I spent a week at an all-inclusive for the first time. The private dinner and luxurious spa weren't even the best parts.
Emily Blackwood
- My husband and I paid over $3,400 to stay at an all-inclusive hotel in Mexico for our honeymoon.
- I loved our private pool, as well as the spa, cabaret show, and dinner on the beach.
"Spoiled" is not an adjective I've often used when thinking back on most of my vacations — but that's exactly how my husband and I felt after spending seven days and six nights at the TRS Yucatan Hotel.
The hotel, which was featured in seasons two and four of Netflix's "Love Is Blind," seemed like the perfect spot for our honeymoon.
Located along the picturesque Riviera Maya coastline on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, the all-inclusive TRS Yucatan Hotel was perfect for the low-key, relaxing trip we wanted.
We spent a year and a half wedding planning, so the fewer decisions we had to make, the better. And as more people flock to all-inclusives for their high-end amenities and easy budgeting perks, it made sense for us to go with one for our honeymoon.
We took advantage of a Cyber Monday promotion and spent about $2,940 on a suite with a private pool and garden view. For an additional $500, we upgraded to the hotel's premium experience, which included additional perks like a private dinner on the beach.
Notably, this hotel is located inside a resort and shares part of the property with three other hotels owned by the Palladium Hotel Group. We knew that, as TRS guests, we could access the pools, restaurants, and bars across the resort, but we still weren't sure what to expect from the experience.
Turns out, our stay was more than worth it.
Before we even arrived, the staff made us feel like VIPs.
The hotel's concierge emailed us a few weeks before our arrival to ask about our preferences for our mini-fridge and pillows.
For our bed, we had the choice of memory-foam, latex, cervical (shaped to help relieve neck pain), or butterfly (shaped with wide edges and a tapered middle section) pillows. I chose latex, and my husband chose memory foam — both were very comfortable.
For our mini-fridge, we were able to choose from a large menu of alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks, such as beer, wine, juice, sparkling water, and soda. We could also choose a few food items like potato chips and chocolate.
Finally, we had the choice of two full-sized bottles of liquor or wine — we opted for mezcal and sauvignon blanc.
Our room was decorated for our honeymoon and had butler service.
Upon arrival, we were greeted with a golf-cart ride to our hotel. When we entered the room, we saw it had been decorated for our honeymoon. A bottle of Champagne and two baseball caps were already waiting for us.
We also met with our suite's butlers — butler service was a hotel-wide amenity that set the tone for our stay. Throughout our visit, we messaged our butler via WhatsApp to make dinner reservations, book golf-cart rides, and learn about the hotel's activities.
Cleaners also came twice daily and often left little presents, like honey sticks.
Our floating breakfast was more than just a great Instagram picture.
Though we took advantage of the 24/7 room service, we also purchased a floating breakfast served in our private pool for an extra $125.
The amount of food the staff brought for two people was impressive. There were egg sandwiches, bowls of yogurt, fruit juices, croissants, muffins, donuts, and even a little charcuterie board.
It had the potential to be underwhelming (and a soggy disaster), but it wasn't. Everything was delicious, especially the cream-filled and icing-covered pastries — they tasted more like decadent desserts than morning fuel.
We could have spent all day at the on-site spa.
One of our biggest regrets is not spending enough time at Zentropia Palladium Spa and Wellness, an amenity at TRS.
We scheduled a couple's massage and arrived only an hour before to enjoy the other facilities. We tried Zentropia's extensive hydrotherapy circuit, during which we experienced a sauna, a steam room, a foot shower, a cold plunge, and swan-neck jets.
Even though we had to rush the circuit, we loved it. After our massage, we drank smoothies from Habits Healthy Bar in the spa's lazy-river-style pool.
The buffets were better than the restaurants.
There are over 35 restaurants across the property's four hotels.
However, I didn't think the reservation-only restaurants always lived up to the hype, and we didn't love the drink selection. Other than the coconut margaritas at La Terraza, our frozen poolside drinks were pretty basic, and Dos Equis was often the only beer option.
On the other hand, we thought the buffets were exceptional. We dined at Helios, an à la carte spot with cuisine from all over the globe, multiple times and never left disappointed. We also ate at a breakfast-taco bar more than once.
Another favorite dining experience included a four-course, private dinner on the beach that came with our premium package upgrade. The food was great, and the views were unbeatable.
Because the main pool was often packed, we spent most of our time at lesser-visited spots.
It's easy to see why TRS guests flock to the infinity pool overlooking the Caribbean Sea. Not only were the ocean views breathtaking, but it also looked like the primary spot for hotel activities.
However, when we went, there were rarely any chairs or shade available. As a result, we spent sunny afternoons lounging at the La Terraza Pool, a shadier spot between a few buildings.
We also checked out the Las Rocas Pool, located beside the ocean. Although I noticed lots of seaweed, it was still an awesome spot that wasn't too crowded.
The cabaret show was more entertaining than we expected.
The hotel hosted events each night — but the in-house cabaret show, Chic, was the standout event.
For nearly three hours, a group of talented performers sang and danced through various musical eras while we enjoyed a multicourse meal. There were acrobatics, singalongs, incredible costumes, and a group dance party to cap it all off.
TRS guests have access to complimentary tickets, but a reservation fee applies. When we stayed, the reservation fee was 945 pesos, or about $50, per person.
I also recommend attending the preshow. We got there early enough to have cocktails served by staff members dressed as a robot and a mermaid.
Overall, we loved our stay at TRS Yucatan.
Our stay at the TRS Yucatan Hotel was unparalleled, thanks to the great service and our choice of upgrades.
Between the friendly staff members, the beautifully designed property, and the plethora of activities to choose from, this all-inclusive felt like a five-star experience.
Next time, I'd try more restaurants and take advantage of on-site activities like pickleball and cooking classes.
The only things that didn't meet our expectations were the food and drinks. We had yummy meals at Helios and during our add-on experiences, but we found some sit-down restaurants underwhelming.
Despite these dining shortcomings, we still think this trip to the hotel was worth every penny.
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