Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya - Hacienda

Our wedding at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya was a nightmare from start to finish, and we cannot stress enough how badly this facility is managed. What should have been the happiest week of our lives turned into an absolute disaster, affecting not only us but our 160 guests as well. The management's lack of accountability and the disgraceful way they've handled our situation in the months since our stay is beyond disappointing. From the moment we arrived, things went wrong. Incorrect wristbands were issued to the bride and groom’s families, leading to confusion and restricted access to areas we had paid for. Worse, our wedding itinerary was altered without our consent, leaving us with a rushed schedule that combined our wedding and reception into one chaotic day. Critical cultural elements we specifically requested for our Indian wedding were missing, and multiple events were poorly coordinated, leaving guests waiting in extreme heat with no water or basic hospitality. Beyond that, our room had numerous issues—lack of hot water, dirty sheets, and backup of toilets and showers into the rooms, which was reported by several guests. To make matters worse, the groom’s parents’ room was broken into after the reception. Even though the perpetrators were identified, the hotel allowed them to remain on the property, raising serious security concerns. In the months since, private emails between management staff were sent to us where they referred to us as "difficult guests" simply because we wanted them to make the situation right for us and our guests. Instead of taking responsibility for their failures, they pressured us into accepting their terms without offering a meaningful resolution. The compensation offered for the events that were canceled was a joke compared to the amount we paid and the stress we endured. We are appalled by the cultural insensitivity, mismanagement, and lack of professionalism at this property. If you're considering this resort for a special event or even just a vacation, I urge you to think twice. Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya has shown us they care more about pushing guests into signing off on issues than addressing them. We will not be returning to this property or any Hard Rock location, and we strongly recommend anyone planning a special occasion to look elsewhere. Avoid Preety Jaswal of Preety Weddings – Unprofessional and Disrespectful Our experience with Preety Jaswal of Preety Weddings was nothing short of a disaster. If you're considering her for your wedding, especially an Indian wedding, I would urge you to look elsewhere. Preety was not only unprofessional but also completely incapable of managing even the most basic elements of our event. She failed to handle the specific cultural needs of our Indian wedding, despite claiming to be experienced in this area. Throughout the planning process and our wedding week, Preety was rude and disrespectful to our guests, many of whom traveled from far and wide to celebrate with us. Rather than helping to make our special day seamless and joyful, she only added to the chaos. She couldn’t manage the schedule, which led to rushed events, missed opportunities for family photos, and a completely disorganized experience. It became very clear that Preety’s priority was not us, her clients, but maintaining her cozy relationship with the AIC hotel management system. She clearly benefits from steering her clients toward certain properties, regardless of whether they are a good fit. Our disastrous wedding was made worse by her inability to advocate for us or address the issues that arose, and she was more of a mouthpiece for the hotel management than a wedding planner who cared about her clients. We would not recommend Preety Jaswal to anyone. If you want someone who truly cares about making your wedding day special, respectful of your guests, and culturally sensitive, look elsewhere. Preety Weddings was one of the worst decisions we made for our wedding. Read less

Prior to leaving for a recent stay at this hotel, I read many bad reviews. Some complaints were made of the service, and some were about water damage from the recent storms. I experienced NONE of these issues despite expecting the worst case scenario. Issues can happen since there are so many guests to accommodate. Maybe I was just lucky? Either way I felt compelled to write this review so that others may also make an informed decision. Overall - The staff was super helpful and kind. Sure there were a few cranky ones but overall thumbs up. - There were noticeable damage here and there but in general everything was well maintained and working. - My kids leave a trail of destruction and staff was there to clean up along the way (sorry and thank you!) - Food choices keeps things from being boring, and some were worth eating twice. Job well done. - I think this is a great choice for families. I can't speak for the adults only or single side. Background - I traveled with 2 families. 