I definitely made the right choice in how to start off my April 2022 vacation.  I had two criteria–a great beach (of course), and minimal expense for my first two nights since I always fly in from the US west coast–the first day at any resort in Cancun/Riviera Maya only consists of dinner, unpacking, and sleep for me.  A shame to spend hundreds of dollars a night and not be able to enjoy a resort, right?  A stay at Secrets Maroma just down the beach from the resort I chose would have set me back $792 USD p/night for a basic room for two, and that is way too much to spend for dinner and sleep, at least for my travel budget.

Since I had such a great stay at a great price at the Catalonia Royal Tulum my last Mexico vacation in the summer of 2021, I decided to try another Catalonia all-inclusive, this time at a location with a renowned beach.  I’m sure many readers know about the Travel Channel naming Playa de Punta Maroma (Maroma Beach) one of the world’s 10 best beaches on multiple occasions, so I focused my search on the family-friendly Catalonia Playa Maroma.

Bingo.  A famous beach and $250 USD p/night for two during the height of spring break, sold.  While the Alaska Air flight from LAX was uneventful, I landed at Terminal 2 and let me give you an FYI–if you are planning on quickly purchasing anything (especially alcohol related) at the airport in this terminal prior to leaving for your resort, forget it.  This is an older terminal with very limited facilities.  Due to current shuttle service rules, you may have a difficult time getting your driver to stop at a local Walmart without paying in advance for the service, just try and tempt the driver with a healthy tip and that may solve the problem.

While the resort itself didn’t have a spectacular entry, the lobby area with its thatched roof was tremendously large with soaring ceilings, various seating areas (be selective here because some of the sofa seating was not exactly comfortable), a small waterfall feature, an old carriage, a large lobby bar sans bar seats (the adjacent seating area was for bar customers), a disco, and one lengthy check-in counter.  Check-in was done in 10 min.; I was given a resort map, shown where my upgraded Privileged Superior Room was located on the map, and sent on my way with a promise my bag would be there shortly.  Keep in mind this is a 3* resort on a 5* beach–I didn’t pay a 5* price so I adjusted my expectations accordingly.

Guest room buildings were easy to find.  The resort layout was very similar to Catalonia Royal Tulum–one major walkway from the lobby to the beach through a dense canopy of trees and varied foliage with guest room buildings located on each side of the walkway.  Large ground level plaques listed the building name and room numbers housed inside.  Most guest room buildings had a central courtyard with a fountain reminiscent of Spanish Colonial architectural style; guest room buildings had three floors but no elevators.

While the guest room building was easy to find, my room was not.  There were funky small, dark hallways leading off main paths which only housed a couple of rooms–if you cannot find your room number don’t hesitate to open a few doors (guest room doors are clearly different than funky hallway doors here) and see if your room number is along that dark hallway.

The room was quite nice in appearance and the beds quite comfortable.  There was plenty of interior and exterior space–the ground floor terrace was the largest I’ve had at any resort without significantly upgrading, but then again my room was an end unit so perhaps that explains the extra space.  The bathroom was divided into two sections with double sinks and closet space immediately adjacent to the beds; toilet and shower areas can be made completely private by shutting the door.  Here’s something special that not many 3* resorts can claim–the digital safe had an interior plug-in so guests can charge their device while it’s locked safely away.  Only a couple of issues with the room and they were with the shower itself (only the handheld worked, not the rainfall showerhead), the digital clock did not work, and the room temp was too warm even with considerable attempts to change the temperature controls.  Since I was only staying two nights I determined it wasn’t a huge deal.

Let’s take a few moments and discuss dining issues.  A la carte restaurants required reservations.  Even Bloved, the restaurant only for upgraded Privileged guests, required not only dinner but breakfast reservations as well (I’m not sure about lunch reservations at Bloved, but I assume that if breakfast required reservations lunch certainly required them as well).  Use your Catalonia phone app to make dining reservations; the app will most likely come up in Spanish, but there is a section where you can change languages.  Since I was only staying two nights over a weekend and figured my chance of actually getting an a la carte reservation anywhere on the property was slim to none, I talked to the staff at Bloved claiming ignorance of resort policies and time limitations in hopes of either getting in the restaurant that same night or the next.  Luckily my attempts at getting sympathy worked and the manager wound up personally getting me reservations for the next night.  Well, the meal was delicious and as you can see from the Bloved food photos in my picture gallery below everything was so good that I sometimes started eating before I realized I forgot to take a pic, lol.  I also had breakfast at Bloved; try the chilaquiles, they were also delicious!

Dinner my first night was at the buffet; don’t forget your mask.  The hostess had a few masks for those who forgot theirs, but don’t count on the hostess to have one for every guest.  Best food at the buffet–meats, surprisingly.  They had a roast beef dish that made me earnestly wish for the recipe.  Worst food at the buffet–vegetables, also surprisingly.  Some were undercooked, some were overcooked.  The buffet was open for dinner every evening and was located at the end of a lengthy walkway just outside of the lobby area.

