Hotel Xcaret Mexico

It is almost midnight and I am still trying to check in. We were first given keys to another party’s room, which as one would imagine caused quite an uproar when we entered the room without knocking. Next we were given keys to a room that only had one bed for a party of three adults. When I returned to the desk for a third time I was told that the room we received satisfied the reservation despite the obvious issue with sleeping arrangements. The person on the desk said there was nothing he could do and I would have to speak to the manager when he arrives in 30 minutes. Each time I go up to the desk I have to wait in a 30 minute line so this has been going on for 5 hours and I am just desperate to get my family in a bed. They will not refund a penny off the 18,000 we have paid for the trip. We are set to spend 6 days at a hotel we have no desire to be at. Would never even consider staying here again and I am tired and furious. If you want to sleep in a hotel room I do not recommend you book XCARET because evidently they will just give away your room.

The worst guest service experience I have ever had- certainly this hotel is not worth the money. When I booked the $ 2000 dollars a night room, weeks before my visit, I was asked to fill and submit a guest form so the “guest services” team could reserve park and restaurant visits. The person who asked me to fill in the form stressed the it was necessary given that restaurants and parks filled and they might not have space. Two weeks before the trip I spent some time filling it and sent the form to the guest service email provided. A week passed and I did not receive any response or confirmation from guest services so I emailed them again to confirm they had received the form. Finally a woman named Gabriela answered telling me one of the restaurants I had booked was full on the day I requested. So I emailed back to give her other dates times and to ask her to tell me when there would be availability. Not only did she never respond, she did not book any of the park visits and other restaurants I had requested in the form. I learned this when I arrived at the hotel. And what did the hotel do? Absolutely nothing. Not even in a 3 star hotel have I had to chase concierge and guest services. So, I am stuck with the massive and busy buffet restaurants (not greatest food) making long lines and paying 4000 for 2 rooms. In line with this, room service is a disaster. You order food and drinks and sometimes they simply do not arrive. Pretty hellish. Not worth it. Go to any other hotel in Playa del Carmen. I have stayed at Grand Velas and there is absolutely no comparison. This hotel has a shortage of staff and at least the staff working in guest services has no training. Only positive thing are the nice and patient waiters who serve diners in the massive buffet restaurants. They try their best. But again, if possible, save your money, avoid frustrations and go to any of the other beautiful hotels in the area.

We had a wonderful time at Hotel Xcaret Mexico! We enjoyed a surprise upgrade to Fuego, the adults only section and wow! Top notch service. We were attended by two butlers: Alejandro and Julieta. They were super helpful in checking for reservations to restaurants and the spa and just helping to make our stay all around wonderful. We traveled with 3 other couples on separate reservations. It was a busy time so a few of the restaurants we were hoping to visit were full, but we had some luck checking in the night of, and putting our names down on a wait list. The food was top notch and the grounds of the resort are just beautiful. We had time to visit Xel-Ha for the lazy river and snorkeling, as well as Xplor for the ATV experience. We chickened out on the water slide but I hear it is worth it! All in all you can tell they pride themselves on service. We will definitely come back, there’s so much to do

I rarely write negative reviews, but this experience was disappointing enough that I feel it’s important to share. We chose Hotel Xcaret México expecting a high level of service, especially given the price point and “all-inclusive luxury” positioning. Unfortunately, the service fell far below expectations. Traveling with a child who has special needs requires a certain level of responsiveness and basic support. Instead of feeling accommodated, we found ourselves constantly chasing the staff for even the most basic services. Room service, which is included, consistently took over three hours to arrive. Housekeeping was not proactive—we had to repeatedly request room cleaning, towels, and even basic items like refilling soap dispensers. The minibar was never restocked unless we called daily to remind them. Concierge support was inconsistent and required constant follow-up. Rather than enjoying a relaxing family vacation, we spent a significant amount of time managing and following up on things that should have been handled automatically by the hotel. The property itself is beautiful, but the operational service does not match the standard it advertises. For families, and especially those with special needs, this lack of reliability can significantly impact the overall experience. I hope management takes this feedback seriously and improves both service consistency and staff responsiveness.

