Hotel Xcaret Mexico- All Inclusive

Located just an hour south of Cancún, this five-diamond hotel has it all. From the scenery, to the rich culture, to the dedication it has towards the surrounding ecosystem, I find it impossible for someone to visit Hotel Xcaret and not be amazed by everything it has to offer. The resort itself is like a park to be explored (you can read my reviews on the parks & tours here). We loved each day we spent here and hope we can experience it someday with more of our loved ones!

Why we chose Hotel Xcaret Mexico: Any 10 people could visit this resort and have 10 completely different experiences. We chose it because of how well it fit into everyone’s interests, plus all the included extras. Hotel Xcaret has white sand beaches, infinity pools, 8 bars, and a spa for those who like to relax and tan (like me), and 3 gyms, kayaking, paddleboards, and jungle trails for the adventurous ones (like my sister). You could honestly spend two weeks or more just exploring this beautiful resort and experiencing every activity within it, but there are 9 parks and tours to experience as well! And yes, your stay here includes transportation and unlimited access to these!

Another really cool aspect of this hotel is that there are no room keys. Not the ones we’re all used to at least! The way you get into your room is with the bracelet they give you after check-in. This works as a room key and you can also use it at the parks or gift shop to charge something to your room. The best part about this bracelet, in my opinion, is being able to effortlessly scan it at one of the picture spots to get some amazing photos which you can later view on channel 1 of your room tv!

Our favorites: The food. If there’s anything we miss most about this trip, it’s the food. Not just the taco stand they set up next to one of the pools each evening, but the buffet at Mercado De La Merced had the most amazing selection for breakfast and dinner.

Not only was the food amazing, but the hotel’s staff was too. Each and every single one of the employees was a delight from the moment we stepped foot on the property. It was refreshing to see workers genuinely happy to be there.

Our not-so-favorites: The check-in process took about an hour, which was wayyyyy too long especially after a 15-hour day of traveling. The front staff requested that only 1 person per party stay in line to check-in and the rest go to the air-conditioned lounge where they can wait and be served drinks. Because of this, the hour-long check-in process was only unbearable for one person LOL.

On top of the long check-in time, once we were checked in, we were passed on to a representative who was responsible for giving us a short tour, explaining & scheduling the restaurants/parks, and showing us to our room. All of this sounded great, but as we were going over the places to eat, the representative got into telling us about a special membership program they were promoting which included having to attend a special breakfast to listen to a presentation for potential members. I knew from the start I wasn’t interested and most of us let this be known, but she insisted about 3-4 times. Like I said before, we had been traveling for 15 hours plus waited around for an hour to be checked in so at this point I was feeling very annoyed. My priorities were to get changed, lay down for maybe 5 minutes, eat, and explore the hotel. I understand they are trained to be persistent and get points for each party they get to attend the presentation, but this really didn’t sit well with me. We hadn’t even been to our room yet and with the exhaustion we were feeling, the haggling about this promotion was a bit much for me. Part of the reason I didn’t want to attend this was also because I knew we already had so much to do with all the parks & tours. I would have rather spent time doing that or exploring the hotel. In the end, we did attend it but we all regretted it. They said it would only take an hour to an hour and a half. To our surprise, it took THREE HOURS. Plus, the promotion they were running was overwhelmingly out of our budget. However, two of us did get a massage at the spa out of going to this presentation.