Easy lunch options were had poolside.  There was the Creperie which served both savory and sweet crepes; the Creperie was located next to Bloved restaurant on the north side of the pool. Typical hamburger, hot dog, and burrito options were served via “food trucks” which were located by Ayami and Grill Tortuga restaurants on the south side of the pool.  I ate from both the Creperie and the food trucks during my stay, and again everything was very good.  FYI:  getting your burrito from the Green Cart may take a while.

Just a few words about property bars…the lobby bar was the center of evening action with live entertainment, children’s games, and everyone just having a relaxing time with one another.  FYI:  they make a mean chocolate martini, check it out.  Not having bar seats does tend to omit friend making opportunities, but you can always do that at the pool swim-up bar.  The nearby disco with its own bar opened at 11 p.m., but I was too fatigued from traveling to check it out.  The poolside Bar Palapa not only serves drinks, but it has two self-serve stations–water and soda.  That certainly saves some time for guests, especially when children get in line at a bar just to order a soda.  It’s a win-win.  Check out Ma-Loo juice and smoothie bar, it was located on the far north side of the resort just off the regular stretch of beach and offers swings for seats, toes in the sand, and great smoothie concoctions.

Here’s some pool notes…

• yes, there is a swim-up bar
• poolside cabanas are first come first served; they are complimentary
• there is a zero entry edge on the east end of the pool by the beach for those who are mobility challenged or who have very young children who are learning to swim
• you may have to claim a poolside lounger fairly early here, there doesn’t seem to be enough shade umbrellas which makes guests get here early to get one
• be aware that the pool gets suddenly very deep once you move past the swim-up bar (if you are carrying your phone it could spell potential disaster).  The walkway separating pool sections requires that you exit the pool and enter into the next section where the drink tables are located; unfortunately the water was so deep in that section that even taller guests appeared to not be able to touch bottom while at the drink tables.  I couldn’t figure out the logic in that, but it is what it is.  Let me know if I have surmised incorrectly–I never ventured into that section.
• there was an entertainment team; they organized some poolside games and pool exercise classes

If you follow my blog, you will know that I could go on and on about Playacar beach which, up until this point, I thought was the best beach in the Riviera Maya.  I stand corrected.  Punta de Playa Maroma is undoubtedly the loveliest beach I’ve ever encountered–powdery white sand, turquoise ocean water, no need for water shoes, calmer surf–certainly a joy to any true beach lover.  The resort’s beach section offers three areas, one for members, one for upgraded Privileged guests, and one for non-upgraded guests.  Non-motorized water sports equipment was located on the far south end of the property almost at Secrets Maroma resort property fencing.  Beach hammocks and cabana beds abound (these are complimentary); there were no shade umbrellas, however, since the beach offers palm and coconut trees for shade.  I never wanted to leave.

Just a few asides about other resort amenities…

• There was a very small gym by the pool as well as a spa mixed in with the shops at the end of the main walkway.
• There was a small Kid’s Club with a very miniature outdoor area; workers looked like they were doing some interior renovations to the Kid’s Club so expect some changes when that is completed.
• Don’t forget the Aromes coffee shop, it’s located with the shops by the pool area down a short walkway.  It offers not only coffees and tea but snacks and sweets.  If you see white and blue stand alone machines, one of which was in the outdoor seating area at the coffee shop, those are device charging stations.  Such a great idea for guests who don’t want to go back to their room to recharge.
• I intentionally looked for any sports courts on-site and found tennis courts and a very large soccer/sports field located to the left of the resort entrance.
• The resort has a small orchid greenhouse with some additional flora on display; that was located by the tennis courts.  Look for displayed orchids attached to some of the trees along the main walkway.
• If you need something to read, there is a funky “lending library” in an old bookcase just outside the lobby adjacent to the transportation/excursion desks.
• The theater is open-air and tucked away off the main walkway closer to the lobby.

I just realized I learned an incredible amount about this resort in just a two day stay.  It was easy to get around, had an awesome beach, some great food opportunities, and it was affordable!  Would I return?  Absolutely.  Some of my friends are already requesting to go with me on my next Mexico sojourn and I think that this resort would be a wonderful choice for a relaxing yet fun girls’ getaway.

Below is my usual resort review photo gallery.  Just click on any of the thumbnail photos and it will bring it up in a larger format.  You can use the side arrows to go on to the next photo and see the entire gallery if you would like.

The comments in this review are those of the author/reviewer.  The trip to this particular resort was paid for in its entirety by the author; at no time were any monies or services exchanged for this review.

Location:  40 min. drive south of the Cancun airport

Telephone:  52-984-877-3300

email:  playamaroma.rrpp@cataloniahotels.com, or mexico.reservas@cataloniahotels.com