Iberostar Quetzal

This was our second time at Iberostar Quetzal and 4th time at an Iberostar Resort (the other two were at Iberostar Beach/Del Mar just up the coast). For this trip we decided to upgrade to an oceanside suite which turned out to be a great decision. Our second floor oceanfront room had a spacious balcony and was just feet from the beach, the main pool area, and the oceanside buffet and steakhouse. Morning coffee on the balcony and evenings listening to the waves crash while looking across the ocean at the lights of Cozumel are something we will always remember. COVID safety precautions meant that the Tucan side of the resort was closed. This reduced capacity made it easy to always get a chairs by the pool or find a beach cabana. And yet, service seemed to be just as spectacular as always. Our two teenage daughters befriended many of the Iberostar "Star Friends" with many opportunities to practice their Spanish speaking and to get to know the staff. And yes, my advice is to tip the servers, waiters, and bartenders early and often as they work so very hard to make sure you have a great vacation. Overall, Iberostar Quetzal is an outstanding resort with only the mediocre food keeping it from being what I would consider a 5-star resort. And though we do like to try new things and visit different resorts, the fact that Iberostar resorts offer near 5-star features at a reasonable price makes it really hard for us to book somewhere else.

We've stayed at many AI resorts, including The Moon Palace, Valentin Imperial Maya, Royalton, NOW Sapphire, Marina el Cid, Grand Sirenis, Grand Palladium, Iberostar, Grand Bahia, Sandos, RIU, Dreams Dominicus, etc. This was our first visit during the pandemic and it hardly put a dent in our vacation at all. We masked up, stayed away from other people and passed our covid test with flying colors. It can be done. I can honestly say, this resort is AMAZING and we will be back. Iberostar Quetzel is very well-managed and goes above and beyond in almost every way. The service is some of the absolute BEST we’ve ever experienced – in the buffets, restaurants, at the bars/pools, beach, etc. The staff attitudes are absolutely “can-do” – and they work tirelessly round the clock to keep this place ticking like a clock. Wildlife and grounds One of the most unique facets of this resort is the tropical forest through which you pass through daily – it is simply breathtaking and magical and the pictures can’t begin to do it justice. Walking through the forest is not just a matter of getting from point A to point B – it is a delight to see all the animals running free in a natural habitat. The waterfalls and landscape design are the most unique we’ve ever seen in Mexico and what a thrill to see the monkeys swinging from tree to tree, with their babies on their backs, or the peacocks spreading their feathers and mating for all the world to see (yes, I have an obscene video of this!!) Just amazing. The paths, while uneven, are well-lit at night and create a stunning atmosphere for evening strolls.   CLEANLINESS Resort is SPOTLESS. Grounds and rooms are kept immaculate as are the beach and the pools. The groundskeepers work tirelessly keeping the plantings beautiful. Beach/Pool One of the most beautiful stretches of beaches in the world – gorgeous turquoise water, with hardly any seaweed at all. Waves varied from day to day, but if you bring a few rafts, you can swim all the way out to the sandbar and stand up safely. The main pool is gorgeous and huge. Plenty chairs of you look hard enough. Entertainment The entertainment staff is AMAZING -- tons of energy and always engaging everyone in activities. Shows at night were fun too – especially loved the 70s show. Our daughter participated in bingo, one pool game and volleyball. We normally do more, but due to covid, were super cautious about engaging with others. Rooms Building 25 was quiet and we slept great…except when the peacocks woke us up early. It’s a tough trade-off. Definitely recommend bringing earplugs, if you’re a light sleeper – they are loud, but fascinating.  Our room was always clean by the time we returned around 7:00 pm. Housekeeping was very good and the safe worked perfectly. Our only request all week was for a soap refill, which happened immediately. Food We are picky healthy eaters and were so so so happy with the food. So many amazing choices – both healthy and not healthy and we ate like there was no tomorrow. I have to mention the fresh oven-baked PIZZA. Normally, I’m not a big pizza eater, but OMG – this pizza was so fresh and delicious, I could not resist. The dough was definitely made from scratch and they use real mozzarella on top. Just delicious!! We’re  spoiled, having been to so many other resorts, so our expectations are high and this resort met them!!   Servers in both a-la-cartes and buffet were FANTASTIC – I wish I could remember all their names – Jesus is the only one I remember but they were all phenomenal. If we ordered a drink in the buffet, it came very promptly, which is not always the case at all-inclusives. The tacos by the pool were delicious – don’t miss this. We visited the ice cream stand daily -- very nice. Plenty of healthy salad topping options available at every meal, which made me so happy. Bars Jose at the lobby bar took care of us every day. They had tanquerey up there so that was our go-to for gin/tonic. Also, loved the Margarita Authenticas! Location Since this resort is in the gated section of Playa del Carmen – we walked the neighborhood every morning – which is very safe and fun to do. There are no bikes at this resort, just fyi. Tips/Tips Many people bring their own drink containers with lids to enjoy cold drinks in the pool. Also, we brought cheap rafts and inflated them at the resort. Also, suggest bringing plenty of $1/$5 for tips. They are appreciated and a few dollars goes a long way.. All in all – we absolutely loved this resort and can’t wait to return with the rest of our family! Feel free to message me with any questions.

We travel to Mexico and stay at the Iberostar Quitzel/Tucan (same hotel just difft lobbies) twice a year. We just got back from 10 days there and it just gets better and better every time. Besides always having perfect weather (we go in Jan and March) we have the best food, awesome pool area with great outdoor bar that's open until 7pm for any type of drink. The restaurants are phenomenal- we love them alll. The fresh fruit and veggies and the fish are our favs- everything they make is incredible. The workers are so appreciative and always go the extra mile to please us. We like to tip them generously (as well as the people cleaning our room) even though they don't expect it. We knkow how littlle they make and how long it takes them to get to/from work, etc... We love the location of this resort most bc we like to walk a lot and we enjoy walking into town on the beach daily. The beach goes miles and it's very clean/safe.

Me and my best friend stayed at this hotel for five days March-April and it was wonderful. The hotel is gorgeous and very spacious. There were so many animals! Although there were people there, it never felt crowded or packed. We tried 4 of the restaurants and they were delicious and the buffet was so impressive! The pool is huge and never felt crowded. I would 100% stay here again. I recommend asking about making dinner reservations when you first check in because we weren’t told to do that and another guest told us they were given the opportunity to book everything out once. The restaurants book very fast!

This is our 3rd time at this resort. The main thing that brings us back is the staff. Always kind and attentive. We have been to other resorts and not the same welcoming feel. We love the pool area and the location of resort. The grounds are very tropical and maintained very well. The food is also very good. Our draw backs would be that you just can't get a cup of coffee in the morning. You have to wait for the bars to open. A self serve coffee station would be HUGE. Our neighbors said the same thing. The other issue was that we upgraded and paid for ocean front. However, each morning the grounds crew ran a machine on the sand that was very loud. DONT EXPECT PEACE AND QUIET with this thing running. That was a total bummer. Otherwise, we love this place.