sierra buggies which were great, we rented waverunners down the beach and went to cabo on a tour for snorkeling, whale watching and to see the arch. we also walked up to the town centre of san jose a couple of times. we ate at la panga which was very good, we sat in the rooftop bar called shooters and had 10 peso beer. there happy hour is actually 6 hours from 10 am till 4 pm. did some shopping downtown and felt very safe walking around town. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| the beach is nice, sand very fine and a big beach it just drops down to the water very fast and you can not swim in it. the pools were very good a little cool but once you got in great. the grouds were kept in great shape with lots of work on the sidewalk. they had about 8 to 10 fire pits with chairs around them, they were propane with the flame comming up thru rocks. |
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| Other Comments |
on a sad note we went on westjet vacations and had a horrible time at the airport when we left. the airport personel hit our plane with the stairs and they had to fly a different plane in from toronto. it was a 11 hour delay in the airport which is very small and closes at 4 pm. they kept the restuarant open till 6.30 for us but after that all was closed. the westjet people handled this delay terrible, we were never informed of how long our delay would be, just maybe 2 more hours. the air conditioner was on a timer and shut off at 4pm, no one knew they could leave and get back thru security till we were there for about 8 hours. we were promised rooms when we arived back in regina because it was going to be 4 am, but that never happened. we got ten dollar food vouchers at the airport but all that would buy was a hamburger we had to buy our drink with our own money.
ALL IN ALL WESTJET VACATIONS SUCKED
bad ending to a great trip any questions email glgeddes@rfnow.com |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| first of all men need closed toe shoes for the ala cartes. we did four alacartes listed best to worst japanese, mexican, steakhouse, italian. both buffets were great for breakfast dinner and supper. lots of bars during the day but at night if you wanted to sit at a fire on the beach you would have to walk all the way back to the lobby bar for drinks. at night the three bars were crowded but good, my favorate was the lobby bar, they made the best mojitos. |
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| Rooms |
| we had a room with two double beds, would liked to have a king but we didnt complain so was alright. the room was very clean with a jacuzzi tub separate shower, balcany overlooking the adult pool. the smart tv had all the room controls on it including internet. we brought a laptop so got the password rom the front desk and used it instead. had a room safe robes and slippers,great mini bar including two different kinds of beer, four cans of soda, fruit juice, nuts, chips, and even asprin and alka seltzer. |
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| Your Arrival |
| greeted at airport and got onto bus, check in at hotel was a little slow but we were served drinks while we waited so alls good. our roomwas ready, it took the bellboy about half an hour to get our bags to our room, but again there was beer in the mini bar to keep entertained. |
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| OMG!!!!!! SIMPLY THE BEST!!!!!! |
| Hotel Grand Sunset Princess |
| User Rating:
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Brenda >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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| Just returned from this amazing place yesterday, and had to write a review. Don't listen to all of the negative comments, go, go, go!!!! I have travelled to Cuba and the DR, and this has been by far the best. We were a group of 11, and everyone had a great time. This resort is simply beautiful. The staff are so friendly and helpful. We can't wait to go back next year, only next time it will be for 2 weeks. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Didn't really do any of the activities, just laid around an relaxed. We did hire a private driver to take us around. We went to the Coba. Our driver was so knowledgable and friendly. He took us shopping and sightseeing. Some of our group did the 4x4 excursion. They had a blast. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The beach is alittle rocky. I had water shoes with me, so it really wasn't a problem. The water is awesome, lots of waves. The waitresses will come around the beach and take your drink order, so you don't have to go stand in the line for one. |
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| Other Comments |
| Please don't listen to all the negative reviews. This resort is simply the best!!!!!! Can't wait to go back. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The food was amazing. Lots of different choices. If you couldn't find anything to eat, then you are a very picky eater. We found the food was the best by far. So much to choose from. The bartenders are great, and will do their best to make you anything you want. |
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| Rooms |
| We stayed in a junior suite, (room 1163) and it was amazing. Marble everything!!!! So clean, so beautiful!!!! |
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| Your Arrival |
| We arrived from Halifax at 11am local time. Check in was a breeze. Our rooms were not ready until 3pm, but no problem. We got our braclets on and were free to use everything on the resort. Had some relaxing drinks in the lobby bar, then went and had lunch at the buffet. Explored around some, more drinks, then our room was ready. |
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| Twice this year...and we are going back again |
| Hotel Melia Azul Ixtapa |
| User Rating:
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Dave >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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What can I say about Melia Azul? This has been our best vacation ever. We have been to Cuba, DR,Mexico and even 3 weeks in Hawaii and the service and accommodations at Melia Azul were awesome. The hotel and grounds are well kept and the food is top notch, didn't have a problem getting what we wanted at the bar no matter what time of the day and the pools were clean and always fun to hang out in. The beach is the weak point of the hotel but you can't have it all.
Our first trip was in Jan/10 and it was great, our 2nd trip was this past week and it was equally as good. The resort was busier this time due to Mexican spring break (lots of locals, that's cool)
The most impressive thing about this resort is that they actually enforce their policies (non-smoking, pool behavior etc)
We flew Air Transat and booked first class on the way home as the trip home involves a stop over in Manzanillo in which you don't deplane.
I would recommend this resort to anybody and we plan on returning next December and try some other Melia hotels in other Caribbean countries. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Lots of activities, very good activity staff and your kids wont get bored. Take the bus into town (safe and cheap) and make sure to get into the market in Zihuantenero (sp) |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Pools are great, the beach needs some work, there is debris in the water for the first 20 ft or so. Water shoes would be a good idea. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The al la cartes were very good although you may want to book the seafood restaurant after 8pm to miss the mosquitoes (it is outdoor) |
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| Rooms |
| The rooms are great, our first time was 1531, end of hall with a sitting room but no balcony, this trip was 1527 no sitting area but had a balcony. In either case the rooms were very large and the beds were great. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Just head through the time share guys and go to the buses outside. |
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| Fabulous Wedding ! |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Beach |
| User Rating:
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Louise >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With Group
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We were 22 people at the Barcelo Maya Beach from March 6 to March 13 2010.
We got married on the beach on March 11.
Resort: The rooms are spacious; they are nice and very clean.
They always fill up the fridge with beer, water and pop.
The beach: Best beach of the 5 resorts, it was well groomed and the water was warm and blue.
Food:
The buffets were average. The lunch buffet was excellent but at dinner it was bland and everything tasted the same.
The restaurants:
The Mexican was very good and we paid extra to go to the Palace, La Brasserie and it worth every penny.
It was delicious. We were told by some friends that the Steak house and Spanish was also very good.
The Wedding:
The Wedding coordinator Xhail & Karen were fantastic, everything was perfect. They were professional and really make sure that this day was a special day. We took a package (mint), it was very affordable and we had a private dinner reception where there was 7 servers taking care of us (for 22 guests), we were spoiled. There was a nice bar, we had brought our own music and they provide us a music system, it was fun. The food was excellent and the cake also.
Thank you very much to Xhail, Karen and Roberto at the reception.
Overall, we would recommend strongly this resort to get married and to spend a wonderful time on the beach.
