Magic Blue Spa Boutique Hotel Playa del Carmen — Hotel in Playa del Carmen

sewage problem: This may have been one of the worst parts of our stay. The shower and the sink wouldn't drain properly so expect to stand in a water-logged shower. The very first water-logged shower we took, we were standing in some kind of floaties and dead bugs (very gross). What was worse than that though was the awful stench smell that wouldn't go away even after room service. This was probably the most surprising of all being that this is seen as somewhat a 'luxury' hotel, with as beautiful as the tropical foyer/pool area is and the great staff.

Granted it was a very serene experience in the inside of the premise for the most part, the noise with our particular room was off the charts. We stayed in room 18 (2nd level), the back corner where two streets intersect. Constant street noise and the worst of it was between 2 - 3am when the Coco Bongo club closed and the loud party flooded the street behind us. Ear plugs were provided in the room as a courtesy but weren't sufficient so I had to resort to my ear buds with white noise playing, to try to cancel out the obnoxious party noise (very uncomfortable). Getting adequate sleep here was a major frustration. My guess is that most if not all the rooms are just as noisy since the rooms are located on the outside perimeter of the premise, all running parallel to the high-traffic streets.

We purchased an extra package through Expedia to include a couples massage every day of our stay which included 30 minutes use of the spa facility. This was the number one appeal to us (this particular spa/hotel for that reason), being that the both of us are involved in a highly strenuous body-taxing project, so we were looking for a place that included that extra TLC. However as bad odds would have it, they just so happened to be renovating 2 of our 5-day booking. They didn't bother to offer a refund or any alternatives and refused a refund option when we were put in the awkward position to have to ask. They simply told us they would be 'closed'. The front desk woman tried to suggest that the outdoor public pool was a replacement for the extra spa/massage package we paid extra for, referring to the pool/jacuzzi area as 'hydrotherapy' and used that explanation to justify why she would not offer a refund. Although she was very kind in her demeanor, I felt this was very unprofessional and unfair, so we will have to take this up through Expedia now to get the refund for services not rendered; just another unnecessary hassle we need to reconcile now. A suggestion for the hotel: It wouldn't be at all difficult to disassemble the two massage tables and relocate them temporarily to a vacant room to resume this service that people have already paid for until the renovation is concluded. We did suggest this and they did offer it later, but by then, we were already scheduled to fly home by early morning. So I'd like to give them credit for taking that into consideration, but a little too late though. Paid services were left not rendered.

A few days into our stay, we were notified that the bug spray folks were coming to fumigate all the rooms literally DURING our stay and were advised to be sure to take our own measures to protect all our belongings from being sprayed on. How on earth is one expected to do that?.. and expected to enjoy a vacation in a small confined room that reeks of bug spray? Between this and the spa being 'closed', we decided we really had enough and kindly asked for a full refund for the remaining 2 days, as by this point, we'd rather find another nearby hotel. But the front desk woman refused to offer a refund, EVEN after my advising her how allergic I am to the pesticides they are spraying. So all she could offer was to postpone the spraying inside our room until our vacation was over. Understandably, pest control measures are probably unavoidable in this tropical climate , but I was shocked they were doing this while people were in the rooms and not during guest transitions, especially with the health conscious crowd they cater to. See...

Continue from L.B. review We did try the hotel's buffet style Brazilian restaurant connected to the property (where breakfast is served every morning). The dinner and service were both excellent. If you choose to eat at the restaurant for dinner though (for the average Joe with a conscious budget in mind), expect much of your dining budget to be expended on this one dinner. The bill for two with tip is upwards of $200 (usd), and while it was nice, there are plenty of other fine dining options in the area you may want to consider first, at a fraction of the cost. We were advised of the small discount as hotel guests, but it's so miniscule that it's hardly worth mentioning ( I think it was 10%). The meat skewers is a great concept but the buffet style salad bar seemed a little dry and already picked out (slim pickings). The servers and staff were exceptionally nice and professional, so I want to emphasize that the extortionist price for that dinner is not their fault. But if this hotel's restaurant wants to get fair reviews to better reflect their excellent employee staff, they really need to reconsider their pricing model to be a little more competitive with the surrounding eaterys. The food was good, but NOT worth the exhorbant bill.

