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Reviews of El Secreto

2 out of 5
El Secreto
11 MILES NORTH OF SAN PEDRO TOWN, AMBERGRIS CAYE, San Pedro, Belize District

Reviews

8.2

Very Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 39 out of 71 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 17 out of 71 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 3 out of 71 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 7 out of 71 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 5 out of 71 reviews" "

9.0/10

Cleanliness

8.6/10

Staff & service

8.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Stayed 7 nights in Jun 2018

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stay Away
When we arrived at the hotel, the whole site smelled of sewage. The restaurant area, the grounds, the pool area. When we asked why they said the pipes had broke. But when we tried to get our monies back and leave there was no manager at the hotel. The desk person said the manager lives in Mexico. When even Expedia tried to get in touch with the hotel to get a refund for us they coudln't get an answer.
Stayed 14 nights in Mar 2018

10/10 Excellent

Coco, Belize

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Private & Secluded....exactly what we needed.
We absolutely enjoyed our stay at El Secreto. The private pool and bedding was the icing on the cake! Estel was amazing! We will most definitely return.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2018

10/10 Excellent

twodox, Cheshire, CT

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Total relaxation in an idyllic setting.
El Secreto is a tiny gem of a hotel, with 13 beautiful cabins on a lovely site. Ours was around a lagoon and others are on the beach. The service was outstanding and the food in the restaurant was excellent and varied. The hotel is on the northern end of the island.San Pedro is 30 minutes away by boat or 45 minutes by golf cart along a very bad road. The nearest restaurant is a mile away, so you will eat nearly all your meals there, which can be expensive. We spent about $140/day for two, without a major bar tab. Estell, the manager, is a gem - witty, helpful and charming. Rather than spend a full week here, I recommend staying on the mainland or in San Pedro for your adventures and coming here after to chill out for a few days. Perfect for couples; NOT for children.
Stayed 7 nights in Jan 2018

8/10 Good

Dianne, Peterborough ON

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Perfect place to get away from it all
My husband and I went to El Secreto for our one year anniversary. The hotel is stunning, and extremely private. We felt like we had the entire resort to ourselves. The staff were very attentive, but stayed in the background until you needed them. The grounds were stunning!! Every angle was like a post card. I had pretty high expectations but was very happily surprised. There were a few minor issues, we had trouble getting our hot tub turned on, out of the 7 nights we were there it was only turned on once, although we requested it every afternoon. Because of the time of year we went, the sand flies were quite bad (after the rainy season). The hotel did the best they could, and provided bug spray in all the rooms. In another couple of weeks they should be gone. We were looking for a place that we could escape the world, and found it at El Secreto. We still participated in the activities that we wanted to, but enjoyed the peace and quiet the most! We will definitely be back, and will highly recommend it to others we know who are thinking about Belize and Ambergris Caye as an option for a get away.
Stayed 7 nights in Nov 2017
Response from Pabell on Dec 7, 2017
Dear Dianne, Thank you for taking the time to review El Secreto. Your feedback is quite important for us in order to improve our services and make our guest live a unique experience. We hope to be the host on your next visit to San Pedro. Kind Regards

10/10 Excellent

ELIAS

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing getaway
Amazing getaway
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2017
Dear Elias, Thank you for your time to review El Secreto. We are so glad you enjoyed our little piece of Paradise... We look forward to welcoming you again soon! Warm regards Pabell

4/10 Poor

Mark and Jenny, San Diego

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Poor experience but quick response & refund. Bats
El Secreto is located in a beautiful, remote spot on Ambergris Caye. If you're not familiar with the layout of the caye, be aware that in order to get to El Secreto from San Pedro, you need to take a 30-min water taxi up the coast to reach the El Secreto dock. There is no road that goes there from town. The villas are nice and spacious. We arrived in the afternoon and intended to stay for two nights. We got to our villa and thought - why is the thatched palm frond roof so thin? We could literally see cracks of daylight through it. What do they do when it rains?? We figured that it isn't a huge concern since there was no rain in the forecast while we were there. We enjoyed the hot tub, had dinner and went to bed. Around 4:30am, we woke up to the sound of loud rustling inside our villa. I switched on a light to find a bat flying around inside our bedroom! It was bumping into the ceiling, presumably trying to get out. The bat finally found a crack in the ceiling and left. We packed up our things and checked out early that morning. The person at the front desk did not appear surprised at our experience. To us it seemed like they already knew that they had a bat problem. Despite the bad experience, El Secreto was quick to arrange a boat to take us back to San Pedro for free, and they were also quick to grant my refund request for both nights. We would love to recommend this resort, but until they fix their pest / bat problem, we can not honestly recommend staying here.
Stayed 2 nights in May 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice property
Great stay overall, staff was excellent very helpfull always and the property is ver nice
Response from Rob on May 30, 2017
Thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you had a great stay with us! Hope we can welcome you again in the future!

