Mahekal Beach Resort

My wife and I just got back. It was a great place. Loved the location, great beach access and close enough to 5th Ave to walk there easily and miss the noisy night life. The room was cute and clean. The staff was very attentive and the food was fine. Don't tell others how good this place is, let them all stay at huge all inclusive resorts.

Experience started bad - got our rooms and while we paid for sea view - the 2nd row ground floor cabanas had nothing like that. Eventually got first floor rooms with nice view but someone had to bargain to get them. Beach is nice but not really private - in front of the the hotel's chairs was a public beach. Overall good experience and decent value but rooms are quite dated and bathrooms are in bad need of refurbishment.

I joined my son and his wife from Walnut Creek, California, who have two small children, at the Mahekal Beach Resort. We made the most of this opportunity for family conversation and play with our children at this restful, relaxing place with such beautiful landscaping and beach and pools and restaurants for all ages and comfortable individual huts. We loved the hammocks on the deck and patio. The only thing we would do differently is to opt for the restaurant lunch as a 7 p.m. dinner was late for the small children.

1. Very good food and attentive waitstaff. Manuel went out his way to accommodate my dietary requirements. 2. Medical help provided very quickly for partner (not related to resor stay). 3. Excellent value for accomodations and meals. 4. Wonderful environment - 2 pools, great grounds. 5. North end of Playa - great location -quiet. 6. Not a party resort - good for young couples with or without children and older adults - vollyball, table tennis, pool tables great grounds to walk. 7. 1- 3 story bungalows - very clean and spacious with large shower and bathroom area. 8. Nice linens, beach towels and plenty of chairs and shade in beach area. 9. Bikes with helmets - 10 minute ride to other end of 5th Avenue Michael and Sheryl 60+ and fit. Suggestion: 1. Add a dressor to the rooms and a refrigerator (limited no. avail.) Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration. 2. Post sign about dangerous rocks in ocean in front of Aventura Restaruant (Breakfast Rest) There is plenty of other beach frontage to accomodate entire resort.

It was a VERY relaxing vacation, with our biggest decision all day being "should we go to the beach or the pool?" The food at the resort was really good! Wish they had more Mexican nights, they switch up the type of cuisine every night. The location was great, it felt very secluded, but was a couple blocks from the main drag of town, which was very chic and cool, this was surprising for Mexico! Great architecture, clubs and restaurants along the main avenue. The rooms were very unassuming, not fancy, which is fine for us, but it was expensive for what you got I thought, especially in Mexico. I would go again though, it was a great place.

This was our third stay at Mahekal in four years. Once again it was truley "Magical" as the name states. My wife and I like typically like to go to different locations in the Caribbean. However, since we went to Mahekal 4 years ago, we have struggled to steer away from it to try something new. Mahekal feels so much like a second home during the long cold winters of Wisconsin, we can hardly imagine wanting to go anywhere else. The only other time we've ever stayed at a resort more than once is Sandals in Antigua. Accommodations are very simple, which is just the way we want it. No TV, no radio, no clock. It may be low on frills but that is what makes it so quiet and relaxing. The rooms do have air conditioning, which is totally unnecessary because there was always a perfect breeze. Although we typically stay in an ocean view room and I can see how rooms farther from the beach, where the breeze may be blocked, may need to use the A/C. Otherwise the A/C only drowns out the rhythm of the waves at night, and the songs of the birds in the morning as the sun rises. I can’t understand why you would ever want to do that. The location is really what you pay for at Mahekal. You will not find a better stretch of beach with rooms in such close proximity to the ocean for a better price. It is on the best stretch of beach in Playa Del Carmen, and is literally a 10 minute walk to the heart of 5th Ave shopping and eating. The staff was very professional and friendly as always. By the third day the wait staff recognizes you and knows what you like. They were always more than eager to make you happy. Meals there are delicious, especially breakfast. We typically like to go out to town for dinner to people watch. In our past stays the dinners left a lot to be desired. However during this most recent stay the dinners were much improved - so much so that we stayed at the resort for dinner more nights than we typically do. The landscaping is meticulous. The pair of hammocks on your balcony are a perfect touch, making a late afternoon nap before happy hour almost ritual. My only complaint is that happy hour could be extended from one hour to two. This is not an all-inclusive mega resort, so you will not have to get up before dawn to reserve a chair by the pool or ocean. You will never feel pressure to get up and dance to some cheesy 90's one hit wonder blasting at the pool, and there are no time share salesmen or beach vendors hounding or harassing you. This resort has such a quaint and peaceful vibe that you can't help but succumb to it charm. It has a very private and intimate ambience. As your vacation comes to an end you will feel totally rested and rejuvenated; and probably a little depressed because you’re not all that ready to leave. Jason and Jen Hagen - Wisconsin

