Grand Sirenis Resort- Riviera Maya
The Grand Sirenis Resort, Riviera Maya is an all inclusive resort in Mexico, approximately an hour drive from the Cancun Airport. The area is well known for its world class snorkeling and the multiple Cenotes (natural sinkhole or pit) in the area.
The physical address is Carrtera Federal Cancún- Tulum Km 256.3, 77780 Akumal, Q.R., Mexico
https://www.facebook.com/GrandSirenisRivieraMaya/videos/1724209424314958/
How we found the deal and what we paid
We found the deal through BookVIP.com and we paid roughly $1000 for an all inclusive package for two for 8 days 7 nights. When I say for two, I mean for us both, not each. The deal would have been close to $3000 had we paid the rack rate. Of course, we had to consent to listen to their vacation club presentation on one of the days. I will detail everything about the trip and the presentation as you read more. You can see a full BookVIP review here.
Grand Sirenis Resort, Riviera Maya Review Booked through BookVIP
This was our third trip booked through BookVIP.com and while they are the company we used to book the trip, the have little to do with the trip after the booking is made. It was pretty easy to do. We simply went to the site, found the trip we wanted to do and made the reservations.
Before we knew it we got confirmations and phone calls. First we spoke to the BookVIP reps who went over the terms and conditions. Once they were satisfied with our information, we later got a call from the resort.
Our call came from our concierge, Angelas, who once again confirmed our information and asked if we had any special requests or if we were celebrating anything special.
We answered her questions and then she informed us that we would be picked up at the Cancun Airport.
Arrival to Cancun International Airport
Our flight from Tampa Florida was around an hour and a half. Before we knew it, we were in Cancun. Once we got by the flock of sales representatives inside the airport we made our way outside and found our transportation. Within 15 to 20 minutes they had our bags in a van and we were on our way to the Grand Sirenis Resort. The trip from the airport to the resort is approximately an hour and a half, depending on traffic.
Arriving at the Grand Sirenis Resort, Riviera Maya
Upon arrival we were greeted by Lucy since Angelas was already gone for the day. Lucy helped us get checked in and gave us an overview of the property. Once we were done there we were directed back to the front of the resort so the bellman could gather our bags and show us to our room.
One thing you should now, the resort is pretty large. There is a lot of walking involved depending on the building you are in. Initially they were going to put us in building 24. We requested a building a little closer to the lobby area so they moved us to building 20.
In both cases, the elevators were out of order. This was unfortunate since we had three large bags and a couple of carry on bags as well. To make things worse, we were on the third floor. Obviously I helped the bellman bring the bags up but it was less than ideal.
The Room at the Grand Sirenis Resort
The room at the Grand Serenis resort was spacious for two people. It had a king sized bed, a pull out couch, a desk and a table inside. There is plenty of closet space, some drawers and a small balcony with two more chairs and another table. The only complaint I have about the room is that because we like to sleep bundled up the room did not get chilly enough. But to put that in perspective, we drop our AC down to 69 or 70 degrees at night when we are home. It is not a major complaint, just something to be aware of.
One of the advantages we had when we changed rooms is that we right outside of one of the pool areas. Furthermore, we were right outside the ice cream shop. I tried the vanilla and the coconut ice cream, both were delicious.
The Grounds of the Grand Sirenis Resort
The grounds are well maintained and as I mentioned before, this is a pretty large property. There are golf carts that pass by from time to time but you will do a lot of walking.
What is really charming about this place is the wildlife that roam freely around the property. Depending on the time of day you will see all types of birds, Iguanas, Raccoons, Agouti, Coati and I have heard there are spider monkeys on the property, but I did not see them.
Of course these are just the land animals. The nearby ocean is also filled with life!
Grand Serenis Resort, Riviera Maya Amenities
There is plenty to do at the resort.
Here is a list of complimentary amenities on the property.
- Buffet meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
- House wine by the glass with meals
- A-la-carte themed dinners: 3 guaranteed per person, per week
- 24h snacks with water, soft drinks and beer
- Domestic and selected international liquors until 2 am
- Water, beer and soft drinks in the mini-bar, replenished daily
- Pool and beach towel service
- Non-motorized water sports: kayak and snorkeling (1 hour/guest/day)
- Table tennis
- Tennis
- Beach volleyball
- Gymnasium
- Pool aerobics
- Introductory diving lesson in the pool
- Concierge service
- Room Service from 08:00 am to 11:00 pm
- Disco “AK” entrance and drinks
- Biking nature trail
- Archery lessons
- “Kids Club” for children 4-12 years of age
- Lazy river
We also received a complimentary 90 minute hydrotherapy session for two at the spa through BookVIP.
Finally, every night at 9:00 p.m. there is a different show located at the theater.
