Azul Beach Resort Riviera Cancun

My husband and I just spent 5 days at the Palmar Beach Resort and Spa. We loved it! We had such an amazing time! The staff all went above and beyond to make us comfortable. We are already dreaming of going again and bringing our daughter. Like others have said, the resort wasn't full, which we loved since it was a very relaxing atmosphere and we never had a problem getting a beach cabana or lounge chair whenever we wanted one. The restaurants weren't all open all the time, which was no problem for us since the servers moved around and we got to know most of them better that way. The food was great. The only thing that I would suggest changing is the water temperature. It was a cool rainy week when we were there and we wanted to have a bath to warm up and the water was barely warm by the time we had the tub full.

We attended Palmar for a Destination Wedding for friends. From the minute we arrived until the minute we left we were made to feel like royalty! Upon arrival we were given a cool rag to freshen up along with a glass of champaign. Our room wasn't ready, which was a little strange since they were only about 20-40% capacity, but it was fine as they directed us to the buffet to get something to eat while they kept our luggage safe. Our first experience in the buffet was spectacular with a great variety of really good food in addition to fantastic service. Once we were escorted to our room we entered into a very spacious, clean space with a nice balcony with plenty of cushioned seating. On our first full day, after an excellent breakfast at the buffet we grabbed towels to head to the beach. We were met by Mauricio who took our towels and escorted us to a cabana on the beach. He proceeded to set up the cabana with extra towels and pulled chairs up on the beach for our use as well. Mauricio went above and beyond all week for us! Once he figured out we would be on the beach everyday, he had our cabana already set up for us all equipped with towels and pillows before we even got breakfast. He kept us well provided with drinks and food or anything else we might need. He is an excellent server that really cares about his job and ensuring that the guests happy. We had such amazing service in all of the restaurants and bars. We were never without anything, and every morning in the buffet they remembered what we wanted to drink, including green tea and honey for my husband and automatically filling my water bottle with ice water to take with me to the beach. FANTASTIC! We do want to give a shout out to Alma in the Latino Bar as well. That little lady made sure drinks were never empty! She was the sweetest! The weather wasn't the greatest all week with lots of rain but the service never faltered anywhere. Keep in mind they were at a very low capacity so if you go during a time when more people are there service may not be as expedient but I can confidently say it will still be amazing! We have stayed at many resorts in Mexico and Palmar is at the top of our list in respect to amenities, cleanliness, food and service! Thank you!

Please be warned to anyone looking to book... they've recently changed ownership & it's nothing like it was a couple of years back (when I last visited) nearly every restaraunt is closed, there's no hot water, & it's a complete ghost town... please please avoid take my word for it... they didn't even inform me about it changing its name? so disappointing, i've come here on my own as well... don't suppose something could be arranged for me to be moved to another resort?

