Impression Moxché by Secrets

“Prepare to be spoiled!”

This is a foodie paradise!! Just returned from 5 nights at the Impressions Moxche by Secrets. Overall it was amazing. The Impressions side was so relaxing and beautiful we really felt no need to spend time at the pools on the Moxche side. The Moxche side was VERY crowded and not as relaxing. … more

This is a foodie paradise!! Just returned from 5 nights at the Impressions Moxche by Secrets. Overall it was amazing. The Impressions side was so relaxing and beautiful we really felt no need to spend time at the pools on the Moxche side. The Moxche side was VERY crowded and not as relaxing. The rooftop pool was stunning and lunch at Cielo was so delicious!! This hotel really does kill you with service. We also went to the middle pool which was beautiful but the smell from the seaweed really was bad. Our last 2 days we got a cabana at the beach club and again, they totally killed us with attentive service. They worked really hard cleaning the seaweed, but they had a hard time keeping up with all the new seaweed. The beach is horrible!! But we knew this going in. We really wanted to experience Impressions, so we didn't spend any time on the beach. All the restaurants were fabulous!! The food is fresh, service is excellent, and if you are a foodie, Impressions knocks it out of the ballpark. We just had a normal king room with a tropical view. We still had an ocean view being on the 5th floor. The butler checks on you every day, but we actually had no use for the butler. But he was very nice, gracious and always asking if we needed anything. The room was very comfortable and large. Just ladies, horrible lighting in the bathroom for hair and makeup. I had a wonderful spa treatment doing the scrub, facial and massage. We were very disappointed in the hydrotherapy though. We scheduled 2 sessions and on our first session they treated us like cattle. We have done hydrotherapy at every resort we have been to in 30 years. Each one gives you your own time in each station with privacy. Not here. They mix you with other people and its impossible to relax. We walked out after the first station and canceled the following days appointment. So I do not recommend hydrotherapy if you are wanting privacy. There are just a couple areas Impressions falls short. Impressions does not have their own gym or spa. You have to go to the Moxche side for both. The mornings at the gym are crowded and good luck getting on a piece of cardio equipment. And there isn't a lot of weights to do any training. Only 2 leg machines and 3 upper body machines. And the spa is very busy in the day as well. For the money Impressions charges they should have their own gym and spa. And if you are a beach person do not even go to this resort. Its disgusting and the water is brownish green. This resort does over compensate with the pools and service. And just like any resort both Impressions and Moxche side you have to get up early and get your spot or you will not have a place to sit. Even on the Impressions pools of you want a roof top cabana or shade get up there before 7am. What is good is there is no extra charge for cabanas at Impressions. There are wonderful attentive people that really take care of you. We didn't have a problem however at the beach club. I think people avoided this area because of the seaweed smell. We were able to get a cabana without waking up at 6:30am. And the days we were there they cleaned up the seaweed so it really didn't smell. The food at the beach club was amazing and so was Cielo up on the roof. You absolutely have to have breakfast at the beach club. Now big question I know everyone wants to know. Is it worth the huge price tag. Personally for me, I received an incredible deal on our stay. I didn't spend the 1000.00 a night as I have seen. With the beach I have a real problem with paying more than 650.00 a night. That's about what we paid for the regular room and it was totally worth it. We also did join the membership club we got talked into sitting through. We didn't join the really expensive options, but if you sit through it and decline the huge priced membership, they will offer a more reasonable corporate membership that we think we will use We are looking forward to visiting more secrets resorts. The Secrets resorts really have the food and service. This is our second Secrets we have stayed at and I am officially a Secrets girl.

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“Worth the hype!!!”

We really appreciated all the reviews as they helped us decide on this resort which we absolutely loved and will return to. This was our first Secrets resort; we’ve stayed at several Excellence resorts and Haven Riviera recently. We stayed on the impressions side in a tropical view swim out. The … more

