Platinum Yucatan Princess Hotel

Will Dan

We just spent seven wonderful days at the Platinum Yucatan Princess, a beautiful five-star resort in the Riviera Maya. The property is spotless — the rooms were cleaned thoroughly every day, and the entire resort felt very well maintained. The pools were a highlight: one lively party pool and a calmer one closer to the beach, perfect for every mood. The staff were genuinely kind and attentive. Special shoutouts to Fernanda, the buffet manager, who always greeted us with a big smile, and to our wonderful waiters Miguel and Brian — Brian had us laughing with his hilarious cat and cricket impressions! Hostess Karen was also fantastic. The only downside was the beach, which had a lot of seaweed and a pretty strong smell during our stay in late May. That seems to be seasonal, though, and didn’t ruin our overall experience. We also booked a catamaran and beach excursion through Air Canada. The catamaran portion was excellent, and overall the excursion was very enjoyable. However, there were a few things we wish had been explained more clearly beforehand. Once arriving at the beach, umbrellas cost extra — around $20–$35 for two hours — which was disappointing under the intense sun. Also, food and drinks were only included during the one-hour buffet meal. Since the beach stop lasted about four hours, we strongly recommend bringing your own water and snacks, as any additional drinks had to be purchased separately. It would have been helpful if this had been communicated more clearly in advance. Overall, we’d definitely recommend this resort. The staff, cleanliness, atmosphere, and pools made for an amazing vacation — just maybe avoid peak seaweed season if a pristine beach is your top priority. Worth the trip!

Raven Symone D.

I rarely leave negative reviews, but after spending a significant amount of money on what was advertised as a luxury, adults-only, five-star resort, I feel obligated to share our experience. From the moment my sister and I arrived, the resort fell far short of its five-star reputation. The property lacked energy, there were very few organized activities, and we often found ourselves wandering around trying to find something to do. The beach was also disappointing due to the overwhelming amount of sargassum. While I understand it’s a natural occurrence, the strong odor from the decaying seaweed made spending time by the ocean unpleasant. The biggest disappointment was the food. Meal after meal was overcooked, under-seasoned, lukewarm, or simply lacked care. Between restaurant hours, the only options were hamburgers, hot dogs, cold fries, and nachos. Traveling to Mexico only to eat mediocre American snack food was incredibly disappointing. Our hibachi dinner was one of the worst meals of the trip. Nearly everything was drowned in butter and black pepper, completely overpowering the food. Shortly afterward, I became very sick with diarrhea and persistent stomach issues that completely changed the remainder of our vacation. I can’t say with certainty which meal caused it, but I arrived healthy and became ill after eating at the resort. Four days after returning home, we’re still recovering from gastrointestinal illness. The sister property was no better, offering the same disappointing food, lack of activities, and lifeless atmosphere. The cocktails were poorly made, inconsistent, and often left unfinished. Room service routinely arrived cold and felt anything but luxurious. Another baffling choice was the heated main pool in nearly 90-degree weather. Instead of cooling off, it felt like bathwater. Even with a discount, the spa was overpriced, and $30 USD taxi rides each way made leaving the resort expensive. I’ve attached photos so future travelers can judge for themselves. The room was plain and underwhelming, the bathroom fixtures showed visible corrosion, and even the room service menu reflected the lack of quality, consisting mainly of burgers, hot dogs, fries, pizza, and nachos rather than food representative of Mexico or a luxury resort. Before booking, I encourage future guests to read recent reviews and social media comments, not just the promotional photos. After our stay, we found many guests describing experiences similar to ours, including reports of becoming ill. While every situation is different, seeing those recurring stories after our own experience was concerning. Luxury is more than a five-star label—it’s quality food, thoughtful service, engaging activities, cleanliness, and guests leaving refreshed instead of sick. Unfortunately, that was not our experience, and I cannot recommend this resort. After a 6 day vacation, instead of coming home refreshed, we’re still trying to feel normal again. This was by far the absolute worst vacation experience.

Laklyn Benton

The staff here was absolutely amazing! My husband and I booked the romantic message and the ladies definitely delivered. Isabel and Evelyn were absolutely amazing! They were very gentle and respectful. They decorated the room very beautifully to set such a great atmosphere before the message. Bruno was an amazing host. The staff welcomed up with refreshing iced tea and warm smile. Absolutely loved my experience!

Eric S

It was -fine-. Considering I left the compound 3 out of the 5 days I was there should say a lot. The sargassum can't be blamed on the hotel... The only dining options outside of dinnertime (when the restaurants are open) is the buffet and the buffet is lacking. I was going to say that at least the breakfast portion is good but on my last day they even screwed that up. Still don't understand how they made waffles that dry. And when the buffet is closed all they offer is a limited "snack menu," and that was the worst cheeseburger I've ever had in my life. Twice. Thought the first time was a fluke... That said the staff was excellent but there's just so much they can do the aging infrastructure I guess.

Liam Tenge

Stayed for a week at the platinum yuckytan peasant and experience was quite disappointing. Firstly, food. They closed 2 restaurants every night only leaving 2 open. Options were limited. We were under the impression we could access the sister resort a la cartes, grand sunset princess, by booking with the concierge but were denied every day because an alleged system issue. This left us confined to the quite literally stinky resort. My partner and I were both food poisoned on separate days, stuck on the toilet with trash can in hand. On our last day, we just walked on the other side and were happily accommodated at the restaurants with no issue. Food was far superior as well as service from the staff. We were treated amazing. The restaurants were updated and extremely beautiful. We felt as if we were discouraged because nobody would want to eat at yucatan if they saw how outstanding the food and facilities are at the sunset (not to mention the cost is significantly cheaper to stay there vs what we paid for overall low quality). Secondly, the spa staff were outrageously annoying. They had tables positioned every day at all corners of the resort asking to book a massage. I’ve never been to a resort were they are so pushy to that degree. We would attempt to walk different routes to get to the breakfast buffet every morning just to avoid being asked, they even position a table in front of the buffet so you can’t escape in peace. The same thing goes for the pushy coco bongo staff by the main pool. Another mention is the pool chairs by the main pool are filthy. It’s too bad because the facilities were generally clean but you had to hunt for a chair without sweat stains by the pool. Although we loved the animals and they were a huge highlight, the sliding door for our balcony wouldn’t lock properly and something opened the sliding door when we were gone for dinner(clever). It brought in what looked like a mango and ripped it everywhere, including all over our clothes. It could’ve been easily prevented if the sliding door could lock properly. We also experienced issues with our shower flooding. We called maintenance on the second night, and they were quick to come! However, it still flooded, likely because it really couldn’t accommodate the 2 rainfall shower heads. We ran into countless people who have been coming here for years and said they were disappointed by how much the quality has gone downhill. recommend checking out the sunset resort if you want to go to a princess hotel with new updated facilities and good a la cartes, but we won’t be back here.