Finest Playa Mujeres

Excellent resort for families. Kids loved the water park and the pools. Food is always great with a good selection for the kids at every restaurant. Have been here twice now and will be coming back in the future.

There were so many options when deciding on which All-Inclusive Resort to stay while in Cancun. After researching, we saw that the Playa Mujeres (North) area is often less crowded than the Hotel Zone area, but also generally a bit more expensive. After considering the options, we decided on Finest Playa Mujeres, which was about $600 per night for our family of four. They had consistently great reviews from multiple online sources and had an impressive website and app with lots of details on the resort and its offerings. Airport Transportation: We were glad to see that included in the stay was private transportation (via luxury SUV) to and from the airport…this would otherwise generally cost about $200 USD from my research. After booking through “Seasons Tours” as instructed by the resort using our resort booking confirmation number, we received an email confirmation with particular instructions on navigating the chaotic ground transportation area of the airport. They specified where the coordinator would be and even what uniform colors their employees would be wearing. With this information we were quickly able to locate them and were at the resort after only about 80 after touching down at the airport! Departing was just as easy…the day before our departure, we received a call that they would be picking us up at the resort lobby at 11:25am for our 2:45pm flight. I was glad that this was one less thing I had to plan/coordinate/arrange. Check In: Upon arriving at the hotel, we were greeted by the friendly staff with hot towels and glasses of champagne! It was a lovely introduction to the resort after hours of traveling. We were then escorted over to the Finest Club Lounge, were Finest Club room reservations were managed. Due to our Finest Club reservation, we were able to check-in a bit earlier, at around 1pm, instead of the usual 3pm. The lounge does have some snacks, sandwiches, pastries and a full bar…which I later realized had liquors/spirits not available at many of the other bars. It was a nice perk for booking the Finest Club room. Room: We booked the Finest Club Ocean View Junior Suite which was located in the Finest Club Room building…this put you closer to the beach, where there is a designated area of the beach for the Finest Club rooms only. The room was great, very neat and well-maintained. It had a large TV with lots of channels, lots of power and USB outlets throughout, a large closet with comfy robes and a safe, a Nespresso coffee machine with various pods, and a mini-refrigerator stocked with lots of drinks and snacks, which were replenished at least daily. There was also a cabinet with five (5) liquor bottles including tequila, vodka, whiskey, rum and wine. Upon arrival to the room, we had some fruit as well as a bottle of champagne. All of the above is included with the all-inclusive fee. While there is a frosted door to the toilet, there is none for the bathroom…so this may be a bit more open than typical hotels (at least from that I am used to). Some may be okay with this…others not…just something to note. We were NOT a fan of the garment steamer…it was a bit tricky too use and took much longer than if we had an iron/ironing board, which they do NOT have available. There is a balcony with a table, chairs and lounge chairs. The hot-tub was also in the room but was surrounded by glass looking out onto the balcony. Beach: The Finest Club private beach was great. It was not very crowded and the attentive staff members assigned to that location provided whatever we needed: towels, lounge chair setup, food, drinks and even a volleyball! The private beach was a great perk of having a Finest Club room. Stepping into the clear warm water at the beach for the first time was quite an experience. While the sargassum was reported to be bad earlier this year, it seemed much more contained when we visited at the very end of August into early September. I know it’s supposed to be worse toward the south in the Hotel Zone…also I did see the resort staff cleaning (collecting) it very early in the morning around the sunrise hours, which likely helped what we experienced while there. While we did NOT do any beach activities we did see the area where the non-motorized (included in the all-inclusive fee) equipment was kept. There were also vendors (not many) on the beach asking if we wanted to do any of the motorized activities (jetski, parasail, etc..) for a fee of course. Pools: We ended up being in the pool closest to the beach with the Aqua Bar. Lounge chairs were available sometimes…but in high demand. The pool was perfect…warm and clear water. Relaxing in the pool and utilizing the swim-up bar, which under the cover of a partly cloudy day is pretty perfect. Restaurants: Market Kitchen: Good all around option for breakfast and lunch (Dinner not offered here) with tons of options to satisfy every picky eater. Lots of stations throughout the space dedicated to different types of cuisine. There are also servers which will greet you and bring you caffeinated drinks, if desired. Caffeinated drinks are one of the few items unavailable for self-service here. Overall a safe option. Legends Grill: Our first dinner was here and a bit disappointing…the food just wasn’t that great. They do have two arcade machines and a pool table there though…sports-theme throughout. Open from later afternoon through late evening. Service was great. Sweets Corner: A super-convenient shop centrally located outside of the main plaza and nearby the theater and outdoor plaza areas…both of which have live shows on most nights. Shop has a variety of juices, coffees, milkshakes, ice creams, cookies, pastries and sandwiches. Great quick stop for a mid-meal snack, or if you just don’t feel like sitting down at a restaurant. La Cocinita Food Truck: A food truck parked right near Sweets Corner