Catalonia Riviera Maya All Inclusive

Had a Blast!

I took 4 girlfriends for a long weekend and we had a blast! Service was excellent, food was great, the staff was very entertaining, and the sun shone on us all day. I couldn’t find a thing to complain about. I will definitely be going back and maybe take my family next time.

Great Vacation

I read other reviews before going, 1st place, ok, we did get bored with the buffets, but it wasn’t bad. The restaurants however were good. Loved the crepes. We did upgrade and had a view of the pool and could see the ocean. Tipping goes a long way, I know it states all-inclusive but really a buck or two and you show up in the restaurant, they know and you are catered too. It was a nice walk or bike ride to the port, swam with dolfins and ate at Gringo Daves, loved it.

Traveler's tip on local attractions

Went to XPLOR, never thought I would zip-line, you go from tower to tower, loved it. Xel-Ha, loved it.

Can’t wait to go back

Special thanks to Ramon Gonzalez and Giancarlo Dell Erba and all staff. Best vacation ever.

Great Vacation Spot

My boyfriend and I stayed here for 4 nights. Overall it was a great hotel with quality service. It was our first visit to Mexico. The staff were friendly and entertaining. There were many activites offered daily. The food was pretty good. I recommend Mikado and Le Creprie both were delicious. Remember to book your dinner reservations early in the morning. The pool was a decent size with a couple of choices. The beach area however was a bit too rocky for me. I would encourage bringing swimming shoes. Take a day into Playa del Carmen, its a fun street with a lot of shopping, bars,and restaurants. (go @ night because it gets too hot during the day)

Traveler's tip on shopping

Take a day into Playa del Carmen, its a fun street with a lot of shopping, bars,and restaurants. (go @ night because it gets too hot during the day) Do not exchange money @ the airport, they charge a fee. You can exchange money at Playa del Carmen or @ the hotel. They also take US dollars. Another tip, the vendors that come to the hotel @ night charge a arm and leg. All they products can be bought @ Playa del Carmen for much cheaper!!!

Staff was Great...No Lighting

We stayed in the Catalonia Riviera Maya which was a disappointment to what the Expedia advertisements stated.Once we got to the resort, there was no power. I mean, ok, it can happen; so we ate dinner in the dark which was quite disturbing. When we got to our room their was no light and no water. The second night, the power went off again. But before it did I had to take a shower with cold water because there was no hot water. Second night no water, no light. Third night, this crap happened again. I mean the resort during the day was great, but what a pain in the neck for this to happen. The staff though was amazing. Very attentive, very polite. I mean if you don’t care about eating in the dark and taking a shower with cold water, then I guess it will work for you.

Traveler's tip on saving a few bucks

The hotel staff is amazing and they try to get you involved in all the activities they do, like aqua gym, dancing, etc

Beyond Expectations

My August 2009 ten days at the Catalonia Riviera Maya were extremely satisfying. The hotel’s staff were accomodating and friendly, at all times ready to make one’s stay as enjoyable as possible. The grounds were immaculately maintained and the rooms with terrace, king bed, mini-bar and safe were clean and comfortable. There were three pools, a horseshoe shaped beach with some excellent snorkeling, and as a bonus a lagoon ideal for kayaking and swimming. The food at the buffet restaurants was decent and varied, about what you’d expect at an all inclusive. The specialty restaurants, especially the Italian, which all require a reservation, were good. The Creperie, with a magnificent view of the bay, was excellent for desserts. Alcoholic drinks were rather weak served in small glasses, thus make friends with the bartenders. Though included, bring tip money as the smiles and good nature of the staff are worth the outlay of a few additional pesos. Overall, the Catalonia provided at reasonable prices a most fulfilling vacation.

Traveler's tip on recreational activities

Xel-Ha, an ecologically themed park twenty minutes from the hotel, is quite beautiful with many different activities such as snorkeling, inner-tubing, bicycling and exploring plus as an added bonus it’s all inclusive meaning meals are part of the reasonably priced package. It’s a great all day activity.

Felt safe!

We were here for a wedding for 4 nights. It was very nice to have great food and drinks available at all times. You could stay at the resort and never explore real Mexico, if you wanted. The service was great. The front desk folks, and the waiters and waitresses, were very good at their jobs. The shows were fun. It was a great deal for everything that you have access to. They even use purified water, so you can drink their water and use their ice. The resort areas have guards at the gates, so you can feel safe.

