Excellence Playa Mujeres - Adults Only - All Inclusive

“Excellence Playa Mujeres = no place like home”

There’s no place like home. Our stay at Excellence Playa Mujeres (EPM) this time was exceptionally special. We were celebrating our 24th anniversary and had a group of 6 couples total all with special occasions. From the minute we exited our Kalido transport, Miguel rolled our luggage away, handed … more

There’s no place like home. Our stay at Excellence Playa Mujeres (EPM) this time was exceptionally special. We were celebrating our 24th anniversary and had a group of 6 couples total all with special occasions. From the minute we exited our Kalido transport, Miguel rolled our luggage away, handed us a heavenly scented towel and champagne. We got so lucky because Jackeline, the Guest Services Manager, met us at the door and accompanied us to check in. She has such a sweet, caring soul. She made sure our stay was nothing short of excellent! The General Manager, Sasa, wasn’t too far behind her in greeting us, and we felt like celebrities. After checking in and getting settled, who did we have the pleasure of seeing…. That’s right Vilma, the Food and Beverage Manager and Rafael the Assistant General Manager. It starts at the top, and these wonderful managers are prime examples of how this resort continues to be our second home. We opened the curtains of our beautiful swim out in building 9 (the quiet pool) and Yessi was doing her rounds for drinks/food. We had to stop unpacking and go give her a huge hug. How lucky were we to have her as our server again. She is the best ever and as soon as I found her boss Willian, I made sure he knew. We spent travel night in the Sports Bar with Diant, Manuel and Armando. We love the new location, and the atmosphere is on point. My favorites are the buffalo boneless wings and loaded fries. Danny loves the burgers. Manuela joined them later in the week and she is literally one of the first employees we met in 2020. It’s always like a family reunion seeing her. We headed out to see the Dance Off in the theater, which was crazy fun. When we got back to the room, we had a beautiful swan towel arrangement on the bed and the most amazing chocolate box with macaroons from Sasa. How thoughtful and we appreciated it so much – pics to come. He is a genuinely kind, wonderful person and undoubtedly a great manager. Our first full day was spent at our swim up with our group of friends. Yessi made sure we stayed “hydrated” and kept us entertained with her hilarious stories and personality. Next exciting time was Viva Mexico! The entire plaza was set up with tables, streamers, decorations, a photo booth, loads and loads of authentic food. We tried a little of everything and it was all delicious. The entertainment was unbelievable – I didn’t want it to end. Danny decided to indulge and purchased a bottle of tequila, Casa Dragones Blanco, we had the best seats in the house, front row baby! Yobani was our waiter, and we had him again at Agave later in the week. His personality is so fabulous, we loved him. I’m giving Vilma her flowers, cause this shindig was fire. We’ve never spent Mexican Independence Day at EPM, and I’m guessing this will be a new tradition. Our couples massage at Miile Spa was total and pure relaxation. Addy set up our appointment from our swim out (how convenient), Giovanni and Pati made the day so special. Highly recommend the Diamond Ritual, it is so peaceful, serene and tranquil. Your body will feel like jello afterward – in a good way. Our first group dinner was at The Grill, we had no intention of getting all 12 of us together, it’s so hard for the staff and the kitchen, but you know EPM, they pulled it off without a hitch. I had the New York Strip, it was cooked perfectly and delicioso. Great food, professional and timely service, you just can’t ask for more, especially with a large group. Next stops were the Martini Bar to see Jose, and Prelude to see Jesus, we love them both and they are part of the reason we keep coming back. Nuestra familia. If you know us, you know we must see the Claudia Trevino Trio. All the ladies on this trip secretly planned the guys to have matching shirts. Pics to come… they had no idea. So, we all went to see Claudia sing with her angelic voice and watched the amazing Javi on guitar and Michel on the drums. The resort has such great entertainment all week, but we are lifetime members of the Claudia Trevino fan club. There isn’t really a fan club, but there should be, and possibly my next project. The lovely Jackeline insisted that she prepare something special for our anniversary and we chose to go to Chez Isabelle. To our amazement, we arrived to be seated in the wine cellar (we call it the