El Dorado Royale - Only adults

“Tropical paradise!”

Rincon is just one of the many restaurants at El Dorado Royale. We had wonderfully friendly service at this restaurant by our waiter Manuel and the host Tavor. The food was gourmet excellent. Margarita and mojito cocktails were perfectly awesome. The entire large resort staffed by friendly happy w… more

Rincon is just one of the many restaurants at El Dorado Royale. We had wonderfully friendly service at this restaurant by our waiter Manuel and the host Tavor. The food was gourmet excellent. Margarita and mojito cocktails were perfectly awesome. The entire large resort staffed by friendly happy workers . It is topnotch Riviera Maya resort!

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“Beyond the Beach: A Relaxing and Luxurious Stay at El Dorado Royale”

I traveled to El Dorado Royale with my husband after doing a great deal of research and reading many reviews beforehand, so we arrived with a fairly realistic understanding of what to expect. Arrival at Cancún airport was initially confusing. This resort uses individual luxury transportation picku… more

I traveled to El Dorado Royale with my husband after doing a great deal of research and reading many reviews beforehand, so we arrived with a fairly realistic understanding of what to expect. Arrival at Cancún airport was initially confusing. This resort uses individual luxury transportation pickups rather than the traditional bus system that stops at multiple resorts. Unfortunately, we were not aware of that. After speaking with Air Canada representatives, who did not have our names on any shuttle list, we were quickly approached by a gentleman insisting we needed a transportation voucher. The moment we mentioned calling our travel agent, he pointed us toward the LOMAS Travel kiosk, where they promptly arranged a luxury vehicle to transport us directly to the resort. Once we understood the system, everything went smoothly. Now, let’s address the beach honestly, because many reviews do — and they are correct. The beach here is essentially nonexistent. The property has suffered major erosion from hurricanes, and large triangular man-made rock structures have been installed along the shoreline in an attempt to slow further damage. They are admittedly unsightly at the moment, though we were told they will eventually sink further into the sandbars over time. Sargassum is also a major issue throughout the Cancún region right now. There are people working tirelessly trying to clear it, but it truly feels like trying to count grains of sand. There is a noticeable odour at times, though it is a natural environmental issue rather than something created by Cancun. Some guests were visibly upset about the beach situation, but to be fair, this is clearly mentioned in many reviews. If your dream vacation involves long white sandy beaches, turquoise ocean swims, and endless shoreline walks, this is not the resort for you. However, the resort chain does offer access to beautiful Maroma Beach via shuttle from the resort, and that excursion is absolutely worth doing. What the resort lacks in beach, it more than makes up for in property size, atmosphere, food, service, and overall experience. The property itself is enormous — roughly 4 km from end to end, and because there is little beach to walk along, they have created a beautiful oceanfront walking path that we used daily. Luxury golf cart transportation is constantly circulating as well, so getting around is easy if walking is not your thing. The property is essentially three resorts in one: • The Royale section — the mid-tier adults-only all-inclusive area • The Casitas section — more upscale, with private casitas, outdoor showers, swim-up options, and a more luxurious feel • The Generations section — the family-oriented area Ironically, the Casitas section seemed to have the worst beach odor due to its location closest to the shoreline. We stayed in Building/Room 4325 on the Royale side and absolutely loved the location. While the Royale rooms are probably the most “standard” accommodations on the property and could use some refreshing, they were spotless, spacious, and very comfortable. The rooms have plenty of storage, excellent showers with lots of hot water, loads of towels, lovely toiletries, and even an oversized older jacuzzi tub that is perfect for soaking after long walks. One note for older travelers like us (59 and 66): the lighting in the rooms could definitely be improved! We arranged morning room service daily with coffee and fresh fruit, which was wonderful. Please remember to tip your servers generously — there are no elevators in many buildings, and staff carry trays up multiple flights of stairs constantly. In fact, one thing we really want to emphasize is how incredibly hard the staff work throughout this entire property. From housekeeping and grounds crews battling endless sargassum cleanup (I think they are government or contract workers), to servers climbing stairs with room service trays in the heat, to bartenders, concierge teams, maintenance staff, drivers, and restaurant teams — everyone we encountered was professional, kind, and consistently went above and beyond to make guests feel welcome and cared for. Please remember to tip the staff whenever you can. Their level of hospitality truly helped make this vacation special. Because we traveled during the off-season, occupancy was apparently only around 40%, and on a property this large, it truly felt like we had a private paradise. We never once had to reserve pool chairs or cabanas. Towels were available everywhere, and the pools and bars were beautiful and almost quiet enough that I started referring to the bartenders as “the lonely bartenders” because they rarely seemed busy. The grounds are immaculate and beautifully maintained. There are gorgeous tropical gardens everywhere, and the entire resort feels lush and luxurious. There are also multiple high-end gift shops throughout the property, though they are extremely expensive. One thing that could definitely be improved is orientation for new guests. The first 24 hours felt somewhat confusing, and we heard many other guests say the same thing. There is very little explanation upon arrival regarding: • which areas you can access • what is included • which restaurants require reservations • where entertainment is located • what activities are complimentary