We officially are not Grand Park Royal fans. We had a fantastic room – I think they referred to it as an Ambassador Room (rm 2226). It had two full baths; a bedroom with two queen beds; a large sitting/living room with a Murphy bed; a balcony that seated two off the bedroom; a balcony that seated two that was off the living room; and a full slider window off the living room that led to a large deck where there was a king sized outdoor bed (is that a cabana bed?) and a table for four. The beds were ok – the pillows were hard. The water pressure and heat was fantastic (though the sink in Roger’s room leaked – we never reported it because we didn’t want to have maintenance in to fix it). So that’s what was great about the GPR.
Here’s why I didn’t like it. If you wanted to eat at a sit-down restaurant, where you order off the menu, you had to stand in line at 8 a.m. – and we were told they were usually full by 9:30. If you’re a diver, when are you going to do this? I understand that the ‘members’ could make reservations without standing in the line, and they almost always choose the Italian restaurant and filled it. They may as well have called it the “members only club”. We got in one night because I begged them to break the rules for my birthday (and they fit us in two days later – on a Saturday night when the attendance was light due to it being a travel day!).
The GPR is a very large property. While we were there probably 80% of the guests were Spanish speaking. Someone else had said that he felt like the locals working on property were treated as ‘less than’ by the Spanish speaking travelers. I saw a little of that as well. When we have stayed at Fiesta Americana we noticed most of the guests spoke Spanish as well – but it was a different clientele. The folks at FA were kinder and less ‘rude’ than at GPR. Examples at GPR: when folks were getting off an elevator the people waiting WOULD NOT MOVE to allow them passage. I watched once as the doors closed because they couldn’t get off! Walking along the pathways people wouldn’t move to the side – it was expected that we would jump onto the grass for them to pass by. Maybe it was a ‘members mindset’?
The place felt like an amusement park – with tons of stuff for little kids to do. The pool and surrounding area was like a water park. The squealing of children was from dawn to dusk – and it was in the middle of the place. I wouldn’t have intentionally brought my children here because it was overstimulating for ME – my kids wouldn’t have done well here.
Because it was so large it felt impersonal. We had one breakfast waiter that I requested every morning and by the end of the week I finally felt like there was a bit of a personal connection (and that’s important for me – otherwise I just feel like a number).
If you have a family member who has a mobility issue you’ll probably want to avoid this place. Arriving and leaving each day requires going up and down a cobbled hill – unless you’re using a taxi. Throughout the property there is cobblestone – except inside the hotel where there are polished tiles that are very slippery when wet.
The food at the Italian restaurant was good. I ordered a soup that was just a little warmer than tepid – and I’m not sure why that happens. Same thing happened on our only other sit-down dinner at the Mexican restaurant when my soup was room temp. Otherwise, we were eating in the buffet – which was just ok. Not bad. Just ok.
We went to Ernesto’s for dinner one evening – great as always. And we went to Blue Angel one night and they were awesome. The same guy was working there as other times we’ve been there – he’s enthusiastic, kind, and funny. It may be his schtick – but I think this is just ‘who he is’ and I appreciate his attention to detail and customer service. Doesn’t hurt that the Green Curry lionfish was wonderful, as was my ‘Ohana’ dessert (I think that’s what it was called) – it had peanut butter tequila, ice cream, a brownie on the bottom and a truffle on top – served in a martini glass. Yum!
DrRich – yes, they have a beach area but I didn’t pay much attention to it. We only went there one night when the buffet was served at the beachside restaurant.
We booked this place on RCI points and could only go Sunday to Sunday, so we moved to Casa del Mar for our last two nights. I had a palpable feeling of relief going back to a smaller property, where I could view the sunset without a frenetic amount of constant action all around me. We really like Casa del Mar (but we always stay in a cabana at CDM and that makes a world of difference).
We’re discovering we like smaller properties where we can connect to other people. Because GPR was so large, and most of the guests speak Spanish and were traveling with extended families, we felt cut off from everyone around us. Always looking for new places to go though. Anyone been to Village Tan Koh? Thinking about doing Palmar too.
Dove with Jungle Divers – wonderful as always – see previous reviews.
I will post a separate review about my dental work ...
Here’s why I didn’t like it. If you wanted to eat at a sit-down restaurant, where you order off the menu, you had to stand in line at 8 a.m. – and we were told they were usually full by 9:30. If you’re a diver, when are you going to do this? I understand that the ‘members’ could make reservations without standing in the line, and they almost always choose the Italian restaurant and filled it. They may as well have called it the “members only club”. We got in one night because I begged them to break the rules for my birthday (and they fit us in two days later – on a Saturday night when the attendance was light due to it being a travel day!).
The GPR is a very large property. While we were there probably 80% of the guests were Spanish speaking. Someone else had said that he felt like the locals working on property were treated as ‘less than’ by the Spanish speaking travelers. I saw a little of that as well. When we have stayed at Fiesta Americana we noticed most of the guests spoke Spanish as well – but it was a different clientele. The folks at FA were kinder and less ‘rude’ than at GPR. Examples at GPR: when folks were getting off an elevator the people waiting WOULD NOT MOVE to allow them passage. I watched once as the doors closed because they couldn’t get off! Walking along the pathways people wouldn’t move to the side – it was expected that we would jump onto the grass for them to pass by. Maybe it was a ‘members mindset’?
The place felt like an amusement park – with tons of stuff for little kids to do. The pool and surrounding area was like a water park. The squealing of children was from dawn to dusk – and it was in the middle of the place. I wouldn’t have intentionally brought my children here because it was overstimulating for ME – my kids wouldn’t have done well here.
Because it was so large it felt impersonal. We had one breakfast waiter that I requested every morning and by the end of the week I finally felt like there was a bit of a personal connection (and that’s important for me – otherwise I just feel like a number).
If you have a family member who has a mobility issue you’ll probably want to avoid this place. Arriving and leaving each day requires going up and down a cobbled hill – unless you’re using a taxi. Throughout the property there is cobblestone – except inside the hotel where there are polished tiles that are very slippery when wet.
The food at the Italian restaurant was good. I ordered a soup that was just a little warmer than tepid – and I’m not sure why that happens. Same thing happened on our only other sit-down dinner at the Mexican restaurant when my soup was room temp. Otherwise, we were eating in the buffet – which was just ok. Not bad. Just ok.
We went to Ernesto’s for dinner one evening – great as always. And we went to Blue Angel one night and they were awesome. The same guy was working there as other times we’ve been there – he’s enthusiastic, kind, and funny. It may be his schtick – but I think this is just ‘who he is’ and I appreciate his attention to detail and customer service. Doesn’t hurt that the Green Curry lionfish was wonderful, as was my ‘Ohana’ dessert (I think that’s what it was called) – it had peanut butter tequila, ice cream, a brownie on the bottom and a truffle on top – served in a martini glass. Yum!
DrRich – yes, they have a beach area but I didn’t pay much attention to it. We only went there one night when the buffet was served at the beachside restaurant.
We booked this place on RCI points and could only go Sunday to Sunday, so we moved to Casa del Mar for our last two nights. I had a palpable feeling of relief going back to a smaller property, where I could view the sunset without a frenetic amount of constant action all around me. We really like Casa del Mar (but we always stay in a cabana at CDM and that makes a world of difference).
We’re discovering we like smaller properties where we can connect to other people. Because GPR was so large, and most of the guests speak Spanish and were traveling with extended families, we felt cut off from everyone around us. Always looking for new places to go though. Anyone been to Village Tan Koh? Thinking about doing Palmar too.
Dove with Jungle Divers – wonderful as always – see previous reviews.
I will post a separate review about my dental work ...