2/10 Terrible

Jennifer

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
DO NOT STAY AT THIS HOTEL!!!!
The staff that picked us up from the airport was friendly. The staff met us at the dock to welcome us to the hotel, but it was downhill from there. The restaurant was mediocre, there was one other person in the reastaurant but it took a very long time to get our food, which was extremely overpriced. The room upon first glance was ok, but quickly realized that coffee cups were flilthy, there weren't adequate toteltries and the hot tub was cold. Those items were addressed by the staff. After settling in we encountered a bat flying in our room. We contacted the front desk, and they were not very quick to respond. They eventually caught the bat and removed it from our room. After waiting for another villa to be cleaned, they moved us in the middle of the night. After a long day of traveling and the bat encounter I was ready for a good night sleep, as soon as the lights went out in the new villa again the bat problem. After bringing this to the managements attention, a very delayed response, we checked out and moved to another hotel. They did not refund our money, and said that it was our problem. The bottom line is, the hotel is not well-maintained, in addition to the bat problem, the overall condition of the hotel is poor. The onsite management is not equipped to handle situations that require refunding money to guest. I waited 2 1/2 hours for response from the corporate office that ultimately said sorry we're going to keep your money!
Dear Jennifer, Thank you for your review and we will definitely use your review as an enhancement to avoid the same experience to our future guests as this is not what we offer. Best, Guests Services

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness
Great location but "rip off" for food
The El Secreto is located at a great beach - just don't check 50m left/right from the hotel beach as it starts to be a dump. The stuff is friendly and helps in supporting a pleasurable stay. Due to the location a trip to San Pedro (or the next restaurant) is rather a nightmare and therefore: only the option for food and drinks at El Secreto is available. El Secreto does provide food but the price is (allow me to write) a rip off as the quality as well as the service is so lala. Additional: changes to a menu normally end in a "no" - which is far away from customer friendly. With that written: location and stuff great - amenities improvement highly appreciated!

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
beautiful ammenities, but very remote.
jacuzzi temperature did not work as desired, in general overpriced. beach very small, not good for swimming

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Christmas in paradise
Excellent place to stay and relax, staff went the extra mile to make our stay one we'll never forget. The resort's attention to detail is unsurpassed by any other place we've stayed Kudos El Secreto Ernie & Suzanne

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Isolated & bizarre... not in a good way.
While the pool area and restaurant on this property are very beautiful, the rest of the resort is not so great. Overall, we were pretty disappointed. We selected one of the ocean villas. The room smelled like urine. The palm leaf roof was covered in black mold, which created a constant musty, unpleasant odor. AC in the room stopped working the last night of our three night stay. It was 85 degrees & miserable. The mosquitos & sand flies are horrible, so you can't even open the doors. The shower water was salt water. Service is very slow at the overpriced & mediocre restaurant & bar. Sometimes housekeeping services your room but not always. When we checked in, the sheets were soft & comfortable. The next day, they were changed to a cheap, torn & itchy set. Towels were also torn. The private hot tub isn't warm, let alone hot. Well drinks are $15 at the bar. We felt like it was Hotel California. The energy is weird. Staff lives on property and their dogs go into fits of barking at all times of the day & night.There is so much plastic and trash on the beaches, if you step one foot off property it feels like a garbage dump. It is so sad. There has been no clean up since Hurricane Earl's devastation Aug 2016. Most of the staff speaks poor English, which is odd for an English speaking country. The other couples we met agreed it was a bizarre experience. I wouldn't go back.

10/10 Excellent

Blake

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Remote luxury
Perfect place to escape and unplug in style. The staff was amazing and very friendly and helpful.

8/10 Good

Arlen Jeferson, US

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
excellent hotel
Excellent hotel. Did edge of a small but magnificent strech of beach. The villas are comfortable and clean. The stuff is a pleasure. The only complaint would be the mosquitoes but we got to admit that being tropical resort we have to allow for some mosquitoes. Overall a very nice place to be. If you want to have some rest and be deducted from the world and El Secreto is the place to be. We enjoyed our stay there

10/10 Excellent

Kyle, US

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent staff, room service, and amenities! Food was great as well

10/10 Excellent

Phillip

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This place is amazing! Especially if you need privacy. We rented a golf cart but that's not the way to go. The hotel will send a boat but we didn't know that. It's nearly impossible to find by road but if you do, turn toward El Norte Bar and drive down the beach for about a mile.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Overpriced, far away from everything, no area to beach swim.

