Hotel Overview
Set along a beautiful white sand beach in Playa del Carmen on Riviera Maya, this eco-friendly resort lies in the luxurious residential complex of Grand Coral, next-door to a Nick Price-designed 18-hole golf course. Escape to an array of beautifully appointed rooms stretching from the magnificent Mexican Caribbean to the lush green jungle. Upgrade to the Select Club section for a luxurious adult-only experience. Rooms are decorated in superlative fashion, complementing the soothing ambiance of the Mexican Caribbean.
The Sandos Caracol Eco Resort lies in the exotic Mayan jungle and is surrounded by natural sinkholes (cenotes), mangroves and lagoons where you can admire the typical fauna and flora of the region. Enjoy a romantic and relaxing canoe ride through the natural waterways of the mangroves. In the biggest cenote of the resort, right behind the lobby, guests can discover the crystal clear, refreshing waters that are typical for this region. Plus, learn all about ancient Mayan culture, enjoy the Temazcal (additional fee), admire the Attic of the Orchid, and explore the bicycle track and the trails. This is truly the perfect destination for the nature-lover in all of us.
The main pool offers a little something for everyone. Dive in or pull up a seat at the swim-up bar that spans nearly the entire length of the Royal Elite section, only a few steps away from the beach. The resort's fun-filled water park features 22 water slides for kids and 7 water slides for adults, with lifeguard supervision. Daytime activities include beach volleyball, sandcastle building, swimming and yoga, a lit tennis court, a supervised baby club and kids' club with a playground, crafts, TV, movies, sports, and over 40 different ecological activities included in the All-Nature Experience. The teen activity program features music, pool tables, beach soccer, and more.
Indulge at the wide range of buffet and à la carte dining options. There are three abundant buffet restaurants, featuring international fare, delicious Italian specialties, and authentic Mexican cuisine. For à la carte dining, enjoy Teppanyaki, Brazilian, Mediterranean, Italian, Vegan, and steak/seafood. After dinner, head to the theater featuring live nightly entertainment.
There's something for everyone at Sandos Caracol, whether you prefer naps on the beach, treks through the jungle, or drinks by the pool.
Greening Your Life: Part of the Apple Vacations Greening Your Life initiative, this property is Rainforest Alliance Certified, avoids the use of plastic water bottles, and uses recycled paper for all printed material. Repopulation programs are also available for local wildlife and native plants, and biodegradable mosquito repellant is available for free throughout the resort.
Sandos Caracol Eco Resort participates in several programs designed to give back to the community. Guests can also enjoy the All-Nature Experience, which offers up to 40 eco-friendly activities for both educational and entertainment purposes.
Location
Riviera Maya - BeachProperty Information
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Hotel Details
Hotel Advisories
General Policies & Fine Print
Hotel requires a debit card authorization upon check-in for incidentals; this will place a hold on your funds.
Hotel Spring Break Policy - Spring breakers are not allowed. Minimum check-in age is 21.
Transfer Policy - A price may display when children stay free, if your vacation includes transfer to your hotel.
General Information - Room taxes and service fees are included in vacation price.
Minimum night stay restrictions may apply.
Reservation changes may not be permitted unless authorized by the hotel.
Customer Ratings & Reviews
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating
26142 reviews
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Dec 21, 2024Worst All-inclusive Report Experience
Probably worst all-inclusive resort experience ever. There’re more times I’m still hungry after a meal, than not. I’d rather not eat good tast food. Room service phone line doesn’t event pick up. The service can not keep up with the increasing number of guests, and more new guest buildings are built. Staff are overworked and need more support, it shows in their service - no one cares; no spirit to work as one. Best way to describe is disorganized chaos. On the first morning of your arrival, they try to make you commit to coming back by “lock-in” the price of the room and ask you to join their Royal Elite membership for just $6K USD for 70 nights, within 5yrs. All you do after is pay $100/day/person for the all inclusive. I don’t even know if I’d love to come back yet. But there’re people would pay the amount right away after sales pitch - after dropping $6K how likely you will see the flaws.
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Dec 19, 2024Good but not fabulous
An ok family resort Cuisine: We aren’t very big “foodies” and don’t wine and dine around for the finest food. We are very basic and were pretty disappointed in the food. We were only able to get to the international buffet. The other buffet wasn’t worth it compared. Expect long wait to get any drink and don’t expect to be offered a refill. Expect to see a lot of wildlife. We didn’t mind and they didn’t mind us. Workers are working so hard to keep this mini village alive and clean. I can’t imagine the work that goes into maintaining it here. Expect to walk.. lots. It’s very rare to get a room close to the pool/beach or the water park. Aqua park: this is the main reason we booked here. We have two young children and we knew they would be busy there for hours. There was 3 main waterslide areas. The main area tailored to small children, the mid level, and the bigger water slides. We had no idea there was height requirements for the slides. We weren’t able to go on the small and mid level even with our nervous kids. Which was a let down. Our 7 year old couldn’t go on the big ones and was super disappointed the others were to amateur for his age. We weren’t really sure why he couldn’t go on those since most of the big ones you’d see in a standard hotel. Beach: very rocky. Wear water shoes or take your time. Weather: we travelled mid Dec and only had one sunny day out of 7. Make sure you take the umbrellas they have in the rooms! Most workers don’t speak English so trying to get help for anything is difficult. Night time entertainment and the kids club were really good. All and all it was good but not fabolous.
