Hi All, my bf and I are planning an all-inclusive trip to Mexico for next Feb. Is spending more money on 5 star resorts worth it, or are 4 or 4.5 star resorts just as good? Any differences noticed? Any advice would be much appreciated!

id depends on what you guys want to do! if you just want to sit at the beach and relax everyday then by all means all inclusive is the way to go. my bf and i tried it but we got bored on day 3. second time around we did a hotel and we preferred that a lot more. we like to go out and explore, so paying for food and drink at an all inclusive that you wont be using seemed to us as a bit of a waste. most hotels have airport shuttles too, so no need to worry in that front. when we tallied everything up it was about the same price/ a little cheaper

Thanks Elizabeth! We intend to just stay in the resort and not explore that much
Do you know if there are any differences between a 4 star resort and a 5 star resort, just trying to figure out if it worth spending the extra money?

Breanna Lee the difference usually is in the number of facilities they have.. ie spa on site, gym etc.. doesn't really have to do with quality of service or such... i always check trip advisor reviews before booking, just to know what i'm booking!

Yes, spending more for a 5 star is worth it, but I've also discovered not all '5-stars' are alike! Really read the reviews look for recommendations from others who have been. I like the Princess hotels, but the food was just okay. My cousins who go all the time love the Iberostar Hotels.

We went to the El Dorado Royale in Cancun all inclusive for our honeymoon. It was fantastic for hanging around the resort and relaxing

Me and my husband love Moon Palace Cancun! Loved it so much we got married there. Beautiful resort with lots to do

Spend the money for a 5 star- it’s worth it.

I have stayed at many 4 and 5 star AI. It totally depends on the resort. Sometimes the 4 stars are nicer and more fun! What resorts are you considering and what area of Mexico

Hi Tapz, we are looking at Riviera Maya and are tossing up between Akumal Bay Beach & Wellness Resort (4.5), Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (5), Sandos Caracol Eco Resort (4) and Luxury Bahia Principe Sian Ka'an (4.5).

Get *recent* reviews from people who have been to those resorts first, as this area is majorly affected by the stinky seaweed problem and even the expensive high-end resorts are not immune. We stayed at the Grand Riviera Princess in spring 2018 and the beach there was fantastic, my parents stayed at Akumel Bay later that year and the beach was terrible - full of nasty seaweed.....just a tip for you.

Bahia Sian Ka’an is on the opposite side of the highway from the ocean. Adults only. Small pools in a tropical setting. Pretty. Can have more mosquitos though. You take a train to the beach. Have full access to the other 3 resorts as well.

Diana Jennings Braine Thanks for the heads up!

Diana Jennings Braine I have a family member who experienced the same thing.

Breanna Lee all are great resorts . Go where u can get the best deal

Breanna Lee are you going with children and if so what ages?

Tapz no children, just me and my boyfriend, we are in a mid 20's

Breanna Lee I was at both resorts in the last year; they offer different things! Sandos has many things to do on resort. Waterslides, various tours (biking and walking), etc. My favourite was feeding the monkeys (they love grapes). It is very family oriented (read many children). If you choose Sandos, they have a donation program onsite where you can drop off clothes, shoes, and toys for children. The resort is huge. Akumal Bay is peaceful and relaxing (but you know that). There are many yoga choices throughout the day. Beach volleyball was fun at both resorts; all the regular resort activities. They are very giving to the community (donate old uniforms and such). Both were a great time. I had no food problems at either. It just depends on what you want your vacation to look like as they are very different.

Breanna Lee the iberostar lindo is great and you can use 5 neighboring resorts. I have heard good things about the hard rock hotel. Akumal bay is a beautiful area. I would not choose the sandos resort without kids as the kids club is main draw for there. I like the barcelo colonial or you can upgrade to the adult only barcelo next door. The royal playa del carmen is absolutely beautiful and close to everything however it fancy and entertainment is not very exciting for a couple in their 20's and shuts down by 10pm. Secrets marmo and valentin imperial are also great

Post from this week for the sargassum seaweed problems. It this helps you at all.

The Grand Bahia Principe is nice. I seen you say you were looking at Sian Ka

Sorry, hit return, lol. Sian Ka'an, as an option we've stayed twice at Grand Bahia Luxury Akumal and it was great. It's right on the beach and has a few kids but not many at all. Most of the families stay at the other two resorts that are cheaper. Because Akumal is cheaper only to Sian there isn't all the people from the other resorts coming to that one.

We went in Feb with 6 people aged 18-53 and all had fun. The spa is right outside the lobby, swim up bar, we were all relaxed.

Colleen hi where did you find this map? How often does it get updated?

Breanna Lee my sister travels to Mexico often and likes nice places. She loves the Hard Rock .. make sure you look on trip advisor ..

Debbie my girlfriend lives in Mexico and she posted it. So not really sure. Sorry.

I've been to about ten resorts and the lower star resorts, in my experience, tend to have worse food and liquor. I'll second the Moon palace in Cancun. Amazing food, drinks, and activities. Plus it's close to Cancun if you want to get off resort. Now Sapphire was also really nice. If you want something very couple focused I'd suggest the Maquis is Cabo. Expensive but totally worth it.

Also worth noting that two of the cheaper ones I've been too were insanely busy and didn't have full service (food and drinks) early in the morning or late at night. If you're hungry or wanna have late night drinks then you have to go off resort which can get really pricey if you're doing it every day. I'd avoid the Marival in Nuevo Vallarta at all costs.

Grand Sirenia Riviera Maya. Was the best experience I could have ever wished for!

