I started out my Dec. 2023 solo trip at the Wyndham Alltra Playa del Carmen–since my next resort destination was Secrets Tulum I wanted to stay at an affordable all-inclusive somewhere in between the Cancun airport and Tulum, and Playa del Carmen certainly fit that bill.  I booked this resort on its website to get the best online deal, plus I belong to the free Wyndham Rewards program so accruing points is always a good thing!  Booking as a Rewards member on the resort website saved me roughly $100 USD on my 3-night stay for my Jr. Suite Oceanfront room.

This Wyndham property is located oceanfront on Av. Constituyentes, a major roadway into Playa del Carmen.  It’s actually right across the street from the Hilton Playa del Carmen and next to what used to be the PDC ferry pier to Cozumel (the newer ferry pier is actually further south about a 25-30 min. walk along 5th Ave. from this Wyndham property).  Vacationers who want easy access to Playa del Carmen’s famous 5th Avenue where lots of shops, restaurants, bars, and nightclubs are located will be delighted to know it’s less than a 5 min. walk from the resort to access this famous pedestrian-friendly thoroughfare.  For those night owls and club-loving partiers, most of the world renowned nightclubs are located on 12th St. which is roughly a 10-15 min. walk from the Wyndham.  That makes this property a perfect choice for those who want an affordable resort option with easy access to multiple nightlife options.

I took a private shuttle to the resort from the Cancun airport (USA Transfers, of course) and was dropped off right at the bottom of the resort stairs leading up to the lobby area.  FYI:  Vacationers renting a car from the airport or driving yourself here from another destination should be aware that there is no on-site parking; you will have to park on a nearby street without the reassurance of resort liability should something happen to your vehicle.  While I was surprised I was greeted by my name at the front desk, staff told me I was the last guest to check-in for the day (I had a very late arrival due to connecting flights from the west coast).  I didn’t mind not receiving a welcome drink at check-in, but I did notice a cart of welcome drinks across from the front desk on other days while staying at the resort, so I know they do hand them out to new guests.  I was immediately escorted to my room, given a room tour, unpacked, ordered room service, and enjoyed my oceanfront balcony for awhile.  The sounds of the sea were very soothing and peaceful which erased the stress of a travel-filled day, and soon I was ready to enjoy the very comfortable looking king bed.  And yes, it was comfortable; in fact, the entire room was large for a Jr. Suite with plenty of room for two adults.  The bathroom shower was immense for this type of room category, the storage was good, and there was plenty of room on the balcony for two adults as well.  When I saw the view from my balcony in the morning, I was thrilled to see that I was practically situated over the ocean and had an expansive and unobstructed ocean view, even from my bed!  Gorgeous.  If you want to see my room video and read about my guest room experience, click on this link.

With only 287 guest rooms on three floors this Wyndham property was fairly easy to navigate–it helped that there was signage with arrows pretty much everywhere so guests could know if they were going in the right direction.  There were several elevators, the main elevator was located in the middle of guest room hallways.  Stairs going up and down were on either side of this elevator thus making it incredibly easy to either visit the rooftop pool and restaurant, or go down to the lobby area.

Let’s talk food.  First of all, dinner a la carte restaurants needed a reservation–that means the Mexican (Zarape), Italian (Bella), and grill (Brazas) restaurants need you to visit the Guest Services rep to make these reservations.  You can find this person amongst several desk areas next to the coffee shop (Cafe Mexico) on the lobby level; reservations can be made from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Keep in mind that restaurant reservations can go quickly, so be sure to make them as soon as you can after check-in, or in the case of a late arrival like me, as close to 9 a.m. the next day as possible.  Each reservation came with a slip of paper which you should bring to your restaurant, the hostess will ask for it when you arrive at the entry podium.  Also, bring your phone because they were reluctant to hand out paper menus–you will need to access their restaurant QR Code for the menu.

Since I was only staying three nights, I decided to book the Mexican and Italian restaurants.  These two restaurants can only be accessed from the street, while Brazas can be accessed from within the resort.  If you exit the resort from the lobby area, just walk down the same side of the street and you will find the Mexican restaurant first (Zarape).  Continue down the same side of the street until you find the Italian restaurant, Bella, on the corner.  That one was a little trickier to find its entrance since it is right on the corner and has the sign on its awning.  I was shocked the Mexican food was so good at Zarape; usually I wind up disliking my meals at Mexican a la cartes at all-inclusive resorts because they try too hard to tone down the spice and make it too “Americanized”.  Zarape’s food was excellent, and if I were to have stayed longer I would have definitely returned to this restaurant multiple times.  Bella’s food was very good, I had the Risotto Al Funghi for my main dish (I had read on resort reviews this was a great dinner choice), and thought it was good but not outstanding.  The food was good enough to return here but I would have ordered something else.  Bella also offered a vegetarian menu, so meatless eaters will do well here for dinner.

You can’t stay at this resort and not try Off The Hook restaurant located on the rooftop next to the small pool.  There were tables to dine at, but you could also sit at the bar and eat while having easy access to libations.  Off The Hook offered sushi and nikkei menu items (nikkei is a Peruvian-Japanese fusion dish); I only had sushi and it was very good.  You know the dishes are fresh since you could observe a chef preparing food at one end of the restaurant. Reservations were not required at Off The Hook but then they close at 6 p.m. so they are not open for dinner, only lunch.  Well, I guess you could eat there around 5 p.m. and consider it an early dinner, but the menu stays the same throughout.

