Secrets The Vine Cancun

We just got back from 4 nights and 5 days at the Secrets Vine Hotel in Cancun. It is a nice hotel, and we enjoyed our stay. The high point is the location and the sandy beach. It was one of those all-inclusive reports, with food and drinks included. Entertainment was supposed to be included as well, but honestly, that was pretty spotty and just not all that great. The food was of mixed quality. The steakhouse gave both my wife and me strip steaks that were literally 1/2 gristle. I would attribute this to the low quality of meat and the lack of seasoning/prep. We saw the same low-quality in the chicken as well - just super scrawny and oily. We ate at the outdoor seafood restaurant for 2 meals, and again, the quality of the food was spotty. I had the fish and my wife had the soup, which were superb. My wife also had BBQ on a bun, and the bun was soggy, like it had been sitting under a heat lamp. The bun was not toasted. It should have been prepped with the BBQ to the side so that the BBQ and slaw did not make things wet. Just bad assembly of the plate in the kitchen. The service was outstanding, with wait staff and cleaning people doing a superb job. The front desk and everyone were really at the top of their game. As we were leaving, the waiter gave my wife a going-away slice of cake. Really thoughtful, and there were so many little thoughtful touches like that. The service was fast, and wait times at the restaurants were never more than 5-10 minutes. We did a BBQ at that same restaurant for dinner 2 days later, and it was buffet style. Many items were fantastic, especially fruits and veggies. Again, the meat was just not done right. Lots of cheap cuts of meat. Literally a single lobster tail for 50 people. I understand that these ingredients cost money, but cheaping out gets noticed. I noticed some reviews complained of a minimal amount of alcohol in the drinks. Yes, I experienced this, but I also encountered bartenders who were extra generous. As a general rule, they never measured the alcohol, so it was pretty random. If you want more booze, ask for a shot on the side, as that was what the heavy drinkers were all doing. I don't think there was a policy to go light on alcohol; I just noticed a general sloppiness in measurement. I noticed someone complained about a lack of hot water, and I initially had the same issue. But then I realized that the way they have the water hooked up to the levers, you have to point the lever to the cold symbol to get hot water. So, it was just bad ergonomic design and not a failure of water. Other people had complained in reviews about rude staff, but I never experienced it. The staff was uniformly awesome. The hotel's location is quite good, with a fantastic beach area and easy access to any place we wanted in Cancun via the excellent, frequent bus, which costs only $1. The hotel has a unique vibe, with large hallways and tall ceilings, especially on the first floor. It is all stone and has quite an echo to it. While typically not an issue, I thought that it could be too loud, especially as they played techno music from 8 am to 10 pm (yes, literally). So loud that when I was in my room with the sliding glass door closed, the thumping could be heard occasionally. At first, I thought it was construction, like a jackhammer. But, no, it was the deep bass of the techno that was nonstop during those hours. One night it went on til 11 pm. Really loud. If you are hard of hearing or just love techno music, this is the perfect hotel for you. Since it is a couple's report, I thought the music was just plain inappropriate. No dance floor in sight anywhere. I noticed that some people complained that the lobby and restaurants were too hot, and I did not experience that at all. In fact, I would say that all the indoor areas were quite cool. So much so, that you might want to bring a sweater if you want to sit inside at the bar for a while. We spent almost all of our time outside, as the view was spectacular. The gym was outstanding with a view of the beach. When I checked in, they offered $200 in coupons if I did something that would take some time, but they were mysterious about what. I assumed this was some kind of timeshare scam. Really did not want to deal with that crap on vacation, so opted out. Not a good vibe for an all-inclusive hotel. They also tried to scam me into buying a $150 bottle of wine to secure a dinner reservation. Again, just another tacky Cancun-style scam. Some people commented about tipping. We generally tipped $1 per drink and $5 per meal. We were never asked to provide a tip, and the staff was genuinely grateful that we did. I do feel that we got better service by tipping, especially getting drinks at the beach. Yes, they have a cabana boy who will take your order and bring you drinks. Yes, it is cool. Overall, we had a wonderful time, and the staff were all fantastic. I felt the $200 coupons and buying a bottle of wine were just scammy. The loud techno music 8am - 10pm were just too loud. The entertainment was just plain crappy. The food would have been great if the meat quality and seasoning/marinade prep had been better. I plan on coming back to Cancun, but will stay somewhere else.

Excellent food and drink experience. Everything we ate all week felt high quality! The pool area was very nice, and we didnt feel like we had to fight for seats which was great. Pool service was exceptional - each wait staff had small sections and were extremely attentive! The grounds are quite condensed - we did slightly miss the feel of a sprawling resort campus, but all in all, it did have everuthing we needed! Beach area was small, but was very nice with plenty of seating. We would highly recommend this property - especially for those whose priorities are good food and drinks.

Great location, welcoming atmosphere. The room was great and clean and quiet. Good value for the money. Manolo, Cesar, jeovani , Jose and May were absolutely professionals. Almost like family. So were all the staff. Very seldom have I seen such hard working people. Please say thank you to all of them from us.

Thestaff was AHMAZING. Special shout outs to: Coco cafe- Luz,Isabel and Anais. Always offering a smile with my coffee. Manatees Pool- Alberto and Norberto never let me be thirsty Marketplace Cafe- Adrian,Astrid,Abigail and Oliver served out table with a smile. Preferred Pool- Benjamin,Juan,Jamie and Michelle at Ollio ever prese t and ready to serve when we could get a chair. The pools were over crowded and left little space to walk around the chairs.

Extremely enjoyable stay at secrets the vine resort. This resort at the Cancun hotel zone was exceptional. Fabulous pools, very nice beach, clean modern hotel. The food and service was excellent at this hotel. Don’t miss out the breakfast at the Market Cafe, food selection and quality was incredible. We had a wonderful experience, very friendly staff. We definitely will go back.