Grand Velas Riviera Maya

We stayed at the Grand Velas Riviera Maya from October 9th-12th, 2026. We have stayed there every year since 2013; 2 or 3 years we stayed twice, usually Jan/Feb but we have been in June and Oct. We always enjoy seeing some of the staff we see regularly; especially Antonio, who works in the Azul restaurant now. He is by far one of our favorite people at Grand Velas and we always sit at his tables. He is very conscientious and personable. He remembered us after our first stay and always looks for us in the Jan/Feb timeframe. We were fortunate to see him again on this trip. Some things we have noticed over the years. While the Grand Velas Riviera Maya is an excellent all inclusive resort; and one of the nicest in Riviera Maya, they never remember that we have stayed with them; even after 16 visits/stays over 13 years. They are always surprised when they ask if this is an our first stay because they have absolutely no knowledge of our previous stays which is surprising for a resort of this caliber. Yet, several of the regular pool staff at the Ambassador and the Zen always recall we have been there previously; as does Antonio. The Marriott, Hyatt, and Hilton hotels/resorts always acknowledg my previous stays as it is marked in their system. We have unfortunately noticed a decline in the experience at Grand Velas Riviera Maya over the years; especially after our stay in 2020. Many of the restaurants aren't open as often as they had been. Azul and The Bistro are no longer open at dinner; except for The Bistro on Thursday night, which is an issue if your stay doesn't include Thursday night. The quality of the food has declined some; as have the number of selections on most of the restaurant menus; including the buffet at Azul. Previously, Piaf (French Restaurant) had a filet mignon on the menu and it has been replaced with a lower cut of ribeye. The scallops at Piaf were over cooked and rubbery as a result. Wine that my son selected off the menu was not available so they brought a different wine that wasn't the same quality that had a stronger finish; therefore he didn't drink it. The number of desserts have been reduced and they were the same quality as in previous years; the chocolate soufflé was replaced with a chocolate dessert that's 3 small chocolate balls. Lucca (Italian) is by far our favorite restaurant and Piaf was as well; though after this stay, we may opt not to go to Piaf since we weren't happy with the food or wine. The food at Frida was good but not as good as previous stays and it was clearly understaffed. We had booked rooms at the Zen which is where we prefer to stay since it is quieter but when we arrived, we found out the Zen was closed and the rooms were being redone. We were surprised since we were never told the Zen was closed; even thought my wife had been contacting the Conceirge about our stay and dinner reservations. Although they have refreshed the rooms at the Zen over the years, they have not been redone as far as we could tell over the years so this was probably needed. So they had moved our reservation to the Ambassador. The rooms at the Ambassador had been redone since we stayed there; though not recently. The air conditioning in one room was not working and the other room's air conditioner wouldn't cool below 24 degrees C (75 degrees F), one room the refrigerator didn't work, and the other room the TV only worked intermittently. They got the air conditioner working by the 2nd day in the one room that didn't cool at all and never got the other room's air conditioning to cool any lower than the 24 degrees C. They also got the refrigerator working finally by the 2nd day. They never got the TV that worked intermittently to work; though my son trouble shot it and determined the TV worked but the cable box behind the TV was faulty so he used his FireTV stick to get TV. While the TV's were nice and fairly new, it was obvious the refrigerator had never been replaced as it looked like the original ones from our stay in 2013 and every other stay My wife talked with another family who had several rooms and experienced similar issues with the air conditioning and refrigerator. They told her it had been 2 days and their air conditioning in several rooms still wasn't working or working properly; they were quite frustrated. So we knew our rooms were not an anomaly. We also had 3 power outages during our stay; 2 on the same day One while my wife, granddaughter, and I were in the elevator coming down from Frida; fortunately we were not stuck in the dark in the elevator long since it only lasted 3 minutes and when my wife pressed the button to open the elevator door when power was restored, since it didn't' open automatically, we were only a few inches below the ground floor. The air conditioning doesn't automatically come back on when power returns either so if you aren't in your room to turn it back on, your room will be warm; it also defaults to 24 degrees C. My son found out that there is not water at the sink or shower when the power goes out. While there is a nice selection of items in the snack basket and drinks in the refrigerator in your room, the there are fewer snack basket items than during previous stays. The snack basket and refrigerator drinks are supposed to be refreshed daily. During our 4 day stay; one room was refreshed daily and one room was only refreshed once after the first day. The room service in the morning was always on time and the food was as good as we recalled from our previous visits. My son's family ordered room service one night around 9:30 PM and it arrived promptly and the food and desserts they ordered were good. We didn't get to go to the Zen Pool since the Zen is being refreshed nor to the Ambassador Class Pool. We spent all our time at the Ambassador Pool which is very nice and large. The pool staff was attentive but not as attentive as in the past. They were as polite as always but it was clear they were understaffed compared to our previous visits and therefore were not around as often when we were ready to order drinks or food. We did see Miguel on the last day whom we have seen many times in the past and he remembered us. He is always very good and took good care of us that day. They pool food was as good as our previous visits and the pool's activities staff provided activities; water aerobics, the Hamster Ball, water polo, bingo, and the balance bed. Our grandson enjoyed all of those, the Teen's Club and the golf simulator. We also did not have the opportunity to visit the Spa on this trip as we do normally. We did in January during our visit and while the massage was good as always, we did note that the hot tub and cold plunge pool were not working at either the men's or women's areas; they may be working now. The Spa is definitely a first class experience and one of the best we have been to. Overall, we had a very nice stay at the Grand Velas Riviera Maya despite the issues in the room and the notable continued decline in the quality of the food and the selections on the menus at the restaurants and buffet at Azul; unfortunately we didn't have the opportunity to visit Cocina de Autor or Sin Lin this time, but we did have breakfast at The Bistro each morning and it was very good, we just wish it was still open for dinner at night. My son's family would like to have gone to Azul for dinner one night as they had in 2015 but since it is no longer open at night that was a disappointment for them. Again, while the stay was nice, it just wasn't as nice as it used to be; especially given the price of the rooms which have continued to increase while the overall experience has declined. As a result, we have questioned the value we are getting now given the lower experience (reduced restaurant availability, food quality/selection decline, room upkeep/maintenance, etc.) and yet higher prices (they have increased significantly since our first stay and quite significantly since 2020. While the Grand Velas Riviera Maya is still a very nice all inclusive resort, it just isn't the same caliber or as high end of a resort as it used to be and given what we have experienced/noticed over the years and the prices now; especially since 2020, we are now considering other properties in Riviera Maya that offer a similar high end all inclusive resort with a better value for your money.