Louise & Derek |
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| Bevere if you are non smoker |
| Hotel Canto Del Sol Plaza Vallarta |
| User Rating:
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Bil Balint >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Feb, 2010 | Business | Family
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Smokers paradise non smokers HELL
Positively speaking the resort is with the standard of the 3 stars and plus.
Unfortunately the Management ignores the non smokers rights.
We had a very comfortable room #306 nicely equipped partially good ocean view.
Arriving on the 16 January entering the room. it was horrible..
THE SMELL OF SMOKE WE CAN NOT describe.
Some maintenance person spread something which camouflaged the cigarette smoke smell and added some other unpleasant odor.
After several complains the answer is 'the guests are not supposed to smoke in the rooms" but the balconies OK. Well who can enforce this rule.
Conclusion, the cigarette or cigar smoke infiltrate into the neighboring rooms. the air conditioner units are interconnected and you can enjoy your neighbors stench. Do not use it!!
We consulted the issue with several officials, but we don't think They will do anything in the near future.
We suggested segregated section for smokers and non smokers accommodations.Plenty enough to mingle with the smokers around the pool and bars area.
Finlay arriving home our lungs slowly cleared out.
Very unfortunate this situation because the resort is lovely good service all around.
Too bad I can not recommend to any one who takes seriously "THE SMOKING KILLS" |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Ecceptable |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| beach non Pools good but crudy graunds well kept but croudy |
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| Other Comments |
| Segregation smokers rooms and non smokers room long over due |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| GOOD |
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| Rooms |
| 306 |
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| Your Arrival |
| 16 January 2010 |
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| Best Resort in Riviera Maya!! |
| Hotel Grand Sunset Princess |
| User Rating:
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Vincent >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Feb, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Although, we were a family we didn`t get to do many activities. All we know is that there was beach volleyball, picture taking with animals such as iguanas, tucans, and parrots. Also, there was parasailing and boat tours, catamaran from cancun/tulum to isla mujeres and/or cozumel.( lots of infos when you get there about tours). There is also a ferry from playa del carmen port to cozumel. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The beach was the best beach I have ever been to in Riviera Maya. If you would walk along the beach to other resorts the beach wasn`t as clear and beautiful (there was a lot more corals and rocks) as the one Sunset Resort had. The water is a beautiful turquoise, light blue colour that becomes darker blue the further you go. It is just spectacular. The beach also had no rocks which was the first time ever in Riviera Maya beaches. This beach is surely the best in riviera maya. The pools were pretty cold, and they weren`t that clean as I thought they would be. But it was good enough. The grounds of this resort was to die for! It was so huge and large and they were still able to keep it clean and new. Although, there is a lot of walking from your room to the beach or to the lobby. The outside of this resort is very nice with the colours that they have chosen for the resort. |
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| Other Comments |
| The overall of this resort was excellent. The style of this resort was amazing with a lot of work and detail put into it. I would surely recommend this hotel to families with children and couples. I also enjoyed the fact the upon your departure, since you don`t have your room because you checked out, the hotel provided a public room (next to the reception, inside lobby) that people could shower or change before leaving the hotel. It was extremely clean and modern even though it was a public washroom. I found this was an excellent idea because no other resort I went to had this feature. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The food at this resort was very good and extremely fresh. The buffet for breakfast and lunch was very good and they had a lot of varieties and selection. At night, for supper, my family and I decided to choose the a la carte restaurants. We enjoyed them very much and found that the food was splendid. The fish was amazingly fresh and tender and the italian restaurant was to die for! The resort had 9 a la cartes and they all had an amazing selection. This is the first resort that I went to that had 9 a la carte restaurants. Just Amazing!!!!!!! |
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| Rooms |
| My family and I stayed at the Jr. Suite room which was amazing and very spacious. We reserved two double beds. Although, we still found that it was tight for four people, so we decided to ask for covers for the sofa. But, very kindly the employee brought us an extra single bed for me. This was a very kind act even though we hadn`t asked for it. The bathroom was very clean, and had excellent modern finishes with granite counter tops and round sinks. |
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| Service |
| The service was fine, although i thought it would be much better. All the other resort I've been to in riviera maya had an excellent service and i thought the same for this one. The people were very friendly but they weren`t very fast and on the go. Sometimes depending on the person they might not have been that nice. |
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| Your Arrival |
| My family and I got to the resort at around 2 am on Monday due to the fact that we had a night flight from Montreal using Sunwing Airlines. Overall, the flight was very good as usual and it was my first time flying with Sunwing and my family was very pleased!! The hotel lobby was just spectacular. It was very large, high wood ceilings and the hotel had modern finishes. The check in went very well, and the receptionist was very kind upon our arrival. |
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| WE WOULD RETURN |
| Hotel Gran Bahia Principe Tulum |
| User Rating:
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Laura >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Feb, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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first trip to Mexico, this hotel is rated at as a 5 star, when we first arrived I was a little disappointed in the bathroom & room. I at first classed it as a 3 star, but then remember Mexico 5 star can be different than a Canadian 5 star. Everything worked well in the room, it was cleaned regularly, clean towels everyday, staff was excellent, food was excellent, front desk were quick and efficient to help out, transporation was never a problem. We stayed for 2 weeks and would certainly return for another 2 weeks, beaches were very clean and beautiful. I was amazed how well the service was, man if we got service like this back in Canada, I would have no problem tipping. I thing the room bar could of been better stocked and they did miss that once or twice, but out of 2 weeks - not bad.
We were treated exceptionally well, I would highly recommend this as a vacation spot for r n r, it is away from the hustle & bustle. It is at least a 20 min taxi ride (at mexico speeds) into playa, 30.00 usd each way. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Daily activities, staff comes around to the pools and beaches asking if you would like to participate. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| extremely well groomed and kept, was spotless, just a beautiful resort |
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| Other Comments |
wireless internet is available in the lobby only. They charge 10.00 per hr usd to rent a laptop, keyboard was in spanish so that was a pain. Next time I will take my own laptop.
Safety deposit box is free at this resort, you only pay the 50.00 if you loose the key. The other two siser resorts, Akumal & Coba - charge for their safety deposit boxes. If you like to be close to the beach, do not stay at Coba. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Excellent food and service. |
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| Rooms |
| Romms were large & roomy and clean. Bathroom, I was a little disgusted with. For a 5 star, I think the batghrooms could of been a step up, but everything worked. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Check in took a bit, only because there was an extremely large wedding party checking in at the same time. Just double check to make sure you are receiving the room that you paid for. We had an issue with this, but it was corrected immediately. |
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| Great family vacation! |
| Hotel Akumal Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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YVRck >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jan, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Date of Vacation: Nov. 27-Dec. 4, 2009
Wholesaler: Signature Vacations
Airline: Air Transat (direct flight Vancouver-Cancun)
About Us:
We are a laid-back, self-employed, professional couple, age bracket 55-60. We tend to favour casual resorts which offer good off beach snorkeling opportunities as we are very avid snorkelers. Large, fancy resorts with amenities we are unlikely to use do not appeal to us. We prefer small resorts on a nice beach and it goes without saying that cleanliness is paramount.