I have so much to say about this hotel!! First... Hotel gifts you water bottles so you can use them during your stay and take home as a souvenir. You'll also be gifted a large tote bag. These are really great for stuffing with towels or purchases made while on shopping trips. Inside the room you'll get a fridge with sodas, beer and waters and you'll find candies along with a coffee machine. There is also tooth brushes (2), a loofah, toothpaste (Colgate), razor, shaving cream, shower cap, comb, q-tips, cotton rounds, small nail file, body lotion, mouth wash, shoe shine kit, mini sewing kit, bath salts and bubble bath. The in house shampoo/ conditioner/ body wash are not super concentrated and have a scent of rosemary mint (no name brand). TV is ready to play Netflix, HBO Max, Disney +, just bring your log in info to watch. There are slippers and robes to use. You'll get daily housekeeping with fresh towels and replenish whatever you need. Be aware, most rooms are one king beds with sofa beds, low inventory of double beds. Sofa bed is hard and low to the ground. Housekeeping changes the sheets every 2 days. The food is high quality! The buffet is good but lots of repeat dishes so if you're here for a while you're probably going to want to switch it up a bit. Make dinner reservations for the Brazilian steak house (Las Cuevas), the Asian / hibachi-style (Xin-Gao) and the dinner with a live show (Teatro del Río). We were about to enjoy Teatro del Río without a reservation but I were you, I wouldn't chance it. If you don't get the reservation you can get there when they open to be on a wait list but good luck with that ; ) Depending on how you book this trip will depend on how you make your reservations ahead of your trip. Might be a good idea to send an email as soon as you book because these reservations are no joke! While speaking about dinner, you can always return to Xcaret Park at dinner time to have a wider variety of restaurants as well. In that park each area of the park has a restaurant for a different region or state in Mexico. If you choose to do that you can time it around the big show at the park so the restaurants will most likely be dead. As for the excursion reservations, not needed for Xcaret Park, Xplor or Xenses Park. There are busses that drive in a loop and will drop off and pick up every 20 minutes. Xplor Furgeo isn't a big deal. The park kicks everyone out at 5pm except for Xcaret hotel guests so that's the best time to get on the "rides" with the longest lines. They charge guest separately for the night experience but really it's just a bunch of tiki torches everywhere. Xel‑Há need reservations, one pick up in the morning and return in the afternoon. Xel‑Há and Xcaret are the 2 places you can swim/ interact with dolphins for an extra charge, watching your kid's heart melt...priceless! At Xcaret you can also swim/ interact with sharks. Xcenotes needs reservations ahead of your vacation, don't wait on that one. You can also take the ferry out to Cozumel for a snorkeling or scuba trip or Isla Mujeres for a beach day. The Ferry is free for hotel guests but the taxi to get around will cost you as well as the snorkeling/ scuba trips. The hotel bus will take you to Playa del Carmen and a guide will walk you down to the port where you will skip any line and walk in ahead of everyone else. One at the island you are either on your own or an Xcaret person will be there to show you to your trip if you scheduled with the hotel. FYI, most beaches in Cozumel are private and rocky so go to Isla Mujeres for that. The hotel bus picks up from Playa del Carmen around 7pm I think so if you want to come back sooner you'll grab a taxi with costs us $25 for up to 4 people. Playa del Carmen has lots of shopping and restaurants after getting off the ferry. We didn't have time to do any of the other excursions so I don't have any tips on those. Okay, now onto the hotel and staff. This place is amazing! There is no other resort like it in the world! Staff is so so nice, friendly, approachable and patient! When we arrived, it was late and we were all hungry and tired and check in took very long, over an hour. I think they were having wi-fi issues. I was also a little annoyed to they placed us in 2 separate buildings. We had to have 2 rooms since we are a family of 5 so being next door was very important! They didn't have any rooms with 2 beds available, I really didn't want to have to make any of my kids sleep on a sofa bed but they did because what else was I gonna do?! The young lady at the front desk moved some reservations around and was able to put us side by side rooms so it worked out okay. Everything here is so clean and feels brand new. I saw so many employees cleaning constantly. but I did find restrooms without toilet paper and hand towels by the end of the day. This property is massive, you will likely get lost looking around or for a restaurant or a pool, it's just a rabbit hole after another and before you know it you have no idea where you are. But there's always an employee not too far that will help guide you. So many nooks and crannies to hang out or sun bathe or a hammock to nap in, just not enough time to see and do everything!! All 3 of my teen kids loved this place so much. There were tons of kids their age to meet and hang out with. I just saw huge groups of kids walking around, laughing and having fun at night! It's super safe here! Like I mentioned before, there is always an employee not too far and driving in the resort there is at least 4 check points with security checking everyone going in. there is one thing I was disappointed with was the beach. There is a sandy beach but it looks dangerous and rocky. With this sized property I would imagine a large sandy coastline but no. But like I said before Isla Mujeres is where you can go for the ultimate beach day or go to one of the millions of other bodies of water on the property. There are so many pools! There is also the river that looks like a cenote. On another river you can take a canoe out and there are boats to go on as well. I didn't have time to get the details on those but they were so cute! So pack good water shoes! You will use them most days! Something with a nice sole because most of the walkways are stone or brick or earth. Bring several swimsuits because you will be in them everyday. At night most people dress nicer. Women are wearing dresses with flats, men are in dress shirts with shorts or slacks. Don't see many people in jeans. A light sweater might be needed and possibly a rain coat although the rooms have umbrellas for your use in case they're needed. Bring sunscreen, a water proof phone bag and a hat. Pack your patience and be ready to walk more than you've ever walked before....it was for me at least! Safe travels