TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

TRS / Grand Palladium Riviera Maya Complex Review We just came back from a 10 night stay at TRS/Grand Palladium Riviera Maya Complex. Staying at TRS lets you explore the whole complex, and we took advantage of that. Access ??: If you're an adult couple or group deciding which hotel to book within the Grand Palladium complex, stay at TRS. It gives you access to virtually the entire complex, which matters a lot on a longer stay. Rooms ??: We booked an ocean view poolside junior suite in building 65, one of the two best buildings on the TRS side. It's a short walk to the infinity pool, Helios restaurant, and most daytime activities, so no golf cart needed. The layout is awkward though: you enter between a fully glass closet and the glass doors separating the shower and toilet from the rest of the room. We were located on the 3rd floor, and our view was only a partial ocean view (visible through the trees when the breeze moved them). It should be marketed as partial ocean view, since we booked it with the expectation of atleast a more visible ocean. The AC has a motion sensor and shuts off overnight; our butler, Julio, brought us a fan when this became very annoying we later saw him delivering fans to other guests too. Sinks are deep porcelain basins, and the toilets are built tall, so anyone under 5ft 4in may have their feet dangling. My soaking tub needed a new button, which the staff replaced quickly. The double rooms, have a different configuration. The toilets in these rooms are not as tall. We confirmed this with the 2nd room that we booked. You can tell that the rooms have seen better days, and one of the mattresses that we had was lumpy. Note for anyone with mobility issues: none of the TRS buildings have elevators, and there are a lot of stairs throughout the property. Pools ?????: TRS technically has 3 pools: La Terraza (small, with a bar, open until midnight), Las Rocas (the natural saltwater pool), and the Infinity Pool, which functions as the main pool and hub of daytime activity. The saltwater pool was closed the whole trip due to sargassum. Most pools across the complex are quite deep (around 4ft 11in to 5ft 4in deep), so it feels designed with taller guests in mind. The White Sands pool is saltwater; the Colonial/Kantenah lagoon pool is nice and has a kids' area and waterfall feature; there's also a hidden adults only pool on the Colonial/Kantenah side, enclosed by jungle, that's quiet, since few guests know about it. Beach ??: This was a rough sargassum season, same as last year, but unlike other big resorts nearby, this property did not clean its stretch of the beach. Trash and seaweed visibly increased over our stay, the smell was noticeable, and almost no one used the beach as a result. We overheard guests complaining about the toxic smell coming from the sargassm. One couple we met, claimed to have a pool at home and that they came to the resort for the beach not the pools. This seems to be hurting guest satisfaction more than management realizes. This is especially evident after talking to some guests about it during our stay. - Note, though there is virtually no public beach on the TRS side, there are still vendors that show up. They stay off the property and instead shout to get guests attention while swinging whatever it is they are selling. They are mostly near the Helios restaurant. You can also find them in the TRS beach which is awkwardly located on the other side of the property. It is about a 10 min golfcart ride from the TRS lobby. Flora and Fauna ??: This complex truly embraces the nature around the property and due to this you should pack bug spray/wipes. They have flamingos at the entrance of the Colonial/ Kantenah lobby! Worth the visit to that side. They have an abundance of large Koi and Tilapia fish in the lagoons. There are also mangroves and many tropical plants growing throughout the property. Dont be surprised to see a racoon at night at the bar, or Coati families roaming the resort in packs. Someone said they saw a monkey and provided pictures. I spent the rest of the trip trying to spot the elusive monkey but never saw it. If your a nature lover you will enjoy walking the complex. Food and restaurants ??: Consistency was the main issue. The same dish could be great one day and mediocre a few days later. This issue was seen throughout all the food venues across the entire complex, including TRS and Room Service. Though the food in this particular hotel is clearly of higher quality than the rest of the complex, the flavor and sometimes quality was off at times. An example of this inconsistency was very evident during our dinner at the Brazilian restaurant. The same cut of meat tasted completely different on a second serving. The same happened at Helios when we tried their fried fish. The Nest (the family selection buffet) had a disappointing Italian night with lasagna that tasted low quality. Staff in some restaurants also pushed guests to leave reviews on the spot after their dinner service which turned a pleasant dinner to an annoying endeavor. We enjoyed the food from the menu of the sports bar and the atmosphere. We were there during the World cup so it would get a bit crowded and lively at times. Coffee shop ??: The new coffee shop at the White Sands, added in a recent renovation, was one of the trip highlights, since this property previously had none. It's a proper standalone, air conditioned space, not just a lobby counter, with self serve pastries and sandwiches. Coffee was just okay and on the weak side. It's a bit of a walk or cart ride from the TRS rooms. Entertainment / Night life ??: There's no nightclub and no casino here, so nightlife is limited. They are currently renovating the lobby at TRS, so it is smaller than what it usually is. The two big paid dinner shows, Chic Cabaret and Bravo, cost close to $100 