Essence Hotel Boutique by Don Paquito

Recent Reviews: 11466

• User:clherriot

  Trip type: Family

  Exceptional Return Visit to Akumal Bay Resort

  30 Apr 2026

  Overall Impression:A fantastic 1-week stay this April on our second return to the resort. The property is the perfect size—completely walkable without needing a golf cart, and every room faces the water so there isn't a bad view on site.Key Highlights:Accommodations: Stayed in Building 3, Premium Garden room and loved it. I enjoyed the iguanas that came to sun themselves on our deck. Customer Service: Exceptional across the board.Staff Recognition:Omar (Premium Concierge): Incredibly attentive and pleasant. I found an empty queen conch while snorkeling. The garden staff cleaned it and brought it to my room, and I left it with Omar. It is now displayed behind his desk for us to visit next year. Thanks, Omar!Juan: The go-to expert for excursions. He knows the best places to go and gives clear, detailed advice on what to do and avoid.Trini: Consistently helpful and always smiling.Wilbur: Made excellent morning lattes for my husband.Aurora: Served up excellent daily omelettes with a smile. Dining: Excellent food quality. The a la carte restaurants were very good, and the breakfast buffet offered something for everyone.Wellness & Activities: Loved the morning meditation at the Yoga Hut and Franco's sound meditations. Brand new gym with high quality equipment. Daily snorkeling and evening live music were great additions to our days. Highly recommended for its intimate layout and outstanding staff. We will be back next year!

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• User:Travel03030928737

  Trip type: Friends getaway

  Excellent in every way

  29 Apr 2026

  Building 4 accommodation excellent. Immaculate throughout resort. Food excellent in a la cartes, buffet and snack bar. Service excellent. Yoga instructors amazing. Turtle talk by Alejandro a must for all. Sophia and Oscar did a wonderful job instructing us on the paddleboards. Abel the orchestra man absolutely amazing. Aquatic instructors made exercise so much fun!

• User:Teri A

  Trip type: Couples

  Relaxation personified

  29 Apr 2026

  This was our 15th year visiting this particular resort, and 20 years visiting the Riviera Maya. We love this resort, we always feel like we're home. So my review will be less general than most.We brought our son and new daughter in law for their honeymoon trip and seeing the resort through their eyes was helpful in writing this review. They had a very good time but there were points of frustration.The beach chair issue is ongoing and really does have a simple solution. To stop guests from holding palapas at the crack of dawn by putting towels on them and then leaving, require guests to request a palapa the same way they do going into a restaurant. They give their room number and how many guests, which can easily be confirmed if there seems to be too many chairs being requested. The palapa is only reserved when the guest is ready to use it. Sure, some people will find ways to game the system but most will not. Also, the practice of holding a palapa and then leaving the resort so you can be guaranteed a palapa when you come back would be halted. Your belongings, left unattended for more than a reasonable time, say 1 hour, would be removed and the palapa is open for another guest. If you're going snorkeling or swimming and expect to be out longer than the maximum time you could inform the beach attendant.We tend to stay further down the beach so normally can find an open palapa but our son and daughter in law wanted to be closer to the soft sand entry and for 6 days could not find an open palapa.The only other issues were shortages of beach towels, and no where to escape the kids. Even the infinity pools were occupied by kids. For a honeymoon couple, there should have been more of a romantic area. An adults only section. Buildings 3 and 4 could easily be adults only. And the beach activities don't take into account those that can't or don't want to pay volleyball or stand up paddle board. Introducing kayaks would be something fun for us.For us this resort fits us like a glove. While we probably can't return this year, we hope to in 2027.