Stayed at this resort during the week of Jan. 13, 2025. Went there to attend a family wedding and originally booked when it was Azul Beach Resort (Karisma property). We stayed in a premium swim-up suite. The resort ownership changed approximately 3-4 months ago to the current name and owned by Tafer. Our original booking was through a Delta Vacations plan, but once the ownership changed, Delta no longer honored the vacation package so we had to book through the group wedding planner. We are experienced travelers and have stayed in at least 8 all-inclusive resorts in the Cancun/Playa Riviera area. Unfortunately, this has been our worst experience so far. We're not sure if the unpleasant experience is due to the new ownership, or whether this was how it was before and the transformation process is ongoing, and they're making the necessary improvements. Regardless, I think it will take a little time before it comes back to being close to a quality, good-valued resort. On the plus side, the service and the people were outstanding. They were some of the most friendly and attentive workers we've encountered at Cancun resorts. Special shout out to Angelica (pool side server), Javier, Enrique and Angellus (restaurant servers), Marcelo (doorman), and the swim up bartenders. Everyone worked their tails off and provided exceptional service. Please make sure you tip them well. Another positive was not having to fight for poolside seating or cabanas because of the low occupancy. The rooms were fairly spacious and the beds comfortable. On the side of "needs improvement," the resort can use a complete update. Work has already started in certain parts of the resorts with crews fixing up one of the guest buildings. Hot water was inconsistent at best ,both in the showers and the hot tub in our swim up area. The water in the hot tub was tepid. There seemed to be bug/mosquito issues our room. One night, water seeped all over the floor after a thunderstorm. It appeared the water was leaking from the walls. We called the front desk and was quickly told it would be addressed and then they hung up. A crew did come the next morning to look at the flooding and addressed it by placing towels in the area where the water was leaking from. Not sure if that really addressed the issue, but fortunately the rain stopped and no leaking. The resort was virtually empty. Occupancy seemed to be less than 125 guests, even with 3 wedding parties during our stay. Im sure this is due to the recent ownership change and subsequent cancellations. We talked to several employees and they all said it's been "dead" there since the ownership change. They are, however, starting to see the numbers slightly tick up with each passing month. The beach area is very small, and not really swimmable. There is constant stream of seaweed that washes up onto shore. If you like to swim in the ocean, consider the resorts in hotel zone in Cancun rather than here. The water is definitely not crystal clear nor is the beach very walkable. As for the food, it was mediocre. There are 7 restaurants at the resort, but only 2 are used on a daily basis because of the lack of occupancy. The restaurant venues rotated each night, but the menu is very limited. The breakfast buffet at Caprichos was solid and offered enough of a variety of items. If you want to order food poolside, the menu is limited to 3 items. The resort has a Michelin-rated restaurant, Le Chique, but it is not open to the public. We inquired about eating here and was told it requires a special reservation and we're still unsure what this means. On a few of the nights, we saw a couple of small groups dining in it. The workout room had a bad odor which prevented us from using it despite multiple attempts to check it out on separate days. The resort did not have much of a vibe. There are not many activities unless you want just want to chill poolside all day. It's definitely quiet and not for the partying crowd. The nighttime entertainment option was minimal and not entertaining. Hopefully this resort will improve with more time and as it gets busier. However, it's going to be sometime until it reaches that level. Right now, it's not a good-value all-inclusive resort.

Arrived a few days before Christmas and it was very quiet on the resort. This did make it enjoyable for us there were no races to get a seat at the pool. The staff were very, very friendly and helpful throughout our stay. As mentioned, whether it was a drink or for food, we did not have a long wait for anything we wanted while at the resort. The resort was much busier towards New Years which had the stuff running around a lot more making the restaurants busy in the evenings and having to wait in line to eat if not at the restaurant early. The rooms are spacious and clean. We had an Oceanview room on the 3rd floor and really enjoyed being able to look out from our room onto the pool and ocean. There are still some room renovations ongoing to parts of the resort, however this did not affect our stay at all. In fact if we didn't know some of the renos were going on, we would not have known about them. This is a time share style property, however there is no pressure to meet for a sales pitch and it is all voluntary. There are people selling excursions and spa treatments on site, but we did not feel inundated or pressured. Everyone was very pleasant and respectful. For most of the week, our pool server was Blanca. She was very pleasant. She helped us out all week for all of our drink and snack needs. It helped us enjoy our relaxing trip even more. A few things that we can be critical of... the swimming pools were VERY cold. Once you got in and once acclimatized to the temperature, it wasn't bad, but it was not easy getting in after being out of it for awhile. As well, there weren't many extra options for young teenagers to keep them busy for a week. The beach was limited as it is smaller and the ocean was "red flagged" all week, so keeping entertained in a cold pool got the teens a bit restless. The beach is okay. The sand is amazing, but it is a smaller beach. As mentioned, the water was rough during our stay so we didn't have a real opportunity to swim in the ocean at all. This isn't a resort I would jump at if wanting to spend a vacation on the beach or playing in the ocean. The nightly entertainment was nothing to write home about. There is no actual theatre, so they used what they have to make it work. There was a rock band one night and some singers another night that were good... but it was more like a lounge or bar feel then nightly entertainment. They had a Michael Jackson impersonator who was excellent (along with the dancers) but this show was done in the lobby area. One night, the entertainment did not show up so there was no show at all. It would have been nice to have a coupel of Mexican themed entertainment while were there. The restaurant food was really good, but we were not fond of the buffet. Again, buffet staff were great, but the food was a bit limited. It was only open for breakfast and lunch during our time there so we did not spend to much time at it. We really enjoyed the Italian Restaurant. Overall, it was a very relaxing trip to Palmar. We were not happy with the cost of the trip as it was a lot more then we should have paid for a resort like this, but we have to take into account it was the Christmas week so it is what it is. It did the trick this time, though.