Hotel overview
Location
TulumProperty information
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Hotel details
Hotel advisories
General policies & fine print
Convention Policy - Individuals attending a convention cannot book this property for their stay. If found attending a convention, guests may be subject to higher room rates upon arrival.
Hotel Spring Break Policy - This hotel cannot guarantee a spring-break-free environment.
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.
Ratings & reviews
TripAdvisor traveler rating
15234 reviews
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Mar 21, 2020Pretty Decent stay
Beautiful place, freindly staff. Went as the Corona Virus was getting to be a big issue worldwide.....so there were people spraying sanitizer on you at evry restaurant - but still manged to see staff leaving washroom without washing up, Barefeet in the buffet, that tyoe of thing. Great pools, great bars, Pretty poor entertainment - not nearly what I had got in past visit to the area. Resort is part of Principe group so access to other areas for a la cartes, etc. Restaurants were all great. Did get upgraded to Akumel for last part of stay and rooms and benefits were noticeable but yet still in the same resort area. If staying in Tulum, definitely worth checking out what you can acsess in Akumel and Coba resorts. Even the buffet and snack bar in Akumel was nicer food and visually cleaner. For sure the Akumel buffet at the beach was the place for breakfast. Whatever resort you are in, you are constantly approached by reps trying to get you into a "90 min" presentation. I got rude and got us out in 3 hours....but we did get an $80.00 excursion voucher. Not sure how they can sell any memberships - numbers couldnt come anywhere close to going around to make it even close to a good investment - even if I had a spare $70 grand US to tie up. Lots of priviledge areas and perks for the "members" that have bought in - and some that have a bit of an attitude and expect special treatment kind of rubs the wrong way with how they treat staff if things arent perfect.
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Mar 21, 2020Paradise
This was our second time at this resort and it was a truly relaxing, wonderful experience both times. Great staff, great activities and great treatment. The food was so enjoyable with plenty of keto options so I could stay on my eating plan the entire time! I was happy to see some of the same staff still worked there from our visit 3 years ago and they still had the same friendly and welcoming attitudes and seemed to truly love their jobs. We went with our membership and the all inclusive option which was truly an incredible deal. Our rooms had king beds, private balconies with a close ocean view, jacuzzi tubs, and a daily stocked mini bar (which was hardly needed but a nice touch). We highly recommend.
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Mar 20, 2020Good timing in Grand Bahia Principe Tulum
We were at the Bahia Principe last month and a good time in this large property. Super nice environment drowned into nature with heaps of animals going around constantly, which gives a lot of fun to kids. Unlike comments I saw before going there, receptionist has been very kind and efficient. All staff was very friendly despite getting too used to get tips from North American visitors... The whole facility is clean and gardeners are constantly keeping areas neat, sometimes even too much since they start cutting grass or bush at 8.00 in the morning some days :( Despite a beautiful ocean view, the room was disapointing, smaller than we would have thought, and with tiny beds. 3 tiny beds for 4 people = trouble. My wife and I could not fit confortably into such a small bed, then had to gather 2 small beds side by side to make it wider...but had to sleep with our 3 year old between us. Definitely annoying. Numerous swimming pools among the two sections of the hotel, that allow not staying all the time at the same location. Numerous bars as well that make it easy to get drinks wherever you are in spite of long waiting times we have sometimes experienced to get drinks. The beach in front of the hotel was alright. People complain about the sandy pillows they had put to break waves, but it is actually a good idea to make the beach swimable considering it was pretty windy nearly every day when we were there. Thanksfully, it was a warm breeze. The shuttle service between the different areas of the hotel is very practical because each section is further apart than you would think. We have also been impressed by the quality of shows at nigth. We were used to see shows played by the entertainment teams in the other hotels we have been to, but these were actually done by professional crews. Talking about entertainment team, we could feel the lack of Jet Tour members and organisation. We were informed before our trip that there would be no French squad following bankruptcy of Thomas Cook, and this was a great loss. The team on site was still very friendly and tried its best to make tourists happy, but we could see the difference with the well organised and more attractive Jet Tour teams that we have known over the last few years we have been travelling with them. To continue on Jet Tour missing, we have been badly surprised to see there was no welcoming meetings organised by TUI, which is supposed to be the new point of contacts for former Thomas Cook travellers. If you want information, you have to make an appointement with the TUI representative who does not stay on site constantly! Come on, trying to make an appointment during vacations, seriously? The excursions through the hotels being very expensive, we have decided to organise our own visits. We wanted to go to a Cenote at first, and were going to go to one that was the most advertised on the internet. We have been very lucky to get a cab driver whom advised us another Cenote more anthentic and less crowdy. Yes I though initially that he wanted to take us to place where he could get more commision, which actually may be the case, but it was anyway a great tip