fishbowl). Just Danny and I, a private, romantic dinner, with candles, roses, rose petals and wait for it…. a framed picture of us from 2017 dressed up in 70s costumes. Yep. They did that. This night was probably the most special for us, the thought that Jackeline, Vilma, Pedro, Paola and Candelaria put into this was just beyond words. The infamous Lorenzo poured us an amazing wine to go with our special dinner, which is saying something about his skills as a Somalia since neither of us drink wine. But it went perfectly with our meals. I had the spinach stuffed chicken for my entrée, and it was . After our meal, they presented us with the most decadent cake, just for us. It was a chocolate mousse cake with whipped cream and chocolate coating on the top. After 24 years together, we will remember this night forever. Kudos EPM! We had dinner at Magna two nights on this trip and both were beyond outstanding. The first was a group dinner for the 12 of us (6 to a table). The amazing Lorena (the most beautiful smile), Gama and Efrain were our servers. I got the seafood special and o m g was it good. This is probably my new fave (with the exception of the pork shank at Agave). I only had the pork shank once this trip, but dang, it’s so good. One is enough for two people, at least, unless you love it as much as me, than get one on your own. You won’t be sorry. And please say Hi to Vianney, she’s the sweetest. Now, back to Magna, I have to give a huge shout out to Gloria, Gina and Jorge (EC bar). These wonderful staff members have been around since we first started coming to EPM, they remember us like it was yesterday, and we love seeing them each visit. I did miss seeing Angel there, but we stopped by Spice just to give him a huge hug! He’s very special to us. Breakfasts were typically at the Lobster House with the lovely hostess Desiree, Daniel, Kevin and Miguel: hard boiled eggs wrapped in bacon; or at Magna with Benjamin: scrambled eggs with shrimp. I just can’t get away from eating the same things there, it’s so good. Danny loves the French toast and the omelets with everything, muy picante! Always with habanero sauce on the side. We tried to frequent all of the bars in the evenings, mostly to catch up with our bartender friends, Jorge (EC bar), Jose (Martini Bar), Jesus (Prelude / Lobster House), Manuel, Sergio, Manuel (EC bar), the infamous Cesar (Martini bar). We found a new recipe online and they all smashed it – Long Island Iced Coffee. Give it a try, I bet you they will remember it. We even played tequila roulette one night at the Sports bar with Diant, Manuela and Manuel, and then again at the Lobster House bar with Jesus and Efrein. It is loads of fun. This gave us the opportunity to see Martha, the Lobster House / Oregano manager. Again, one of the first staff members that we met long, long ago and it’s a must to see her beautiful face each trip. I have to recommend several bar servers, who just capture the essence of this resort: Heydi (we miss your Gin cart), Mayte (study up Mayte, and I expect you to be a bartender next visit), Mauricio, Diant, Armando, Carmen, Emiliano, Rubi, Floricel, Yobani, Yessi, Manuela and Virgilio. Can’t wait to see you all next time. Speaking of capturing the essence, we stopped by Aroma one night to have ice cream / gelato and Armando gave us this cute little cake that said “come back soon” So sweet. How did he know we were going to stop there? Unbelievable. To the building 9 (and other EC areas) pool concierge staff: Alejandro, Fernanda, Josue and Jullybed. We always came out on our patio with fresh towels laid beautifully on our sun bed, towel in front of the sliding door and the morning rain squeegeed from everything. We never left a pool day with dirty sunglasses, which is a phenomenal touch. Best sunglass cleaners in the universe. Everything you did each day for us was a pleasant and lovely surprise. Your kindness, attentiveness and friendship are part of why we love EPM. Keep up the great work family, until next time! WE love Excellence, We love EPM; #epmaddicts Additional recommendation / off-resort excursion to book: (I did a separate TA review for them also) = Two Brothers Yachts. As I said above, we had a group of 12 and Two Brothers delivered the best yacht tour ever. We stopped to snorkel at multiple locations, including a shipwreck, Playa Norte and a snorkeling area north of Punta Sur. Two Brothers thought of everything, the menu was chicken fajitas, fresh ceviche, guacamole and chips, salsa, beans and anything you can imagine as your beverage of choice. I highly recommend to book one of their excursions. Hint: Ask for Fernando, Ochoa, Alexis and Capt Isair. Enjoy the crystal-clear water, fabulous food and awesome Two Brothers staff.

