Royal Sands Resort

My in-​laws are timeshare owners and go to this resort often. It is very clean with friendly and accommodating staff. If you are not a timeshare owner you must do the all inclusive. If you are a timeshare owner you have the option to add the all inclusive package but must do it for at least 4 days.
The drinks are good and have options for all: fruity tropical cocktails, mixed drinks, beer, champagne, wine ect. I would recommend a banana monkey in the morning!
With the all inclusive package there are many food options: Mexican, seafood, sushi, buffet. They have a nice little gym, grocery store, and Starbucks on site.
The rooms are setup as a timeshare which means each condo has its own kitchen. This comes in handy while not doing all inclusive. All in all its a great getaway spot with easy and quick access to downtown cancun to explore!

Staying here was amazing! This resort had everything you are looking for friendly staff, great food, and perfect location. We had a market just a block away when we wanted to just get other stuff such as food, drinks and anything else we may need. I will definitely return to this location, i loved the swim pool bar, i miss it already. I recommend you get the all inclusive, there was times i would go down tot eh buffet just for a plate of food and leave lol. If you are by the pool i recommend to order the chicken nachos!

Great resort in cancun. This is my first time in cancun and the first resort i stayed in. The food available here all depends on if you reserve early enough to eat at rhe restaurant located outside of the resort. Royal sand resort do provide shuttle bus to those locations. One night we had missed the last bus leaving the restaurant. They were nice enough to call a cab and take us back free of charge.

We had a large group of 24 people stay at the Royal Sands during the second week of December. They were great at accommodating us and said they couldn’t put all our rooms together, but they were are still in the same block, which was fine. The only restaurants on site are La Veranda (buffet) and Hacienda Sisal. The Veranda is good for quick lunches and it’s open all day so you can go in anytime (I think the hours are from 7am to 10pm). Hacienda Sisal is delicious and a few minutes walk from the resort. There was also the Char Hut, which is a pool side grill and bar.
If you have the all inclusive package, you can also go to the sister resorts and eat at their restaurants. We ate at El Conquistador (at the Royal Islander — 5 – 10 min away) and The Italian Trattoria (15 – 20 min away). El Conquistador was elegant and the food was delicious. The service and staff were impeccable and so accommodating. The Trattoria’s food was so-​so and the staff was rude and couldn’t wait to get us out of there.
Things that made our trip better than others: We arrived on a Saturday and left on a Tuesday. We never had to deal with the switching rooms issue on Saturdays. Because there were so many of us, we rented cars. It made it much easier to do excursions and go to other resorts to eat — we didn’t have to rely on the shuttle.
One thing which we all strongly disliked was Thomas Moore. I believe they are the company at all the Royal Resorts to schedule airport transportation and excursions through. We had numerous bad experiences with them. We booked jet skiing through them and parasailing. The woman at the counter told my friend to sign for someone else and got mad when he wouldn’t. It caused an awkward argument in the the middle of the lobby. When we got to jet skiing, we had to split into two groups, even though Thomas Moore said we would be able to stay as one. One of the guides did not speak any English and the other was not very nice. It was a snorkeling and jet skiing excursion and when it was time to snorkel, and everyone jumped off, he rode away with the jet skis (they were all tied together) and didn’t come back for 10 minutes. We had to hang on to another boat that came by until our guide came back. In the other group — someone was floating away so another one of our friends tried to help, but the jet ski flipped. After we got back, they tried to charge us $ 1200 for the jet ski. Then they wanted a 15% tip per person and would hold the tip box out and see what everyone put in there. It was just terrible customer service and could have been so much better because the jet skiing itself was actually awesome. As for the parasailing — it was very expensive and about had only about 5 minutes of flight time.
Thomas Moore easily drops the rating of the Royal Sands by 1 or 2 stars. The actual resort was great and we got a great deal since we booked through Orbitz with a coupon code. Hope Royal Sands realizes who they’re in business with and how much better their resort would be without them.

The Royal Sands is a TIMESHARE and they will try to sell you on this. If you are not a timeshare member and simply paid to be there as a one-​off (we booked through Expedia) they will offer you things in exchange for attending a Timeshare sales meeting. We were promised a free massage for example and when we went for our scheduled time at the spa, no one knew anything about it. We were lied to more than once and although they present you with a personal concierge when you arrive, once you attend the sales meeting and do not buy, you’ll not hear from the concierge again.
As noted in several of the reviews, they will move you if you arrive before or stay over a Saturday. It wouldn’t have been so bad except that it is completely unorganized and although they tell you once thing, it is not necessarily what happens. We lost the good part of the day trying to deal with the move and the lack of organization there within.
The food is mediocre and the spa is extremely overpriced. Although it was our first time to Cancun and we were anticipating the experience for months, the Royal Sands took much of the joy out of it for me. I prefer authentic hospitality (rather than just put on to get you to the sales pitch) and I also like honesty. The hotel lacks aesthetics, there is not attention to art or culture.
Other than that, the ocean is beautiful and I liked the yoga and pilates instructors.