We have vacationed at the Akumal Beach resort previously and were very anxious to return. This trip was a family vacation which included our 5 year old grandson, our son & daughter-in-law. This was their first experience to the Mayan Riviera and the little fellow's first tropical vacation and trip on an airplane.
Flight:
As experienced travelers we have flown Air Transat many times. Flight was on time both coming and going and actually arrived early at destination both ways. I had opted to pay extra and pre-booked our seats so we would be seated close to one other near the rear of the aircraft. Both hubbie and son are tall so I made sure they had aisle seats. Everyone was reasonably comfortable considering the 6 hour flight and of course I was well prepared with on board snacks, although some snacks are offered for purchase. Effective Dec. 1, Air Transat is again offering hot meal service so we enjoyed this on the flight home. Choice of two meals, which included a tiny glass of red or white wine, was decent for airline food compared to the cold sandwich offered on the way to Cancun. Flight staff were extremely friendly and professional. No complaints!
In advance of the trip, I had signed our grandson up for the Air Transat Kid's Club membership. No charge for this and some worthwhile perks are offered for the child & his immediate family. The Kid's Activity packages handed out by in-flight staff were a big hit and even I was surprised at the decent quality of the toys included in the package. Full marks to Air Transat! Our grandson's first air travel experience was very positive and he can't wait to do it again.
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Activities:-
The resort offers a variety of daytime activities and a nightly show in the theatre located across the walkway from the lobby. They have an animation staff and a list of daily activities is posted on the outside wall of the main bar area facing toward the gift shop. The few times that we did inquire about a certain activity, it either didn't happen or the staff were not at the venue at the time indicated. This is often the case when a resort is at low capacity.
Animation staff were present around the resort and often engaged guests in conversation but more often than not, they were chatting amongst themselves at their station, listening to/playing music or busy preparing for the evening show. We did observe frequent beach volleyball games and once we were fortunate enough to convince a staff member to let us use the shuffleboard equipment after she finished playing with other guests. The equipment needs to be returned to the animation station when you're finished and they appreciate you doing so in a timely fashion. We had been looking forward to playing chess on the large outdoor board near the buffet entrance, as well as some bocce. When we inquired about using this equipment, we were told it was not available. Perhaps it's broken?
A games rooms with a pool table and table tennis are located in the area behind where the Mexican a la carte used to be set up. There were no paddles available for the table tennis and the pool cues were in pretty rough shape with the set of balls also incomplete. It should be noted that a fitness room- very small and with aging/outdated equipment- is also located in this area as well as a medical/first aid centre which was abandoned with an emergency telephone number posted on the door.
The resort has two tennis courts which appeared to be in good condition, although we never saw anyone using them. No idea where one could get some racquets but I'm guessing that many tennis playing guests probably bring their own equipment. I recall that a tennis pro used to be on staff and perhaps one of the animation team specializes in tennis. While I enjoy playing tennis at home, the tropical heat always overwhelms me, so I rarely play while on vacation.
Archery is set up in an area next to the theatre. This was something that especially interested me but no one was around at the time posted for the activity and the equipment shed was locked. I was aware of the child size bows since I had seen them being used by children on a previous visit. After making an inquiry with one of the animation staff, we were directed to go to the archery centre with our grandson for a specific time so he could try it. We arrived 15 minutes early, found two staff sitting and chatting but were told that sorry, they were closing up, please come back some other time. I did try to convince the girls to at least let us see the child size equipment and perhaps try it even just one time, but to no avail. My grandson was especially disappointed and we were leaving the next morning, so we never did get to try the archery despite our four attempts.
The Kid's Club, which we went to check out daily, was always closed which made the small fenced off playground unavailable. Just as well as there were a lot of mosquitoes in this area! There were several families with young children at the resort during our stay. We all seemed content to supervise our little ones and let them play on the beach. For us, this was a family vacation so dropping our little fellow off at the Kid's Club regularly was never part of the equation. It should be noted that an ATM machine is on site by the large gate near the Kid's Club area, but it wasn't working.
The evening shows offered at most all-inclusive resorts are something people either really enjoy or take a pass on. We enjoy shows with a cultural theme or good comedy well presented, but we don't bother with audience participation/shenanigans types of shows. We made the effort to go for t |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Beach:-
The beach, with it's amazing directly off the shore snorkeling opportunities, is what keeps us and many others coming back to the Akumal Beach Resort! For a resort of this size, the beach is reasonably long and quite wide with white, powdery soft sand. Plenty of white, plastic beach loungers and palapas or palm trees for shade. A sign is posted asking guests not to “reserve” their loungers by placing personal effects or towels on them at the crack of dawn or the night before, so none of those dreaded “towel wars” many resorts have problems with. I can't say for sure this doesn't happen at the Akumal Beach resort, but with such very low occupancy during our stay, it wasn't an issue this time nor on previous vacations.
The beach is well suited for young children and our grandson really appreciated the few sand toys I had brought along for him. Entry to the ocean is quite gradual, there is no erosion, very few rocks in most places so water shoes are unnecessary and the reef formation keeps the water relatively calm. No jet skis or parasailing! We did have a couple of very windy days (red flags) which kicked up some waves but nothing too intense or dangerous, so our grandson was still able to frolic in the ocean close to shore. Of course, he wore his lifejacket at all times!
Some of the fish seem to have been habituated to expect food from guests who enjoy wading beyond knee depth water or they are exceptionally curious. It took no time at all for us to be surrounded by a bout 8-10 pompano fish (possibly Trachinotus falcatus) swimming in and around our legs as we stood in the ocean supervising our grandson. One fish even snuck up the leg of his bathing trunks and this momentarily frighten/startled him. He soon enjoyed the interaction with the fish, attracting them by snapping his fingers underwater, but I can well imagine other children and adults not reacting positively.
The major attraction at Akumal are the sea turtles, rays and accessible reef formations; truly a snorkeler's paradise! Although the weather and visibility were not as good this time, we spent many enjoyable hours snorkeling to our heart's content. Bonus was being able to take a hot shower in the area behind the resort's dive centre when we come out of the ocean.
Pool:-
We rarely use resort swimming pools. Due to a couple of very windy days at the beach and because our grandson loves to swim, we spent quite a bit of time in the pool. A pathway separates the pool from the beach so getting away from the wind completely isn't possible but the view of the turquoise blue ocean is wonderful. The pool offers a toddler area and whirlpool section.
Water was reasonably warm and clean although some areas of the pool had a nasty algae build up on the sides. We observed staff making an effort to scrub the sides, especially in the deeper pool which leads to the whirlpool area. A complete draining of the pool, followed by a thorough cleaning and a coat of light blue paint on the bottom would do wonders! Plenty of loungers and some umbrellas are available around the pool. The towel exchange counter is located by the pool, along with a small souvenir kiosk. A dive shop, the pool bar and the snack bar are just a stone's throw away.
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| Other Comments |
| Conclusions:-
Having previously vacationed at Akumal Beach Resort, we were a bit shocked at the deteriorated condition of the resort when we arrived. Those who know me from my countless years of travel forum participation are aware of my high praise and recommendation to visit the Akumal Beach Resort.
