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Yucatan Playa del Carmen Review 

Before we get to this Yucatan Playa del Carmen Review, I have to share that my Yucatan Playa del Carmen stay was very short.

I had a trip booked for 4 days, and we ended up staying approximately one hour. 

That said, don’t stop reading! I did check in to the Yucatan Playa del Carmen, but a series of events, which I’ll explain next, caused me not to stay at the resort at all.

Here’s why I am leaving this review of the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. First, I never write up negative blog posts. I may share negative experiences with my clients internally, but this was bad enough that I felt people should know about it.

The Yucatan Playa del Carmen is a new, boutique resort, located in the heart of Playa del Carmen. It is owned by the Hilton brand and has great prices for an all-inclusive resort. Is it worth visiting? Keep reading. 

My experience at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

I shared some of my experiences on Instagram (while I was still at the resort!), and the resort contacted me on Instagram at that time. I know it wasn’t someone working at the resort itself, but rather someone who works for either Hilton or Playa Resorts elsewhere, I’m not sure exactly. 

Regardless, the person I spoke to said they said they would reach out to me after my vacation. I felt hopeful about this because I thought it might be a chance for the hotel to improve upon their very terrible service.

I gave it almost a month and never heard from anyone. 

Despite also responding to the email asking me, “how was your stay.” I never heard back about that either. There was a series of terrible customer service decisions by the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. 

I am a Travel Agent who actively books vacations in the area. On top of that, I also have a blog that over 50,000 people per month read. 

I actually didn’t mention any of this to the resort because I’m not a jerk who thinks I am more special than your average guest. They knew I was a Travel Agent anyway (I booked with Travel Agent rates) and obviously didn’t care.

The fact is, you shouldn’t “trick” any guests into staying at your resort, no matter who they are. But that is exactly what they did. 

Yucatan Playa del Carmen Review

Why choose the Yucatan Playa del Carmen? Well, don’t. 😉 But, here’s why I chose the Yucatan Playa del Carmen initially:

It was a brand new resort. Well, the resort used to be the Live Aqua Playa del Carmen and was bought by Hilton and re-modeled into the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. The resort looked beautiful in the photos.

Please note that I ended up staying at the sister resort, the Hilton Playa del Carmen, and had a great time! You can check out my Hilton Playa del Carmen review after you finish this. But, trust me, you’ll want to go there instead. 

So, there was a brand new resort, and as a Travel Agent and Travel Blogger, I wanted to visit! It looked nice, the Master Suites looked amazing, and I thought the rooftop pool looked beautiful.

The large balconies of the master suites look stunning!! I was so excited to have a large private balcony like this one. Photo from Playa Resorts as I wasn’t able to see a master suite myself.

The prices at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

Also, the prices were fantastic!! You know how they say, “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.” Well, it was.

My first (small) indicator that this would be a disaster should have been before I arrived. Upon booking, I asked for someone to contact me regarding food allergies. I do this whenever I stay anywhere, and it’s never a problem.

Typically a hotel will respond by asking about my allergy and asking if I’d like to speak to a chef on arrival. I typically do not speak to a chef but rather make sure it’s noted in my booking that I have an allergy. 

I have Celiac Disease, so it’s imperative that I do not eat any gluten.

Before my arrival, I never heard one word from anyone at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen, but I decided it was okay and would speak to someone upon arrival. As a new resort, I figured maybe they were just busy. I tried to give the resort the benefit of the doubt. 

Arriving at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

Upon arrival, the front desk immediately told me that my reserved suite was not available. We had specifically stayed in this resort to try to “Master Suite.” 

It gets worse, so much worse. I was still charged for the master suite!! I was given a very basic hotel room, no balcony at all, no jacuzzi tub, a terrible street view of power lines, and was told that was the only room they had available. 

The master suite has both a large balcony with a jacuzzi tub on the balcony; the room we were given had no balcony, no tub whatsoever. 

Again, I was charged for the master suite anyway, even though we were put in a much less expensive room. I asked why and they told me I had to pay for the amount that I booked.

Even though I was in a different room, you can’t make this stuff up. I travel about every other month and have never experienced a situation like this.

This was when I asked (nicely) to speak to a manager. The girl at the front desk seemed confused by the entire situation, and it really wasn’t her fault. She was very nice but obviously wasn’t trained very well. 

I should have been told that my room wasn’t available before arrival, and at this point, I felt tricked into staying at this hotel. Are they overselling on purpose? I have no idea. 

Tricked into staying at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

Selling a room that isn’t available, not letting guests know that it isn’t available, putting them in a lesser room, and charging for a more expensive room? That is bad business. Bait and switch tactics at best and possibly illegal. I have no idea how that works in Mexico. 

There was no manager available. I don’t know how this is possible; no one explained it to me. I asked the front desk to call The Hilton Playa del Carmen to ask if we could stay there. We were told they couldn’t reach the other resort. I find that odd, but okay. 