Traveler's tip on local attractions

Coba has a set of ruins that are nearby and more off the beaten path. We rented bikes for 30 pesos and rode around the ruins. It was way less crowded than Tulum. Very interesting.

Extremely impressed

We loved every part of this hotel from the service, the amazing views, the food and drinks, and the activities. The only issues we had were that the bed was uncomfortable and it was difficult to find water at night. There were two bottles of water in the room for our whole stay, and we had to continously buy bottles or get them filled up at the bars that were open late. It was possible, just not very convenient.

Traveler's tip

Bring your own large bottles of water and fill them up at the bars to keep in your room. All of the bars have clean filtered water.

Will stay again

Great place to stay. I was more than satisfied and actually surprised to find this resort to be more than I expected. The staff was very helpful and friendly. The rooms and all areas of the resort were well maintained and kept very clean. The drinks were great, not watered down. The entertainment was quite fun. I will return and stay here again.

Traveler's tip

It’s worth the while to take an afternoon and walk down to the little town (square) and marina. It really only takes about 10 minutes....brouse the shops and have a cold beer....good time.

Big hotel

We stay there at the end of July. It is a really big hotel and a lot of things to do. I would just complain about the fact that the hotel doesn’t have elevator. I have one baby and a little girl, so we had to carry stroller and without elevator was terrible. In general it is a good hotel and the staff is friendly.

Great hotel, great service but bad beach front

My and my husband spent 6 days and 5 nights at this hotel. Are room was nice but right next to the maintenance closet. Early every morning around 5:00am you could her the maintenance people slamming the door banging stuff around it got a little annoying. The staff was wonder they always greeted you with a smile and a hello. The buffet was the but buffet food I’ve had at a resort. The only problem we had was with the beach . The ocean was very, very rocky and the water were not as calm. I’ve been to better beaches. Even though the hotel was great I would not go back because the beach was not the great and that was . I love the ocean and when I’m not able to enjoy swimming in the ocean it ruins the vacation experience for me.

Traveler's tip on nightlife

the bike tour was great and free. Also do the snokeling tour in Playa de Carmon it was wonderful

We’ll go back at New year eve’s... everything awesome!!!

We enjoyed it at 100% This hitel is a 1 on my favorites on the Riviera Maya.

You don’t need to go out from the hotel, you have everything there...

Hotel was OK for the price.

The service was good, except for the waiters and wiatresses. Overall the food was awful, everything was served buffet style and the restaruants could not manage to keep the food fresh. Also, the food quality was not good. Our was great, a/c worked beautifully and the staff kept it very clean. Take your own towels because the ones provided for the beach smell like body odor and constantly feel sticky.

Amazing place to stay!

Don’t think twice about going here. The suites are the best. Upgrade when you get there. The service is outstanding. The pools and beach are very clean. The food choices are excellent. Be sure to reserve your restaurant and watersports at 8:00 am as they are first come first serve. Can’t wait to go back!

Traveler's tip on recreational activities

Take the shuttle to Playa for good shopping. Ride the bikes into town to eat at Gringo Dave’s and watch the dolphin shows. Book your tours with Ricardo in the lobby bar. He will take great care of you.

Great for kids

We stay for 2 week and we didnt want to came back home, we love it. amazing food all the tme the staff is very friendly. The kids club awesome. You can do a lot of differents thinks or you can just relax, we did the second one. Dont forget to bring you own snorkeling equipment and some water sandal the beach is too rocky. differnet shows every night the entretainment Staff is the best of all.

Very Busy Hotel

We stayed at the CAT 7/18 - 7/25/09 and enjoyed our stay. What we liked most was the location close to the marina, we are big fishermen and spent a lot of time either out on a boat or just hanging at the marina. The rooms are good enough, nothing special but they served thier purpose and were clean. The staff is OK, we’ve had better service at other all inclusives in the area but no specific complaints. The biggest dissapointment for me was how busy this place was. The shade here is minimal and is picked over by 8AM every morning. There are a lot of people packed into fairly small grounds, so the buffets and bars were always very busy. The food was OK, you could definaely find something that would satisfy you, but I was never wowed by any of their entrees. That may be due to the place being crowded and the food quite picked over. Overall, I’d give the CAT a 3 out of 5. It has everything you needed to have a great vacation, but didn’t leave me "wowed".