VentaClub, who were most recently managing this resort, did it no favours and thankfully they are now out of the picture. Shortly after returning from our vacation, I found out that the resort management has been taken over by the owners with a promise that things would improve quickly. I can happily report, based on information gained directly from the new manager, that improvements to the quality of alcohol, coffee in the buffet, condition of the rooms, repairs to the balconies and changes to the entertainment have already been made. I am very optimistic that the Akumal Beach Resort will once again be returned to its solid, 3 star resort status.
For those who enjoy a basic resort with great friendly staff located on a 5 star beach with snorkeling directly off the beach, put the Akumal Beach Resort on your vacation list. Our family definitely plans to return again! If our 5 year old grandson had his way, it would be tomorrow!
Thanks for reading,
Cristal (YVRck) |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Restaurants & Bars:-
Travel brochures list the resort as featuring one buffet, one snack bar, 2 a la carte restaurants (Mexican & Italian) and a specialty restaurant which requires payment. In previous visits, the a la carte restaurants were set up in larger allocated areas between buildings 2 & 3. Sadly, this area was dark and abandoned. For this visit, a small separate area next to the buffet was used as the a la carte venue. They alternated nightly between Mexican & Italian. A la carte restaurants are not available on Sundays. We did not dine a la carte for this visit so I can't comment any further.
Several years ago, a fire damaged the buffet restaurant extensively but it has been rebuilt. Although not air conditioned, it sits virtually right on the beach and large opening windows provide plenty of fresh air and a fabulous view. Service was adequate to excellent. Many of the reviews posted before our departure complained about the food offerings- or lack thereof. We were more than happy with the selection and presentation considering this is a 3 star resort. They have labels telling you what the dish is! At every meal, we always found plenty which appealed to all of us- yes, even the 5 year old!- and the breads/pastry selection was especially fresh and delicious. Some of the hot dishes could have been hotter but this is a common problem at many resorts. A custom omelette station is available at breakfast . Only incident I can recall as being negative (but with a positive outcome!), was that a box of pre-packaged, sugar coated breakfast cereal our grandson selected was stale, so he didn't eat it.
While many vacationers enjoy being served and expect this, we have no problem getting our own beverages or refills. Our son loved the self serve beer tap! Water/juice/soft drinks/milk/wine dispensers are all available in the buffet. The coffee machine was quite another matter. Coffee was horrible and the wine not much better! Explains why so many people arrived for dinner with their own bottle of wine in hand. I need my morning java fix and found it available at the main bar which opens at 8 AM around the corner from the buffet restaurant.
The snack bar near the pool always offered fresh, oven baked pizza with various toppings as well as nachos with fabulous fresh salsa and guacamole. Hot dogs and custom cooked burgers were available upon request and one day they also had onion rings. The availability of chicken wings or fries was intermittent. Our family found the snack bar, which is open until 6 pm to be especially handy as it provided a late afternoon snack option for our grandson who would otherwise have been very hungry (and cranky!) by the time the dinner buffet opened shortly before 7 pm. Again, the self serve beer tap was a welcome addition to the snack bar area as was the water/lemonade dispenser. Alcoholic drinks were offered at the bar around the corner.
There are 3 bars at this resort, the most interesting being the Moonrise close to building #1 as it features swing seating. The resort uses only domestic brands of alcohol, probably the least expensive brands available, but they do NOT water it down. We aren't big boozers but I sure do look forward to having a few tropical cocktails when I'm on vacation. This was a disappointment and a surprise change from our last visit! Compared to the lovely cocktails I've been spoiled with at Cuban resorts, where they use juices, this resort uses overly sweet and sickly syrups. Pina coladas were questionable and while I did enjoy a couple of daiquiris, I found myself ordering gin and tonic for most of the week. My son ordered a Caesars from the main bar one evening and it was undrinkable but hubbie had better luck with the Bloody Mary he ordered. It helped that he carefully supervised the bartender every step of the way. All of the bartenders were very friendly and accommodating, a few of them exceptionally so, and it was a real pleasure to deal with them. At no time did w |
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| Rooms |
| We had booked gardenview rooms, hoping to again be placed in building #1 which has some adjoining rooms. The resort was at extremely low capacity during our stay. We were assigned rooms on the ground floor of building #6 . Buildings 5,6 & 7 house the superior rooms at this resort, so we received an upgrade. Except for a few select rooms, buildings 1,2,3 & 7 were not being used.
Room 604 had a king size bed while #603 had two doubles. We had also been assigned #609 which is a handicapped room with a king size bed. This room was absolutely not suitable. Any showering would have immediately flooded the floor and a longer shower curtain was apparently not available. When we were informed by the front desk that we could not be relocated to another room, we opted not to use #609 although we had paid for it. Odd considering the very high vacancy rate during our stay!! I'm sure the maid didn't mind having one less room to clean.
The furnishings are basic and many complain about the beds being hard but we prefer a firm mattress so no issues on that account. Extra pillows are in the closet. The mattress and box spring had however seen better days and need to be replaced! We always take our own travel alarm clock. Just as well since none are provided. We did miss not having a mini-fridge, which we had in our room on previous visits. There are no coffee makers, iron/ironing boards or radios provided. All of the lights worked and no lamp shades were missing. In my first review of this resort back in 2003, I dubbed the decor “mexicano rustico”, and it still is!
The bathrooms have a shower only, separated from the WC and vanity area. No water pressure problems and plenty of hot water. Vanity area is large, 1600 watt, two speed hairdryer is provided as is an ice bucket and a small thermal jug for bottled water (which is available from the dispenser in the main hallway on every floor in each building), face cloths, hand & bath towels, box of kleenex and small containers of shampoo, lotion & soap. We prefer to bring our own toiletries. Very large mirror with decent lighting but the mirror has seen better days. The retractable clothesline in the shower is handy!
Across from the vanity area is a large clothes closet with double doors made of bamboo sticks (some missing!) and beside that is a narrower door which opens to four shelves. The closet floor was spacious enough to accommodate our empty suitcases placed flat and side by side so we didn't use the luggage stand provided. The no extra charge in-room safe (lock & key operated), is located on one of the shelves. There is no dresser in the room but the shelves are more than adequate. I pack my hubbie's cotton shirts on their hangers and bring along a few extras, so we never worry about a shortage of hangers.
TV (cable, not satellite) is wall mounted. The remote control in our room was fine, but the one in our son's room fell apart as soon as it was picked up. A couple of elastic bands solved this problem. The A/C was adequate albeit a bit noisy.We prefer not to use air conditioning and appreciated the screen on the patio door. The door sweep on the entry door is a bonus as it prevented critters from entering the room. A note of caution:- the patio door locks easily so don't close the door behind you when going out on the balcony! A desk with chair, along with one other chair round out the room furnishings. Two plastic chairs and a small table are on the balcony/patio. We noticed that a few balcony chairs in building #5 rooms had some nice blue cushions.
