All You Need to Know About the Snorkelling
at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort
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Snorkelling review highlights
Had a great time. Lots to do. Loved the snorkeling. Everyone is helpful and courteous. Water slides are great. My kids had a...
... every time you go they offer you deals to return. The snorkeling was good too. They will ask you to do a time share tour,...
... and did not have one problem. Best tip: Book the snorkeling trip with Alexis (redhead) from Texas at the towel shop. ...
Most popular question about the snorkelling
I know there is snorkeling in the cenote but can you snorkel in the ocean too?
Answer from Web_Sandos
May 2023 |
Featured snorkelling amenities
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Reviews that mention snorkelling
Write a reviewHad a great time. Lots to do. Loved the snorkeling. Everyone is helpful and courteous. Water slides are great. My kids had a great time. Facility is nice. Staff including carlos, Enrique, suguey,shanne, agustin,Benjamin, aracely by the water slide area is very helpful and friendly.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Response from Web_Sandos, Director de Relaciones con Clientes at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort
Responded Jul 14, 2019
Dear Guest, We would like to thank you for choosing Sandos Caracol as your holiday destination, and for your kind and detailed review about the resort. It is wonderful to know that you felt welcomed here in your home away from home, the service we offer each day is only rewarded when our guests go home happy and remind us with a smile, and I am glad to know that this is the case with you. Let us know as soon as you are ready to comeback; our great team will be ready to exceed your expectations again! Kind regards, Sandos Caracol Eco Resort & Spa Management.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
This all inclusive resort was nice. My family and I went for our vacation. The food was plentiful and good. We had an incident that was REALLY hurtful. The Kids Club was a drop off place so that parents could have some adult time. Our children were there for 6 hours and were NOT feed, even though they asked several times. Apparently there are days where they feed the children and other days where they were not. However, they did not inform us of this information. VERY UPSETTING. Other than this horrible experience, the resort is nice. They offer lots of activities. The nightly shows were pretty good quality, especially the 3 part Mayan show. The Disney theme show was also surprisingly good. I visited the Spa on three occasions. The massages were great and every time you go they offer you deals to return. The snorkeling was good too. They will ask you to do a time share tour, be firm that you only signed to give them 90 minutes of your time. At 89 minutes I told them they had a minute left, that we were not interested and by 95 minutes time we had our complimentary gifts promised and we were on our way. Lastly, they have some NICER restaurants to chose from for dinner (i.e. Brazilian, Steak House, Mediterranean, etc.) that are included in your stay. My suggestion is to arrive at 5:30 when they open unless you'd like to wait an hour or more for a table.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
3 Helpful votes
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Response from Web_Sandos, Gerente at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort
Responded Sep 8, 2018
Dear valued customer Elizabeth L, It has been a real pleasure to receive all your compliments and positive critic regarding our services and most particularly, our staff which makes the difference in your experience. We are pleased and indeed very grateful to hear that our efforts to maintain excellent guest satisfaction are being recognized also our opportunities for improvements. We have read your positive critic comments to improve our services and we will consider them all to make our service even better. We hope to see you soon again. Always at your service,
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Our family vacationed at Sandos Caracol from 6/15 to 6/24 and absolutely loved it. This is our eighth time traveling to the Cancun area staying at a different resort each time to enjoy varied experiences. From the moment we arrived at this hotel WE LOVED IT !!! Mariana - the Hotel Guest Manager checked us in and made sure we had welcomed drinks to start our trip off right. I highly recommend contacting guest services prior to arrival to request all of your needs as this helps facilitate a quicker check in process. Mariana - had us set up in a great room, close to the Aqua Park for our girls, all dinner reservations were pre-booked.
After traveling to over 10 all inclusive resorts in the Caribbean we have become extremely picky in our hotel preferences. Sandos exceeded many of our expectations - wonderful food at the buffets, great specialty restaurants (Our favorite was the Japanese). Sandos has a wonderful small village feel to it - walking from the beach to the shops and restaurants was quick and easy.
Sandos also has a great entertainment staff - my kids loved participating in the daily activities and 10 am volleyball game and 3 pm International Bingo became a daily family tradition. My 12 and 11 year old daughters especially loved Andrea (Andie), Jose Carlos, Dario, Juanjo and Roberto from the entertainment staff as they went out of their way to make sure my girls were having a great vacation by playing with them in the Sports Room, encouraging them to participate in activities and even being invited to Dario's "fake wedding".
