We've just returned from a wonderful 2 weeks in Mexico, our 2nd visit to this country and 2nd to this particular hotel.
Things have changed in the last 3 years, mainly for the better.
The weakest thing last time was the food, it wasn't bad, but a little bland and repetitive, however now there is a lot more variety and the quality is better... nothing to complain about in either of the buffet restaurants, and the a la carte restaurants were lovely, our favourite being the Bambolero grill, the steaks in here were very good, especially the tenderloin!!
On arrival (which was a bit slicker than last time) we were taken to our room (a standard) which was immaculate and massive. Unfortunately it had an interconnecting door, and the guests in the next room were noisy enough for us to decide that this one wasn't for us, so we ended up getting a suite.
We hadn't upgraded prior to flying out as we were told that as a returning guest we would have offers on the privileged rooms, and we'd been more than happy with the standard room from our first stay.
8403 was lovely, so much space, an outside bath and garden, massive bed, dual sinks in the huge bathroom, 2 televisions (1 in the bedroom and 1 in the living room with couch) and a fully stocked minibar. It's a very quiet room as it faces the perimeter of the complex, so only the noise of a few cars going past.
The housekeeping was great, and every evening they would return for a turn down service to check on towels etc.
The staff were even better this time than the last, we recognised quite a few, which is quite a warm, reassuring feeling.
All of them would look you in the eye and say 'Hola' with a smile, these are genuine people who are more than happy to help.
In general the hotel is very clean, but we had a few days where the pool in the privileged area was quite full of flies and there was a layer of suncream I think on the surface, but the water in the pools were checked every day, and we didn't hear any reports of people being ill from ear infections etc.
However, we did hear reports of 2 separate incidents where people had defacated in other pools.. accidents happen, but a lot of people seemed to be in the pools all day without going to the toilet...not the hotel's fault but it did make us think...and we saw a very drunk guy passed out, sat at an empty pool bar after a thunderstorm.
Would we return? Absolutely.. without a thought... but we would definitely upgrade to get away from the noise of the main pool... the animation team are there to do a job, but sometimes you just want a bit of peace, the 2nd week seemed to have quieter music, so it wasn't as intrusive.
There's so much to recommend on this hotel, the beach is very clean, we saw hardly any of the green sargassum that had been causing such a problem recently, and the little walkway at the end of the beach that separates the lagoon is a phenomenal spot for sunrise, and to see the lionfish and young barracuda that frequent it.
