Cancún Mexico

While our vacation at Club Med Cancun in June did not turn out as expected, it was still pretty good, especially when we voiced concerns during the stay several of the resort staff (special shout out to Andre - the resident manager at Aquamarina), responded immediately and took action, occasionally above and beyond our expectations so for what could have potentially have been a disaster (a 1- or 2-star experience) due to several negligent staff and unfortunate circumstances that could have been prevented, I felt that the majority of the staff here genuinely care and want to make guest experiences the best they can. Club Med Cancun is a particular type of resort that offers plenty of fun activities, even if you’ve never tried them before, which are mostly included, decent entertainment throughout the day, including foam parties and dance lessons, as well as circus acts and dance performances in the evening, some quite amazing. Rooms were larger than ones we found at nearby resorts, food at the three restaurants was overall quite good, and the location is great, not far from the Cancun airport, and lots of beautiful views.

FOOD
I’ll start with the food and for this you have three restaurant choices. The primary buffet which is the Hacienda, and two other restaurants, Taco Arte and La Estancia, which require booking for dinner. The buffet was overall good, but the quality varied. Some nights, like on one particular Thursday, which was fantastic- Beef Wellington, fish, steak, so many amazing dishes. But when we returned on a Saturday night, it was meh.. nothing special, kind of disappointing.

Taco Arte was a special family style shared dinner experience. I thoroughly enjoyed it, though some in our group did not think the meat was juicy or tasty enough. Our only issue is that after we booked the restaurant for Saturday evening, we found out later that it was not even open on Saturday, and we had to find out for ourselves later.

When we tried the steak restaurant La Estancia, it was just plain confusing. We arrived right at our reservation time 630pm, got seated, but then no one came to explain what we were supposed to do, we wondered why we didn’t have someone welcome us to the table, give a birthday wishes to one of our family who was celebrating, or tell us we needed to scan a QR code for the menu and explain the menu. That seemed to be a reasonable expectation, but we sat around for probably 20-25 minutes before we figured it out and finally got our drink order done, the entire experience was disorganized. However, I still feel our server and staff made an effort to take care of us so we still have a good dinner, even though it probably took an hour longer than necessary. The steak itself was prepared well and delicious. There was also a fish option which some of us tried and it was a bit dry, flavorless.

ACTIVITIES
The activities are plentiful at Club Med, except when it rains and if you’re risking coming during the wet season like we did, you may get disappointed as they tend to close activities quite easily even if the rain is not heavy. The snorkeling area and equipment rental was closed multiple days during our stay and it was only mildly windy. The resort says it’s because of the national forest restrictions and they follow this. However, that irritated a lot of guests so I witnessed many complaining and angry people arguing with the poor snorkeling staff (GO)

The activity staff (Club Med call them GOs "Gentils Organisateurs" — French for "Gracious Organizers") were very mixed, some GOs were outstanding, especially the ones responsible for the trapeze, sailing, kayaking and paddleboard activities, but then other GOs were just okay, and then the GO at archery was borderline horrible. I’ll start with the positive. The GOs at the trapeze were upbeat, encouraging and really cheered for me as I tried trapeze for the first time. The staff at the sailing area were equally helpful, making every effort to help and correct me with good instruction. Pickleball lessons were also okay, I actually learned some techniques which I really appreciated.

Snorkeling was only permitted one day during the entire week we were there, and even when we tried it, it was difficult to see much on the days we were there, it’s possible that the wind affected this and maybe it’s usually better, but it was a bit disappointing for us.

As for the negative side with activities, our experience at archery was bad. It had everything to do with the GO, possibly poor training, management or attitude, or a combination of these. I appreciate Club Med did address our issue, but I think it is useful to share the experience so that others do not have to endure the same.

It was our son’s first time trying archery, he was a bit nervous and with a GO who really did not help at all, it was a disaster. When we first arrived, the GO did not make eye contact, did not smile, and spoke with our son for 1 minute to explain the rules, made no effort to help with the bow and did not return even once to check on him, even when it was obvious our son was struggling.

It felt dismissive and disheartening — especially for a child trying something new. The attitude of the instructor makes a huge difference. The wrong approach can genuinely damage their confidence, exactly the result that happened. I had read another review describing almost the exact same experience at the archery area, suggesting this wasn’t an isolated incident.

ACCOMODATIONS
Rooms were spacious, we booked the Aquamarine building and these are great for families, with multiple beds, including the sofa, which can function as a bed as well, we loved the balcony and multiple bathrooms. The rooms seemed well maintained, but for a newer building, they did feel a bit older already. However, rooms were in varying conditions. We had booked multiple rooms for our party and some rooms had bathroom leaks that did not allow proper flushing, others had safes that did not work. It would have been nice to have had them inspected prior to discovering some of these issues.

Overall, whether you enjoy your stay here depends on what you look for in a resort and your expectations. If you prefer quiet, lounging around, you can do that here, but you won’t really appreciate the plethora of activities offered. If you want top-notch service and luxurious amenities, this is not that, there are plenty of other options priced much higher. However, if you are looking for lots to do, are okay with service, facilities and food that are good, but just not the very highest level, but at a price and value that’s relatively decent, then Club Med is quite a good choice.

This was our first time at Club Med Cancun and we'll definitely return to this one. This resort is quite busy, as there are activities for everyone, adults, teens and our little one. The other vacationers were wonderful to meet and all had really great things to say about this resort. I actually had substantial conversations with a few different families we met. We're water people, so most of our time we spent snorkeling, and paddle boarding or in the pool. The reefs are beautiful and so healthy and other tourists come to this area specifically to scuba. Next trip here we'll definitely try scuba! We loved all 3 beaches, each so different.

Really loved the enthusiasm of all the staff and how quickly any of our concerns such as our refrigerator didn't work or we needed room cleaning at a certain time, were addressed promptly and so politely. We really appreciated G.O.s Jason, Berkan and Hugo who genuinely inquired how we were doing and sincerely took time to listen. Berkan was so busy setting up an evening event and, without us even asking, took some nice photos of our family. And my 4 1/2 year old really loved the Kids Club and was so happy to receive the farewell note and bracelet from the staff.

We stayed for a week and didn't get to do as much as we liked and that's good so we have more to do next time! Our room was perfect for our needs. Aguamarina was near the kids club and the water sports and Taco Arte. We also loved walking but when it got to hot the shuttles were very helpful.

The only thing I'd do differently is to go when it's not as humid (late July). But even so, our family of four hands down would love to return.Club Med Cancun is the place for us to return to and for my kids to make great memories here and to become ocean/ocean-life lovers. Thank you, Club Med Cancun! See you soon.

Fantastic accomodation and the people working here made our stay memorable.
Luis Roa , Humberto, David, Joa have been fantastic to us..thank you we will come back very soon

We love this resort and this is our 3rd time back (even though its a long way to travel). Staff are great and lots for a family to do. Mini club great as Kids are entertained all day allowing parents to also get a holiday. Spa is great with lovely staff and a couple of massages helps relax for the holiday. Food is great quality for all inclusive and the Mexican / steak restaurants allow a break from the buffet. (book early for these with spaces becoming available the day before). Room are basic but the objective is not to be in them! Talk to Monica about excursions, she's great (and organised my sons diving course (had to reorganise some dives while my son got used to diving) and a great day out fishing in the lagoon Be back next year.