and we have loved going to CENOTES CASA TORTUGA. Absolutely beautiful, accessible for kids, and with different styles of open-pools or closed caves. I would definitely adivse going to that place. Following our driver tips, we have been to the amazingly beautiful beaches in Tulum. Different names are given to the different entrances, but all the same place. Colours were amazing and you could for sure think you were on one Caribean islands beach. By the way, if you want to avoid to pay the hotel commision for cabs, you can go directly across the casino entrance, where drivers are waiting on their dedicated car park. Other few stuffs we did not like: * being harrassed by the Privilege club salespersons. * the organisation for "à la carte" restaurants. We hate to make plans days in advance being on holidays, but if you do not book these places when you arrive, you are likely not be able to test it because dumb people are jumping on these and are booking their dinners a week ahead... Then, when we wanted to book it for the same night or the following day, the only availabilities were 5.30pm (I do not eat like English people), or 10.00 pm (you are right, easy with kids!). Consequently, I'd suggest not being too laid back like me, but acting dumbly as the majority of other people if you do not want to miss these meals opportunities. * the very poor care and answers we got from one lady at the "public relations" office. Actually, seing that we could not get any "à la carte" restaurants spots, we tried to ask for her help... Bad idea, that girl could do everything in the hotel but being in contact with customers! She did not give any sense of care or empathy, my issue was not her issue and she made us feel like it. * very noisy at night. This came both from irrespectuous people, who do not understand 2.00 in the morning is not the right time for playing with mates outside and screaming as if it was 2.00 in the afternoon... But also came from staff handling cuttleries, plates and food for the next morning. I understand they have to get ready for welcoming people for breakfast, but it is not done quietly at all. Last comment, nothing to do with the hotel, is the arrival at the airport. I hate going for the first offer for taxis when I get out of a terminal, because I always think I could get a better deal further. There, this is not possible since this is a complete monopoly! There is only one company who offers shuttle service to the hotels. To sum up, it was still a great trip and we liked our holiday. We selected this hotel because it was supposed to be in the first 2 places on the Thomas Cook ranking. However, we feel like this was not the case and we have been to better resorts with Thomas Cook over the last few years. It still remains a great choice to visit this extraordinary region of Mexico.
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Mar 16, 2020An Honest Review - Dropped an extra Star because I emailed the company first with No Reply
An honest review of the hotel. We had a great time as a family and our intent is never to complain but we had some Major issues here. Check in was rough - we did All of the check in & check out online and we still had to (re-do) it when we arrived which took about 40 minutes (with a baby and a toddler). Food - NOT All Included. The food was just okay. The a la carte restaurants that we got into: the Cozumel & the Portofino were actually very good but this was 2 meals out of 27 (9 days) where we did not have to eat at the buffet. It was not openly disclosed that upon arrival, you only get to book 4 meals (at your All inclusive) and it is Very difficult to get a reservation. Our 2 reservations were past 830pm. One was at 10! Room Services - I actually really liked, befriended and tipped well our cleaning person and the water guy ($20 each) but sadly someone took $100 out of my wallet while we were there. I did not report it because I didn't want someone to lose their job over it but really? That was a bummer. Spa - POOR. So Poor. So sad. My husband and I love a good spa day! The spa had no amenities. The lobby was hot. No AC on. There was a sauna but it was broken. When I asked if they had champagne and the lady replied that it was warm, I couldn't help but just laugh a little. Oh well. We tried to book at Coba instead. They could book a massage for us but they were full so no amenities. A final comment, we found the guests (TONS of Smokers) cigarettes everywhere including buried in the sand (yuck) to be not very courteous or kind - even to the staff. This made us feel like we don't blame the staff for not being as warm and welcoming as we have experienced at other resorts. All this said, my family had a good time. It was about the time that we got to share. My daughter swam with the dolphins, played with iguanas, and chose a dessert every day. She was in Heaven. The pool days were enjoyable, the water park at Coba is wonderful for children and our excursions were magical! We have been to several other all inclusives and we are just used to it being different - better, honestly. We likely will not return but we may consider it in the future as we noticed a lot of changes being made. Notable & accommodating staff: Juan at the main lobby bar. Manager on site at Portofino on 3/5/20.
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Mar 16, 2020
Great Resort - Highly Recommend
My friends and I greatly enjoyed our stay at the Bahia Principe resort in the Riviera Maya. We stayed in the "Tulum" area of the resort. When going out into the ocean I recommend bringing water shoes as the ground was quite rocky in some places. There was hardly any seaweed in the water or on the beach. The restaurant buffets had a wide selection of food both in quantity and in variety. The staff we interacted with was very friendly and nice. Some were quieter based on their comfort level with English. I appreciated the hand sanitizer that was available at the entrance of every restaurant / food area. I also liked that you could carry drinks around the resort in hard, reusable plastic cups. I highly recommend this resort and will stay again.