10/10 Excellent

JT, New York

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Our experience at El Secreto was nothing short of amazing. We received 5-star treatment from the pick-up to the drop-off. It was the most relaxing resort I have ever been to, and not to mention it is very beautiful and just like the pictures. A great secluded and relaxing getaway for couples.

6/10 Okay

Cheryl, Houston, TX

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Disliked: Room comfort
Too remote
Nice hotel but too far from anything. If you want quiet and relaxing, then it is the place for you. If you want access to restaurants, shopping, activities, then it is not. Only accessible by boat. the hotel sometimes has a shuttle to town, but not always, and they didn't always post the schedule until the day of. Had to us water taxi a lot and it got to be expensive.

10/10 Excellent

Emily, Austin, TX

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Most Amazing Relaxing Experience
I have traveled the whole world and this by far was the most relaxing and luxurious accommodation that I have stayed at. We absolutely love this hotel. If you watch the youtube video of the resort that is a complete accurate depiction of what this place is like. It is in a very remote spot far north on the island, and is so quite and peaceful. The beaches are clean and the water is beautiful. The staff is so friendly and helpful. The food was delicious. If you are looking for a complete getaway that is relaxing and calm this is for sure where you want to be. I can't recommend this place enough. I not only plan to come back with my boyfriend, but I want to bring my mom to this place as well.

8/10 Good

Tina

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Ruth, Houston, Texas

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Our own resort
El Secreto is small and quiet. We felt like we were on our own resort. The staff was not hovering but yet they were always available when we needed something. They took care of our every need. We were treated like royalty. It is a beautiful location. The entire experience was magnificent.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful place and very comfortable bed, loved the whole experience.

10/10 Excellent

Deborah, Santa Ynez, CA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Best kept secret in San Pedro, Belize.
Every picture they post is exactly what we experienced. The Hotel and it's staff were more than amazing. We had the best trip ever and can't wait to go back... Hopefully on our Honeymoon.

6/10 Okay

Peter, Toronto

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service
Great property but terrible service.

4/10 Poor

Carribean Tim, Ohio

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service
Nothing to do
First ...be ready to travel by boat to do any activities. Second...be ready to pay a lot of money for food, drinks and any activities. Third ...be ready to wait for the staff for your meals, boat travel and everything you need. No one is in a hurry to do anything. The room was nice. The food was ok. But there is nothing to do but sit there and stare at the water. The water is muddy about a hundred yards out from the beach. You can not swim unless you go on a boat to snorkeling areas...Money, money, money...Very expensive to do any activities. You can't walk or ride bikes to any other locations around the resort. We tried and were attacked by dogs. The beach off the resort property is disgusting, trash every where. The service is not that great and again the food and drinks are very expensive. If you do not want to do nothing but sit and drink and eat and stare at the ocean....perfect, other wise stay some place closer to San Pedro. We will not be going back to this resort and for that matter we will not be going back to Belize period. This trip cost 2 times as much to do than any other trip we have taken in the past 5 years and we did not get to do anything we wanted.

10/10 Excellent

Ryan, Austin, TX

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing secluded getaway!
A relaxing place to get away from it all. Enjoy laying on the many beach and pool side lounge chairs or hammocks, the most amazing snorkeling, great food, your own hot tub, and kayaking and paddle boarding.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful remote island oasis
Beautiful and secluded island oasis. Literally on the beach, reached only by boat (25 minute ride from San Pedro). Walk off the boat dock onto sand and never leave the sand. 13 nicely appointed villas. Serene setting and very quiet. If you're looking for quiet and privacy this is the place as all activities can only be reached by boat - not necessarily bad. Only one restaurant but food is very good, just expensive. We bought some of our own drink & snack provisions in town. Excursions can be arranged by helpful hotel staff, i.e. Snorkeling, mainland trips to see the Mayan temples or caving/tubing. Lots of mosquitos but hotel does its best with nightly fogging & bug spray in rooms to use. Truly a gorgeous resort but not as much to do as we had hoped. Don't recommend swimming in the sea at their location due to pollution but infinity pool is beautiful. Each villa has its own jacuzzi but it takes 3 hours to heat! Also water heaters for rooms are tiny so quick showers are a must. Had fun just be prepared and know what to expect.