Traveler's tip on recreational activities

Go to the marina, it is beautiful and has a ton of activities.

A Great First Trip to Mexico

Our trip and stay was wonderful. We were upgraded to a suite upon arrival. Plenty of room for 5 of us, and they brought an extra bed for our youngest. The king bed was fabulous. Slept great. Beach was great, as was the kayaking. Treat the bartenders with kindness and they will provide you with great drinks. We loved the shower in the suite too. The only thing we were a little disappointed in was the food. Not fabulous but ok. Also, the power went out for brief periods of time, but this happened often.

Traveler's tip on recreational activities

The Catamaran excusion is well worth the money! We enjoyed Sea Passion, complete with snorkling, shore lunch and shopping.

Would go back

Some room for impprovement but definately worth the money! Always something to eat at the buffet, pools small but clean. Need to get down early to get an umbrella-but be warned-others may not take your loungers, but they will take the umbrella if you leave your chairs unattended. Never seen this before!!

Good hotel for a 3-star resort

Basic hotel (no frills), but the location was excellent!! Walking distance to a very nice marina and there is a nice lagoon onsite for snorkeling. Overall it was a nice trip.

Overall Very Good

Mostly good. Only minor complaints & inconveniences, but probably won’t return due to beach. Lots of rocks along water’s edge with only 1 or 2 small places to get in & out. People should be aware there are no elevators, no bathtubs, no room service, & no ice machines in some bldgs. Food & drinks surprizingly good for AI. Due to low numbers from swine flu scare, entire Yucatan side of resort was closed including sports bar with golf simulator, billiards & etc. Also some restaurants were only parttime. Otherwise, no crowds was nice. Was also nice being in walking distance to marina w/shops, restaurants & dolphin adventure. Spa was beautiful, but several things there weren’t working & services weren’t cheap. Gym equip very good. Our room in new bldg was very very nice, but hated all the halogen lights. Shows & activities mostly good.

Traveler's tip on recreational activities

Dolphin Discovery at the Marina there in Puerto Aventuras was great. The catamaran snorkle trip with Fat Cat was our best day of the trip.

Would recommend

This hotel was very nice with an extremely helpful and genuine staff, and clean, comfortable rooms. They also had a staff member who was available to answer any questions about excursions and was able to set up all types of trips from the hotel. They also had food available at almost any time of the day, but my only complaint with it is that it wasn’t always very fresh and warm and we never really had any authentic Mexican food.

Great hotel and beautiful beach, can`t wait to go back

It was are first time at Catalonia and we had a great time, kids friendly beautiful beach and lagoon an the side. We snorkel a lot and did other activities. Hotel very clean and great food especially the La Brisa buffet, staff very friendly. We stayed only 4 nights and it wasn`t enough to see everything at the hotel because of doing a lot of activities, can`t wait ti go back for a longer vacations. We had lots of FUN!!!

Not impressed

The hotel has 5 bars but none of them carry Jack Daniel’s and a couple of times ran out of Bacardi. I had to go to a Walmart to buy some. The food was below average and needs more of an assortment. The staff was great

This place was GREAT!

Excellent service, clean, very friendly and helpful staff, buffet was the best I’ve had as buffets go, shows were fun, and I would stay here again in a minute. Spa was nice. Restaurants were good. Japanese was best but difficult to get into. My daughter thoroughly enjoyed the activities and the activities staff made her feel so welcome and being one who doesn’t usually engage in that without someone else, she was on her own and having a blast. Great resort for families.

This is an excellent resort for families. Very reasonable, caters to all ages, and just a great place.

I have been to Mexico many times and this is by far one of two places I would defiantly go to again.

The staff was awesome, the shows were fantastic,the food better then average. Beach is beautiful where you can actually snorkel right on the beach and actually see many fish. We saw a 5ft. YES 5ft. Baracuda there that was just chilling out. You can snorkel a hour a day with thier equipment as well as take out kyaks for no extra cost. The staff has many activites going on at all times so you don’t get bored. The grounds are beautiful also. I loved it here as well as my Husband, Daughter, her boyfriend, Niece, Nephew and Sister. We were all very impressed...........

Traveler's tip on local attractions

If you go into Playa del Carmen (by way of free shuttle) go at night........very pretty and a lot cooler.