The Yucatan Playa del Carmen, Tapestry Collection by Hilton — Hotel in Playa del Carmen

Only been here for just over 24 hours and the Yucatan Playa Del Carmen continues to disappoint.

Firstly, please be aware there's two way to book directly with this resort. Via Yucatan's site or via Hilton's site.

If you book via Hilton, note that the all-inclusive plus deal (for access at the Hilton down the street) does not prompt like it does on the Yucatan site.

The rate on Yucatan site that includes the all-inclusive plus rate, is a much better rate than the "rate" at the front desk, which at $75USD per person per day, is rather steep.

When we noticed that the all-inclusive plus wasn't an option for us through booking with Hilton directly, we had contacted Hilton who stated that we'd be offered the super-discounted rate at the front desk upon check in. (After comparing with others within our group, they paid ~$35USD per person per day.)

However upon checking in with our group of 8, we were only offered $75USD per person per day - which we declined and continue to escalate a resolution for via Hilton and Yucatan. Neither of which seem comfortable taking accountability for the better rate that was discussed and promised via phone support after booking.

Later emails from Yucatan only offered an all-inclusive plus rate of $73/day per person.

After checking in, the situation continued to worsen.

After Playa Del Carmen experienced a power outage for the afternoon, the air conditioning has continued to be inoperable for the day. With most rooms and guests leaving their doors and windows open for airflow, or at worse, just living with the heat and humidity. (Update: AC has attempted to come alive as of 11:20pm)

After returning from an evening walk to get away from the crazy situation we continued to find ourselves in, we returned to find our room flooded.

Something has sprung a rather large leak and has gone through one full side of the hotel.

Upon approaching the front desk, the concierge who I've had the displeasure of dealing with twice now - Alberto - didn't seem to care or have enough urgency to deal with our continued concerns about our stay.

When pushed for a phone call with his manager, he denied the request stating the manager was unavailable. Which seems strange - the hotel is experiencing a major issue re: leak and it's not considered an "all-hands on deck" situation. (Later described by another employee as the largest leak he has seen in the last 2.5 years, which leads me to believe leaks may be a consistent issue if this is the "biggest.")

Alberto may show sympathy, but he does not have any power to truly address issues. "Talk to my manager in the morning" is the only response he seems to be willing to provide. And is truly unwilling to take any accountability for the stay and experience at the Yucatan.

I doubt this is by design - I would assume Yucatan/Hilton would empower their employees to go the mile on the behalf of the guests paying for a stay for a vacation. But I have my doubts.

We were only moved to a room of a "comparable" standard for all these issues. (Yes - there was a full quarter of a hotel to adjust to other rooms, but compensation was not offered and "talk to the manager in the morning" was the pocketed response.)

We have had some other employees who are lovely and seem to be doing the best they can under the circumstances - Louis and Mary, who have been waiting on us during the nights - have done more than earned my support and vocalization within this review in making sure a group of 8 was well fed and watered.

Ultimately, lessons learned.

Spend your money elsewhere - perhaps bite the bullet and book at the Hilton down the street.

If you do decide to chance fate, book on the Yucatan's site directly for the better all-inclusive plus rate, and spend your day down the street anyways.

And certainly don't plan on your concerns or comfort being a priority for the evening front desk.

6 more nights to go. Wish us luck. If anything changes - for better or for worse - I will update this review...

Our stay was from October 16th to 23rd in room 215, two queen beds. The resort has many positives such as, location, wonderful staff, decent food, and nice pool area, but there are minor issues, inconsistencies and shortcomings. Firstly, many of the staff are hard working, friendly people, who often travel far by bus, work long hours, but willing to please, engage with patrons, and make you happy, always while smiling. Upon arrival, we were not offered an upgrade (diamond member privilege), but seeing the room, we didn't need one. It was spacious, cool, comfortable and the tv had many channels. The bathroom was a decent size, but needed a fresh coat of paint and small fix on the sink. The idea of not being able to flush toilet paper can be unsettling, but garbage is changed daily. The toilets struggle to rid the waste and need maintenance. We called the maid immediately to change the duvet as it was stained, which she contested, and probably ended up just flipping it over rather than get a cleaner one. The air-conditioning sounded rough, but we just kept the fan running, and it was tolerable. The noise from 9 p.m until 3 a.m. was horrible, and made sleeping soundly impossible. It seems other reviewers addressed this, but it has been rectified. Attention to detail #1

