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  • Mexico Holidays
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda

TripAdvisor Review
Mexico, North America
Playa del Carmen

The hotel is located in a natural paradise, right in front of the beach, a privileged position in the Riviera Maya. Playa del Carmen is just 15 minutes away and Cancun International Airport is about 35 minutes by car. The public transport links are within walking distance and easily accessible from the hotel. The spacious, luxurious rooms feature elegant furnishings and décor. In addition, the hotel offers a variety of services, facilities and restaurants. On the beach in the Riviera Maya district of Playa del Carmen, this all-inclusive hotel offers private beach access, an on-site spa, and several specialty restaurants. The rooms at the property overlook the sea, and include satellite TV. They come with a minibar and safe. Guests can enjoy water sports such as snorkeling and windsurfing at this Playa del Carmen resort. A gym and sauna are on the property. A game room and kids club are available. The shops and restaurants of Playa del Carmen's Fifth Avenue are only 15 minutes from BlueBay Grand Esmeralda. Cancun is less than an hour from this resort.

Facilities

  • Wheelchair-accessible
  • 24-hour reception
  • Mobile phone coverage
  • Wi-fi
  • Car hire*
  • Room service*
  • Laundry service*
  • Launderette*
  • Medical service*
  • Day-care centre*
  • *Some facilities may incur an additional fee

The Local Area

Tripadvisor Reviews

4.0 Very Good19,552 reviews
Trip Advisor
Excellent
43%
Very Good
27%
Average
14%
Poor
8%
Terrible
9%
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
TripAdvisor Review
GO! ENJOY!

Was at the Bluebay Grand from Sept 15th to the 22nd. Went with my 2 sons (25 yrs old) and my father in law. Here is what to expect. It was a 5 Star at one point in time. The years are showing, but it was still great. ALL the staff treat you with a ton of respect. The hand over the heart when they greet you was a special bonus. Always smiling.

Bars: Black and White is exactly as advertised. 24 hour bar! Clean, always busy in the afternoon/evening. Shows were decent, but the entertainment crew, and "Crazy Games" were what made it better. Columpios Bar (swing bar) was often understaffed by the sheer number of people in line to get drinks, but they were very fast and always kept us going. Try the mojitos, Miguel makes the best ones! FYI, the bar on the other end of the pool was often times less busy, but service was still just as good.

Food: All buffets were decent. Exactly what you expect for resort buffet. Not superb, but was always filling. The service and wait staff were better than most restaurants back home. Conversations about nothing, chatting about the weather. Very casual, and very nice. Al a Carte was again very good. We only did the steakhouse, but cooked to perfection. The only downside to the food, the desserts did not seem to be fresh. Seemed store bought.

Pool/Beach: Pool is huge. Tons of space, would love to see it rocking at capacity! A few bridges to hide from the sun, if you need to. Not a lot of shade...try the chairs close to the Swing Bar and the beach on the pool deck. Sun pretty much everywhere else. The beach was clean when we went, sargasum a non-issue. Could even swim in the ocean. When the lifeguard blows his whistle, listen. We were watching a croc in the water not that far away.

Entertainment Troop: Probably the BEST group of kids I've ever had the pleasure of being around!!! From Aqua aerobics to the more "Crazy Games", they were ALWAYS keeping the crowd going! Sorry. I don't remember all the names, but Valentina, Eduardo, Hugo....I miss you all already!

The Grounds: IF you don't like to walk....you better be a patient person. They have shuttles running all day, but there does not seem to be a set schedule. The walk from the main area to the pool is about 5 minutes, but it adds up when you like going on adventures like I did. Water shoes/sandals/shoes recommended for the walking, as the ground gets a bit rough on bare feet.

Rooms: ARE THERE TO STORE STUFF...GO HAVE FUN! My room had great A/C, but I couldn't always get hot water from the shower. Warm, but not hot. But for the 5 minutes I needed it every day, it did it's job. Beds are average. Rooms are dated, but well kept by the cleaning staff.

Kids Club: Our family did not fit this bracket, so I cannot give a truly honest review other than to say, they workers in that Club were always with the kids, and looked to be having a blast!

NIGHTLIFE: Yup! From 8pm on...whether you are at the Swing Bar on the beach (Open until around 1am), or at the Black & White Bar until....well, it's 24 hours...You will have fun. This resort is High Energy! Day and Night. You will find someone to party with, even if you don't speak whatever language is being tossed around that night. A very international feeling on this resort, loved it!

This is a family friendly resort, with an amazing nightlife for the adult crowd. You can definitely relax poolside, or start the party early, and go all day & night. Enjoy!

Review by Companion54430479480 Drayton Valley, Canada
TripAdvisor Review
Good experience

I had a great stay at this hotel and the whole process was made easier by Yulissa working at Concierge VIP area of the hotel.

TripAdvisor Review
Terrible

You fonthe check in and inmediately people vothering you for time shares, chrck in staff very unfriendly hotel rundown old, the lunch bufete is below average food average to low quality nothing spectacular dont expect nothing great, our room smelled of dandruff we complained and all they did was spray the room never offered to change room and no manager on premises Alcohol brverage quality is poor , juices watered down, again breakfast buffete terrible nothing edpectacular Again do not expect nothing great Spend a little more and get something better

Review by fireblad San Antonio, Texas
TripAdvisor Review
3.5/5

We stayed at BlueBay from Sept 7-Sept 14th. Coming from NB Canada as a group of 12 we came with our expectations lowered after reading lots of reviews. For the price we paid we had great value. The grounds were beautiful, the food was overall good, the drinks were great, the staff were friendly and kind. The rooms do need major renovating but were cleaned daily and the beds were comfortable. AC worked great in rooms but they could really use AC in the Black & White and the beach buffet. We had a lot of fun! Would some of us come back, probably not but some of us would for the right price. Overall 3.5/5 and a great vacation was had!

TripAdvisor Review
Do NOT STAY

DO NOT STAY HERE!!!! Everything is wrong with this resort! It’s birds and raccoons in the restaurants eating off the same serving spoon that is used to serve food! The rooms are a disgrace leaking ceiling , mosquitos everywhere due to the swamps right outside the room. Rooms needed to be changed multiple times and it was in worse condition! DO NOT LEAVE PATIO DOORS UNLOCKED! Raccoons know how to open your door to get inside! They also will go inside of your bag while at the pool! They will drink your alcoholic drinks if you put it down! Definitely a jet 2 holiday instead of a vacation! Somebody entered the room at 3am and nobody did nothing about it! The staff HOUNDS you to buy the time share! For the health and safety of humanity this place needs to be disintegrated!! I’ve never been so happy to end a vacation until this. I can’t understand how this resort is categorized as a 5 star resort somebody obviously can’t count.

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