The grounds were beautiful and having several cenotes and actual ruins on the ground were an added plus. My husband and I highly recommend going on the eco tour if you are interested in the grounds and the tour guide Ramiro was extremely knowledgeable of the history and flora of the grounds. Ramiro gave me the best tip ever after seeing me attacked by mosquitos. Use bodywash for mosquito repellant. Trust me - it works! I used the soap in our room and rubbed it in like lotion before going out every evening and the mosquitos left me alone.
Negatives - Not many. The main pool would get warmer than I would prefer in the afternoon but we would just switch to the Chill out pool to cool down and the Chill out pool had a better bar.
Main pool bar could benefit from having 2 bartenders on the pool side, the bartender was overwhelmed and did not take the time to make a proper mixed drink. Want better drinks go to the Chill out bar. Mosquitos were in full effect (but we did choose to go to an eco resort) so prepare for the this or use the soap method I learned. Many people comment about the beach but I thought it was beautiful, yes there are rocks in many places but this is natural to the environment. We took aqua shoes and did not have one problem.
Best tip: Book the snorkeling trip with Alexis (redhead) from Texas at the towel shop. She convinced my daughter to try snorkeling and she loved it. It is a $39 boat ride from the resort but the views are breath taking, we snorkeled for 45 minutes in a private bay and had the opportunity to see 2 sea turtles one swam right under me.
Overall one of the best vacations we ever had - Thank you Sandos Caracol for the great memories.
After traveling to over 10 all inclusive resorts in the Caribbean we have become extremely picky in our hotel preferences. Sandos exceeded many of our expectations - wonderful food at the buffets, great specialty restaurants (Our favorite was the Japanese). Sandos has a wonderful small village feel to it - walking from the beach to the shops and restaurants was quick and easy.
Sandos also has a great entertainment staff - my kids loved participating in the daily activities and 10 am volleyball game and 3 pm International Bingo became a daily family tradition. My 12 and 11 year old daughters especially loved Andrea (Andie), Jose Carlos, Dario, Juanjo and Roberto from the entertainment staff as they went out of their way to make sure my girls were having a great vacation by playing with them in the Sports Room, encouraging them to participate in activities and even being invited to Dario's "fake wedding".
The grounds were beautiful and having several cenotes and actual ruins on the ground were an added plus. My husband and I highly recommend going on the eco tour if you are interested in the grounds and the tour guide Ramiro was extremely knowledgeable of the history and flora of the grounds. Ramiro gave me the best tip ever after seeing me attacked by mosquitos. Use bodywash for mosquito repellant. Trust me - it works! I used the soap in our room and rubbed it in like lotion before going out every evening and the mosquitos left me alone.
Negatives - Not many. The main pool would get warmer than I would prefer in the afternoon but we would just switch to the Chill out pool to cool down and the Chill out pool had a better bar.
Main pool bar could benefit from having 2 bartenders on the pool side, the bartender was overwhelmed and did not take the time to make a proper mixed drink. Want better drinks go to the Chill out bar. Mosquitos were in full effect (but we did choose to go to an eco resort) so prepare for the this or use the soap method I learned. Many people comment about the beach but I thought it was beautiful, yes there are rocks in many places but this is natural to the environment. We took aqua shoes and did not have one problem.
Best tip: Book the snorkeling trip with Alexis (redhead) from Texas at the towel shop. She convinced my daughter to try snorkeling and she loved it. It is a $39 boat ride from the resort but the views are breath taking, we snorkeled for 45 minutes in a private bay and had the opportunity to see 2 sea turtles one swam right under me.
Overall one of the best vacations we ever had - Thank you Sandos Caracol for the great memories.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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We came back from Sandos Eco Resort last week and it is very hard to evaluate this resort. Firstly, the overall service level is definitely lower than expected. We always had this feeling that it's either the staff needs more training or maybe they are short of staff. Bartender at the lobby refused to make a cocktail once saying it was only made for "special guests", which the manager was very kind to resolve right away.
