Royal Hideaway Playacar - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

10045 reviews

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  Lovely fourteen day stay at the Royal Hideaway Playacar

  We absolutely loved our stay at the Royal Hideaway ❤️ we enjoyed all the Alacartes our favorite was the Azia we enjoyed 3 Dinners there the staff were all awesome a special thankyou to Oscar excellent waiter Our second favorite was the grill they make a excellent Rib Eye and again staff were awesome. Our third favorite was spices for dinner and our waiter Antonio was amazing 👏 We enjoyed breakfast off menu at spices every morning again excellent staff To mention Joana Carlos and Antonio everyone was so welcoming Our concierge Armando was excellent so helpful had all our suppers booked for 6:00 which was great Now during the day the pool staff and was so great Everything was amazing will recommend when we get home Met lovely people from all over

  Nov 16, 2025
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  Disappointing

  The hotel was nice. Beach is nice, but there are a few things that will make me never go back to this resort. 1. Transportation arranged by the hotel - they never showed up at the airport to pick us up. Cost us $120.00 US to take a taxi. No one answering at the hotel. and when we got to the resort - they said the transport company didn't have our flight information. However, when we were getting ready to leave at the end of our trip - they sent us vouchers for the lounge at the airport and it included our flight information. How would they have the return information if they didn't have our arrival information. And of course, there is NO ONE at the resort that could help. Wasted our precious vacation time, talking to a number of different managers / conceirge / etc. 2. The bathtub in our room - looked old and dirty. it was a jet tub....grungy. and the water from the tub tap was brown. 3. We had to wait (10 - 20 mins) every breakfast and lunch. There seems to be not enough seating / staff / capacity to manage the number of guests. Also didn't like that we had to reserve every dinner. There wasn't a place we could just go without a reservation. Beach is lovely. Relaxation pools are lovely - but the other things.....won't come back. Disappointing as I have gone to a number of other Barcelo resorts near there that were all better than this one.

  Nov 15, 2025
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  If only the resort was as spectacular as the setting …..

  Just returned from a week at The Royal Hideaway and wanted to give an honest review and answer some of the questions that I’ve read on the chat. Bit of background on us, from the UK, first time visiting Mexico, though have travelled extensively across Europe, Asia and the US. We booked through British Airways holidays, could not get a better deal booking separately, even direct with Barcelo and using cheapest flights. We arrived late evening in pouring rain but were impressed with the reception we received and were pre booked into the Grill which was a nice touch. More on the Grill later. Rather than give a day by review, I’ve updated by topic, hope this helps. Beds by the pool - no chance by the main infinity pool unlesss you are timeshare members. Beds are booked by each block concierge for VIPs and members. Ordinary bods like us - no chance (confirmed by our concierge when we asked). We were however able to get a bed each morning by the pool behind the infinity pool, nice pool and steps from everything. We had to be there before 08:00 each morning to reserve them though. Once reserved, most were kept by towels all day, regardless of whether people used them. Beds on the beach - lots of beds, not as comfortable as the pool beds but steps from the amenities and the pool waiters take orders and serve everyone on the beach as well as around the pool. The beach - stunning! As beautiful as the pictures, soft white sand, turquoise warm sea, palm trees .. beautiful. Walked along to Playa Del Carmen and back, very enjoyable. The restaurants - in our view…. mixed. We felt the formal dress was a bit over the top. Smart shorts for men should have been acceptable. I’ve eaten in Michelin star restaurants in dress shorts. Booking - we emailed ahead of time and requested bookings and times. These were confirmed the day before we arrived. In order of where we dined. The Grill - we dined here on our first night. Felt a little underwhelming, dark but not cosy, bland and a bit dour. Food was ok (steak) nothing too outstanding but ok. Ventanas - sorry but bang average, no where near 5* dining. Menu was bland and food equally uninteresting. Lots of pretentious drama without the quality. Our least favourite restaurant, we chose not to eat there again. Azia - the best meal we had. Great menu, lots of options, excellent service. First class night. Understandably difficult to book. Spices - An over formal Mexican inspired offering. Again, sadly just ok, not spectacular, hoped for so much more from a traditional restaurant 😞 We did eat here for lunch on one day. Menu pretty similar to the evening menu. Palazzo - Italian inspired with great ambiance and food to match. Second only to Azia. Service great too. The Deck (Breakfast and all daytime dining) - this is actually the Grill, same place different name on an evening. Not two separate venues … cheeky. Breakfast was buffet style with omelette station - shout out to the omelette lady, always smiling 🙂 to be honest, choice got a bit samey after 6 days. For info we went into Playacar one night and ate at Harry’s - now that’s how you serve food - spectacular and highly recommended. Drinks - quite a few comments re strength of daytime drinks. In our opinion, the weakest drinks we’ve ever had at any all inclusive resort. If these were bought in a bar you’d send them back - such a shame. In fact the only alcoholic drinks we had which tasted as they should was the wine, direct from the bottle in the restaurants. Btw… Allegria and the Sports Bar are the same building .. Cheeky .. Accommodation - we were in a top floor apartment so had lovely high ceiling and felt roomy. A/C worked well, and bed was huge! Sadly it needed an upgrade. Whilst everything was spotlessly clean, it was was very tired, felt lived in. In all honesty, definitely not 5*. Overall - we had a great time, staff were great, location great, beach spectacular. Food and drinks sadly hit and miss. Would we go again? To a Barcelo yes (based on previous experiences). To Royal Hideaway, probably not. (Note: my honest, unbiased opinion from actual lived experience. Based on several years of global travel, staying in various types of accommodation and eating everywhere from street food to Michelin restaurants).