The all inclusive does NOT include a free visit to the big Hilton, but rather $75 usd per person per day, only until 6 p.m. This means you miss out on the other restaurants for dinner, since there are only two on these premises. I asked if diamond members could get an hour pass, and it was clear this was non negotiable. However, we were encouraged to go at least walk over for a look, which we did, but were not even allowed to enter to get a drink at the bar. The bar fridge in your room is stocked with water, sodas, and beer daily, and bar service includes regular spirits, wine and cocktails, but no high end liquor, that's extra. The party on Saturday offered a lobster creation, 35$ extra, and suddenly, chairs that were free the rest of the week, now cost 50$ which included a bottle of wine, and some extra treats. My husband and I did enjoy wine with dinner and a couple of beers or margaritas, but we don't really feel necessary to explain to one serrver, why we didnt want cocktails like everyone else. Attention to detail #2

The breakfast restaurant (7-11) is spacious, very clean and efficiently run with several tables and umbrellas. The food is fresh, and done to your liking. The coffee stop has treats, coffee, tea, sodas, water and sandwiches loaded 24 hours. The lunch (11-5) on the 4th level is good but could use some variety throughout the week. The calamari, the steak and the nachos, were all inconsistent, underdone/chewy, overcooked, and liquid cheese instead of shredded. This is the only bar location, (other than room service), so the servers run for drinks between the two restaurants on Thursdays-Saturdays. The Japanese restaurant promotes small plates, and the Terrazza has limited choices for dinner. Attention to detail #3

The pool area is showing signs of neglect and with a few updates, should be fine. The pool has many tiles missing and you may stub your toe, as well as, the wooden deck is not completely refinished. The towels are rolled nicely, but for some reason, only 6-8 are put out and the rest hidden behind the bar. Insufficient amount of umbrellas, make finding shade a challenge. A broken umbrella which went unrepaired, until someone opened it, thereby becoming a hazard, was removed and not replaced, ergo, even less shade. Perhaps, using one or two from the breakfast restaurant might be an option. You don't need to reserve like the big resorts, but if you're hoping for shade, you may be out of luck. Attention to detail #4

All in all, a nice boutique hotel close to all the action, walkable to some great sights and beach nearby. If you're going to label it with the Hilton brand, attention to detail is a necessary...

We were two couples who had the same experiences, and we spoke to other guests who had similar experiences. The push from the hotel staff is to get you to pay for a daily upgrade to go to the other all-inclusive Hilton. Price for 2 people was $150 a day, and the experience at the other Hilton was very good. Here is a list of why we will never return to this hotel and why you should never go: No or intermittent hot water in rooms Staff who misled us or lied to us o We mentioned our disappointment regarding the lack of menu choices to the manager at the front desk and were informed that as it was the weekend, we would be able to order from both of the rooftop restaurants. Bear in mind that the “two” restaurants are the length of the pool apart and it is a small pool. When we attempted to order from both menus, the manager, Raul, stated that it wouldn’t be allowed. We asked for clarification and asked the reason since we’d been told differently at the front desk, and asked whether there were separate kitchens (there were not). He said that he would make an exception and “deliver” from the other kitchen and told us we would have to “run back and forth” to get food from both menus. A short while later he sent another waitress over to tell us that we would not be allowed to order from both menus while sitting at the table we were occupying. No explanation was given as to the policy, or why we’d been given contradicting responses. The waitress, Victoria, was the only staff member who we didn’t have to proactively flag down or raise or voices to get their attention. Victoria upstairs and David downstairs were the only notably good hospitality service providers, the others were either not noteworthy or were actively bad. Raul was haughty, smug, and condescending for the rest of our trip. o The concierge had very limited hours so we were assured by the front desk that he would call us to book things, but we were never called. Misleading advertising o Saying that there are three restaurants on site is ludicrous. Sakura Maru and La Terraza are essentially co-located, and the only thing separating them is the prohibition on ordering from both simultaneously. o Beautiful photo of the rooftop bar on the website? None of those choices of alcohol is available without a significant upcharge. They are in NO way inclusive. o Coffee Corner photo on the website? NEVER looked like that. Far fewer choices, and a micro-fridge with limited choices apart from a coffee/espresso machine. The Coffee Corner was almost always out of water. Understaffed o The concierge is only available to book excursions etc. from 11am to 4pm, precisely during the time you would prefer to be out enjoying an excursion during your vacation. o Dinner consistently took 20-30 minutes to place orders, and other than one particularly good waitress, Victoria, we were largely dependent on flagging someone down to get drink refills or ask about status of order. Mediocre food o Food meant to be hot was warm, food meant to be cold was not, all the food was under-seasoned and the chips were stale. Limited menu choices o Dinner – 4 appetizers, 6 dinner plates (9 if you want to spend an additional $64-$80 per person), 3 desserts. There are others “available” if you stay in your room, or walk the length of the pool to the other area of the rooftop and order there. No regard whatsoever for Hilton status o The only recognition of Diamond status with Hilton was a sash on our door and the offer to get spa services for a small percentage off only if we booked at the time of check-in. The other couple traveling with us who didn’t have any status with Hilton was given...