BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Randolph Ellis from Edmond, Oklahoma

"Very negative experience at this all-inclusive resort. We have stayed at many all-inclusive resorts in Mexico and other countries. This resort is beautiful, the beds are very comfortable and the food service and activities staff tried to provide good service. They seem to have a great deal of pressure on them to follow procedure. The big goal was to sell timeshares not customer service. We have to sign ticket after ticket for food and drinks even though we have bought all inclusive. Minibar was included but only one day's coffee packet. Very weird. No one covered the rules with us. We found out on the third day conceirges did not make dinner reservations. We have to go to the towel hut at 7 am to make sitdown dinner reservations. Buffet food temperature was cold. Poor quality except fish was wonderful. Even the transportation was more interested in sell trips that booking a return time back to the airport. Only two restaurants and one buffet not 5 restaurants. Entertainment was lousy. The resort is beautiful and has wonderful potentila just poorly run."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Randy & Shirley Ellis from Edmond, OK

"My husband and I have traveled to Mexico many times and believe in all-inclusives. We are so disappointed in this resort. It is beautiful ,great ambiance comfortable bed, magnifcant location but that is where it ends!!! So much potential but so badly managed. We had a wrist band but they drove us nuts with signing tickets with large amounts of money shown in pesos and US $. We were not charged extra but it caused a great sense of anxiety. I do not think we got our $50 credit on the lobster. We could tell the staff was doing what they had been trained to do. The beach is tiny no where near what the pictures suggest. The $100 credit could not be used all at one time but in $50 increments another micro-management issue. Very limited selection on the menu and or buffet. Food was never hot on the buffet. We worried about getting sick. You get one day of coffee packet in the room then have to buy more from the store even though it is all inclusive including the bar. We had to keep asking for water for the room to drink and brush our teeth with. There is very little to do and the entertainment is not worth even attending. There are not 5 restaurants but really only two plus the buffet. Seafood was good but beef was terrrible. We paid way to much for this resort it is not a 4.5 but maybe a 2. We need a refund for at least half of the cost. Villas owners had nothing good to say about this resort but raved about the Cabo and Peurto Vallarta locations. We were not met and transported but had to wait 20 minutes to be transported to the resort in a dirty van. The return to the airport went fine. They goal was to sell you excursions when you tried to find someone to schedule your return to the airport. They resorts main focus is to sell timeshares. They are right in your face when you get there attempting to book a two hour overview but really to sell villas. No one wants that when you first arrive. You are tired and just need to relax. They did not even have water, beer or a cocktail available. The activities are limited but the yoga, water aerobics and stretching instructors were good. Do not take kids because the pool is about it. The conceiegesr do not book the restaurants. You have to be in line at 7 am at the towel booth by the pool who had no phone to call to arrange that day's seating for dinner or you are stuck with the cold food on the buffet. It took us 3 days to figure out all the processes to follow. There is no value from the concierges but the front desk help was wonderful!!! We are going to write a letter requesting a partial refund because they did not provide the amenities and services as promised. The location will fall into ruin unless many changes are made. The first one should be making guest service their number one priority. Nothing else will happen until that occurs."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler A Recent Traveler

"Excellent hotel with excellent food. Very clean. Nice rooms and pools. Great experience!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Christopher Pierret from Rochester, MN

"Why we chose this hotel: Honestly, we were looking for price and value. I booked during Black Friday/Cyber Monday and got a tremendous deal. At the time the reviews were overwhelmingly positive. Other peoples reviews: Just before we left, we noticed that there were quite a few new (and quite negative) reviews. We prepared ourselves for a potentially bad experience. In Cancun: Our flight went well and we were greeted immediately upon exiting the terminal. We were at the hotel within 20 minutes of touchdown. Our driver was fantastic (and fast). At the hotel, we were upgraded to a one bedroom suite ocean view from a deluxe ocean view at no additional cost. Our room was on the top floor and included a jacuzzi, dining room, living room, kitchen, laundry, two baths and a fantastic bedroom. The deck had a large table and chairs, lounger, and a hammock. The view was tremendous. We were greeted by the concierge (who was very helpful), but had no additional need for her, as we had booked our activities already. It turns out, that may have been partially responsible for the great time we had. Others have mentioned the time-share sales pitch and pushy concierges. We had no pitch, no pushiness. The housekeeping, wait-staff, and all others were very helpful and courteous. You have to be prepared to make reservations for the non-buffet dining. This is done at the activities desk starting at 7 each morning. If you handle this, the dinners are quite good and include very good service. I highly recommend the sushi menu (made at Zama during our trip, but soon to open at Hiroshi). The nightly shows were fun and entertaining. Favorite was the Circ-de-Soleil style show. We saw some people who did not seem to feel they were having good service. In all cases, from our perspective, the fault was with the complainer, not the hotel. The low prices of the vacation offers (like mine) seemed to draw out a mix of travelers that may have had unrealistic expectations. Favorite was the tour of Chichen Itza. The guides were great. It is a long, hot day and the sinkhole is not that cool (think tourist soup), but the cultural component was fantastic. We also enjoyed a day trip to Isla Mujeres, which was great fun (and included North Beach, a very nice stop). Overall: If you are looking to be where the spring breakers aren't, the grounds and staff were great!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Lori from LeMars, Iowa

"When you finally arrive at the hotel, you think you might be in paradise, and much of it is. They really push the time share thing, would not have gone there if we would have known about that. Beautiful setting, very clean and most of the staff is very friendly. But, you cna't get a reservation to the restaurants that require them, and the food at the buffet is cold and alwayss empty. The last night we had to wait for about 15 minutes just to get a plate and silverware. The entertainment was ok. Really hard to get a towel for the pool and beach area. If you are laid back, you will be fine, but if you are not, this is not the place for you. And by the way, what is the deal with the wrist bands. You have to give your room number and sign for everything anyway. Not enough staff around the pools serving drinks. The great side of this is that you are far from the Hotel Zone of Cancun, so, much more peaceful."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Anthony&valerie from Coram, New York

"i dont understand people the grounds and room are unreal the staff and food was awesome we were treated so good the restraunts to drinks to food everythnig couldnt have been better beach and the pools and grounds and hotel is awesome and the service at the pool drinks all day and food from the pool served to us non stop the service was unreal and it was so good eve nthough we were all inclusive we tipped everyday cant wait to go back again or try another place of theres this is our 4 th yr in row in mexico love it period!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Shana from Dallas, Tx

"The room was nice, the beach was nice. The customer service was not. Not happy with being hounded about the time share. Also not happy with being left at the mall. When I spoke to the concierge about it, no apologies, just told it was my fault and my watch must have been wrong and I was late meeting the shuttle (even though the shuttle was late picking us up at the resort). Was told they would talk to the manager and call us to clear it up in 30 minutes, never got a phone call. So, if they really believe word of mouth will get people to the resort (as the lady who kept trying to sign us up for the time share meeting stated) they will only get bad word of mouth from me. We even ordered room service and were told it would be there in 45 minutes, 2 hours later, we got our order. Worst trip to Mexico, yet. I guess if you don't want to hear their time share spiel, they don't care about you. The other staff was nice. Management and front desk area seemed to be lacking in customer service."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Linda Winter from Shoreham, New York

"Our experience at the hotel in Cancun was outstanding in most every way. The resort is very luxurious and our rooms were very large and well equipped. The food was very good and the service attentive. The beach was very nice, although the water was full of seaweed. It was not inviting for swimming, needless to say. Some complaints were that it was a bit rocky for the first ten feet or so upon entering. If you are a real beach nut, and enjoy the water, this might not be the place for you. The pools were luxurious, however, and we did enjoy the pool. There is no swim-up bar, but the waiters were available to take your beverage orders and bring them pool or beachside. I would recommend this resort."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Stephanie from Minneapolis, MN