Our son's room patio door didn't lock properly and he had no hot water. These issues were repaired/resolved very quickly and satisfactorily. We were alarmed to find yellow caution tape around our balcony railings! I can't explain the logic in assigning this room with a very unsafe railing to a family with a young child except to say that one can safely presume a young child will not have an accident due to being intoxicated. It was only |
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| Your Arrival |
Our flight arrived 30 minutes early in Cancun at about 8:30AM. Going through immigration and customs was a bit of a wait but otherwise painless. I knew to head straight for the exit doors to find our Signature rep. so the time share sharks had no opportunity to distract or detain us. We had no problem finding the bus which was to take us to the resort but as most often seems to be the case, we had a fair wait for stragglers. Our bus was to drop vacationers off at 4 resorts, and Akumal Beach Resort (ABR) was stop #2 after the Barcelo complex. Trip from the airport to the resort took about 95 minutes. Our little guy slept for a good part of the way while the big guys enjoyed a beer (Corona) offered for sale on the bus. We arrived at the resort shortly before lunch. Considering the amazing price I had gotten for this resort, I was very surprised that our family members were the only guests on the bus going to ABR.
Walking into the spacious, open air lobby with it's quaint wooden plank floor and thatched roof (which leaks in some places when it rains!) was welcoming. Check-in was a breeze and even though check-in time is usually 3 PM, our rooms were ready when we arrived before noon. The check-in envelope contains the lock/key for your in-room safe, a room key on a lanyard, towel cards and a pamphlet outlining the resort amenities. Please note that your room number is engraved on the key so anyone finding your key can access your room. Although we had no theft issues, and I didn't hear of any either, I suggest you always keep your room and safe key separate! WiFi is available in the lobby area at a cost of $25US per week for those who travel with their laptop/netbooks. Computer stations are charged at $10US for one hour of use. |
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| Things have changed at the Barcelo |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Beach |
| User Rating:
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Bernada >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Jan, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| Things have certainly changed at the Barcelo Maya in the two years since we had been there. There has never been a problem with the language until this time. All of us had a difficult time getting our needs and wants across because of a language barrier. There always seemed in the past to have a stable group of employees but there were very few we recognized from our previos visits to the resort. The food was not as good as I remember. Many items were cold. The service has certainly changed. If you did not tip heavily, you had a hard time being served a glass of water. We never experienced any of that in our previos five visits. I think that it is time for us to research and find another resort. |
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| Broken sport equipment and tennis instructor wants tips |
| Hotel Grand Palladium White Sands Resort & Spa |
| User Rating:
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eugene >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jan, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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Be careful when using the archery, equipment is faulty, no protection for the arm, arrows are broken. Complain with mangement since faulty equipment is dangerous. Also, they let you shoot only eight arrows and then the instroctor wants to relax and stop working.
Fitness instructor sometimes is too tired to teach zumba. Complain with management.
Tennis instructor is supposed to teach but he wants a 25 dollar tip in advance. Beware do not give a tip and report him to management. He is alreay paid to teach, not to ask for a tip before he even moves. Report him to the chief of animation. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| See above, lots of problems with instructors and equipment. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Nice |
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| Other Comments |
| I really did not like the fact that archery equipment was faulty and that the tennis instroctor asks for tips. If it happens to you please report him to the chief of animation. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
Beware of long lines at dinner. Either be there at 5.50 pm or expect to wait until 8.8.30 to have dinner.
Lamb in Brazilian restaurant was quite bad. |
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| Rooms |
| Very nice |
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| Your Arrival |
| Very good and quick. |
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| Biting Insects ruined my two weeks |
| Hotel Gran Bahia Principe Tulum |
| User Rating:
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abby >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jan, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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| The place was way to spread out, the 24-hour bar/restaurant burned down the second day there and to get additional coffee meant walking forever - and getting bit by bugs - I would not recommend this place, I wasted my money and time |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Archie and friends are very snobbish |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| beach is horrible because of the biting insects |
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| Other Comments |
| would never ever go there again |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| nice, except for the burnt one |
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| Rooms |
| nice |
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| Your Arrival |
nice fellow at the check-in,
Alex was his name |
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| Outstanding Resort |
| Hotel Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort |
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jim >
1 contribution(s) United States of America |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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| Outstanding resort. Service is great. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| 3 pools with differnent water temps. Pool bar. Beach was good. Lots of people playing the towel game but the help at the pool will find you a chair. Bed type loungeers in the 18 and older section off the main pool area. |
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| Other Comments |
| Room service was great for dinner one night. Outstanding food and service. If you need anything just ask for it and they will provide. The even made us up sandwiches for the plane ride home. Of course all services and food are included. The resort was the most expensive ai we have stayed at but well worth the price. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Ala carte restaurants were very good. You should book each of the ala cartes when you arrive to secure the day and time you want. French reataurant was the best. Nice bars with music at night in the main bar off the lobby. |
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| Rooms |
| Hugh rooms with large balaconys. Eash room has a seperate bedroom plus hugh living room with couch and dinning table. We ate 8 in the room one night with no problem and still lots of room to roam. |
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| Your Arrival |
| Check in was uneventful except they offer free chair messages which were great. |
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| Great resort for families travelling with children |
| Hotel Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret |
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John/Melinda >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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| This was our first trip to Mexico, and also our first trip that we brought our 2 children ages 9 and 11. We have been to the Dominican Republic twice, Jamaica once, and Cuba twice before. Upon arrival in the cancun airport, we made it through customs, and picked up our luggage without any delays! We quickly were directed by our Sunquest representatives to the location of our bus. It is about 1 hour from the airport to the resort, but we were aware of this before the trip. When we arrived at the resort, the check in was quite painless and efficient. They gave us a map and showed us where to find our room and told us that our luggage would be following us shortly. Everything went without a hitch! |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel: |
| As I mentioned before, it appeared as if the most activities took place at the "fun" pool. There was ping-pong, archery, pellet gun shooting, dancing, beach volleyball and many more. Lots of things offered if you want to take part or not is up to you. We did not feel pressured by any of the staff. One night we took a cab ride into Playa del Carmen. It was 100pesos or $10 each way. It was nice to see the beach and to take in the touristy areas. All the shops were the same but it is fun to do some bartering to buy your souveniers. We did take a tour on our 4th day there. We took a snorkelling/spinaker tour out of Maroma Paradise Marina. The price was right and it only took 6 hours from beginning to end. We got to snorkel twice and if we wanted to, the captain set up a huge kite behind the boat and you could sit in a swing and fly behind the boat and then jump into the ocean. On the tour, we saw lots of colourful fish,a starfish and couple of turtles. The kids loved it and so !
did we. We chose to go to the Xcaret park the last day that we were there. As recommended at the tour desk, we did the underground rivers first. It took about 45 minutes in total. When we got out of the river, there were showers and places to change. They ship your belongings in a bag and you pick them up when you are done the snorkelling of the river. From there we explored the entire park. So much to see. Turtles, mantaray, manaties, butterflies, dolphins, crocodiles, fish, shrimp, jaguars......so much more. This park was out of this world. There were no line ups anywhere, and you could take as much time as you wanted to and enjoy the scenery. The ruins were amazing and the children found it exciting to be able to climb them. The night show which is from 6-8pm was also amazing.
