Occidental Grand Xcaret

First off the people who work at the Occidental Resort are very friendly. They definitely made us feel welcomed. From the beginning to the end of our vacation– the bellboys, front desk, maintenance workers, restaurant staff, maids, bartenders and the overall staff; treated my wife and I with only smiles and kindness.
Being close to the beach, restaurants, historical ruins, shows, shopping and adventure parks. The resort had or was near anything you would want to do. We were there six days and still couldn’t fit everything in. Trust me. We tried. So when you go. Plan your days wisely.
Being an all inclusive resort. All our drinks and meals were already paid for during our stay. We just tipped after each meal. They have buffet style dining for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. Snack areas throughout the day. There is also several restaurants that open at night with menu and waiter service. On the resort, you definitely won’t go hungry.
Just a heads up at the restaurants at night. Appropriate attire is required. Men must wear pants and a collared shirt, no shorts. No beach attire allowed. I made that mistake the first night. I was disappointedly turned away at the door. Only to return in different clothes.
There are several bar areas, multiple pools, tennis courts, miniature golf, a man made beach, exotic animals on site, nightly shows, hotel shops and a gym. Again the resort has everything. Being right next door to Xcaret, Xplore and being located in Playa Del Carmen. The activities are endless.
This was my first time in Cancun. It will not be my last. It was also the most fun I have ever had on vacation. It was also one of the most affordable compared to other vacations I have taken in the past. The resort itself was everything I hoped for and more. It was tough leaving but look forward to coming again. Come here on vacation.

We didn’t like the room (need more updates) and the food is Ok. But what make up for this is the hotel surrounding it’s totally worth of staying here. I love the tree like jungle feeling. See monkey, birds. And the best part swim with the fish. I would stay here again. Oh I forget to mention it doesn’t have good Internet connection!

Love love love this resort! The staff is absolutely amazing, the food is delicious, and the scenery is beautiful! Many animals to enjoy on property. Flamingos, parrots, monkeys, turtles, iguanas! The resort is just amazing. Lots of pools and restaurants and bars! Private beach area! Amazing spa! What more could you ask for! I can’t stress enough how nice and attentive staff is! Can’t wait to go back! Only thing I would change is the beds. Hard and not comfortable at all. Would still go back though.

Horrible experience with this place. Went back about 1.5 years ago but never had the chance to list review.
Banking system was messed up. We had to repay our whole amount that I paid a 3^rd party merchant.
Restaurants need reservations and they were always booked.
Place is so big and staff is light, it is hard to get picked up from one side to another.
Pools close early.
Tried to charge us 50 dollars because we didnt have two room keys when checking out.
Don’t stay here. So many other places with better prices in Cancun with better service you can stay at.

Came here for a wedding this past June. First time in Cancun. This resort was just ok. This time of year is not the ideal time to go as its very hot and humid. I feel like for the money we paid we could have stayed somewhere so much nicer. Some areas of the hotel, especially where our room was located, smelled really bad. Not sure if it was a broken sewer pipe nearby or just the smell of the jungle. I was disappointed that there was not an actual beach here, only a man-​made cove with sand and lots of sharp rocks, and if you’re not out there by 6am good luck on finding a spot to lay out because it will be swarming with tons of kids and screaming babies. The food in the restaurants available here were less than mediocre. So much for «all inclusive». We did however enjoy our tour of the ruins in Tulum. I would like to come back to Cancun sometime soon but will definitely stay at a different resort and not in the month of June.

This place is absolutely amazing. We stayed in bldg 21 and the rm was great, bed, shower, and view were all wonderful. Our whole family (6 of us, kids 9,11,13,and19) all found this resort enjoyable from the various pools, wildlife, nightlife, and restaurants. We followed the facebook page prior to going and although it made us even more excited to go and helped to know what to expect, i would recommend not knowing too much and let it be a surprise. I cannot say one negative thing about The Occidental Grand. Yes Xcaret park is a must and ive heard that Xplor and Xel Ha are just as great. We went 5 days but i suggest a bit longer to enjoy everything.