Another frustrating incident happened when one of the Activities staff member Jair refused to give us gear for the snorkeling activity we had reserved. We arrived in time but were 2 minutes late for the orientation because our door fob didn't work and the concierge took some time to fix it. We explained everything but he was rude and arrogant and didn't want to listen and made this a big deal like it was a secret military service and not a fun activity.
On a positive side, the resort itself is amazing, it is in the jungle so whoever loves nature, wildlife, aqua park for kids will love this resort. Beach is great too. Enjoy your stay
Another frustrating incident happened when one of the Activities staff member Jair refused to give us gear for the snorkeling activity we had reserved. We arrived in time but were 2 minutes late for the orientation because our door fob didn't work and the concierge took some time to fix it. We explained everything but he was rude and arrogant and didn't want to listen and made this a big deal like it was a secret military service and not a fun activity.
On a positive side, the resort itself is amazing, it is in the jungle so whoever loves nature, wildlife, aqua park for kids will love this resort. Beach is great too. Enjoy your stay
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Response from Sandos_Playacar, Web Relations Manager at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort
Responded Dec 19, 2019
Hi Kokag303, Thank You for having taken the time to share your vacation experience with us at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort. We really appreciate your input and recommendation in helping us to provide an exceptional service! Rest assured that we will provide your observations to the heads of the pertinent Departments. We look forward to welcoming you back at your earliest convenience. Always at your service. Warren B Web Relations Manager Sandos Caracol Eco Resort Email: webrelations.caracol@sandos.com
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We flew Skyservice to Mexico January 20th 2009. We arrived in Cancun at 9:00 am and were bussed directly to our hotel. We recieved check in packages on the bus. When we arrived at the resort we checked in at the front desk and were informed our rooms were not quite ready for us. We then checked our luggage and toured the resort. We were amazed at the size of the resort. We checked back at 3:00 and our rooms were ready. Overall check in went very smoothly.
We were placed in block 57 which was towards the back of the resort, by the select club area. Our rooms were newer with 2 double beds, a large bathroom with walk in shower and a deck. We had originally booked king size rooms, so we asked at the front desk to be moved. They told us the hotel was full at the moment, but if we came back on Thursday we would be moved to a room with King size beds.
We moved on Thursday to block 5 which was beside the main pool and had a view of the ocean and pool as well as a King size bed. The rooms were cleaned daily and we had turndown service at night with extra towels and chocolates. The mini bar was stocked daily. The only downside to this room was that it was right behind the main buffet and their was a considerable amount of noise in the mornings with the staff wheeling carts of food to the buffet.
The food at the resort was very good. The buffets always had an excellent selection of food that would suit anyone. The breakfasts at the hotel were excellent, you could have eggs cooked any way that you liked as well as omelets made to order. The Italian buffet cooked pasta anyway that you requested. If you were hungry at any time the snack bars were always available and they were always BBQing burgers and hot dogs on the beach.
The A la Carts that we chose were exceptional! The steakhouse was the best! We had excellent steak and the service was remarkable. Make sure you have a tequila boom boom!
The Mediterranean had the best steak I had ever tasted! The fillet was cooked to perfection and you could cut it with your fork! Some people in our group had the seafood and said it was great as well.
The Brazilian restaurant in the select club area was our last a la cart, it was good, but somewhat of a let down after the other two restaurants. Here we couldn't order off the menu, we received a salad bar a small plate of vegetables and potatoes and after that the waiters came around with squewers of cooked meat. Beef, pork, chicken, turkey. It was not brought to you at the same time and you ate one piece of meat at a time.
The pools were very clean, but the water was somewhat cold. We enjoyed the swim up bars, but the temp could have been a little warmer! Every morning an employee is in the pool scrubbing it down. They work so hard at the resort to keep it immaculate!
The beach area was quite large and always kept clean. You had to be out early to reserve a chair at the beach as well as the pool. The beach area has large sand whales to keep the waves from destroying the beach, it made it nice to swim in. The water was very warm! We were told that on the other side of the sand bags the snorkeling was quite good, but never got a chance to try it.
We attended the mixed show one night it was very good and the animation staff try so hard!
The bar staff were excellent, they would make you any drink however you requested it! The drinks were good and the alcohol was not watered down as some have commented. They had a large selections of alcohol and some premium liquor, such as Smirnoff and Bacardi.
