Our Stay from 11.9 - 19.11
by A TripAdvisor Member
We chose the Iberostar Paraiso Beach as our honeymoon destination and were surely not disppointed. Prior, I had checked out all the different reviews on this website and the hotel is as wonderful as described on the different pages. We found all the staff extremely helpful but a special mention should surely go to Leonel the friendly barman in the entertainment hall and Manuel the waiter (trainee) in the "La Plaza" restaurant. Even the there was building work going on at the time, we did not feel that it spoiled our enjoyment in any way. In fact as the place is so big we almost had the feeling we were the only people there.
Excellent Hotel
A great trip
by A TripAdvisor Member
My wife and I just returned from a week-long vacation at the Iberostar Paraiso Beach. We absolutely loved it. We stayed at the Quetzal last year and really liked it, but we thought the Paraiso beach was even better. The hotel is beautiful, the food is consistently good, and everyone who works there goes out of their way to accomodate you. The beach at the Quetzal may be a little nicer, but we spent a lot of time at the beach and really enjoyed it. The pool is huge, with several swim up bars and a band playing on most days. There were several families with children there, but we were never bothered by any of them. We would much rather have kids running around having a good time than have to deal with a "spring break" type crowd (We are in our late 20's). The Star Friends were there to coordinate activities and entertain, and I don't think I have ever seen a harder working group of people. The shows at night won't be confused for a Vegas Spectacular, but if you go in with a good attitude you will find something about each one that you enjoy. We would definitely recommend this hotel, and we will be booking a trip back as soon as possible. Just go with someone that you enjoy being around, relax, and have a great time. And when you're there, be sure and look up Ronald in the cigar bar...we don't even smoke cigars but he kept us coming back every night.
Paraiso IS Paradise
by A TripAdvisor Member
We just returned from Iberostar Paraiso-Beach this week after an 8 day stay and we loved it! My Husband and I were told about this lovely hotel last year from our Travel Agent. We promptly took his advice and went in January 2003. We returned with our children in July because we fell in love with it. The weather was hotter in July with alot more mosquito's. Be sure to bring repellent (even better use Bounce dryer sheets - rub them all over your body - especially at night - they work great!) The Hotel is beautiful and everything is so clean. Be sure to make your dinner reservations as soon as you check in. We highly recommend the Japanese and Steak House restaurants. You can bypass the Mediteranean and Brazilian restaurants - yuck! THe Mexican restaurant is the only time you will get Mexican food - the buffets are more salads, cheeses, hamburgers, etc. Breakfasts were good - we were able to get omlettes, sunnyside up eggs, plenty of fruit, homemade doughnuts, etc. Desserts left something to be desired - if your a chocolate lover you will be disappointed here - grab plenty of muchies for your room as the room service is so so and does not provide drinks.
The in-room minibar was a hit in our Family. It is filled up once per day but if you leave a tip they will be sure to keep it stocked with soda's, water and beers. Xel-ha is a must. Leave a full day for this fantastic excursion. Snorkeling, a lazy river to float down and for a few dollars more you can get a wristband which allows the all-inclusive for food, drinks, alchohol, etc - well worth it. Shopping is wonderful down in the city of Playa Del Carmen - silver, jewelry, arts & crafts and of course plenty of gifts to choose from for your friends back home. The exchange rate is $10.25 pesos to the US dollar so figuring out the cost of things was easy - however, be sure to bargin. They will bargin even in the established stores - we even bargined in the hotel jewelry store and got a great deal on a platinum diamond ring. The kids were kept busy between the huge pool, rock waterfall, flamingos, birds, entertainment & clowns by the pool and the Lucy's Mini Kids Club which will keep your kids busy all day, they feed them lunch, arts & crafts, spanish lessons, and give them a part in the evening entertainment production if they choose. Dont use the phones - six dollars connection fee even if you are using a calling card - use the payphone in the Lobby. The beach is magnificant - you are allowed 1 hour canoe, snorkel, catamaran use per day free - my husband gave them $10 and they let us use the snorkel equiptment all day. We highly recommend the evening entertainment - casino night was fun, movie night where the Staff puts on scenes from different movies, lip sync night and the never ending dancing were great! My Husband and I would recommend this hotel with or without your children - there is something for everyone.
Take plenty of film - we took 2 disposable camera's just of the hotel itself. Wet n Wild in Cancun is highly recommended by the kids. We look forward to going back soon.