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Dec 19, 2024
Paid for 5stars experienced 3
We booked this resort during an Air Canada Aeroplan promotion I must start off by saying this hotel is not for everyone it definitely did not meet our expectation of a vacation. This property is an equal property which they do state in the description but it is very rundown and needs a little bit of maintenance. Our room was spacious and clean but showed signs of wear and tear our biggest issue with the room was the back door not locking properly And the raccoons and monkeys being able to open it and walk into your room if you weren’t there also I guess due to being an Eco resort the hot water was never hot the room does not have cold water to drink which is not a big deal but would be nice to have. This property does not have the wild factor it is over run by raccoons which constantly wander in the buffet and snack bar which gets annoying after a day or two. The staff is tired and definitely shows signs of being overworked. All the cups at the resort had a dirty feel to it and smelt like different drinks almost like they weren’t clean properly. The food in the buffet was subpar even though there was stuff to eat definitely wasn’t a five star resort as the ad advertise it. The waterpark was great again showing signs of wear and tear but the kids loved it the main pool was very small with lots of people eating and drinking near the pool in the pool which gave it dirty feel. The ocean is not swimmable again the property owners and management due state that so if you’re looking for a beach vacation this is not the hotel for you to stay. We once again my state that this property was not for us but other guest we’re having a great time so we are basing this on our opinion and experience as adults we did not enjoy this property but our kids loved. This is not a five star property as the advertise I will give this a three star for my experience of traveling.
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Dec 18, 2024Don't expect the world and you'll have a great time
I'll start off by saying this resort is definitely not a 5 star, so don't expect it. It's more like a 3 star. And it was probably the lowest class of a resort we've been to, but it was still a great time. The service is great. Not the best I've had but surprisingly really good. The rate is very cheap so I didn't expect it to blow me away. We came here with kids for the monkeys mainly. And we seen them almost every day by the buffet. Unfortunately we had some bad weather so couldn't enjoy the resort to the fullest on most days but there were still lot of things to check out on site. Pros: - The Royal Elite perks made the stay. We booked through a member so got the privileges. Honestly if we didn't have that, I'm not so sure we would have had as good as a time as we did. The staff working these areas made it great. They were always smiling and helpful. The welcome we got from Karla was great. Isidro at the RE breakfast was amazing. The staff members at the RE pool who got us another towel card after our towel was stolen. Even the groundskeepers would smile and say hello. - any room request we had on the app was taken care of in minutes. That's 5 star service right there and really impressed us. - seeing the animals all day everyday made it for the kids. - the bartender in the lobby is awesome. One of my favorites on any trip I've done. Never got his name but he was there every night. - having a cenote on site is awesome. Loved checking it out. - the breakfast at the RE restaurant was great. Room service was decent for what it is. - lots outdoors to just wander around and check out. - the waterpark was better than I expected. My son and I had a blast going down all of them. Cons (although minor): - no one ever answered the phone except for room service. I tired multiple times on different days to contact the concierge, front desk or even an operator but no one ever picked up. One day our AC was leaking all over the floor. We had to flag down a worker with a radio to call someone. - yes the beach is terrible, but you don't come here for that. You come for the animals and jungle. - the pools could be kept cleaner. There's no beach, therefore you're subjected to the pool so would be nice if they weren't as dirty as they are. - the buffet was probably the worst I've had in the 8 resorts I've been to in this area. Once we figured out the other eating options we got with RE, we were able to avoid it. - the teens club is non existent. Just a small room with no supervision. The kids club isn't the greatest either. But they kept our kids busy, safe and entertained. It's not the fault of the staff. They really should fund it a little more. - I was impressed to see the workers treated the animals well all throughout the resort even though they can be pests on the daily. But the donkeys don't need the be there in a pen. They should be in a field somewhere. You can tell that one for sure is depressed. Overall I base my reviews on value for what I paid. All in it was only very cheap for 7 nights with 2 kids and 2 adults in a bunk bed room. The room is kind of small but it worked. I'd say lots of value all things considered. Likely won't be back to this resort because we don't normally see the same place twice but will definitely be staying at another Sandos in the future.
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Dec 15, 2024
Not the best value for Canadian dollar
The resort itself is beautiful and has lots of animals and greenery. I was there 15 years ago and I thought it would be a similar experience. We were 7 adults and 2 kids, 17 and 11. Bring water bottles with you. Water shoes is must. Large property be prepared to walk lots. I expected slightly more for the money we spent. Pros Resort is well maintained. Most staff is friendly. They don't expect tips which was nice, and we tipped regularly. Aqua park for younger kids Coffee in the sports bar is great Food was good for kids Lots of places to lay and tan on the beach Japanese style restaurant has the best food Cons Restaurants are not all open. Line up's to get into buffet Bathroom by the pool closed for 7 days No hot water in the room for 6 days out of 7 Air conditioning dripped on the floor Coffee in the buffet is awful tastes like chemicals Swimming in the ocean was terrible and very rocky Alcohol is the cheapest and bring your own
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