Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda - All Inclusive

My husband and I traveled with friends here from 5-11 thru 5-18. I was very leary from some past reviews that I had read. I will give you my honest opinions. Upon arrival, we were greeted with a drink. We somehow got VIP check in which isnt a big deal. What is a big deal is DO NOT let a consierge rope you into a presentation for 90 mins. We got a free couples massage out of it, but the hassle to get out of there isn't worth it. They try to get you to buy vacation time with them. We lost about 2 hours of our lives! JUST SAY NO!! We got there early and our room was not ready so they put us into another one. It was in building 1, corner room. Pleasantly surprised! Quiet, private and clean. I always pull back the sheet and no bed bugs. Bathroom was a little dated but was sufficient. The Lemers came out at dusk and we always had plenty in our back view. Food: Buffets were good, something for everyone. They did have a lot of the same stuff every day but they did change/add a few new things. Roasted chicken is awesome. I stuck with that for lunch. Breakfast was good too. We only ate dinner there once. It can get boring, but its edible. Fruit is fresh and desserts are good. Reservations for restaurants are a must. The portions are small so we usually went to the buffet for dessert and coffee later. The Oriental rest. is so-so, but the Steak house is awesome. Ate there twice. Never got to the Mexican Rest. Grounds are kept nice, they are out there constantly. Pools are shallow, but nice to cool off. The beach definately sucks and was a downer for us as beach people. Very seaweedy and narrow. That is probably the only thing that would keep us from returning. We had no other issues. Everyone was nice, nothing stolen, room cleaned every day. We did tip everyone. Spend the 20 bucks for a cab and go into Playa (5th avenue) lots of shops and awesome places to eat. Its worth it.

The staff was very helpful and the facilities were very clean and well maintained. If you like food and drinks, this place was awesome!!!The French restaurant is almost impossible to make reservations at. Make sure your dinner reservations are early or be prepared to wait. I would recommend just going to the dinner buffet because it's easy, quick, and the food is GREAT. You must check out the swing bar....so cool!!! It is an all inclusive resort, meaning tips are included. So keep it that way. We tipped for drinks, thinking we would get better service. Not the case. I would recommend snorkeling at the beach (must deposit $20 for the snorkeling equipment, which you would get the money back upon returning the equipment). The beach has some pretty cool sea life. In previous comments, people talked about a 15 minute walk from the Sports Bar to the beach. Not the case. It's maybe a 5 minute walk and they have a small shuttle system to help with the SHORT distance. You really don't need to leave the resort sine they provide all the drinks, food, and entertainment. I would go back again!

The SPA is Amazing, Amenities is great if you pay for the little upgrade, it worth it. The Beach is poor with a lot of rock. Pool is great. Food is good!

We enjoyed our stay at the Blue Bay. In our opinion the Sports Bar/Theatre area needs to be improved upon and upgraded to be on the same level as the rest of the amenities which we felt were first class. A nice lobby bar with musica for a pre-dinner drink would have been nice. Found the CircleOne reps annoying. The staff was very friendly and attentive; enjoyed all of the ala cartes and the buffet was one of the best we have seen. Enjoyed the "adults only" section. No complaints about the food. Having a concierge at each buiding was great ... made it easy to get ala cartes booked and any questions answered. Would have liked to have known about the nightly Beach Party sooner .. perhaps a bit more info in the rooms would be good. Also thought the buildings should have numbers on them instead of names, it would have made it a bit easier to navigate in the first couple of days. All in all, we enjoyed our stay.

Great service,great food, and on our trip other great guests. Both pool areas had lots to do etc etc. Would go back in a heart beat.

all in all would go back for the right price. 6 days 5 nites with flight from detroit (rt) 625.00. not including baggage and private transfer. i would not pay a penny more. food was good but breakfast and lunch are the same everyday.restaurants are good. drinks are good, you just have to ask for more alcohol if you want more. they had bacardi clear and dark rum, smirnoff, sky and absolute vodkas. superior beer in the room, and they said it was dousequies on tap. there is a smell. but it is very intermitent. but when its there its strong. shows where sub par. pool is salt water, the beach during our stay was very good, clean, and clear. shade around the pool is minimal. get down there early to save a spot. sports bar is a not. 4 tvs and 2 show an advertisement for the hotel. other 2 are soccer only. we were in building 2. close to large pool, mosquitos were bad! when maids would clean the room they would have tghe door open, so when we returned from pool had to go mosquito hunting(killed 12 one day) 20.00$ usd cab ride one way to playa del carmen. we went for sun and relaxation and cost. we got all 3. the resort is more of a 3.5 star not 4.

Amazing! Wonderful food, beautiful beach, great shows, awesome staff... all at an unbeatable price. Would go back in a heartbeat.

I went to this hotel 4 years ago around January, it was way better that It is now. It need serious maintenance investment. I stayed during the 2012 Easter week for 9 days. We got a room that was smelly (looks like it had a pipe leak somewhere) and both beds were literally broken. The staff did their best to compensate that bad experience and upgraded our room to one with beach view. The new room was perfect. Food is overall good for a 3 star all inclusive. Buffet restaurant at nights sometimes is great sometimes sucks bad. Lunch is OK, what else than burgers, fruits, and some other stuff would you expect ? Since it was my second stay they invited us with a lobster dinner. Nice stuff. Overall, good hotel but nothing else. Staff struggles to keep up with the service quality due the lack of infrastructure and they look tired since they work long days. That is a shame, because somewhat affects you when you're staying there to have great time and people around you are not well.

Loved this resort, had a great time! The buffet was good at every meal, but the ala cartes were touch and go. The steakhouse was nearly inedible, the seafood was ok, but the French was so delicious we went back three times! They pour well drinks unless you ask for the good stuff, but they'll give you what you ask for with no problem. If you're a tequila drinker, they have a great resposado out of sight in most of the coolers if you ask for it!

We had a wonderful time at Blue Bay Esmeralda. The staff was very helpful and friendly. It is a large resort, so there are concierges at each building for the guests' convenience. You get pools, beach, numerous dinner options (separate restaurants devoted to steak, seafood, mexican, french, and italian, as well as the general buffet meals), a live entertainment dinner show each night, and a beautiful setting for taking pictures. You are also close enough to take a day trip to the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza, which is a long day but worth it for the history. Wireless internet is free in the lobby and also in the sports bar, which is open 24 hours.