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds: |
| As for the beach, we were aware of the small size. Which is one of the reasons we chose this resort as we wanted to keep an eye on the children. We all brought our own snorkelling equipment and enjoyed snorkelling daily. Lots of fish to see. The pellicans that swooped down were amazing to watch. At times we counted over 20 pellicans. We did go to the "fun" pool for a day where you can take out a raft to float on and take part in the activities that they offer. If you want to be in the hub of everything this is the pool for you. This was the pool with the swim up bar, so it was nice to visit. The adult only pool which is located by the beach buffet resaurant, looked beautiful as it was right beside the ocean and the waves would come crashing up along the shore. Since we had the kids with us, we could not use the pool but we did explore the grounds surrounding the pool. Lots of hermit crabs to be found. The resort itself is very large, but once you know the layout, it isnt that hard to get around. The tram that goes by every 15 minutes is handy if you are tired or just want to go on a tour. The drivers keep you amused the entire ride. The children had a blast exploring the grounds. Everywhere we turned around there were lizzards of all sizes and colours. We took some bananas from the buffet and fed them throughout the day. They have flamingos and deer located near the "fun" pool, and also some monkeys. The fish that are found in the main lobby were fun to feed with the food that the resort supplied daily. Turtles were seen swimming with them and loved to be fed also. We had brought along a couple of flashlights with us and took the kids out exploring in the dark. It was amazing looking at the different bugs and night creatures that we dont have hear in Canada.
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| Other Comments: |
| Overall, great resort for families travelling with children. |
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| Restaurants and Bars: |
| We made reservation at the oriental restaurant which was good, but our children are picky eaters. We all enjoyed the steakhouse restaurant, as it was kid friendly and had a very relaxed atmosphere. The children loved eating at Paco Taco's also. The buffet restaurants had plenty of selection with some items repetitive. As for the bars, all of them had great service and were extremely friendly. We found the "quiet" pool bar the best. The buffet restaurant found at the beach is quite nice to eat at for breakfast and watch the sun and ocean and waves. It was not as crowded as the main buffet, but did serve the same. It offered amazing pizza at lunch time. |
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| Rooms: |
| We were put in the 14th building 2nd floor. Our balcony overlooked the "quiet" pool. The room was just as explained in previous reviews. 2 double beds, stocked bar, bathroom with just a stand up shower(which was huge). The water pressure and temperature was amazing! Never short on HOT water no matter what time it was. The room service was outstanding. Everyday we returned to our room to find a new towel ornament layed out on our beds along with a fully retstocked fridge. |
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| Thanks so much for a wonderful vacation Mexico. |
| Hotel Sandos Caracol Eco Resort & Spa |
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Liesje >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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Hi
Our family of 5 had a wonderful time staying at the Sandos Caracol Mayan Riviera.
We did everything as a family all our outings were booked from the resort and had great service from Julian Lee and Claire.
Food, rooms and weather along with the wonderful staff who could not do enough and quickly after a request as well Will be back in the near future as I felt at home completely comfortable in my surroundings.
Every excursion was a blast the kids 24, 22 and 19 will come back too.
Thanks so much for a wonderful vacation Mexico.
Liesje
Rooms:
Taken care of daily with no complaints
Restaurants and Bars:
Loved everything my son only asked for cream once for his coffe milk was just fine
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Had a blast there too
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
Enjoyed the shows and went on 4 tours and a day in Playa de Carma
Other Comments:
Will do it all again soon
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| Swam with the dolphins which is an absolute must |
| Hotel Palladium Vallarta Resort and Spa |
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Dave from Winnipeg >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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| Quickly directed outside to tour bus after landing and taken immediately to hotel.Friendly staff greeted and checked in with no issues. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel: |
| Lots of activities during the day to keep busy but could use a few extras to mix up and not repeat the same day after day. Night time entertainment nothing to write home about. Daytime staff is working from dawn to dusk and some of them are out of their element when it comes to the musical/theater parts. Again a little variety would go along way. Magician, hypnotist ect to change things up. Swam with the dolphins which is an absolute must.Whale watching and dolphin tour is a crap shoot and nothing is a guarantee. Tried snorkling but again time was cut short. Stay away from Kontiki Tour for whales/snorkling. Don't waste time going into town to shop at the market. Small village 20 minutes away in the town of Buccerias? which was ideal. It's located next to the ocean so you could spend the day there swiming, shopping, walking, bike riding [rentals available] if you need a break from resort.$15 for taxi each way. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds: |
| Excellent beach, pool and grounds. |
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| Other Comments: |
| Always tip a couple of bucks and it will go along way during the week. |
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| Restaurants and Bars: |
| Buffet pretty good but restaurants nothing to write home about. Too many different rules in regards to dress codes and not enough consistency in regards to enforcing policies. We ate at all 3 restaurants and if combined had 1 good meal between the 3. Service was always excellent but found the quality and the temperature of the main dishes especially very disappointing. Food was very cold and sometimes just plain disgusting to try and even eat. Bars were superb and everything pretty much available on request.Always check to see if food is cooked all the way through. Numerous times kids food was raw. |
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| Rooms: |
| Booked with 2 other families but lucked out and was put into building #3 which is the nicest and newest of the 3. A little disappointed that we were not all put into at least the same building as we did book all together and as a group. Buildings #1 and #2 a little run down and in need of upgrades. |
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| Grand Sirenis Mayan Beach - great resort! Fantastic Christmas vacation. |
| Hotel Grand Sirenis Mayan Beach |
| User Rating:
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Denise from Regina >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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| We stayed at the GS Mayan Beach, that side of the resort has been closed for awhile so the rooms were dusty. We didn't notice any musty smell, and anything that wasn't working was quickly fixed (light on the balcony burnt out). The room was large. Two double beds and a pull out couch and lots of room to move around. We were there with 2 kids (14 & 12) and enjoyed the privacy glass in the wall of the bathroom. The temperature was comfortable and everything was in working order. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel: |
| The spa is also a great treat. The massages and manicures - very professional and relaxing. Well worth the time. We also played tennis, air shooting and pool games. We went on one tour with the Transat group - Underwater Adventure - which was snorkeling in Akumal Bay to see the turtles and then off to an underground cenote. We saw quite a few turtles which was thrilling but all four of us said the cenote was the best part. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds: |
| All outstanding. We never noticed much for garbage around. Snorkeling off the beach was a prerequisite for my husband and this resort did not disappoint. There was many different fish to see. The whole family felt safe floating around with our snorkels on. The pools were quiet, we made good use of them as well. The main pool was our favourite. The lazy river is a great treat, although I would recommend taking your own inner tube, there never seemed to be enough to go around. We would walk/swim the river and the kids decided that they enjoyed that more than floating. |
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| Other Comments: |
| We've stayed at two other all inclusives, each time only for a week. THis is the first time I've been disappointed to leave after the first week. This was a great resort and a great vacation. We can hardly wait to go back! |
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| Restaurants and Bars: |
| We ate at 3 a la cartes - Italian, Brazilian and Japanese. We were disappointed with the service and the food in the Italian restaurant, however the other two restaurants more than made up for that. Angel and Horatio in the Brazilian restaurant were our waiters and they were fantastic. It's not for the faint of heart, there are 7 different meat courses, served on huge skewers. The kids really enjoyed this restaurant too. The Japanese was also a favourite. We mostly ate at the Akumal buffet, lots of choices, well presented. The Christmas Eve buffet was amazing and obviously a great source of pride for the employees working. Most lunches we ate at the snack bar on the beach. The food was plentiful, the pulled pork tacos were the best! Drinks were great - Rudy at the swim up bar near the Mayan Beach side is very friendly. |
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| Service is top notch 10 out of 10 |
| Hotel Iberostar Paraiso Beach |
| User Rating:
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Namabeer >
2 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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Just came back from a great week at the Beach from Dec 6th to 13th. This is my 6th time to the Mayan Riveria. Previously visiting: Barcelo Colonial, Sunset Princess, Gran Sirenis, Occidental X Caret, Palladium Kentaneh. I've been to an Iberostar (in La Romana) in the DR and had high expectation of the Paraiso Beach. Iberostar chain usually demands a premium compared to other chains and they did not disappoint again.
