The St. Regis Kanai Resort, Riviera Maya

We stayed at the St. Regis Kanai for a week. While the property itself is beautiful and the staff were great, there were a lot of maintenance issues that we ran in to during out stay. We have yet to hear back from management, despite reaching out with our concerns. The elevator nearest our room (330) worked only 40% of the time, requiring us to go up and down the three flights of stairs with our young child for the majority of our stay. We reported this issue to staff and it was never rectified. At the beginning of our stay the water was completely shut off in our room for 5 hours (!!) and the only option was to take the entire family and all of our required belongings across the property to get ready for dinner. After the water was turned back on, our shower failed to get any hotter than lukewarm. This went on for 2 days and we had to rush through a fairly cold shower with low water pressure. By the 3rd or 4th day this was finally resolved. There were multiple times where the power would flicker on and off in our room during the beginning of our stay and the smoke detector above us blinked a flashing light all night long right above the bed. The hot tub at the pool was broken the entire stay and we were unable to enjoy this amenity. For a 5-star luxury resort at the price point we paid, the above issues is disappointing. And to not hear back from the management team regarding a resolution is unacceptable.

My wife and I spent a few days at the St Regis as a quick babymoon. We wanted to get some pictures while we were in the warm weather. We reached out to our concierge before arriving and they connected us with Gary Blake from BEAM photography who couldn't have been more helpful. We set up the time and date for the photoshoot and he helped us through everything. It was as painless of an experience as you can hope for a photoshoot, Gary was very helpful in helping us relax and make the whole process more easy. Going over the pictures at the end of the day was effortless and we were able to decide on our package with some help from Gary. Of note: When we arrived to the hotel we asked the on site concierge if we could speak to Gary or anyone from BEAM photography. The concierge said no one from the company is physically at the St Regis. When we asked where their office is, they answered that it was at the EDITION, next door, but that no one is there at regular hours. When we eventually met Gary 3 days later he told us that he was in fact on site practically everyday. So that was a bit surprising.

Wow. What a phenomenal resort. Visually it is spectacular. There really is no place else that has a comparable design or feel to it . This is probably my favorite resort that we have ever stayed at, and we have visited some very nice places over the years. The service is excellent, it is immaculately clean. I would strongly suggest staying here if you want a restful and rejuvenating break. The saltwater pool is heated and enjoyable. We had a room with a plunge pool, it was very nice to be able to dip into it at our own leisure, the plunge pool is heated, but you must send a message to your butler to turn on the heat if needed. We did not have any issues with mosquitoes or bugs. The beach service is excellent. Dinner at Toro was outstanding and I strongly recommend. Dinner at Duryeas was just ok. I would have liked more options for lunch on site. We did venture over to the edition one day which was a nice golf cart ride and fun to spend a few hours there, you can charge back to your too from the restaurants there. The kids area is safe and clean, little kids will want to stay there for hours. Butler service was great, very responsive and accommodating to requests. If you appreciate unique properties that are clean and offer a high level of service this is a must stay at least once. We rarely visit the same property twice however, if we did have to choose one to return to, this would certainly be the one for now.

The bartender, Mario, is the best. I tried the Kanai Mary and the Palo Santo Batanga, which were the best cocktails of my life. He also kindly explained what Mexico is, which was great. If you come to the Kanai St. Regis, don't forget to visit the St. Regis Bar. The food is delicious too.

Mario was amazing to learn from during our cocktail class! My husband and I loved every minute - he was so kind, knowledgeable, and made the experience feel really special.