Banyan Tree Mayakoba

We stayed at the Banyan Tree Resort during the 1st week of July. Prior to our arrival, communication with them was easy and made planning this trip less stressful. I worked with Carmen N. She was my "personal" concierge for roughly 3 months. She helped me plan and make reservations for our time out at Banyan Tree. Once we finally made our trip and arrived, the weather was perfect, no rain or wind. Humidity was high though (about 90%), but nothing that would keep us indoors all day. Upon arrival at the airport I received a text from "Iris" (airport greeter) and she patiently waited for my family and I to retrieve our baggage (took a little over an hour) and met us outside of the airport. She welcomed us and walked us to our transportation. There she introduced us to "Gustavo", our driver, he took care in handling our luggage was well as our safety on our way to the resort. Once at the resort, Gustavo helped unload our bags and wished us a relaxing stay. We were then met by "Jose M", the bell men, who helped take our luggage and then later brought them to our villa as well as took one of the larger ones up the steep stairs to the other room. After checking in our bags, we were then met by the Front Desk Receptionist, Maida. She was a trainee, but did not show an ounce of being new to her role. She then gave us some cold towels and then their special "green juice", called Jugo Verde, which I guess translates to "green juice". From there she sat us down out in the courtyard and proceeded to check us in. At this point, I was caught a bit off guard, as I was unaware that they take incidentals of $200 USD per day, per person, which turned out to be $4000 USD for 5 days for 4 people. So, make sure you have enough to cover for incidentals on top of what you're paying for your room. After signing away my lifesavings for our entire stay, we were led to a golf cart and taken to our villa. Once at the villa, there were 2 bikes outside waiting for us (I was able to request for 2 more w/o charge) which we used during our stay. Maida then walked us around our rooms (upstairs and downstairs) and then showed us our living space (casita) There they had a cake and chocolate strawberries to welcome us for a couple of milestones we were celebrating. Once the tour was over, we settled in and started our vacation The restaurants were decent. Nothing really stood out to us except for one. Sands Beach Club 8/10. Cello was 8/10. Sunset Tapas Cruise 7/10 was relaxing and surprisingly filling . Make sure you wear pants as you will get attacked by mosquitos. Saffron 4/10 sadly our least favorite (lots of insects and swarms of flies. Had much better Thai food at cheaper restaurants outside of Mexico) Also saw a couple walk out after finishing their first round of appetizers and complained to the chef. Haab 10/10. This is a MUST!!! It is pricey, but in all honestly, well worth it. You get a dinner and a show all in one and the food (Mayan) was surprisingly the best my family and I had during our stay. ***Please note my family are very picky eaters, yet they cleaned their plates from every course served.*** The pools (there were 2) were clean and warm. Ambience was relaxing with some electronic music playing. Also, there weren't many beach chairs out, so if you come during the weekend, you have to get there early to secure one or reserve one via the concierge. The beach was as clean as they could clean them, as we came during seaweed season. They have people combing the beach and cleaning up the seaweed, which made it easier for us to go into the water and swim/kayak. (kayaks are complimentary as well as paddle boards) I did get a chance to play at the golf course, El Camaleon. You get a discount if you stay at any of the Mayakoba resorts. This course was beautiful. Only complaint was that all the greens were literally covered in sand. For what reason, I do not know. It was hard to gauge the speed of the gren, due to all the sand on them. The sand was thick enough, that when you hit the green, you can see the sand explode from the ball landing on it. The cenote on the 7th hole was one to remember along with the views of the beach as well. A huge thank you to the following for making our stay enjoyable and one to remember. Carmen N. - Concierge who helped me setup all my reservations via email before our arrival Iris- Airport Greeter upon arrival to Cancun International. Greeted us upon arrival and made us feel welcome and safe on our way to the shuttle. Gustavo - Shuttle Driver from Airport to Banyan Tree Resort. Kept us comfortable and safe during our trip to the resort. Offered suggestions on where and what to do during our stay. Bell Desk/Golf Cart Drivers - Jose M., Carlos, Sergio, and Moises. These guys were always on the move and I took notice to how they were very courteous, helpful, and professional to all guests of the resort, including ourselves. Receptionist Check In - Madai | She was a trainee, but did a very good job in welcoming us at the hotel and showing us around our villa. Front Desk Concierge - Brenda and Seidee | A big thank you to these ladies for assisting us with all of our requests, questions, and concerns. Mayakoba Cart Driver - Jonathan A.K.A "Johnny" | One of the nicest employees I met at the resort and drove us to and from El Puebilito. Cenote | Butterfly Tour Guide at El Puebilito - I forgot his name but he was there on 01/07/25 around 1100 hours. Very friendly, informative, and personable. Sands Employees - Alan the manager, Ricardo, Longoria, Juan Salto, Javier Barahona, Roberto, Amish, Roger and his "DJ" partner who helped us with the Kayaks during July 4th. | all of these employees were hard working, professional, and showed that they cared about us during our stay. Cello - Server, Gilmer N. | Professional, Charming, and very personable Thank you, Gilmer! Sunset Cruise - Jesus | Professional, informative, and very easy to talk too during our cruise, while also keeping us safe out on the water and serving us as at the same time. Haab - #1 dining experience on property - Host Extraordinaire - "Henry" | There is nothing bad to say about Henry. From the beginning to the end, he was very attentive and caring about everything, knowledgeable, and most of all entertaining. The Dancers from Haab from July 3 at 5pm - phenomenal and entertaining. enjoyed every aspect of the performance The Chefs at Haab from July 3 at 5pm - Best food on property. Saffron - Angel our server | Very friendly and attentive to our needs. Oriente - Marisol, Fernando, and the Chilaquiles chef in the middle of the buffet | Very friendly, caring, and personable! Thank you to all of them and to those whose names I forgot as well. Dining Reservations - Jasmyn (sp?) she was very courteous and personable. She even remembered our names when running into us around the resort. Thank you Jasmyn! Housekeeping - Diana, Carlos, and Amalia - Thank you for tidying up our rooms and re-stocking all of our essentials and water. Thank you for the lovely cakes upon arrival and the turndown service with the rose petals! Overall, I would love to come back and maybe stay at a different Villa or the new Alila resort at the Mayakoba resorts. The entire property was so relaxing and a great stress reliever. The prices might push you away, but either way I did feel like royalty and would still come back myself and I recommend you give it a try too.