There are no words to describe how amazing this place is. The hotel is beautiful and surrounded by jungle and wildlife. There are many beautiful swimming pools, and a man made cove for swimming and snorkeling.
The food is really good, and you can pretty much order any drink you can think of. This is a resort you can eat at all week. Pacos Tacos is a must. There is a fun onsite disco, as well as activities for the kids.
This is an all inclusive resort you won’t want to leave. The staff are very friendly and helpful. The resort is right next to Xcaret, where you can walk or be taken to by boat.
I would recommend this to anyone. The only con is there is no access to a natural beach. The cove was way better for swimming anyhow, and less scary to let the kids play in.

I will start with the negative things about this trip as there were not many. Time share! As most, if not all resorts down there, they are after you trying to get you to attend their presentations. Say no and mean it unless this is something you are looking for and willing to waste a couple hours of your day. Beach area is small and fills up very early so be prepared to head out early to get a nice spot. If your group is bigger than 6, be prepared to wait for seating at the main restaurants unless you make a reservation with the front desk. If you don’t, you risk having to wait up to an hour or be split up. Almost happened to us with a very rude lady at «pescador», the seafood restaurant. Luckily we were able to talk to the waiter and he helped us out. I wish I remembered her name because she was rude and I wanted to single her out because she was the only one that treated us this way and had a horrible attitude.
These next 2 things are more of an FYI and not necessarily negative, it is what it is :-) 1. They are working on the resort so expect some work and noise during the day. We did not mind at all and understand they are making improvements and remodeling some areas. 2. If you believe or not, there are definitely some supernatural things going on at this resort. 4 out of 5 rooms of our party experienced noises, voices, things moved or thrown around and one even thought they saw something very creepy. We befriended one of the staff members and he gave us details on a lot of guest experiences, staff experiences and a bit of history about where the resort was built, deaths and sacrifices in the past, etc. Creepy stuff but definitely not a huge factor for us. None of us changed rooms and were comfortable the whole time.
Now to the good stuff. GREAT food, especially seafood as expected! Pescador and the Asian restaurant were my favorite. Awesome food, great presentation and great service. Portions are small so order some appetizers or even 2 entrées if hungry. Hacienda and Los Olivos were good too. Mexican food and steakhouse. The only one that we did not try is the Italian restaurant but we didn’t hear good things anyways so we didn’t mind. Taco shop was good but be ready to get the runs when you eat them. Most of our group loved the tacos but they were all hurting the next morning. They were good enough that they kept eating them though lol. Buffets were good but not great. I like that they change the themes so you taste different stuff but still buffet food. Drinks were good and a couple of pesos and/​or dollars goes long ways of you want the good stuff. Some of the good wine or liquor cost extra but if you tip a bit and be really nice to staff, you will get what you want. It’s literally next door to Xcaret park so that was great. We went to the park twice during our stay. Shows were actually pretty darn good. Way better than expected. Grease and Michael Jackson shows were great! There was an opera show that was actually really good and the breakdancing and circus shows were not bad at all either. Rooms could use a little updating. They were still comfortable and we were hardly in there anyways. Awesome wildlife, especially for the kids. We saw coatis, raccoons, monkeys, iguanas, bats, cool birds (too many to name), deer, snakes and tons of fish. They have a few snorkeling areas on the ocean right off the hotel and it was awesome. We didn’t have to pay for a snorkeling tour when our hotel had it for free and you see tons of different fish. Finally, Staff was great! Remember that although all inclusive, they still work their butts off for very little wages/​salary and a small tip goes long ways with what kind of service you get and they definitely go the extra mile for you. Just a thought. Great experience and we would definitely return!

So many mosquito and restaurant was very very bad. Same food from the buffet for dinner. Service is in the middle. They say all inclusive but always want to squeeze extra $ from you for very little minors request.
Would not come back even they let me come to say for free…
Most rest. Would not let us pull the tables together to accommodate our big group.

My husband and I visited here June 15 – 22 for our honeymoon. We have never been here before but our travel agent said it was really nice and fun for people our age. So we decided to book it. We took the four hour airplane ride and when we got off we were so excited! We saw all the other resorts had amazing entrances and amazing landscapes. We were hoping ours was amazing just like that. We finally finish the hour drive from the airport and we pull up to our resort. Honestly it was nice but it didn’t have the wow factor. When we got checked in all that good stuff we went to our room which seemed to take forever because we were completed on the other side. We finally arrived at building 15 and we were on the third floor (there are no elevators) so we had to walk up the steps. Which isn’t a big deal but still. We get into our room and it’s decent with a nice balcony. We sit on the bed and it’s hard as a rock. Once you in sleep in them though they get comfy. We went and ate at the buffet the theme was oriental. They did have some oriental things but the rest was fish. The food here is absolutely disgusting. We ate at the buffet every day and it was a different theme every day, but the food was all the same. Mostly fish, no salads, the ranch tastes awful! My husband and I were ready to go home two days after we got here. The grounds are beautiful yes the entertainment is good. My tip is come if you’re going to be in a big group and prepare yourself for gross food.