"I am writing this review after I have had a few days to reflect on my vacation. I stayed at this hotel with my husband, 16 year old, another couple and their 17 year old. I have traveled to Cancun before but had never done an All Inclusive. The other couple had stayed at a different resort last year and did the All Inclusive and loved it so we decided to try it. We choose this location based on recommendation and the priced seemed amazing for a quoted 5 star resort.. I typically would spend more money no matter where I am staying or how long I am staying in a hotel for a nicer room. My idea of a 5 star is first rate everything. Service, rooms, guest accommodations, drinks, food, etc. This hotel in my opinion is a long way away from being a 5 star. We paid over $2,000 for a 6 day 5 night stay for three people. Airfare on top of that. I did not have the option of choosing to do a timeshare tour to cut the cost, nor would I have chosen to go this route, no matter how much money I would have saved. The time at those things is not worth it when on vacation in my opinion. However most of the people we spoke with had gotten some deal that they paid for their airfare spent $299 for 6 days 5 nights had to do a tour that was supposed to take 90 minutes, ended up high pressured and took over 3 hours, but that seemed the route a majority of people went. We had arranged transportation ahead of time. We were told that there would be someone waiting for us with a sign when we arrived at the airport in Cancun; however this was not the case. I had to ask around and eventually found our guy. We ended up waiting about 20 minutes, but the gentleman was so nice so the wait it didn’t bother us at all. Once we arrived at the hotel, it was pretty chaotic. They only had 3 people working the front desk, no one explained how everything works at check in, and we were told the concierge would do this. I sent the rest of the gang up to the room and waited in line for the concierge. It was seriously the biggest cluster. For the most part the ladies working at the concierge desk had very little manners, were extremely pushy and seemed to only want to sell me packages and timeshares. One of the ladies told me she would not give me any maps, schedules or anything else related to the resort unless I went up to the room and got my husband and the other couple to listen to her sales pitch. I got to the point that I ended up getting upset and said to the lady all I want is a map and a schedule and the head concierge lady finally realized how annoyed I was and gave me my information. However I did not get any insight into where anything was located, what was all included in our All Inclusive, how the food in the rooms worked etc. I realized throughout the trip that the Concierge was nothing like what you would consider a concierge to be at another hotel. They barely spoke English, didnt know answers to most of our questions, and overall were impolite. The rooms are beautiful. I would say 5 star! Plenty of room and very comfortable, we had the 1 bedroom suite. However my daughter slept on the Murphy Bed and after seeing how uncomfortable it was, I would have definitely gotten another room with a bed for her. The staff that ran the activities did a nice job trying to get people involved. The food was horrible everywhere but the pool bar restaurant. Good bar food! We were told that there were 5 restaurants on campus, when in reality there were only 2 restaurants, 1 buffet and the pool bar restaurant. The only place where good food was served was the pool bar and room service. Room service took at least 45 minutes for breakfast and 1.5 hours for anything else! You must make reservations in the morning, dont know where or how, I was told you had to wait until after 3:00 to do so but the two days I did this, they were booked. I never understood this theory as there were always open, dirty, tables. Every other spot the food was terrible!!!! Cold dishes at the buffet, warm fruit, warm juice, cold food. We only went to the buffet once for dinner and the food was either freezing cold or nonexistent and they were not quick to replace. The deserts were all the same, chocolate sponge cake, strawberry sponge cake, etc. not 5 star quality by any means. The sit down restaurants plan on sitting for 2.5 hours, because service is horrible. Alcohol is weak; the wine choices are terrible, even the options for additional money are bad. I would compare the wine to Two buck chuck, but worse. It seemed in most spots that we were bothering the wait staff. The only good service was at the pool and these people were overworked. Only a few waiters working for a large group of people. Typically took a long time to get drinks. We tipped extra and that seemed to speed up the process. You must get out the pool early in the morning and put your towels on the chairs if you want a spot by the pool. 2 times while we were there I went down at 9:00 and they didnt have towels. Kind of annoying but after waiting 20 minutes we got freshly cleaned towels. The staff at the activity area was not very friendly. They seemed to be more interested in talking to each other or the men hitting on young women versus doing their job. One staff employee was really the only person that stood out. She was very helpful and sweet. Even here activities were screwed up. I signed three of us up for Paddle boarding at a certain day and time and when we arrived for the reservation nothing was correct. She did fix it, but she was flustered too. The service from the room was horrible. Just know that when booking this hotel, no matter how many people are in your room, you only get 2 Coronas, 2 Pacificos, 2 Sprites, 2 Coca Cola Lites, 2 waters, 1 chip, 1 candy bar and 1 cookie at check in, well actually our fridge was empty at check in, once I inquired about this, that is when they filled the refrigerator. This DOES NOT get refilled this way!!!!! Never did we have a day where it was exactly like this. I called to request that they put 3 of everything since we had 3 people in the room and they said they could not do that. That seems really strange to me that we are paying for 3 people but they could only give us 2, I complained but they never fixed it. I had to call every single day to request the refrigerator be restocked and they never fully restocked it. So annoying and misrepresented from the All Inclusive plan. I was assuming there would be many options in the room to drink. Our phone stopped working 2 times when we were there, our safe stopped working and we couldnt get into it, our air conditioner in one room stopped working and after calling numerous times, these items finally got fixed. I was so annoyed by the horrible service that I went down to speak to the manager and I saw her speaking with someone else, stood there for 20 minutes and finally wrote a note with my name and room number and asked one of the front desk people to give it to her and I never heard anything from her. I found in talking to people these same problems occurred for them as well. Most of the people we spoke with that seemed to travel a lot felt the exact same way we did regarding the food and service. Everyone we talked to loved the rooms, pools etc. The workout center was great. Fully equipped, nice equipment, good atmosphere, overall really impressive. The spa was beautiful. I had a massage and the spa was peaceful and different than any other spa I had been to. They did a fantastic job with this! Be aware that if they say that you get a resort credit you only get to use $50 a day and this is only good for additional items on the menu such as steak or lobster, or services at the spa. My massage was $125 and they took $50 off, only after I got our bill at checkout and reminded them of the credit. The hotel is so far away from anything to do, the beach is not good, very small and a ton of weeds. There is nothing to do at night. The final four was on and there were only two spots to watch and have drinks. The outdoor pool bars were nice; there was one at the beach with swings that you sat on. This was pretty cool. Overall we made the best out of it. I would say that the hotel itself from the esthetics, rooms, pools these were all 4-5. The restaurants looked nice, but food I would give a 1.5. The service at the pool I would say overworked but a 3, 4 depending on the person and day and the service throughout the resort a 2. Overall I would rate this a 2.5-3 star experience. They have a lot of work to do to attain that 5 star rating. I would never recommend at this point that anyone would spend their money to stay at this resort. At this point I would never return to this resort. Had the staff been more curtsey and helpful I could have overlooked some of the items, but when you are spending money anywhere you shouldnt have to ask (beg basically) for things to be taken care of every single day!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Denise Brown from Friendswood, Tx

"I really liked this hotel. It was in a quiet area and secluded from all the craziness of the 'zone'. There could have been more activites within the resort and some of them were quite expensive when compared with my trip last year. The hotel was beautiful except for some construction on the new addition to the hotel. We didn't have too much noise but it was ugly. The rooms were beautiful and very comfortable. The only problem was that if we closed the sliding doors to the balcony the room would smell foul...not ocean musty...like sour milk smell. Even the a/c didn't help so fortunately we were able to leave the doors open with the 80 degree temps outdoors. It was a bit noisey at night however. The food got tiring at times and we made certain to eat on the Isle and also at a local place called Flamingos one day. It helped with the manotony. I thought most of the food was good. Nothing really fancy and sometimes a bit overcooked. We purchased the all inclusive plan and it was worth it for the drinks as they all didn't seem to have too much alcohol in them and when I purchased one on checkout it was $7.00. Overall it was a wonderful experience but I think I enjoyed my trip last year more. Cancun is very expensive and very touristy. I probably wouldn't go back to Cancun but if I did, I would try here again. It was worth the special price we had."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Randy from Castle Rock, CO

"Resort was nice, food was good, not exceptional and breakfast was the same every day, although room service was good. Had a great time only snag was new construction above our floor starting at 7:15 AM, we complained and were given a free upgrade to an exceptional room, staff was great although they are severely understaffed."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Lorie Ochoa from Ridgecrest, CA

"Beautiful accomodations, clean and very safe. Isolated from other things but not a problem. Beautiful facilities. Food is fair although buffet was uaually cold but the snack bar is fantastic as is the beach service and pool service. Would recommend to friends and hope to go back again someday."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Anthony & Valerie Paduano from Coram, New York

"My wife and i had the most wonderfull time from the room to the food to the staff treated us so good from march 24-31 the place is absolutely beautifull cant wait till they add the other 2 places next door def goin back again, all the grounds and pools and restraunts and beach are absolutely amazing and service was top notch nothing we could complain about at all def a 10"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Shana from Garland, Tx