Grand Velas Riviera Maya continues to exceed our expectations! From the incredible hospitality to the outstanding food, impeccable service, and spectacular cleanliness, every detail is thoughtfully taken care of. What truly makes this resort special, however, is the amazing people who go above and beyond to make every stay unforgettable. A special thank you to Michael and Luz at the poolside, who took such amazing care of us throughout our stay. Their attentiveness, warmth, and genuine hospitality made our pool days absolutely wonderful. They were always one step ahead, making sure we had everything we needed while allowing us to completely relax and enjoy ourselves. Our incredible butlers, Daniel and Alejandro, deserve so much recognition! They anticipated our every need, handled every request effortlessly, and truly went above and beyond to make our family vacation the perfect getaway. Traveling with kids isn’t always easy, but they made everything feel seamless. Their attention to detail, thoughtfulness, and dedication made our stay that much more special. Amy is truly one of a kind! She is always so full of love, warmth, and genuine kindness. Every interaction with her feels personal, and she has a beautiful way of making guests feel like family. Aaron was equally wonderful—always approachable, welcoming, and available whenever we needed anything. It’s people like Amy and Aaron who make Grand Velas feel like a home away from home. The food is consistently outstanding, with exceptional quality and variety across the resort’s restaurants. The service is simply flawless, and the cleanliness throughout the entire property is spectacular. Every corner of the resort is beautifully maintained, and the attention to detail never goes unnoticed. What sets Grand Velas Riviera Maya apart is the consistency of its excellence. It’s not just a beautiful luxury resort; it’s a place where genuine hospitality makes every guest feel special. Thank you to the entire Grand Velas team, especially Michael, Luz, Daniel, Alejandro, Amy, and Aaron, for making our family getaway so memorable. We always leave with beautiful memories and look forward to returning again and again! Grand Velas Riviera Maya is truly luxury hospitality at its finest!

Nicolas was amazing! He was so helpful! I had a lot of requirements as a new mom and he was the best at helping me and holding my hand through the process.

This was by far our best destination trip, ever. Everything was perfect. The service, food, location. Everything 10 out of 5 stars.

The entire staff made you feel welcomed and loved. Daniel, Nicolas, Reyes, and Jasmine were absolutely amazing. The attention to your orders, remembering you and helping you every step of the way. A luxurious sister weekend