My husband and I came here for a quick ‘unplug’ May 30^th to June 2 2015 and we have no major complaints — your average all-inclusive.This resort is set in the middle of what seems like a rain forest. There are birds, monkeys, and other animals wandering the resort which makes it pretty cool for families with smaller children.
One large bonus for this resort was they did not require reservations for their themed restaurants. This can really be a pain when you want to try some restaurants but they are always «booked». This resort had a first come, first serve policy and allowed us to try more restaurants than we may have otherwise been able to.
Be aware: The ‘beach’ is very small and fills up quickly, there is only one swim-​up bar which is under a waterfall (pretty neat unless you don’t want to get your hair wet), there are four pool sections (one is adults only!), two buffet areas, and several bars set up around the common area. The only issue with the non-​pool bars was that only one was open before 6PM — on a rainy day this became very busy very quickly and there were no other alternatives.

We came here a month ago as a big group (8 people total) and we all booked together the trip about 4 months in advance. Once we arrvied, we have people greeted us and asked for our names so they can check us in. They took our luggages and gave us a ticket and indicated go to front desk and find out the room number and let them know they will bring our luggages to the room.
We were greeted very nicely at our front desk with our pineapple drinks as a welcome (they told us to keep our straw as through out the resorts, straws were not provided and yes cherish that only straw you get). Some rooms were ready and one weren’t so it was negative there.
My husband and I didn’t get our king size bed room as we requested when everyone else was able to get what they requested (another negative as we all paid the same price and everything). We went to the front and complained, little did we know, all they told us if you want we can switch your room tomorrow and then the next day, etc. Why would I want to swtich room everyday to get the room I wanted? I didn’t pay discounted price for the hassles? I don’t understand how their customer services work but definitely didn’t accomudate what we wanted.
Please be careful on the «free gift» postcard they give you after second day, as that is timeshare selling, that’s what I heard so we didn’t even bother to stop for that.
The person helped us out the most named Lin, he was very helpful on explaining the activities we have to do and what we want to do to get discounted price on certain things (apparently, you suppose to go to a VIP tour that lasts around 1 hour to 2 hours to get discount activities price).
The resort is all inclusive, some restaurants have specific time open and close. My favorite probably is the beachfront as they have better services and good food. They have shuttle throughout the resort if you don’t feel like walking. Not an amazing beach view but they have the area for it.
Overall the experience is nice but i would definitely try other resorts so I can compare as this was my first time at an all inclusive resort.

This place is a paradise! My first visit to Mexico (well with the exception of a few drunken nights in Tijuana) and I will definitely be staying here again. The entire place has this open air concept. Macaws in the lobby, iguanas casually strolling the pathways, friendliest staff ever and wonderful service! Didn’t have the opportunity to really enjoy the excursions but will definitely be doing so next go round.