Alexis
Serenis**^

Just do a boutique hotel downtown Puerto Vallarta. Eat and drink at 1000 places. Fantastic.

You can get some great deals on 5 star resorts! I’ve stayed in some amazing places just by getting great deals!

Natasha Yes me as well

Debra 5 star resorts at 3 star prices!

Natasha Absolutely

5 star for sure. You do notice a difference

There is abit of difference in the 5 and 4 star hotels but mostly it depends on the chain and the location . Some of the best beaches we got in lower stars resorts . I love all inclusive . Takes all the planning out of it . ( what to buy for groceries , and u can try all the things like fancy drinks with buying a whole bottle) we also go off the resort to do adventures and it’s so much easier to book thru the hotel

The maya side is gorgeous. But the closer to playa it gets busier , there r some nice ones on the hiway from cancum to playa . Or if u want a bit quieter go closer to tulum

I like the Rio chain and palladium chain as well but Rios are usually huge

Susan Love the RIO...Fabulous staff

The stars are given primarily for amenities offered so if you don't need four pools and a casino, a 4, or even 3 stars, can be great. Check out the hotels and the reviews before you decide.

I’ve stayed at many. Most 4 star are totally ok, but last year I went to the holiday inn 4 star at Cabo and it was crazily horrible. The food was inedible and the room had bugs everywhere. I got upgraded to the Hyatt which is a 5 star and I never want to go anywhere else. It was insanely amazing!!

I've found 4 star very close to being as nice as 5 star in mexico. It's not like Cuba where 5 star is leaps and bounds above a 4 star.

I too have found 4 and 5 stars to be pretty similar. Where I prefer to spend the extra money is getting a better 'package' - it may include upgraded seats on the plane, private check-in so you don't have to stand in line with everyone on the bus, unlimited alacarte restaurants, maybe concierge service, top shelf booze, private lounge area or pool or fancy room (we tend to spend alot of time in the room on the deck so I make sure we get south facing - it's worth it to us to have a nice room - others spend all of their time utilizing the beach or pools and they are never in the room so they don't care about having a nicer room). It is a more personalized service package with a little more pampering - the foofoo service package was included one time so we took advantage - and now it's just not the same without it. It works for us, but others would say its not worth it. If you plan to spend alot of time on the resort property, it might be worth it.

I would definitely say spending extra for a 5 is worth it. We always check the hotels we are interested in on trip advisor.

I think 5 stars tend to be “quieter” in the night-life department, which isn’t necessarily bad - just depends on what kind of trip you want! Personally I prefer the tamer crowd (fewer students on spring break) that I typically find at a 5 star, but the evenings can be boring if you enjoy going to the disco.

Personally I look at what the resorts offer, because there are things I may like more about a 4 star vs a 5 star. For the Mayan I like resorts that are more traditional Mexican decor vs modern, I like spaced out buildings with tons of trees, I look for who offers free in room WiFi, etc. I find looking through tripadvisor ratings and photos to be very helpful.
One of our most favorite resorts would be the Grand Occidental Xcaret.
I also like being in the Puerto Adventures area as you can walk to tons of shops and restaurants, or rent a golf cart and tour around the gated community

You sleep in the hotel all you need is safe clean facility.

Food usually (but not always) is better at higher rated resorts.

We always do 4 stars wherever we go.. it’s a place to sleep we don’t spend a lot of time in the room but find with 4 stars it’s clean and nice enough!

Just check reviews on trip advisor, it depends on the resort.

It depends on where you are going... we stayed at El Cid in October and it was not great. We stayed in Puerto Vallarta at a tiny resort that was amazing. You will find that at the less 3 star or less than resorts there are a lot of families that stay from elsewhere in Mexico. We like that because they know where all the good eats are off the resort.

I went to Manzanillo from Calgary and rented an awesome airbnb, we didn't miss the all inclusive resort at all. Lots of great restaurants nearby the airbnb, easy access via a taxi or uber to grocery stores; our airbnb superhost even helped us stock the fridge for our first week and we re-reimbursed her for the costs.

I find it is worth spending the extra money. But yes, do check trip advisor for the review because even a 5-star resort will have some negatives, but do take some of the reviews with a grain of salt, some of the negative reviews I find are ridiculous.

I never do all inclusive anymore...I love experiencing the authentic Mexican restaurants so delish and it’s so cheap..not worth it to me to go all inclusive..I get a cute little 3 or 4* boutique hotel..I’m never there so I don’t like wasting my money on a huge expensive resort. But I guess if you are about being at the resort most of the time then worth it. I use Hotels . com cuz I get a free night after every 10th night stay..they add up quickly..it’s a great perk..love them.

Riu Palace Cabos San Lucas was excellent.. you can go to their sister resort for free to experience the pool parties.. or stay on your resort where it’s quieter. Loved it. I think this rates as a 4-4.5star depending on what site.

5 star is worth it IMHO.

Totally worth it!

Check a few different hotel sites and take the average rating, a 3 star can be 5 star on different sites

It doesn't matter how you look at it, you will always get what you pay for!

Ashley Keam
I just went and stayed at 4 star and it was good but I’d definitely save for the better ones next time

Worth it

Definitely worth it

Erin Lee

Check out the Barcelo resort in the Mayan Riviera. They have a number of hotels within the resort area. Have stayed at a couple of them and they were good. Going back in February. They also have the best beach in the area.

Stay at a 5 star!

Go to Huatulco..... Las Brisas beautiful resort . I have been there twice .