Secret Silversands Resort And Spa

I’d love to be able to review this resort but we were unable to take our vacation. This was to be a special trip for our 20^th wedding anniversary but we had to cancel at the last minute because we had a significant house fire just days before we were to leave. To make matters worse, when I booked the trip, I forgot to click on the insurance option. This is where my view of Silversands turns sour. I contacted the resort and explained our situation. We have two kids at home who are greatly affected by the loss of their home so we had no choice but to cancel our trip with hopes of rescheduling when the kids are in a better place. The call center for the resort was very nice but they had to follow the rules given to them and refund a very small amount of our full payment (significantly less than half of what we paid). They suggested I contact the amresorts customer service folks via email to see if they would refund more of what we paid so I did. My response from them was short and disappointing. Essentially, no insurance so don’t care. I am still seeking at least a partial credit that we could use in the future to reschedule this trip but we’ll see. Lesson? Amresorts sticks to its strict policy, regardless of circumstances, so don’t forget to buy the insurance. For us, the lack of flexibility by amresorts adds to an already difficult situation for our family. Fair or not, my view of Secrets is less than rosy at the moment.

I would have easily given this a four star tops but after my 2^nd stay only because the first was awesome, I had a great change of mind. The lady that gives you coupons talked us into this presentation to look at another resort, supposedly for 1.5 hrs. We stressed that this is a SHORT vacation and we only want to relax and enjoy the time we paid for, she never said it was some sales pitch but we knew better. Excited to see the other resort for future stays we decided Hell. Only 1.5 hrs. WELL they took up 3 hrs of our time and totally insulted us by coming up with all these tactics to get us to buy into the preferred deal. They went from 60,000 to 7,000 bucks! Then had a guy come out in a leather jacket saying he just flew in from Spain to talk to us ONLY because we mentioned our future trip to Europe. Seriously??? Ricardo the presenter was nice, but as always once you don’t sign onto a deal, all the nicities go out the window. So irked and over this place. The deception and taking up my time and money. I just want a vacation that’s not hijacked with the bull crap. If I want to invest I know how to seek that opportunity, I don’t need my arm twisted behind my back!
Oh one more thing I forgot! The smell, the stench on our floor omg! Rotten eggs, perm, something!!! Horrible!

My husband and I recently came here for our honeymoon this past November. We were a little weary about doing an all inclusive in Mexico for our honeymoon, especially because I had previously visited Mexico with some girlfriends and gotten horribly sick, but you can certainly rest assured at this resort. We are counting down the days until we can return again, it could not have been better! :)
— The breakfast buffet was absolutely amazing. There was an omelet station, breakfast taco station, smoothie station, and crêpe station amongst others. There were also tons of freshly cooked entrees and sides, fruits, and fresh squeezed juices. There were healthy options, and less healthy options (which after months of eating low carb for wedding preparations was where you found me!). I made my own breakfast tacos every morning, accompanied by a fresh squeezed grapefruit juice mimosa … it was heavenly! A perfect start to help us bounce back from a day of drinking by the beach the day before! ;)
— Every few days for lunch they will do something special in the pool area. One day they were grilling ‘street tacos’, one day there was paella, and one day they were chopping the tops off of fresh coconuts and filling them with rum! That may have been my favorite! ;) If they were not grilling poolside, there were plenty of restaurants on the resort offering lunch — all of which were absolutely amazing. The Oceana poolside has a fantastic lunch menu, that was probably our favorite!
— Dinner was top notch, you are definitely getting what you pay for at this resort. There was not a single entrée ordered that we did not love. My favorite was the hibachi grill — it was delicious and super fun. This was the only restaurant that you needed a reservation for, but it was certainly worth it. My husband loved the french restaurant and the Mexican restaurant, as did I, but the hibachi grill held the top spot for me! ;) You MUST order the churros from the Mexican restaurant, we had these on our first night and returned everyday to have them (healthy, I know).
— Finally, the staff. From arrival, to getting into our cab on our last day, the staff here was absolutely incredible! You are greeted with a warm towel and a glass of champagne, which is wonderful after a day of traveling. Our room (which was AMAZING) was decorated with rose petals, chocolate covered strawberries, and a bottle of champagne for our honeymoon, it was a beautiful welcome! We made some incredible friends with the staff and cannot wait to return and visit them. They all go above and beyond to make sure your stay is exactly what you want it to be, from helping plan any off-​resort activities, to the daily/​nightly events all around the resort. They are always smiling, always helping, and make an effort to really get to know you while you are there.
The beach is not perfect — and I am a beach girl for sure, but the rest of the resort makes up for it. It’s still VERY beautiful, but it’s hard to swim and they have some giant floaties to try and keep the seaweed at bay. That being said, it was still where we spent the majority of our time! Oh and I almost forgot the Spa!!! Most certainly worth a visit! We had an incredible message, did the fish therapy (checked that off of the bucket list!), and once you are done you get full access to the spa facilities … which were beautiful and relaxing.
Incredible food, incredible staff, incredible rooms, incredible views — we could not have asked for a more relaxing, romantic, and fun trip to start our lives as Mr. and Mrs.

