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Gloria1711
Montreal, Canada

Not the best

Reviewed Feb 8, 2020
The hotel was nice but needs some renovations. The rooms were clean, the beds comfortable but the service was lacking. We stayed in Building 1 (Tulum), room 1216. We had an issue with the bathtub which didn’t drain correctly. When you took a shower, you could expect to have water up to your ankles in just a few minutes and it took a few hours to drain. It’s not very appealing for a second person to get in the tub. We reported this twice to the management without anything being done. Also, the bathtub is hard to get into unless you have long legs as you have to climb over the structure. The shower should also be replaced as water was coming out from the showerhead as well as from the bath spout.
It takes about 5 minutes to walk from the lobby to the pool and beach. There are vehicles to shuttle guests around but they come every 15 mins. We walked most of the time. The grounds are nice and clean.
We tried most of the restaurants which were good but nothing special. The variety of food at the main buffet was good but the lineups were crazy. They should rethink the layout so that you don’t need to get in line at the start when you only want what is at the end. The layout at the buffet near the beach is much better so we went there for breakfast.

The beach is not clean and you can’t swim. The water is murky and there are a lot of small seashells which hurt your feet. Due to this, the pools are very crowded. However, they were clean with lots of activities next to the big pool. You have to get up early if you want to reserve a chair.
Entertainment is not the greatest. The bar at the Black and White cafe has pool tables. 9:30pm shows were not really amusing and the sound system was so loud that you couldn’t hear the music or songs. We left after 10 minutes.

You have only one wifi username per room which can work on only one device. You have to pay $3/day for an extra device.
Most of the staff had good customer service but others, especially at the lobby, had attitude problems. We tried several times to get change without success. Some of the staff near the lobby were really annoying trying to sell us everyday all kinds of excursions or products.
I would consider this hotel a 4 star at the most and I don’t believe I would stay there another time.
Date of stay: January 2020
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this review
Responded Feb 11, 2020
Dear friends,
On behalf of all the staff of BlueBay Grand Esmeralda I wish to thank you for your feedback and for your preference.
We regret that your experience with us was not at the level of their expectations, we will share your comments with our executive team to improve our service and our resort.
We are at your service anytime and thank you again for your comments,
Best regards!!

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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Reviewed February 8, 2020

first time at this large resort.we just got back having stayed for two weeks. a nice place to stay with good choice of food and friendly staff.
the resort has the jungle one side and the sea and beach on the other side.
nice to see wildlife about the complex
beach o.k not enough shades pool areas busy beds full most leave their towels and walk away, we often see people gone most of the day leaving their towels so no one can get a bed. plenty of free rides to your room and to the beach.
overall we would recommend this resort as they are friendly and the food is good.

Date of stay: January 2020
    • Value
    • Cleanliness
    • Service
2  Thank dennis E
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this reviewResponded February 11, 2020

Dear friends,
On behalf of all the staff of BlueBay Grand Esmeralda I wish to thank you for your great comments and for your preference.
We will make sure to share your lovely comments with all our staff and it will be a privilege to serve you again in a near future.
If you need any help for your future reservations please feel free to contact us anytime.

Best regards!!

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed February 7, 2020 via mobile

We came here for our wedding and they upgraded our room which was nice, but we would have most likely been pretty disappointed if we didnt get the upgrade. Depending on which building you are in you can be very far off the beaten path for the main pools and beach. All the staff were great, the biggest complaint I have is the food. The buffet is okay but it's more hospital food than anything else, and the 7 restaurants that are on the resort are set up so that you have to make reservations for them 24hrs in advance with a concierge by 7:00 am. So that makes it nearly impossible to have dinner in the nicer restaurants. A couple in our group also had someone break into their room at night and go through their stuff(nothing was missing thankfully) and like everyone else is saying the beach isnt great. If you want to swim in pretty water you either have to walk to the lagoon, or go to another nearby beach that's nicer. Overall our group had a blast but I wouldn't stay here again the value is not comparable to what we paid.