My husband and I spent 12 days at the Royal Sands Resort in Cancun. When we checked in, we were greeted by very friendly staff who made our first impression of the hotel a very good one. Every day we were treated like «royalty». The food was absolutely the best, most delicious and fresh with lots of variety. The waitress and waiters remembered our names and always served us with impeccable style. We spent a few days in the spa and got the same service. On the beach we were taken care of again with so much care and consideration. The restrooms by the beach were always clean. Fresh towels and linens were always available. Our room was quiet and we got maid service twice a day. If we needed something extra it was at our door within minutes. Room service took only a few minutes. This resort deserves a five star rating. I will come back and recommend it to my friends.

Just got back from here after staying for a week doing the all-​inclusive option. How can anyone complain about getting served alcohol and food while laying on the beach in front of a beautiful blue ocean? I work A LOT of hours, so I was looking for a resort that would be more relaxing than it would be party-​oriented. This was the place.
It was my first time in Cancun, and I have to admit that I was a little skeptical about visiting Mexico in general due to all the bad press that it gets. I was also skeptical about the quality of food in Mexico, bad reviews about this place, and the safety of my items in my room. To my surprise, Cancun was safe, the food was great, and the staff were awesome. I lost my cell phone and a security guard returned it right away.
Every all-​inclusive resort had bad reviews, but this place seemed to have better positive reviews, so we decided to choose this place. This place is a time share resort as well, and a lot of the other guests we met always come at the same time each year. Some have been coming for around 15 years, so a lot of people there knew each other. Everyone was super cool.
Overall the food was good (excellent breakfast at La Veranda), and the service was great. Our beach bartender Gilbert was the man, and kept the beer and shots coming non stop per our request (of course I tipped him well). Mario at the Sideline Sports Bar was awesome as well, and was a very attentive server who remembered my name. This place was all about service, and I appreciate the staff! The people who work the front desk weren’t the friendliest, but I think that it’s made up for by the wait staff. There’s a gym, a spa, and a bunch of excursions that you can book directly through the hotel. Its right next door to a decent mall with a super market inside of it. There’s a mini mart inside of it with OTC meds, food, a starbucks, and some groceries.
We will definitely come back and it will be in September. It’s fairly affordable at this time of year, but the weather was still excellent and it wasn’t too packed. Part of me wants to try out another resort, but this place had everything we needed.

We absolutely loved staying at the Royal Sands! The staff are genuinely friendly & very hard-​working. Our waiter at breakfast remembered our juice orders from the day before! Our waiter at the pool remembered our names! The hostess in the restaurant took time to give my husband a Spanish lesson; he hasn’t spoken Spanish much since high school. We all clapped & laughed when he translated what she said. The restaurant offered a breakfast buffet & a chef cooked to-​order omelets, eggs, pancakes, & waffles. The omelets were fantastic! Dinner was equally delicious, & included Mexican & European dishes. The suite was very clean & well-​maintained, with breathtaking views of the Caribbean. We went snorkling, & thoroughly enjoyed it. We also went on a tour of 2 Mayan ruins & swam in a sinkhole lake! I highly recommend the Sands. This was one of the best vacations we have had.

So first of all, booked through Expedia with all inclusive package for two nights. They had to switch us for the second night because apparently giving notice we might be moved before we booked was overrated. Staff was no help either; the key card didn’t work so we got locked out the second day, and it took three staff to tell us they couldn’t help. I had to go to the front desk which was 4900 miles away. Oh, and the luggage that they held for us for the transfer of rooms only took an hour to arrive.
Overall, not happy. Nice pool and view of the ocean, hospitality? Horrible.

It’s been a few years since I’ve been here. Some family have ownership which has been my experience. What a great resort! I love the atmoshphere, service, cleanliness, the pool areas and beach! They really keep a nice resort for the guests! The breakfast buffet was always good.

DO NOT STAY HERE! This place is horrible. First of all it is a time share, rented out by other vacation rentals. You WILL have to change rooms if you come before fri and will be looking to change rooms on sat. Every Saturday is room change day. We came Friday afternoon, had to change rooms that next morning. Keys didn’t work, told 3 people who said it was not their job. … Blah blah blah.
Staff is friendly and work hard. The hotel side and time share side intermix. The building needs to be updated.
It is a tired old building that sucks.
I wish I could post no stars it sucked that bad.
Today is the last day here. THANK GOD. I got a phone call in my from someone trying to sell me on this time share. The guy could not take no for an answer. He asked very inappropriate questions about my finances and personal situations. Very inappropriate. From my experience here, I could only go to one restaurant, la veranda. The Mexican restaurant, sisal, was always just closing. Sun at 1:30 for lunch the staff said they just closed. The list goes on, and on.
If you stay here, get ready for the hard sell to buy into this shitty timeshare or just don’t answer your phone the day before you leave.

HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE!!! DO NOT STAY!!! NOT SAFE! SEXUALLY PERVERTED STAFF!
WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE!
My husband and I stayed here August 29-​Sept 2, 2015. We chose to leave 5 days earlier than scheduled!!!
The hotel has a gift shop, I asked to try on 3 bikinis and two shorts. A male employee named Efren opened a dressing room. After I took off the last bikini and was standing there naked, I noticed something on the top left corner of the dressing room door. The employee, Efren, had been recording me naked as I tried on clothes with his cell phone. I screamed and yelled and cried. I went as far as calling the police. Nothing was done. It was basically my word against his. This has been the worst experience of my life.
I waited 8 months to come to Cancun and now I will always think of it with disgust and fear. DO NOT STAY HERE. PROTECT YOUR WIFE, YOUR MOM, YOUR DAUGHTER!
I know this could have happened anywhere, but it didnt. It happened here.
Their answer to me was that employees arent allowed to carry cell phones while on duty, I work in Human Resources and have been in management for years. People are people and employees dont always obey rules. You’d have to be naïve to think all employees follow policies. When there, management, and Efren told me employees keep their phones «in the back» now their response is that its kept in the front, at the register… bottomline, STAY AWAY!!! PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY. THEY PLAY PERVERTED GAMES EXPLOITING INNOCENT GUESTS! Please be careful!!! I know I am NOT THE FIRST TOURIST THEY DO THIS TOO! I just happened to be the one that caught him!
I was able to describe Efren’s phone. I told them it was red. While they took my statement Efren broke his phone. When they showed it to me, the whole back had been broken off, just the front was red, yet they still denied it. All including their head of security, said unanimously that Efren’s phone had «always» been broken and conveniently all surviellance cameras were broken! They assured me it was an American who had done it.
I am Mexican and I am DISGUSTED BY THESE PEOPLE!!! PROTECT YOUR FAMILY! STAY AWAY!

I’d like to give the Royal Sands five stars but I just can’t. But don’t get me wrong this place is a great value.
What led me to this resort was definitely the price. All inclusive with airfare for $ 1200 a piece was a price point we just couldn’t pass up
The rooms and hotel facilities were pretty good. all of the rooms have a pool and ocean view plus a large balcony to hang out and relax. That was great. The suites we’re extra spacious but we didn’t spend a lot of time in the room anyway. The beach and pool Area were kept spotless but seating was limited during spring break. You needed to get up extra early in order to get a prime spot.
Food was OK. Not nearly as bad as I was expecting based on other reviews. The buffet was where we usually ended up out of convenience and it was adequate. There are other restaurants along the strip that you can go to that are part of the all-​inclusive deal. I definitely recommend Captains Cove. The drinks offered with the deal are tap Corona or bottom shelf liquor. My kids did get dozens of virgin mudslides made for them at the pool bar and buffet.
Service was subpar. That is what brought my review down from five stars to four. Room service was a 1 to 2 hour wait which is OK but just disclose that to me when I’m ordering. I took 90 minutes for breakfast one morning and evening wine never showed up at all. I even brought a roll of American cash down to the pool every day in order to entice one of the wait staff to pay extra attention to us. That didn’t work. I still had to constantly get up and find my own beverage or food from the bar.
Would I go back?. Probably. It was a great deal.

5 star all the way. I’ve stayed here twice and my more recent stay was last month. The grounds are impeccable. Front desk check in and check out so quick. The pools are sparkling. I prefer the smaller pools (which are still huge) next to the char hut. Servers friendly and accommodating. I just can’t say enough. True they only have one ale cart and buffet restaurant on site for inside dining but every night is a different theme. Live music. Fresh delicious food. Amazing pastries. Love this place will def stay again!
I didn’t find there to be any issues with the AI. Expansive, clean, friendly hotel.

Beautiful hotel, great food, great service, and kid friendly! Definitely a luxury get away!

Was a little hesitant when booking because of a few negative reviews I had read — but I would not hesitate to stay here again.
Check in was fast, the location is beautiful, just a 5 minute drive from the party area of Cancun. There’s no jacuzzi, but the pools are large, and warm. The place is exceptionally clean. The staff is very helpful and professional.
Some reviews said the food wasn’t that good. We stuck to the casual restaurant the whole time since the other restaurants require reservations and have a dress code. I don’t really care for all inclusive packages since I like to eat at a variety of places, but this hotel changes the main dishes each night of the week just in their main buffet /​restaurant, and that was enough to satisfy me. I’m picky with food, but don’t mind eating non gourmet meals. Some things had sat out too long in the buffet warmer and were getting stale, but most of the food was good. It wasn’t bad enough for me to complain since there were plenty of options. There were also roughly 10 other restaurants that were part of the all inclusive package, some were at other resorts.
My only gripe was the fact that Saturday stayovers may require a room change. I knew about this from reviews, and was told this upon check in. But it is an inconvenience. The place is a timeshare that fills rooms with hotel guests. Not sure why room changes need to take place, but that’s really my only complaint.