"The room was nice, the beach was nice. The customer service was not. Not happy with being hounded about the time share. Also not happy with being left at the mall. When I spoke to the concierge about it, no apologies, just told it was my fault and my watch must have been wrong and I was late meeting the shuttle (even though the shuttle was late picking us up at the resort). Was told they would talk to the manager and call us to clear it up in 30 minutes, never got a phone call. So, if they really believe word of mouth will get people to the resort (as the lady who kept trying to sign us up for the time share meeting stated) they will only get bad word of mouth from me. We even ordered room service and were told it would be there in 45 minutes, 2 hours later, we got our order. Worst trip to Mexico, yet. I guess if you don't want to hear their time share spiel, they don't care about you. The other staff was nice. Management and front desk area seemed to be lacking in customer service."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler A Recent Traveler from New York, 3/25/2012

"I stayed at this beautiful resort for five days and enjoyed the upgrade to a one bedroom suite upon our arrival. I was very impressed with the size of this resort. I was told that the resort was opened in 2010 and is still expanding. They have the most amazing pools, one of it being an infinity pool. The beach was cleaned every morning which was also very impressive. However, they always ran out of towels and we had to wait for them for about 20 minutes. The food at the restaurants were ok but wasn't impressed with the overall service and selection. They also had themed events from 7pm to 10pm. Afterward, guests either stayed at one of the open bars. The bar with the swings closed at 11pm and some people went to the other bar that was still open until 1am. Some may have even gone to downtown Cancun or retreated to their room. I wish they had more fun activities at night. Overall, I liked the resort and will recommend it as a family destination."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Camelia from NY

"I just came back from this resort yesterday. While the resort is brand new and still in development (there's still construction going on, if you're fortunate to get a room on opposite site, it won't bother you) the only thing I can strongly recommend is the spa. We had an amazing and very relaxing experience. The Zama restaurant is also pretty good (try the apple pirouette and fried ice cream. also try fish of the day) and the 'snack' restaurant (which offers burgers, fries, tacos, guacamole and a lot of more variety of food). Everything else is progressively cold and no variety. Same thing over and over again. We booked a couple of excursions outside the resort and we called room service to get early bkfast....WOOOOW. First morning we had to wait almost an hour to get 2 omlettes and 2 coffees. Next day we waited an hour for 2 coffees only. The day we left we actually and purposely got up at 4.15am to make sure they have enough time to prepare and deliver our bkfast - - which over 1.5hr and multiple calls later, we ended up leaving to the airport with no bkfast. Not even an apology. Not even a coffee. We ended up getting cappuccinos and a croissant from a Starbucks for which I paid over 7 bucks. VERY DISAPPOINTING ! The day we checked in we've been told theres no construction going on at the time. Hmmm, turns out the heavy duty crane and drilling goes on at night. There's random construction during the day so pls expect to see workers in and out .... The bars are very limited. Not much variety nor quality in drinks either. We got the welcoming package a day before we left. if you purchase something on the resort (e.g. spa) you're being taxed doubled, but nobody tells you that. it just shows up on your check-out invoice. ....The beach, while it's true it's federal property is full of algae....On a different note, if you go outside the resort and you try to negotiate your purchases you'll find out the prices are inflated by 30-50% and even the currency exchange is inflated outside the resort, specially if you choose to pay in US dollars you're basically being ROBBED. Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate. If you're still not happy w the price you get, say thank you and leave. They'll give in and sell it at you're price and not what they originally asked. Overall it's a very pricey town/surroundings. We ended up in some places paying more for food and drinks than we'd pay in a cute and hot place in NYC - - while again, the quality is not even close. Be careful with your money and how you spend it. Ask before hand of hidden taxes or fees, etc ... ohh, also the resort is far away from the city and among the last resorts on the beach line...if you want to party and go to clubs and the wild scene this is NOT the place. For any of that go some place downtown cancun. This resort is more family oriented. Dead at night. they have some shows at dinner time ... if you like ABBA. Bee Gees... etc you'll have daily therapy to your ears. Average age: 40 y/o-ish. Not much going on during the day either... they definitely need to invest more in entertainment and customer service, which is pivotal for a successful business. Good Luck !"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Michael from Dallas, TX

"The property was good quality and excellent value. There were a few minor issues but overall we were happy with the experience and we would consider coming back again. We had the 1 bdrm (not the studio) which was very spacious, comfortable and was exactly like the pictures online. We really enjoyed our room and the huge patio. We were on the 9th floor and the view was amazing. We had a memory foam bed which was nice, and the fridge was stocked with bottled water, soda, and snacks. We paid about $290 USD per night for two people which included the all-inclusive plan. The hotel is a 30 minute drive from the airport and far from other hotels so it was quiet and far from the loud party scene in the Hotel Zone. It was a mixed crowd with a few young families and a few old people but mostly people in their late 30s to late 50s. About half were American and half were from other countries. It was a nice mixture of just normal, quiet people. The grounds are very nice and well maintained. The pools are not too crowded and it was not hard to find a chair. The pool further from the beach with the water bridge is less crowded. The beach in front of the hotel is not huge, but the hotel owns about 600 feet of undeveloped beachfront (for two future phases) and there are no other hotels around so at least it's quiet. We paid for wi-fi for one day ($10) and we were warned that it had bad coverage outside the pool areas. Around the pool it was okay and in our room it was very slow, but the access code worked for our entire stay and in the end they never charged us for it at all. The water smelled a little like sulfur and we ran the faucets, shower and tub for a few minutes when we first arrived just to clear out the water that was sitting there in the pipes. As with all water in Mexico, I would not drink it. You need to get in line at 6:30-6:45AM to be there at 7:00am when they start accepting dinner reservations for that night. The woman who takes dinner reservations is a little grumpy. Only two restaurants were open during our stay and even those were only half full despite the rush to make a reservation. I think they are limiting the number of people who can eat at the restaurants and funneling more people to the buffet (no reservation required), which is cheaper for the hotel when so many people are on the all-inclusive plan. The food was good. Not always what you get at an upscale restaurant but still very good for an all-inclusive package. Tips are included, but you sign for everything including poolside drinks and food and there's always a line for you to write in a tip. We tipped $5-$7 at most meals and ended up spending about $70 total on tips for our 5 night stay. We received a 30%-60% off 'VIP' card from the concierge at check-in. This is basically a way to get you to attend their sales promotion to buy a vacation ownership (aka 'timeshare). Decline the 'VIP' card and skip the presentation. They were not rude, but they were persistent and it look more like 2 1/2 hours, not the 1 1/2 hours they said. Their price was $70,000 USD for the 2 bdrm, $45,000 USD for the 1 bdrm and $30,000 USD for the studio. We said no and they brought the manager over who immediately dropped the price on the studio to $10,000 with $1,000 down! An immediate yes or no with high pressure tactics is no way to make a major financial decision."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Sheila from Salt Spring Island, BC

"Our suite was amazing in that it was kept ultra clean, had a nice view, and came with great room service. The location was quite windy but warm on 9 out of the 10 days we were there in March. The location was right by the car ferry to the Isla Mujeres- a great place to shop, tour the island on golf carts, eat and swim. The local transit is good in the day but does not run at night-thus, the cabs are necessary and the hotel is remote. i felt quite safe taking the car ferry and local transit bus. The excursions to Xplor and Xel-ha by shuttles were well run and fun. The staff at the hotel were by the most part great and were but often were run off of their feet- it appeared they were not enough people to do the job. But they did take good care of us! The hotel was not at full capacity when we stayed there and if it was I am not sure how they would manage. The thing which bothered me the most was the conflict and undertones between the concierge and Best Day staff. The concierge did not want me to talk to the Best Day staff before they talked to me. I however,had come to the hotel in their care and found them very pleasant. I did comply when the concerierge wanted my husband and I to talk to them first. The counter staff after registering us directed us to them. However, I had tunnel vision as I needed to get my coupons for things I had previously booked with Best Day and my return ticket to the airport. I was then told by the Best Day staff person that the concierge were also time share people. When my partner and I chose not to hear their presentation -we were basically left alone. Besides that the concierge were available and helpful when asked direct questions. However, I witnessed this unprofessional attitude by the concierge several times during my stay towards BEST DAY staff. The other incidence that left a sour note with me was in regards to my leaving my sweater in the restaurant. It could have easily been returned as my waiter had my room number .The next day I went to the restaurant in the morning and was told it was not there, the front desk also told me it was not in the lost in found. I again returned to the restaurant that very evening and asked again for them to look and sure enough it was in the spot that the first person had told me it was not in. If I had not been persistant I would not have gotten it back. And finally I hated that in order to book a reservation for dinner you had to stand in a line at 7am and hope you get a reasonable time for a dinner reservation. If you weren't there that early you could face a 9:45pm dinner time. You also had to book it on the same day you wanted to go for dinner- and could not plan a few days ahead. Besides these few gripes the experience and food was on the most part okay."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Sonny from Surrey, B.C Canada

