El Dorado Seaside Palms, a Spa Resort - All Inclusive - Adults Only

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

6516 reviews

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  Amazing Staff, Amazing Resort, Lets Go Back!

  Let me start off by saying….IGNORE THE NEGATIVE COMMENTS AND REVIEWS! This resort was amazing. The staff….hands down the best. The main pool at Suites side where we were was so much fun during the day. Many activities. Ben and Lorna were fabulous. The bartenders there were the best. The evening entertainment and main show was situated in the common area between Suites, Hidden Beach and Palms. The later entertainment was at the Palms side. The resort is spread out a bit, but there are drivers with golfcarts shuttling from sunup to sundown. They are all so very friendly. The food is great. If you couldn’t find something you liked, it definitely is not an issue with the food or the resort… its a personal issue. There is always some for everyone. They always asked before seating you if there are any allergies ect. The beach was…meh. The palms side was better but, chairs were hard to find. This was fine because we stayed in the pool by the swim up bar anyways. We tried the infinity pool on our second floor balcony but was way too cold to enjoy… i think its just because the sun cant get at it. Make sure you tip! I cannot stress this enough. We are tippers and are so appreciative to the staff. The people work so incredibly hard. And there were guests there that beyond ignorant and rude. Just because you are on an all inclusive vacation, does not mean you can be rude and look down on people. If looking for the Infamous Flower Pot Drink…the only place to get it is at the Mezcal Bar in the Suites Main Lobby. The rooms were extremely clean. Always a fully stocked mini fridge. Fresh towels ect everyday. My hubby and I don’t usually go to the same place twice as we like to explore different places ect , However, this resort was definitely on our go to again list.

  Feb 13, 2026
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  Lomas Hospitality was exceptional

  We spent 1 week at El Dorado Seaside Suites in January 2026 in a group of 3 couples. This was our first trip to Mexico since visiting Puerto Vallarta 29 years ago, and our first ever trip to Cancun / Riviera Maya. We booked using Sunwing, so Lomas Hospitality was involved for hotel transfers and excursions, they were exceptional and very friendly to deal with. Lomas Hospitality met us at the Cancun airport and provided the 90 minute drive to the hotel, with only 1 stop at the El Dorado Royal to drop off other guests. I highly recommend just using the shared Lomas transport. Lomas also drove us back tot he airport for departure with no other stops along the way (about 16 passengers) and led us through the airport to where we checked in our luggage for the flight. The El Dorado Seaside Suites is part of a complex with 2 other properties (Hidden Beach and El Dorado Palms), they all share the same amenities. Hotel Room: Clean and well maintained. Our only complaint was how soft the bed and pillows were. After 3 days I finally thought to contact the concierge to get different pillows, they were delivered to our room 2 hours later - great service. The soaking tub fits 2 people comfortably and is in the bathroom, not in the main living space. There is noise at the end of the seaside suites property from the adjoining wedding venue where they run a generator. You cannot hear the noise from the generator in building 6, but you can towards the end of building 7, so ask for building 6 if you can. Were were in room 6302 on the 3rd floor and enjoyed our view of the ocean and overlooking the party pool. Property: Very clean, lots of palm trees all around. We thoroughly enjoyed how much of a tropical feel everything had (like the winding paths to the Suites lobby for dinner at meals. Pools: The pools are not heated, so the balcony ones are cool (around 78F) but we still used them. Once you get in, you get used to the temperature. The main Suites side pool is where the party is during the day, but it gets quiet after 5pm. Beach: The beach at Seaside Suites is not very swimmable or deep. At the far left of the beach is a cleared section that you can swim, but it's at most 2 feet deep. The rest is very rocky. We did snorkel in here and found a few fish and a large sting ray that swam away from us. The beat at Palms is the more swimmable and less rocky area, but still not very deep (2 to 3 feet deep at most). We also snorkeled here, and beyond their roped off areas towards the buoys where the reefs were and could see much more variety of fish, from Angel fish to Damsels, Blue Tangs, rock fish, puffer fish, etc. We even saw a lobster and another sting ray. The staff clean the sargassum all day every day. The beach loungers are not the most comfortable, but the Bali beds made up for it (some are reserved, but most are available for everyone to use for free). The furthest end of the Palms beach is around 1km from the Suites towers. Food: The restaurants were fantastic, we ate at most restaurants, and were even able to get reservations for 6 people at most restaurants. We were able to get reservations at the 3 restaurants that require it (Asian, Mexican, and Italian). The buffets were great and did a very good job of identifying what is gluten free and what is not, as did all of the restaurants. Our favorite was Driftwood at the bottom of the Seaside Suites towers (most all other restaurants are on the palms side, or at the Suites lobby). The ceviche and shrimp cocktails at Driftwood were huge and delicious. They have soft taco stands outside both buffets that are all gluten free as well. The grill at the end of the Palms beach is to die for - try the meat platter for 2 (ribs, chicken, sausage, pork, steak in chimichurri sauce). The Mexican night buffet and show (Friday nights) was great, all of the food was tasty, the lines were not too long, and the show was entertaining with a Mariachi band. Bars: all of the bars served excellent drinks, we recommend frozen Amaretto Sours, Mudslides, and Mango Daquaris with coconut rum. The Flower Pot drink (from the Mezcalito bar) is delicious and tastes like a Mudslide. The Mezcal Breeze (from Mezcalito) is delicious before/after a meal. Excursions: Lomas hospitality includes some excursions for free, including a cave/cenote tour, water park, Maroma beach/catamaran tour, and more. We only did the cave/cenote tour at Aktun Chen and we loved it. It was about 30 minutes from the hotel, 2 caves which were easily navigated, then swimming in a mostly covered cenote. The dirt road ride to the cenote was the most exciting, like being on a roller coaster. They also had some animals there like rescued monkeys, some deer, wild boars, we even saw a turkey. Our only complaints are: 1 - the coffee. Yes they provide coffee, but it's very weak. Our solution was to ask for a shot of espresso (or two) to add to the coffee at restaurants. There is a Starbucks in the Palms lobby, but you have to pay for it and it was only open 9am-5pm. 2 - the bed/pillows being too soft. We asked the concierge for different pillows and had them delivered in 2 hours 3 - smoking on the balconies. I'm not opposed to people smoking in the smoking sections, but smoking on the balconies stopped our enjoyment and use of the balconies at times. We even found cigarette butts in the balcony pools in the mornings (very disrespectful). One of our group members was a smoker of cigars and only enjoyed them in the smoking sections which he was fine with, but other guests still complained about it - I feel like they should provide a better area for smokers as they are really restricted here.