We have just returned from the most wonderful stay. This was my seventh visit and we were so happy to see so many of the superb staff again. The villas are wonderful, the grounds are beautifully maintained and the dining options are vast and food quality is excellent. We loved riding bikes around the resort and were lucky to see lots of wildlife including deer, coatis, iguanas and birds. The main reason we keep returning is because of our dear friend Gilmer, who works in the Cello restaurant. He makes every visit so special and is fantastic at his job. He is a credit to this resort! We enjoyed many memorable evenings in Cello and were delighted to meet chef Juan Carlos who prepares delicious Italian cuisine. And at the bar, Jose made wonderful drinks with a friendly smile. Thank you to the entire team at Cello. We also had excellent breakfasts at Oriente, where we were happy to see Marco, Rigoberto, Daniel and Oscar each morning. Their service was outstanding and made the start to each day special. We spent a lot of time at Sands, where Samuel and Ana were brilliant bartenders. We had a lot of fun speaking to them! We also had a great lunch where Osiel and Jorge provided excellent service. We were disappointed though that Sands wasn’t open for breakfast this time, we really missed that option. It was my birthday during the trip and we went on the sunset cruise, such a great experience! Ignacio was our driver and he was fabulous. Also on my birthday I received many surprises from Gilmer at Cello and at Sands, which went far beyond my expectations. One thing we missed during stay was the managers cocktails, which we’ve enjoyed in the past to meet people and find out plans for the resort. I really hope that with the current renovations the hotel and villas do not change too much. The only other areas for improvement were that the front desk never know that we’re repeat guests, a little strange given they have a record of previous stays, and it feels odd when asked if it’s our first visit, yet the staff in restaurants know us from previous stays. Also our meal in the Tomahawk lacked the good service we’d experience everywhere else, although the meal itself was wonderful. They could do with offering some steak sauces on the menu though! Thank you so much BTM; we are planning our next stay and we can’t wait to see you again soon.