"This place is very nice but out in the jungle nothing near you and cost a lot to leave and come back each time. Clean very nice rooms service is good. I would not come back to this resort till they get rid of half of the shotty staff. Overall we had a good time"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler S Astran from Adamstown, Md

"The facility is beautiful. Thats the beginning and the end. we arrived and they upgraded our room which was great. A great view. The food was mediocre at best. and almost always cold. You had to make reservations for all restaurants except the buffet. Most of the staff had little or no correct information about anything. they kept making excuses that that had a hiring shortage. but they had been open for 1 1;2 yrs.?? they promised entertainment daily but never saw any until the last evening. We were there 6 nights. Also the staff tried to guide you away from excursions due to the manager had a preference, but the one we took which is the one they didnt want you to take was probably the best. Not geared toward children. The pools were beautiful and very quite place to relax. It is the usual timeshare sales pitch they get you into also or you pay top prices for everything"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Kelly from Shawnee, Kansas

"Accommodations were beautiful and very clean. Definitely upgrade to the one bedroom suite, the extra space is worth it. Our chief complaint is that the service was very slow. The mini bar in the room was supposed to be refilled daily but we had to call several times and they didn't always come. Service was rather slow in the restaurants and they were very inflexible in accommodating large parties. The reservation system was also very cumbersome. You had to get up before 7 to line up for the reservation desk to make reservations for the restaurants. It was also an imposition to have to sign tickets for all food and drinks even though they were inclusive. There just seem to be a few kinks they need to work out such as running out of extra keys, pool towels and menus. They were doing construction outside our door and the door wasn't very soundproof. Aside from these issues we had a great time and it was a wonderful paradise. Recommend the spa. This resort is a very quiet and relaxing place."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Paul Shinkar from Waterloo, ON

"Staff was wonderful - helpful and friendly. Food was good for the most part though there were only 2 a la carte restaurants open and we had to get down to the beach before 7 am, to book for that night - that was a pain. Main buffet was not open at lunch - though food was served at poolside. Entertainment staff was poor - no real spirit and I did not see one game - of anything - ever. Place was gorgeous but there is no meeting place - no place of any size to sit and chat in evening - no coffee bar or anything like that and we were really expecting that - not one working cappuccino machine - lobby was small and uncomfortable. Avoid the Time-share speech - its 3 hours, not 90 minutes. We refused to go but heard plenty of horror stories. Rooms were wonderful and spacious if you got the upgrade - we did. Entertainment at night was on beach - weather and wind permitting. Music at night on the beach went well after mid-night - and pounded the windows of our room. The beach is lovely but very short! I agree with others - it will get better but not again. Signing for every meal was slow and tedious at times but okay. No swim up bar though the poolside is beautiful. Too many little things missing that make is more community centered."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Paul Shinkar from Waterloo, ON

"The staff was wonderful. The food was great but there were a few things that were really disappointing. No real beach to walk on - only the one in front of the hotel- it gets really rocky and difficult to walk on. No place to hang in the evening - no large meeting area and no bar for younger people - the music blasts from the beach until well past mid-night some nights and with the shape of the hotel - it just echoes off the windows of the rooms - really loud. Entertainment only if the weather is good and you have to sit in the buffet area. Only two a la carte restaurants for a huge place - the buffet is not open for lunch. Not one working Cappuccino machine - no place to just get a coffee and sit - no pastry shops or places like that. Again, staff was wonderful but hard sell on the time-share crap as well. Avoid the meeting unless you are seriously interested - its 3 hours not 90 minutes."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler D Holman from Shawnee, Kansas

"This resort is beautiful, but being on the north side of Cancun it is too far away from many of the tourist attractions. We did not book the right room. Do not get the double bed room. The rooms with the murphy beds are truely amazing with a full kitchen, washer and dryer, and tons of room. Our room did not even have a table so we never could order room service. We wish we had been more familiar with this resort. We paid more for an ocean view which is floors 3 and up. We were on the third floor and could barely see the ocean over the restaurant roofs. The front desk was not accomodating when we asked for a better view. We also had poor maid service. We never got wash clothes and never had enough towels for the 3 of us in the room. We did find the staff quite nice unlike the reviews we had read. In fact we found the staff to be delightful! If you are the type to go to an all inclusive and do nothing else then this is the resort for you....just get a good room!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler John Keane from Darien, CT

"This place is very pretty and very well done for the room , but that is it the management of this place needs to be replaced . No towl service they keep running out of towls at pool side they adversitez that they had 4 resturants but only two were opened had to wake up at 7:00 am to make a reservation for dinner that night and at 7:15 everything was sold out so the lins were a 100 deep. every meal you had to wait on line to be fed they were to stock the rifirgerator every day they did not they said they had Americian beer they nver did they ran out of beer at least 3 days it takes more than a hour to chck in and check out the staff is unsure of their jobs the beach is full of seaweed and rocks"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Kevin from Union City, Ga

"LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Janna Lafrance from Ajax, Ontario

"My husband and I loved this resort. The food was amazing, the staff were all super friendly, and our room was stunning. I couldn't have been more pleased. The outdoor tropical spa was wonderful, and the pools were all fantastic.The only thing I can't give a 'five star' to is the ocean swimming. Even though the beach was beautiful, there was a lot of 'sea grass' in the water. It wasn't mushy, but more like long slender sticks. I always prefer a nice hard sand bottom, but this was only a minor problem compared to how amazing everything else was!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Anthony D from Burnsville, MN

"The facilities were great here!! Beautiful rooms with balconies and I believe that all the rooms were equipped with Hammocks on the balcony. We thought the buffet was horrible but the resturaunts were above average nothing really special though. I would deffinitly recommend going with the all inclusive if you stay here. When you eat or drink you always have to sign bills and I would say the average meal for us while we were there (2 people) was around 40 dollars. So you will get your moneys worth with the all inclusive. There are no close places to go to if you plan on leaving the resort to eat somewhere authentic and cheap. Its at least a $6 dollar cab ride to the nearest food places and markets if you decide to eat outside the resort. Other then the slow service and buffet the grounds were awesome! We had a very relaxing week."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Julie from Shelton, NE

"Just got back!!! Free upgrade to a one bedroom suite!! Very nice and house keeping was AWESOME, she even washed our dishes!! We were in the 3rd tower and on the 1st floor and we had ocean view. Balcony was GREAT, the hammock hit the floor when I sat in it, but if you tied a knot on one side it was perfect! I can't say enough great stuff about the rooms, the beds were comfy and the bathroom was huge and the living room was awesome to have along with the kitchen. We did have to call EVERYDAY multiple times to get the fridge restocked and 3 out of the 7 days no one came even after calling. The food was not good at all, I got really sick from something the 3rd day. We ate at the TWO nicer places, but was not impressed and I am not a picky eater! We did like the taco bar and the service over by that pool area was great, but at other pools the servers were rude, one even yelled at us for asking where our food was!! The room service is a great idea IF you have a couple hours to wait for it. We planned ahead and ordered it early. One night it was over 2 hours! The drinks were great We loved the blue hawaiian. You do have to sign for EVERYTHING, they will hunt you down, they will come to your room!! There was not a lot to do at night, the shows were ok but were over by 9. The fire show was the best one! They are very helpful with setting things up for us and telling us how to get places. We took the fast ferry over to the Isle, and that was my best day!! LOVED IT!!! We rented a golf cart and just drove around all day. The 'timeshare' presentation was not all that bad, they offer some great discounts if you just listen, we told them up front that we were not going to buy so 90 minutes and we were done!!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Kim Edgar from Garland, Texas

