Best Hotels near Dolphinaris Tulum at Bahia Principe Hotel, Tulum

The rooms are very nice and clean, nothing to complain about the accommodation aspect, it was perfect. The downsides concern: the accessibility of the hotel if you do not have a rental vehicle, the non-existent friendliness of the staff (small exception for one of the receptionists only), restaurant and bar closed, only 1 maintained swimming pool out of the 3 ...

We stayed 6 days at Alaya for a yoga retreat (Bliss Camp Retreats) and the entire experience was amazing. The entire property is breath taking and the sun rises are not to be missed. The location is great, many shops and restaurants nearby. Though we did not need to go to any other restaurant because every meal and drink we had at Alaya was delicious. Carla and David at the front desk were always there to fulfill any request, arrange transportation, and answer any questions we had. They arranged for our massages...which were amazing...which we were able to do on our ocean front balcony. Our room was always clean and they even turn on your AC at turn down. Edwin was ALWAYS around to tend to our group. He was there in the morning for coffee and there at night helping the staff with Dinner. Santos and Filiberto on the beach remembered our drinks after the second day and worked tirelessly serving and setting up umbrellas and beds for everyone. They kept the beach and the grounds clean and beautiful. Ismael and Fernando also worked so hard serving and taking care of everyone. The staff and service was second to none. I wish I knew more of the names of the people behind the scenes because they all deserve credit for the total experience we had at Alaya. I cannot recommend Alaya enough.

The hotel was beautiful, the rooms were stunning with amazing views. The staff were lovely, especially Frida who was incredibly helpful. I felt like I was in a movie with how stunning our room was - we had an ocean view with a balcony pool and access path to the beach / beach club. The bed was very comfortable and the double shower was really good. I loved that the hotel had a small gym, equiped with modern facilities. The hotel also has so many lovely small touches like welcome cocktails, good night desserts, “good morning” messages in the sand outside your room and fresh fruit ice blocks provided at the beach club. I feel there needs to be more transparency with the service charge on the bills - I didn’t realised until a few days into our stay that there was a further section to the bills we were signing that was covered by the booklet they present you with. The bill should be shown in full, or the total placed above where you sign. Whilst the staff were lovely, we often had items missing from our breakfast each morning. The breakfast is also quite small with 1 x serving of yogurt between two. It would be great if the pool could be cleaned during the stay, or some jets put into the pools to move the water around and into the filter. At current the water is stagnant and doesn’t get filtered and a lot of things fly into the pool from the garden. Whist this seems small, when you are paying the price you are for the hotel, these small things should be addressed.

We had an overall wonderful experience for our 7 days spent at Hotelito Azul! We went with another couple and each stayed in the Oceanfront Suites (we were above them, they were ground level). The rooms were clean and spacious. Somewhat limited storage for clothes but we made the best of the shelving/hanging unit provided. The shower is a dream. The maid service cleaned our room daily and did a wonderful job! We loved the treats left on our pillows each day. AC was yours to control. One challenge we faced that would have a simple fix was the lack of rugs in the room. You’re walking through sand to get to your room and yes, there’s a bucket of water to rinse before entering however we were desperate for a small outdoor rug or just something at either the sides or foot of the bed to brush off sand before getting in bed. Interestingly, our friends downstairs had an awesome runner at the foot of their bed so maybe just consistency with that would make a huge difference! You wake to a cute basket with coffee each morning and they will refill your drinking water as much as you need it in the room. We can’t say enough good things about the staff. You communicate to them through What’sApp which offered quick responses to any questions or concerns or when ordering food/drink. Larissa, the concierge was WONDERFUL. She welcomed us every day and made us feel right at home and taken care of during our stay. She helped fill out trip with wonderful experiences whether it be tours, great local spots for food/drink or logistics. We rented scooters from the hotel the majority of our vacation days and it was well worth it. We did find the prices just across the street were cheaper however we liked the convenience of renting through the hotel. The food and drink at the hotel is all delicious, although we quickly learned that eating and drinking on the beach does get expensive, so we chose wisely when/how much we ate at the hotel. This just comes with the location. The physical location of the hotel is ideal because it isn’t too far down into the beach strip, which traffic became pretty bad the further you drove in. The aesthetic and details of the hotel are perfect for making you feel like you’re living in a whimsical jungle. FYI to all looking to stay on the beach in Tulum, during April-November or so, Tulum gets a massive amount of seaweed that makes it nearly impossible to swim in the ocean. The hotels, including Hotelito Azul, do their best to remove as much seaweed from the beach as possible, but man, is it an uphill battle. This limited our ability to sit out on the beach unfortunately, because the only relief from the heat was the outdoor shower. Which, again, is lovely, but not the ocean. Luckily, Tulum has so many other wonderful things to do that we did not feel this impacted our trip in any significant way. Those that travel during the better months have a lovely beachfront area to look forward to at Hotelito Azul. All in all, we loved our stay at this hotel and look forward to returning in the future! Thank you all!

It is right next to tulum ruins (10 min walk). This is within the national parc region and very calm. If you are looking for a party place, It is not the best location. But, Peace seekers and travellers who just want to enjoy beautiful tulum beach; This is PERFECT. The staff and hospitality is amazing.

Wonderful architecture with natural materials and indoor with plant paradise

I stayed for 1 week here, with my two teenagers. We had room D, which has 2 super comfortable king-sized beds as well as another (queen? or full?) bed. The latter was described as a couch but we were pleasantly surprised it was more than that. The room is on the second floor, with a little outside area to relax and enjoy the sea breeze. We LOVED this place. All of the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. The housekeeping staff does a wonderful job with room service, and the breakfast staff is great (Gracias, Abraham!). We didn't eat any other meals there, although they're available. The small hotel has a chill vibe. It's right on the beach, and since the beach is only shared with one other hotel, it feels pretty tucked away. There is a small rocky cliff where I loved sitting to watch the sunrise and the pelicans feed. The evenings are pleasantly quiet. My kids enjoyed the small pool (very clean!) as well as the hammocks and beach chairs down on the beach. The whole area has tons of sea**** right now, which changes depending on the day to some extent, but during our time there was never absent. I still managed to swim in the ocean a few times, although my kids didn't. The main drag along the beach is pretty busy, but you don't sense that while at this hotel. There are plenty of places that you can walk from the hotel, although after we realized it was more expensive to eat along the ”*****” in Tulum than it is to eat in the US, we took the rest of our dinners in Tulum town (recommended!). The friendly folks at the desk are happy to offer suggestions for restaurants, or any other help that you might need. Having a fridge was great; we kept some beverages as well as stuff for lunches there. Do put food in the fridge - it's the tropics, so ants will arrive otherwise! My kids loved the AC, although honestly the week we were there, the ocean breeze was so steady, I felt it wasn't really necessary. There is no parking (we rented a car) but there are multiple places across the street where you can pay to park. Our place was 200 pesos/day (about 10 USD). The only thing that I'd say could use improvement is the coffee -it's incredibly bad. If you like coffee in the morning, come prepared, or go out! The breakfast is yummy (I mostly had the ”Mexican eggs” which are scrambled with tomatoes & onions, plus a small helping of rice, beans, and sometimes guac)....other options include eggs with ham and/or cheese, or else pancakes & fruit. They don't start serving anything until 8am, so on some of our ”early start” days we had to miss it. Overall, a great stay.