We were only approached once by the timeshare people but after a polite no thank you we were never approached again.
Overall, we thought this resort was great! It had an abundance of food, beverages and great service! We would return again!
We were placed in block 57 which was towards the back of the resort, by the select club area. Our rooms were newer with 2 double beds, a large bathroom with walk in shower and a deck. We had originally booked king size rooms, so we asked at the front desk to be moved. They told us the hotel was full at the moment, but if we came back on Thursday we would be moved to a room with King size beds.
We moved on Thursday to block 5 which was beside the main pool and had a view of the ocean and pool as well as a King size bed. The rooms were cleaned daily and we had turndown service at night with extra towels and chocolates. The mini bar was stocked daily. The only downside to this room was that it was right behind the main buffet and their was a considerable amount of noise in the mornings with the staff wheeling carts of food to the buffet.
The food at the resort was very good. The buffets always had an excellent selection of food that would suit anyone. The breakfasts at the hotel were excellent, you could have eggs cooked any way that you liked as well as omelets made to order. The Italian buffet cooked pasta anyway that you requested. If you were hungry at any time the snack bars were always available and they were always BBQing burgers and hot dogs on the beach.
The A la Carts that we chose were exceptional! The steakhouse was the best! We had excellent steak and the service was remarkable. Make sure you have a tequila boom boom!
The Mediterranean had the best steak I had ever tasted! The fillet was cooked to perfection and you could cut it with your fork! Some people in our group had the seafood and said it was great as well.
The Brazilian restaurant in the select club area was our last a la cart, it was good, but somewhat of a let down after the other two restaurants. Here we couldn't order off the menu, we received a salad bar a small plate of vegetables and potatoes and after that the waiters came around with squewers of cooked meat. Beef, pork, chicken, turkey. It was not brought to you at the same time and you ate one piece of meat at a time.
The pools were very clean, but the water was somewhat cold. We enjoyed the swim up bars, but the temp could have been a little warmer! Every morning an employee is in the pool scrubbing it down. They work so hard at the resort to keep it immaculate!
The beach area was quite large and always kept clean. You had to be out early to reserve a chair at the beach as well as the pool. The beach area has large sand whales to keep the waves from destroying the beach, it made it nice to swim in. The water was very warm! We were told that on the other side of the sand bags the snorkeling was quite good, but never got a chance to try it.
We attended the mixed show one night it was very good and the animation staff try so hard!
The bar staff were excellent, they would make you any drink however you requested it! The drinks were good and the alcohol was not watered down as some have commented. They had a large selections of alcohol and some premium liquor, such as Smirnoff and Bacardi.
We were only approached once by the timeshare people but after a polite no thank you we were never approached again.
Overall, we thought this resort was great! It had an abundance of food, beverages and great service! We would return again!
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Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Check-in / front desk
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Helpful
Questions & answers about the snorkelling
Answer from Web_Sandos
May 2023 |
I recommend you go to Sandosplayacar one day and spend a day, so you can snorkel. Since our beach has a lot of rock
Pam M asked a question Mar 2022
Answer from Craig D
Mar 2022 |
Down on the beach at the water center, everything that is none motorized you can sign out and use. We used snorkels, boogie boards, kayaks, etc.
Answer from Sandos_Playacar
Aug 2020 |
Hi there,
Due to the present international health concerns, the new Health & Safety protocols require that guests wishing to snorkel will need to bring their own masks and snorkeling equipment.
We are not able to ensure the safety of our Guests providing shared snorkeling equipment. While this may appear as an inconvenience, the knowledge that the equipment has been untouched by others is essential to keeping our guests safe.
Best Regards
Venture34689597774 asked a question Feb 2020
Answer from Mark
Feb 2020 |
Yes, You bring your own snorkeling gear (in fact, you probably should - the stuff they have is adequate, but not great). I didn't see anyone play anything on the tennis quarts (or basketball/soccer area) all week. It doesn't cost money to use the courts. My guess is you could do whatever you wanted on them.
Answer from BurkleyBichon
Feb 2019 |
You’ll be able to go shell hunting, but the beach isn’t that swimmable. Only a little area that would work for swimming.
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