Don't try to get any help from the management
by A TripAdvisor Member
Whereas the facility is fantastic, do not count on 5 star service as advertised. Management will not talk to you, so don t bother trying. I just returned from 8 days at the Paraiso Beach. My wife, myself, and another couple all booked our vacations using an American Airlines package. Here s a summary of what happened.We booked online, our friends booked the same package through a travel agent, they paid a couple of hundred $ less than us (Lesson #1, don t book anything online). We also booked a car (Alamo). We went to get our car at the Cancun airport. As I filled out the paperwork, I stood next to a gentleman who was getting the same exact car that I was for the same duration. Guess what? He was paying $200 less than me. I asked if he was a member of a miles program or some such. No, he used a travel agency (Lesson #2, don t book anything online).We get to the Paraiso Beach hotel and check in. Our Jr. suit was situated at directly in front of the stairs so we got to listen to the revelers coming home from the bar. I called the desk and asked to move. It s not possible. They said. Hmmm. I asked to have the manager call me (He never did Note, I was told the manager was in Spain but the assistant manager Mr. Lopez would call me never happened).The next day our friends arrived. We picked them up and brought them to the Hotel. As they tried to check in they were told they ve been upgraded to the Iberostar Lindo, an even better facility! Why? They used a travel agency (Lesson #3, don t EVER book anything online!). I asked if we could upgrade to the same facility to join our friends. It s not possible Senor, try asking the Lindo. I asked to have the manager call me, they said he would. Never happened.We go with our friends to the Lindo. I ask them if I can upgrade. It s not possible Senor. I asked to have the manager of the Lindo call me. They said he would. Never happened.Every other day for the remainder of the vacation I went to find the managers of both the Paraiso Beach and the Lindo. They were never available but the desk people said they would call me. They never did.Our vacation was somewhat troubled since our friends were in a different facility than us. Whereas the properties share much of the same grounds, guests of the Lindo are considered a higher class and have access to different facilities. This caused a lot of problems for us, 1) because nobody told us that the peons from the other facilities would not be allowed entrance (this caused a lot of embarrassment as we would arrange to meet somewhere only to find we couldn t get in so we d have to tip staff to go find our friends and tell them to meet us elsewhere), 2) Once we found out we were considered sub-class, our friends had to forego many of the amenities they were rightly due just so we could do things together.My advice to you would be to avoid the Iberostar Paraiso Beach and Lindo properties. If you do go and have any issues, don t expect the management to care what happens to you.The biggest lesson I learned? NEVER BOOK ANYTHING ONLINE!!!!!!!!!!!!
A great vacation for the whole family
by TripAdvisor Member lambchop47
We spent the week of Dec 27, 2003 - Jan 3, 2004 at the Iberostar Paraiso Beach. My family includes my husband & I and two sons 13 & 15.
We traveled with another couple who have two teenage daughters. My family travels one or two times a year. We have never been to an all-inclusive before and we haven't traveled as a family outside the United States. We all had a great time. We were worried about getting sick and none of us had any problems. At the beginning of the week we were brushing our teeth with bottled water. By the end of the week we weren't worried about anything. Other reviews mentioned mosquitos. I didn't see any. I agree that the floors & pool area are slippery when wet. I also agree that you do a lot of walking because everything is so spread out. I considered it great excercize. I think if everything was close, you would feel like there were people everywhere. I never felt crowded except at the theatre on New Years Eve. My kids are nuts about watching TV at home. They had no complaints about the little TV they watched, they had so many other things to keep them busy. I read a couple reviews before our vacation that mentioned the Del Mar side was better or prettier. I'm guessing they were talking about the decorating or the architecture. Those were the two main differences I noticed.
Otherwise the scenery was the same. We had red flag conditions every day so we didn't get to do any of the non-motorized water sports that were included. We talked to a lady who was there before us and the day before we arrived was the last yellow flag. We took a snorkling trip one morning. I liked the snorkling better in the Florida Keys. It may have been better if the water had been a little more calm. The rooms and resort in general were very clean. The food was good. We tried the Mediterranean, Japanese and Steakhouse. The specialty restaurants are a nice change of pace from the buffet which changes slightly each day but the majority of food is the same. The atmosphere in the Mediterranean restaurant is very nice. The Steakhouse is a lot more casual. It's the same building that hosts the breakfast and lunch buffet. The dress code for the specialty resturants didn't seem to be enforced as long as the clothing was nicer than a tank top, shorts & flip flops. As far as tipping. I think it is a great idea if you want to reward a particular bartender or other service person, but I don't feel like you would get bad service if you didn't tip. My husband and the other man we travelled with tipped at the bars because they would stay at the same one for a longer period of time and get to know the bartender. I was more active and would stop at which ever bar was closest to get a drink. I never tipped, and never had bad service. The evening shows varied from very entertaining to very bad. Most evenings we let the four kids watch the show and the adults had some time to themsleves.
The kids watched every show and only walked out on one. The two shows I watched were good. I watched the beginning of two shows that I knew I didn't want to continue watching. I'm not sure how anyone could have a bad experience here. If you didn't like something, there were plenty of opportunities to try something else. Just be open to trying new things.
My 13 year old son told a friend that he didn't want to come home from vacation. My friend and I both agree that we can't wait to go back. The week was wonderful and relaxing and I'd do it again tomorrow if I could.
Forum Posts
Anybody married at Iberostar Paraiso Beach?
by rubia2605
Hello! I am going on my honeymoon in June to Secrets Capri Riviera Maya resort and would like to know if anyone has stayed there and how the resort rates. I can't find any pictures of the resort on the internet and I heard the beach is not that nice and I am a beach lover so I am wondering if I should switch to The Royal Hideaway instead. Any advice would be appreciated!
Thanks!
Re: Anybody married at Iberostar Paraiso Beach?
by jchoats
I would highly recommend the Iberostar Quetzal in PDC.
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Paraiso Beach Club