6/10 Okay

Carly, Portland

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel, remote location
Our room was beautiful and luxurious. The staff was friendly and helpful, although there were a couple times when they said they would check into something and call us back but never did. The reason I would not recommend this hotel is that it is too far away from the rest of the island and traveling to and from the resort by boat can be expensive and inconvenient. Also, the food at the resort was extremely overprices and very mediocre (if not terrible). $65 US for a salad, main course and dessert should warrant a meal to remember, not the equivalent of what you would expect from a Red Lobster.

10/10 Excellent

Juan, McAllen

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Perfect Honeymoon
El Secreto is perfect for a Romantic time in a secluded paradise. The staff is friendly and very helpful. The amenities are romantic in nature just try the outdoor shower! They offer fine dining with a view of the ocean. You definitely pay for what you get. I took my beautiful new wife for our honeymoon and we were not dissapointed. She and I are "hotel connesoir" and we're very happy with our decision to stay at El Secreto. Some things to consider is the distance from town and the cost of eating at the resort. If this doesn't matter then there is no better place on Ambergris caye.

2/10 Terrible

Dalibor R.

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
terrible honeymoon
The trip to Belize was good,as far as the flight goes. Upon arrival we had to call the hotel twice to let them know to send somebody to pick us up and take us to el secreto. Since we came on time the boat guy was taking his time to get us there,in the beginning I did not no why,but when we finally made it we find it out. The beach in font of hotel was very dirty,filthy and smell very bad trash was all over the place,water was terrible ....we couldn't swim or lay on the beach at all. The management couldn't explain nothing.He was saying that hurricane hit them, but we saw next day that other hotels beaches were clean, and we were going to there beaches to lay down,of course we had to pay them for it. They gave us a villa on the back because the one in front with sea view wasn't in good conditioning. the whole place was full of mosquitoes. we had 3 bats in our bedroom they woke us up in the middle of the night and my wife couldn't sleep. I killed one lizard and call for manager, he send guys over they killed another lizard,but couldn't take care of the bats so they gave us another villa of course without internet. The food at the hotel restaurant was to expensive for what they were offering. The over all experience was disaster.

4/10 Poor

Dawn, SF Bay Area

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Proceed with Caution!
Arrived safely and escorted to resort via speedboat during a cyclone storm, our villa was flooded next morning. Had to call front desk to inform them, they proceeded to build a bridge of cinder blocks to step on but was unsafe, we had to tell them how to build it. That night a bat entered our room via thatched roof. We had to sleep with lights on entire trip, other guests had snakes, lizards and bats in their rooms. The beach was disgusting and covered with thick amount of sargosum (seaweed). This was slowly being cleaned but smelly and impossible to walk on the beach or enter the ocean. The last straw was when a worker sprayed malathion around our villa and the air conditioner brought it straight into our room! We became ill and complained to the manager stating it was unsafe for all guests. Less than an hour later the same worker came around spraying again! We walked the property back to the lagoon villas to fin the lagoon green with thousands of mosquito larva swimming. The pool was pretty but has lots of green algae. All the staff were fabulous but the grounds need major improvements. I have sent emails to management in Mexico awaiting resolution. If no changed are made to this resort I believe it will close down soon.

10/10 Excellent

William M.

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Romantic getaway
Loved this resort. The accommodations were luxurious and the food was outstanding. The bar was also very extensive. The staff were very polite and went above and beyond to help. Special thanks to Ken,Monica, Jamie, Brenda and Donnie! You guys were great!! Kim Fort Worth, TX

8/10 Good

Russ, LA, CA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel but far from anything
We loved the hotel. The room and location are everything that was touted on the website. The only challenge is the distance from anything else. Locked in to their restaurant and although the food is good it gets old eating at the same place. Hotel is inflexible about water taxi time unless you pay $70 U.S. per person per trip.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Disappointing Experience
The hotels web site picture seemed great, but once we got to the hotel maintenance was not as they sell it. They had a 3 month sea grass accumulation on the beach that made it imposible to swim and the bad odor it had reached the restaurant, so the dining experience was also affected. The view, the odor and the no beach situation made our stay very disappointing. We had booked two nights but we had to leave the next day we arrived. They are so aware of the problema that they even welcome you with an appologies letter. Too late for the time you reach there with no plan B. I think if they took the time to clean up daily a nature incident then things will be better. The place could be much nicer....too bad.

