One&Only Mandarina

We scheduled here for our honeymoon, having come from another all inclusive resort in Mexico that was less private, but just as beautiful. One and Only is picturesque in many ways, but its service and experience fall far from its pictures. First, when working with them during prebooking... they kept not answering my emails. I'd have to follow up with them multiple times to get information about activities, scheduling, location, pricing, etc. Instead of just answering your questions, they write (or ChatGPT?) paragraphs of fluff content you have to read through, or attach a 10 page PDF for you to figure out on your own. Second, Roundtrip travel from the Airport is about $450-500. Its about 45 minutes each way through the countryside north of PV. This surprised me, many resorts in the area include free transportation to their location. Third, when we tried to check in, we had reserved a tree house with an ocean view. The front desk staff said that they had upgraded us for "Free" because of our American Express (I didn't pay with an american express?). They brought us to a unit that had no view, and shared a wall with an adjacent unit with no real privacy or view. SERIOUSLY? Apparently reading other reviews online, this is something that the hotel has pulled on multiple occasions - basically giving you a downgrade but telling you its an upgrade. After we told our concierge that we demand the unit we booked originally, they took us to a another unit that was on the other side of the property and could - just barely - see the beach from the deck and plunge pool. I think, after review of their site, that they mislead you with the name of the rooms. Most ocean view rooms are partial or no real view of the ocean (mainly jungle, as it has grown in since original development). Only the panoramic ocean view options ACTUALLY have a view of the ocean. Also at check in - they charged $2k for incidentals. I understand incidentals are used for food and activities, but given the short duration of our stay (only 4 nights), I was confused that our burn rate would be $500 / day for food, in Mexico. Turns out... yeah basically whatever you would expect to pay in the US under relatively normal circumstances, you will pay 3x that here. You are basically trapped at the resort and forced to pay 2-3x the cost of regular food in the US. Normally, price doesn't bother me if the quality is there - but the food was just awful. Everything we ordered just had so little flavor or was not that great. $50 cheeseburgers without the cheese. Guacamole and chips for $60 and the guac was just a partially diced avocado. The cocktails we're pretty average but $30 each. Breakfast each day was just.. okay. Juices were good, but I found everything else to be lackluster. The best food we had wasn't at One and Only. It was at the new Japanese restaurant on the cliffside in the opposite Resort (rosewood) that you can buggy too. Not only was that restaurant Amazing in its design, experience, authenticity and beauty... but the food was excellent. Cocktails strong and well balanced in flavor. Everything here was fine dining priced, but it was worth it because the experience was just that good. As for the venue and accommodations.. The units were pretty with a fair amount of jungle enclosure. I enjoyed the integration in with the greenery, despite there not really being total privacy as you are about 10-15 ft away from other units. The beds aren't great, but are fine enough, and we did appreciate that they brought us a floor fan to the room to use for our evening sleep. Our treehouse unit had some of the floors buckling (likely due to humidity from the shower), or part of the wood slats of the ceiling were hanging down. The plunge pool was very nice. Between that and the cliffside pool they advertise everywhere, I will say those were probably the highlights of the experience. The staff were all pretty nice, except for the trick the front desk people pulled. You can tell they think this place is quite special and care about their work. I guess in summary for us - we won't come back. If we hadn't enjoyed other luxury experiences before, this might have impressed us. But at the price point, the food, and overall venue.. it just didn't land - I honestly felt trapped and looked forward to leaving. In comparison, locations like El Nido Palawan or Boracay Shangri La in the Hhilippines (I know its not Mexico) were just so much better in terms of food, experience, value, service.

Absolutely amazing resort and exceptional service. The property is magnificent. The food was incredible. The villas are set up so well with such great views

Review is based on comparing to other hotels of similar caliber. The food is average. The service is average. The room, the grounds, the pools, the spa, amazing! Definitely experience it at least once!

We chose the O&O Mandarina to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. Everything from start to finish was superb. The Premier Panoramic Treehouse and the grounds were truly divine. In saying that, the star of the show was the service. The people were so friendly and willing to go above and beyond to make our stay memorable. Shout out to both Jorge and Lluvia for their exceptional service. Although not expected, a friendly tip from time to time is always appreciated. We were able to eat at all the restaurants and the food at each was delicious…good portion sizes as well. As mentioned in previous posts, the food and drink are pricey. Just be prepared to budget around $500-600/day for food and drink (depending on how much you drink). Overall, the resort exceeded our expectations. In saying that, it is a snoozer resort. There is no entertainment or lobby bar like you might experience at other high-end resorts in Mexico. That could be a plus for many. From a demographic perspective the crowd during our stay was mostly adults 25-50 years of age. Some tips to consider: 1. The “buggies” or golf carts are quite timely. Just give them 15 minutes. It’s simple to order them in advance via the app. It’s generally a 5-10 minute drive to get from one place to another…not bad at all. It poured every night around dinner time. The buggies are covered and no one got soaked. 2. As mentioned earlier, the resort is quiet. Head over to Allora beach bar between 2-4 PM. They have 2 for 1 happy hour on margaritas and Aperol Spritz. The staff over there is very friendly and the drinks are great. 3. Bugs are a thing here. I mean you’re in a jungle. In saying that, they have insect repellant in the room, on your patio and at the pool. The first few days the breeze was up so we didn’t feel much, but once it dies down you will get bit. Just plan accordingly…like sunscreen. In summary, this is a special place that does come with a premium price. In saying that, the resort and the staff made it worth every penny (or Peso).

We cannot say enough about our stay at One&Only Mandarina! We were celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary! The entire staff made sure to wish us a Happy Anniversary every chance they had and had so many wonderful surprises our entire trip! Our room took our breath away! We booked a treehouse and were upgraded to an ocean treehouse. What a thoughtful surprise! The staff took care of us better than we could have imagined… from our hosts, the buggy drivers, the waitstaff, all of the staff, they made us feel like we were family. The food was delicious! Breakfast at Alma each morning was so good. You can choose from the menu or buffet or both. Carao was a true dining experience. The Jetty Beach was a great place to relax and be pampered. We were there during the rainy season and loved watching the thunderstorms in the evening. The lightning displays over the ocean were mesmerizing! The jungle came to life with each storm. We cannot say enough wonderful things about our entire trip! We felt well taken care of and were truly spoiled! We hope to be back very soon!