We traveled to Occidental Grand Xcaret with another family and we were not disappointed! The Royal Club was wonderful and the service was extraordinary! Our room (the jr suite) was beautiful, spacious and clean, and we especially loved the two balconies (one with a hammock and the other with an ocean view!)
The Royal Club area included a beautiful private pool with pool side service (loved the nachos and the grand margarita)! The restaurant was by far the best at the resort and the view from the back outside area of the gorgeous ocean views was our favorite place to have breakfast! ***if you’re there when they are cutting the coconuts down, make sure to ask for one, they’ll cut it open and pop in a straw for you!!! The people at the royal club restaurant are incredible, genuine, and 5 star all the way!!! The food and drinks (premium) were great and one perk that we REALLY enjoyed was the room service! (please make sure to provide gratuity to these amazing individuals for there outstanding service!) After busy and eventful days it was nice to be able to order lunch or dinner in the room and relax. The Jr Suite made this particularly enjoyable because there is a dining table in the room separate from the bedroom. Another feature we appreciated is the stocked fridge! We loved having water, sodas, and Tecate available, and often packed a couple in our bags for the day’s adventure! (make sure to leave a couple/​few bucks gratuity for the amazing women who keep your room clean and restock the fridge for you).
There are several FABULOUS pools around this amazing resort! The one sandy beach area was a blast! Our kids brought their snorkel equipment and loved watching schools of fish swim in and around this great area.
Our family added the Xcaret Unlimited and the highlight for us was snorkeling in the underwater caves. As I previously mentioned, we brought our own snorkeling equipment, but they do provide it at the park if you don’t want to bring your own. The kids particularly enjoyed the bird sanctuary and nursery. We also added the dolphin primax experience which we all enjoyed together (***note that they do not let you bring your own camera’s into this experience and the pictures are a small fortune… we did make the investment and cherish the beautiful pictures and the video that they captured for us). The Espectacular show was terrific (but make sure to dress light because it was definitely HOT!) There are two entrances to the park, one at the back of the resort by the beach area and one at the front where you can take a cute little boat or walk along side the «river».
We also visited XPLOR and can’t get over how much fun we had!!! (We received a significant discount booking XPLOR when we booked the dolphin Primax experience). The zip lines were AMAZING!!! There are two paths you can take (fast and wet OR low and slow) and hindsight we wish we had done both… we chose fast and wet and there was a water slide and you zip through waterfalls! SO FUN! There are also amphibious vehicles, underwater cave swim, and paddle rafts. We wish we would have skipped the underwater caves and done the second zipline experience, because we were able to enjoy the Xcaret underground river as often as we wanted. The pictures (which we purchased) weren’t that great and they were very expensive. We were thankful to have brought our GOPRO and captured some great family videos!!! Lunch is included at XPLOR and the large buffet had much to offer so everybody was happy and it was great!
The Occidnetal Grand is beautiful and HUGE! I love that it is spread out and there is the option of hitching a ride one of several golf carts that provide transportation around the resort. We preferred to walk most of the time and explore the many ruins on the property and take the beautiful jungle trail. Don’t forget your eco~friendly bug spray! We definitely want to return to this resort and we would do the Royal Club, Xcaret unlimited, and XPLOR adventure AGAIN!!!

Great, great service, nice people, terrific food (and I’m not a buffet guy). If you want a great all inclusive, don’t have to think about it vacation, this is the place for you. Also do the day trips to the Mayan ruins at Coba and Tulum… ace.

My wife and I just came from a never again experience here. We were promised robes and champers on arrival. Asked about them 3 days in a row. In the end we gave up asking.
The Timeshare meetings are tricky to get out of and if you are sucked in, they won’t take no for an answer. Be wary of free gifts or cheap day trips, and where possible, book the, yourself.
The food was disgraceful, my wife got food poisoning twice. And spent ½ out trip in bed.

Went here summer of 2011, if you are coming here go Royal Club status and you will not be disappointed. Are are treated like VIP with a private a la carte restaurant. Their seafood and fruit was amazingly fresh and staff really went out of their way to meet your needs. Even picking a coconut for you to enjoy. Only reason why i am giving thrm 4 stars is because there is no «white sandy beach» and also had to prove to staff that we should get free wifi because it was listed on theit website.

This place is nice but not nice enough to stay for a week. The food is bland, the all inclusive alcohol is cheap, and there is no beach. They have a really small lagoon (very European). Wasn’t for me!

Came for a week in end of October. Weather was great. Soo. We originally booked a deluxe room. What a joke. It was worse than motel six. There was literally white jiz on the comfort set. The bed was hard as a rock. I had also requested a room away from noise areas and sure enough they put us in building 18 right on the walkway. We hauled out stuff back up to reception. And ended up paying 400 more for the week to upgrade to a suite. Mercedes at the front desk did a great job of accommodating us with a nice corner room in building 22. The grounds are impressive. Lots of walking but shuttle goes around all the time. Lots of deer around all over. We found plenty of iguanas hidden In trees. They have some ruins on the grounds by the beach and also in the center of the property. Great to check out and great for photos. The food was horrible. I mean really bad. It wasn’t a big deal as I wasn’t trying to fatten up anyways but it was bad. If going to the buffet, go early or the food sits there and it is so gross. The taco place was the best. I pretty much lived off chips for the entire stay. The beach area was small but we had no problem getting chairs. Had a great time snorkeling and saw a ton of fish. We booked a photography session at the photo shop. They make u buy min of 10 photos when bookin a seasion. Nacho was our photographer and it was amazing. The photos were so good. Highly recommended them. We ended up buying way more photos than the min amount. Overall for the money… We had a great time! Bring a ton of mosquito spray, mosquito bracelets. Pants whatever cause those suckers will eat you alive.