we have been to other Secrets location and really enjoyed it– but not this one.
We were there Dec. 23 – 27, 2015.
A series of –seemingly small– things add up to a big disappointment.
Don’t bother with «VIP/​preferred guest» status. Supposedly, this makes you «more special» than other guests, but didn’t really see what was so special– other than a nicer room.
— Access to a special lounge area, with its own concierge and bar which has snacks, desserts and premium liquor. BUT, you can only have the top-​shelf liquor at this lounge– forget about having a nice drink with dinner at one of the restaurants. (the house wine at the restaurants was terrible)
— We were also given $ 400 in coupons for use in the spa, a special dinner, or purchase of a bottle of wine. BUT, you can only use $ 40 in coupons at a time (the average massage is $ 200, so we still pay $ 160…) There’s NO WAY we would ever actually get to use the $ 400 in coupons.
— Another annoying thing about the VIP lounge was we had to return the following day to pick up our coupons– which we only received AFTER listening to a pitch about the other properties.
— Which leads me to this: I was HIGHLY INSULTED when I went alone to get said coupons, was told I must have my husband in attendance with me to pick up the coupons. Really?
The physical plant is in desperate need of work.
— The «grand staircase» that connects the upper and lower lobbies has a ceiling leak right above it. A wet towel and a yellow warning cone stayed on those stairs during our entire stay, with the drip non-​stop. 5 days and no repair made?
— The lock to our room was defective; it had to be replaced. AND the safe lock never worked. We reported it, the repairman came, said he needed a part, and never returned.
— The Desires sports bar had such a horrible odor — of dead fish– that we couldn’t stay in there for more then 5 minutes.
We totally understand that people are there to enjoy themselves, but the decibel level of the DJ every evening was so loud and went very late, it was impossible for early risers to get to sleep. Preferred status room got us a VERY noisy location.
Need much better communication about the restaurants. All the advertising states that no reservations needed at any of them, but we were told that reservations were needed for «Himitsu». We ask the VIP concierge to make our reservations– nope. We must reserve through the concierge in main lobby. We call the main lobby concierge– nope. Can’t reserve over the phone, must walk to lobby and reserve in person.
We were never informed that with this reservation, we would only have a limited menu (since this was the Japanese Beni-​Hana style restaurant). We also never knew that we could have had the choice of the full menu at this restaurant, without a reservation. And, bottom line, not that impressive, either.

When you enter a 5 diamond resort, the receptionist are the face of this place. We got here early after 12 hours of flight. We understand that the check in was not till 3 pm, however Jessica the receptionist did not even think to offer us their guest room, where you get to use it for 30 min and freshen up. After one hour feeling horrible with migraine the door man offered us that room. As I am sitting here and my boyfriend is trying to check out we come across Jessica and I am really trying to forget about my first experience but I guess when you suck at what you do no matter what you will stand out. She failed to provide us with her last name, or security office manager and she spoke in a very rude manner. I will never forget her bad attitude. Be carful to not get hurt on the beach, even though each resort claims their own area of the beach, they will tell you beach is not private its public. This place does not offer good healthcare and we never got to see a doctor. My boyfriend stepped on a rusty nail on their beach and all they did was to take a picture and force him to sign a waiver. We never get to see a doctor and no one even bother to ask when was his last TDAP injection. I am a nurse and we took care of the foot but couldn’t help to think about what if that happens to others, what if they don’t have an access to their medical record? This resort failed to provide care to their guest, staff are afraid and honestly you are on your own. I will make sure to write a review on trip advisor about them as well as Expedia. We never signed their comments papers or their waver papers. It makes me upset that on Christmas Day we left so upset and irritated with their poor costumer service.