Restaurants at the Grand Sirenis Resort
There are a number of restaurants to pick from. As a guest if you stay a week you get three opportunities to eat for free at all of the restaurants except for the French restaurant. Cost per guest for that one is $70 per person. Aside from that you will be eating at the buffet most other times.
- “Tulum” and “Akumal”, 2 buffet restaurants
- “El Patio”, Mexican Restaurant
- “El Rancho”, Steak House
- “Cinecittà”, Italian Restaurant
- “Siam”, Thai Restaurant
- “La Gira Rodizio”, Brazilian Restaurant
- “Ikebana”, Japanese Restaurant
- “Las Barcas”, Mediterranean Restaurant
- “Le Relais Gourmand”, French Restaurant
The buffet restaurants offer a wide variety of food and they often have theme nights. So, you will find your staples that you see every night but they also mix in some new choices every night. The quality of the food is good but our favorite meal of the trip was the Japanese restaurant.
If you like to drink, there are at least 13 bars on property including two swim up bars located in the pool areas.
Activities near the Grand Sirenis Resort, Riviera Maya
The Grand Sirenis resort is rated as the top snorkeling resort in the area. Here is where this property shines.
Not only do you have access to all of the amenities I have already mentioned, you also have access to several excursions off the property.
We booked a few tours in advance with Blue Experience Diving, just outside of the property. When I say just outside, I mean you walk past the tennis courts and there is the dive shop.
Don’t worry though, there are several locations on the property to book an excursion if you would rather wait.
We did two guided tours.
The first was a whale shark snorkeling tour. It seems that between June and August the waters are filled with the enormous fish. Be warned, sitting on a boat in open water can make you a bit sea sick. So be sure to take precautions because this is an all day tour. We left at approximately 7 a.m. and returned around 6 p.m. from our trip.
The second tour we did was snorkeling in two separate Cenotes. This is a much shorter tour since the cenotes are plentiful in the area. Our favorite was Dos Ojos (tw0 eyes) which is an underground river.
This Cenote was called Centote Famlia I believe…
If you do not want to do a snorkeling excursion off property, the beach itself has a reef that is filled with fish! A word of advice, although the resort offers complimentary snorkeling, including the gear, if there are red flags out they will not go out. Not only that, they won’t loan you the gear either. Red flags indicate “less than ideal” snorkeling conditions which might mean the surf is a bit rough or choppy or that there is too much seaweed.
We brought our own gear and we still saw plenty of fish even though admittedly, visibility was not perfect. It was still good enough to have an amazing time.
The Presentation
Part of the deal we got through BookVIP was that we had to attend a presentation that was 120 minutes long. Ours went longer, more like 150 minutes. But then again, we had interest in the vacation club program they offered. Had we been more assertive with “NO” I am sure it would have ended on time.
The majority of the presentation was spent looking at some of the premium club membership rooms. These are top notch, beautiful rooms by the way!
The last part was spent listening to Angelas, then her manager and finally “quality control” after we made the decision to pass on the membership. We felt no pressure at all from our concierge but started getting a little bit of the “used car salesman” vibe with the next two reps.
In other words “If you do this deal today, we will do this. But you can only get this deal today.”
That kind of spiel. That is when we just decided no on the whole thing and within minutes the presentation was over and we were free to carry on with our vacation by 12:30 or so.
We stayed there for a week, this is my review.
Odds and Ends Regarding our trip to The Grand Sirenis Resort
Some of this may sound nit picky but it is worth mentioning. You will have to arrange your own transportation back to the airport. We knew that in advance though, the cost is $65 or so.
The mini bar is stocked every day but all we drink is diet cola. It was a little bit of a hassle getting them to remember to ONLY put in diet cola and none of the other flavors.
I hope this comes across correctly because I KNOW I am in Mexico. But often times it seemed like the people answering the phones at the resort had a hard time understanding English. And on an occasion or two I literally was told by whoever I was speaking too “I am sorry, I don’t speak English.”
Again, I understand that I was in Mexico but the resort was filled with Irish, English and American tourists. I would have thought that maybe they would have considered only allowing the most fluent English speakers pick up the phone when you are calling from your room.
This is nothing that a Spanish to English dictionary cant solve however.
Wi-Fi is not included. It is an additional $45 per device per week. Once again, we knew this in advance.
My fiance has some dietary requirements and it took a day or two to get it all sorted out. We even needed to carry a note around when we ate which is written by the concierge.
Overall Impression of the Grand Sirenis Resort Riviera Maya
It was not a “perfect’ trip but it was still an AMAZING trip. I see why people from around the world take time off to visit this place. The property itself is beautiful, the shows are fun, the food is good and the area has amazing sites to take in.
We were there a full week and we still did not get to experience everything the resort has to offer. I see us visiting the Grand Sirenis Resort again very soon!
