El Dorado Casitas Royale by Karisma

My wife and I recently took a quick one-week getaway and chose the Casitas for the swim-up room, bar access, and a chance to relax by the beach. We frequently travel to Cozumel for scuba diving and love the warm Caribbean water, but this year we opted for the Cancun side to avoid the extra flight. The resort itself is very spread out—nearly 3 miles from end to end—which I didn’t mind since I enjoy morning runs. The gym was decent and had everything I needed. They do offer electric carts for transportation, but availability was inconsistent. That said, if you don’t mind walking, it’s manageable—just be prepared, because getting to restaurants, pools, or the lobby always involves a bit of a trek. The food was excellent—honestly the best we’ve experienced at an all-inclusive resort. While it’s not the best food we’ve ever had overall, it exceeded expectations for this type of setting. Service can be slow and restaurant reservations fill up quickly, but we were able to work around it. The beach, however, was disappointing. While there is sand, it’s not very swimmable due to concrete barriers and a shallow rocky reef, making it difficult to get beyond shin-deep water. The wind was our second biggest issue—not something the hotel can control, but it was constant and made the weather feel cooler than expected. If you enjoy a steady breeze, you may not mind it, but for us it took away from the experience. We did go scuba diving, which required a shuttle to Maroma Beach. Maroma itself is beautiful, but the water was surprisingly cold during our visit. The diving was decent, but nowhere near the level of Cozumel. The strong winds created rough seas—my wife even felt seasick despite using a patch—and getting in and out of the boat was challenging, even for us as an active couple. We skipped the catamaran excursion, but many guests reported getting seasick due to the conditions. The biggest issue—for us and many other guests—was the pool temperature. The pools were extremely cold, to the point where hardly anyone was swimming. You’d see hundreds of people gathered around the main pool, but only a handful actually in the water. Even guests coming from much colder climates weren’t willing to get in. This was consistent across all pools and really impacted our ability to enjoy the resort. Overall, the hotel is beautiful, the food is great, and the staff is wonderful. However, due to the constant wind and the unusably cold pools, we wouldn’t return.

We had a great time at the Casitas!! The rooms were clean, and quiet, the staff did a great job everyday keeping them that way, fully stocked mini fridge. The food was good with many different options for a wide variety of tastes, no one went hungry. Many gluten free options as well. The shows were fun, the entertainment was really well done, and actually could have had more of the bands and less dj for my liking. The beach is where it starts to lose it for me though, if you are a beach lover this is not the place for you imo., not many places to access the water if thats your thing. Overall impressions, the staff were amazing, our pool bartender Juan was great all week, everyone was friendly, from the groundskeepers to the bartenders, across the board really. We had a few issues with our casita and they made sure to remedy them immediately. If you are looking for a nice place, with good food and decent entertainment options i would definitely recommend.

If you are considering visiting this resort, PLEASE read this post for your sake BEFORE you book! I have been a “Diamond Member” with Exotic Travelers Club for 23 years. We have bought into their member program and have enjoyed the locations over the years. On the trip I am currently on, that has all changed. We have been told we will not be granted the benefits of our membership, which we have paid over $50k in for the 23 years, because we booked the reservation on the wrong site. We booked on Lomashospitality.com vs Exotictravelers.com. For context, they are the same company. The complete lack of customer service and rudeness about the situation has been astonishing and very concerning. There has been a clear change in this resort's customer service focus. So consider this before you book anything with Lomas or Exotic – if they treat a 23-year customer this way – how will they treat you? Last item, SAY AWAY from their member presentations and offers – clearly the benefits are worthless.

Our stay was defined by the truly outstanding service. The staff is incredibly friendly, and it’s clear this is a great place to work—many employees have been here for years, which speaks volumes about the establishment. A special shout-out to Benjamin, David, and Reina (our concierge) for making our stay so seamless. The Culinary Experience: The food was world-class across the board. Top Highlights: The beef curry at Jade was perhaps the best I’ve ever had. Fuentes offered an incredible dining experience paired with a phenomenal guitarist—well worth the extra cost. Casual Eats: We loved the burgers at Kick, fresh tacos at The Spot, and the smoothies at the Health Bar. Note for Improvement: The Santa Fe Grill was maybe the only slight outlier; it could probably benefit from a menu refresh and a more intimate, dimmed ambiance. Rooms & Activities: The rooms were spotless and very comfortable. We also took full advantage of the activities. Having been on several catamaran snorkeling tours before, I was impressed by the one at Maroma Beach—it was the perfect length and we saw plenty of fish and even a big sea turtle. The ranch and cenote excursion was also fun. The nightly entertainment was enjoyable - my wife loved the circus show. Minor Suggestions for Management: While I appreciate the health-conscious initiative regarding salt and pepper, they can be quite hard to find at breakfast. Having a few more shakers available would be welcome. The "morning towel reserve" was also a bit of a challenge. We encountered guests claiming entire rows of loungers early and never using them, which made it difficult for others to find a spot. Adding a few more chairs or enforcing more actively a courtesy policy for unoccupied towels would definitely improve the guest experience. Overall, these are really minor points in an otherwise perfect stay. A huge thank you to the wonderful team!

Another awesome vacation at El Dorado Casitas! We stayed 11 days and enjoyed every minute! Our butlers Pablo and Fernando were attentive and very helpful! The food was excellent as usual. Our favorite was D’Italia Casitas with Jade a close 2nd. Our favorite waiter was Wilbert at La Isla. We enjoyed massages by Regina and Janeth. Contributed to our relaxation! We went to the top of Generations to see the eclipse of the moon-Blood Moon. Amazing! Members for 17 years- loving it!