10/10 Excellent

Mr. Chris, San Diego

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Caribbean beauty, tranquility, superb food&service
If you want tranquil excellence, Secreto is your spot. The food was better here than anywhere in San Pedro, and so was the service - by far. I would recommend booking whatever you do through the front desk at Secreto. They are wired in correctly to the local excursions (snorkeling, etc.) and they will get it right for you. My wife loved the french toast for breakfast. I loved the ceviche, and pretty much the entire menu, and the dinner specials were awesome. They have a real chef who cooks to order & does it right & fresh & cares. You will not find better cooking and a staff that is more interested in making sure everything is right for you in Belize. We hit a couple of the better restaurants in San Pedro and they did not hold up to either the food or the staff at Secreto. My wife came back from the trip singing "You betta Belize in Love". That should give you a pretty good idea of how we liked the place. And the drinks at the bar? Forgedddaboudit! Order a Caipirinha or a Rum Runner from Monica (wins bar tending contests) or Freddis and you will thank me later. Monica floats the Rum Runners with Craboo liquor (only available locally) and she is just nice and as sweet as pie. Want anything (the dinner special, a Belikin) delivered to your villa at 9? No worries, just call the front desk. Snorkeling - I would recommend Mexico Rocks over Hol Chan. Mexico Rocks is not near a channel (no current), is very close to El Secreto, and has great marine life. Thanks Lewis! Great Captain.

10/10 Excellent

Clayton

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
No need to keep it a secret...its awesome
Sea Villa is worth it, right on the beach with the breeze makes it paradise. This place has everything you need. Staff was nice and attentive. It's worth the money!

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great secluded resort
Secluded, private resort. Guest services was extraordinary. The staff was very personable and catered to our needs. Totally enjoyed the snorkeling and spear fishing trip with Victor. My wife was nervous about snorkeling and Victor was very good at relaxing her. She became comfortable snorkeling and loved the experience

8/10 Good

Michelle B.

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Exclusive El Secreto
We came for our honeymoon and knew it was off the beaten path and far north. But you really do feel stuck! The property is beautiful as long as you stay on the property. The villas are stunning and the staff is great.

2/10 Terrible

Shazz, miami

PULL YOUR FINGER AWAY FROM BOOKING THIS HOTEL
The most important thing to know is Expedia is either misleading or the hotel has outright lied about where it is. If you want total seclusion this is the place for you. It took three airplanes, a car ride and a boat to get to the hotel from Miami. When I called Expedia the night before the trip to point out that there was no way of getting to the hotel without booking another $500 dollar plane they offered to put us up in another hotel...not the same star grade but something.. This hotel is OVERPRICED and underwhelming. The food is awful and very expensive ..breakfast which is substandard was aprox $90.a day. The food bill at the end of a five day stay was extreme. We had to eat dinner in our room every night because of the insect problem and they fog out the common areas which is suffocating. Everything is overcooked and frozen, no fresh anything. Poor Belize they can't help the toxic blooming algae that is covering the coastlines but it means you cannot go in the water and it stinks everywhere, if the wind blows the wrong way you are gasping. We were literally the only people at the hotel which is sad for the staff. Police came by everyday to patrol which means there has been trouble. I feel bad saying all this because some one has put a lot of thought into the design of the place which is lovely but it is overall AWFUL.

10/10 Excellent

TN

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Beautiful location
Excellent location and extremely helpful staff... Amazing food also. Snorkeling excursions were superb.

10/10 Excellent

debra, dallas

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
El Secreto review
This hotel was very nice. Very secluded spot. Staff warm/friendly and the service was excellent. Food very good also. Our cabin was right on the beach so very nice.The one negative about the hotel was no fitness room. We, therefore, did a lot of walking on the beach. The beaches are a bit dirty in Belize. They need to invest in some clean up. The hotel, however. was wonderful!