I asked to try to move our reservation to the other resort multiple times, and no one could help me do this. However, they are sister hotels, so it should have been simple enough. 

Then, the front desk agent and someone else (I do not know his job) simply left. They disappeared, and we were left at the front desk by ourselves. At this point is when I started documenting the fiasco on Instagram. 

I have a couple of slides saved under “Yucatan Playa” on my Instagram, but I really didn’t document much as it was such a mess, and I was just trying to figure it out after a day of traveling. 

“No Manager Available” 

When they finally returned, without a manager, I stated that I wanted a refund. So I stood at the counter and booked a Hilton Playa del Carmen room on my laptop since they couldn’t help me with that either. I was honestly worried about getting my refund, but fortunately, that wasn’t a problem. 

Finally, my husband and I dragged all of our bags from one hotel to the other.

It was the most ridiculous situation I’ve ever been in at a hotel.

To oversell a room is one thing; to not contact guests and let them know is another. Maybe both were accidents. However, charging guests for a suite that wasn’t available and putting them in a very basic room instead? Why would you do that? 

I wish we would have had a better experience. **This photo is from the Playa Travel Agents website as I was too frustrated to take any of my own.**

Is the Yucatan Playa del Carmen a good resort? 

Would I recommend the Yucatan Playa del Carmen? ABSOLUTELY NOT.

Not only did this resort drop the ball on so many things, but they never followed up (after promising they would) after the trip.

We had even decided to “make the best of it” and stay at the resort, but after seeing our new room – the one we were overcharged for – there was no way.

This resort tries to trick people into staying there. I wish that wasn’t the case, but it’s that simple. Chances are you might be sold a room that isn’t available.

I can’t imagine how bad it is actually to stay there. We only saw 2-3 staff members the entire hour we were at the resort. My husband went up to the rooftop and didn’t see anyone there either. 

Yes, it’s a small resort, but how can you take care of guests if no one is working? 

Alternatives to the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

As I mentioned earlier, we stayed at the Hilton Playa del Carmen, which was a great experience.

The nearby Hotel Xcaret is also very popular. If you’ve been to my blog before, you also know that we love the Hyatt Zilara. An adults-only, all-inclusive resort in the Cancun Hotel Zone. 

We stay at the Hyatt Zilara multiple times per year, and I can’t recommend it enough. 

I have video reviews of the Hilton Playa del Carmen and the Hyatt Zilara as well, so make sure to check them out if you’d prefer video versions. 

The beautiful Hyatt Zilara Cancun, our home away from home.

Yucatan Playa del Carmen FAQ

I shared my experience, but as a Travel Agent who is certified to book Playa Resorts, I thought I should still answer a few questions regarding the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. 

Is the Yucatan Playa del Carmen adults-only?

Yes, only adults 18+ are allowed to stay at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. 

Is the Yucatan Playa del Carmen all-inclusive?

Yes, the Yucatan Playa del Carmen includes all food and drinks. 

El Mural is a breakfast buffet offered daily. 

Sakura Maru is Japanese and Peruvian cuisine; I was looking forward to trying this but sadly did not. 

La Terraza is the rooftop snack bar. 

Coffee Corner is a self-serve coffee station near the lobby. 

The Yucatan Playa del Carmen also offers 24-hour in-room service, which is included within your stay. 

All-Inclusive Plus package at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen

This package gives you exchange privileges at the Hilton Playa del Carmen. If you do decide to stay at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen, and again, I would highly recommend that you do not, I wouldn’t stay without this package. 

Is the Yucatan Playa del Carmen beachfront?

No, the Yucatan Playa del Carmen is not a beachfront resort. Instead, it is a few blocks from the beach, located just steps from 5th Avenue in Playa del Carmen. 

What to pack for an all-inclusive vacation?

If you’re planning an all-inclusive vacation, don’t forget to check out what to pack for an all-inclusive vacation.

Or, check out my Amazon storefront for even more of my favorites like this floaty. 

Happy to be at the Hilton Playa del Carmen! We were so happy to have made the switch.

Yucatan Playa del Carmen Review

If you look at my blog, you’ll see that I’ve never before left a bad review. Yes, I’ve had some iffy experiences which I share with my clients, but I’ve never had as bad of an experience as I did at the Yucatan Playa del Carmen. 

I wish that the resort would have attempted to make it right. Even just asking how they could avoid these issues in the future, or following up at all, would have been helpful. 

Sadly, they did not. So overall, there is no way that I would ever recommend the Yucatan Playa del Carmen to my clients or to anyone who reads this review.

Yes, it’s cheap. There’s a reason for that. 

Am I saying you shouldn’t visit Cancun or Playa del Carmen at all? Absolutely not! While the rest of the world is reopening, Cancun/Riviera Maya remains one of the easiest places to visit.

Plan your Mexico vacation with a honeymoon Travel Agent

If you’d like some help figuring out where to stay, make sure to contact me to check availability. 

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