A Perfect Family All-Inclusive: Why Your Family Should Stay at Catalonia Riviera Maya

We loved, loved, loved our time here. We stayed here for eight days and could have stayed longer.

The staff was incredible—everyone was so kind and friendly. The entertainment staff were a blast to participate with in the various activities. They learned who you were and would stop and chat. The front desk was always happy to answer questions and help out with everything from questions about going into town to teaching us new words in Spanish.

We were all thrilled with the food. It was fresh, flavorful, and unique. Fresh juices at breakfast every morning, a salsa bar at every meal that we couldn’t get enough of, and plenty of options. The sit-down restaurants had stunning views. Our only complaint was the reservation system for the sit-down restaurants. For our seven-night stay, we were only able to make three reservations. Guest services was kind enough to give us a fourth, but the other nights, you can either go to the restaurant and see if they’ve had cancellations, or do a buffet. We tried to walk in and see if they had cancellations two nights, and both nights we were told no. However, there were tons of open tables. It wasn’t the end of the world—the buffet was great—but I would give clients appropriate expectations first.

The rooms are spacious, with plenty of room to unpack and stay a while.

We stayed in a privileged room, which did give us access to an extra sit-down restaurant that did not require reservations. Their menu was amazing, so that was a huge perk. This also helped with giving us additional variety from the buffet for nights we did not have dinner reservations. The privileged room also gave us access to an additional pool, beach area, and room extras like evening service with chocolates and extra towels. Our room had a private plunge pool in the back, too. I absolutely think the privileged room is worth it.

The plunge pool is such a fun way to relax without leaving your room!

The pools were so large and warm, and they never felt crowded. The beach was warm, with plenty of available chairs, and had minimal waves. You want to bring water shoes if you plan to go in the water at the beach! It is rocky, but it’s completely fine if you have water shoes. The private beach for the privileged area is not really swimmable, but it’s a nice quiet place to hang out and collect shells. There are plenty of loungers there, as well as a bar in the privileged area.

The kids’ club was so fun; my kids had a blast and spent a good amount of time there. The adults in our group loved joining in on the beach volleyball and water aerobics, which were always well attended and made very fun by the staff. This resort is visited by people all over the world, and it’s a really beautiful experience to find yourself in a game of pickup volleyball with people from multiple different countries. We snorkeled almost every day and did the kayaking. You have to sign up for the water sports the morning of, but we never were unable to get a slot.

All in all, the resort is beautiful, clean, and loads of fun. I would happily send clients here in the future, and my family has said they would love to go back.

There are great excursion opportunities as well, and many pick you up directly from the resort. Walking about 10 minutes from the resort, you will find a great shopping area around a marina. The marina is also home to Dolphin Discovery—take some time to watch the playful dolphins swim around and do flips just feet away from you!

For more inspiration and insider recommendations, visit our Mexico page.