"My husband and I just returned from our vacation at Villa del Palmar; 3/2/12-3/8/12. We have gone to Cancun for the last couple of years during the same time span staying at different resorts each time. The room we were upgraded to at no charge without request was absolutly fantastic. The grounds at Villa del Palmar were beautiful. The staff was either 100% engaging and helpful or 100% not helpful, slow and uncaring. We took with us several hundred dollars in ones, fives, tens and twenties for tipping over and above purposes. In our past experiences we learned that tipping the servers at the pool (or anywhere) meant constant service. Not at Villa del Palmer, with the exception of two gentlemen. I think even without tipping over and above these two would have provided great service. All the others though were slow and only checked back every couple of hours. We ended up attending to our own needs. Visiting the bars was frustrating as well. The bar tenders would rather talk to each other and be busy stocking the bar than serve the customers. The dining experiences were dreadful. I almost hate even reporting it for fear that we will sound demanding, unappreciative and high maintance. the food presentation was beautiful but it was tasteless. During our stay we did eat at each resturant, 3 total plus a pool snack bar. One of the resturants which is buffet only is being remolded, but still open. They use the patio for the guest to dine at. With the wind and being right on the beach you can plan on food blowing off your plate and mixed with sand!! They really need to put up some kind of wind block. Hopefully you will not experience rain as we did. I cannot tell you how much fun eating dinner is with wind, sand and rain coming at you is. The Italian resturant is very hard to get into. Reservations fill up fast. We did tip to get into the resturant and that worked. The atmosphere was very nice. The food does fall into the same overall tasteless description made earlier. The Mexican food resturant, same; tasteless. The pool snack bar is hit and miss. If Villa del Palmar will work on the service and food I would highly recommend the resort. Many guests were complaining about the location of the resort, I thought that was a little undeserved. It clearly states how far out they are located. I for one loved being far away from everything. Special note; we had no problems checking in or out. Do be prepared to discuss Time Shares when you arrive. We were very upfront and told them we were not interested. They pushed a little but then stopped when they realized we were not kidding."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Carin Glass from Voorhees, NJ

"The Resort was beautiful and layed out well Lots of space and room for all Guests Food very good too, however needs more a la Carte Restaurants only 2 were available and they need 2 more Beach was nice but ocean not easily accessible very Rocky Pools were Fabulous!! Conceirge Help could be better they focused more on selling their time share Over all was very relaxing and enjoyable and would recommend if people are looking for R&R"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Mark Cymbaluk from Red Deer County, AB

"I've been to a lot of places and have a pretty good idea what I can expect. This is a newer resort and from what I can tell they have already corrected a lot of small issues that people seem to make big deals out of, we were not approached once by timeshare salespeople, the front desk and concierge were incredibly helpful. The rooms were very nice, we got the suite as it was a very cheap upgrade when we were booking, we didn't show up expecting a 'complimentary upgrade' come on people why would you ever think an upgrade should be complimentary, why not just be grateful when you do get bumped into a nicer room? The on site store had everything we needed, we forgot a couple of small things and they had a great selection of travellers necessities, yeah I had to pay for them but oh yeah, I forgot them! The bars were good, the food was very good, my wife has a very strict diet due to celiacs disease yet she did just fine. I had an experience where a guest was complaining severely about the price of a glass of wine even though it was included with her all inclusive vacation, she was going to give them a bad review for that, so if you are reading this please take negative reviews with a grain of salt. The swimming pools were great for the kids and adults as well, well separated, very nicely done. The location is very nice, yes it is half an hour out of Cancun but the location leaves you with the feeling that you are in Mexico, and there is privacy, and quiet, the beach is OK, as good as any resort beach in Cancun or the Riviera. The ferry to Isla Mujeres runs right next to the resort which makes that day trip easy too."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Janis S from Lincoln, NE

"My husband and I arrived on a Thursday evening, and I had requested an Anniversary package. The did not mention it at check in, but instead upgraded us to a one bedroom, 2 bath suite. The room and view was gorgeous, very high quality finishes. The resort itself was very clean, staff was friendly overall. They had 5 pools, our favorite being the infinity pool which had a bar and food available next to it, and pool waiters so you never had to move. We did tip a little, but the couple we sat with at the pool for 3 days didn't, and they had same service as us. The other couple we sat with at the pool have been all over the world, and to Cancun several times, including this resort last year when it was only half done. They came back and really liked the laid back, quiet atmosphere of this resort. Our friends we met from Canada described it as a couple's resort with a few families. If you are looking to party and drink ALL night, head to the Hotel Zone or Playa...this resort is not party land. It's location was quite a ways from the Hotel Zone and shopping zone, which is good or bad depending on how you look at it. Some people we met at the bar went downtown, and it took around 45 minutes one way. We took the water shuttle to Isla Mujeres to shop and site see one day, that took about 25 min by boat and has BEAUTIFUL water. The ocean water at the resort is a bit dirty as it is surrounded by coral reefs which grow sea weed that washed up on shore, but the resort picks it up often and the reefs keep the water coming in calm. Our Michigan friends said in the Hotel Zone, the water coming in is very rough with rip tides and undercurrents, so our beach was very peaceful. We did not talk to the concierge, but would not have fallen for the time share trap like we did in Vegas one year. Overall, this vacation was VERY relaxing, the buffet food was OK as buffet food is, the Mexican & Italian restaurants were very good...just remember to make reservations first thing in the morning."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Linda from Williamsville, NY

"A breathtaking experience. Everything was top notch, staff, food, grounds, activities, entertainment, etc. One complaint is do not dragged into their sales tour. I did agree to take the tour to get a VIP card for outside activities. I was told it was 90 minutes and I was ok with that. It did end up being 3 hours long and that was not fair. When you are on vacation your time is valuable. Besides that, I will chalk this one up to one of my best vacations."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Amy from Reno, NV

"This was our first trip to the Villa Del Palmar in Cancun. Overall we found the trip to be relaxing. The resort wasn't crowded, we very easily found a lounger by the pool and the beach. We were very excited that there were very few spring breakers at the resort. The general atmosphere was calm and relaxing. I had stayed at the Villa Del Palmar in Los Cabos and the party music played all throughout the day with the whistle blowing for the various pool activities. At the Cancun resort the music was always at a low relaxing level. Even better, there were no beach stalkers of endless trinkets being sold on the beach. We were left alone the entire time while at the resort. We did follow the advise of one of the reviews and asked for a north tower room that was higher up. We were placed in the north tower on the eighth floor with an upgraded room at no additional cost. It was quiet, we heard no construction or screaming drunk people. Definitely take the ferry to the Isla Murejes. It was worth the five bucks for a boat ride and experience on the island. Downside....the beach was walkable only at a very short distance. If you're looking for the long romantic walk along the beach just outside the resort this isn't the place. The timeshare people were just as aggressive as always about the presentation. Upon the third time of saying no the supervisor got mad and somewhat confrontational. You also have to pay for wifi...it would have been nice to have free wifi in the lobby area. It's ten bucks a day. I would recommend this resort to friends and family."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Marcia from La Salle, MB

"I had heard mixed reviews about this resort but it exceeded my expectations. My standards with vacations are very high and you never know when travelling to Mexico what you are going to be in for. The room was spectacular. We stayed in the Deluxe Ocean View 1 Bedroom unit. The kitchen was well equiped with standard fridge, stove, oven, microwave and dishwasher. There was a large glass table with 6 chairs for eating, a sitting room with couch, chairs and table as well as a murphy bed. There also was a guest bathroom with shower and a washer and drier. The bedroom had a king size bed, the ensuite had a whirlpool tub, a 2 sink vanity, shower and a large closet with a safe. The balcony was the width of the room with 2 sets of sliding doors leading out to an amazing view. The balcony was also equipped with a large patio table, a lounge chair as well as a hammock. The staff were very friendly and helpful. There is a quick meet and greet when you first arrive were they do talk a little about time share. There is absolutely NO pressure to attend the 90min meeting and I was never made to feel embarrassed or ashamed for not attending. The food although very delicious became boring by the 5th day as there are only 3 restaurants to choose from. This is only phase 1 of their project so hopefully they will incorporate more choices into their other 2 buildings. There are some stipulations with the all inclusive package but nothing we needed or couldn't go without absolutely having. The grounds as well as the rooms were very clean. The passanger ferry to Isla Mujeres is a 10min bus/taxi ride (6 pesos for the bus or $6USD for the taxi) from the resort and the ferry ride is 20min and leaves every half hour. The cost of the ferry was $12USD round trip, very affordable and the the island is lots of fun with great shopping and food. I would recommend it for married couples and familys as the cancun strip is about 60min away. The entertainment at night is alright but not enough for single people wanting to have a night life. I will certainy be returning!!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Mary from West Chester, PA