Royal Sands es un hotel que pertenece a una cadena, especializada en tiempo compartido, ya que todos los hoteles Royal Resorts en Cancún y la Riviera Maya son hoteles de tiempo compartido. Recientemente han metido la opción del todo incluido, al ver que la gente que esta viniendo a Cancún en estos tiempos, busca más el todo incluido que una membresía.
Este hotel es uno de los que más me gustan de la zona hotelera, porque simplemente no he recibido la atención que te dan aquí en ningún otro lugar en Cancún, el único detalle que le podrás encontrar, es que al no ser un lugar nuevo, algunas villas (muy pocas) tendrán uno que otro mueble de la época en la que abrieron el hotel.
La alberca y la playa en este hotel… Excelentes, simplemente excelentes por que los empleados y sobretodo los dueños del hotel se preocupan por mantener todas las instalaciones en perfectas condiciones para que los socios estén contentos con el producto.

This was my first trip to Cancun and my first all inclusive experience. My husband and I went in December 2013 for my birthday. I am tired of dreary, cold, Pittsburgh birthdays! Cancun fit the bill for hot, sunshine, and beach. We chose this resort through a travel agent because of the price. We are very, very picky eaters, so we were very nervous about the food choices. Everyone assured us, «they have everything!» When we brought up our pickiness.
On arrival, our room was not ready. We expected that as we arrived before the 3PM check in time. We hung out at the pool. The pools were amazing. But, the chairs filled up fast and it was sometimes difficult to find a chair in the sunshine. We were told we got an upgraded room with a balcony at check in time. The room was very clean. My only complaint is that there was no fan in the bathroom and it got hot and steamy for about an hour post showers. Also I believe the shower got water everywhere, but hey, it’s not my house so I’m not complaining too much about that.
Now to the food, we started our food adventure with pizza from the pizza snack bar. Fresh and made to order. It was delicious. Thankful it was good, because we would essentially live on pizza. The buffet had a theme night, but that’s no good if you don’t like ethnic/​international food. The snack bar by the pool had great fries, the «burgers» were reminiscent of school cafeteria soy ish burgers. Proceed with caution. The breakfast buffet was always good, although the waffle/​pancake made to order bar seemed to be whole wheat batter, which, you guessed it, the pickys did not like. The made to order eggs were awesome. We ate at Marco Polo the final night, my birthday, because it was finally a theme we liked, Italian!!! I had 2 heaping bowls of fettuccini bolognese. Holy delicious!!!
My only other complaint was our room location. It was first floor right above the lobby. The lobby was loud well into the late night. Think live bands and karaōke. I would definitely request a higher floor if we would go back.
Over all, a great getaway! We would return, we just won’t have high food expectations! We will pack more snacks for sure!

Hands down best all inclusive experience I’ve ever had!
Food selection was so diverse and included restaurants near by. Pool bar served us all day even on the beach including food!
No hidden fees anywhere! Free wifi!
I’m coming back every year!

Front desk staff disinterested and incompetent. One of the managers was condescending after being overruled by his boss in our favor and needs to choose a new career that doesn’t involve customer service.
Take a printout of the amenities included in your reservation or risk being denied what you paid for (e.g., wi FI). «Butler service» included in reservation has limited hours – we had to ask the front desk twice for its phone number since none of the information was offered to us upon checkin – the first time THE FRONT DESK HUNG UP ON US. We went to the front to ask for a garbage bag and were told one would be brought up, stood there for 15 minutes, then saw the guy walk past us, asked him what happened, and he said «Oh, I couldn’t find one».
In contrast to the atrocious service from the front desk, ALL of the rest of the staff were absolutely fabulous, including Kevin who works the villa side of the beach bringing drinks and catering to your every need, also including each and every person at the restaurants and on the grounds.
My girlfriend lost her sunglasses in the surf, and a lifeguard was miraculously able to find and return them. Had a blast on the jet skis.
In summary, a decent stay that could have been SPECTACULAR if not for the front desk.

Meals are excellent. Customer service good.
Room service ok. The best part of hotel it’s in middle of cancun & beach front I love it. We were lucky to have room walking distance from beach. It’s good experience for booking hotel online. We took tour specially to isla island from hotel lobby it’s worth to do. Don’t buy any tour from outside hotel.