This was our first stay at an all-inclusive resort--we are generally much more adventurous travelers, but this time we just wanted an easy, good-weather, winter get-away. We booked the Barcelo Maya Beach but were upgraded to the Tropical when we arrived. By the end of our stay we decided that we would definitely choose the Tropical again if we go back. It was centrally located on beach, with access to several more of the specialty restaurants than you get in the less expensive Maya Beach. We were very impressed with the quality of food in the buffets--especially if you choose the tropical fruit and whatever they are cooking fresh, usually at several stations throughout the buffet. The bar at the Tropical is probably the best of all the resorts, and the lobby is airy and spacious with fountains and running water everywhere. The beach is probably as nice as any we have seen anywhere in the world (with the possible exception of Bora Bora), with calm water and tons of beautiful fish and coral to delight the snorkelers. The pool is enormous, including a water-slide area for the kids at one end and a swim-up bar at the other, plus lots of fountains and water features in between. We were a little disappointed in the speciality restaurants (but we are from San Francisco and probably a little hard to impress when it comes to good food). All the drinks were good (the Corona beer on tap was great), but the house wines were barely drinkable. Consequently, we wound up purchasing wine for dinner and having a bar bill at the end of our stay, despite the fact that this was an all-inclusive resort. They have a premium package for people who want to drink name-brand liquor--we wished they had offered a premium package that included better wines. One other small criticism is that a better variety of shops would have been nice. All the shops seemed to sell the same things--all souvenirs. But despite these small complaints, overall we absolutely loved this resort, enjoyed ourselves thoroughly, and will probably come back again next year. Word of caution: These resorts are huge; a shuttles are available and they run frequently, but be prepared to do a lot of walking! Best bets: the Bahama Mamas (like strawberry milkshakes with rum!) and the freshly made churros, still warm and crunchy. Mmmmmm.

Overall, it was a positive experience. Staff was very nice and helpful (except the water sports people were rude). A positive thing was that most people thought we were mexican and spoke to us in Spanish so I got to practice a little (I usually try to spend a month or two learning the local language before most trips, eg French and Italian prior to our Europe trip and Spanish before our Guatemala trip last year). We probably won't return to any all-inclusive resort type place anytime soon cause my family (wife and teen kids) kinda thought it was a very cliche kind of vacation. Excellent snorkeling right off the beach that most people did NOT take advantage of. Food was OK but that was only because we are vegetarian (even the veggie stuff tasted suspect eg. chips and churros kinda had a lardy taste, etc) but overall I bet the average traveller would really like everything here. The pools were beautiful and also exceptionally clean. The beds and pillows (other people have commented negatively) were very comfortable, no complaints here. I feel that out of the five options here the Colonial/Tropical property is the best option. The Japanese restaurant Kyoto was very nice. People were friendly. We took a snorkeling tour and one to Chichen Itza. Both were nice.

