My friend and his family stayed at the Royal Caribbean while I stayed at the Hilton next door for a few days and then moved to the Royal Caribean after some of his family left. The differences between the two were stark. The service, food and décor of the Hilton were above and beyond, I was constantly greeted with smiles and helpfulness. They spoke English quite well, always engaged me in conversation etc. The rooms are bright and colorful and all the food I ate while somewhat expensive was pretty good.

The Royal Caribbean on the other hand had terrible food, the staff seemed always rude and confrontational many not speaking any English at all even at the outside grill where I ordered food. They had little alternatives for my vegetarian friend, she always ordered French fries instead of an entrée and many times it would take them over half an hour to bring them. I’m told the meat was terrible, the burger I had was just okay and it took forever for them to figure out how I should pay for it since we had closed out our account the day of check out. I was told I couldn’t pay in cash they had no change on hand and then told I had to pay in cash and the same waiter went to get change! The rooms are very dated, dark and kind of dismal. They seemed dirty. Very small TVs with bad sound, good channel selection though. The beds uncomfortable, my friend complained of back problems. Made service was spotty, they would come early in the morning some days and wake us up and not until night others and don’t come Sunday at all. They apparently smoked in the room while cleaning one day and we had to air out the room. The layout of the hotel is odd, you have to walk a lot up and down stairs or take the elevator. I did like the small grocery store and all the prices were very reasonable, and they had lots of activities. The pool was large, but nothing grand like that of others and the temperature varied oddly. If one is looking for a 5 star resort this is not it. Perhaps in it’s hey-day it was great, but now newer and remodeled resorts blow it away.

This was our second stay at a Royal Resort. In 1992 we stayed at the Royal Mayan and now we just returned from the Royal Carribean. We used Interval International to trade and were thrilled to return to this 5 star resort. We've been trading timeshares for 15 years and this is by far the best resort we've stayed at with the most ammenities. I believe that every villa has a good view of either the ocean or the pool complex, the villas have very nice balconies and very inviting rooms that are cleaned daily. The restaurants and ethnic shows sponsored by Royal Resorts are wonderful. The staff aims to please and the Spa services are fantastic at the Sands. The shuttle service between the resorts is a real bonus. The only thing that I might be able to complain about is the sales pitch to buy a timeshare. They were somewhat relentless even though we said no thanks. We already own two timeshares and even though we loved our stay and their resorts, we contnually strive to see new places.

WOW!!!!! This was one of the most amazing vacations I have ever taken. I travel somewhere once or twice a year with our timeshare and exchange out for other resorts. Of everywhere that I have been, this was by far the most awesome place I have ever stayed! It was BEAUTIFUL and the grounds were flawless. Customer service was excellent, maid service excellent, food excellent...you name it! We were LUCKY enough to get an ocean front 2 bedroom unit with our own private sidewalk leading out to the beach (RECOMMENDED....although the units higher up have a SPECTACULAR view of the peninsula). I just loved everything about this place. It was beautiful! You could lay out on the beach and the people running the bar down there were so friendly and kept the drinks coming to YOU. You didn't even have to get up to go get one....AAHHH!!! The pool was magnificent and absolutely HUGE and they had a bar right in the pool that served food too. The buffet's that they had poolside were elegant and romantic at sunset and the service was perfect. The activities/parties with free beer were fun too! They really know how to entertain.

The rooms were VERY clean. However, the decor is not that great...kindof drabby and the beds were not comfortable. I really didn't like the rooms but again, the rooms were VERY clean. So don't let this scare you out of going or anything. This was by far the nicest resort I have ever stayed at. I will definitely go again!

A MUST DO: I would definitely recommend renting a car and taking it to Playa Del Carmen (about 45 minute drive south of Cancun or so) and getting on the ferry to Cozumel. Once you get to Cozumel, rent a jeep, NOT a motor scooter, and drive around the island. The road is not safe enough for a motor scooter and it is a fairly long drive with stops in between so a scooter would be extremely uncomfortable. It is the most beautiful island and a lot of it is uninhabited, except for a few cozy, authentic beachside restaurants here and there and some shops. Stop at Chakanaab Park, a really neat place to explore and snorkel. You can do this EASILY in one day and it is well worth the money of renting a few cars. This was just a neat experience and I will do it again, regardless of the few hundred bucks. The beach in Playa Del Carmen was gorgeous...prettier than Cancun's I think.

We went downtown to Cancun one day....fun, but all the same. Whether you are in Cozumel, Cancun, or Playa Del Carmen, they all sell the same stuff. So shopping isn't really much different anywhere you go and not worth a lot of your time. Also, when we were downtown, some Americans were just downright rude to some store owners, trying to bargain them down to absolutely nothing for their items and insulting them if they didn't agree to their price. C'mon people, they have to make a living too. It is okay to bargain with them, but don't insult their intelligence. This was just very offensive to me and embarrassing as well as an American.

We ate at Joe's Crab Shack lagoon side. Loved it! Food was alright but the live music and romantic atmosphere on the deck was wonderful!

Take the bus....saves you a lot of money and convenient...there were buses everywhere.

Went deep sea fishing one day....awesome to see 7 foot swordfish jumping out of the water but got HORRIBLY sea sick. I would rather have suffered from the worst flu then to have felt as horrible as I did after being on that boat for 3 hours so beware of this. The seas are VERY ROUGH in Cancun.

Otherwise, I CAN'T WAIT to go back. This was the vacation of a lifetime! Go to any of the royal resorts. You will not be disappointed!

I traded into the royal carribean. Everyone kept telling us that we were lucky to get the room and week. When we arrived we knew why. The staff was first class all the way. I can't say enough about the CUSTOMER SERVICE. Every hotel should take lessons from the Royals. We were treated as owners and not unwelcomed guests. The faclities were wonderful. We took a tour of the sands and loved it so much that we bought it. If you are looking for a fun and relaxing vacation take it with the Royal family. Can't wait to return next year.