offering light food options during lunch and dinner hours. Options include nachos, tacos and burgers. Food was pretty good. Great between-meal or snack option throughout the day. Friendly and efficient service. Las Dunas: Right on the beach…great post-beach eating option as there are little attire restrictions except NO wet clothes. Lovely waterfront views. We got a few items including the poke bowl, tacos, fish and chips and quesadilla which were all good. Great way to hold you over until dinner. Service was great. Surf and Turf: Solid dinner option with a variety of options including seafood and steak. Food, both main courses and appetizers, was generally good. Lovely upscale décor throughout. Service was great. LIZO: This was the best restaurant experience we had at the resort. The restaurant itself was beautiful with Mexican-themed décor throughout. Lots of region-focused food options here. While the food itself was very good, the experience was enhanced by our server Jose, who was friendly, patient and accommodating. He took time to engage in conversations and made the meal feel more like an experience. He surprised me (upon my request) with two amazing drinks. He also recommended options throughout the meal including trying ALL of their ice cream options…which we happily agreed to. Brass Steakhouse: This was the ONLY restaurant where there was a wait…it was an hour wait on a Tuesday night at 7pm. Luckily there is some soft seating right outside the restaurant and it is close to the central bar…which is always a good way to pass the time. You give them your name at the hostess station and they will text/message you through the App when your table is ready. As expected, there were a lot of steak options and we tried a few. All steaks were cooked as desired and were a bit better than I expected for an all-inclusive steakhouse. The sides were also pretty solid as well. Tasteful and upscale décor throughout. Service, although busy and brief, was great. Gusto: I visited this Finest Club exclusive breakfast restaurant (open 7am – 11am) on our last morning before departing Cancun. They offer a buffet area which contained items not offered in the Market Kitchen Buffet. There is also a separate menu which you can order a la carte items. I tried a few items and everything was very good. Love the attention to detail. Service was great. Other Amenities: Kids Club: Lovely space for the little ones. Contains some water play/park areas with playground-style equipment including some water slides and sprinklers. There are also some indoor play areas with toys and other activities. There is a food/snack shack there as well. You are able to drop your kids off there and return to pick them up later. While we did not utilize this service, the group of children we observed there seemed to be having fun with the resort staff. Bike Tour: A 60-minute bike tour of the resort’s surrounding areas is offered at around 10am on some morning. Jean was great as she led us outside the resort and rode both south and north of the resort. We made some stops along the way viewing a pond (crocodile-inhabited) and a tower which offers some great views of the surrounding areas. Note that the bike ride was at a slow/moderate pace on mostly leveled pavement. Also there are spiral stairs when visiting the tower. There are LOTS of daily activities throughout the resort…we just didn’t have time to do much more. Be sure to check out the activity schedule in advance and plan accordingly if there is anything that interests you. Excursion: Before going, I know I wanted to visit Isla Mujeres. I saw that many took a taxi to the ferry, ferry to the island and rented golf carts to explore the island, which would have cost us about $300ish USD. When speaking to the representative at the excursion table, he did mention we had the option to get a private boat for five (5) hours for $580 USD. They met us at the resort and walked us over (5-mnute walk) to the marina where the boat was docked. The boat was a 40-foot sailboat, the Sailing Mare Xanadu. We stopped half way to snorkel and then proceeded to Isla Mujeres where they waited at the dock for us to explore the island. After about 2 hours or exploring, we returned to the dock where they were waiting for us to take us back. Drinks and snacks were provided. Overall, I was happy with the splurge due to the convenience and privacy. Misc.: The resort provides everything, including lots of water bottles…both for drinking and even brushing your teeth. There are water filling stations around the resort which they say are filtered and safe for drinking…but it may just be best to use the bottled water since it is available. The elevators (two) getting up to the rooms were a bit small, at least for the Finest Club building…I suspect the other buildings all have the same/similar elevator sizes. There was also longer-than-expected wait times, at times, for the elevators, as one of the elevator seemed to be taken out of service at times to accommodate cleaning/maintenance, making the wait longer. Given there are five (5) floors of rooms, it may take some time. We strongly suggest downloading the App before you go, or while there. The App has lots of useful information on the resort and its daily offerings, including activities and restaurants. There are also NO paper/printed menus at any restaurant…all menus on are the App. Lastly, big kudos to all the staff throughout the resort, who were simply amazing…they were very friendly, helpful, patient, efficient and accommodating. While walking around the resort and observing its staff, you gain a better appreciation of all the work that goes into maintaining it…and that is only a fraction of what goes on behind the scenes…go great work! I must note that this was our first experience at an All-Inclusive Resort…so maybe our standard is a bit low…but this was a really good experience. While the food was good-to-very good in most cases, the comfort and convenience of everything the resort had to offer was a bit overwhelming. Overall an excellent vacation!

