Hotel Xcaret Mexico

This is my 3rd year staying here and already can’t wait to go back. Every time we experience something new with the same amazing food and service.

This was my second visit to Xcaret. My first stay was at the adults‑only Arte, which I absolutely loved, so I didn’t hesitate to return. However, unlike my initial visit, this experience was more mixed. Food There is plenty of food, and the resort leans heavily toward traditional Mexican cuisine—which is clearly intentional. Just be aware that if you have small children or picky eaters, you won’t find the usual chicken fingers or plain pasta. The buffets also lack variety; they serve the same dishes every day without fail. If you like consistency, you’ll be happy, but I personally wish they rotated the menu every other day. That said, the food quality is good, and everything is flavorful and delicious. Beach If you’re expecting a traditional beach, this resort doesn’t really have one. The natural beach area is small and very rocky. They do have an artificial beach carved into the landscape between the resort and the ocean. It’s beautiful, calm, and perfect for kids and water activities, but the best way to describe it is a man‑made natural pool rather than a true beach. Activities This is the main reason I booked—and the reason most people choose this resort. I’m not the type to sit by the pool or beach all day; I get bored after a day or two. This resort delivers in a big way. If you stayed anywhere else and paid separately for the parks included here, you’d spend hundreds on entry fees and transportation. I visited a different park every day for an hour or three, and even revisited some parks multiple times—something I could never have done from another resort due to cost and logistics. One note: the resort is huge and confusing to navigate. There is no motorized transportation on property, so you will get your steps in. Hopefully in the future they consider adding golf carts to help guests move between the lobby and beach areas. My Biggest Complaint This resort is not designed for large families or groups of six or more. They simply do not accommodate bigger parties well. We traveled as a family of 8 adults and 6 small children. We called, emailed, and submitted the required forms three months in advance to book all our à la carte restaurants and activities. Despite this, the resort did not follow through. They told us that because we were able to book something, it didn’t matter that none of the reservations were at the restaurants we requested. Even worse, although we had reservations for every meal, they never seated us together—not once. There was always an empty table between our groups, and we were repeatedly told it was reserved, even though no one ever sat there. This defeats the purpose of a family vacation when you can’t share a single meal together. Near the end of the trip, I finally spoke to the front desk/concierge. Unfortunately, the staff was dismissive and borderline rude. I was told that if I wanted my entire family seated together—or even at adjacent tables—there was an additional cost. Charging extra for families to sit together feels like poor taste, but I would have paid it if they had at least informed me ahead of time that it was an option. Final Thoughts Would I go back? Yes—for the activities alone. But if you have picky eaters, you’re a beach‑lover, or you’re planning a large family trip, there are other resorts much better equipped to meet your needs.

Great experience overall ... Awsome trip of my life

This was the best vacation I have ever had. The food was great, the staff was great, the accommodations were great and the atmosphere superb!

I’ve been to many all inclusives in Mexico and DR, some family some adults only, luxury and not so much. For family travel this is hands down the ultimate resort. I went with my wife and two kids (One is almost 3 and the other 8 months). Travel from the airport to the resort is easy enough, just usually an hour trip. I booked a private shuttle for additional cost through their affiliate but shared transport was included. The map is daunting, you don’t understand the casas, and don’t know where your pool spot is, but that’s part of the charm. You’re on vacation, figure it out. 6 days 5 nights, we stayed in 1 or 2 pool spots each day but still didn’t have enough time to enjoy one of the man made beach areas at the south of the resort. Those are beautiful but hard to access with strollers. We were with a group of friends and their kids as well. We ate breakfast at a buffet every day, they were great, no wait, and it was more or less one drink request per sitting (hit or miss on someone asking if you want another drink). Hit pool side or buffet for lunch each day, Xinema one day, and Playas one day. Buffets were amazing food options, poolside at Casa Luna Pool was great(absolute vibe up there), Xinema is a great to have, Playas was not worth it. I’m forgetting where else we went but the kids were usually able to eat a taco, hot dog, or hamburger everywhere all with amazing quality. Dinner we had 3 reservations Monarca(great tapas style), Tamamon(lackluster hibachi show but great food and they served us tomahawk steak), La Silla(impressive steakhouse for Mexico, but nothing spectacular. Mexico never seems to get the steak temp right but good food nonetheless). Walked into Cantina(best restaurant I ate at, Ox Tail) and Costero(Seafood mainly, some good some strange) the first and last night and were seated immediately at both. Stayed in one of the casas in the middle, figured out the flow of the resort by the second day, architecturally and engineering wise this place is a marvel. Tougher with strollers but that’s on me. Kids had an absolute blast but were too small for the multicolored slides. I went down those and they are wild. Kids loved Lunateca, I can’t believe the quality of every detail of the resort and each subsection. Every bathroom was nicer than the next. I think there was very little of the resort I wasn’t able to get to in 6 days, so much there. Wish we would’ve gone to Xcaret Park or done the kayaks but tough with the little ones and nap schedules. Staff was accommodating and friendly, life guards everywhere, didn’t see one piece of garbage out of a bin, new discoveries every day. Immaculately clean, noise level was nice and serene in areas, great music volume at pools, music even fades in and out of the jungle as you move through the resort. I’d love to see a doc on how they came up with this place. Negatives: Never got a working remote for our tv. Never got to see the pics we took by scanning our wrist thing(still was so fun to find these cameras). Room Service/Concierge was hit or miss on picking up the phone but we’re always great when they answered. Schedule bag pickup in advance of your checkout, ran into a huge rush at the end. Some of the bathroom locations to the pools were a big stretch, very hard with a toddler who is potty training but added to our step count! Lastly, I added that we were celebrating my wife’s bday in the form and mentioned it to 2 restaurants but nothing was done. The positives outweigh the negatives by a landslide and I could see this being a resort I return to to experience more with my kids as they grow. Used credit card points to bring the price to my normal range for all inclusives, incredible value at that point, may not be as affordable for all. Best value for families with kids that are maybe 5 at the youngest, but great for all. If they add a golf course I may move there indefinitely.