Oh my goodness. We were here for our honeymoon & couldn’t have made a better decision on where to stay. The hotel was luxurious, the rooms were spacious and modern and always clean. There were 8 restaurants so always somewhere different to eat and 5 different bars. There were activities all day from 9am yoga to card games at 4:30pm. The evening entertainment was questionable, but there was always live music on afterwards which was decent enough. We also visited the spa while we were here & that was also a fantastic experience. The staff really just couldn’t do enough for you & were always so polite & friendly.
I would have loved nothing more than to give this place 5 stars but the reason I’m taking one off is that the ground outside is really unsafe — both the ground surrounding the pool & the tiles around the outside bars/​restaurants were quite dangerous. I actually fell on one occasion (sober, in my bare feet and walking) when it was raining quite heavily as my feet couldn’t get a grip on the floor at all. Super dangerous. But hopefully someone less clumsy than me would have a better time with that stuff!

All inclusive, should I say more??? Rooms are very nice and comfty, showers are awesome, room for TWO! 8 pools, 8 restaurants! White beach! Ocean can have lots of seaweed/​algae but it was expected for November. Hot and humid with some lightning at night but no rain. Service is amazing! Music, bars, entertainment… ADULTS ONLY. Be aware of channel 14! Beds are AMAZING! The breakfast buffet was to die for! The MANGO TANGO hit the spot! Swim up bar is a must and the appetizers are just what compliments the drinks. The gym is big and decent but it needs some updated machines and stronger AC! Free shows at night!

Where do I begin? Awesome resort. Great service and people. Spent 5 days here last week as a member of Unlimited Vacation Club (UVC). The amenities at this resort are great and very accommodating. I loved my suite, which had a pool view. I was offered an upgrade to an ocean view, but the room wouldn’t be ready until 3:00pm the next day. I initially took them up on the upgrade offer but later cancelled. Didn’t want the room change to interfere with any plans I had the next day. The food, people and amenities were all very good at Secrets Silversands. I thoroughly enjoyed the fish spa treatment. The concierge was great as well as the AMStar rep, who assisted with booking my activities (Xplor and Chichen Itza Tour) for 2 days. I would definitely recommend this resort. This is my 3^rd AMResort under the UVC umbrella and by far was the best. The other 2 were Dreams (Punts Cana and Riviera Cancun). Maybe I enjoyed it so much because Secrets caters to couples. There were no kids running around and the outside lounge at night was a pretty cool vibe.

Un todo incluido con ambiente de relajación completo. Pasillos limpios y habitaciones modernas. Albercas situadas en distintos puntos del hotel evitan los aglomeramientos. El servicio de masaje te da acceso al spa con piscina de chorros, muy recomendable. Las opciones de restaurante y buffet te dejan planeando tu día para comer lo más que puedas. Pero lo realmente memorable es el trato y servicio: la gente más animosa, bien encarada, respetuosa y efectiva de los hoteles que he visitado en la zona. Te traen lo que quieras a donde sea e inclusive te hacen plática genuinamente. Excelente opción para luna de miel y viajes familiares o de amigos adultos.

If you have to do all inclusive, this place is your best bet. If not, go to the Fiesta Americana Grand Corral, the only 5 diamond resort in the area.
Not a big fan of all inclusive, so keep that in mind. The bars close around 11, the food can be average to awful. (Most of the dinner restaurants are decent, breakfast buffet and lunch options were less than impressive) The service is ok… depends on the individual staffer. Mostly honeymooners, Europeans on holiday, rednecks that bring their own large cups so they can get drunk faster, and babymooners.
Spa was pricey, but decent.
Rooms are very nice, probably the one aspect that was truly 4 diamond and exceptional. «Swim out» room, means first floor by the pool… you have to jump in the pool. Pools were nice, and abundant, although I wonder how the heavy drinkers never get out to pee (think about it). One of my main problems with all inclusive.
Highlights are the food at the Japanese restaurant, the Mexican food (not surprising).
Lowlights are the washed away beach, warm draft beer anywhere outside, and average wait between courses at the restaurants. Every meal we had took 3 hours. Also, if you want drinks poolside, the service can be very slow. For this reason, you have folks ordering multiple drinks, which slows things down further. Tip if you want real service.
Adventure snorkel down the road was worth the trip, short ride, short boat ride, nice fish to see.
Also, if you go during the right time of year (August) you can release baby sea turtles from the beach. Very very cool.
All in all its worth the money, but if you are accustomed to true 4 – 5 star service, or are a foodie, you’ll have to reign in your expectations.

