Papaya Playa Tulum

For those who want a unique experience and aren't concerned with amenities, this is a great place to stay. The ocean view cabana was great, our only complaint was the hard bed and lack of door on the bathroom. We loved the location and camping spirit. The front desk staff was very friendly and had good recommendations. If you have portable electronics be aware that there is no plug in the rooms. You must fight over a power strip in the bar or leave your electronics at the reception area. The bar/restaurant service was very slow. We tried to get dinner/breakfast a few times, but gave up due to the lack of service. I did enjoy the music at the bar, but we mostly headed elsewhere for food and drinks.

Nothing better than sleeping with the sound of the ocean waves. The hotel is clean, well located and safe.

My boyfriend and I stayed at Papaya for 4 nights and were delighted. The purpose of our trip was to relax in the sun and it was a success. Papaya Playa is very quiet and allows to reconnect with nature. Our cabana (#62) was facing the turquoise water and had a balcony with hammock. Please, remember this is an "eco" hotel. Hence, don't go there if you like having TV and air co (I am sure some of the bad reviews relate to these aspects). This place is meant for those who want to disconnect from it all and enjoy the sound of the waves! The common showers/bathrooms were really clean and well-designed, and it was fun showering amongst the palm trees! We actually traded our bathroom/ no balcony cabana for our balcony/ no bathroom cabana and didn't regret it!The food at the restaurant is very good and you eat looking at the ocean... There are 2 bars and 3 happy hours a day so you can't get bored ([...], the bar manager, is super nice and will make sure you know everything that is going on in the hotel!). In conclusion, we had a great time and I cannot wait to go back!

Papaya Playa is the worst place I have ever been in vacations in my life (2 vacations a year for 25 years). The cabana was in poor conditions, holes in the wall, floor, etc...The shower and toilet did not work properly and stinked. There was no daily cleaning of the room.One night we had rodents entering the cabana. Hotel management does not care.Not a place for children or old people. [...]

The hotel is just to hippies or people that want to be in a free experince, the bar and the place is nice, the beach too, but the rooms, ooohh my god, you dont have anything is true anything just a old bed with a old mosquitero, a litle light, and we arrived at night and we see the room and let go down woow no thanks 3we move to other place, is our mistake, we carefull before to take a hotel.

The place is beautiful but very terribly run. When we arrived at the hotel, we were informed that they had lost our reservation and they were overbooked. We were placed instead at a property next door that was still under construction, in a room that had no electricity, no hot water, and no wifi (which were all amenities that we had paid extra to upgrade our reservation to receive). Papaya Playa refused to refund any money or provide any additional services despite the significant downgraded accommodation. They made no attempt the help or solve the situation.

It is not a hotel, but a bunch of cabanas as close to the beach as one can get without being in the water. When you walk out of your room it's like being in the Wizard of Oz, going from black n white to technicolor. Only for low maintenance people (such as myself) who do not require amenities such as electricity or toilets (in some cases) in their room. Personally I loved everything about the place and it's cheap enough to use it as homebase and hop a bus to other places in Riviera Maya, such as Coba, Playa Del Carmen, etc. Felt entirely safe, but a flashlight is a must after dark.

We paid entirely too much (perhaps "an offensive amount" is best to describe it) for a hut on the beach that had no hot water, sometimes no water at all, and no electricity. They claim to be "eco-friendly" but they have a gas generator running the lights for the reception and bar area. Where is the solar panel or wind power? Also, I did not see any recycling of bottles or cans used at the bar and there was trash everywhere on the grounds surrounding the parking lot. The mattress in our hut had been sitting out in the wind and the weather just prior to our arrival, as we could see the storage area for the others. The men who were working on our room had just finished putting the bed together when we arrived. It was itchy. Also, the sheets were dingy green color with some stains. The pillows were so lumpy that I'm sure they also came from a second-hand store. I rolled up a sweatshirt for under my head and it was more comfortable. They gave us a mosquito net that did not fit our queen-sized bed and it had a huge hole in it. Needless to say, we came home from vacation with dozens of bites. You will need a flashlight and some candles if you stay here as they are not provided. It was so bad, and so ridiculously priced, it was like a parody of the commercials you see for bad hotels. I will say this, there were other cabanas that seemed to have more polish, but not ours. I would recommend you avoid this hotel and just bring a tent and your own flashlight. It's a heck of a lot cheaper.

I have been backpacking for 20 years now, and I have seen a few cabanas / beach huts / bungalows, whatever you call them. don't get attracted by the cheap price they are offering compared to the other resorts. what I got for $80 was a shabby cabana that had no mosquito net. wouldn't be much of a problem to get one if there weren't those large and dirty plastic windows without curtains, so everybody can watch you. I do not complain much in general, especially not in the budget area, but this time I did. I was offered two other cabanas. One had two beds but NO mattresses, the other one had nothing to put up your mosquito net and a broken front door. People there (mostly men in general) do naked sunbathing. Up to you if you like that or not. The more expensive cabanas looked nice, though. I packed my stuff and walked down the beach road where I found lots of hostels offering accommodation FAR better than that. I usually don't write reviews but this time I felt I had to.

the hotel is real nice (although rustic) and management are very friendly and care about your comfort and fun level. the food was good, sometimes the service a little slow or even forgetful, but a good experience overall. i would recommend it, but make sure u find ways to get away from the hotel and explore