Grand Residences Riviera Cancun

Location was out of the way so mainly couples or adult groups from America. To get anywhere outside the hotel you need a taxi or hire car. The atmosphere was very friendly and staff pleasant and courteous. They enjoyed a joke and exchange of questions. The room we had was large and comfortable with daily cleaning and towel change. Laundry service is available although a little expensive. We managed to get our holiday cheaper than others paid but feel it was about right for the service. The hotel and grounds were spotless, but mind your step as the constant mopping can leave the floors a little slippery, although there are signs all over the place. The place was nice and quiet, no rowdy partys. In the day there were some adult games in the pool as well as aqua aerobics, bingo, guess the song ect and in the children's pool for the few that were there. Some nights they had entertainment like karaoke, jazz but at a reasonable level so as not to disturb people. You can order drink and food at your sunbed once settled and the staff around the pool are really attentive. The sunbeds need to be booked a day in advance at the sunbed booth. The dinner also needs to be booked in advance unless you go through the concierge. You can also book trips at the trip booth next to the sunbed booth. Unless you want a hard sell time share, don't accept a discount on trips from the concierge to go to the information presentation, as they want you to sign up there and then for $10,000++ and reading reviews, what you sign up for and what you get in reality is very questionable. The concierge can book the dinner times for you for the whole stay and can book trips etc and sort out any problems. Quite a few days out of 2 weeks out was too windy to put up the sun umbrella and too hot with uv index of 10 to sit out in the sun. We were offered a pleb in the shade once as misty if the 'owners' who had booked sunbeds weren't going to use them that day. Owners have priority booking for sunbeds and meals.

The Grand Residences is a beautiful property with nice amenities. The mission-style architecture is lovely, and the landscaping is beautiful. The property is also very clean and well cared for. The junior suite has a great layout and nice touches (kitchenette, lighting, bath amenities). The resort is very low key and quiet, which is exactly what we wanted. Even at noon in the blazing sun, the pretty pool area feels vast and uncrowded. Loved the swim up bar. But the pool and beach chair reservation system is annoying, tbh. You have to reserve your chairs each day, for the next day ahead. When I’m on vacation, I don’t want to plan where I want to sit tomorrow (plus, sun, shade, and wind conditions all would affect that choice). Often, large groups of chairs go unused when people don’t show up. It’s a clunky and unnecessary system. The other big negative to be aware of is the seaweed on the beach - it’s a major problem here. In mid March, 3 days of our stay the beach and ocean were completely unusable with a 1-foot deep pile of bristly bushy seaweed at the water line, and a thick mat floating in the water. This sargasso seaweed is not like the flimsy lettuce seaweed we’re used to in the northeast. It’s thick and bushy and hard. We tried swimming with it but it was very unpleasant. Very few guests ever ventured in the water (most stayed by the pool), which is sad. We only had 1 day of relatively clear water (and even then small clumps of floating seaweed were all around). They have workers constantly going back and forth with a tractor to try and scoop it all up but it only makes a dent in the vast piles (plus it’s not exactly a relaxing experience to sit on the sand with a large tractor running constantly a few feet away from you all day long). Of course I understand it’s natural, but other resorts don’t have this problem. Just a heads up that if the beach is important to you, this resort is not a good choice between March and June (as confirmed to us by the lifeguard and other guests). On the upside, the food is terrific with lots of good choices and high quality (the all inclusive package was great. We also loved the included private airport transportation. In all, it’s a relaxing spot in a nicely designed environment. If they get the seaweed under control, this place would be close to perfect.

One of the best, cleanest, friendliest, most impressive places we have been. We almost felt out of place with the endless luxury and exuberance of the resort. One of the best kept secrets - pssstt!

This resort was an extremely pleasant surprise. Kids parents and grandparents (ranging in age from 3 months old to 84 years old) had an incredible time. The staff is friendly and helpful, the food was delicious, our master suite was absolutely perfect. Kids absolutely loved the kids club--amazing staff. The only downside is there is lots of kelp on the beach. Beware.

Previous reviews have highlighted this hotel and the calm, relaxing environment. The food is excellent. There is a theme in the a la-carte restaurant every night (Italian, French, International, Seafood) and the second restaurant serves Mexican food each night. Staff are brilliant and everyone goes out of their way to help you or simply wish you good morning when they pass. It's like a family. It is a small hotel and right at the bottom of the resort. The rooms and grounds are kept impeccably clean. Rooms are serviced every day and there is also a "turn down" service in the evenings. Rooms have TV with various cable channels and a small kitchenette. There are also televisions in the main lobby bar. On arrival at our room after travelling around 18 hours door to door we were greeted with fresh fruit, snacks/crisps/chocolate and a fridge full of water, beer and soft drinks. These are replenished each day as part of the all inclusive package. There are two pool areas, with the second being a 25 metre lane swimming pool which was in excellent condition. There was also a pretty full program of activities during the day around the main pool. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Grand Residences and left feeling very relaxed, well fed and appreciated. Some pointers however to help future visitors with their stay. The beach regularly had large quantities of sargassum wash up, but an army of staff keep this under control. Whilst during our stay the windy conditions prevented us from swimming in the sea each day, when the red flags do change to yellow, there is a hotel lifeguard watching over you. The hotels swimming pools however more than compensate. There is a large scale hotel complex being built directly next door and the noise can be heard from the back of the hotel, but once inside your room, or inside the grounds of the hotel you can hardly hear it, if at all. The hotel is around 2 miles from the centre of Puerto Morelos. The road between the hotel and the port is not brilliant with only pavements in some areas. It is about a 45 minute walk in and the road is dusty. Monday to Saturday lunchtime it is also very busy with the building site traffic. I walked in and back on a Saturday afternoon and it was fine as work had finished for the weekend. A Taxi will charge 200 MXN each way. Puerto Morelos centre is however a must visit. There is also a marina about 200 metres north of the hotel (accessible by walking along the beach). You can book a snorkel tour from here which takes you out onto the nearby reef. We also booked a Chichen Itza tour via the tour operator based at the hotel. Well worth the visit. It is worthy of note that the hotel is part of a chain and they will try and promote a meeting with their timeshare representatives. We attended such a meeting and it lasted about 2 hours. It ended up being a very hard sales pitch which became slightly uncomfortable when we said "no". In return for attending the presentation the hotel give you some vouchers for excursions or spa treatment. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. It's quiet and out of the way. Very minimal entertainment so don't expect a party hotel. It's not that, but that is what makes it so good. Although we were "all inclusive" there was very much a culture / expectation of tipping staff which wasn't usual with our experience of all inclusive holidays. However, we were more than happy to tip as the service we received by all staff was excellent. We would recommend this hotel.