Bahia Principe Grand Coba

Bonnie Kittle

Wonderful, Relaxing Vacation with Great Food & Spa! We had an overall amazing stay at Grand Bahia Principe Coba! The entire property is clean, and the pools are kept immaculate. We were really impressed by how hard the team works to keep the ocean free of algae, which made beach time so enjoyable. The bars are consistently well stocked, and the bartenders are very generous with their pours. If you visit, you absolutely must book a spa treatment. It was an incredibly relaxing experience. Adelberta and Kykey were expert, excellent massage therapists—hands down one of the best highlights of our trip! When it comes to dining, the restaurants did not disappoint. We especially loved the food options—all of the authentic Mexican dishes in the buffet were top-tier and delicious. A few tips/things to keep in mind: It can be a little confusing to figure out where guests are permitted across the different sister properties. If you book Coba, your pool, bar, and beach access is limited to the Coba resort services, which could be better marked throughout the grounds. We would have been more selective on which of the 4 properties to book since we came for a romantic getaway and ended up in the most family centric resort. On the positive side, you are allowed to book specialty restaurants at any of the resort properties, which is a great perk. However, it would definitely add value for guests if full access to all pools, bars, and beaches across the entire complex was included without needing to upgrade to a special, expensive wristband. Overall, there is plenty to do, the staff and spa are fantastic, and we had a wonderfully relaxing trip. We would definitely recommend it!

Makena Young

The property its self was beautiful. We made the best of our trip but we had not a great experience here at this resort. The communication was not great everything closed very early. The food was not good. Best food we had the whole trip was at the snack bar. Was only able to make 2 dinner reservations. Went and played golf at the PGA golf course that is “on site” had a 7:20 am tee time, no transportation over there. And for 4 people to play golf it was $1,200 USD. there was no food on site of golf course or drinks. Bars closed early, only one swim up bar, if you want to go to the beach it’s far. Overall would not recommend this resort. Staff was great. Rooms were clean. But terrible food and seems like a senior center because everything is closed at 7 pm.

John Fundal

I had the pleasure of enjoying two massage experiences at the spa during my stay at the resort. I regularly visit spas back home and also enjoy booking treatments while on vacation as a way to relax and decompress. I normally don’t return to the same spa twice during one trip, but I enjoyed my first experience here so much that I decided to come back. The service at the spa has been exceptional, from the cleanliness and upkeep of the facilities to the warm and professional demeanor of the staff. My massage therapist, Berenice, has been especially wonderful. She is incredibly kind, friendly, attentive, and comforting, always making sure that the treatment is tailored to my preferences and that I am completely comfortable and relaxed. She is not only a very talented massage therapist who clearly takes pride in her work, but she also has such a pleasant and caring personality. She is truly a wonderful addition to the spa team and made both of my visits feel special. Thank you very much to Berenice and the entire spa team for such lovely experiences. The spa has been one of my favorite places to relax during my vacation, and I would happily recommend it to other guests looking for a peaceful and enjoyable treatment.

Mark Seniuk

This was a wonderful vacation resort to take the kids to for their first trip to Mexico. There are plenty of pools all over the place that offer different experiences depending on what you want. Adult pools for those who want quiet, swim up bars for those who never want to leave the water, and water parks with slides for the kids. Speaking of the kids, they have a fantastic entertainment team here, with a top notch kids/teen club. Our 6 and 9 year old were hooked from the moment they tried it and we had to drag them away from the fun if we wanted to spend time with them. They take the kids in the water, do arts and crafts, tennis, rehearse plays and perform them for the public in the evening. The kids made so many friends and loved the dedicated staff team.

Francesca S

Unfortunately, our stay at Coba was far below what we expected from a resort of this size and reputation. Our room smelled strongly of mold and Pine-Sol, there were ants throughout the room, we found a giant cockroach, and the air conditioning simply could not keep up. These issues alone made the room very uncomfortable. The biggest disappointment, however, was the food and overall experience at Coba. On multiple occasions, the pool bar, Píces, was completely overwhelmed and food was gone before many guests had an opportunity to eat. We witnessed people pushing and shoving and taking three plates at a time while other guests were left with nothing. We repeatedly felt that Spanish-speaking/local guests were being given priority, and that unless you spoke Spanish and knew where to go or who to ask, you were often at a disadvantage. There were days when our family genuinely struggled to get food. After raising our concerns, we were upgraded, and we hoped things would improve. The food at Akumal and Tulum was noticeably better than Coba. That said, even at Akumal we experienced lunches where food ran out while other guests were leaving with multiple plates. The resort transportation was another frustration. The transit system appeared to have very few consistent rules, and drivers did not always follow the posted route/map. Again, we observed that speaking Spanish seemed to make it much easier to get where you were trying to go. Overall, the combination of these experiences left us feeling unwelcome and, at times, discriminated against as non-Spanish-speaking guests. We came on vacation expecting to feel relaxed and taken care of, and instead spent far too much time worrying about basic things like getting food, getting around the resort, and dealing with our room. I do want to recognize Karina and Emanuel in the Coba buffet. They were consistently kind, courteous and welcoming, and genuinely made us feel special. They were a bright spot in an otherwise very disappointing stay. We also want to recognize Jose in sales, who set us up with a really awesome private boat excursion - it was the highlight of the trip and the boat captain really made it special. We have stayed at all-inclusive resorts before and understand that no vacation is perfect, but the number and consistency of these issues made this experience very difficult to enjoy. This vacation was particularly stressful for our family because so much of our time was spent waiting, worrying about whether there would be enough food for our children, or wondering whether we would find ants or cockroaches in their beds. These are not things you should have to worry about while on vacation. I also want to acknowledge the impact that the hotel's recent staffing changes and reported layoffs may have had on the experience. I truly do not believe this is a reflection of the individual staff members, many of whom were doing their best under very difficult circumstances. Instead, it felt like a larger issue with the resources, staffing and support being provided from the top down. The staff need to be given the tools and support necessary to provide guests with the experience the resort promises. Based on our experience, we would not choose Bahia Principe again. We sincerely hope the hotel company takes these concerns seriously and invests in the staff and operations at Coba, because there are clearly many employees who care about their guests and deserve the support to succeed.