Summary: Lots has changed over the years, but one thing is consistent, that is the people! If you have never been to Finest, we cant encourage you enough to give it a try. If you have been before, and were possibly frustrated by some of the changes, I would encourage you to go back. They are making some great improvements! Ok, now for the details: The People: We continue to come back year after year for the people! They have become such good friends! Special shout outs to Angel, Edwardo and Carlos on the Excellence Club Beach. Those guys work so hard to make sure everyone has an amazing experience. And while we didn’t get to see Fernando as much this trip, he is so fantastic and friendly. Morning visits to Dommo wouldn’t be the same without Efrain and Lucero, and Dinner with Julietta…her smile will make your day. Others that made our week special; Maria and Yahir at Le Petit, Enrique at Titos & Tapas (just let him order for you), last but far from least…Marcos the new guest services manager, Diana at the Finest (Excellence) Club and Daliel. All 3 of them made are trip extra special, and while Daliel is in a different role, we so look forward to seeing her every year. The Food: We have seen a lot of changes in the menus over the years, but I will say that they have made some great improvements this year. We were so impressed with the quality and consistency of the meals. Santiago is the new Dommo chef and he is doing an incredible job! The Property: We were booked in the adult only building 6, but it was closed for renovations, so we were put in building 5. Not a big deal at all, although I prefer the bar in the Building 6 Excellence Club. All in all, the adjustment and work they are doing was a minor inconvenience. They made sure to make our stay special regardless of the work they are doing to help keep the property beautiful. The Beach: We love the beach at Finest! I will say there was more seaweed this year than the past, but its not something you can control. Some days better than others, but they do what they can to try and keep it cleaned up. Still WAY better than some other resorts down south of Cancun. Bottom line, this place is amazing. The people are incredibly friendly, and truly want you to have a great experience. Our Friends at Finest, we are already counting down the days to when we visit again next year!! Until next time!!

A fantastic five nights at Finest Playa Mujeres. Rooms: The rooms are modern, large and very comfortable. We picked a room with a second bedroom and private swimming pool for our toddler, and the space worked perfectly. While some of the buildings might be noisy in the evening with the entertainment offering, block 2 (where we were) is sufficiently removed from the main complex that it was very quiet and we’d recommend staying there if possible. Atmosphere: Perfectly pitched as a family resort for those with children under 5s. Whilst there are adult restaurants and bars, you’d likely be quite surprised if staying as an adult couple as almost all guests have little ones. This was great for us - restaurants are busy at 5:30, food service is quick and there’s no need to worry about children disrupting other guests. It was refreshing to see young parents with young kids able to relax and we give the resort huge credit for enabling that (high chairs everywhere, milk delivered to rooms etc). Restaurants: A great selection of restaurant offerings. Brass is a particular highlight. Big shout out to Pascual and Lorena who went above and beyond during our multiple visits. Shoji is also great, with our hibachi chef Luis giving us a great evening. The hotel is undergoing renovations (which we got an email about the week before our visit), but this only affects a couple of speciality restaurants and so has no material impact. The bars are also great - cocktail offerings are top tier as are the daily coconuts (with rum if preferred) from 12-2. Suggest bringing some dollars to tip - staff really appreciate it and they work very hard. Amenities: The kids club is great, and the staff are all extremely friendly and welcoming, remembering our little one by name after our first visit. The water park there in particular is fantastic. Overall, we’d definitely return to Finest Playa Mujeres. For families with little ones it couldn’t be better.

Decent beach, room was okay, average food but lots of variety, was an okay all inclusive resort overall mildly disappointing