"Our 5 night stay in Cancun was a wonderful experience. The one bedroom ocean view suite was elegant. It had everything we needed and then some. We enjoyed the food in both the IItalian and Mexican restaurants. The pools were beautiful, the activities fun, and the hot stone massage at the spa was an exceptional experience. IEven though the resport is still under construction it did not in any way preclude us from completely enjoying our vacation. We wiill go again to this beautiful resort. The only negative comment we have is that the room had a musty odor."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Heather from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

"Beautiful resort. Brand new. Very clean. Workers are extremely helpful and kind. Food is good,many options although only two a la cartes open at this time. This resort will only improve with time."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler M. Parris from Auburn, GA

"PROS: The hotel is gorgeous. Our room was awesome. They actually had premium drinks included in the all-inclusive deal. Room service was quick and the food was very good. The ferry to Isla Mujeres is adjacent to the hotel property and you can walk to it via the beach. CONS: The wait staff was slow and for the most part, not very friendly. It was a pain to have to sign everytime you ordered anything (we were on the all-inclusive plan) and on top of that, it took a long time for them to bring the check so that you could sign. We had to actually get up and head towards the door so that someone would bring the check so we could get on with our vacation. Also, the beach and water are not nearly as nice as that on hotel zone."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler J & B Drouillard from McGregor Ontario, Canada

"We had read the comments and decided to check it out for ourselves, as everyone has different opinions. On the positive side The staff was great, the grounds were beautiful, the beach was nice, although you couldn't go too far down the beach for a walk as there was no place to go.The beds were comfy. But the rooms were very damp. Room service was awesome (HOT FOOD). The food in the restaurant by the pool came to you hot. The Zama restaurant food was hot for dinner. On the negative side. When we arrived we were no where near the other party in our group as was said we would be. There was no ppv movies or swim up pool as was said on the internet. We ate at the buffet for breakfast, lunch & dinner it was never hot, (always luke warm to cold) we even where there right at 7 for the dinner one when it opened up. The buffet's were outside so with the chaffing fuel underneath to keep things hot was never really on the steam pan due to the windk they tried to contain it with saran wrap which just melted, they they used tin foil didn't matter any. Even the cold bufftet although it was on ice was not cold. They did not have a good variety in the lunch buffet. The Latino meal was awful, the ambiance on the beach where they held it was very nice. The maid didn't always stock the bathroom properly we had to call twice for supplies. The staff who stocked the fridge did not do so daily. Whom ever was in the room last had not closed our door tightly twice, therfore anyone could have just pushed on the door and entered our room. When you go to make a reaservation you will eat late because they give members first choice of eating times. If you decide to try this resort anyway after the comments you read, try the buffet once or twice then go to room service. Sorry Guys but would not go back here or recomend this place."

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler Erika Driedger from Seminole, TX

"Best trip EVER!!! This place is absolutely gorgeous!!! And the rooms are amazing :) We would go back in a heartbeat!! The food was fantastic and the love shows are great!! Such a romantic atmosphere!! LOVED IT!!!! The nicest and friendliest staff and so helpful!! Wonderful trip!!"

BookIt.com® Verified Traveler LynAnn Bochniak from Farmington, MN

"I absolutely loved this resort! No need to really leave, the food was very good, the staff was awesome, beach was clean, activities, etc...wonderful! My only 'inconvenience' of the whole week was the fact that even though we were all inclusive and had a wrist band to show as such, we had to sign a ticket after every meal and after we left each bar or pool side if we consumed anything."

"We have traveled to many resorts, some of them I think to myself, I got to come back here again and some once is enough. Staying here falls under the second category, once is enough! I did not not know this is a timeshare establishment, upon our arrival they were insisting to book us for a 2-3 hours presentation, they were not familiar with 'no Thanks, not interested'. Their advertisement of water activity is not totally accurate, they had 4-5 canoes and sail board which were always reserved and not available. Food was OK, Mexican cuisine but nothing special. Alcohol drinks were all inclusive but they were so watered down you needed to drink 9-10 drinks to get a small buzz. There were not enough staff to take care of you in a timely manner by the pools. As far as snorkeling and stuff like that, let's say it is not Hawaii if you have had that experience. For us it was a relaxing vacation, lay down by the pool and just relax and enjoy the sun. Don't expect too much before you get there and don't compare it to your Hawaii experience so you won't be disappointed once you get there. I won't go back and will advice my friends with the comments I have written here. "

"NO !!! NO !!! NO !!! I still very angry and fill so stupid !!!!! NEVER , NEVER , NEVER AGAIN I WILL BE THERE . HORRIBLE ! HORRIBLE !!!! HORRIBLE !!!!!! HORRIBLE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Posted : san. 04/15/2012"

"Everything it's great the beach and the water is not worth the trip"

"Well, where should I begin?? I have traveled to many all inclusive resorts in the past and never experience such bad service!!! The hotel/resort was beautiful and very clean, but the staff on the other hand was not so fabulous. Let me elaborate. We had asked to have a set of extra towels for the 4 days that we were staying, we never received them and matter of fact, the one day we never even received towels at all!! The room was always cleaned and very beautiful. I had the most wonderful relaxing spa experience/massage, but the young girl at the desk could not speak an ounce english. It was so bad that I had to walk back to the front desk in my robe and ask someone to help her! Now for my beach and pool experience. We had three great waiters, always bringing drinks and food on a timely matter!! They were very pleasant, fun and hard working, but the pool was always out of pool towels and we constantly had to wait for them to be launderd. The restaruant staff was terrible. Very, very slow and the dinner food was below average. A few times the restaruants were even out of bottled water!! We also thought it was very annoying to be constantly flagged down to sign for the bills. Isn't that why we were wearing all inclusive wrist bands?? So if you would ask me if I would go back to your resort --NO. Not because it wasn't clean and beautiful, but because the staff was not proficient!! Sorry!!"

"The Villa De Palmar is a beautiful resort but it has some issues. The beach is always full of seaweed and there is a lot of rocks in the beach. Very difficult to try to swim or stand in the Ocean there, you need rubber shoes. One very good restruant Devon and the rest are fair. The pool side bar servers food that is very good and they do come around often to serve you. The room was very nice and they did stock some drinds but very few snacks and not enough water......you cannot drink the tapwater......the staff says so. The Wi Fi that you have to pay for does not work in the room, only in restraunts and by the pool.. we did get it sometimes on the patio of the room. I would not go back, I would stay on the hotel strip."

"First, the resort is far away from everything. If you want to go away from the resort, you have to SIGN UP for a shuttle. But beware that usually means THE NEXT DAY, since there are only 14 spots in the shuttle. If you can't get on the shuttle, you pay $20 for a taxi. There is public transportation but not advised for 'safety' reasons. The resort is beautiful. We were upgraded (no charge and without requesting) to a one bedroom suite. It was great with full kitchen, granite counters, stainless steel applicances, nice decor, comfortable king bed, big bathroom with jacuzzi tub and separate shower. The balcony was double size with a hammock on one side and table and chairs on the other. The view from our 2nd floor suite was of the beautiful gardens and pool area. The upper floors will provide a view of the ocean. The food was poor quality and the drinks were watered down. You can't drink the water so you have to constantly ask for water bottles. If you don't care for good food and are content with buffet meals then you will be fine. The resort offers a limited restaurant situation. There is one restaurant that is closed/not opened yet or being renovated. So, you had the choice of a buffet (breakfast, lunch, dinner), the bar grill (yuck!) or one of the two reservation required restaurants. NOTE: there is an extra charge for steaks, lamb or lobster. The service was very slow; they need more staff. The restaurant waiters had to do everything themselves (bus the tables, set the next table, take the orders, and deliver the drinks and food all by himself). Although, he was moving as fast as he could, he was slow to serve us and sweating. They need more people. The limited staff causes long waits for tables and few reservation spots. We had to make our restaurant reservations the day before and still did not get a time until 9:00 pm both nights. The beach was a disappointment. There was white sand and plenty of chairs, but did not have the expected beautiful clear water we had heard about for Cancun. The water is unappealing and unwelcoming at this beach. There are signs that suggested you wear water shoes due to the water's rough bottom. Finally, I have to say that the pressure to attend a sales pitch for buying a timeshare was awful. Upon check-in, we had to sit with the concierge and listen to her begging us to attend a sales session. We continually refused since we have done those things before and will never again. They say it will only be 90 mins but good luck getting away from the sales people in less than 2-3 hours. We came to Cancun for relaxation and fun, not to be hounded to buy a timeshare. Bottom line: beautiful buildings and gardens; disappointing beach, mediocre food, slow service, heavy sales pitch, and far away from everything."