versus extra cost That is where the concierge offices become invaluable. Each section has its own concierge team, and once we met Kevin and Jamie, everything finally started to make sense. They walked us through the resort layout, explained the various access levels, helped arrange excursions and dining reservations, and clarified which pool cabanas were complimentary versus those reserved for members or available for rental. For example, we discovered the first morning that some cabanas at the main pool cost $100 USD per day, while others are reserved for members only, and still others are free on a first-come basis. Without guidance, it can be confusing. Kevin and Jamie also informed us about the four complimentary excursions available to guests, including: • Maroma Beach and catamaran • the on-site cenote and animal sanctuary tour • an off - site cenote tour • Playa del Carmen excursion The Maroma Beach excursion is absolutely not to be missed. The beach there is breathtaking — exactly the white sand Caribbean beach experience many travelers' picture. Food, drinks, beach chairs, and umbrellas are all included, just as if you were at your own resort. We also did the catamaran excursion later that same day, boarding around 3 PM, which worked perfectly because it gave us time to enjoy the beach beforehand. The cenote and animal sanctuary tour on-site was another highlight. We loved that the resort rescues animals such as pigs, goats, and horses, and also operates greenhouses that support a farm-to-table approach for many ingredients used throughout the property. It genuinely feels like a sustainability success story run by people who care. We also appreciated that this is a 100% Mexican-owned and operated company. As Canadians, that mattered to us. The restaurants were excellent overall. Because the resort is so large, the restaurants are also large, so availability was rarely an issue. Our favorites were: • the Mediterranean restaurant • the Italian restaurant • the Mexican restaurant The house wines were perfectly good, cocktails were excellent, and while premium wines are available for purchase, we never felt the need. There is also a wonderful Mexican fiesta evening with entertainment and a huge variety of food choices in a large event venue. There was a paid interactive cooking dinner experience available as well, but honestly, we simply ran out of time because there were more restaurants and activities than days in our stay. Breakfast options were plentiful. While the buffet was very good, we personally preferred the smaller restaurants and smoothie bar, where we enjoyed things like avocado toast and healthier breakfasts. Between all the walking and the nutritious meals, we actually lost weight during the trip! Honestly, this resort could market itself as a wellness retreat if it wanted to. The gym is excellent, and the spa is beautiful. I had an outdoor massage for my birthday in an elevated palapa overlooking the ocean, with incredible sea breezes — absolutely wonderful. Evening entertainment at 9 PM was surprisingly impressive. This was not the typical cheesy resort entertainment. The performers were genuinely talented. We did find it odd that some additional evening events required paid tickets despite being at an all-inclusive resort, but it was not a major issue. Most importantly, this resort felt extremely safe. Security is highly visible but not intrusive. There are security personnel on the beach, cameras throughout the property, and because of the expansive walking paths and lighting, we always felt perfectly comfortable walking long distances at night. Like virtually every resort, there is also a membership sales presentation. Ours was actually very enjoyable. We toured some truly stunning suites, had breakfast, discussed pricing, and learned about the membership program. They are very clear that it is a membership model rather than a traditional timeshare, and there are definitely differences. It is expensive (at least to us), but the perks are substantial if that lifestyle appeals to you. Just know your financial limits and avoid impulse decisions. We also want to mention Francisco from the membership sales team. He mentioned he is relatively new to the role, but you would never know it from his professionalism and knowledge. He was friendly, confident, patient, and very well informed, without ever coming across as pushy or overly aggressive the way some resort sales presentations can feel. He answered questions honestly, explained the program clearly, and gave us space to think without pressure. If we ever decided to purchase a membership in the future, we would absolutely feel comfortable working with him specifically. Would we return? Absolutely. Once we figured out how everything worked, we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Our suggestions to the resort would be: • Refresh and brighten the Royale rooms with lighter paint and improved lighting • Encourage guests to meet with their concierge immediately upon arrival • Improve signage for some restaurants and amenities • Provide a clearer orientation about included versus extra-charge amenities • place interactive boards throughout the resort for events, restaurants and transportation times, or make it an App that all guests can access. Finally, a special thank you to Jamie and Kevin, our concierge team. They were professional, authentic, attentive, and genuinely kind. They never gave the artificial “working for a tip” feeling that can sometimes happen at resorts. They followed through on every request, checked in regularly, and made my birthday truly special with room decorations and cake delivery. Both clearly have bright futures ahead of them in hospitality and will no doubt move quickly through the ranks. And Kevin — we truly hope you make it to Canada one day to try snowboarding! So, in summary: If your priority is endless sandy beaches and ocean swimming, this is not your resort. If you dislike walking or climbing stairs, this may not be ideal either. But if you enjoy: • beautiful pools • excellent food • lush tropical scenery • luxury atmosphere • peace and quiet • wellness-focused travel • professional and welcoming staff • safety • spacious accommodations • relaxing adults-only environments then El Dorado Royale, Casitas or Generations may be exactly your next destination.

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