⸻ Currently staying at Banyan Tree Mayakoba. The villas are stunning — spacious, private, and beautifully designed. Check-in service was smooth and welcoming. But the service, especially housekeeping and breakfast, has been incredibly disappointing — far below what you’d expect from a 5-star luxury resort. We’ve been requesting water bottles for over 3 hours, called more than 10 times, and still nothing. Now they’ve just stopped answering the phone altogether. It’s honestly shocking. And the breakfast service? Rude and unprofessional. I simply asked for another cup of coffee just before breakfast closing time (while others were still dining), and the waiter told me: “Today it’s fine, but if you ask for another cup tomorrow and you’re late, it will be chargeable.” Mind you — breakfast is included in our stay. Totally unnecessary attitude. We are Marriott Titanium members and usually stay at Marriott resorts because of their consistently great service. Unfortunately, here we felt like we were being treated at a 3-star level, not the world-class luxury Banyan Tree claims to offer. Some restaurants, like Sands Beach, do have wonderful staff and better service — but overall, our experience so far has been a letdown.

We recently stayed at Banyan Tree Mayakoba for our first family trip to Mexico, and it was an experience we’ll never forget. We booked through AAA—while it wasn’t the cheapest option, the peace of mind and reliability they provided made it well worth it. After this trip, we feel much more confident in how we’ll book travel in the future. From the moment we arrived, it was clear that this property excels in personal service and attention to detail. Every touch felt intentional and memorable. The concierge team made it effortless to book unforgettable excursions—snorkeling with sea turtles, exploring Mayan ruins, and swimming in cenotes were all highlights for our family. Yes, dining and spa services are more expensive than in town, but they are absolutely worth every penny. We experienced the Habb Dinner, a one-of-a-kind culinary journey. Pepe and Alexandro were not only knowledgeable but also incredibly engaging, adding a cultural and educational flair to the evening. Special thanks to Jasmin, the restaurant concierge, who went above and beyond to make this experience extra special. At the spa, Olga created a customized treatment that left us feeling completely rejuvenated. The Rainforest Experience is a must-try—unlike anything we’ve seen elsewhere. Each villa has its own private pool, which was a perfect retreat when we wanted some quiet downtime. And the Sands Beach Club offers a beautiful, semi-private stretch of beach—shared only with a few neighboring properties—so it always felt peaceful and exclusive. We can’t wait to return to this paradise. Thank you to the entire Banyan Tree Mayakoba team for making our first trip to Mexico so memorable!

BE AWARE OF INFLEXIBLE CANCELLATION POLICY. I'm trying to resolve a booking with this institution and finding that they have inflexible policies. We booked a room through Expedia and were very excited for our trip. We watched a few youtube videos and got even more excited about the resort, after viewing one video which featured the Ocean Front walk out room, we decided to splurge and upgrade 2 nights of our stay to the higher price room - super luxurious, super expensive - super NON REFUNDABLE. This policy was not apparent on the Expedia site, when we were making the changes to our booking ALL of the room categories advertise fully refundable as is the usual Expedia perk. Fast forward a couple of days and we realized we had booked the dates right when our son is going to graduate, so we cancelled and figured we'd rebook later. We received a refund for the 3 nights Bliss Pool Villa but were charged 4K for the 2 nights that were NON REFUNDABLE. We've tried working through Expedia, no luck They're "truly sorry, and know its disappointing". I partially blame Expedia that wasn't a bigger flag or indication in advance of our booking on their website. We've tried multiple ways to resolve this. We asked via Expedia, if BTM would honor a change (instead of a cancellation) given it was a mistake and we truly did want to stay at the resort. But the Mayakoba wouldn't even agree to that - they want to take our money for NOTHING. We're not rich, this would have been a splurge for our 60th birthday's we are forced to pay over 4K for the cancellation of what would have been our dream upgrade. Happy Birthday from the Banyan Tree Mayakoba. Thanks for nothing but a sadness and a big hole in my bank account.