  Feb 02, 2026
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  Great food and drink !

  We had a nice week at the Seaside Suites. Rooms are large and modern. Reasonable value for money as we got a deal booking about 6 months in advance. Pools were icy cold. Both the main pool and the swim up attached to the room. Ocean was very warm and lovely. Beaches are shallow and great for wading around and snorkeling. Perfect for non swimmers. Not the best for true beach fans but we made due. Beach was mostly clean but we had sargassum two days. Food and drink was fantastic. Loved the beach bbq (Frontera). Only oddity is the difficulty in finding a spot on special event nights. They close the buffet, which I find extremely unusual. If the wait is long, or you don't like the items at the special event you are forced into room service due to the high demand at the a la cartes. Those were good but difficult to book. Highly recommend the flower pot from Mezcalitos. Best drinks on the resort and worth the trip to the lobby ! Would likely return but would choose the Palms side as more food options, better beach and entertainment were over there.

  Jan 31, 2026
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  Seaside Suites Very Loud

  CON: We were at Seaside Suites on main floor, swimup room to main pool. Beautiful view. However as this was the party pool during the day....12 to 5, it was very, very loud...not our vibe. Being there for 7 days, it got to be too much. Advice is don't stay on Suites side if you're looking to enjoy quiet afternoons at your own swimup room. Palms side does have swimup rooms and looked beautiful. We would stay at Palms side next time. PRO: Food is very, very good. Italian and Asian restaurants were excellent. Breakfests at Driftwood delicious. You can also order off the menu at breakfest. Buffet also good at Suites side. As everyone says, beach not great for swimming. We did go in though. But relaxing on Bali bed looking at the ocean was lovely. Patricia, our server, was excellent. She came by often and told us when she was going on breaks. Asaf in Concierge was very helpful! Wonderful staff there. The catamaran/snorkeling/Beach excursion was fabulous. This is included. Highly recommend. All drinks and food included as well. Beach there is gorgeous. Mexican entertainment and dinner Friday night (6:30) at outdoor plaza area in front of Palms Lobby...excellent! Fire Show and International Buffet on Tuesday. Would definitely recommend El Dorado, but would just advise that as the Suites side is party central EVERY day, ensure this is for you before you book.

  Jan 29, 2026
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  Low expectations/high rewards!

  Based on negative reviews I was getting worried to go to seaside suites. I simply do not understand the negative reviews. Of course there’s always room for improvement, but overall this resort is excellent. All resorts have pros and cons to them. Here is my honest review based on approx 10-15 other resorts throughout Mexico! -Private transfer was 1hr 20 in rush hour -reception/bell boys smooth and timely -room #7408 very clean and nice with great views. (Here’s a big negative. ..Building 7 is by a very loud generator that seems to be permanently running. We did not hear it at night but our family in another room did) -seaside suites is essentially one restaurant and one large afternoon party pool. No beach here but Bali beds and loungers a plenty if beach doesn’t interest you. -seaside suites lobby is very seperate from resort itself. It houses two à la carte restaurants and the main buffet. -seaside palms is where the “beauty” is. Lush green, manicured grounds with a beautiful beach by average standards. It is beautiful clear water but goes no higher than mid waist ish. You do need water shoes but otherwise we loved bobbing in ocean everyday. There’s several pools on this side but they are quiet and anticlimatic really. -The Towel “game” is strong here. If you are not picky there’s always loungers. If you want the beach with shade on loungers or Bali beds then you better get up early. My husband went at 6:30 one morning and got the last Bali bed. -I would say you can walk from seaside suites to seaside palms beach in approx 10 minutes. You can always wait for a golf cart if you like. The grounds at frontera bar are stunning I will attach pics. À la cartes are all very good and you should reserve with your concierge on arrival day. We had no issues booking we loved every meal except for La Carreta. Blah. Best lunch spot for us was by palms called trattoria. There’s only two places on entire resort to get guacamole and this is one of em. Pizza is awesome and so are burritos. (Second place for guac is at frontera bar beach grill) We really loved th “more inclusive” model. All meals could be à la cartes if you wanted (meaning off menu and being served). Three à la cartes need reservations but otherwise à la cartes are first come first served. No cheap plastic bracelets to wear at resort and they offer 3-4 excursions. I am not familiar with them but I think they are -water slides - playa del 4-5 hours l. Tequila tasting. Jewellery store. Shopping on 5th ave -maroma beach/catamaran full day. This one is good. Department at 8 am by bus or van and spend part of day at maroma beach and part of day on catamaran. You can also opt out of catamaran and just spend the day at the beach. All food and drink is covered for this day. I think that is all for now- we would return in a heart beat!

  Jan 28, 2026