Hilton Playa del Carmen

The staff make this hotel, there are so many genuinely lovely people. Special mentions to Luis at Spice and Dolma - the special cocktail is my new favourite! Alejandra at the pool and Abigail in the lobby bar are both great waitresses, neither ever let our drinks get empty and Alejandra is such a lovely person too. The service in both areas was distinctly better when they were on shift. Idelfonso in the bar just off the lobby makes the best mojitos. All staff greet you and have a quick chat if you’re okay with that but I didn’t find them pushy at all.

Comfy bed, good air con, mini fridge restocked daily and hammock chair on the balcony, room service good and efficient, very large room.

All specialty restaurants are lovely, Dolmas (Mediterranean) is my favourite, the focaccia is the best I’ve had outside of Italy. Barefoot is handy for a snack at lunchtime. We only booked the specialty restaurants once, other times we chanced it and got into the restaurants every time we tried, I would book if you’re in a large party though. The main buffet is called Spice - I heard some guests complaining about it but for an AI buffet that has to cater to a lot of people I think they do a good job overall. There’s at least 3 live cooking stations every night and the staff are happy to customise what you’re ordering, everything I had was cooked perfectly. Yes, a few dishes could have done with a little more flavour but they do have plenty of hot sauces and condiments so you can add your own, not a big deal for me. There was something tasty to eat every night, some nights were just a bit of trial and error. The coffee shop is great for a snack, the sorbets are lovely. The drinks in all locations seemed to vary hugely depending on who made them, some staff need a little bit of training in this area, on a few occasions the drinks were really not good.

Beach was not really useable due to sargassum, this is obviously not the fault of the hotel and they do have people working hard to clear it, it’s just something to be aware of. Didn’t use the quiet pool but the main pool and activities pool were good fun. The foam parties are great, I think twice a week is a good amount, it would be too much to have them every day. Some improvements could be made though, the sun loungers have shades attached to them which is great if you get a working one - a lot of them aren’t tightened enough so they aren’t any use. The pool is really not that clean, there are black bits floating around which seem to be coming from the grout, several other guests mentioned this too (unprompted), it really needs a proper clean. Surprised they’ve let it get like this because the rest of the resort is spotless. They have a falconer daily at the main pool, I assume as pest control(?), it was quite entertaining too. I also saw some small lizards and racoons at the hotel - very cute!

Lovely that it’s adults only. The two weeks I was there had a great atmosphere, other guests of all nationalities were generally very friendly. It’s right next to 5th Avenue which is handy for the evenings if you want to go out. You may not need to though as the entertainment is great, it’s varied and I especially liked the Cirque du Soleil style shows, the performers are incredibly talented. There is an app to book restaurants, see what entertainment is on etc, really good app but had a couple of problems getting it to load sometimes. There was two of us in our party and both of us had the same issue several times, not usually a big problem.

I would recommend this hotel to someone who was coming to Playa, nowhere is 100% perfect but any small niggles were outweighed by how great the staff are.

Lovely resort. Great classes from Katia in Pilates, Yoga, TRX and more.

Loved the property. While you’re there, please do at least one workout with Katia in the gym! Top notch. She understands how to help you accomplish a challenge within your skill level. Thanks so much!