Paradise Village Beach Resort and Spa

We had a memorable stay, even if it wasn’t perfect. The room was clean, the service friendly, the landscaping well cared for, the pools fun, and the food delicious. The beach was beautiful too. We weren’t happy about being asked to attend a timeshare presentation, though it didn’t last long. Some activities we thought were free cost money, including bikes and pickleball paddles at $5 an hour.

The beach is very pretty, and the area is really nice, but our family stay had several problems. We reserved two bedrooms for about $1,400, but the price came to around $2,100 when we arrived, before the all-inclusive charge. They also didn’t explain how limited the all-inclusive options were. There’s a list of what you can get, and it’s very restricted. I especially wouldn’t recommend it if you have kids. Parts of the room had been cleaned, but the tubs and bathroom sinks were missed. We also found insects and cockroaches. When we told the front desk, they only said a team handles that, with no solution or offer to accommodate us. They didn’t resolve the price difference either. Service was extremely slow. This place has a lot of potential, but customer service seems lacking.

I’ve been going to resorts in Mexico since I was 19, and I’m 45 now. I’m here at the moment, and I’ve never been more disappointed. If you book, be clear about what’s included: the gym and room service aren’t, and we’re only allowed two dinners at the fancier restaurants. I was shocked. The buffet is small and very basic, the most boring one I’ve experienced. They don’t have strawberries or mangoes, or even fresh avocado, every day. One room smelled bad, we had no gym access or room service, and we couldn’t get first aid when we needed a single bandaid. When we explained our concerns to Lorraine and the other staff, it took forever before she finally offered a free dinner at a fancy restaurant. That made three dinners total at an all-inclusive. The lobby bar is the only place to get certain snacks at night, so the lines are always terribly long. Food takes about 40 minutes to arrive every time. There’s no ice cream anywhere at the resort unless you pay for it. I’ve never before had to pay for ice cream each day at an all-inclusive. This feels like a 2-3 star resort, not a 4 or 5. I’m used to 4 or 5 stars, where none of this has ever been an issue. We leave in two days and won’t stay here again.

The excursions were a real highlight. Martin, who has a small stand just outside the main entrance, arranged a fishing trip and a swim with the sea lions for us, and both were fun. We also spent a full day seeing an island with Vallarta Adventures, which was great. On the fishing boat, Happy Days 1, Raul and Martin made ceviche from the Mahi-mahi we caught. They had brought fresh vegetables, lime, and salt, and it was probably the best ceviche I’ve had. We stayed a week as an American family in a two-bedroom suite with two king beds, two bathrooms, and a kitchen. The setup was great, though the beds were very hard. My wife likes firm mattresses, so she was happy with them. Service was generally attentive. I speak Spanish, so the fact that many staff members spoke little or no English was fine for me. It seemed the resort catered mostly to Spanish speakers, and around 80% of the visitors were Mexican, which felt different from other resorts I’ve visited where Americans don’t run into language barriers. The limits on the all-inclusive plan were frustrating. We could use the nicer restaurants for only two dinners during the week, and the resort split food and drink availability into different time blocks by location. We had to keep checking where and when we could get things so nobody in our group was charged. The Asian food was genuinely good, but the Mexican food wasn’t. Tulum was especially bad: even my kids, who usually ask for McDonald’s and like junk food, found almost everything at the buffet inedible, as did the adults. Food elsewhere was better, though still not great. The coffee was unbelievably bad, too. We’d hoped to have cocktails by the pool, but the drinks were so awful that we gave up on that. The kids did enjoy the very sugary daiquiris and piña coladas. If the food and drinks had been better, I’d have rated the stay 5/5.