El Dorado Royale by Karisma

We went to EDR for 7 days late in August. It was a much needed break. Meals at the Italian, Santa Fe, Mexican and Jade were exceptional. We went twice to the Italian Restaurant. Jairo our waiter was awesome. We wish we had not gone to Fuentes and went a second time to Jade! Fuentes was a bit of a letdown(especially paying more for it! Beautiful grounds and flora. We enjoyed the day trip to Maroma and the snorkeling. The swimming trip to the cenote was fun. The fitness staff was awesome. I believe his name is Eduardo who went way out of his way. Do the bike ride early in your stay it’s helpful. We hung out on one of the beds right on the beach! We would love to go back again !

The beach is terrible. It’s rocky and there are giant concrete structures in it. The property is so spread out you have to wait to take shuttle golf carts everywhere. You have to meet with a concierge to schedule reservations for the restaurants. We were gone the first day swimming with whale sharks (highly recommend) so we missed the open hours. They acted like we were committing a crime to try to eat somewhere without a reservation. Then when we finally met a concierge she couldn’t schedule our dinner because the internet was broken. So we didn’t get to go to dinner. Had to order mediocre room service. Went back the next day, finally got a dinner reservation for our last night. But then my girlfriend got us talked into listening to a membership presentation. They said they’d only keep us for 90minutes. At the two hour mark I said I’m ready to leave now. Staff was super friendly food was pretty good, drinks were good but inconsistent, different bars different brands available.

We had an excellent trip at El Dorado Royale. We booked the Junior Suite with the swim up. It was wonderful. It was quiet and relaxing. The staff was always kind and helpful. Our concierges Silvia and Isareli were absolutely the best! Always eager to help with whatever we needed.

Pros: The food was very tasty and nicely presented. Good golf cart service around the resort. Good waiters and bartenders in all restaurant and bars. Good housekeeping. The resort area is very nice. Cons: The lazy river is short, very narrow, and shallow. Very limited bar service by swim-up rooms. No mats for swimming in the pool (bring you own). Both room keys stopped working in mid-stay. In restaurants, reservations are required for the entire stay in advance (restaurants were 60% empty). The breakfast buffet is very small. Coconuts are falling from palm trees onto the paths. The beach is rocky and not suitable for swimming. Nobody cleans up the front of the swim up rooms (animal s...t has been lying around all week). Lack of privacy between a bedroom and a bathroom. No matter how the AC is set, the walls in the room are damp and water drips onto the floor.

What an amazing trip! We were treated so wonderfully, by the time we left it felt hard to say goodbye. From the beginning, our concierge Reina & Kevin made all our plans for us and our stay special! I can't say enough about Eduardo & Paulo. They were the highlight of our trip!!! We never went empty handed by the pool, and shared so many laughs!! We appreciated all the hard work they do day in and day out. They truly felt like family by the end of our week! Miguel & Edmet at Italio Casitas were phenomenal. The food was amazing and the service was even better. You have to try the ravioli! All of the entertainment was surprisingly really good, so don't miss out!