Just back from a one week stay at the GR with my wife and two young boys. The trip didn't start very well, as I had scheduled a pickup at the airport through the hotel's travel agency, Sol-Ha. When we walked outside of the airport to look for our ride, 9:30pm by the way, they were no where to be found. We waited around for about 15-20 minutes, while trying to keep the people offering rides at bay. Finally we tried calling the hotel directly, however the office was closed and we couldn't reach anyone directly at our property to confirm the transport. We finally had to settle on a ride from one of the guys waiting outside, ended up with a one way ride for $40USD.
Upon arrival at the hotel, check in was quick and efficient. We stayed in room 8316, which is directly in the center of the hotel on the ocean side. Beautiful view!!! the room shared a balcony with three other rooms, with out any divider, which seemed a bit strange, but worked out fine.
The room was very clean, and in great shape. I had read previous reviews about the rooms being out of date, but did not experience the same with our room. We had a king size bed and a single bed that folded into the wall. The four of us all slept in the king, as no one wanted to sleep by themselves in the single. The bathroom was clean, and well stocked. The mini-fridge had three small Sol beers, three bottled waters and three sodas.
The pools were nice, but we weren't wild about the pebble finsh of the pool, a little rough! The childrens pool was nice as my wife and I could hang out in the big pool and still be next to the boys in their pool. The swim up bar is also close to the children's pool, which was fine for us, but probably a pain if your left the little ones at home. The kids liked to swim up to the bar to have the non-alcholic drinks the bartenders offered. We tried to keep the boys away from the bar, as not to bug anyone. We all paid plenty for vacation, and I wouldn't want to be the cause of anyone's buzz kill.
We ate at the cafe, which reminded me of a cafeteria, almost everymorning. The food was good, but not great. Plenty of american type food, scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon... and also mexican inspired dishes. My oldest ate fruit loops everyday, only because he doesn't get them at home, and we were all enjoying our vacation together.
There is an outdoor restaurant in the afternoon for lunch that was nice.
At night there is a different themed dinner buffett and show. We thought this was great because with the boys, we weren't going out to the clubs, so this gave us something to do together. The shows were a lot of fun. However after eating at the hotel for a week, we saw the same dishes over and over again. But we knew we weren't staying at an AI for the upscale food, simply the convience of having everything anytime we wanted.
Each night after the show was over, a large number of people would move to the lobby bar to enjoy the live music and then if interested, the hotel staff led a trip to which ever club was on the agenda that evening. $40USD seemed to be the going rate for vip entrance to the club with unlimited drinks. Must have been fun, because they always had a large group heading down to the bus stop in front of the hotel each night.
The hotel was in very good condition, and never did it seem overcrowded. I realize that occupancy is down in Cancun, but the Royal Solaris was closed at the beginning of our stay, and all of the travelers were moved the the GR. I was also a little worried about the hotel's time share sharks hunting us down, but we only received one call our first morning and they left us alone after we told them we weren't interested.
The hotel is located at the bottom of the hotel zone, but a 10-15 minute bus ride later and we were in the party zone. A nice balance, as we weren't here for the night life, but still wanted to see some of the action.
We had a great time, met some very nice people. Just about all the guest were very friendly, and I know we made friends with another family staying with their two little ones. My oldest and their oldest became quick friends, and were always thrilled to see each other either at the pool, shows, or the lobby bar in the evening.
Great hotel for families with children and the over 30 crowd, as this hotel was lively, but not the beer bong crowd. Have fun and don't forget to tip your housekeeper, they kept our room spotless, and yes we had the towel animals to look forward to each day we returned to our room.
One last tip I have would to bring an insulated cup or mug as the cups the pool bars supply are small and uninsulated. In Cancun's warm climate, your drink will become too warm to drink in minutes. I brought one, and was glad I did!