"The Villa del Palmar is having its grand opening next month. When we checked in they didn't have the Garden Studio available so we were upgraded to a 1 Bedroom deluxe FREE. The room was spacious & nice but the ligting in the bathrooms are poor & had shadows. My husband found it hard to shave. Althought the room was clean; the air was musty which bothered both my husband & I. We were offered a drink while waiting for concierge to explain the way the all inclusive works. We recieved free tickets & transportation to Chichen Itza for a tour. Our room was on the beach with 2 full service restataunts, a snack bar, a buffet, and 4 other bars and free 24-hour room service. Many of the wait staff were in training and a some very slow, but Mexico is a slower pace anyway. It bothered me most that we couldn't get another cup of coffee quite freequently. Overall our entire experience was very good. We would go back. ."

"My boyfriend and I spent 4 nights at the Villa Del Palmar along with 2 other couples. We had a great experience. The hotel property is gorgeous and the staff is very helpful and friendly. Our only complaint is the staff is very slow. When we went to dinner it would take 2 hours every time! We had to wait forever to get our food. And even sitting by the pool, or around the snack bar, the wait staff was very slow...sometimes we would have to ask 3 times before receiving our drink. The beach wasnt very clean either, lots of seaweed. But as far as the overall hotel it was very clean and very comfortable!"

"My husband and I just returned from the Villa Del Palmar (2-9 thru 2-13). Let me start by saying we are no strangers to Cancun. This was our 8th trip; staying at different resorts in cancun each time. We can not say 'one' negative thing about this resort. Our room was fabulous! We were upgraded, no charge, to an ocean view suite! Fully equipped kitchen, 2 bath, living room, etc. Request high floor for ocean view; we stayed on 7th floor and the view was unbelieveable! Food and service was 1st class. Weather was perfect and beach was beautiful. We have recommended the Villa Del Palmar to all our friends and family. This resort is awesome and I am sure you will enjoy it as well!"

"The facility is absolutely gorgeous. The rooms are amazing, the food is excellent, but the service is slow. They need to either hire more staff or train them better."

"Overall, our 5 nite stay was enjoyable. The pros: adequate food and alchholic beverages. waiters and bartenders were fabulous! studio room was comfortable. amenities were satisfactory. beach was wonderful!

Cons; request for a complimentaryroom upgrade was denied. The 1 bedroom suite right next to ours was empty the whole time during our stay. TOOO MUCH TIME spent trying to sell us!!! Timeshare tour, excursions, shuttles, taxis,etc. We had to sit through the concierge's sales pitch. We spent good money to stay at this all inclusive resort, and it took almost an hour upon arrival before we could even get into our room! WASTE OF OUR TIME!!!!! Bars close too early. Forgot my toothbrush, so I went to the front desk to ask for one. was denied and told I had to buy one at the market next store. front desk receptionist was not helpful at all!!!"

"FIRST THE GOOD THINGS.ROOMS WERE LARGE AND BEAUTIFUL.BEDS WERE TOP OF THE LINE.STAFF WAS EXCELLENT AND SPOKE GREAT ENGLISH.GROUNDS WERE A TROPICAL PARADISE.FOOD QUALITY WAS VERY GOOD.POOLS WERE BEAUTIFUL AND HEATED. ALL BARTENDERS WERE VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE.THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW IS HOTEL IS VERY UNDER STAFFED.FIRST 6DAYS WEREN'T BAD BUT 7TH DAY 2 WEDDING PARTYS OF 90 PEOPLE CAN IN AND EVERY ONE ELSE MIGHT AS WELL NOT HAVE BEEN THERE.ROOM SERVICE WAS NEVER THERE IN LESS THEN 1 HOUR,BUT WHEN THEY GOT THERE 2HOUR WAIT.COULD NOT GET DINNER RESERVATIONS,BUFFET FOOD RAN OUT CONSTANTLY,MINI BAR SERVICE SUFFERED,AND LONG WAITS AT BARS.YOU NEED TO KNOW ALSO EVEN THOUGH TIPS WERE INCLUDED,STAFF EXPECTED TO BE TIPPED.SERVICE WAS BETTER WHEN YOU TIPPED.WE STAYED LAST YEAR AT DREAMS CANCUN,AND NEVER HAD ANY OF THESE PROBLEMS.UNLIKE OTHER HOTELS,WHEN YOU CHECK OUT AT 12:00PM AND HAVE TO WAIT FOR SHUTTLE,YOU FEEL LIKE A HOMELESS PERSON.THEY CUT YOU'RE WRIST BANDS AND YOU BECAME INVISABLE.WE HAVE EVEN STAYED AT THE KRYSTAL,WHICH IS A EUROPEAN ALL INCLUSIVE AND I WOULD NOT RECOMMED,BUT EVEN THERE YOU KEPT YOU'RE WRIST BANDS UNTIL YOU LEAVE AND COULD ENJOY LUNCH OR DRINKS.ALSO BE PROPARED FOR VERY HIGH PRESSER TIME SHARE PEOPLE.90MINUTE WE WERE TOLD WAS HALF ADAY WITH A VERY STRONGE ARM ON BUYING.ALSO WERE EVER YOU GO YOU HAVE TO SIGN FOR EVERYTHING.IF YOU FORGET THEY CHASE YOU DOWN.THEY ONLY HAD TWO RESTURANT.WHICH IF YOU COULD GET IN BEFORE 8:30 IN WAS GOOD.THERE WAS A SUSHI RESTURANT BUT IT WAS NEVER OPEN IN 9DAYS.THE POOL SIDE GRILL WAS OPEN TO 6:00PM AND WAS VERY GOOD.MAYBE WHEN THEY GET NEW MANAGMENT OR FINISH BUILDING IT COULD BE A 5 STAR RESORT.RIGHT NOW I WOULD SAY 3 STAR."

"My wife and I had a wonderful time at the Villa del Palmer in Cancun. Words can't describe the beauty of the Villa and lush tropical grounds. When the two remaining restaurants are completed the Villa del Palmer will be a true five star resort."

"Go and have a great time! I want to go back and we just got home! Had beautiful rooms and the grounds are stunning. The food was amazing - make dinner reservations at Zamas and Davino's - you won't be disappointed! Make sure to have the Molcojete at Zama's - a stone crock of yummy cheese, meat and veggies - it was still boiling for the last bite :) The workers are all so gracious and polite - return the favor! Tips are appreciated and the service was awesome! They work so hard, show them some appreciation. Have a Mango Colada, it was awesome!"

"We had a fabulous visit to Villa del Palmar Cancun. We can honestly say without reservation that we found this to be an extraordinary full service facility with top flight attention, amenities, etc. The spa was a special treat - clean, organized, professional and truly tranquil. The food is by far the best than what we have sampled in any all inclusive we have visited to date. Kudos to the staff, management and those who helped make our vacation five star! Right now, I am really missing a frozen sombrero made to perfection by our favorite bartender!

"

"the resort facilities and our room was totally top notch in every way.
Every thing was very luxurious, spacious very clean, and the whole place very well run, everyone was very friendly and provided excellent service. The only drawback is that the food is quite mediocre and the actual beach not as nice as others in the area.
The location is a bit removed from Cancun and the hotel zone area so is best for visitors that wish to spend most of therir time enjoying the resort. We rented a car so ended up spending most our our time exploring different towns and islands around Cancun, Playa Del Carmen, Cozumel and Tullim, in the end we never ended up spending much time on site but that would have been a pleasure if we stayed a few more days."

"we went with my family of 5 and loved this hotel
some glitches they have to work out were how to serve the guests at the pool, ocean and room service while serving the restaurant guests all from the same kitchen. lots of friendly staff. great aactivities all day long beautiful clean rooms and balconies. terrific management couldnt do enough for us. just fabulous.."