We just returned from a week at this resort. Unbelievable. As first time visitors to an all-​inclusive resort, we were very impressed. Through our travel agency, we were met at the airport and immediately taken to the resort. Upon arrival, we were greeted with cool hand towels and a glass of champagne. Our room was ready, our bags were delivered for us, and we hit the beach. Many other reviews hit the high points. All inclusive means all inclusive. If we needed something, we just needed to ask. Service was prompt and impeccable. The variety of restaurants and the quality of the food was outstanding. The staff were friendly and capable, the grounds and room spotless, and the view was extraordinary. Absolutely no complaints. We did not want to leave.
What we loved most about Silversands is that it is a bit out of the way from other resorts. It’s quiet, intimate, and somewhat secluded. Also, there’s a nearby reef so you can snorkel at the reef through the resort (for a small fee), or go down the road a bit for more snorkeling. There is always something to do, day or night. If you like games, darts, ping pong, the staff set up activities. You can Zumba, learn Spanish, or play water volleyball. If you’re in a quiet mood, find one of the smaller pools, grab a book, and wait for the staff to bring you a drink. We loved that there was always something going on, and yet plenty of space to do our own thing. The different areas of the resort had different vibes. If you want activity and socializing, hit the main pool. If you want quiet couple time, hit the pool closest to the beach. If you want out of the way solitude, the side pools were never very busy and always a cool place to read a book. The same was true of the activities and bars. With a few different bar areas around the resort, you could go where the music and DJ was, or you could hit the bar by the beach for quiet romantic time.
While the shows and entertainment were nothing special — not bad, mind you, just meh — there was always music and a DJ at night, sports in the sports bar lounge, or movies shown on the side of the building.
Every room has a patio or terrace, so we would often order room service and eat on the patio. Good times.
The one negative had nothing to do with the resort, but with the travel excursion operators who work at the resort. It’s convenient — you can book tours etc. right there — but they do tend to lie. We did the ATV/​Sea Turtles/​Cave snorkeling. We were told it also included reef snorkeling. It did not. The driving time is extensive, and the excursions are by group. The private intimate feel of the photos are misleading. When we did the sea turtles thing, there were about a dozen groups of 6+ people all snorkeling around a small, blocked off patch of ocean just offshore. You might see a sea turtle, you might get kicked in the face. Involvement from the tour guide was minimal, so expect to end up away from your tour group and trying to identify that one group of snorkelers that look different from all of the other snorkelers kicking up sand around you. We were also promised 17 miles of jungle off-​roading. Try 5 miles through a failed housing development. With rocks. The cave snorkeling was fun, but regimented. You literally followed a rope along platforms and swam briefly (10min) in a 100 yard cave looking at not much at all. Basically, you had time to say «cool cave,» pose for a picture, and then it was time to go. And did I mention the driving time? Prepare for lots of it. Bring a book.
We would gladly go back, but probably pass on the excursions. The resort was lovely. Always something to do, and perfect for couples looking for somewhere romantic to do romantic things.