per person, which feels off for an all inclusive. The team is especially talented and the shows are well thought out. However there are resorts in the same price range that provide the same quality of shows included with your stay. Maybe they justify the cost due to the free trinkets they hand out during the show. They sometimes run promotions on those show tickets, and if you book a massage you can ask about the packages that include them. The Rock Experience show at Colonial, which is free, was genuinely excellent and worth prioritizing. The “free” (you pay for the bingo card if you want to play) Bingo Party at TRS is also good, but unfortunately scheduled the same night as The Rock Experience, so you have to choose. The casino night/1920s themed show was very nice and The Sunday Mexican dinner show at TRS was intimate and well done. We also enjoyed the Jersey boys trio. Very talented group. Daytime entertainment was their real strength: tequila, wine, and candy tastings, plus tortilla making classes, all genuinely engaging and educational. Full Moon Bar deserves a shoutout for having some of the best cocktails and nightly bar atmosphere we've experienced at any all inclusive. It is in our top 10. Occupancy and upselling ??: Staff mentioned the resort was running at around 30% capacity during our stay, with visibly darkened, unused buildings, and a recent round of staff cuts tied to low tourism in the area. Travel club representatives were persistent, calling almost daily for the first week, even after we refused their breakfast invitation/coupons. We we checked in, they tried to upsell to their premium level. The cost for the upgrade would have cost us an additional $1000. We normally upgrade in other resorts, however the perks being offered here were not worth the hefty price tag. Things to do around the complex ??: The Grand Palladium complex has a cenote worth visiting though you can't swim in it. At night, it is lit up with ambient mayan music playing. There are also Mayan ruins style structures near the property worth photographing. There is Zentropia Spa, which we booked. It is grand and deserves its own review. There are also many sporting fields for the athletes of your travel party. Downloading the Grand Palladium app before booking is genuinely useful, since it shows menus, activities, and amenities across all the hotels in the complex ahead of time. Staff and overall rating ??: The standout of this trip was the staff. Service was consistently excellent everywhere, from pool attendants to golf cart drivers who went out of their way to help, including with guests who had mobility issues. Given the food inconsistency, aggressive upselling, and lack of beach maintenance, this would otherwise be a lower rated stay, but the staff bring it up. I would like to mention a few names of some individuals that helped make our stay excellent: (I apologize if I misspelled/misremembered any names.) Butlers: Julio, Bely, and Alfredo, Always attentive and present for any inconvenience or need. Maid: Aydee, Very sweet and detailed. TRS Bellboys: Noe and Hector, remembered us throughout our entire stay. La Jarra beach bar/ TRS lobby: Amay and Cintia, Very informative, and courteous. Helios: Ana and Jeovanny, fast and effective service. Piacere: Jordi, professional and courteous. Infinity pool bar: Eduardo, Ignacio, Pedro and the rest of the team deserve a medal. They remember your face/name and what you are drinking throughout the day. Entertainment Team: Mariana, Jerick?, David and the rest of the team were excellent! Provided entertainment throughout the day. They walk around to make sure everyone knows what activities are going on. Full moon bar: Sarahi (excellent mixologist, top notch, we were able to taste the difference when there was a different bartender at the bar. That is how good she was) I especially want to give a special ?? shout out to these individuals: ?? Walter at the Full moon bar/TRS lobby. Such a hardworking and earnest young man. We would see him almost every night during our stay. Our favorite bar to visit on the property was Full moon bar due to his presence. ? ?Alfonsa, the waitress at various TRS dinner restaurants also deserves a special shout out. She was extremely professional, very timely with drink refills, and courteous. The best dinner experience the entire stay was with her. ?? Overall rating: 4 out of 5. We're unlikely to return in the near future due to the lack of a beach cleanup crew, inconsistent quality food, weird room layout, and the paid entertainment model. If these items would be addressed then maybe they will have more frequent visitors. The daytime programming and staff were genuinely excellent and worth the praise. We will reconsider a visit due to them. I apologize for the long review, however since this resort is huge, it deserved a well thought out review, not just a couple sentences. Also since it was evident that some of the staff were fishing for 5 star reviews, the online rating on this resort/complex might be skewed.

Me and and wife took our honey moon to TRS Yucatan and absolutely loved it! The staff was nothing short of amazing always happy to see you and extremely helpful! We especially recommend you see our at Helios breakfast and lunch and see our favorite serving staff Daniel, Manuel, Arnulfo, Sarai and Alejandro. Who always found ways to make the stay extra special!

Our stay was fantastic. The staff were all attentive. Shout out to Sarahi on full moon bar, Francisco and Ramon our butlers, romaldo, victor who are servers. Room clean and huge, food was great everywhere. Never seen such nice toilets in a resort and everyone different! Would definitely recommend and will go back one day

Very good experience. Roark and Yazmin did a great job

Best getaway. Always our happy place. We never want to leave. The service is top notch as always. We can’t wait to go back.