Lynda Alvarado
Top-Notch Experience — No Need to Leave the Resort
This resort truly offers everything you need for a great vacation. There’s an abundance of food, a wide variety of activities, and plenty of options to keep everyone entertained. It’s an excellent choice for families traveling with kids and teens—a perfect mix for all ages.
Our children especially loved the circus-themed restaurant, the massive slides, and the arcade. We enjoyed relaxing in the lazy river and appreciated the overall elegance of the hotel. A standout feature was the complimentary shuttle service to nearby sister hotels, which were just a short ride away. The Japanese restaurant at one of the sister properties was fantastic, offering flavorful sushi and a great selection.
Maruthu Chandrasekaran
We stayed at Moon Palace Sunrise for 3 days and 3 nights, and unfortunately, it didn’t live up to expectations — especially as the final stop of our 2-week trip across the U.S. and Mexico.
To start with the positives: the resort is large, clean, and well-maintained. The breakfast and lunch buffets were good, with plenty of variety. There are several restaurants on-site, though most of the à la carte meals we tried were quite average for a resort of this level.
One highlight was the evening entertainment — the shows were well-organized, lively, and a pleasant way to end the day. The effort the entertainment team put in definitely added some value to the overall experience.
However, the biggest letdown was the “tour” offered to us at check-in. We were told it would be a short visit to promote Moon Palace Grand, in exchange for breakfast, a day pass, and $300 in resort credit — just 90 minutes of our time. It sounded like a decent complimentary offer, especially during a short stay.
In reality, it turned into a high-pressure sales pitch for their membership program that lasted well over 3 hours. We ended up wasting nearly half a day of our vacation — time we couldn’t afford to lose. I understand the resort may respond with a standard reply, but I’m sharing this to warn others who may be offered the same.
We also got a chance to explore the Grand, and honestly, it wasn’t very impressive. Having stayed in other all-inclusive/luxury resorts during our trip — including in New York, Mexico City, and Tulum — we found Moon Palace to be the most underwhelming. When booking, I had considered choosing the Grand instead of Sunrise, but I’m glad I didn’t spend the extra money.
Overall, while the resort has some strengths — particularly the well-kept grounds and enjoyable shows — the average dining and misleading promotional tactics made this a disappointing end to an otherwise great trip. Based on our experience, I wouldn’t return or recommend it.
Juliet Lopez
I stayed at Moon Palace Grand for my daughter’s birthday with family, and unfortunately, the experience was very underwhelming. While the resort looks beautiful at first glance, there are several things that made our stay less than enjoyable.
First, the resort is massive—so large that you have to rely on golf carts to get around, which takes forever. This might sound fun, but it ends up being a major inconvenience, especially with kids. The app is supposed to help you navigate with an interactive map, but it barely works, and everything is done through that app. If you’re not tech-savvy, you’re out of luck because staff aren’t proactive about helping or guiding you.
The food was just okay—nothing special. Most restaurants felt very average, and there wasn’t anything that stood out as exceptional. The water park and pools close ridiculously early, which left us with nothing to do with the kids after a certain time. Only one small pool stays open until 8 PM, and even that felt limiting for a resort of this size and price point.
The beach is dirty and I would not recommend swimming. The water is very murky. Stay elsewhere if you’re looking for nice beach views.
The Wired Lounge, which is meant to be a fun space for kids and teens, was chaotic. There’s no structure or staff enforcing any kind of order, so some kids hog the games for hours while others don’t get a turn.
On top of all that, the entire place feels like a sales pitch. From the moment you arrive to the moment you leave, staff constantly push promotions and offers for a future stay. Even at checkout, when I was in a rush to gather my family and check out, I was being cornered with a pitch to book again. When I declined, the attitude changed quickly—they act like they’re helping, but it’s all about the sale.
All in all, I expected so much more for the cost. There was very little genuine hospitality, too much focus on upselling, and not enough to justify returning. I won’t be coming back.
Yelaine Bartolome Sierra
We had an amazing stay at Moon Palace! Excellent food, pools, room service, and beautiful amenities. Top restaurants: Riviera Maya (thank you Eugenio!) and La Cantina (José was fantastic). Buffets were great—thanks to Erick and Suguedy at breakfast.
We celebrated our kids’ birthday with mariachis at La Cantina—a beautiful surprise! The staff throughout the resort was kind and helpful. Everything felt safe and clean, and excursions were easy to book.
The entire experience in Mexico was unforgettable—so many warm and kind people. We can’t wait to come back!
Only downsides: limited use of resort credits, sales offers, and some beach odor—but nothing that affected our amazing trip.
Overall, highly recommended!
Evan Elias
The biggest downside of this whole trip was definitely the food. Honestly, that’s our only major complaint. We didn’t want to leave a review right away, thinking it might’ve just been us — but after asking around, 5 out of 5 people we spoke to felt the same way.
Even the Mexican food, which we had high hopes for, was very bland. No seasoning, no flavor — not even a hint of spice. The Italian food was okay, but nothing special.
Another weird thing was the alcohol. For some reason, no matter what we drank, it just didn’t hit. I’m not even a regular drinker, especially not of hard liquor, and I still couldn’t catch a buzz. We tried different types, but it was just off.
That said, the place itself is great for kids — lots of fun and family-friendly. But if you’re a foodie or even just hoping for decent resort food, this might not be the spot for you.
I’ll say it again
to be fair, it’s a great place for kids — very family-friendly and fun. But considering how much we paid, we honestly didn’t feel like it was worth it. The food and drink quality really brought the whole experience down.
My Booking