"The resort is beautiful. High end construction finishes thru-out...really so comfortable and luxurious. We had the 1 bedroom, 2 Bath oceanview suite with full kitchen, washer /dryer, double terrace with hammock, etc. Our room was dead center on floor 7 facing the ocean. AMAZING. Go for one of these suites, 1 BR or 2 BR and you will be very pleased.However, the food and service were BEYOND terrible. A quick trip into Cancun for groceries would have solved the problem, but we paid for All Inclusive and kept hoping the food would get better. We were there for 6 nights with no luck. Arived Christmas Eve. The good news is you are 45 minutes away from Isla Mujeres via the ferry pier located right next to the Resort and you can hop over there for great chow all day long. That's what we did. We also traveled into Cancun. on a scale of 1-10 I would rate the accomodations a 10 . The food @ a 1. The BEST restaurant is La CASONA Dining Room for Dinner. The menu is decent and the presentation is lovely if not mainstream.Book it every single night! The Buffets on the Casona terrace are just awful. The breakfast Omelet Station with 'YENI' is the best thing going. She does a fantastic job!!! The Service was about a 3. VERY short on Cocktail servers for all the pools. Just get up and walk to a bar for quicker service. The internet was spotty thru-out the week and they finally got that upgraded on Thursday...our 6 th day there. Good luck!!!"

"Place was nice, but the service and food was very bad. We had to make reservations for everything and for 3 days in a roll, they lost or never took the reservations so we had no food. New year s party was a joke, we finally got a table and my dad and some friends sat together, we suppossed to get steak and lobster for dinner, first the steak wasnt cook enough and they gave us JUST THE SHELL, no meat for the lobster....all they do is say im sorry, look that they are used to complains and they dont do anything about...i will take them from your site, since is a bad reputation for you too...we will never go back there..."

"Visit date 12/25/11 - 12/30/11 Food tolerable. Must make reservations for all restaurants except the buffets (no menu for restaurants). Buffets breakfasts consists of fruits and omeletes made to order, (long lines), vegetables, and mostly lunch items. Forget about authentic mexican food lunches and dinners (i.e. tacos, burrittos, enchiladas etc). 1 of the restaurants served italian (not good) Watered down juices and diluted mixed drink alcoholic beverages. They also want a signed receipt for each time you eat. (no cost , not sure why....maybe to tip staff?) Room service blows. 3 times the wait room service quote... if they come at all. No ice machines...must get from room service or bars. You must make all restaurant reservations through a concierge. WHY? Who knows. After you get a reservation....good luck getting setted anywhere close to reservation time and plan a couple hours to eat. Absolutely beautiful hotel, our room had a missing sliding door lock and had to be put on by maintenance. We overheard another family talking and their room and their sliding door lock missing as well but also had no refrigerator, microwave, hot water, shower head. This hotel is away from alot of attractions so you must either take the bus (cheap), a $30 cab (1 way), or the free hotel shuttle that runs only twice a day (must make reservations again). For some reason they log everywhere you go at the security front gate. Dont plan on internet connections... paid for ethernet connection in the room ($10 a day) but there was no connection. Free wifi is available around the main lobby but that didnt work either. Our room had a musty smell and we could see mildew/mold on furniture and fixtures. Did not get bothered about buying a timechair fortunately. Maybe they will get the service better down the road"

"Excellent accommodations ... the best staff I have ever encountered. They are exceptionally attentive and pleasant. Even though there was construction on new facilities the noise never bothered us either in our room or on the beach. We had a wonderful relaxing vacation and will return. This was our second time at Villa del Palmar this year!"

"The hotel is beautiful! The staff speaks & understands lilttle English. It is very hard to communicate with them. They need to offer more activies for the guest."

"This is probably one of the nicest places we been to so far. Will be going back next year..."

"This is an amazing property and the number one plus for this resort is the staff."

"Hot=wromg time of year in Sept. Lots of construction noise. Not many guests or activities. Enjoyed all inclusive with premium liquor brands, and excellent food. "

"I read mixed reviews about this Resort due to the construction. But I am the type that gets very boored sitting around and in the pool. It was fun to watch the construction staff work on the building. They very never rude, they got a lot done in the 7 days we were there and they were very effocient, ( kind of hard to find this in the United States). The service was exceptional from the bartenders to the room service staff. The Sushi was great as well as all of the other restaurants. I look forward to another trip this November. Great place to relax!"

"This resort is spectacular! Not completed yet, but this will be the place to go!! If you are looking for family vacation, this is it!! I will return! The service was amazing!!! 5 stars!!"

"We really enjoyed this place. We had a one bedroom which was beautiful. Kitchen, two washrooms and showers, murphy bed in living room, two TV's, large balcony. The staff right from check in, to room service, waiters and the ground keepers were all very friendly and a good percentage of them could speak English quite well. There is construction and we were aware of this before we came. None of it was terribly loud. The beach was nice, the only thing we did not like was the water was only nice up to about the knees then you hit the weeds. They will be fixing this in the future. The large pool was gorgeous! They do have one other smaller pool and four hot tubs. If you want nightlife, this is not the place for you as they are pretty isolated."

"We were there for a week in Feb and had an absolutely incredible time. The resort was beautiful. The service by all was excellant and the meals and drinks were really good."

"So after reading the reviews I was a little nervous heading to this resort. Butm what a PLEASANT SURPRISE!! The room was unbelievable, the service impecable and the food extraordinary. Having been to other all-inclusive resorts I knew what to expect i.e. the time share people when you check-in. Simply ignore them and your vacation will be a blast. The construction is taking place during the day but is not overwhelming. The staff are exceptional...by the way dropping a dollar here and there as a tip makes a HUGE difference in the level of service.



My only compaint would be the beach. It is too windy, water too rough and too full of seaweed to actually swim. But, the pool more than makes up for this.



This was likely the nicest resort I have ever stayed at and not only do I plan to go back, but I also plan to check out the Villa Groups other properties in Mexico."

"Just returned from our one week stay there. Would highly recommend this beautiful resort. The food, service staff, and property were wonderful. Trust me you will enjoy your time there. Would go back in a New York minute. "

"This resort is Wonderful!!!! Food is GREAT! Rooms are NICE!

I will definately be going back!"

"Just returned from 16 days at the hotel.Food as excellent,service was great!. The rooms were lovely, and kept spotless.The Zama restaurant, with it's open air, spectacular views, was very romantic, and they catered to your every whim, even if wasn't on the menu. If your looking

for a relaxing vacation, to get away from it all, this is the hotel for you!L "

"Despite being a brand new resort, and partially finished, our family had a wonderful holiday. Service, staff, and the resort were beautiful. Food was amazing. Weather was excellent. My two young daughters lived in the pool, from morning to night. Construction on the hotel was ongoing, but it was merely background noise, and did not diminish the overall experience. Highly recommend the hotel to anyone looking for a relaxing holiday"

"THIS RESORT WAS AMAZING.......THE STAFF WERE SUPER NICE......THEY WERE VERY FRIENDLY WITH MY CHILDREN.THE ONLY THING was the resort is not fully complete and very far from the hotel zone and night clubs>i would come back but after a few yrs when its all complete.THE WEATHER WAS KINDA CLOUDY.I LOVED THE KIDS ACTIVITES THEY HAD AS WELL!!!:)"

"People should be made aware that this resort is only 1/3 complete and still under construction. My vacation was cut short due to rain and wind. This weather completely handicapped the resort; the satellite TV didn`t even work. There was no real adventure there and unfortunately our one bedroom suite was the highlight. We decided to change our flights and return home two days early. Although, they didn`t have control of the weather, I`m highly disappointed by the lack of entertainment. The food is average and the menu is repetitive. We didn't get the anniversary perks that this site suggested either. They need better activities (indoor and outdoor), DVD player, American TV (one or two channels currently), board games to rent/sign out, etc. Swimming, beach, beach volleyball, kayaking, eating, drinking - that's all folks :-("

"This was a pretty decent resort. I enjoyed my stay with the family. I have two teenagers and we were skeptical of how it would fit their needs but it worked out perfectly. They had so much fun. This was definitely worth the price, nothing like this resort! It's very safe too."

"This hotel is amazing. It is definitely worth the trip! The food is fantastic and the people who work there are very friendly. I will definitely be coming back!"