El Dorado Seaside Suites

Not as advertised, food is poor, never a 5 star hotel TUI rep says see cares but just gives out the same lines to everyone, very disappointed The restaurants at an all inclusive charge you additional $25 each to eat at the Italian and Japanese if you arrived after 1st Oct Absolute disgrace Resort needs a lick of paint and the TUI Rep agreed Gutted as having been here twice before in 16 and 18 it’s went so downhill They say 10 restaurants but only 3 open in the evening and 2 of them chargeable too! Absolute joke

Older resort but well cared for and very clean. The rooms and beds were very comfortable. Most of the staff are very courteous and helpful. The beach is located on the far end and a little rocky in places but very well kept. The resort has a large array of wonderful covered cabanas and sun beds. The drinks are amazing, and the beach grill is typical resort food. Our only complaint is in regard to the restaurants, which can be difficult to obtain reservations and also the food was somewhat lacking in flavor and quality. The grounds are well maintained, but they need to be sprayed regularly for mosquitos. The spa was great with incredible service. This resort was a great value, and extremely quiet and clean.

Firstly, apologies to all the lovely staff for the lateness of this review! Myself and my partner Adrian travelled in June and had an absolutely wonderful holiday. If you're wanting a quick overview - room clean and spacious, great quality food, amazing drinks and plenty of loungers. If you're wanting more detail read on: THE ROOM: We stayed in a Premium room on the Palms side and we would definitely stay in this area again when we return (and yes we will be returning)! The rooms here are lovely large, bright and airy. We loved that there was a little dining area near the balcony and we had room service breakfast here most mornings. We were on the top floor so had gorgeous views of the sea and the balcony got plenty of sun in the morning, but was lovely and shaded in the afternoon when we wanted to cool down a little. The balcony had a double day bed out there so super comfortable for an afternoon siesta or hanging out on with a drink watching the sun go down. The mini bar was re-filled daily with sodas, beers, crisps, chocolate and water. We drink A LOT of water and they were more than happy to provide a few extra bottles. TOP TIP: Get the app as soon as you get there. I was able to request extra hangers, pillows and anything else you can think of really on there. The room was kept immaculately clean with fresh towels daily and the bed linen changed frequently. We did miss turn down one or two nights, but it really wasn't a big deal and was more than made up for with the elaborate decorations and special treatment we got on our anniversary. The premium section also came with its own private little pool, bar and lunch area. We didn't actually realise you could have lunch there until half way through our trip and the burrito they made there was unreal! Patricia was our server down at the pool and she never stopped! She was so sweet and friendly and made sure our drinks stayed full. The premium section is also perfectly situated as it is almost perfectly central to the resort and right next to reception. It felt like everything was 5mins walk away max and the main buggy stop is right there at reception which it made it really easy to navigate the resort. BARS AND DRINKS: I've stayed at a few of the El Dorado resorts and usually the wine is a massive let down. I'm not expecting premium wines, but something drinkable. I'm not sure if they have raised their game across the board, but the house wines were definitely better here than they have been at previous El Dorados we have stayed. Everyone is so happy to help and eager to please and the wait staff were happy to let me try a few wines, so if you find you're not sure just ask and they will be happy to help. We found Henrry at bar Cotorros our first week and I would search him out if you're at the resort or heading there. Henrry obviously has a passion for creating drinks with love and made us some of the BEST cocktails! I mentioned I missed a certain cocktail and he not only learnt how to make it, he made sure he had freshly brewed espresso every night to make sure he could make my favourite after dinner cocktail. He listened to what I liked and what I didn't - I'm not keen on overly fruity, sweet cocktails - and made me cocktails he thought I would enjoy. He went over and above to make sure we had a great experience and we followed him around the resort until our last night! We tended to stick to the beach or the premium pool through the day and were kept well hydrated. There is pool and beach service for drinks and plenty to choose from. One minor thing - I would have liked is a cocktail menu at the pool. We did ask if they had one a few times, but nobody seemed to know if there was one. This meant I maybe stuck to the same cocktails a little as I couldn't remember what they served and I quite like having a little look through and trying new ones. RESTAURANTS: We really enjoyed the food at this resort and they take so much pride in offering something more than your usual all inclusive food. We spoke to Luis the F&B manager a number of times and he passionately cares that his guests are enjoying the food served, the ambiance and the service provided at each of the restaurants on the resort. There is something for everyone, and as someone who loves food I can say I was honestly surprised by how excellent the food was here. Thank you so much to Luis - he went out of his way to find us and ensure we had a wonderful anniversary and an amazing trip. Of the restaurants I think Mia Casa, the Italian was our favourite, but they really were all so good. Antonio the manager there was so kind and again took so much pride in showing us all his restaurant could offer. He also helped us organise the private wine room for our anniversary which was set up to be so romantic with soft lighting and candles. Sergio was our waiter and nothing was too much trouble! We've been home several months now and I still crave their beef carpaccio and the cannolis. The asian restaurant, Klay Talay was also outstanding. We ate here several times and the first time I think we perhaps under ordered as the portion sizes are a little on the smaller size. No problem though - when they came to ask if we would like dessert we simply asked if we could maybe order a few extra dishes and THEN dessert which was not a problem in the slightest. I like to try a few things so it was actually nice to get to try some extra bits. The Gourmet Pub was probably the biggest surprise of the trip. When I first saw the menu I was a little uninspired as personally I didn't fancy English pub food in Mexico, but again, that is personal preference. However, with some advice from our lovely server Alejandro we had a great tapas style meal. We ordered all of the snacks, a salad and some ribs and it was so good! Such a great idea to share lots of small plates. Alejandro was one of the best waiters at the resort. After chatting to him it was clear he had worked at the resort a long time and it shows in his work - he anticipated my every need so much I don't think I had to look for him once for anything. I kept saying I think Alejandro is a mind reader as just as I would think I could do with a top up he was already there with a bottle of wine in his hand, ready to pour. Thank you Alejandro! Most of the restaurants are walk in only, which means there is usually a little wait at peak times. This isn't a bad thing - just someone to think about when planning dinner. They give you a little buzzer at the restaurant and you just go and sit at a nearby bar and have a drink until the buzzer goes off and your table is ready. I only mention it as it is worth factoring in to what time you head to the restaurant. We headed down maybe half an hour before we planned on eating and this seemed to work quite well for us. So overall, we obviously loved our holiday to El Dorado! A huge thank you to all the staff who made it as special as it was and a massive, massive thank you to the resort manager Marianna!! We picked this resort as we had met Marianna working at a different hotel in the El Dorado chain. We had no doubt we would have a wonderful time as Marianna is such an amazing manager who clearly knows how to run a resort putting the guests at the centre of everything they do. Thank you again Marianna and we will be back soon

