Barceló Maya Caribe - All Inclusive — Hotel in Quintana Roo

Overall, the resort is nice, for an all inclusive resort, the food is what I would expect.

I gave 2 stars for location because it seems to be one of the further resorts from downtown Playa Del Carmen and even a Taxi to downtown is $25usd, which is a rip off, when on the ride share app it was less than 15 (see comment below). A taxi to the airport is quoted to be anywhere from $97-120usd. There is no ride share apps or service. They have a couple but the hotel is not within the zone and the one that is, only has motobikes, which is not convenient if you have luggage. I had found a posted rate chart online with taxi rates from various hotels to/from the airport and it had Barcelo/airport listed at 300mxp(Mexican pesos) so at over $100usd or more, it is well over 300 pesos (over ~1850mxp). All the information I found even stated it was illegal to charge more than the state rate (and that the rate charts should be posted at all hotels) yet everyone does and it seems no one follows the rate chart, as I didn’t even see one posted at the hotel.

I gave it 1 star for service because of my experience solely at checkout (otherwise, the service from the bartenders, wait staff, maid service etc. was good). I had transportation booked at 7:45am to the airport, they called my room to inform me that my ride was there, I said I would be right down. I stopped at the front to ask who my driver was, and the lady asked for my room number. I gave it to her. She said I needed to checkout and she needed to take my bracelet. I handed her my bracelet and again asked if she knew who my driver was or where the man who called my room was, so he could tell me. She told me she thought maybe it was that van (and pointed) and again said that I needed to check out. I again told her that there were 4 more people in my party and only I was checking out, that they had a later flight and that I needed to leave so I didn’t miss my flight. She kept insisting that I pay for the “extras” on my room and she needed to give me some checkout paper. I again, told her, I needed to go, and the other people in my party were still here sleeping, that they were not checking out yet and would handle it later. She wouldn’t let me go. I finally asked her what “extras” she was talking about, as everything was supposed to be included, and I had paid for my massage at the spa already. She said the dinners that weren’t included at the Palace resort. I again told her that the other members in my party were handling that as the reservation is under their name/card and they are still checked in. After several minutes of this back and forth, I got pissed and told her I was not paying for it that the person on the reservation (and the name she kept saying, who was NOT me) would be paying the remainder on checkout and I walked away towards my transportation van that was waiting for me.

They proceeded to stop the driver from leaving, as if I were a criminal, as I am telling them I am going to be late for my flight! I called the other members in my party (waking them up) to inform them that the front was giving me a hard time and asked them to please call down to the front to talk to them, because they wouldn’t let the driver leave. They kept him waiting an additional almost 10 minutes once I walked away from the front desk! I didn’t get on the road until ~8:05am (yet I booked a 7:45 departure so that I could arrive at the airport by 8:45 for my international flight that departed at 10:45). I didn’t make it until after 9am, as a result, because of traffic. This is unacceptable to me considering the fact that my name was no where on the reservation, my signature was not on the dinner slips, I told you only I was checking out due to an earlier flight than the others in my party and you could see there were more people in my room/reservation/party. Very unprofessional behavior in my opinion.

Oh, and there was another incident that occurred when we first arrived, on Saturday, 8/24. Maybe I’ll post a second review...

Our recent stay at the Barceló Resort in Mexico, intended to be a joyful family celebration of my niece’s Sweet 16, was unfortunately marred by persistent disorganization, inconsistent communication, and a troubling lack of accountability. For a group of 20 guests occupying seven premium rooms—booked nearly a year in advance—our experience fell far below even basic hospitality standards.

Despite nearly a year of planning and monthly communication with a booking representative, our group was told that activity and dinner reservations could not be made in advance, but would be easily accommodated upon arrival. That was categorically untrue. The only dinner reservation we were able to secure for our entire group during our four-night stay was Sunday at 5:00 PM—on the final night of the trip. Several family members were told outright that no reservations were available for their rooms on the first two nights and were directed to the buffet instead.

After pressing management, a supervisor managed to “squeeze” my family of four into the Hibachi restaurant on the first night—yet the restaurant was filled with visibly empty tables. Rather than seating our group together, they split us up and placed us with unrelated guests, which completely defeated the purpose of a family celebration.

