I am trying to decide between these three resorts. The Bahia Principe Tulum gets the best reviews, but it looks a little stark and bright (not much shaded area). Can any of you help me decide which to stay at? (The exact choices are Barcelo Maya Beach Resort, Bahia Principe Tulum, and El Dorado Royale).

Thanks so much!!

My husband and I stayed at the Bahia Principe and absolutely loved it. We spent the majority of our time outside under a hut. There's plenty of shade and this is a five star resort. We stayed on the newer side and only complaint was hard beds!

barcelo for me was great - no flaw
and very good for snorkle / snorkling.
room soundproof.
my stay was during the last weeks of november 2003
.
have a good times
leon / brussels belgium

We stayed at the El Dorado Royale last year. We have been to Cancun at least 8 times and this is the 1st resort that we would definitely go back to. Friendly staff, great shows at nite. Food was excellent. Rooms were nice/fridge stocked everyday with beer/pop/water. Would definitely recommend to anyone

El Dorado Royale is overrated by a minimum of a full star - it was so bad we pursued, and got, a full rebate from our travel agent - and we transferred to a legit resort. One of the couples we met there the same week is still in court over the same issue. They also have a related property also termed the El Dorado - BE SMART - STAY AWAY!

WE STAYED AT THE EL DORADO ROYALE
FOR OUR HONEYMOON. THE SERVICE WAS
WONDERFUL, LOTS OF LITTLE INCLUDED
EXTRAS. THE RESORT SENT A LIMO TO PICK US UP AT THE AIRPORT... MUCH NICER THAN THE SHUTTLE BUSSES AND VANS!
THE ROOMS WERE IMMACULATE AND FOOD WAS
AMAZING! THE ONLY SMALL PROBLEM WE FOUND WAS THAT YOU HAD TO WAKE UP EARLY TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT FOR DINNER!
WE'VE BEEN TO THE BAHIA PRINCIPE AND ARE HEADING BACK THERE THIS WEEK... IF THE BEACH IS YOUR BIG DRAW... IT'S THE BETTER PLACE TO GO. THE BEACH AT THE ELDORADO ROYALE IS VERY ROCKY, AND NOT GREAT FOR SWIMMING. YOU SHOULD BRING WATER SHOES, LOTS OF PEOPLE HAD THEIR FEET CUT FROM THE CORAL IN THE WATER.
HOPE THIS HELPS.

stay at BARCELO! IM GOING IN A WEEK AND EVERY1 I KNOW THAT WENT THERE LOOOOOVED IT! THE BAHIA IS FOR LOSERS!

my next stay in mexico will be to bahia principle . I went to barcelo four times already . It was amazing but my last stay was disappointing as our service went down as per the years before !!! It is a nice resort and I hope their servic goes back to the top knotch it used to be . By the way our room attendant's name was geraldo / We stayed last time for two weeks , and he only came by three days throughout that time ...looking for tips ....which we did give. They never informed the guest that a large sailing competition group would be there to take over the resort, which had many other I talked to upset as they decided they deserved more catering to than the other guests !

I have not stayed at bahia as yet , but am looking forward to it . I have received alot og good comments about it . I can not comment on a place myslef I have not been .Going forward having gone their four consecutive years in a row . It has been a good hotel , though I have seen some of the service go down a bit .Stil yet its a good hotel , I am sure you would have a good time . The beach is geaorgous . I am not sure what you are exactly looking for with shade . I only had one bad experience of a resort , and that was the allergro in cozumel . Much smaller than the ones in the myan riviera , and I had to suffer march break with imature teenagers. tHE BEACH WAS NOT AS LARGE AS WELL WITH ONE SIDE BEING FULL OF ROCKS /SHELLS....hard to walk on

[font=Times New Roman] [/font][B] This resort was no less than perfect. My wife and I just got back this past Sunday from our honeymoon there and were treated like we owned the place. Once here there are several places you can go that are very close by but there is no reason to travel beyond the resort itself. There are 6 different venues to eat and too many bars to count. They offer snorkleing, wave runners, candelight dinners on the beach, 24 hour room service, the room was always clean and fully stocked with anything and everything you would ever need. We are already planning our trip for next year for our one year anniversary to go back to this soon to be anual stop for us.