Our stay at the Royal Mayan was an extension to our two week stay at the Royal Resorts. This was our second week in Cancun and my wife and I just loved it. The Resort was kept spotless and the people are very friendly. We will definitively return.

We arrive at The Royal Maya Resort after 9 glorious days in San Pedro, Ambergis Caye, Belize. The Royal Mayan was a pleasant extension to our vacation. Having been recommended by my brother, I expected it to be of very high standard and it was!
Traveling with my Canadian Mother-in-Law, my wife and 2 very pumped up teens my expectation was nothing but the best.

The Resort is designed in such a way that as you enter you either take the elevators to the lobby or you jaunt up a small flight of stairs to the lobby. On the way to the lobby, the first counter you meet is the Thomas More Travel counter. These folks are poorly situated and offer some of the worst service I have ever gotten. They represent the Resort poorly. Having not read the sign, the lady at the counter grunted I was in the wrong place and sent me to the lobby up another 3 or so stairs. OK, first impressions, get rid of Thomas More Travel. Put them in the back, somewhere where they don't represent the hotel. We later used their services to book our parasailing trip. These folks communication and services skills need improvement.

The staff at the front desk was accommodating, pleasant, charming and knowledgeable. Our vacation now began on a high note. Each one was given a room key that acted like a charge card, everything you purchase at the resort and it's partner shops, resorts, bars, restaurant would be put on the card and paid on the way out. My teens were charged. They were about to go to town. I love watching them get spoiled! And spoiled we were.

From breakfast at the Palapa to my afternoon rum and coke at the pool bar to the best Filet Mignon and Banana Foster at El Conquistador Restaurant, we were spoiled. I want to note that there is a musician at the EL Conquistador name Jorge Duran. A self-taught classical guitarist who charmed and delighted our evening with his songs. My teens, who both play the guitar wanted to buy all his CD's, we stopped at three.

There is a very nice shuttle that takes you from the Royal Mayan to the other Royal Resorts and a number of affiliate restaurants including the Hacienda Sisal, Captain's Cove and other venues. We loved the Sisal and enjoyed our dinner at Captain's Cove, huge steak and best fish in Cancun as per the Mother-in-law.

On our last day in Cancun, the ladies wanted to shop. Since I had taken them to the market both downtown and on the strip, I decided to take them to the Royal Sands to shop in their boutique. A pleasant shopping experience for the ladies and I, since I was able to pick up a few gifts for my workmates in Austin and also walked around the resort, while they shopped. The Royal Sands has a spectacular pool that appears never to end. I like the atmosphere and so at dinnertime I decided to take the family to La Veranda at the Royal Sands. Big mistake! Food was so-so. Salad bar was unappealing. Coffee was served with cream that had gone bad. This stuff happens so it did not seem harmful. My wife insisted on desert and she ordered Tres Leches Cake (Pastry with 3 types of milk). It was disgustingly sour and bitter. We send it back and it was promptly replaced with a fresh piece that was not spoiled. It concerned us that the management of this restaurant would serve food unfit for human consumption. Watch out for the food here, too bad, the Royal Sands looks awesome.

We departed Cancun early the next morning and it was not until we arrived at the airport that my daughter realized she had forgotten her cell phone. After some discussion we decided that we would call the resort from home and have it sent to us. Again, the staff was very helpful. They immediately located the telephone. The front desk manager on duty, Mr. EMMANUEL NOVA PACHECO and his team did everything to make sure this experience was pleasant. The Cell phone arrive within 5 days and I have one very happy daughter. My thanks go out to the management and staff of the Royal Mayan Resort. We will be back. I give this Resort a five.

I have just returned from a one week stay at the Royal Mayan. I bought it as a "getaway" from Interval International. The cost was $1100.00 for a 2 bedroom/2 bathroom villa. It had a complete kitchen, living room and a huge terrace looking out over the lagoon. Like the previous poster, I was in building H. I had no problem with this. I have posted photos here of the view from my terrace which I thought was lovely. I don't know which unit the previous poster was in. I was on the 8th floor (which is really the 4th floor. The first floor is called the 4th, and so on). Perhaps if he stayed in a lower level unit, his view would have been unfortunate. But for me, I was happy. I felt that I got a really great value. The resort is very very nice. Yes, building H is a further walk from the beach area, but unless you are elderly and less mobile, we're talking a 3 minute walk. The beach was beautiful, never crowded. I always found a palapa and lounge chair. The wait staff was excellent, serving me lunch and drinks on the beach. The swiming here is dangerous. It was red-flagged everyday. If you want to swim, use the pool or find another beach. There are life guards on duty. The first day I was there, an young girl, probably about 10, got knocked down in the surf. She got up right away and seemed fine, laughing. Yet the life guard noticed she had a small cut on her elbow and raced over, first aide kit in hand. Very impressive. The small market has all you need. It is well priced. The best part, you put your groceries in the cart and wheel the cart up to your unit and right into your kitchen. Unload and return the cart next time you head downstairs. The Palapa restaurant was good. Happy hour is excellent. The drinks are strong. They don't stiff you on that. We ate at both the Captains Cove, across the street, which was very good, and also at the restaurant at the Royal Islander, the sister resort just down the beach. Also very good food. We used Thomas Moore for Airport pick up and return. We also used them for a day tour which was well priced and fun. There is internet acess in the market, if you left your laptop at home. But the resort is wireless and many people could be seen on their laptops. (Why, I have NO idea. You're in Mexico! Enjoy!) Overall, I would recommend this resort, even in Building H, to anyone, including my best friend and family.

We just got back from a weeks stay at the Royal Mayan in Cancun, which was done as a timeshare exchange through Interval. While this resort is pretty nice, it in no way is as nice as the timeshare we traded it for. This is part of three Royal properties all next to each other. The Mayan is clearly the oldest of the three. My main complaint and one I would recommend you check closely when exchanging through Interval, is at this resort, about 95% of the units have an ocean or pool view. But there is one building, "H" , which you get a view of the parking lot and some even get to look at the lagoon. We even tried to change at check in, but were told it would be an upcharge of somewhere around $900 US. We had exchanged from our Maroitt in Tahoe, which is a 5+ star resort, with top of the line everything, and got a unit overlooking the lagoon, in what I would classify as a 3 to 3-1/2 stars at best. Each time I was at the pool I was quite jealous of those who had gotten a pool/ocean view unit and could relax on their balcony reading or just watching the ocean. When we spent time on our balcony we got the pleasure of watching the taxi drivers clean and wax their cars and the buses come and go.

That said, the resort was kept very clean, the staff was quite nice, except for our personal "concerige" who is really no more than a timeshare sales man, and called us each day around 9am to try to get us to attend one of their "free parties". Daily maid service was a nice touch. Beach was nice, but red flaged every day we were there so we spent more time at the pool. BTW the pool here is not heated and on our first day it was overcast, and the pool was kind of cold.

I would go back to a Royal resort, but will definately not return to the Mayan, as the other properties right next door, the Caribbean and Sands, are a step up from the Mayan. Resturants at the resorts are all pretty good, and the on site markets prices are very fair, especially for a resort.