To make matters worse, we were never informed of the resort’s strict dress code policy for men in à la carte restaurants, which requires long pants. Several male family members—prepared for a beach vacation—were wearing clean, tailored shorts. Had we known in advance, we would have packed appropriately. Instead, they were provided uncomfortable pants to wear over their outfits, interrupting the color coordinated outfits specifically planned for photos.

Additional frustrations included inconsistent access to the amenities that were supposedly included in our package. Spa treatments, water circuit access, and a catamaran excursion were all either unavailable or scheduled in ways that conflicted with the few group dinners we were able to arrange. Five of us attempted to book massages on Saturday and were told nothing was available until Monday—the day of our departure—yet another group was able to schedule treatments for Sunday, same day, with no issue. This kind of inconsistent information was a recurring theme.

We also encountered a serious safety concern: the shower head in our room fell and nearly struck one of the children. The resort’s solution was to move us across the property, far from the rest of our family, at 10:00 PM—with no advance notice or compensation. Given that we were checking out the next morning, we declined and remained in the original room.

And lastly, on arrival, one of our rooms wasn’t available until nearly 8:00 PM due to the resort granting a late check-out to the previous guests. No apology was offered. The hotel’s initial response—a token gesture of water park tickets for just four guests—was tone-deaf, particularly considering our group size and limited time. Only after escalating the issue were we provided with three dinner vouchers for a single room.

Room service took 60-90 minutes each time, mini bar wasn’t restocked any day in my room.

Most disappointingly of all, nothing was done to acknowledge or celebrate the birthday girl—despite our group communicating clearly that this trip was in honor of her Sweet 16. There was no birthday cake at dinner, no special greeting, no gesture of any kind. For a resort that claims to cater to families and special occasions, this was both disheartening and inexcusable.

In summary, Barceló had every opportunity to deliver a smooth, celebratory, and memorable experience for our family—and failed at nearly every turn. This resort may look impressive from a distance, but its internal operations, guest service policies, and lack of communication revealed an organization that is simply not equipped to manage group bookings or uphold its own service standards. We will not...

I had the best experience staying at this resort. If you are looking for a resort to just relax and reset this is a place to be.

Pros: this place is HUGE!! there are alot of things to do in here. We stayed for a week and we werent even able to do all of the things that you can do here. I love how the rooms are cleaned everyday so you always come back to your room in the middle of the day with your bed nicely done and towels changed. The servers at the buffet have a good familiarity with you and already know what you usually want after a day or two of coming in for meals. The buffet food is 7/10, would not expect so much as it is again a buffet and it is quite repetitive. Luckily staying in for 7 days, got us to pick 3 restaurants to eat at which was really nice and something different to eat at every other night (make sure to reserve your spot on the restaurants right when you checked in to make sure you have a spot as it does get filled right away). It was my birthday during our stay here and they gave me a chocolate cake and a champagne which was very nice. The beach is nice but a little rocky. The resort is quite big but I love how they have a double decker bus that goes around the resort and stops in a few areas for you to go around. There’s a nightclub in the resort, we tried it one night and never went back. There’s always a live show at night which was nice and I like the mall area that turns into a live music area at night.

Cons: It is quite a travel to get here from CUN airport as it is about an hr to get here. The hotel transfer from this resort is very expensive - I suggest you book outside for a private transfer or even through expedia it will be a lot cheaper and will pick u up right when you arrive. Another con is that it is away from hotel zone and other tourist spot so you will be stuck in the resort unless you book for day trips to get out. The resort is right on the highway so there is no other things to do besides stay in it. Biggest con is that it is FAR from everything so it is EXPENSIVE to get around. You will always have to get a transpo with any tour you will book as there is no way of getting a transpo inside and outside of the hotel to get to places. Check-in took so long! They do give you a pass already that you are able to use the facility and eat at the buffet right when you get there. So be ready with your things so you can already enjoy the beach and the pools because it took past 3pm until we were able to access our room.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this resort. I will come back again! This is a place to just...