Service is top notch 10 out of 10. Workers actually like working there and take pride in their work whether they receive tip or not. I guess that's why they rarely discount this chain of resorts and there is great loyalties of the guests to come back.
Comparing to other resorts I stayed I think the pool is the best of any. Service is the best of any. I was a bit weary as I knew this resort was a bit older than ones I stay at before. It's prob 10 yrs old but in immaculate condition, even the rooms. You would only think that it's like 5 yrs old, it's that well kept and more importantly, maintained.
The Beach and the Delmar is basically the same resort and shares the grounds like a mirror images (similar to other resorts).
Summary of Rating out of 10:
Beach 9
Buffet Food 7
A La Cartes 8.5
Facilities 9.0
Rooms 9.0
Service 10.0
Overall 8.5
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| A La Cartes |
* As I said before, I managed to snag 7 a la cartes due to low occupancy as typically only 3 for 7 day week. Also managed to prebook the reservations even before arriving not normal but they made an exception.
In order of favorites:
a) Steakhouse: (10 out of 10)
Had good appetizer buffet with smoke salmon, soup, chicken wings, mushrooms, salad and some seafood, black & red caviar too!!. Oh yeah good onion flower. For Entre best is Tenderloin. Melted in my mouth. I've been to Ruth Chris and Mortons and the tenderloin tasted better here. Actually ate here 2 times as sooooo good. Had Rib Eye the other night and very good too. Lots of flavor. Apple pie a la monde was very good for dessert .
b) Mederterreanean (9 out of 10)
All you have to do is eat the buffet and that's it. Amazing selection of seafood Including great stone crab claws, giant fresh prawns, squid, octopus, fried fish, procuitoo, avocado with caviar, yummy oyster mushrooms etc
For entre had tenderloin (small) and ½ lobster (ok but liked prawns better). Also had some lobster bisque. On my second visit to the restaurant we had a 40 min fish baked in rock salt and foil for 40 min. It was about 1 1b and was to be shared for 2. Enough and perfectly done.
Ok Full? No leave room for the best ever chocolate covered mouse. The best ever ever in my life. It's hard chocolate covered in an amazing mouse. It's big and prob 2000 calories alone but amazing.
c) Japanese Hisashi (7 out of 10)
Everyone raves of this place. Yes it's fun but the food is passable. There will always be a rowdy one at the table. The table it double the size of normal resorts so you will only see ½ the show as he has to show both sides. Our chef was pretty boring and quiet. Get the teppanyaki (eg beef/chick/shrimp). Tender beef, sometimes stuff could get overcooked as the chef is too busy doing his show on the other side. Fried rice ok, Sushi acceptable. Tempura was disgusting and soup not exciting. Very limited sake (only cup by cup). Desert was boring and buffet style. It's ok but not great. This is not just because I've lived in Japan.
d) Mexican (7 of 10).
Fill yourself on the buffet as the entrees are boring and limited. ONLY tacos for entrees. Ok but not really an entre. Snapper ok but not exciting. The appetizers was the best with all sorts of Mexican yummies , quesedias, Chimichanga, tamale, shrimps, etc. Dessert was ok but nothing great. Big disappointment was that they did not make me a Mexican coffee like other resorts. They did not do the show with the cart of flames. It was just made at the bar and not too exciting.
e) Italian (6 of 10)
Very fancy place. I believe it was the gourmet restaurant before. Calamari not crunchy, beef carpaciao ok. Entrees were salty risotto, gluey seafood linguine. Best dessert was the brownie. The tiramisu was disgusting. This was prob the worst a la carte out of the ones I attended but it's better than the buffet I guess!
So I was a very happy camper being able to do a la cartes everyday.
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| Drinks: |
* Wines are drinkable unlike other resorts. They are drinkable but light both red and white. From Spain. Sparkling white is more drinkable. Passport scotch is avail and if you manage to order from the Lindos, eg at the theater, Hennesy congacs were nice!!!
* As other say the lobby bars made better drinks. Cappacininos a bit weak but just tell them a little stronger and they're great
* Lots of top shelf liquor if you just ask or point!!
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| ENTERTAINMENT: |
Kids disco starts at 8pm so if you have kids have an early dinner. They took kids to the shopping centre to carrousel and underground disco for kids and a tour off the Star Wars main disco. There is a band playing til 9pm outside at the shopping centre with bar service.
The nightly entertainment started at 9:30 or 9:45. There are pre shows with games before this. The shows were not too exciting compared to other resorts like the Princess or Xcaret resorts. Boogie night so so, Ms Iberostar funny but typical resort stuff, Lover match funny but similar resort stuff. Hollywood night was lipsycing and dancings so so, Same for Movie night. The only really worth show was the Magic show. We preferred the theatre at the Lindos/Maya better than the Beach/DelMar so watched the shows there. They don't care as long as you don't use their bars. I did get my congac there as many waitresses don't care and it's too dark for them to see your band colour. Besides like the booze better on the Lindo side, it was closer to our room and I liked the layout of the theatre better.
Note there is a fiesta night with Mexican games for kids to play at the shopping center one night.
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| FOOD |
* Breakfast was your regular fare. Bread poor, only sugar free yoghurt, no cappuccinos to order, omelettes ok but tend to be browned too much given old grill and overcooking. Scrabbled look better. Fruits limited as probably out of season so everyday was pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, papaya, bananas, passionfruit.
* Lunch was ok at the main buffet near the lobby. Very similar to dinner quality/quantity.
* Lunch near the pool was more busy. The del mar pool bar is better. Brighter and busier so fresher food. The outdoor patio looks better on the Delmar side rather than the Beach side.
* Lunch at the beach is at open snack bar. Good burgers, fries, sausages, jalapenos cheese balls, hash browns, soft ice cream and bbq chicken. Prob fresher food as always busy.