Date of stay: February 2020
Trip type: Travelled with friends
4  Thank Alexis H
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this reviewResponded February 11, 2020

Dear friends,
On behalf of all the staff of BlueBay Grand Esmeralda I wish to thank you for your feedback and for your preference.
We regret that your experience with us was not at the level of their expectations, we will share your comments with our executive team to improve our service and our resort.
We are at your service anytime and thank you again for your comments,
Best regards!!

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed February 7, 2020 via mobile

My husband and I just returned from a 10 day vacation at this resort. We booked through West Jet Vacations (I will write another review about that as I was not impressed). Check in was quick and easy. We were given a room in building 8. The room was weathered and the tv did not work. I went to the front desk and asked to move rooms. Jorge Flores was very accommodating. I decided to upgrade to a swim out room. We were given a room in building 2. The room was huge and worth the extra money. We had excellent service from everyone; specifically Yesica our concierge who made sure we always had our a la carte reservations and David Torres from house keeping. I’m sorry I didn’t get the name of the beverage person(s) names but they were also amazing.

The food was good, especially at the a la carte restaurants. We really enjoyed the Oriental restaurant. We had a great server/bartender; Edgard. Another must is the French restaurant. The food was delicious and our server Wendy was outstanding.

Unfortunately the beach wasn’t the greatest. The pool was okay but trying to get a chair was impossible because people throw their towels on them but never seem to come back to use the chairs.

Overall, the trip was good but what makes this resort stand out, is the great work done by the friendly staff.

Date of stay: February 2020
Trip type: Travelled with family
6  Thank JV67
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this reviewResponded February 11, 2020

Dear Friends,

Thank you very much for your kind comments and for your visit,

See you soon,

Sincerely,

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed February 7, 2020 via mobile

We visited this resort the first week of February.
Pros:
Rooms were clean and the employees were responsible and friendly.
Pools were clean
Lots of fun activities next to the big pool. (Make sure to ask for the activities calendar when you check in.)
French and Mexican restaurants had delicious food.

Cons:
***The beach is not clean and you can’t swim.(we asked our friends (from the other resorts at the same time) and they were able to swim into the beach which was just 10 min away from our resort.

*9:30pm shows at the black and white cafe were not really amusing and the sound system was not ok.

*each family has only one wifi username which can work on only one device (no hotspot is available) you have to pay $3/day for an extra device.

* restaurants(not buffets) had formal dress codes.

Date of stay: February 2020
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
3  Thank sinak2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this reviewResponded February 11, 2020

Dear friends,
On behalf of all the staff of BlueBay Grand Esmeralda I wish to thank you for your great comments and for your preference.
We will make sure to share your lovely comments with all our staff and it will be a privilege to serve you again in a near future.
If you need any help for your future reservations please feel free to contact us anytime.

Best regards!!

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed February 7, 2020 via mobile

My spouse and I really enjoyed our stay at the BlueBay, staff were great and always friendly, our room was huge and very clean! We asked for a king sized bed on arrival and they were very willing to accommodate at no extra charge. Breakfast and Lunch buffets were our favourites. The dinner buffet was ok nothing amazing, you were always able to find something to eat, however we preferred to book at the speciality restaurants. You must book early tho as they fill up quickly. They have several to choose from. Italian, Mexican, Steak House, Oriental and French.

They have a 24 hr bar but the snack bar inside was not 24 hr which was a disappointment. There was no snack bars available for the evenings.

I really enjoyed that we didn’t get hassled to buy into the hotel or purchase tours on a daily basis, we said no and they left us alone. I enjoyed the wildlife on the resort. The water changes day to day but that is out of their control we had more good water days then bad, and staff did what they could to clean up the seaweed.

We would come back to this resort again.

Date of stay: February 2020
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
2  Thank B7205BAvanessaa
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Frederic C, Director General at BlueBay Grand Esmeralda, responded to this reviewResponded February 11, 2020

Dear friends,
On behalf of all the staff of BlueBay Grand Esmeralda I wish to thank you for your great comments and for your preference.
We will make sure to share your kind comments with all our staff and it will be a privilege to serve you again in a near future.
If you need any help for your future reservations please feel free to contact us anytime.

Best regards!!

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
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