There was one buffet, Ventanas, which was open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  I only ate breakfast there, so I can’t speak to their food options at other meals, but there was an extensive offering considering there wasn’t a whole lot of space in this restaurant.  Here’s a tip–look for the fresh breakfast juices at the very back of the restaurant; it drove me crazy the first time I ate there and saw everyone else with glasses of fresh juice but couldn’t figure out where they were.  Now you know as well.

 

Room service was included in the all-inclusive price; there were menus on the Wyndham Alltra app for breakfast/lunch/dinner, just choose your items then use your room phone and dial Extension 3080.  Room service was offered 24/7.

Other food tidbits:  If you are in between meals and want a bite of something outside your room you can either find it at Quick Delights on the lobby level–sandwiches, fruits, lots of things to drink like juices, sodas, etc., you can eat it there or take it with you because the resort labels these items and prepares them as “grab and go” food. Quick Delights was open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.  Or, you can find pizza to go poolside at La Pizzeria; I would skip that one because I didn’t think the pizza was very good at all.  However, how good or bad food tastes can be very subjective so you may like it, but I had a couple of bites and thought it was not worth eating.  The last option for food would be at Café México, better known as the coffee shop and located on the lobby level.  This was open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and typically was hopping with customers throughout the day.  They served all kinds of coffee drinks, teas, and had ice cream and pastries.

Let’s talk bars.  Here’s something which may turn you off booking this resort–you cannot access alcohol here prior to 11 a.m.  Seriously.  No breakfast mimosas, people.  Bars only opened at 11 a.m. throughout the resort and not before.  Since I’m generally not a morning drinker, this doesn’t bother me but I know some people absolutely have to have their morning drink while vacationing.  With that said, my favorite bar on-site was Agave pool bar (open until 7 p.m.), that one was located by the main pool and had bar stools and ledges facing the ocean so you could actually enjoy the view while having your favorite drink.  Here’s another item which may deter people from booking this resort–the only swim-up bar is the small one at the rooftop pool which only had about six seats.  I know some vacationers won’t even consider an all-inclusive resort that doesn’t have a decent swim-up bar, so make up your own mind whether a smaller version would meet your vacation requirements.  The lobby bar, Ka’a Bar and Lounge, was open-air and got very busy in the evenings, probably because it was the only bar open until 11 p.m.  This was the last bar to close, so if you wanted a drink after 11 p.m. you’d have to get a beer from your room’s mini-bar or go off-site to continue drinking.  Don’t forget to visit Las Olas Bar–that’s the beach bar with the swing seats on the north beach area of the resort.  It’s open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.  Guests could also just have a drink at the Off The Hook rooftop bar, but most guests also ordered food there as well.

Let’s talk pools.  There’s only two at this resort–the beachfront main pool and the small rooftop pool.  I already covered the swim-up bar issue. Loungers and shade umbrellas were scarce at both pool areas, and Bali beds were only found at the main pool; these were an extra cost or reserved for Master Suite guests.  Both pools lack zero entry areas, but the rooftop pool was the most difficult to enter/exit with the old fashioned pool ladder system.  As far as I could determine, neither pool was heated.  FYI:  There was a small upper deck with loungers at the south end of the main pool.  If you do some sunning up there you could potentially have a sea view.

Let’s talk beach.   There were two beach sections at this Wyndham property–the south beach and the north beach.  The south beach was almost completely eroded to the point that there was almost no sandy beach, just rocks remaining.  As a result, Beachfront Walk-Out suites private Bali beds had been moved to the north beach section instead of placed outside their terraces. The north beach, however, was intact with lots of loungers, Bali beds, a bar with swing seats, and the ability to enter the ocean to swim.  Guests who want a nicer beach area are free to continue to walk north–just remember that you cannot use any loungers or beach amenities that you may find outside the Wyndham property but you may set up a towel and swim if you’d like.  Mamita’s Beach Club is just up the beach to the north, and if so inclined you can pay extra to enjoy their amenities.

This Wyndham property also had a spa which was located on the ground floor; if you are at the rooftop pool you can look down the circular staircase and see the spa’s entry.  There was also a small gym and beauty salon, all typical additions to all-inclusive resorts.  Also, I went looking for the rooftop Jacuzzi, but there was a locked gate which prevented me from accessing this resort amenity.  Although I inquired at the front desk as to when this amenity would be available (I was told 9 a.m.), the gate was still locked at that time so I was unable to see it for myself.  Trust me it is up there, and if you get a chance to access it the area also has padded loungers, so it would be a very nice place to relax.  I believe the existing signs label it as Cielo rooftop Jacuzzi, but the front desk staff called it the Sky Jacuzzi.  Definitely check it out if you decide to stay at this resort.

I had a great time at this resort; its location was stellar and the food and drink options were very good.  Staff were pleasant and tried to be helpful.  The only thing missing for me was on-site nightly entertainment.  The Wyndham app posted some entertainment options, but when I showed up nothing was going on.  Would I return?  Absolutely.  It was a bargain considering what amenities were offered for the price I paid.

Check back next week to see the total picture gallery which will be posted below!

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

Location:  45 min. south of the Cancun airport

Telephone:  52-984-873-4000, or 1-833-349-2088

email:  There are several different forms available on the resort website to send off to various departments depending on your type of comment or question.