Overview

To begin out transition to being a proper travel blog, I decided to visit the Ritz-Carlton, Cancun, with rooms retailing for more than $1,000 a night. That fact, combined with the knowledge that the over 100 Ritz-Carlton year old brand acts as the flagship for Marriott’s brand portfolio, meant I had high hopes. While the hotel was definitely showing it’s age, the delightfully renovated rooms, beach view and the strong customer service culture at the hotel makes this definitely worthwhile. Note that this hotel is actually leaving the Marriott portfolio, so I was a bit sad.

Check In

Note: There will be a LOT of first world problems located in this review. The first of which is that the hotel is actually located in a relatively quiet area, which is great for the actual hotel experience, but bad if you want to venture outside for food.

The best way to get there is Uber or taxi: from the airport, it would cost US$25-$30 for an Uber, and $40-$50 for a taxi. When my Uber driver confirmed my destination, the first words of out her mouth were: “nice, really nice”. Upon entering the hotel, vehicles are checked against a list of guests for the day.

The hotel is approaching its 30th birthday (and thus older than the author), with the fact being instantly clear to anyone who steps in the lobby.

Given the sheer number of tourists, check in was a bit chaotic; however, as soon as I approached the desk the Ritz Carlton hospitality began to show. I was told that I was upgraded to an Ocean View Suite. There was also a welcome beverage given by a gentleman in a white linen suit (aka what you would stereotypically imagine would be at a tourist place). The rest of the lobby and foyer again looked quite dated, and could have certainly used a refresh whilst travel was down. But then again, the main part of the experience is not the lobby.

The Room

While this white on black look is somewhat over done (i.e. Corporate logos), I must save I loved the look of my room key! Located on the 6th floor, the room actually was connected to the adjacent one, leading me to believe that this would have been meant for several families.

However, any concerns about the size of the room quickly washed away as I entered. Bear in mind that I was travelling solo, so this 876 sq ft Ocean View Front Suite was completely awesome and unnecessary, just like my stay at the Hotel Saskatchewan. The room began with a small entrance and table to store your things.

There was a small hallway, and a small bathroom (which was the 0.5 in the “1.5 baths”, as advertised)

Next up was the living room, which was quite unnecessary given the stunning beach environment steps away. That being said, I loved every bit of this space, especially given the view!

The best part of the room was that there were 3 balconies. One in the living room, one in front of my bed, and another one on the side of my bed? Why? Why not? Thank you Ritz Carlton Cancun!

I did each McDonalds overlooking the balcony one night whilst sipping some wine (as per tradition). After all, this was a fine paring worthy of such a fantastic view.

Or sipping coffee and doing a workout in the morning to prepare for my photoshoot.

Alright, back to the room. The king bed was extremely comfortable, although my minor grip was there there was no charging outlet beside the bed.

The full bathroom was an impressive affair - I found it funny that housekeeping interrupted my stay to kindly add a fresh rose to my countertop (#guysneedflowerstoo).

Asprey is one of my favorite hotel brands, although it has been beaten out by Rose 31 from the Fairmont Brand.

The bathroom had a separate tub, shower and toilet, which was really good as I need to soak myself off after a long hard day’s work of doing NOTHING.

Other amenities in the room include a minibar/ fridge, a coffee machine and lots and lots of bottled water.

My two gripes with the room at the Ritz Carlton Cancun: the fact that the water bottles provided were so small and generated and unbelievable amount of plastic waste, and the fact that the Ritz Carlton Wifi occasionally didn’t open on my phone.

Facilities

The Ritz Carlton was designed so that one would not need to venture outside, which meant that there was substantial dining, spa and other activities (more detail in the welcome letter). As mentioned earlier, some of the interior furnishing were quite dated and worn out.

The atrium, as noted by other bloggers, seemed straight out of a 1980’s movie.

There were also tennis courts and basketball courts, although I suspect those were more for show than anything else given the heat.

Thankfully the gym fared a bit better, and even had a Smith machine! I would put the gym in the top quartile of all hotel gyms I have visited, and certainly better than quite a few other luxury hotels.

One cool thing that made this a true luxury hotel was the present of a photographer! For US$20 a photo, the team at TakeItPhoto will walk you around the Ritz Carlton Cancun. Lovely Fernanda, who was infinitely patient, took my photo from around the resort for…profiles. Which, based on my level of procrastination, will be finished in about a year.

Finally, the Club Lounge. People have been offered access for a discount price in the past, but I didn’t get such an offer. Ritz Carlton lounges are typically more elevated than your traditional hotel lounges, offering a greater quality variety of food and drinks. Indeed, the one at the Ritz Carlton Cancun had 5 “presentations” a day.

Exterior Activities

The best part about the hotel is obviously the views and beach! There were several pools, both heated and unheated, around the area.

But what people are usually here for is the beach! There are expansive private cabañas that can be rented for a day, along with shaded couples loungers.

One extremely useful thing that was provided was water and sunscreen! As they say, don’t forget to hydrate.

There was also a full bar and kitchen, and servers dressed in white kindly brought over drinks while charging your room.

The scene at night was even more incredible, with the moonlight illuminating the water and hotel. What a great place for a dinner!

The Service

Normally this wouldn’t warrant a special section for a hotel, but I can truly say the Ritz Carlton’s service culture was fantastic. As the motto goes: We are Ladies and Gentlemen serving Ladies and Gentlemen. From the housekeeper that would indulge my endless need for more water to porters willing to patiently take my photos to everyone addressing me by name, it felt pretty good. The Ritz also provided me with nearly unlimited Asprey toiletries, of which I am grateful for. One notable example was when I asked for a coconut in the morning; I was told it was unavailable, but to come back later. Upon returning, the bartender took one look at me, and whipped out a coconut with a smile. That is memorable.

Another super impressive thing was the sheer number of welcome amenities, including chocolates, cupcakes, and flowers. Yes, I’m pretty basic and a 5 year old so if I get those I’m happy.

Funnily enough, I did see a housekeeper with a massive cart full of those cupcakes, so maybe I’m not that special.

Final Thoughts

If you look across the internet, you’ll find certain bloggers’ don’t like this hotel. I will agree, at its price point of more than $1,000 a night, it isn’t worth it. However, the hotel still is fantastic - I truly enjoyed the breathtaking views, fantastic rooms and incredible service. One suggestion for Cancun would be to split your time in a high end hotel for one part of your trip, and do a few nights in a lower priced place at the tip of the hotel zone. That way you can enjoy more of the nightlife / scenery in Cancun whilst also indulging in some R&R. But for the first time (okay, maybe first time since we’ve had to stay inside) at a Ritz, you could do worse than the Ritz Carlton Cancun!