Overall, the experience was good, but the service at some restaurants and the quality and presentation of the food were very poor, particularly during breakfast at Culinario and dinner at La Carreta (Mexican restaurant). I also want to mention the uncomfortable moment we had at the Exotic Travelers offices, where we ended up wasting time while they tried to convince us to upgrade our membership—even after we had clearly stated that we only wanted to update our credentials. On the other hand, I must highlight the excellent service from our butler Ana, who was always supportive and ensured we had everything we needed throughout our stay. Erick at Culinario always provided great service, as did the beach butlers, who were very attentive. Special thanks to Lizz, who always kept an eye on our drinks at the beach. La experiencia fue buena en general pero la atención en algunos restaurantes y la calidad y presentación de los alimentos fue muy mala tanto en el desayuno del Culinario como en la cena de la Carreta (mexicano). También quiero mencionar el momento incomodo que pase en las oficinas de Exotic travelers ya que nos hicieron perder el tiempo tratando de convencernos de cambiar la membresía cuando ya le habíamos mencionado que solo queríamos actualizar nuestras credenciales. Por otro lado cabe destacar la excelente atención por parte de mi mayordomo Ana, que siempre nos ha apoyado con todo lo necesario para nuestra estancia, Erick en el Culinaro siempre nos atendió muy bien; los mayordomos de playa también muy atentos junto con Lizz que siempre estaba al tanto de nuestras bebidas en la playa.

Had great expectations as have holidayed at other TUI BLUE Hotels in past. Expected a great beach and sea location, found a beach covered in thick seaweed, JCB diggers everyday trying to remove it. The brochure said a choice of 7 restaurants, only 3 open every evening. Food quality on whole poor. One restaurant was called " The Gourmet Pub" , only 6 dishes on menu , didn't travel all the way to Mexico to get pub grub ( not great quality either). Service from rep not the best. Sports bar, had one pool table, one table tennis table and loads of cinema style chairs. Tui Blue rep on site said it wasn't a fully TUI Blu hotel, didn't say that in brochure . Not worth the money .