Villa La Estancia Residences

The beach is swimmable, the views are great, and the hot tubs and swim-up bar are nice. The gym was okay, but it gets crowded in the mornings and has limited open space. There are no spin bikes or Peloton. Food and other extras cost a lot. At their Kilter market, an ice cream bar was $10 and a box of Ritz crackers was $22. Dinner on the property wasn’t bad, but it was way overpriced. Room cleaning wasn’t great either: there was mold in the shower and random hairs on supposedly clean towels. Every pool chair seemed taken by 6:30 each morning, so you have to get up early to claim one. Beach chairs were still available as late as 8:30. The place badly needs a lobby bar or some nearby option for evening drinks.

The rooms worked perfectly for our grandparents, parents, and toddler, and housekeeping did a great job. We also had upbeat, attentive staff, especially Jose Luis out front, who was really helpful. Maintenance fixed the hot water issue in our shower. We bought what we needed at Walmart and filled in anything else at the pricey mini-market. The location kept this from being a five-star stay for me. The roads to places like Edith's and The Office are unpaved and have no lights, so walking there with adults or a family feels risky. You can't take a stroller along the beach to The Office, and a round-trip taxi to those restaurants costs $22. We tried the poolside Grill once, but the food was mediocre, underwhelming, and expensive. Still, we had a great experience overall.

The property was clean and quiet, with WiFi in all the public areas. It has large privately owned villas and good security, plus a swimmable beach with umbrellas right there. There are warm pools for both kids and adults.

The all-inclusive deal doesn't cover everything if you're under 25, which was really frustrating. If you're 18 to 25 and want drinks included instead of paying about $12-17 per drink, book at another resort.