We travelled to the Barcelo Maya Tropical on Jan 28 to Feb 04 2012 for my nephews wedding. We had a group of about 35 people from different parts of Canada meeting us there. Some stayed at the Palace , some at the Tropical and some at the Beach resorts. For anyone going in the future really check out the differences in price because with the exception of the Palace, we did not really see the difference between the other four resorts, regarding room quality or food or service. All the grounds were absolutely beautiful , the pools were amazing, and actually the best beach area by far is at the Maya Beach. The wedding that we attended was absolutely beautiful, well planned including the dinner and the reception t hat followed. Top notch service all around.The reason I am writing this review however is that we did have a few problems at this resort. The management severely lacked people skills when dealing with such problems. First of all they really need to get on the same page when they decide who of the four resorts can drink where and at what times.Our son and his fiancee and my daughter and a friend stayed at the Beach while a lot of us stayed at the Tropical. What a hassle when they wanted to come to the lobby bar at the Tropical or at the piano bar at the Colonial to have a few drinks with the rest of the family. All seemed fine til about 8pm when almost every night the bar staff would then not serve them or try to kick them out. Are you kidding me? The worst part was they were either wine drinkers or beer drinkers so what was the difference? When we were in the piano bar, my son was told he could drink there all night by a manager if he paid $5.00. He agreed but was then told by the bar staff that no, it was $5.00 plus $5.00 per drink!!!! My husband then had words with the manager about this and was told they could drink in that bar all night for $15.00 but when my husband agreed and then asked to charge it to our room as everything else was he was told no, it had to be cash. Funny business there I would say,so just fair warning for anyone else not to fall for this gimmick.
Anyway, that brings me to my other point about management at this resort. On Wednesday at about 2 in the afternoon I slipped on the very wet floor going into one of the buildings, and fractured my knee in 3 places. I also cracked my head and had a really nice lump on the back of my head. Was taken to the resort hospital and looked after very well and ended up at the local hospital for the next eight hours.If anyone ever ever has any fears about going to a Mexican hospital after an injury rest assured. I received top notch medical care, probably one of nicest set of doctors ever in an incredibly clean, well staffed, and very efficient, caring hospital. However, the management staff at the Tropical were anything but. My daughter who remained at the hotel tried in vain to use the phone to call the hospital and the staff were very uncaring and unhelpful in helping her do this. It wasnt til our friend got a little aggressive did they even try to help her reach the hospital. Not one person from management even checked or spoke to anyone about our incident until late Thursday afternoon when they offered us room service and wanted to talk about our bar incident. They seemed more interested in solving that issue, I am sure because it involved money. We had conversations with the asst. manager who was not helpful at all, they did not offer even cab fare to the airport as of course I could not go on the bus. My daughter set up an appt. for the morning we left with the manager to discuss a few things but of course he did not show up. Oh, and just a little giggle, they did send us a lovely fruit tray on Friday night but I had to return to the hospital, so my kids and hubby were meeting us at the lobby at the Beach, we just met there the rest of the week, less problems, so they took the cheese tray to have when I returned and the manager of that lobby told them they could not have it there. My daughter tried to explain that the hotel had given it to me as I had broken my knee, that it was a gift from them and the bugger took it away anyway!!!!!!!! So, in closing, just be very careful not to injure yourself at this hotel as the management seem to care more about who is drinking in what bar and not about someone who is hurt! Beautiful hotel though and after everything we still managed to have a great hoilday but what an experience.

The Tropical is a great resort and you have access to the Colonial, Caribe and Beach which all have something different to offer which makes your stay that much better. The resort grounds are well kept and the food was good, even the coffee was excellent! You do however have to make dinner reservations as soon as you check in because they fill up fast. If anything, you need to experience the Japanese restaurant, its a really fun time. The evening shows are excellent, our kids loved the Micheal Jackson show and the International dance show. What's also great about these resorts is there is so much to do for kids of all ages. Ours kids range from 13 to 17 and they could snorkel right off the beach, ride a dune buggy-like paddle boat, take scuba lessons in the pool and also enjoy the activities they offer on the grounds and at pool side. For small kids the Tropical/Colonial has a great water-park area and the Caribe/Beach also has a great play area. For young couples, well they have fun as well because the swim up bars are always rockin. The rooms are typical rooms but they are bigger then your average hotel room, but more importantly, they stock the fridge everyday and they do a great job ensuring the rooms are clean. My advice would be however to get a room on the third floor, then you don't run the risk of someone above you making noise, like dragging a chair (or something) across the floor. In addition, one thing that we found different from other resorts we have stayed at is there is no pool side/beach bar service, somewhat of a pain when you sit far away from the bar areas. However, if your a beer drinker then all you need to do is take a Big Bubba and help yourself to the self-serve tap. Overall, I would recommend this resort to everyone and thanks to the many staff at the Barcelo who made our stay at the Tropical an enjoyable one!!