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“Best staff”

This is our 10th trip to epm. We keep coming back because the staff is just incredible. There are so many that I’d like to mention by name because they went above and beyond to make our stay amazing. Jacqueline Z. the Excellence club customer service manager checked on us daily to make sure we wer… more

This is our 10th trip to epm. We keep coming back because the staff is just incredible. There are so many that I’d like to mention by name because they went above and beyond to make our stay amazing. Jacqueline Z. the Excellence club customer service manager checked on us daily to make sure we were being well cared for. She is a gem. Wonderful at what she does. Alejandro, Fernanda, and Caesar EC concierges were awesome. And Anyi was the best outdoor server at the resort. At magna-Gloria, Gama, Jose, Lorena, Sergio and Dulce were fantastic. Reyes and Remi at chez and Johnny at Basmati were top notch. Jesus with entertainment was so much fun. I could go on and on about how great everyone that works there is. Can’t wait to go back soon!

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“An amazing visit even with a hurricane”

We just returned from a six day stay at EPM, our third visit. This time we took our adult children and some friends. Vilma took great care of us right off the bat and checked in with us every day to make sure we were having a great time. We had amazing service right from when we got in the car a… more

We just returned from a six day stay at EPM, our third visit. This time we took our adult children and some friends. Vilma took great care of us right off the bat and checked in with us every day to make sure we were having a great time. We had amazing service right from when we got in the car at the airport. Our check in was easy and our room was exactly what we wanted. We had a swim up suite. We had excellent dinners at Agave (Pork Shank), Basmati (we had everything), Spice (green curry), Chez (Must do the Fench Onion Soup), Magna (sea bass), and the Mexican Fiesta on Thursday. Our breakfast was always great at the Temporary Kitchen Table with Caleb, Laura and Jose-Luis. Floricel took amazing care of us at the pool every day and Josue and Cesar were amazing concierges. The entertainment was really fun- special thanks to Jesus and Naomi for the dance lessons and Agave lessons. Our only complaint was that it was too short. I'll also note that the staff went way over and above by staying with all the guests at the hotel the night Helene came through. They did not miss a beat including having food to order even during all the hurricane issues. Thank you for a very special trip. I can't wait to come back

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“Excellence Playa Mujeres Sept 2024”

Overall I’d give this resort a 7.8/10 The staff is definitely one of the best things about this resort. We arrived a couple days after Hurricane Helene and we were extremely worried the resort would still be in “recovery mode” but the second we walked in, there was nothing but well kept common ar… more

Overall I’d give this resort a 7.8/10 The staff is definitely one of the best things about this resort. We arrived a couple days after Hurricane Helene and we were extremely worried the resort would still be in “recovery mode” but the second we walked in, there was nothing but well kept common areas, and clean walk ways to see. Every morning you will find dozens of staff working hard to maintain and clean walkways, pools, landscape, beach debris, etc. that being said, as well as the staff does to keep up with the resort, the buildings are starting to see some age. It’s nearing a due date of a complete facelift in my opinion. Many of the ceilings throughout had severe water damage and would constantly drip from all the rain it receives and the rooms seem a bit outdated as well with furniture and finishes. The resort had a good amount of activities throughout the day to keep you busy and help promote conversation between other guests. We were extremely impressed with Jesus P on the entertainment team. Every day we looked forward to his high energy and his ability to get people laughing and having a good time. All the bars designs were well thought out and each one looks beautiful and inviting. Many of the bartenders are extremely friendly and well educated on alcoholic drinks. However, the options of alcohol are for sure on the bottom shelf and I would’ve liked to see a little more of a middle shelf variety throughout the main bars. I would steer clear from the Sports Bar for drinks as we were let down every time. Caesar at the Martini Bar was a seasoned pro and if you get a chance to sit down and talk to him when it’s not the rush of the night, I’d highly recommend asking him about himself and the stories he has to offer. Our favorite bar had to be the Excellence Club lounge simply because of the top shelf options. I am a snob when it comes to tequila and having the options of Patron and Don Julio were reason enough for me to do Excellence Club. We loved Sergio at that bar and he was never afraid to be overly generous on the pours haha! Food was nothing special. We were sad to find out they took away pizza at the pool as we heard it was one of the better options at the resort. Magna was decent and probably the best tasting out of the others we tried. My husband is a very picky eater and had issues multiple times with orders not coming out how he requested, staff was always quick to correct it and apologize for the inconvenience. I do wish they had more flexible hours with lunch and dinner. My husband and I are early risers and typically are on the earlier side for meals timewise and we always felt like we were waiting and waiting for restaurants to open and we were the first ones there always because we’ve been hungry for over an hour already. The beach is 10/10. The soft sand and perfect water is something so special about the resort. I do wish they had a couple more Bali beds available as they get reserved by 7:30 am. But there’s always plenty of lounge chairs available. Overall we had a great time. Pros: gorgeous pools and beach, Experienced bartenders, fun staff and activities, well kept grounds Cons: outdated buildings with clear damage to structure, subpar food, limited liquor options if non Excellence member

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