Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda

Don't even think about it. I cannot comprehend how this hotel single-handedly wiped out my family and multiple other reviewers with food poisoning and/or food-borne illnesses. I have read several other reviews where individuals have complained that they, or somebody close to them, has experienced symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, loss of appetite, etc; all tell-tale signs of food poisoning. Even if I hadn't been sick—my one-week trip to BlueBay Grand Esmeralda was far from what would be expected from a near 5-star resort.

The hotel room

-Immediate stench of seaweed/sargassum -Mold in the inner corners of the bathroom & shower -A pillow case smelled like drool -Beds too small and tough -Dirty mirrors -Outdated decor -The "garden view" being simply a view of the walkway

Originally, I was in room 5118. We (2 adults, one 14 year-old) were given two double-sized beds for the three of us, which was uncomfortable and just could not fit two adults. We then requested a room change (we were moved to room 5318), considering all the problems that were stacked (mold & beds), and when we finally stepped inside our new room, the beds were... the same. Even though we had specifically requested larger beds. Eventually, the staff brought in another bed; a very tough, small kids bed at that. I suggest double-checking how many beds you will receive and the size of them. Also note that the walls are very thin and noise can be heard everywhere throughout the building. Somehow we also lost a one-meter long pool floatie in our hotel room?? We kept a blue pool floatie inside our room, but found it missing one day. We asked staff and concierge yet the floatie never showed up. Insane.

Restaurants & buffet

There are two buffets; Festival and Jaal-Ha. The Festival is the only one with air conditioning. The Jaal-Ha is the one right next to the pool (pool was amazing, no complaints), although you are not allowed to enter in swimwear despite the location. The overall quality of the food is mid, nothing extraordinary. But I did realize that there were a limited variety of options of fresh fruit, fresh smoothies, fresh anything. There weren't any mangoes, bananas, or guava, and the fruits that were available were some lower quality ones like watermelon, pineapple, and papaya. There were never any fresh juices or smoothies. Everything was either boxed, concentrated, or watered down, which was a disappointment. The Jaal-Ha is also where I got sick (we suspect it was the milk, or some sort of lactose, as that can go bad very quickly) and started vomiting, then fainted. Take note that the first responders are lifeguards that are missing a complete first-aid medical kit. 🤦‍♀️ The staff blamed it on "the weather, the heat, dehydration and not being accustomed to this climate". Last time I checked, none of that makes you vomit and have diarrhea for 3 days.

I want you to also note that if you have a relative who came down with food poisoning and cannot walk to the buffet, you cannot send another family member to bring them food from the buffet, which leaves your only option to spend $8 USD for room service. We found this to be a very inhumane policy. Come prepared with a mini pharmacy in your luggage because they do not have proper oral-rehydration solutions.

Location & Transportation

The resort is huge, and yet it doesn't have a proper transportation system. If you don't take one of those shuttle cars, you are force to walk for 10 minutes under the extreme heat and humidity just to get anywhere. The shuttle cars prioritize premium members, by the way, and there sometimes isn't any room in the regular ones so you are forced to wait. See, here's the thing; If your resort is huge, it must have an efficient transportation system. If it does not have an efficient transportation system, the walking must be easy and enjoyable. If the walking is not easy and enjoyable, what are you even doing there?

Overall, I would not recommend this resort to anybody. It's a nightmare to be in; maybe the premium Circle-One members have it better, but it's still sad to pay extra for such a resort. At least the staff were genuinely nice. Shoutout to Victor :)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Amazing all-inclusive in Quintana Roo!
Perfect location + extreme high quality service. The staff is so kind, friendly, and professional. Huge thanks to Chef Juan at Festival Restaurant for the incredible vegan options — you saved the day!
Very highly recommended. We’ll be back.

Where do we start:

Checked in on the 7th July 2026 and the check in process was seamless. from there things just went downhill.

Stepped outside to get into our buggy to have a lift to our room and it appears to have taken the wrong turn and left us in a part of the hotel which looks about 10 years outdated, weather damaged and worn. originally booked into rooms 5341 and 5342, we walked into our rooms to find many faults which could simply not be overlooked. There was a safe which had been tampered with, a door which was one knock from falling apart, and had been held together by thread. Mugs for the coffee station which had cracks down them for a long time as they had already been greyed and discoloured from the usage and the oxidisation of the inner materials, Fossilised animal poo which needed to be chiselled off the balcony and a broken toilet seat. Also not to mention that the roofs of all buildings are patchy, and severely damaged.

Once we saw these rooms we thought, oh this cant get any worse... we were so wrong

A few hours into our stay Room 5341's toilet decided to have a 3 day long session of karaoke every twenty minuted from where there was air trapped in the toilet. immediately after discovering this we spoke with reception and the gentleman didnt care and didn't want to know.

To resolve all of these issues it took the hotel approximiately a week to change our rooms. Since changing rooms weve had neighbours slamming doors, screaming up and down hallways and banging on walls. This has got so bad that security was passing by knocked on their door only to discover 2 10 year olds left by themselves in the room. This issue the hotel cant do anything about and we respect that but with the issues mentioned before and also the issues im going to mention, didnt leave us very happy.

Also was never mentioned that the hotel was undergoing building works so to our surprise coming in and seeing gutted rooms above the gym and concrete foundations and pillars of new buildings by the pool we were not best impressed

Now moving onto the food.

At this point i feel like its fair for me to mention, I have worked as a Hotel Manager and General Manager across many brands including 4* and 5* names such as fairmont, Best Western Premier, Crowne Plaza and also first class Airport lounge Plaza Premium.

The food here is abysmal, there is either a lack of food, The food is cold, the food is raw or the food is tasteless. I've never once had an issue in an all inclusive resort where i have struggled to eat for the full duration of 2 weeks as i have had here. Also to mention that not once did i ever witness food temperatures be recorded.

At the time of writing this review, my party has dealt with 3 bouts of food poisoning, and at 12:30pm today we were once again served raw chicken. For a claimed 5* property this is not on.

My personal verdict of this disaster-class of a hotel is as follows, get new management who will make a change, all these pushovers you have hired are not doing you, your brand or your working environment any good. Then change your food offering as the quality and selection is poor. Ensure you check if foo is hot and of a satisfactory standard, ask yourself, would i eat this food? if not why are you expecting others to.

The potential for this hotel is massive but it is lacking in so many areas. I can confidently say that i would not return even if i were paid not would i invite any of my friends, family or professional connections in the hospitality to visit. The only point i would invite people to visit is if were were making a point of what not to do.