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• User:Christina H

  Trip type: Family

  Great family resort

  27 Apr 2026

  we had a family trip in April 2026. Overall we highly recommend this resort for multi generational family trips. I will break this down into Pros & consPros: the size of this resort is perfect for larger family/group vacations, it is on the smaller side so no room is too far from another and easy to meet with amenities being in the middle. Bldg 2 & 3 are newly renovated and closest to amenities so try for those buildings when booking. Bldg 3 being the best option but a premium cost as it is not impacted by the noise of the pool or evening entertainment (musicians that play until 10:30 pm). Bldg 3 gives you premium reso bookings as well (but only for occupants of that bldg. & must be done by 2pm day prior). Rooms were nice and the garden level ones very convenient. Bldg 3 guests also get 2 large pool towels daily which is definitely a perk as towel service by the pool was scarce. There were often no towels to be seen. Fitness facility is outstanding; it’s a brand-new gym and whoever designed it and selected the equipment did an excellent job. Another amenity was the daily yoga/meditation classes (5/day) in beautiful hut overlooking ocean were also a great amenity (free).Cons - this resort is so remote there is no cellular reception (even if you have a Mexico data plan) Wi-Fi on the resort needs to be improved, it only worked in the rooms reliably which meant having to spend unnecessary time in room vs outside by the pool to deal with work items (biggest flaw of this resort). Pool loungers were challenging to obtain (if not up at 6 am), we were not even there in high season so this needs to be addressed by staff as well as limited beach/pool towels being available throughout the day. That being said there are a few smaller pools that were less busy and that could be options. The food was just so/so at buffet, often not warm (this could be fixed). Entertainment was lack luster - the female singers were good but others not great. There was definitely a language barrier and while we recognize we are in another country it would be good to have one or two staff that speak fluent English available to assist with inquiries.. not a deal breaker but be prepared, not a knock on the staff they were always friendly and helpful.Overall we would recommend this resort for multigenerational family trips, the size was great for families that don’t want to have to navigate huge resorts, staff were friendly and it is very relaxing if you don’t need to access the internet.

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• User:Thon

  Trip type: Couples

  Not as good as before

  27 Apr 2026

  Stayed here in February, wrote this review when I got home and then forgot to post it! So here goes. I’ve lost track but it’s something like 10 or 12 times we’ve been here. Last time was Dec 2024. We used to really love it but not sure if we’ll be back. Some of the changes since our last visit are now negatives for us - primarily their new system of reservations for à la carte restaurants - but only for certain guests!RoomWe were in building #2 (our favourite) again. What a difference from before. The building has been renovated and the room is much nicer now. In the past the rooms had a scarcity of electrical outlets and people often complained about having difficulty charging all their various devices. Now the rooms have electrical outlets everywhere. The bed was comfortable - mattress was probably on the hard side which is what we prefer. Plenty of hot water in the shower and good pressure. Mini fridge and coffee in the room.Beach/poolBoy what a difference from last time. A lot of the beach area has been eroded away and is quite rocky to get in - never needed water shoes here before but they are definitely recommended now. Nothing the resort can do about this - it’s Mother Nature at work. The poor state of the beach is the same all the way into Akumal. There seems to be more loungers and palapas but I’m not sure. There are definitely many more loungers and umbrellas around the main pool.FoodBreakfast in the buffet continues to be our favourite meal. Lots of choices and good service filling up both coffee and water. Lunch in the buffet can be a bit dismal - nothing particularly stands out and although you’d never starve here, the lack of diversity and tasty food is apparent. Dinner in the buffet is much the same experience as lunch.Unfortunately we had to eat dinner in the buffet far too often as they have a new system for their 4 à la cart restaurants. If you’re in a “premium room” (building 3) you can make reservations but the rest of us are limited to first come first served. We like to eat around 7. But without a reservation you need to line up 15-20 minutes before 6 (when they open) to try to get in and hope that there are not too many reservations for 6 p.m. If you miss that time slot you’re told to come back at 8. That’s too late for us so we go to the buffet again!Overall I think the quality of food has gone down.StaffThis is where the resort shines. Their staff - whether it be servers, bartenders, wait staff, front desk, etc. - they are all phenomenal - without a doubt their staff are their biggest asset. Everyone we interacted with was friendly, helpful and went out of their way to get you what you wanted.

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