Mahekal is the phonetic spelling of magical in Spanish, an appropriate name for this very special, intimate Caribbean getaway. It felt like "Fantasy Island" - a village of one and 2 story thatched roof palapas. It has the look and feel of a south Pacific or Hawaiian fantasy resort. Our room was on the small side but big enough - you don't spend much time in the room itself. Each unit, or caseta, has a porch with 2 hammocks, table and chairs. That's where you spend much time, along with walking thru this magical village, at the outside bar, at the beach or pool. The breakfast buffet was very good, lunch was also very good. Their dinner -- not so much. So we traded dinner for lunch, preferring to sample the numerous restaurants in the area, many within a very short walk of Mahekal. For us, this was a perfect retreat. It is not a big, glitzy, palace with lots of pools and restaurants - we don't like that type of place. So this resort won't be the place if you want that.

We have a wonderful experience at Mahekal. We stayed in an ocean view room, 16b, and absolutely loved it. The accommodations are simple: no TV, no clocks, no phone, but it was perfect for us. I found that I was completely relaxed and slept easily and soundly with no distractions around. We had, in my opinion, the most breathtaking view on the resort. On the second floor of a little casita on the Caribe side, we had a perfect view of the ocean and were just steps from the beach. The food was really good for the most part. We had dinner on the night we arrived, and didn't care for it, but it wasn't a big deal because we knew we were having lunch and breakfast all week. (There are a million great restaurants in PDC; and it's too hot to walk anywhere for lunch, so breakfast & lunch are you best bets). Breakfast and lunch were both delicious. For breakfast, you have a choice of one of the a la carte options, I think there were 6 or 7, and also a buffet with fresh juices, fruit, pastries, sausage, oatmeal, cereals, yogurt and granola, etc. Lunch is also a la carte, and everything we had was really good, especially the Cubano torta and the fish tacos. Overall, I really liked the food and the service was really good, too. (This coming from a former waitress). The beach was really beautiful and you can walk for a long time in either direction. We liked walking South toward playacar because I liked to see all of the different hotels on the beach, and get ideas of where we'd like to stay if we come back. I have to say, however, that I liked Mahekal's beach the best out of all the centrally located hotels as it was pretty expansive and had a great beach for swimming and sunbathing. Also, there is wireless interest available in the lobby and Caribe bar areas, and this is perfect for me. To be honest, the idea that I have access to email/internet at all times stresses me out, so I liked only being able to access the internet on my phone when I was walking through the lobby or getting a drink at happy hour (5-6 every day) at the bar. The idea of vacation is to be disconnected from the life back at home and to relax, not to be constantly checking Facebook and reading work emails! Overall, we absolutely loved our stay and would not hesitate to return. I think we're going to go back next March because we loved it so much. It's not fancy, but if you want good service in a beautiful location, close enough to the action for some fun, yet far enough for tranquility, then this is your place.

Mahekal was the perfect place to relax and get away from the hustle and bustle. Quietly located on the beach. Appreciated the low tech approach (no tv or phones) the excellent staff and attention to detail in meeting visitors needs. Walking distance to shops, a small market, and restaurants was a plus. The meals were also delicious. This is definately a hotel that I will return to.

Wonderful experience. Wonderful location if you're staying in Playa Del Carmen. Food was fantastic. Prices for drinks were great. Beach was beautiful. Plentiful palapa's and chairs. Helpful staff. Quick Service. Nice and quiet as opposed to loud and annoying. Cute little bungalows with hammocks at every room. No TVs, Phone's or WIFI in rooms made for a great escape. Could there be a few improvements? Sure. But all in all a great place at a great price.