Barcelo Palace

[mallen10]

My wife and I will be staying at the Barcelo Mayan Palace June 20-25, has anyone had any experiences at this hotel or its sister hotels? Is there any shopping or anything near by? I stayed at the Riu Playacar in Playa in 2003, but ive seen pictures of the beach lately with big tubes on it to prevent erosion. Those tubes weren't there in 2003. Any suggestion on Barcelo Palace are greatly appreciated.

[Shammy]

There are quite a few shops at the Barcelo complex, in each section. Other than what's available on site, anything else you might want you would have to travel off the property for. The town of Puerto Aventuras is 5 minutes away, Akumal about 10 minutes south, Playa about 20 minutes north.

I've seen the Palace, a little over a week ago. It's VERY VERY beautiful! I've also stayed on the Beach side 5 times.

[mallen10]

I hope that it is nice, it is hard to tell from reading some of the posts on tripadvisor. Is Puerto Adventuras worth going over to see? My travel agent told that the beaches south of playa such as this one would be in better shape, little or no errosion.

[Shammy]

There is NO erosion at the Barcelo, the beaches there are beautiful. More rocky to the north, more sandy to the south.

Puerto Avenutras is a small marina town. A few shops, restaurants, a dolphin swim excursions and a lot of boats and catamarans. Can't tell you if it's worth going to see, that would be up to you - but it's close and doesn't cost much to get there by cab. If you really want to shop, go into Playa.

[playadreaming]

Shammy (or anybody who has been)- we're looking at the barcelo palace or the tropical/colonial for the end of summer with the kids. In you opinion, is it worth $130 extra a night for the palace over the tropical/colonial? Thanks

[Shammy]

Commenting on many of the "is it worth it..." questions I am asked is something I really try not to do. I can't tell you if it's worth it. To me it would be, but to someone else it wouldn't be. Would I still be happy at the Trop/Col if that's all I could afford? I would be, someone else might not be.

It's a personal decision that only you can make, and no other opinion really matters because it is they who are placing value or worth, doesn't mean it will be the same for you - know what I mean?

[playadreaming]

Ok, just wondered if the amenities/rooms were that much nicer. We really wouldn't be taking full advantage of ala cartes since we'll have our 3 yo. Whether a person can or can't afford something doesn't mean that they want to waste money Usually, I'd rather stay one or two more nights on vacation than to pay for unused extras.

[Shammy]

The rooms ARE nicer, they are brand new (Palace opened in Dec 07, Trop/Col in Dec 05) and they spared no expense on decorating them. The bathrooms are really nice. ALL rooms are jr. suites at the Palace, so that's something over and above the Tropical/Colonial. All restaurant views at the Palace are of the ocean, not so at the Trop/Col. Top shelf, premium liquor is included at the Palace, but not at the Tropical/Colonial. Those are the biggest differences and as I said, only you know if it's worth paying more for them. I've been to both hotels and if I had a bit extra to spare, I would stay at the Palace and would not feel as though I was wasting money by staying in that section - but that's me. If I was on a tighter budget, I would choose the Tropical/Colonial and know that I would for sure get my money's worth.

[Phil in Ottawa]

We also just returned from the Palace (where I finally got to meet Shammy ) and it was a great vacation.

We've also stayed at the Barceló Beach, Colonial and Tropical in the past.

We thought the Palace was very nice. The rooms are fantastic and being able to eat all your meals with a view of the sea is a real treat. But other than that, I would stay at any one of the other properties and be just as happy.

We personally are beach people and that is one of the main reasons we love the Barceló. The beach is excellent regardless of what hotel you are sleeping in.

I have pictures of my past vacations at the Barceló in my galleries at the link below. I will be posting my photos of our Palace trip before the end of the week. If you are interested, check them out.

Hope this helps.

[playadreaming]

Originally Posted by Phil in Ottawa

We also just returned from the Palace (where I finally got to meet Shammy ) and it was a great vacation.

We've also stayed at the Barceló Beach, Colonial and Tropical in the past.

We thought the Palace was very nice. The rooms are fantastic and being able to eat all your meals with a view of the sea is a real treat. But other than that, I would stay at any one of the other properties and be just as happy.

We personally are beach people and that is one of the main reasons we love the Barceló. The beach is excellent regardless of what hotel you are sleeping in.

I have pictures of my past vacations at the Barceló in my galleries at the link below. I will be posting my photos of our Palace trip before the end of the week. If you are interested, check them out.

Hope this helps.

Thanks. Your pics are great! Since my earlier post, I've been researching on the unofficial barcelo webpage. Great site, too. Thanks to everyone.

[mallen10]

Shammy,
I've read about the massive transformation that has taken place in Playa Del Carmen in last 15 years or so, from a small fishing village to the fasting growing tourist destination in Mexico. Has this transformation had a positive effect on the everyday citizen in Playa. Was there promised tax revenue or something to Playa's government to help improve services to its citizens, like something you would see in U.S? Have the resorts themselves, been an asset to the community? I was just curious about how this developed as it has, if you know in detail about this.

[Shammy]

Mallen, I can't answer those questions. I'm just a travel agent in NJ who sends people on (hopefully) nice vacations to Riviera Maya. I think that would be better directed to a local resident. Sorry!