Barceló Maya Grand Resort

My husband and I stayed in the palace here at the Barcelo! Our stay has been fantastic, the food was amazing and so tasty, the housekeeping has done a great job each day, then these 2 people did a fantastic job! Jonny was one of the activity entertainment people down by the pool! You can tell he loves his job, he is so happy, very lively to help keep the people engaged with the activity for that time and his water aerobics class is killer! Margarito is at the pool side bar each day, he is happy to see you and get to know you but also makes the best drinks! Great flavor, not too strong but also strong enough to know you are drinking it! Overall the vacation has been outstanding, everywhere is clean, staff has been very friendly and the food is excellent!!

We stayed at the Palace with Premium upgrade in August 2025. It was a trip with my extended family, 21 people ages 3-73. We all had a FANTASTIC time! I would recommend staying at the Palace! Amenities: There were lots of things to do for everyone. The staff at the Palace were friendly and receptive! Although, I did encounter less desirable service from the staff at the “middle resorts”. Some staff at the other resorts seemed annoyed with questions and couldn’t be bothered. There were things to do for extra charge that we didn’t even get around to doing because we were so busy. The rooms were clean and modern. CAUTION, the floors are slippery! I know this is seems silly to mention but both my boys (ages 3 and 5) took hard falls. My three year old even got a black eye when he slipped walking in off the patio and banged his head on the corner of the couch. My husband and I had a few close calls as well. There was never a problem getting chairs on the beach, but everyone seemed to “reserve” pool chairs early by placing towels or other items on them, same with the shaded palapas. We brought pool floaties and snorkel gear. We saw sea turtles and tons of fish in the ocean in front of the Palace. Food: The food was fine given the volume. The restaurants were good. Between the 21 of us, we tried them all. Tokyo, Kyoto, and Brasserie were the best. My family of four mostly ate at the Coral Grill Buffet for breakfast and lunch. In my opinion it was better than the massive buffet. The staff was great and I liked eating “al fresco”. The larger buffets were fine, but I’m not a fan of buffet food in general. There were plenty of options though, and always a station or two for freshly prepared entrees. My six year old preferred the dinner buffet to the sit down restaurants. We had free room service with the Premium level and ordered for lunch a few times. The plated meals were pretty good. Spa: We loved the spa! We got free hydrotherapy with Premium level and I highly recommend that. With Premium you also get 40% off a service if you book within the first 48 hours of your stay. My husband and I got massages that were top notch. Just be aware when paying. They charge in pesos, obviously, so when I was paying I didn’t do the conversion math. It took me a day to realize I was overcharged. The computer system at the resort seems a bit archaic for such a large operation and it took a long time to sort out the refund. It turned out fine in the end though. Airport Transfer: We had private transportation to and from the airport which was an issue at airport pick up, but Delta Vacations sorted it out and refunded us. The private transportation from the hotel to the airport was fine. Shopping: AVOID it’s crazy OVERPRICED! I don’t mean this in a “privileged American who expects cheap goods in Mexico” way. It’s really is WAY more than what you would pay in the states. For instance, pool floaties that you can buy at Target, Walmart, Costco, Amazon for $5-$10 will cost $30 or more. A little plastic alligator at the Mayan Mall that my three year old son was interested in was $36. Cheap swim covers and dresses were $100. A cheap looking stuffed animal or capybara backpack were $40. You might think that you are expected to negotiate this price down, but that is not the case. THERE IS LITTLE TO NO NEGOTIATION. I tried to negotiate a few times and I was met with extremely rude “NO”s and the shop attendant would walk away. Excursions: We did Tulum and a cenote as a couple. We rented a catamaran for all 21 of us for snorkeling and other water activities. Both were great! Both had photographers that follow you around taking photos and then sell you the package. I wasn’t really interested in this, but some might be. Dolphins: It’s heartbreaking. I’ve seen a lot of comments that they have been removed. They have not. You can’t “swim with them”, the poor dolphins just swim around in a sad little pool. I hated that part. Overall, my family had a fantastic stay with the Premium level at Barcelo Palace. I would absolutely go back!

I saw a really upsetting video made by someone… it showed an “accident” during a show where an animal died — a dolphin. And most likely, nothing was even done about it. I care so deeply about animals, and it’s heartbreaking if that really happened because of the show. Animals belong in nature, not performing for entertainment. I truly hope the hotel seriously considers stopping these shows… because if it’s allowed for animals to die like that, it’s absolutely shocking 😢