Royalton Riviera Cancun, An Autograph Collection - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

21038 reviews

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  Not a 5 star and not a 3 star- Inconsistency on most fronts.

  TLDR- Think it’s a 3.5-4 star property and you will not be surprised. Overall it was inconsistent and although it was okay, we would not stay here again. After a few days it can seem boring and is quite costly to get off resort to do anything. Pros: Big hotel, many pools/bars/restaurants, beach access, big rooms, night shows, good buffet Cons: restaurant food, windy beach with sand fleas, areas need work/renos, room issues, alcohol, far from everywhere, taxi prices, tipping needed, long check in. --- This Royalton does a lot of things okay, instead of doing a few things really well. It is located about 40+ minutes from the airport (depending if the driver goes the speed limit, 30 mins on the main highway and 10 mins on the 3km-ish driveway). Getting to and away from the resort is costly as the taxis/transports 'have a cartel', and it’s "not advised" to walk the driveway to catch a bus (12 MXN/$0.60 USD) since its ‘dangerous’ etc. Our vacation package included transfers, but when we looked it was a minimum of 45USD just to get off the resort. This was even for non-hotel related transports. Some tours also do not pick up from this hotel for some reason. We stayed further away and paid less for transports just a year ago, so it has to do something with the hotel I think. Check in for 5 couples (non diamond club) took 45 mins with 2 employees “working” (it was late at night and 1 was doing paperwork and not really helping, although during the day I saw 4 people working). After check in we were told to wait for a bellhop (to generate a tip presumably) but there were 2 groups waiting already, so we found the room ourselves. We ordered room service, (it was the only food at that time) and were quoted 45 mins (actually took 75 mins) for cold cardboard pizza and a decent burger. The delivery guy waited for a tip, which we reluctantly gave. Afterwards we booked restaurant reservation using the app (you can book up to 3 days in advance) The room was nice, tidy, large and clean. It did however have broken items (tiles, closet door, stained tub and a toilet seat that rested halfway between open/closed). I assume the the issues had been like this for some time as the bottom of the closet door was worn and basically immovable. The room faced the mangrove, which did have a sulphur smell, but we didn't spend time out there, so it was manageable. The many pools were nice, but not deep. Day bed and chairs were always taken and staff would "save" them for people who tipped. It was not a big issue as the hideaway pool bar was closed so there were empty chairs near it if needed. The drinks from the bar were really inconsistent, even from the same bartender on the same day, where I order 2 of the exact same drink. They use a "sweet mix” in most everything. This mix has high levels of aspartame, which was an issue for me. Don’t expect your standard drink to taste or be made with the same ingredients as home. I think their grenadine is just a red colored aspartame mix. You have to tip and specifically ask for the better alcohol every single time you order, or you get low quality, undesirable drinks. The draught beer was consistent and tasty (mixed with lemon/citrus drink was great). The coffee bar on the main level seemed to be the most consistent for quality and taste and the swim ups had the worst, with the restaurants in the middle. The buffet was large and had 5+ cooking stations for tacos, grill, pasta, and other items. I would recommend the fresh made options (like grilled squid or tuna). We tried 5 restaurants and most were satisfactory. My SO grew up with fish daily and thought some of the fish tasted old and gave an itchy throat. The Teppanyaki was the number 1 place for us. It gave the best show and food (which was simple fried rice and meat). The chef however was less than excited than other chefs in the restaurant. We had a sushi dish which had some "wasabi" that was a blue liquid and surely not wasabi. We often hit the buffet after the restaurant for better desserts and sometimes food. The night club was small and lackluster, but the bar below it was a nice area to relax and enjoy the musical/night acts. It was sometimes tough to get a seat however and you need to be patient for someone to leave (no towel boys here to tip for a spot) The sport bar was by far the worst, the staff basically said that there were no seats and motioned for us to leave. We saw a table and a Mexican patron had to talk to the staff to get us seated. The food was inedible, the buffalo chicken wings were cold and tough with overly spicy sauce and limited flavor. The beach was nice, when it was calm but it was mostly windy. I think this is why they didn't staff the watersports booth. In all of the 5 times we went, nobody was working so we couldn't use the SUP or boats that they advertise. Other highlights were the Dorado restaurant which seemed to be fancy and had the most upscale looking dishes. One person in the group said they enjoyed Taj (indian food) the most, while the other said it was the worst for them, inconsistent once again. Other things, the sand fleas are terrible. You don't know you are bitten until a day after when the red marks start to appear and itch. About 50% of the group was bitten resulting in over 30 itchy sores that took 7 days fully go away. We had a group and even though we all ate at different restaurants and foods, 30% got sick and it really ruined the trip for them. I don’t solely blame the hotel, as it could be from the food, or just general Mexican water or bacteria. We tried to be careful to not drink the water even when showering and brushing out teeth, but we still had problems. In terms of cleanliness, I saw the same blood stains on the floor for 3 days and a hair net that just sat in the same spot on the ground for 4 days. This was in comparison to the flowers and the grounds keeping where the wind would blow the plant leaves around, and they were cleaned up in a very timely manner. Many places could use some work as tiles were missing or things were broken, while other things were in very good condition and the best shape they could be. Inconsistent all over the place. After a few day, it started to seem boring at the hotel. We tried to attend the event like Spanish class, or guacamole making, which was helpful to break up the day. I did hear about a free shopping shuttle, but when I asked the front desk, they struggled with their English and told me it didn't exist. Apparently the shuttle is a tourist scam anyway, so just be cautious if you take it.

