Secrets Report

[KCFW]

We were at Secrets June 12-18 for anniversary. We are a fun, optimistic couple, that tend to weed out the negative reports. We chose Secrets mainly on reports posted on different boards. Our ages are 37/32. Here is our report:

Beach - It rained the first two days, and literally washed half of the beach away. It cleared up the third day, but the water was the color of the Houston Ship Channel, and never did clear up. Ten minutes south in PDC, the water was beautiful. No one could explain why. Unavoidable, and certainly not the fault of staff.

Pool- Fantastic. Plenty of loungers, an little short on floats and shade.

Room- Very clean and spacious. Our room leaked until day four, as did most of the hotel. Very poor roof. We were on third floor, request a lower floor if you are going, and the forcast is rain. We were lucky, our leak was in the bathroom. Many we talked to had leaks over the bed.

Housekeeping- On our floor, almost nonexistant. On the first day, we had to call three times to get service, twice the second day, then they showed up while getting ready for dinner. Others we talked to on other floors had no problems however. They never did remove dirty glasses, put up ironing board, etc.

Food- OUTSTANDING. We never experienced a bad meal, and we ate at all of the restaurants. By far the best food I've had in Mexico, if not anywhere.
Steaks are about 6 oz., but fantastic. (ribeye) We did experience some long waits to get a table, (one hour) but learned that a five will quickly solve the problem.

Service - The staff was very friendly and eager to help with very few exceptions. We tipped out of appreciation. If anything, they are understaffed, as service could be slow. For example, outside there were only three girls serving drinks at the pool and beach. Ten could have covered it, but who's in a hurry?

Entertainment- The lounges were fun, and full. We enjoyed the lobby bar and music, the cigar & piano lounge, and the nightclub. The shows were pretty weak, we only glanced in a couple times, and chose not to stay. One day after a very nice outdoor wedding, the staff put on a mock Michael Jackson/Lisa Marie Presley wedding. Lisa Marie was a guy in drag, she wound up in the pool, very poor taste. Two days later, Michael Jackson and his entourage made surprise visits to some of the restaurants. I don't know about you, but I went to Mexico to get away from MJ!

We chose Secrets because we were on our anniversary, and it was adults only. We met some great people and had fun. Our next trip will probably be a return to the Omni in Cancun. I'll be glad to answer any questions, KCFW

[kathyb]

Hi Thanks for the report. We are booked at Secrets for this September. I hope the beach is in better shape by then.

Can you tell me why you would return to the Omni next year over Secrets? The reason I ask is that we were at the Omni two years ago - loved it! Last year we stayed at the Iberostar Paraiso and were not happy here and would definitely not return. We would go back to the Omni except we really prefer the Playa area over Cancun. I realize you can't beat the jacuzzi bar with the swings but if you wouldn't mind making some other comparisons for me that would be great!

Thanks
Kathy

[KCFW]

Hi Kathy, I would return because the beach was nicer, hotel was nicer. Another problem at SC was the room service. Very limited menu. We loved ordering drinks ans Shrimp cocktail at the Omni, and watching the ocean from our balcony. The Ocean view at Secrets was not that great. Yes, you can see the ocean, but at a 45 degree angle. It in no way compares to the view from the 8th floor of the Omni! AT Secrests, you couldn't go down the hall without encountering maintenece repairing this or that, patching, painting, etc. and the place is not a year old. I guess in one simple word, it's quality.

[Conanc]

Thanks for posting your report! My husband and I are thinking about booking in November and have been looking for all the information we can find.

I asked some questions in another report by BRUCEFAN but thought of a few more based on your report. You indicated that the beach never cleared up after the rain. I was just wondering what the beach was like BEFORE the rain... was it still pretty murky? That seems to be the major gripe with this resort.

Also...you said you experienced up to an hour wait time in some restaurants -- just wondering what time you went to dinner? We are earlybirds most of the time....was there a wait when the restaurants first opened?

Thanks!
Nancy

[KCFW]

Hi Nancy, The guy on the catamaran said that normally the water is crystal clear. I was expecting the water to be dirty all along the coast, but in PDC, It was gorgeous. We arrived during the rain, so I can't say for sure. As far as the restaurants, we like to go about 8:00 pm, and that is when the rush hit I guess. They consistently told us to come back in an hour to hour forty-five minutes. I don't know if earlier diners had a problem or not. Once you get in, it's great.

[Conanc]

KCFW,

Lots of people here don't care for Cancun, but my college aged daughter and I just returned from staying at the RIU Palace Las Americas -- the new Riu resort in Cancun, and we loved it! It was first class all the way, absolutely stunning lobby, great rooms all junior suites with pool/oceanview and the food was excellent. There were five restaurants to choose from and we enjoyed them all. People we met stayed at the Omni and loved it there!

However, since my husband and I will be going alone in November, and we don't have young children, we thought an all adults resort might be better for us. We read such poor reviews on tripadvisor and were concerned so I've been trying to get all the information I can on Secrets. It was great to read your report but I am still so unsure about what to do.

kathyb: why didn't you like IB* Paraiso? We eliminated it due to the kid factor and the size of the resort.

[kathyb]

Conanc,

We thought IB Paraiso was was too big and spread out - took too long to get from one end to the other. We were extremely unhappy with the food - we like ala carte restaurants and IB was mostly buffets except for the 3 vouchers they give you for the speciality rest. And we were not all that happy with those (we are really not fussy eaters). Also there were tons of mosquitoes when we were there in Oct - the lobby was open and you couldn't even sit in there in the evenings for drinking without getting eaten alive. Everyone was walking around with huge red welts from them.
I guess it just wasn't what we were looking for -
Kathy

[Robino]

Conanc,
We were at SC late March. The only rain we had was early one morning. You can probably tell from my previously reviews on this site, that I am a big fan of SC, but to be perfectly honest, I was disappointed in the beach. The ocean was never settled so you did not have that beautiful tourquise water I invisioned; however, when we went into PDC the water color was beautiful. The best beaches I have ever seen in all our travels, were in Turks and Caicos, so that is what I compare every beach to.

Do not drive yourself crazy reading all the reviews (like I did). This is a great site to grab little tibits here and there. It was a fabulous vacation for us. Everyone's experiences are bound to be different. We met great people, had great food, top shelf alcohol, great dancing, great service and would definitely return to a Secrets owned property. After reviewing all the adults only AI's, there was not one that didn't have something negative about it. Good luck in your decision.