You are going to read a lot of reviews that gush about how S.S.S is the best resort on the planet and some which pan the resort over particular incidents. This isn’t one of those. You will also get a staggering amount of great reviews that offer information that will help you choose between the similar resorts on your short list. I’m hoping that this is one of those. In the years that have passed since I first reviewed Secrets Excellence Riviera Maya (Now just Excellence Riviera Maya), Trip Advisor has evolved to the point where you can know almost everything about a resort. I want to try to add things that you may have missed and add my gratuitous opinion on everything.
Strengths
• A beautiful, compact, well laid out resort with good service and food. You should go. There, I’ve said it.
• Great cleanliness. Everyone who is anywhere near the food wears a hairnet. While I do not live in fear of hair-borne illness, the commitment to ensuring that guests do not get sick during their vacation is evident
• Great maintenance. A lot of work goes into keeping the grounds looking like 1000 people aren’t using them every day.
• Very good facilities to guest ratio. You can walk into almost any restaurant or show as you like and never have to wait or be turned away because their full. We saw only one line up and that was at Himitsu, on one occasion.
Weaknesses
• Restaurant service. Keep your sense of humour. Many of the wait staff are new to the job and new to English but they are all attentive and friendly. Our dinner service in Ratatouille was so bad it was funny. The bus boy tried to clear my plate while I was eating. I guess he has his job to do.
• Housekeeping seems rushed and can miss things. If it’s important, one call to the concierge and someone is dispatched immediately to fix the problem.
• Water pressure was a little unreliable. Slow toilet fills and that hot-cold-hot-cold thing in the shower that really keeps you on your toes
• There should be a stack of floaties at each pool just as there is a stack of towels
Tips
• The Secrets Box. We met several people who had been at the resort for days and didn’t know what the Secrets Box was. It allows room service to drop off and pick up without coming in to your room. Very handy. Request it specifically when ordering room service
• Soft serve ice cream is at the Barefoot grill
• Johnny Walker Black and other premium spirits are at the Veranda Bar but not displayed
• Is swimout worth the extra money? I say yes because it gives you private access to the pool if you want a quiet day and designated lounge chairs. (and quick access to the bathroom)
• The big T shaped pool that goes under building 3 is colder than the other swimout pools. This matters in January
• Is Preferred Club worth the extra money? Once again I say yes. Easier check in and out, better bar, quiet breakfast available if you don’t want the buffet and great coffee. The concierge will book the teppenyaki table for you so you don’t have to go there in the morning. Better in room bar and snacks.
• Some restaurants are closed each day so plan ahead to not miss one you want to visit. (see the daily news letter)
• We like to walk on the beach. Facing the ocean, if you turn left you will pass the nudie resort. No pictures! Seriously, there is a sign. Apparently there is no whistling and pointing either. Who knew? If you turn right the beach is blocked by a house that protrudes into the surf. You can get by this by cutting through the empty lot next to the resort, taking the lane about 200 meters to the next lot and cutting back down to the beach. You can walk to Excellence Riviera Cancun in about an hour. (segue alert)
Opinion
• SSS and ERC are both great resorts and very similar in quality and facilities. SSS seems to be a little cheaper but both are top quality. For goodness sake do not save $100 and end up at a resort that makes you wear a wrist band, line up in the morning to book a restaurant, give you a ‘towel card’ that you have to pay for if you lose it. It’s the little things that allow you to have a stress free vacation and really relax.

We had a wonderful time at Secrets Silversands and I credit that to the wonderful service and the Entertainment Team on staff. The Entertainment Team really got to know us and treated us as friends. They led the activities and entertainment on the resort with enthusiasm and got everyone involved. They were always smiling and loving their jobs! What awesome people! We had a wonderful time, thanks to Jackie Chan, Mufasa, Chewy, Cruz, Marshmellow, Alex and everyone on staff! I hope the resort realizes what a great asset these people are to the company!

It doesn't get any better than Secrets Silversand. From the moment you get there you are greeted with cold towels and champagne. The staff is over the top friendly, I'm talking about every person we encountered from the valets, maids, maintenance, everyone...they go out of there away to ask you how you are doing and get you whatever you need. It was our honeymoon, and they really made it feel special our room had a "HoneyMoon" ribbon on it, we walked into the room with a trail of rose pedals leading to our bed with the "Love" spelled out with flowers on the bed. Additionally, they equipped the room with strawberries and champagne. The room was very comfortable and ultra modern, in fact the hotel was modern, with very cool decorations.

We were originally concerned that the resort was a little bit of a drive to the towns, but once we go there, we didn't want to leave, amazing pool, 8 different restaurants to choose from(awesome food, Himitsu the Tepanyaki place was our favorite), and they brought all of the entertainment to you. During the day they would have really fun games, volleyball, sand bag toss, water aerobics, sushi lessons, martini lessons, you name it. With an awesome entertainment staff: Jackie Chan, Chewy, George, JC, Mustafa, MarshMellow(that guy can dance!). At night they brought in professional entertainment, Rock Show, Cirque Solie style acrobats, comedian.

We were originally concerned the the beach didn't get great reviews....and it was okay, however it wasn't a problem because we never wanted to leave the sweet pools, with swim up bar and entertainment.

Would definitely recommend, especially to those on HoneyMoons. If you go, make sure you grab a lounge chair by the pool in Felipe Bautista's section. He was so nice and gave us exceptional service, he made our trip.

Enjoy!

I absolutely love this resort and I love this company. Great food and great property, I had one complaint which was the beach but when I went back the second time I was blown away by the beach. They really listen and they learn to improve consistantly.