we stayed at secrets the vine in cancun last year and decided to stay at another secrets resort this year. although i loved how modern and new secrets the vine was, i wanted more of a resort feel, which secrets silversands seem to be.
i had some issues in the beginning, but after voicing some of my concerns, they were immediately taken care of. lulu, the concierge, was amazing to work with and was so apologetic for some of the issues i had. you can tell they really care about their guests and customer service is important to them.
we had an oceanfront preferred club honeymoon suite. our room was 3321 which was perfect since it was a corner room. they had banners on the door celebrating our anniversary which was nice. the room was gorgeous and it had a beautiful view of the ocean. we were on the third floor and i loved sitting out on the balcony enjoying the view and sounds of the ocean. there was a living room, desk, dining table, a guest bathroom, and a bedroom suite with a master bathroom. the shower head in the bathroom was amazing and we actually took down the name of the brand so we could buy one for our home. it was also huge which worked well when we needed to wash and dry our snorkeling equipment and life jackets. there was also a jacuzzi tub both in the master bathroom and on the balcony outside the living room.
room service was great! if you are in the preferred club you have a few additional options like sushi. housekeeping was also amazing. one day it rained so we were stuck in our room and for the first time we saw what housekeeping does. they are very thorough and spend quite a bit of time cleaning. they are very nice too and we were very appreciative of their services. they do clean your room once in the morning and then again at night (if needed) along with turn down service. we also came back every day to rose petals everywhere and fun towel animals. it’s the little things that make a difference and we loved coming back to our room to see the decorations.
preferred club amenities include a lounge area in building 2 on the main level. you have a private bartender with more top shelf liquor options. meredith was amazing and always had our drinks ready when she saw us. i always got the margarita with no mixers (tequila, grand marnier, and lime juice) and thomas n. got remy martin xo cognac. there is also a tv in there, newspaper, all the menus for the restaurants, a chess/​checkers board, and two massage chairs. there is an eating area where you can get snacks, a concierge desk, and a check out desk.
all the restaurants are good, but we especially enjoyed the hibachi table (make reservations for day of right at 8 AM at the concierge desk in the front of the lobby), portofino, and bordeaux. we loved the hostess selene and she brightened up our evening each night we saw her. belmar at both seaside grill/​oceana for lunch was simply amazing! our favorite server and he seriously was amazing. on our last day i had a bit of a stomachache and he noticed i didn’t eat my food. he told his manager, avelino, who came over and told me that he was having his chef make me a gluten free chicken soup to help with my stomach. wow that now’s amazing service! they made it from scratch and it actually did make me feel better, which was perfect before my long flight back home. there is also a coffee shop inside the lobby where i loved to get my coconut coffee drinks. in the afternoon there is an area inside the lobby where they have different hors d’œuvre daily.
bordeaux is a french restaurant with yummy escargots. portofino is an italian restaurant and had amazing mushroom risotta. oceanside and sea side grill have good cerviche. himitsu was their japanese restaurant and they have hibachi, a sushi bar (conveyor belt where you can choose what you want or tell them what you want), and a restaurant. el patio was their mexican restaurant which i thought was also just okay. world café was where we ate for breakfast every morning and they had quite an extensive buffet. you can even choose your own fruit to make a smoothie! ratatouille was a mediterranean restaurant which had light and refreshing entrees.
patty from the entertainment staff was so friendly and we enjoyed the various activities they had over our week long visit. they have a sushi class, bingo, bike ride into town, kayaking, miniature golfing, etc. available. the beach is filled with seaweed, as is most of the caribbean right now, but it wasn’t a problem for us. you could still sit on the beach and there is a private section reserved for the preferred club.
overall a fantastic stay! it wasn’t as new and modern as secrets the vine, but i loved the resort feel and the food was definitely so much better. they do have free wi-​fi throughout the resort which was nice to have. everyone was so friendly and we loved the employees here! we were very happy with our stay and were sad to leave.

We signed up for the Mystic Tours with Tulum ATV /​Cave snorkeling package. The sales person at the towel house on site at Secrets Silversands was quite charming when we first met him, His name was Sergio. It seems that along with being charming, he was also a liar. When going over the tour, he said it would be a 40 minute drive to Tulum. LIE NUMBER 1. It was 1 hour and forty minutes. He said it would be a 20 minute ATV ride to the first swimming point — another LIE it took 5. He then said it would be a further 30 minute ATV ride to the main cave — also a lie it was 10. He then said it would be a 45 minute ride back to base — another lie it was 10 minutes so already he has over sold this trip within his 5 minute sales pitch to us. The weather had gotten quite bad. He assured us Saturday would be the best day to go. I will go on record and say it would be quite unreasonable for us to expect him to control the weather. However, with as bad as it got, this tour should have been cancelled. We endured our hour and forty minute drive down to Tulum (made slower by the driver waiting for another tour group that was following us. (That’s the other lie — he said we would be the only group that it would be very private.) We arrived at Tulum, were dropped off and given an umbrella and a ticket and the tour person said, «Walk that way.» We did and got immediately pounded by the torrential rain. Our umbrella blew inside out and was ruined. We walked as far as the ruins, but were forced to turn back and sit under the shelter of the local Starbucks to keep dry. After leaving Tulum we could not believe this tour wasn’t cancelled. We reached the ATV place and were given ponchos to try and keep some of the rain off of us which was pointless as we were already wet and getting colder as the day wore on. At the end of the day we were shivering. Apart from unpleasant, this was dangerous. In fact, I slipped on the wooden stairs down to the cave and something sharp went into my right index finger, which became infected. I’ll have to see the doctor here about it. Really disappointing.
After we had completed the survey, the person at the desk made a phone call to the location on your resort whee the towels were handed out and also where the excursions were sold. (We were told at that time that this company had nothing to do with you. I must say that is true, in some other ways it is not. This company operates on Secrets property they have paid to be there, therefore they do represent you on some level especially in the eyes of the guests. We see them as Secrets employees regardless of what the actual behind the scenes facts are. She called them and they invited us to come down and discuss this further which we did. Upon arrival we were politely listened to by a couple of the employees there. After we were done they said we had to list our complaints on paper so that they could take it to the supervisor who was at another property close by but that we should return in 30 minutes. We completed the form and left for the requested 30 minutes Upon our return we were asked could we wait 15 more minutes which we did. Upon returning the older male employee said we would not be getting a refund he had asked his supervisor to come talk to us. He said he couldn’t as he was «too busy.» He offered me a T shirt to give to my wife which i found more insulting than anything else. I politely declined his offer.

