Hotel Colonial Playa del Carmen

The location is the best thing about this hotel, close to both the beach and town center, and the staff are very friendly. But there was no hot water in our room, and the internet kept cutting out. We were in a triple room and had to keep asking for an extra towel, only for towels to be taken away again for some reason. Renovation work also wasn’t mentioned anywhere. If you’re up early, the noise may not affect your sleep, but it woke us when we wanted to sleep in. With all of that, I can’t rate the place higher.

The location is pretty good, and the front desk can be helpful if you push. But I wouldn’t stay here again. The rooms are badly laid out: there are no shower curtains, so water gets everywhere, and the outlets by the bed are hidden behind the mattress. The lobby’s filtered water dispenser was broken, and the pool area could get noisy at night when people ignored the opening hours. They ask you to hang up your towels or pay US$1 for fresh ones, but there isn’t a single hook or rail in the room. If you want a pool towel or hair dryer, they take your photo ID as security. Taking a traveler’s passport for that is not okay. A small cash deposit would make more sense since they already have your name, room number, and credit card details. They also make guests wear a wristband. Not impressed.

At least the place was clean, which matters a lot to me. But it feels half-built, and the little design problems add up. There’s no toilet paper holder, and there never seemed to be enough toilet paper. There’s also a step down from the bathroom into the other room, all in black tile, so I kept forgetting it was there and stumbling down into the room. There’s no warm water, and the shower and tub design sends water splashing all over. The outlets are hidden behind the bed, with the router shoved down there too. And why do guests have to wear a bracelet with the hotel name on it, like at a concert?

The tiled floors were nice, and I liked how soft the beds were. The pillows, though, were extremely lumpy. Also, the bedspread doubles as the blanket you sleep under, which felt a little odd and unhygienic to me. At check-in they put a paper bracelet on you and expect you to keep it on for the whole stay. I found that pretty imposing. You can hear everything happening outside from your bed, as is common in much of Mexico, so bring earplugs.