Camino Real Zaashila

It’s a shame this beautiful hotel, with its lovely rooms, has such poor food and service. Unless you’re an all-inclusive guest, you seem to be ignored. I waited several minutes at the pool bar without anyone acknowledging me. I finally asked for a menu, waited a few more minutes, and only as I was walking away did someone ask if I needed anything, even though three people were behind the bar. The food was awful. We tried grilled chicken, fish tacos, shrimp, tacos, pizza, chicken soup, and mole. Most of it was inedible, and we’re not picky eaters. After the first day, we went out for meals instead. Food and drinks are very expensive if you’re not all-inclusive. I wouldn’t book here again, which is frustrating because the place is beautiful and has so much potential. Hopefully management sees this and makes improvements.

We stayed in a condo at the resort and didn’t eat there, since everyone we spoke with told us not to. The beach and pool areas are huge, and there was no trouble finding chairs, probably because not many people go there. For good food and cheaper drinks, take a 100 peso taxi into Santa Cruz. Hot water was an issue, too, and not many staff speak English.

The beach was the uncertain part of our week at Villas Zaashila. That cove can be turbulent, and we had red flag conditions with rip currents throughout our stay. The lifeguard was excellent and stayed on top of things, though. Our villa had plenty of bedrooms, each with an en suite bathroom, plus its own pool. We could also use the Camino Real resort pools and palapas. Food and drinks cost extra, but the prices were absolutely reasonable, and having food delivered right to our palapa was hard to beat. The accommodations were great, and the staff were friendly and accommodating. Can’t wait to stay again!

The beach was the only good part of this resort. Evenings were very boring, with no entertainment or even music by the pool. I wouldn’t recommend staying here, especially if you have accessibility issues. We rented a condo for four weeks and had full access to the amenities. The website said the resort was wheelchair accessible, and that was one reason we chose it while I was recovering from a knee replacement. In practice, it wasn’t accessible unless you stayed in your room. There are steep hills and stairs throughout, with no railing even by the pool stairs. Every time I left the condo, we had to call for a cart. On five occasions it took up to an hour to arrive, and we had to call more than once. The buffet was overpriced and terrible, with too little cold food. At the restaurant bathroom, only one of the two stalls was open at a time. The pool was cloudy most of the time and hardly anyone used it. Pool towels were often unavailable or still wet. Garbage in the pool and beach areas was never picked up, and the beach chairs and cushions were filthy.