  Nov 15, 2025
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  Great choice for luxury feel at a fraction of the price

  I booked Royal Hideaway many months in advance for a total of $3200 for 9 days. Our room was steps from the pool and the sand. I was meeting my friend who I had not seen in 8 years. I was flying from Portland, OR. She flew from England Direct to Cancun. Our visit was Oct. 27 to Nov. 6 2025 I am a huge foodie and neither of us wanted to be at a resort with children. We decided that this was the place that met our needs. It's Her first time in Mexico and my first time in Playa. After a long day of travel, I was pleased to arrive at the resort at 7:00 pm. I was welcomed with luggage assistance, a glass of champagne and escorted to desk with one single man behind it. I sat down. And checked in. It was fabulous. The resort is gorgeous. It felt like I was the only person who was staying there. Luxurious first impression from there on out. My requests for particular accommodations were met and my room was ideal. The best thing about this vacation was the "personal concierge service" For every 12 or so rooms, you have a concierge who sits outside in the foire all day. “Fernanda” was who I had the pleasure of working with. I have never had a concierge service like this, and I was so grateful. And definitely utilized her services. Her English was fantastic. She went the extra mile in every situation! I had her phone number and She even came out to the beach on the sand” in her heels” to help me one day. I happily tipped her and wish I could have given her much more. I recommend having enough cash on you or a PayPal cash application for tipping. $100+ U.S. I recommend for concierge The restaurant food was excellent, however, if I had stayed any longer than 9 days, it would have gotten boring. Service wasn't bad overall . Some places were just stand out. Palazzo was my favorite for food, as well as Azia. The difference in energy between the two restaurants was night and day though. We were lucky enough to squeeze into a spot for the round table habachi show on our last night. I google translated to the most friendly hostess, that if there is a cancellation we would love to sit at that table. She made it happen. I hugged her when we lett. That restaurant and the people made our last night spectacular. The best service we received, hands down, was the manager at The Grill, right by the pool. They do breakfast and lunch. But !Carlos Quintel!, Who does dinner service, went above and beyond. My friend wasn't well that evening and I had no reservation anywhere. They gave me a table at the” Grill “and gave me soup to bring back to her. I brought her there next night and she was impressed. We specifically tipped him personally. He, then looked to his wait staff, who served us and gave them the money. He is a class act! Some things that were a miss: You absolutely need a reservation for every dinner. There really is no option for showing up unannounced. Unless it's breakfast. That can be tough if you change your mind or can't make it for dinner Everything books up. Your Concierge will take care of all of it at the beginning of your stay or throughout. Book ahead though. An incredible band plays on Thursday's! Excellent singer. I wish the area had more of a dance tloor. "NOTE" Do not rely on room service answering the phone until after midnight. And they do not bring you alcohol after midnight. Have money to tip the bartenders, wait staff, room service and housekeeping. Even a dollar will suffice for multiple visits I am a bit embarrassed that I did nothing to brush up on my native So Cal Escuela Espanol before I arrived. You will be received so much better if you try to use the native language. The jacuzzi's do not stay hot all hours. That was a miss for me. Also there aren't enough fun things to do. Grown ups like kid activities also, just without the kids. Haha Like life size chess games and pool slides. I did play volleyball though. Overall satistied. Certainly some stand outs, as I mentioned.

  Nov 14, 2025
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  A most memorable holiday in a beautiful resort!

  We have just returned from the Royal Hideaway a most beautiful resort and what a wonderful experience it was! The grounds are simply stunning, well maintained with peaceful water features! The staff work round the clock to ensure the grounds and water features are impeccable. There are benches dotted around the grounds, 5 swimming pools, two of which play soothing classical music making them tranquil and intimate spaces! The resort has 5 restaurants each offering a different type of cuisine and exceptional dining experience! My absolute favourite was Azia (Asian cuisine), followed by Spices , a beautiful space with tall windows a lovely chandelier, wall lights and it over looks a beautiful sandy beach and the sea! The restaurant serves delicious Mexican and Caribbean cuisine and has a bar with a great selection of Tequilas! Oh and did I mention the best meal we had was in the Royal Theatre? The dinning and entertainment in the theatre added a touch of sophistication! Although we had a couple of issues one with our first room and a mix up with our dinner reservation, Sandra Jiménez (our absolutely amazing concierge) handled the issues with professionalism and understanding! She completely turned the situation around, organising a complimentary massage for my partner and I, sparkling wine and charcuterie delivered to our room, a special dinner and early birthday celebration beautifully delivered with a birthday cake by Antonio Lopez (the magic trick worked 😘)! We could not have asked for a better concierge - Thank you Sandra from the bottom of our hearts! Thank you to Luis Hernandez who made sure every restaurant experience afterwards was perfect! On our last day, some of the restaurant staff who had looked after us, came to say good bye after our meal, a lovely and personal touch that meant so much to us. We would also like to thank the following members of staff: Isis Chuc, Wilson, Mariela, Teresa, Montserrat, Miriam, Oscar, Roberto (Mr Frisbee… you know who you are!), Carlos Cach, Lorenzo Cauchi, Villa 29 staff - Diana who ensured our room was clean and Jose (Chiapas Palenques) who topped up our mini bar, Cipriano Villa 22, the team at the Spa - Norma, Yomara, Guadalupe ‘Lupita’ and Leticia. Lastly but not least thank you to all the staff - including those looking after the grounds and water features, bars, poolside and activities. and all behind the scenes who ensure guests have unforgettable experiences in the resort! What began with a few bumps turned into a most memorable and unforgettable holiday and we are already counting down to our next visit in 2026, God willing!

  Nov 14, 2025