8/10 Good

Steven, New Mexico

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
My wife and I booked 7 nights at El Secreto because we wanted to get away from civilization. We stayed in the seaside rooms and they are awesome. We have no serious complaints. The Staff are very attentive. The place is perfect except for some minor complaints. Because we stayed in a Seaside bungalow, we were close to the restaurant/ bar. From our bungalow, we could hear constant loud music from the bar. The views from the restaurant are superb, a wonderful place to have romantic meals. Yet the music was too loud and I think it escaped the Staff that the sounds of adjacent ocean and nearby jungle are what many people seek out in this isolated island destination. The charm of the restaurant are the sights and sounds of nature. Constant music played a little to loud ruined the charm and character of this place to some extent. It was played from 7 am until about 10pm every day. There were times of silence and smooth sounding, low romantic music, but much less often that when the music was just too loud. Although the meals are very good they are not worth the very high prices in the restaurant. We felt the dinners were just a little over priced. When you add the mandatory service charge, tax, and a tip, you add another 35% to the already high cost of the meals. But, in closing, these are minor complaints because we really enjoyed our stay despite the constant, sometimes too loud music and high prices. Our complaints are minor compared to the El Secreto's merits.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful place but it will cost you
El Secreto is a five star resort, but it comes with five star prices... for everything. Just be prepared that you will be secluded and therefore will have to buy everything at the resort and it will not be cheap. While most of the staff are wonderful and helpful, the restaurant service is incredibly slow (we believe this is due to the kitchen, not the wait staff). The place is beautiful and for an island resort in Belize you probably can't do better in terms of cleanliness, comfort and quality of food and drinks.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Hot water was not hot. Straw roof was damaged by the wind and debrie was depositing on the bed.

8/10 Good

Costa, Houston, TX

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Upscale secluded resort
It's a great place for people who like private quiet resorts with great service. It is ideal for couples, but perhaps not for families with kids. The few guests are served by an army of well-trained and very friendly staff. It has a great restaurant. Other highlights: the resort organizes great snorkeling, spearfishing, and other type tours for small groups (in some cases just for one family); also, massage quality at the spa is real great. The architecture is beautiful, unique, and integrated with the surrounding nature. However, there is only one restaurant at the property and the menu does not change much. So, why I didn't give it a 5-star rating? First, I expected much better beach. By my standards, the beach is not swimmable; on top of this, it's sometimes covered by seaweeds. However, we could not find anything substantially better at other resorts on the island (it's a general problem of the area). We found a good way around by using canoes and a small sailboat to get into beautiful clean turquoise waters closer to the reef and swim. It actually worked quite well, but some people may find it difficult getting back to the boats. Other few things that could be improved: the pool is a bit too small to my taste and they don't have extra recreational stuff like a ping-pong table, yoga class, or gym equipment. The place is quite expensive too.

10/10 Excellent

NMancuso, Los Angeles

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
MUST VISIT!! PARADISE ON EARTH.
From the time that we arrived until the time that we left El Secreto, each detail of our stay was thought of in advance. Upon arrival we were greeted by Ken, Manager of El Secreto with watermelon drinks and refreshing towels after a very long journey. Ken is one of the nicest, professional and accommodating resort managers we have ever met. Upon walking on to the premises to check-in (which is paradise btw), we were given a 5 minute complimentary neck and shoulder massage... We knew then that we were in store for a truly relaxing experience. The staff is beyond attentive, friendly and helpful with any need you may have. The rooms are designed for both romance and pure relaxation. The resort is extremely secluded and quiet but each villa also provides privacy with an enclosed outdoor shower and private hot tub. The restaurant and bar serve up incredible drinks with very helpful staff to answer any questions along the way. Room service is also beautifully delivered for a relaxing dinner in your private villa. Ken, Sherry and Norvani were some of the most helpful people I have ever met while vacationing and ensured that our tour, requests and meals were well in order. The rooms are also amazing with King size Tempur-Pedic beds, controllable mood lighting, etc. If you're giving the opportunity to stay for El Secreto, take it. The only problem is that you may never want to leave!

10/10 Excellent

El Secreto

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Perfect paradise
I'm not sure there are enough words to describe how incredible El Secreto really is. It is truly a breathtaking experience. Just in awe at how perfect this place is. The location alone would make it, but then it is topped off with the most personal service from an AWESOME staff. We felt like we had personal service just for us the whole time. We felt like royalty every day. Meals were so delicious. Live entertainment made for perfect evenings. Our villa was beautiful and smelled incredible every day. After returning from breakfast, it was already clean, bed made, bathroom refreshed, and smelling of citrus. In the evening, turn down service, and a new replaxing spa insense burning. This was truly the most special place I have ever stayed. My eyes were truly filled with emotion on out day of departure. If I could return tomorrow, it would not be soon enough.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent design hotel in perfect setting
As close to ideal place for romantic beatiful vacation as you can dream of. Perfect to relax and to enjoy beauty of the Ambergris Caye. Villas at the beach are very nice and with breathtaking view. Service is impeccable, always extremely nice and always ready to guess your needs and assist.