TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

So, let me start out by saying the whole reason I’m writing this review is Absalon. He is the waiter at the Florencia restaurant at the resort, and he was amazing. Now let me start from the beginning. We arrived on a Saturday around 1. We were able to check in and get our wristbands, however, our room wasn’t ready yet. The bus boys tagged our luggage and we were able to go eat at the buffet while we awaited our room. Skipping ahead, the beach is really nice here. Actually the nicest beach front of any resort we’ve stayed at. The pools were nice enough, and the water park seemed fun, but our 4 year old was too scared of the slides and our 13 year old was too old for most of that, it hit right in between their ages. The bars were all nice, but La Barra was the best of them. To be fair, we didn’t try The Midway bar because the seats at the bar made it seem difficult to approach for a drink. We tried Manhattan (American food) the first night since there was no wait there, and were not impressed. Then we tried Florencia and it was amazing. I’ve seen people commenting about food at all inclusives not being great, but this place was GOOD. Absalon May have picked up on the fact that we weren’t aware of how to order there. They serve small portions, so while I felt like a pig ordering an appetizer, a soup or salad, and a main dish, that seems to be the way they are designed. So that you can get a 4 course meal and not waddle away like you just ate an entire supermarket. Absalon added a couple of dishes as recommendations, which were all fantastic, and we were able to share them amongst the table. He’s also very fast and attentive to drinks and dishes and what not. The third night we ate at Samurai, which was also very good. It was our second favorite place. We tried Big Ben the third night, and the waiter there was also very good, but I forget his name. The food was pretty good there as well. We went back to samurai the next night, and then Florencia again for our final dinner. Absalon pulled out all the stops again. We ordered correctly this time, but he still added a recommendation, and gave us a filet mignon for the table to share. Wanted to add, the lasagna there is some of the best I’ve had. Then we ordered our desserts, and a while later, the lights dimmed. I jokingly said they turned them down for us and date night just started. Then, Absalon wheels up a dessert tray and serves us our desserts flambé style. It was an amazing cap to our trip, thank you Absalon. Now, the negatives. The room had a jacuzzi tub on the balcony, but the first couple of nights, the hot water came out a brownish color. After that, it got very busy here, and the color dissipated mostly. I’m thinking it’s an old water tank, and if the water sits too long it gets the rusty color from the tank. But if lots of people are using lots of water, it’s not too bad. The worst part of the trip was the presentation of the VIP club. I had initially said yes, then changed my mind and tried to skip it. The concierge convinced us again to go, and I wish we hadn’t. It took up nearly half a day and made me feel like a pauper telling them that I can’t afford $200 a month for the next 10 years to join their club. If it weren’t for the high pressure sales tactics, this place would have gotten 5 stars from me.

Coles notes review: The title may seem harsh, but its not meant to be a terrible thing. I like my resorts spread out with multiple pools, this place is very narrow with a smaller beach. Hotel/Rooms: 2.5* This is where the title stems from. Old, needs upgrades to rooms. Age is showing, showers are a bit gross, just needs renos. Definitely a disappointment. Service/People: 5*, incredible service and attitudes everywhere, especially in the El Maguey Mexican restaurant, top notch service there. Food:4* All food was really good, especially japenese and the steakhouse. Great selection at supper time if you want to avoid the idiots at the buffet that cant wait, use their hands and are just all around savages that only think about themselves. Pools: 3* No pool bar. 3 main pools, tiered. Old and dingy, need some work. Pretty busy at the top pool with kids etc. Beach: 4* On the smaller side and not much room to spread out due to the width of the property. The people and the restaurants make this a 3.5* but i cant give it that rating on this platform and its not a 4* IMO.

Amazing place and great food! I went to the Big Ben (Argentinian Steakhouse) and the server, Ricardo, was very attentive and made everything and great experience. This is my go to dinner spot in the resort, I highly recommend going early in your stay. You’ll want to come back!

We had a great time at our stay. We met Matilde & he is such a hard worker. He greeted us with a smile every time he saw us walking around. & he never forgets to ask if we needed some tequila. Haha. Overall it was extremely good experience we will definitely return!

Do not talk to the luxury travel people! Upon checking in you will be asked if you want to attend a presentation in exchange for some perk but do not say yes. The presentation will take an entire morning away from your vacation and the sales manager is very pushy. And our incentive (free tickets to a dolphin excursion) was not even close to the deal that was promised. Honestly we wouldn’t have even said yes but the woman who signed up us for the meeting showed my 5year old son a bunch of pictures of dolphin and asked if he wanted to do that too so it just seemed easier to say yes to what I assumed would be a short presentation. The whole thing really took away from our vacation and we will not be coming back. If you can avoid the sales people the resort is quite nice with a great waterpark for kids. The food was also great, but they and avoid peak meal hours because there seem to be many places with line ups.