As soon as we walked in the door we knew this vacation was going to be amazing. Greeted with a free bottle of water then taken to your room with your own concierge. We ordered food online to be stocked in our room so we got to our room with a nice cold beer. The rooms are so nice and roomy, the balcony very nice as well.
The pool bar is great! We stayed in phase II all week, it seemed much more personal and we became friends with the staff who provided fabulous service! Happy hour is great, half price drinks that are very strong and delicious! We ate lunch there as well, not bad prices and the steak quesadilla's are amazing!! Hands down one of the best foods I've have ever had, if you like cheese, juicy steak and fresh tortillas! All the food is great though! We loved how we didn't need to leave the resort to get our meals although we did go to Captain's Cove which you should definitely visit!
If you want to do snorkeling, do the the jungle tour, its $50 and you get to drive your own boat to this beautiful reef, truly breathtaking! I'd also recommend the booze cruise, totally worth the money, it is just something you can't experience anywhere else.
The only cons are the rock hard beds and the fact that you have to pay for the fitness center but both are worth it for this resort! I would definitely recommend this place, just avoid the timeshare presentations and you will be fine. This was our first trip to Cancun and if we come back we will most likely stay at this one, it is the best of the Royal Resorts in our opinion! This is not a resort for teenagers however, it is a family atmosphere. Also, be careful of the public bus, we got ripped off every time we rode it although by only 50 cents or less.

We stayed with friends of ours who own three weeks at the Sands. Having never been to Mexico we didn't know what to expect. Well, were we surprised!!! The Sands is so beautiful, so clean and so welcoming we never wanted to go home. The units were large and that outside balcony...let's just say I wanted to hang out there all the time. The pools were large and always clean and the ocean being just steps away was perfect. We were impressed with everything at the Royal Sands and are looking to rent a week next year and share a unit with our grown children and then stay the 2nd week with our friends again!!

My wife and I went to Cancun and stayed at the Royal Sands for a week. We traded a lockoff via II and were given a lockoff at Royal Sands. We had a very nice, relaxing week and truly enjoyed the pool areas at the resort. Some quick notes:

Room: Not all lockoffs are created equal. We traded one that has a mini-kitchen (fridge, microwave, oven, dishes, silverware, cookware, dishwasher, etc.) for essentially a hotel room. We had planned on eating most breakfasts and lunches in the room but that became much more difficult without any plates or silverware.

Beach: The water was beautiful and warm, and not too rough. A small area in front of Phase I was open all week and the last two days another small area in front of Phase II was also open. We walked the beach in both directions and didn't find much other areas open for swimming. It was somewhat difficult to walk due to the narrowness and steepness of the beach. I would say that if the beach is a very important part of your vacation, then you should go elsewhere.

Restaurants: We had the breakfast buffet once and it was very good. We ate a couple of lunches at the Phase II pool bar and they were very good. We ate one dinner at the Sports Bar and it was below average. In general, we found that better food and values could be had off site.

Grocery store: It was nice to have it available and in general the prices were not bad. They were out of bread one day.

Staff: Uniformly friendly and professional. Service was great at all times.

Crowds: Cancun was deserted. Royal Sands was at 55% capacity. No battles for chairs at the pool, or need for reservations at restaurants.

Summary: I understand why the people who have bought here rave about this place. The pool areas are great and the service is top notch. However, I think it will be some time before we return to Cancun mostly because there are so many other places we could trade and go to. If we do return to Cancun, we would certainly consider staying at the Royal Sands, although not in a lockoff.

Great hotel for families with large and active pool are for children.
One of the few hotels that actually have a beach with waves until the renourshment project is completed.