We really appreciated all the reviews as they helped us decide on this resort which we absolutely loved and will return to. This was our first Secrets resort; we’ve stayed at several Excellence resorts and Haven Riviera recently. We stayed on the impressions side in a tropical view swim out. The room was spotless and gorgeous. We only used the swim out a few times because the service at the impressions pools were so phenomenal- moreso the ground floor one versus rooftop. But we liked having the option to use it and the water was heated. We wouldn’t pay a lot more for it but ours was only $30 more a day so felt worth it. It also felt pretty private and we were in room 1111 and it stayed from about 10 AM to 6 PM. One thing I really appreciated was the soundproof walls and glass in the room. I am a light sleeper and I did not hear anything! It really made a difference for me im quality of sleep and relaxation. Our butlers Maria and Daniel were amazing and were helpful with moving reservations and we also had bath drawn by them twice while we were there. Jose on the activities team was a joy! I loved spinning and water aerobics with him. We also played movie trivia and had a blast. He has high energy and fun and the resort is lucky to have him! The overall vibe of this resort was a mix of relaxing and lively. We felt like we made many more connections than we usually do at excellence, but it was still quiet and romantic enough. We liked the lagoon pool and had good service there. We did not make it to the main pool or the T shaped pool and spent most of our time at Impressions. We did feel the service was better and quicker on the bottom pull up versus top. Particular shout outs to Sergio and Gloria. We loved the view of the rooftop pool but found service there to be a little bit slower. Not at the dealbreaker but we felt so pampered on the lower level floor it was hard to go up! For those debating Impressions if is worth it… We felt like it was. Cielo was outstanding and felt like a high end American steakhouse type of vibe (shout out to our server Victor). We loved Bisou too but Ember felt like a typical all inclusive restaurant to us- steaks were okay, mashed potatoes okay… at Cielo and Seaside, everything was outstanding and super fresh. This being said, you would still have a great time at the Secrets side only but it would have felt a little more crowded/slight towel game to us. We also loved the impressions bar especially Alejandro. Favorite dishes: Cielo- steak skewers, Caribbean lobster, roasted cauliflower for dinner For lunch, tuna poke bowl, smash burger, steak and taco tacos, guac Bisou- lamb, beef Wellington, French onion soup Seaside breakfast- burrata toast and French toast lived up to the hype! Seaside lunch- grilled shrimp and flank steak Observatory breakfast was great- liked the chia seed pudding there. We loved Cielo and Bisou so much we repeated them so missed the Mexican, Japanese, and Italian. We would rank in that order based on feedback we heard at the resort. Buffet was great for breakfast too- tons of choices, clean, fresh. They make great drinks but don’t have very good drink menu options- you have to know what to tell them to make. We went to the spa for 80 min couples massage which was great (ask to upgrade from your 25 included one on impressions side). Hydrotherapy was fun but wouldn’t pay extra for it. This is a pools, not a beach resort, and unfortunately we caught the start of the bad seaweed season. We knew what to expect going in so it didn’t bother us but be warned if you’re a big beach person- I’d go to playa Mujeres area instead. Every employee was friendly and seemed happy to be there which was a stark contrast to our last Excellence trip. We did tip about $50 total a day but saw others not tipping and still getting amazing service. Packing advice- pack more sunscreen that you think you need. We went through about a can day and it is $38 in the gift shop. We were also glad to pack LMNT, pepto bismol, etc. I think this stuff is more important not to forget versus an outfit or 2! Overall, we had a fabulous vacation and will be back!

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“One of the better all-inclusive hotels I’ve stayed at.”

We stayed at Impressions for a week along with each of our daughters and their boyfriends. We very much enjoyed our stay. The design and layout of the property is very good with the main pool complex (too many pools to count) between the Secrets hotel on one side and the Impressions hotel on the … more

We stayed at Impressions for a week along with each of our daughters and their boyfriends. We very much enjoyed our stay. The design and layout of the property is very good with the main pool complex (too many pools to count) between the Secrets hotel on one side and the Impressions hotel on the other side. Each pool was unique with some being hidden away in the trees and flowers such that they were quiet and relaxing, and others quite large with swim up bars facing the ocean. Additionally Impressions had elevated pools with one on the top floor with an infinity edge looking over the ocean and another on the 3rd floor. Both were very nice and had bars. The rooms in Impressions are very spacious, modern and well appointed and they have nice hot tubs on the balconies. I’d give both the pools and the rooms A+ grade each. We also really liked the nightly entertainment in the theater — with a good variety of magic, cirque acrobatics acts and music. Also the fire dancers show on the beach was one of the best I’ve ever seen. I’d give entertainment an A grade. The restaurants were good but pretty much like any all inclusive they’re good but not amazing. We really enjoyed our dinner on the rooftop restaurant called Cielo (best of the bunch) and also enjoyed the Italian and Mexican restaurants. The French one was a bit too fancy for my taste and the Asian one was fine but you can get better sushi and hibachi in a lot of places in the US. We did breakfasts in the Market which is the buffet and there was a LOT to choose from and most of it very good quality. We did not try the steak house or the beach side feast. I forgot to mention all the bars and there are many — the ones in Impressions made very nice cocktails using top shelf liquor though a few times the one in the lobby used the plastic ware instead of glass which was silly since we were dressed for dinner not the pool and were sitting at the bar — who wants a martini in a plastic cup? Overall the bar service was very good (fast and good quality). We enjoyed the swim up bars every afternoon and recommend the Sugar Reef (tiki hut) over the main pool since that got a bit crazy with people later in the day. We also liked the sports bar with the golf simulator and the pool table — it was a good way to kill time while waiting on dinner. Probably the best pool and bar is the Observatory on the top floor of the main building and you have to be part of the club or staying at Impressions to use it. The view is great with an infinity edge pool spanning the length and the bar in the center. Very cool vibe. My only complaint is the seaweed and the smell of the seaweed which permeates the area near the beach. I fully understand that it is an issue at every single hotel in the area and not an Impressions problem but it does not make eating outside very pleasant. They tried their best to keep cleaning it all up but the ocean is undefeated in bringing more and more into the shore. My main suggestion to management is that they rework their musician selections in many of the restaurants — the bands at the main pool bar were excellent but the electric harp player and the electric violin player at the Impressions pools/bars was odd — we’re at a beach hotel / pool / bar and you’re playing harp and violin tunes???? Made no sense — stick with a cool solo guitar player doing beachy type songs — Jack Johnson, Jimmy Buffet, Kenny Chesney etc. All in all we enjoyed our stay at Impressions and would recommend it. I’m giving 4 out of 5 because as good as it was, it cannot match up to a true 5-star hotel like the ones we’ve stayed at nearby like the St. Regis or the ones in Mayakoba (Banyan Tree, Andaz, Rosewood). I know it’s not trying to compete against those hotels but nonetheless I can’t get myself to give it 5 stars but it’s a very strong 4-star.

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