Iberostar Waves Quetzal - All Inclusive

Customer ratings & reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

9179 reviews

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  Highly recommended

  Our 7 day all inclusive vacation was booked via Air Transat as part of a package departing from Toronto around the second week of January. The cost pp was around $2,400 with the trip being booked approximately 9 months in advance. We arrived at the resort around 1:30 pm. We were promptly greeted and were checked in quite quickly as we were the only group from our flight attending this resort. At check in we were offered an upgraded room for a fee, which we declined. Our room was not quite ready upon arrival. Our luggage was secured for us and we were able to start enjoying the resort. Immediately after check in we were able to book our a la carte restaurants and the process was seamless. There was an attempt to up-sell us on the Iberostar Star prestige, which we declined and there was no further pressure regarding this during the remainder of our stay. The resort is divided into two halves: The Waves Quetzal and Waves Toucan each with their own lobby and reception area. Guests from both sides have full access to all amenities and restaurants that the other side has to offer. The pools, restaurants etc are all shared. The only difference I could identify was the decor in the rooms. The area between the two resorts is jungle-like with walking paths. There is a large variety of wildlife including monkeys, turtles, Iguanas, snakes, coatis, agoutis, lots of birds and few resident cats. There was no significant mosquito or insect activity despite the jungle environment. The resort is very well maintained. The rooms are dated, but are fully functional. We did have one maintenance issue with our room (no AC), which was resolved very quickly once we notified the staff. The resort consists of several three story buildings. All rooms are walk up, there are no elevators. We were on the third floor. Staff was available to help with luggage if desired. I would not say the views from our room were stellar, but given the layout of the resort I am not sure an upgrade to anything more expensive is worth it unless the beach front is a must for you. The pool area was clean and maintained and there always seemed to be pool chairs available. However, those in the shady areas did fill up quickly. The main pool is deep with the majority being at least 5’. There are some shallower areas near the entertainment area of the pool, but it is busy and space is limited. Near the pool there are options for food, beverages and ice cream. There is no pool side service and you must go to one of the bars for beverages. Drinks are served in 8 oz plastic cups with no straws. If you are a moderate drinker you may want to bring your own Yeti or equivalent. The beach is very walkable and you can stroll 20 to 30 minutes either way from the resort. We did this on multiple occasions. If you head off the resort on the road and go to the North there is a 7-11, a couple of pharmacies and some stores with clothing and the typical touristy souvenir type stuff. The resort is a short trip to 5th avenue in Playa Del Carmen if you have a desire for additional shopping. A cab trip for four was approximately $10 each way. There are cabs available in the lobbies and the rates for the popular destinations are posted. There may also be some night life options off the resort, but we did not attempt. The food was typical all inclusive resort style fare. Good quality, a large variety and simply way too much. The deserts were next level and hard to resist. There were options for nightly entertainment. The lobby bar in each resort usually had an entertainer or activity. The main stage had a show every night. The sports bar is quite small and reminded me of my basement. Iberostar has an APP for your phone, which could be used to track the status of your room cleaning and also provides information on activities and entertainment for the day. The staff at the resort were excellent. I would describe every interaction with staff as positive. Isaac (sp?) of the entertainment crew engaged with us on multiple occasions. This was our fourth visit to an Iberostar resort. Our experience at Iberostar Waves Quetzal was consistent with the Iberostar brand. We were extremely satisfied with the resort, staff and surrounding environment. We would not hesitate to recommend this resort to anyone considering it.

  Feb 16, 2025
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  Iberostar Playa del Carmen

  This Iberostar Resort is Amazing! The jungle, restaurants, beach and staff make this resort a slice of paradise. What an experience for all the senses! Jaime Sosa made this experience awesome… with his honesty and integrity shining bright. We will be back!

  Jan 28, 2025
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  Service staff lobby bar

  Micaela is one of the best waitresses we have had at any resort we have visited in Mexico. She switches between the lobby bar in Quetzal and Tucan. We are a group of 10 and she always greets us with a sweet smile and remembers our drinks! Such a very pleasant person all around!

  Jan 21, 2025
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  Excellent resort, high quality services

  We spent one of the best vacations at Iberostar Waves Quetzal in the 1st half of January, 2025. There are many positives that I could mention and truly nothing negative. I will only refer to one particular aspect of their services that we were truly impressed with. We are having a temporary walking disability that makes walking on the sand and funding a beach chair and palapa very difficult. On our first day there while we were struggling finding a spot as the resort was at a high occupancy rate, Omar who is responsible with security saw us and offered us a palapa that was marked reserved for those with disability and brought us beach chairs. He put our name and room # down so it remains reserved for the duration of our vacation. We were truly impressed and could not thank him more. Kudos to Omar and all other staff at Quetzal who work 24/7 to make sure everyone who book their vacation there get the best value for the money spent.

  Jan 16, 2025
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  Can't wait to go back!

  I spent ten days at the Iberostar Quetzal in December. It was my 37th time and it was an awesome visit. The staff at this hotel can't be beat! Everyone is so friendly and always anxious to help and make sure you're having a good time. The food was great and we never had problems with getting into the restaurants we wanted but the buffet was just as good. They talked about closing for renovations from June to December but that has been put on hold. Our room was always cleaned first thing in the morning but sadly no towel animals even though we always tipped well. The pool was a little on the cool side but so was the weather in comparison to other years we traveled at the same time. It didn't keep us from going in! So much fun to see the same staff. Grecia in the office, Mauricio the bellboy, Leticia one of our favorite waitresses, Apolonio our very favorite chef, Omar by the pool, Nataneal and so many others who have been there for several years are just a few of the people we look forward to seeing! These people are like family and are the reason I will always come back to the Quetzal!

  Jan 09, 2025