Do

• Have a photocopy of your passport and ID just in case anything happens to the real ones during the trip. Some tourist areas require this for duty-free shopping as well, although we never encountered anywhere that requested this. It’s still good to have though.
• Bring water shoes, you’ll need them for every river activity.
• Bring a waterproof camera for pictures and videos. You’ll want to remember all the experiences you have here!
• Bring enough bug repellent. The mosquitos here are vicious. We used a whole bottle during our stay.
• Bring a bag or something to store your wet bathing suits in for when you go to the parks. For example, when we went to the Xcaret park, we went into the river first and then changed into dry clothes for the rest of the day since we were finished with the water activities. This is up to each person so if you’re okay keeping your wet swimsuits on and letting them air dry throughout the day, that’s fine too.
• Purchase the photo package!!! I cannot emphasize this enough. At first, we thought it was silly to purchase this because we already had two really good quality waterproof cameras plus our iPhones, but the pictures that you get with this package are unlike any you would be able to take yourself. Around the hotel and parks, they have set up spots with incredible angles that will capture a small or large group plus the background and surroundings. You simply scan your bracelet and the high-quality picture is captured within seconds.
• Bring at least one outfit for a formal dinner. Most of the restaurants only require casual wear, but a couple of them do request formal wear.
• Make sure to pack reef-safe sunscreen that contains only zinc oxide or titanium dioxide as the main ingredients. For a 7-night stay, one 6-oz bottle per 2 people worked for us. This will depend on how much each person plans to be outside, but for reference, we were outside about 5 hours a day and reapplied twice a day.
• Have whatever form of payment you prefer to pay with. The gift shop at the resort accepted credit cards, dollars, and pesos, but if you bring a credit card make sure it has 0% foreign transaction fees just to make your life easier.

Don’t

• When walking around the parks, beware of which food and drink places are included in your stay. At the Xcaret Park, we made the mistake of stopping by a hut for some drinks, but didn’t realize it wasn’t included until after we ordered. The cost was about $10 a person for an alcoholic beverage and a bottle of water.
• Don’t forget to tip!! Especially the waiters/waitresses, housekeeping, and drivers. It’s not required, but the amount of hard work they put into making your stay as fun, memorable, and comfortable as possible is no easy task.

XEGURIDAD 360 XAFETY

This safety program was brought forward due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. It ensures that safety protocols are taken into place in each aspect of a guest’s stay. From my experience, they did a phenomenal job. Upon arrival at the resort, they took each of our temperatures, squirted hand sanitizer into each of our hands, and sprayed our luggage with disinfectant. Each time we went into one of the restaurants, each person was asked to use the hand sanitizing station, and every single employee wore a face covering. Some even wore face masks along with a face shield.

Before boarding the transportation to any park, the same measures were taken. Hand sanitizing, temperature checking, and spraying any bags we had with us. We even had to step into a light disinfectant solution which was inside a black rubber mat before boarding the bus or entering the parks. Face masks were also required for all guests in any public area. The only times we didn’t wear our masks were while inside our hotel rooms, while eating, and while swimming.

THE ROOM

Each room had a view and a balcony with a hammock. Whether it’s the garden view, pool view, ocean view or other, you can’t be disappointed. We stayed in the Suite Garden inside the Casa Viento building. This was the most luxurious room we had ever stayed in! Aside from the beautiful view and amazing hand-sewn art on the wall, the room included:

• A view of one of the pools next to the restaurants
• King size bed
• Sofa bed with coffee table
• Minibar with snacks
• Organic amenities such as shampoo, conditioner, hand sanitizer, body wash, and lotion
• Dining table for two
• 24-hour room service
• Digital safe inside the closet
• Iron, ironing board, blow dryer
• The list goes on!

THE FOOD

Here is a list of all the restaurants inside the resort and whether or not we tried them.

HA’: We didn’t go here for 2 reasons. The first being that the price point for an 11-course meal was a bit pricey. And the second being that reservations were required and we didn’t have any space left in our schedule for it. If it weren’t at that price point, we would have considered moving some activities around to fit it in, even for an additional cost.

La Trajinera: Located next to the infinity pool, this place is a perfect choice for a lunch time snack after swimming. We went here for dinner and it was okay. With it being a buffet style, I expected a greater selection, but there wasn’t much variety. I ended up getting rice, tilapia, chips and salsa. However, available upon request, they had a special menu which had lobster pizza, pepperoni pizza, fries and a few other options.

Cantina Los Faroles: The interior of this place was absolutely stunning. They had lamps hanging all throughout the ceiling along with some painted artwork all around. The day we arrived to the resort, we were invited to go in here and enjoy a cocktail-making class. We agreed and it was the best thing we could have done! I should have taken notes on how to make the drinks so I could remake them at home, but the bar tenders were so welcoming and inclusive to everyone there. It was definitely a good time and a few days later we had dinner here as well. The dining experience here was the best and the lobster tacos were so amazing, I had 3!