Pool closes too early.. 8pm. That may be expected in the states but a vacation in Playa?.. I was surprised. Evidently the reason is to deter any noise during sleep hours, but even while the pool area was at full capacity , it was still very serene, as the calibur of people that stay here don't appear to be of the obnoxious 'partier' type. As an adult-only hotel, the pool & hot tub really should be open 24 hours. Any additional noise by this simple accommodation couldn't possibly be any worse than the random midnight sirens going off in the dead of your sleep and the loud partiers you can hear all night in the back side of your hotel room.

The room wasn't special by any means. We've gotten accustomed to the fact that you can almost always expect zero sound insulation in or on the walls when travelling southwards, so I might suggest (especially for this hotel in particular), adding a few large rugs to the rooms to help dampen the echoey sound, but also would be a great way to add a touch of color to an otherwise colorless bland room. Plain white walls and no wall art whatsoever.. just 'Plain Jane', albut very clean aside from the lingering sewage stench smell. The lighting is awful.. overly florescent and hard on the eyes. Warmer lighting (or at least changing the bulbs out to the Edison Amber LEDs) would be a noticeable improvement in the overall feel. All the Metal in the bathroom seemed corroded (from the shower head to the smaller details and hardware).. comes with the tropical territory I suppose but I've not stayed in a hotel in PDC that was this bad. Hooks would be super nice as there were none, but only a few small towel racks. So hardly no place to hang our wet swimming suits, towels, etc. Not sure if the electrical circuits are in need of an upgrade also because our charger plug-ins would get dangerously hot within no time at all and our electronics struggled to recharge. Bedside tables would have been nice too.

Last but not least, the nice friendly staff was a plus and surely made up for many of the drawbacks, but I'm not sure we would choose to stay at this particular...

My sister and I did a week-long girl's trip and stayed at this hidden gem of a hotel! Even though the location is right in the heart of all the shopping and dining, it felt so private and secluded! The hotel has a beautiful spa right on premises and a Brazilian steakhouse restaurant as well, and our hotel stay gave us discounts at both. The rooms, pool, bar and green spaces were secured behind a glass door that required a room key to enter, and that door was right by the front desk, so there was always hotel staff present and available. It also felt very safe and quiet. We were assigned a concierge, Elieser, who was very helpful our entire stay. The front desk staff greeted us every time we passed through and were always attentive and helpful. We got great tips for nearby dining, shopping and attractions through them.||The guest rooms all wrap around the pool and bar area, and remind me of tree houses with all the dark wood. Each room has a hammock across the private porch. Our room was tucked away in the back and had 2 double beds, with double sinks and a spacious shower. There were many channels on the large screen TV, quite a few of which were in English which was nice. Getting hot water in the shower was challenging at certain times of day- when we asked the front desk about the best times to get hot water, they sent someone from maintenance over just to check and make sure everything was in working order. I really appreciated that. ||The pool and pool deck were beautiful! Pool furniture was wooden with large cushions and pillows instead of those cheap plastic chairs, and there were plenty of umbrellas and side tables. My favorite place to perch was one of the 4 submerged loungers in the pool. The bar serves a variety of drinks and food, and was open for most of the day. Towel exchange was easy through the front desk staff. The hotel also partners with 2 clubs on the beach so we had the option to get chairs and an umbrella out there, but honestly we preferred the quiet and seclusion of the hotel pool for lounging. It was fun to walk along the beach as it is very active out there, even in October. ||One of our favorite parts of the hotel was certainly the spa, which offered massages, facials and other services. It is beautiful and serene with a sauna, steam room, showers, cool plunge and hot tub. We were able to spend time in the wet areas daily if we desired. The prices were a good value and the masseurs were fabulous! My sister and I booked couples massages so we could have our services at the same time- quite the treat. I also enjoyed a facial. ||The hotel also offers an excursion coordinator- Oscar booked reservations for a day trip to underground caverns and the pick up and drop off was right across the street from the hotel. He had so many options for adventures- tours, adventure parks, boats- it was hard to pick! ||I want to add that I accidentally left my tablet behind in the room when we left. When I called the hotel they found it, sent me a picture to confirm it, then worked with me over the course of several days to ship it back to my home in the states, even taking it to local FedEx. Elieser, Brenda and Vanesa made sure it got back to me safely- service above and beyond! I would definitely come back here and stay with friends again; I would even feel safe doing...