4 adults and 4 kids. One was a toddler, and the rest were under 10. - We stayed on the 3rd floor of Building 8 on the Red side. - The duration of our stay was 7 days. - This was actually our second stay at this same hotel. First one was phenomenal as well. Rooms - There's a lot of wood decor in and outside of the rooms (i.e. door frames, furniture, walls, etc). This is also a very humid place. So yes, there's a certain smell in the air which may or may not be a moldy scent. I felt that this was manageable once you get used to it. - Rooms were clean. This means a lot coming from me who is an OCD germaphobe. No rogue hairs in the bathroom, sheets were not stained, no crumbs on the chairs, electronics and fixtures were clean. - Shower and tub drains were draining, no backups. - Toilet had a very small water leak from the wall valve that made the floor wet but nothing too horrible. A small towel on the floor behind the toilet caught everything. - AC worked wonderfully. Sometimes too cold when coming back from pool. At night we had to switch it off because it got too cold. The panel did malfunction one day. Dialed 0 and maintenance came and fixed the issue within 30 minutes. - Everything else was in working order. Services/Activities - Called for laundry service. Dirty clothes were picked up within minutes. Called the next day for status and clean clothes were delivered within minutes. - Room service. The options are limited but food is available 24 hours a day which we did use at odd hours. And it's so convenient to brows/order from the room tablet. - Called for extra towels, coffee pods, water. Surprisingly they deliver within minutes. - Roxy Kids Club. I am against abandoning my kids here so I can have ME time. However, my kids ACTUALLY wanted to do this and found it enjoyable. I checked my kids into the club twice during the trip. I recommend looking at their daily activity schedule to see what activities your kids like. - Playground Paradise. It's annoying at first that they aggressively make sure you "check in" upon arrival. But after leaving kids stuff and a cell phone behind, and them tracking us down to give us our stuff, we realize there's a good reason they check everyone in. The kids enjoyed the soft play. - Bowling. You can bowl in your home town so why come all the way to a resort to bowl? Honestly, the kids and adults had fun. It was a good break from the pool activities, and temporary relief from the heat. - Golf cart shuttle between Red and Blue lobby. The kids actually loved this, and said this was one of the "rides" at the hotel. We had a full double seat foldable stroller, and they were kind enough to let us load this onto the golf cart on every single trip. We used it couple times a day to get to the restaurants on the other side. We also left something on the cart once, and concierge called every driver to find the lost article for us. - Water park. They seem to be making an effort to fix things up. On our first trip one side was being maintained, and this time the other side was being maintained. The colors on the structures are fading so it looks old but I think it's worth visiting. It's still fun and different from the pool activities. - The beach was wonderful. Went there 3-4 times at least. Staff came by grab drink order frequently enough to keep us hydrated. The iguanas are cool. - The nightly shows are entertaining. Restaurants - There were a few restaurants closed including the Market buffet due to construction. The Red lobby center area was converted into a breakfast buffet every morning while construction took place. Food was tasty enough. This isn't your epic Las Vegas buffet but was a step up from your usual local hotel continental breakfast buffet. - La Isla buffet probably has the most choices for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in terms of buffet. Toro is a second runner up in terms of breakfast buffet. - Toro was also great place for steak and other meat dinner options. - We went to Zen twice. Both for the hibachi grill. The tastiness and novelty depends on the chef you get. While the same ingredients both times, clearly one was more tasty and another was more of a show (rather than taste). - Ciao which is Italian themed had surprisingly decent pasta options - Le Petit Cochon is French themed. While not quite completely French tasting it was close enough where I wouldn't mind eating it again. - I did not have time to try the other restaurants. - I must honorably mention the pool food options. I'm a pizza snob. While this isn't your LA or NY style pizza, it hits the spot. I would say it is similar to a really good frozen pizza. There's a great selection of pool snacks (mac and cheese, egg rolls, chicken wings, nachos, french fries, etc). There is also hot dogs and hamburgers at another shack. These snacks almost replaces the need to go to a restaurant and lets you get back to playing in the pool. I hope others will find this review helpful! Read less