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Mercado De La Merced: Each morning, we had breakfast here which had endless selections that could fit pretty much any diet! They had everything from chilaquiles, to a wide selection of fruit including dragonfruit, starfruit, papaya, and more common ones found in the states such as mango, cantaloupe, and kiwi. They also had the biggest selection of pastry items, two omelet bars, a crepe bar, a juice bar, and a quesadilla stand. All of this covers maybe about half of what they had to choose from.

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Xpiral: We had breakfast here during the shareholder presentation I mentioned above. It had the same selection to chose from as Mercado De La Merced, except way less variety. The views from here are beautiful but if you’re not dining in because of the presentation, it does have an additional cost.

Chibali: Unfortunately, we didn’t go here. 🙁

Teatro Del Río: Who doesn’t love dinner and a show?! This was a unique and delicious dining experience. The stage sits alongside one of the rivers and you start off with some appetizers and an entreé. Then, as the show beings at 8 PM, the staff goes around and serves dessert. The show features dancing and music depicting Mexico in the 1950s. Reservation is required but there is no additional cost as it is included with your stay! 🙂

Xin-Gao: Reservations are required, but when you reserve make sure you request a spot in front of the robata grill! Reservations were made for us so we assumed we would get a spot in front of the grill, but when we arrived, we were seated at a normal table. Their food was incredibly delicious! I’m a very picky eater and don’t usually venture out from my usual picks so this was a new experience for me. The spring rolls were so freaking good though! I got 3, of course!

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Fuego Restaurant: This restaurant is only for guests staying at Casa Fuego, therefore, we did not go here.

Las Playas: We walked past here once while looking for the beach area but it was kind of hidden. We didn’t eat here since it was out of the way, but if we would have spent some time at the beach, we would’ve definitely tried it! 🙂

Las Cuevas: This was another one we failed to try. 🙁 It was also very hidden and we only found it as we were searching for the paddleboat and kayaking area.

Bio: Similar to the previous two, we didn’t try this place either. Although, I think it was close to Las Cuevas.

THE ACTIVITIES

We tried to fit in the most we could during our stay, but we ended up going to four parks total. Some of the parks and tours that were included in our stay were closed due to the pandemic and some of the activities within the open parks were unavailable, also due to the pandemic. The park/tour admissions included with your stay include the following:

• Xcaret Park
• Xel-Ha
• Xplor
• Xplor Fuego
• Xavage
• Xoximilco
• Xenses
• Xenotes Tour
• Xichen Tour

We went to Xcaret Park, Xel-Ha, Xoximilco, and Xenses. You can read about our experiences at these parks here. We originally planned to also go to Xplor and the Xenotes Tour, but we were needing a bit of a break towards the end of our stay to just relax by the pool and take some time to enjoy the hotel. The following was not available during our stay: Xplor Fuego, Xavage, and the Xichen Tour.

As far as activities inside the resort, they suit any type of personality in my opinion. These included:

• White sand beaches
• Swimming pools (some with swim-up bars)
• Muluk Spa
• Jungle gyms outside along the walking trails
• Air-conditioned gym with a variety of equipment
• Kayaking and paddleboarding along the river
• Swim/float in the river
• Hotel gift shop
• Walk around the hotel and find every picture set-up spot

TRANSPORTATION

Our vacation package included transportation from the airport to the hotel as well as from the hotel to the airport. This was provided through BD Experience and their service was amazing! When we arrived at the pick-up area outside the airport, they immediately helped us by finding our reservation and getting us checked in. All of the employees wore face masks and before we were able to board, they gave us all a pump of hand sanitizer, took our temperatures, and disinfected our luggage.

The transportation provided by Hotel Xcaret Mexico to all of the parks was also phenomenal. Some of the parks require a reservation at least a day in advance, but for the others such as Xcaret Park, where no reservation is required, a bus is available every 20 minutes.

SUMMARY

Hotel Xcaret Mexico is an absolute dream come true. I’m still in awe when I look back on our 7-night trip there and can’t believe we were able to experience this. Every aspect of this resort is absolutely beautiful and the fact that they protect and respect the nature and culture surrounding them makes this resort that much more amazing!