  Dec 10, 2024
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  David entertainment

  Find David with the vibe team when you get to the Royalton. He rocks with energy and you will have the bestest and I mean bestest time in zumba and he is da bomb!! And he is by far the happiest man I've met. And he will make you smile just being around him!!

  Dec 10, 2024
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  Not impressed with the “Two Bedroom Presidential Suite”

  My wife and I brought down our four children from 17 to 25 years old. My wife and I have stayed here before a few years ago and really enjoyed it. This time we booked a two bedroom presidential suite for well over $1,000 a night and were expecting a spectacular room. What we got instead was pushed off into the farthest corner of the resort with two adjoining rooms, not a two bedroom presidential suite. The shower didn’t drain, there was what looked like tar on the shower head, we came back one night to no electricity in the room and had to call three times and go to the front desk once before someone showed up hours later to flip the breakers. We did not get what we paid for and feel like we could have gone somewhere much more upscale for the price. The waitstaff are great and I tip everyone of them at least five dollars every time we ask for anything or interact with them, so no complaints with the waitstaff. Just not impressed with our supposed “Presidential Suite” felt more like a Springhill Suites with adjoining rooms.

  Dec 10, 2024
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  Ernesto is the friendship bracelet king 👯‍♀️🤴🏾

  The resort is stunning. The staff is so amazing. Ernesto made us friendship anklets, went on a mission to find me guacamole cause that was all I wanted. There are so many things to do. Diego took care of us for drinks everytime. The food was great and there were plenty of options.

  Dec 10, 2024
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  Lacking a royal experience

  Drink: the drinks are far from luxury or that of a 5* resort, with the wine retailing for less than $5 per bottle. Do not drink the water served in the restaurants it tastes and smells of sewage. Food: the food quality is that of a roadside dinner (if you are American) or a Toby Carvery (if you are British), it couldn’t be any further away from luxury or 5* Allergies: if you have any allergies or intolerances the hotel cannot accommodate these Sales: you will be harassed all day by the pool trying to be upsold a culinary experience, spa treatment or excursion Hideaway: note you only have access to one restaurant that is child free, so if you are looking for adults only, this is not the hotel for you. The pool has extremely limited sunbeds in the 1/3 that has sun and you will need to put your towel down around 5am each day. Diamond Club: if your butler is Montserrat please be aware she has the work ethic of Paris and Nicole in the Simple Life, aka she will do nothing! Free Transfers: you will be put in a queue on arrival for the next bus that goes in the direction of your hotel; this can take between 10-60 minutes. Once onboard you will then drive the opposite direction to another terminal to pick up more guests before finally departing the airport up to 90 minutes later! Management: when we complained to the hotel duty manager Antonio about these issues and more he laughed in our face.

  Dec 10, 2024