As far as Silversands itself, with the torrential rainstorms there were many leaks throughout the resort. In the main lobby/​bar area, a huge piece of the ceiling fell. This meant that about half of that area was roped off for about 3 – 4 days. There were leaks in some of the restaurants and rooms. The walkway above the infinity pool also collapsed, which closed off that area for the last couple days of our stay. Then there was the issue of the $ 400 resort credit we were to receive. In order to get these, we had to make a special trip to the concierge who asked that we wait for a representative. A friend that had just gone to another Secrets hotel close by told us that this was their way «in» to try and sell us (rather aggressively) on their time share options. We just left without getting this credit. We felt that was kind of sneaky, as they should have just been handed to us upon check in.
Lastly is the response we received from the tour company (Playaquasport) and Secrets themselves. While a lot was promised by Secrets to reach a favorable resolution, nothing was really accomplished. We found the tour group representatives to be smug, arrogant, and very slow in their response.
That’s pretty much it. Spread the word.

We just came home from our vacation and didn’t want to leave! This was our first all inclusive resort. Let me tell you, I have been missing out! It was great to pay one price and truly not have to pay anything else upon arrival. The staff is friendly, the food is good and the drinks… Oh the drinks. The bartenders sure know how to poor.
We enjoyed the entertainment and had more pools to choose from than days in the week.
We liked their app as well. You can make calls from the app without having to pay roaming fees through your phone provider. It also provides dining info and entertainment for the day.
From what I gathered, the other secrets riviera maya is better for partying, but that’s not our deal anyway.
We booked two excursions during our stay, and enjoyed both (read my other reviews for details).
Our transportation was arranged for us but I would recommend lining up transportation BEFORE arriving at the airport. We noticed the taxi drivers wanted to charge us about $ 75 to take us to the resort. The hotel had a list of taxi fees and it would have been maybe $ 40 from hotel back to airport.
Other reviews complained about people asking for tips, but we did not experience that in the resort. We tipped a couple people but that was our choice. Once you leave the resort, tipping is a different story but it’s expected in Mexico.
One of our taxi drivers explained that the state of Quantana Roo (where Cancun is) happens to be the safest state in Mexico.
We try not to visit the same place twice, but I will definitely try other Secrets Resorts in the future.

This resort is amazing! I would love to give it 5 stars, but I can’t due to a few minor things. First, I want to say what I love about this resort. I love the food and the different restaurants. It is very convenient that you don’t have to make a reservation and you can eat when you feel like it. One evening we had a 15 minute wait for a table, and they gave us a buzzer, but every other night we got right in. I also like the fact that there isn’t just buffets and the restaurants are ala carte.
I love the room! It is spacious, modern, and clean. The linens are luxurious and the bathroom is ample as well. We stayed in building 3 and had gorgeous views of the sea and beach.
The staff is very hardworking and they smile and serve you in the pool, jacuzzi, and beach.
Now I’m rating this a four because of several (minor) things: the beach is small (still clean and beautiful however) and somewhat rocky in the water. We enjoyed the beach, just wished it was bigger. The pools were very cold! Except for the main activity pool, they are not heated and unpleasant to swim in. And the last thing is housekeeping. They did a fantastic job of cleaning our room, but it was delayed, slow, and sporadic during our stay. Sometimes we would come back to our room after lunch and the room still hadn’t been cleaned.
With that said, we might stay here again, and definitely stay with the Secrets brand again.

