Barcelo Maya Colonial

Ross Sullivan

My wife and I try to vacation at different all inclusives when in Mexico, this time it was Barcelo, there is a group of resorts all together and we stayed at the Colonial. The resorts here are sprawling so you’re going to get your steps in, there is a bus that can take you from resort to resort as you have access to all of them. There is a huge gym/spa, mall, casino, go-carts and tons of basketball, pickleball and tennis courts, you won’t see everything while you’re here. The resort is very well maintained and clean throughout, rooms are typical. Anytime you have to walk to the buffet, a restaurant, the bars, the lobby you’re under a covered walkway, I liked that. The pools are huge with water features, many kids areas with water slides etc. bars are close by. There is a 24/7 snack bar and the buffet (2 of them) food and service is pretty good. (Edit) last night here we ate at the steak restaurant and it was awesome, if you can eat at this restaurant every night you won’t be disappointed. The Cons: -Our room needed a new shower head. -Limited dining options and availability -typical unusable beach due to heavy spargam. (Go to Isla Mujeres for a great beach) -pools are almost too hot so relief from the heat is indoors. -service at the pool bar is horrible. That being said I’d recommend this resort to friends and family….cheers!

Joey C

Title: Premium Price, Disgusting Conditions, Misleading Promises, and Mediocre Service — Avoid This Resort Our stay at Barceló Tropical / Colonial was one of the most disappointing resort experiences we have ever had. This property sells guests a polished image of a premium vacation, but what we experienced was misleading information, filthy and poorly maintained facilities, amenities that did not match what we were told was included, and service that was mediocre at best. We were lied to about transportation arrangements and misled about the amenities supposedly included with our premium room. When you pay extra for an upgraded experience, you expect the resort to honor what was promised. Instead, we spent our vacation dealing with excuses, inconsistencies, and disappointment. The condition of the bathroom was absolutely disgusting. The photos speak for themselves. The toilet seat mounting areas were packed with dark, filthy buildup and grime that clearly had not been properly cleaned or maintained. There was visible black staining and apparent moisture-related growth around the bathroom ceiling and tile joints. Other areas of the bathroom showed poor maintenance, deteriorating finishes, and a general lack of cleanliness. This is completely unacceptable for any hotel, much less a resort charging premium prices and selling upgraded accommodations. The problems extended beyond the room. The resort appeared poorly maintained in multiple areas, and the overall experience fell far below what was advertised and what we paid for. Getting help from staff was frustrating, service was mediocre, and there seemed to be little urgency to address legitimate guest concerns. What made the experience especially unacceptable was the gap between what we were promised and what was actually delivered. We did not pay premium prices to spend our vacation documenting filthy fixtures, questioning whether our bathroom was sanitary, chasing down transportation issues, and arguing over amenities that should have been provided from the beginning. I strongly recommend that potential guests photograph their room immediately upon arrival, get every promise about transportation and premium-level benefits in writing, and carefully inspect the bathroom and other facilities before unpacking. Based on our experience, I cannot recommend Barceló Tropical / Colonial or the resort as a whole. The combination of misleading promises, disgusting room conditions, poor maintenance, mediocre service, and failure to deliver the premium experience we paid for made this a deeply disappointing vacation. One star is generous.

Kuleshov Andrey

Before I begin, a disclaimer: everything is comparative. What's great for one is bad for another. However, after staying in more a dozen of different all-inclusives in Riviera Maya, one begins to get an idea of what is above the average and what is below. With that in mind, here my balanced feedback: 1. Rooms and room cleaning: as expected, not bad, nor anything special. 2. Beach: long and clean, white sand, but quite compacted. In many places water access is rocky, but there are several sandy approaches. Rocky bottom in some places provides for snorkeling, which is not always the case in other hotels. 3. Buffets: service is quick and efficient. Food variety is good, but the menu stays 90% the same every day. 4. Grounds are huge, lots of pools, including water parks for little ones. Better than average and better than most. 5. Animation team: varied experience. The thing is - animators are evaluated by the clients feedback, so they directly approach guests with requests to leave one. Most comments here quoting animators' names are a testimony of guests' kindness, not necessarily animators' performance. Many activities on the schedule never happen, and those that do, start late and finish early. I have witnesses at least one case of "bossy" animator behavior. Overall, below average. 6. Evening shows: performing team is great, approaching professional. Sound equipment quality at Palenque theater is horrible. The DJ is trying to compensate poor sound quality by sheer volume, making it even worse. Average overall, I expected more from Barceló brand.

Grace Reimers

We had such a lovely stay at the Barcelo Colonial resort! The food from the specialty restaurants was delicious, and buffet was pretty good. It was slightly repetitive at times, so I would recommend upgrading to the premium package for more dinner reservations - the standard package only allowed for 2 speciality dinners. We experienced wonderful service, specifically from Gabriela Dominguez and Oscar Santos, who made our stay feel so special. The staff were so friendly! We appreciated how they always used bottled waters, even when filling up glasses at meals. Also, the nightly shows were SO good. The actors and singers were clearly classically trained, and their costumes were Broadway-worthy. Overall, we highly recommend this resort and would return!

Hunter Stratton

Great resort! This review is specifically for the buffet found in the colonial side near the beach. Our servers were Palapa, Miguel Itza, Edith and Cecilia and they all did great work. This buffet has the most consistently good food, always warm and the best selection out of all the buffets at the resort. Would recommend to anyone saying at Barcello!