Is the Royalton Life Really ROYAL?
Is the Royalton Life Really ROYAL?
The Royalton resorts are all inclusive that have locations in the most desirable vacation spots. Backed by the powerful Marriot brand name these resorts offer “A luxurious, all-Inclusive Caribbean vacation where everyone is family.”
The hotels boast beautiful beaches, several different restaurants, spas, adult only areas, luxurious accommodations, and entertainment.
RATES
For the luxury you are offered rates for two people start at $300 per night and go up from there based on when you are travelling. Another factor is how many are travelling. Kids eat free and are not an added cost, but extra adults will raise the price per night up by $75-200. To be fair the price includes all of your food, drinks, and room service.
Royalton All-Inclusive balcony
AMBIENCE
When you get to the main building of the resort you are met with breath taking views of the ocean and a very posh and modern lobby. The lobby is open to the ocean breezes and is normally one of the main “cool” areas. With the lobby being open they do have birds that will fly in the area which if you don’t like birds (like me) can and will freak you out.
There is just something about these scary, loud, squawking birds that really turned me off.
CHECK IN
With the hotel having 3 different resorts in one your check in area is dependent on where you booked. If you stay at the Royalton Rivera, your check in will be right in the main lobby.
The room is spacious with two desks and is air conditioned! The check in process does take a while as there are two different payments. One is for your room and tax and the second is an incidental hold for any charges that may incur during your stay.
You are given a wrist band that acts as your key and can be used to charge things to the room. As I also have status with Marriott, I was given a white wrist band that allowed me access to the Diamond Club area and restaurant.
If you are staying in the Diamond Club your check in will be further down and tucked away from the main hustle and bustle of the lobby. If you are staying in the adults only Hideaway your check in is a separate area that has smaller individual check in desks that allow for a more intimate check in. Early check in is subject to availability and just like most hotels around the world the hotel was short-staffed.
We arrived at Noon and were told no rooms were available and to come back at 2. This was fine as we wanted to explore the resort and see everything we could. We were able to get our wristbands so that we could eat and drink. We went back to the very busy desk at 2pm and were told they would not be ready for us until 3pm. No big deal, we went and sat in the lobby and finally were able to get a room at 4pm.
ROOM
The hotel went through a major renovation prior to the global pandemic. The rooms are beautiful but show some wear and tear that is expected in a resort as popular as Royalton. I was originally placed in room 9248, Building 9-2nd floor-Room 48.
This corner room had a partial view of the pool and the building was close to the Italian restaurant Grazie Tratorria. When I walked into the room I immediately was hit with a whiff of mildew. To be fair these rooms in such a humid climate are prone to mildew but I am very sensitive to smell. The room was large with curtains that can be used to separate the bathroom area of the room and the rest of the suite.
The room looked like the picture but after opening the patio doors to try and air out the smell and realizing the A/C would not work during this time I called down to get a room move.
I was eventually moved to Room 9358. This room overlooked the mangroves and I could see the parking garage. Not the best view but the room was better smell wise.
FOOD
One of the main reasons that people book all-inclusive resorts is for the food! The Royalton Resort Cancun has a ton of options for you!
Boasting 10 restaurants and a buffet there is always something for everyone’s pallet. Out of the 10 restaurants I was able to eat at 7, the buffet and order room service. Before I break down each restaurant let’s talk about the number one main issue: none of the restaurants have air conditioning. They will say the buffet does but that is a lie!
Most restaurants have an “open air” concept, so you get the breeze but the ones that do not, especially the buffet are miserable to eat in. Another issue we had is that one of the restaurants sits next to the pool with open windows. People who are swimming can splash and the water can and will hit you or get into your food (ughh).
The restaurants also close early so nothing is open past 10 pm and if you are sat after 9pm beware that they may not have items available.
SERVICE
Overall, the service was AMAZING!! Every team member we encountered from the front desk to the activity directors was friendly.
There was no problem with language barriers and everyone seemed genuinely happy to be there. We had one small incident at one of the restaurants where the server seemed to forget about us. It may have been due to us going at the end of lunch, but we could feel that he was ready to go home.
With my room move I had a manager that personally came to my room, walked the other room with me, and followed up to ensure I was happy. If the food was cold or not to our liking the servers were quick with new suggestions and hot food.
I was very impressed.
OVERALL OPINION
Overall for my first all inclusive resort stay I would rate this a 3/5 stars.
The resort common areas are beautiful, food and room were okay, and service was amazing.
Continue to check back as I will be breaking down more of my stay with Royalton.
Tiff
Hi, I'm Tiff and I wrote this! Learn more about myself, my family and our hopes for this blog on our Meet the Team page!