We just got back from taking a group of 10 people on our yearly family vacation. This is my 4^th stay at a Secrets resort, but first at the Silversands. Things did start off a bit rocky with room reservations mix up, but they made things right and redeemed themselves. When I book an all inclusive, there are several things that I rate:
Facilities — It is not a new property, but they kept everything fresh looking and clean. The rooms were large and had both a shower and a jacuzzi tub. We had a great view of the ocean.
Food — If you know what to get, the food is very good to excellent. The beef isn’t what you would get in the states, but it rarely is in any country. If you do get beef, get their flank steak. Everything else was great. Service can be slow, but who is in a rush on vacation.
Location– This hotel is right on the beach. Great views. As some have mentioned, going in the water can be rocky, but they have plenty of chairs, beds, and hammocks on the beach.
Entertainment — The entertainment at this Secrets was the best of any Secrets I have been to. They did have one magician that was a little lame, but everything else was good. We happened to be there during some important football games and they set up in the bar a large screen and food for viewing the games. They could have worked on their acoustics, but for a make shift sports bar it was pretty good.
Service — If you understand that everything moves slower at the resort than a business hotel then service is great. Always friendly.
I think one of the biggest keys to enjoying your stay here is your expectations. I understand that price can set expectations and since we received a very good deal, they far exceeded our expectations. If you are expecting a Ritz or a Four Seasons, you might be disappointed. If you are expecting a Marriott or a Hilton level of property you will be very pleased.
My biggest complaint is the Scuba company that they allow to work out of one of their buildings. They were HORRIBLE. Dangerous and disorganized, but since this review is not about them, I won’t go into detail.

We had our Best vacation ever! The staff is very friendly and the place has very good food. We stayed for a week and did not want to leave. Adults only a plus! Life music every night and shows. The French restaurant is to die for. Definitely we will be back. If not at this resort, maybe another, but it must be Secrets. We both loved it here!

My brother got married here. What a great all inclusive resort. It was beautiful and the people were awesome. The rooms were huge too. The food was pretty decent but what do you expect from an all inclusive resort in Mexico? I would definitely go here again.

This is our second all-​inclusive vacation this year, and was definitely a five-​star experience overall. We stayed 8 days/​7 nights and had a blast! Secrets Silversands is an adults-​only resort located in Riviera Maya, just south of Cancun and in a newer development (resort is 6 yrs old). I previously gave 5-​stars to Omni Cancun back in April but Silver Sands is actually better in terms of food quality, night time entertainment, room size, pools, and powerful and free wifi throughout the property! Below is a more detailed write-​up of what we experienced:
WORLD CAFE: Their main breakfast and lunch buffet. Huge selection and the food is surprisingly good here, especially braised and stir-​fried meats. They also have a smoothie and omelet station. 5 stars.
BAREFOOT GRILL: Overcooked burgers made to order but their fried chicken wings were phenomenal. Little drums covered in seasoned, powdery bread crumbs and fried to perfection. The meat was so soft I couldn’t believe it. 4 stars
SEASIDE GRILL: Another poolside casual place specializing in grilled fish, shrimp cocktail, and ceviche. Pretty decent and a good option for late lunch. You’re surrounded by revelers playing pool volleyball in a Spring-​break type atmosphere. 4 stars.
HIMITSU HIBACHI: You need reservations for this Benihana-​style experience. The chef showed some nice knife juggling skills and created some nice special effects with a smoking stack of onions sliding down the grill (choo choo train) along with some pyrotechnics. They use butter, garlic oil, and tequila to cook Asian cuisine which came out pretty good! Fried rice, sauteed chicken/​beef/​veggies were incredible. They even had a nice soy sauce laced with green chili peppers to add some kick! 5 stars
HIMITSU: They have pretty decent nigiri options — rice was firmer than I liked but seasoned well. Toppings were tender and tasted fresh. Their hot dishes were underwhelming compared to the hibachi though — stir fried beef was over-​sauced and too sweet, fried tofu appetizer under seasoned, and fried rice had a glutinous texture. I’m wondering if they used sushi rice. 3 stars.
PORTOFINO: Their Italian dining place was surprisingly our least favorite. They had decent seafood appetizers though — the seafood frittata was a huge plate of fried mussels, fish, shrimp, etc. that was good, along with their grilled octopus carpaccio. Their entrees were rather ordinary — pasta with some red sauce or basic grilled salmon. 3 stars.
SEASIDE GRILL: Outdoor restaurant converted to steakhouse. Octopus salad and hearts of palm salad were decent — both had tenderness and good acidity. Wife’s veal scallops cooked medium were incredibly juicy while my NY steak cooked medium rare came out well, medium. It had a nice green pepper sauce but more chew than I liked. Desserts were great — a margarita mousse for her and a moist rich chocolate cake for me. 4 stars.
BORDEAUX: Their French restaurant — beautiful, intimate settings with great food. They had a nice foie gras and mussels Rockefeller appetizer and my wife’s pork tenderloin was tender and juicy. I was disappointed by the Italian place previously so I got their mushroom-​asparagus fusilli pasta — YUM! 5 stars
RATATOUILLE: At night the Buffet turns into a Mediterranean themed restaurant — which means more seafood! Seafood cippino, crown of shrimp entrée, and the scallops appetizer salad were all light and refreshing. I went for the braised beef rib which was really good. 5 stars.
EL PATIO: We had some nice carnitas tacos and this amazing lime soup for apps. For entrée wife got fish steamed in banana leaves while I got the grilled salmon. We don’t see seafood frequently on Mexican menus but we were glad to try — both dishes were perfect. Extra point for the chocolate soufflé dessert! 5 stars.
NIGHT SHOWS: On most nights there were some pretty awesome shows. The most memorable ones were Glow Show (extreme juggling and dancing with props that light up with many colors), Urban Show (extreme breakdancing and music — good choreography similar to Michael Jackson One in LV), and the Rock Show — which is even more extreme juggling and Cirque du Soleil type stunts to the background of 80’s rock from Aerosmith, Bön Jovi, Starship, etc. 5-​stars — easily better than anything we’ve seen on cruise ships and rivaling some of the Las Vegas quality shows.
SERVICE: Excellent — everyone super friendly and greets you with a smile. They will find you and get you drinks — frequently.
DAY ACTIVITIES: They have Zumba lessons, but I opted for Blackjack and Hold Em. One day they had a Paella cooking demo with plenty of paella and sangria to feed the resort — some of the best paella I’ve had!
POOLS: They must have like 8 pools of different sizes and a couple of Jacuzzis. They were all clean and well-​maintained.
Will definitely recommend this resort! Only downsides are: watch out for mosquitoes and weak cocktails — so order lots of them!