The Occidental Grand Xcaret is indeed grand, wild and beautiful. We had to catch our breath upon arrival seeing the immense thatched roofs above the glazed sienna-​colored marble that surrounds a fountain and drains deep down into the waterway that runs the width of the property. Massive palm trees and vines are expertly placed near paths and bridges. Macaws squawk from posts as native birds tweet from above. We even saw a few monkeys swinging through the tropical trees.
We purchased an upgrade to our all-​inclusive package, so we had priority check-​in and were presented with a fancy tropical drink in a large pineapple! Such a fun way to start off a vacation.
Our room was situated by the «fun» pool — the one for the families. They had loud music and a DJ from about 11 am to about 5 pm. Fun for kids, slightly annoying for the adults. We paid a visit to the «quiet» pool and it was so dreamy. But the best thing about the fun pool is the submerged waterfall bar. We loved it!
The beach is small, but it was never overcrowded when we were there. There are several levels of seating. We especially liked the canopy swinging beds which were all but deserted by 3 pm. You can sign out snorkeling gear at the fun pool and use it at the beach. There is plenty to see: beautiful fish or crabs in the rocks. We liked walking around the rocky coastline more than anything… absolutely gorgeous!
Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served at the Grand Buffet. However, there are numerous buffet restaurants on property that are open during the day & you don’t need reservations. It’s very handy if you’re by the pool or at the beach, for instance, and you don’t want to have to walk all the way back to the Grand Buffet.
The tedious part is dinner. If you don’t make reservations at the other restaurants, you’re stuck with the Grand Buffet every night (except for the taco and pizza place — they rotate — the tacos are awesome!) The trick? Make those reservations as soon as you check in. There is a Chinese restaurant, a steakhouse, mexican and a few others. If you can’t get them on the day you check in, ask when to check back. There is one day of the week when all the reservations open and they book for the week.
The food overall is hit or miss. There was some stuff that I absolutely loved (all the Mexican food is authentic and scrumptious) and other things (pizza, hot dogs, etc.) were not so great. At the Chinese restaurant, I loved my dish, my husband hated his. Vice-​versa at the Steakhouse.
The resort has a few souvenir shops. Photographers wander around & you can get a picture with a monkey, a macaw, an inguana, among other things. Prints are expensive, $ 18 for just one.
The waterway goes straight to the XCaret Theme Park. You can take a gondola type boat there; be sure to tip your boat handler. I would highly recommend including tickets to the theme park in your resort package. The price at the door is outrageous… way to high for what they offer. But, the park is fun. We especially loved the underground river where you can float for about 2 miles from the beginning of the park and end up at the top near the beach. Fair warning, drinks and food are not part of your inclusive package and very expensive. A beer will run about $ 16. Eat before you go. Take water with you.
Water: don’t drink the water from the tap. You’ll get a few bottles in your room daily. Ask for extra bottles from the bar. Stock up so that you don’t run out.
Another warning… don’t get sucked into the resort tour! Our concierges at the entrance of the building to our room was constantly hounding us with free gifts and free lunches to sit through a «short» presentation. I overheard stories from others that they can last hours and at they end they try to pressure you into timeshares or vacation packages. I think they’ll even offer free excursions if you do it. Not worth it for us.
Excursions: We used our travel agent exclusively. (Amstar: preassigned by our booking company,
) We may have paid a little extra, but no pressure to sit through presentations, which was worth it. I *highly* recommend the Coba Maya Encounter with AllTourNative. Amazing! You can see my full coverage of this at
Yes, we tipped. And got great service for it.
For all the beauty, there is a mold problem. Some shops were musty, so was our room. I couldn’t shake it and think I returned with a bit of an allergic reaction.
But, I could have napped forever in the hammocks by the gorgeous Caribbean ocean. Overall, a pretty incredible place.