The Staff really made our time here special. The food, room, grounds and atmosphere are all amazing. It's relaxing and peaceful and the pools were warm and enjoyable! We will miss breakfast and being greeted every morning by Adrian, Dani, Selena, Angela and Fredy. Made us feel so welcome and looked afrer!!

5th time here and love it more every time. Fernando was the best waiter as well! All of the staff are great and very friendly :) we will be coming back for many more family vacations. Pricing went up from our prior trip though so that was one surprise (post covid inflation pricing). Overall great experience with the hotel and staff.

Enrique provides the absolute best service! Such friendly staff that made our experience exceptional. This is the second time we have stayed here and it never disappoints, will also be back next month.

The pools and gardens are absolutely breathtaking. The grounds are only outdone by the courteous and professional service staff. The meticulous care that goes into this facility is incredible. The swim up bar service was our favourite part. Brayan at the front desk organized an unforgettable dinner for us one evening.

Pros: * This place is clean--most tropical locations have bugs and critters everywhere, but not Villa La Estancia. Our rooms were also very well cleaned on a daily basis. * The resort was kid friendly without being overrun with kids. * Pickleball and tennis courts were well maintained and had good availability. * Coordination with local taxis was very easy--the front door staff were very friendly and helpful. FYI: uber cannot pick you up from the resort, but they can drop you off. * The beach access is beautify, albeit very narrow (which might be a plus as the single row of lounge chairs gives everyone unobstructed views of the ocean). * The pools and hot tubs were clean, super comfy, and not crowded. Cons: * We had to fight to get the $350 resort credit that came with our package. The other families we traveled with forgot to check for their credits and never received them. And they converted the $350 credit at 14.3 MX to $1USD, whereas the market rate was 16.5--that's a 13% loss for us. This should happen automatically, and certainly without a fight. Other reviews show similar experiences, so this feels like a systemic shady issue. * The policy for tips and service fees were completely lacking transparency. It was unclear whether we needed to tip additionally at meals, or if the servers/staff were being properly compensated in the all-inclusive package. We got mixed messaging from the staff on how much they pocket from the resort. Apparently if you tip via your account, the tips are shared by the entire resort staff, but if you tip in cash, the server/staff would get it directly. And the nominal prices for the all-inclusive meals are way inflated, so if you are tipping on standard percentages, your tips will be sky high too. This was a great example of why we need to stop using gratuities to supplement income and just have staff properly compensated from the get-go. TIP: pay your tips in cash, will make reviewing your bill at the end much easier. * When working with the concierge to coordinate reservations, etc, there's a clear breakdown in communication. Many of our requests to the concierge (which we tipped for), e.g. restaurant reservations, dietary restrictions, tennis reservations, etc did not actually get communicated to the respective facility. * The various policies surrounding what was included, what wasn't, what facilities we could use, when restaurants close, etc, were complicated and conflicting. Wine was included in our package, but only at the other 2 resorts--and only 3 selections of wine available. Booze and beer were also included, but also only at the other 2 resorts. A simpler policy would have made our stay more enjoyable. * The food at the restaurants was generally good (La Parilla , Bucanero) to excellent (El Patron, Tomatillo), but the service was challenged by large parties (we had 10 in our group). Getting orders right, splitting the bills by room, etc was always a challenge. Would be great if they just put a barcode on our wristbands (better yet, an RFID tag that could unlock our suites) so that this would be more seamless. Cruise lines have figured this out, would be nice to have this here too. * The spa was nice, but very expensive--on par with what we pay in San Francisco. * Vegetarian options are difficult to come by at some of the restaurants. * The lighting in our suite was a bit harsh--LED lighting, but the color temperature was more like fluorescent lighting, which feels cheap and harsh. * The transportation arrangements via the resort were confusing on the tips--the resort said very clearly not to pay the drivers for the transportation fee, but did not know whether we should tip the drivers. If they are making these arrangements for their guests, they should be able to advise whether the gratuities are included or not. * The staff were mostly very kind and courteous, but we had some friction with staff--in particular once when my wife ordered a salad which she did not like (it was frankly bad) and the manager gave here the 3rd degree about what was wrong with it, what was she expecting, etc. * The private meal had excellent service, presentation, and overall logistical coordination, but sadly the actual food was subpar--we enjoyed meals at the restaurants much more.