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| OCEAN |
| Long beach, lots of seats but slight incline up so tough to watch kids from where the lounges are of kids on the beach.Water was wavey all week. Fun to play in waves. Few rocks in ocean but most was nice sandy bottom. No seashells for pickings on this beach unlike some resort but neverthess, nice in its own way. |
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| Other FOOD: |
Good hard ice cream at the icecreame shop. Cones actually crunchy here as A/C. The crepes are also good there and free!! Had fries at the burger stand but didn't try the taco bar. Looked dead and there was a small dried out meat on the rotisserie.
Paella on the beach was great during the Beach party. You can contribute to cooking it with your own hat. To my surprise it was good too. Not dry as most paellas I've had.
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| POOLS |
As I said this had the best pool I've been to. Something for everyone and it's so vast that it never seemed crowded except near the activity pool. Lots off areas for quiet/action or kids to play.
We did try the lazy river on the Lindo side. No one monitoring you so no biggy. It was the star friends who suggested to us and said don't worry no one checks. Did it a few days. It was pretty lazy and slow and not that long like other lazy rivers I've been to like Gran Sirenis. But nice change. The wave pool was also ok but never went when on as off most of the time. Not sure why you would want to use a wave pool if you got great waves in the ocean.
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| ROOMS |
Rooms are avg looking but Air conditioners worked amazingly unlike some resort which would turn it off in the middle of the night so you only have a fan -to save $$$. Well I actually spoke too soon as it happened on the 4th night that the A/C started feeling like a vent. Tons of towels and towel art every day. The mini bar was packed everyday. Free safe too unlike some resorts. Bed firm but nice. Flat but there are extra pillows in the closet. Washroom was nice and caulking very nice esp given 10 yr old hotel. The hair dryer was the vacuum type. Gets hot to hold and is not too strong. Overall very happy with the room.
SUMMARY:
Overall, this resort is great for the price. They seem to now be discounting this place and it's in the same league of other resorts probably giving occupancy rate and age of the resort. This resort use to demand a premium and was usually quite a bit more than the Barcelos/Palladiums/Bahias. Given the great service/pools/a la cartes/impeccable grounds, it's a bargain. Don't just get stuck in the heat at the buffet.
If you have any questions you can contact me at namabeer@hotmail.com
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| THE BAD |
* Buffet food not too good. Meat's dry and cold (not sure if due to low occupancy). But few grilling stations and many things are pre made. Still acceptable. The variety is not as big as other resorts. But you won't starve!!!
* No snorkeling as ocean was wavy with red flags everyday.
* No watersports given waves
* Poor breads at buffet and restaurants. Drier type, not fresh or soft. Like local cheap breads and buns/pastries
* No Air conditioning in Buffet. It was ok for us for breakfast but I could see it being very uncomfortable in the summer months or periods of high humidity to eat at the main buffet. We were lucky to get 7 a la cartes and therefore always had A/C for dinner.
* Themes (subject to change) didn't seem to coincide too much with the food offered.
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| THE GOOD: |
* Amazing pool. Covers ½ the resort. It's got waterfalls, lazy river like sections (only 2.5 ft) to activity pools to lounges in the pool. It's like an amoeba, free forming pool. The waterfall area is very quiet and the other end is where the action is. The pool is salt water rather than chlorine
* Fine white sand on a long stretch of beach. The north end is kinda ugly with new building going up.
* Amazing housekeeping. First time when I never had a problem in the room. Towel art everyday, lots of towels, tons of water & beer and spotless washroom. A/C worked well the first 4 days but sort of got humid in the middle of the night thereafter. Actually felt cooler with fan only
* Great service at restaurant. Not sure if due to low occupancy. But they were constantly taking my plates away and asking if I needed another drink.
* Nice shopping center that is shared by Lindo/Maya & Palace & Beach/Del Mar with free Carousel for kid, nice crepe & ice cream bar (included), taco stand and burger joint (all included). The dance club at the shopping center is wild with star wars theme. There's also a kiddy club but never had anyone the underground.
* Good selection of international alcohol
* Amazing grounds with so much wildlife coatis (raccoon like badger), flamingo, macau, hens, swans, egrets, turtles, and tons of peacocks.
* Star friends are really friendly always with a smile. They enjoy their job unlike other resorts.
* Gave what I requested. Room 3546. I's midway between lobby & beach so very convenient. Minutes to the pool.
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| Great vacation |
| Hotel Barcelo Maya Palace Deluxe |
| User Rating:
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Rod >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Nov, 2009 | Leisure | With Spouse/Partner
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| I loved this place - we got upgraded to the palace and enjoyed everything about it. The food was great, the snorkelling with sea turtles was fun and the adult bar and bartender made one rainy day the best day at the beach. The only thing I can say that was not the best was that our room was the furthest away from everything and it was a walk to get to the main area. But It was great in the sense that we can take the trolley to any other locations! Great place and is what you expect from an all inclusive!!! |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Go to Chichenitza! It is a wonder of the world! |
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| Arrival |
| Easy as pie - we took a privte USA trashfer and they were amazing. check in was easy and fast. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Pool was great and always found a seat, beach was also great and not over crowded. Sea turtles are friendly and right at the beach. Often they swam around the swimmers without them knowing they were there. |
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| Other Comments |
| We got 2 extra days there due to a hurricane in the gulf - no problems no worries - we were taken care of and got two more sunny days!!! |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| The adult pool bar was the best! Rainly day becasme the beast day. The resturants were good - but I really loved the grill and buffet! |
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| Rooms |
| Very very nice - the junior suits were amazing and it was large clean and the bar was stocked daily with what I requested. I tried to tip for the whole week but they dont have the same staff look after the rooms. |
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| They were soooo nice to our handicap son & all the teenagers |
| Hotel Sandos Playacar Beach Resort |
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cindy >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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We used Hospitality Sun & Fun for our electric wheelchair transfer.
Very courteous very effecient. They also rent Beach Wheelchairs which we wished we had known. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Activity staff knew all out teens by name, shows were great! |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| The beach comes & goes with the currents. Beautiful bright blue water. |
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| Other Comments |
We would all definetly go back to this resort and now that I know about
Hospitality Fun& sun, I know we can go to Cancun or the Mayan without
difficulty. They ever sell handicap tours. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
The teens loved the Sports Bar, Everything was wheelchair accessible except
the Disco. Every Buffet was themed. The steak in the Ala cartes was the
best I have ever had |
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| Rooms |
The Riveira rooms are some of the nicest our group has stayed in.They are
"huge" you could easily put a family of 6 in them if they would allow it.
Big jacuzzi bath tubs that open up right into your room if you want.
We had the most beautiful wheelchair accessible bath & shower. Huge! |
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| Outstanding |
| Hotel Oasis Palm Beach |
| User Rating:
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Rob >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Apr, 2009 | Leisure | Family
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| Room were very clean and modern. We enjoyed all of the restaurants. Beach was very calm and shallow for the children. Would go there again. |
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
| Kid club was great for our children. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Clean,calm,and shallow. |
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| Other Comments |
| 4+ star. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| Great restaurants. |
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| Rooms |
| Excellent |
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| Your Arrival |
| Friendly staff. |
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