Este hotel está ubicado a la mitad del camino si, entre Playa del Carmen y Cancún en un pueblito hermoso Puerto Morelos, este hotel tiene varias cosas que me encantan gracias a que un amigo trabajaba ahí en Alimentos y Bebidas lo pude conocer jejeje tiene una playa hermosa, esta zona de Quintana Roo es genial ya que la playa por donde quiera que la veas es súper tranquila si muchas olas eso te permite disfrutar más de la playa.
El hotel cuenta con la categoría de 4 Diamantes de verdad que la cadena AMResosrts es una de las mejores en Cancún y la Riviera Maya, es exclusivo para adultos, buscan la excelencia en el servicio con alta calidad al huésped, vivir en un lugar turístico te hace reconocer que la competencia entre los hoteles es muy común y que los galardones son importantes ya que respaldan al hotel y hacen que la gente los vuelva sus preferidos.
Puede ser un Hotel un poco caro pero definitivamente es encantador, cuenta con un spa donde te podrás mega consentir y cómo ves 8 piscinas. De verdad que lo recomiendo imagínate una Luna de Miel o aniversario wow!

This hotel is all-​inclusive. The food is not fabulous, but acceptable, with the exception of the the French restaurant, Bordeaux. The food at Bordeaux was absolutely amazing! We were directed by the concierge to several restaurants in Playa (the hotel arranged the car, 40 min ride, round trip $ 90 USD). The local food at Casa Agua in Playa was excellent and had some authentic dishes from the Yucatan Peninsula! We also spent a day in the spa. The massage was great, but pricey. You get a certain number of coupons to use for different things on the property, so make sure to visit the concierge upon arrival. We ended up getting a better deal just getting the daily special. The spa has a relaxation/​hydro circuit. It was amazing. Behind that are small water beds with cucumber pads to relax on! It was all in all a good experience! The rooms have modern décor with comfy bed and linens. You get large sized shampoo (Gilchrist and Soames products). We were upgraded to VIP for some reason and had apples and champaign in our room. Had a great, safe time. I will say that the beach is nice, but going in the water was not so much. It had a rocky reef just off the beach. Nice to look at, though. However, the right property pools were plenty easy to get in and out of.