Decoding the Iberostar Collection: Which Resort is Right for You? All-inclusive resorts Riviera Maya

This video is for informational purposes only. It is based on our Team's experiences at each of these resorts. We always pay for our own trips, we are not sponsored, and our pinions are our own. Always do your own research before you book any resort.
The Iberostar complex in Riviera Maya is made of up 5 separate resorts, a central shopping plaza area, a theater, and 18 hole golf course and a huge stretch of beautiful white sand beach. We spent a week exploring these five resorts within this sprawling complex. Each resort caters to different types of travelers wants and budgets.
The 5 resorts within the Iberostar complex are:
1) Grand Paraiso
2)Selection Paraiso Maya
3) Selection Paraiso Lindo
4) Paraiso Beach
5) Paraiso del Mar.
The Grand is their highest level and adults only, the other 4 are family resorts. The "Selection" designation is a higher level of experience than the other two. All resorts within the complex share a huge beach (Grand has a separate beach area with no children), a golf course, a central shopping plaza area, a Spa and a convention center.
We hope this helps you figure out which of these resorts might be a good fit for what you are looking for in a vacation.
Thank you so much for watching our videos.
Upcoming:
Iberostar Grand Review
Iberostar Maya Review
Iberostar Lindo Review
Iberostar Beach Review
Iberostar Del Mar Review
Valentin Imperial Maya Review
TRS Coral Review
Excellence Oyster Bay Jamaica Review

[@rafaelorozco6996]

Thank you for this video, it’s very helpful for 1st timers

[@newtravelescapes]

You're very welcome!😊

[@VinnyV_01]

We honeymooned there and I have wanted to return ever since. Absolutely everything you would want in an all-inclusive resort. Apple vacations took care of us from Airport to resort with no risk along the way. We had an excellent time and being all-inclusive it takes all the thought about "where to eat" and "well, how much does that cost" out of mind. Exactly what I personally want on vacation. 5 Stars. Great Video BTW!

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you so much and thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I hope you get back for another vacay very soon!! 😊

[@robbieunger850]

When were you there for your honeymoon? Recently? I am going soon with my wife. I hope its good.

[@newtravelescapes]

@@robbieunger850 not sure when Vinny was there for a honeymoon but the videos are from May of 2023. Which resort within the complex are you booked to stay at?

[@VinnyV_01]

@@robbieunger850 not too long ago, nearly 20 years. :) I am sure it's changed quite a bit but some of the big stuff is the same in this video.

[@user-se1gy7je2t]

Great video! Very helpful!

[@newtravelescapes]

Glad you found it helpful! Thanks 😊

[@paulduffy2524]

Great video!!

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you!

[@yenisser]

Thank you for your videos. They are well done and very informative. Helped me decide which resort is best for me.

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you so much! Enjoy your trip! 😊

[@micheleduke2200]

The Maya and Grand are the only 2 hotels that have elevators. None of the others have elevators.

[@newtravelescapes]

Good to know for those with mobility issues. Thanks or sharing! 😊

[@sandals.pickleball]

great info

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you 😊

[@donnie91]

Great videos! I’ve been to almost all of them and you’re going to laugh but Del Mar,the cheapest, was my favorite. Ironically I typically like more of a high end, butler service setting but The nature feel that is has the others don’t.

[@newtravelescapes]

Ha ha! That is awesome! The natural surroundings and the ecosystem that is allowed to 'do it's thing' is pretty great. If you enjoy iguanas, peacocks, flamingos, coatis and more, then Del Mar and Beach are where it's at. 🙂

[@gonzalo1972]

100% agreed on the annoying (and aggresive) Time Shares salesmen from Iberostar The Club. Don’t fall for it unless you know exactly what you are up to.

[@newtravelescapes]

They certainly are annoying. I don't understand how this type of sales still works on people.

[@susanaa4291]

I’m not sure which one pick. I’m traveling with kids but I also want some drinks and a bite of adult fun. I’m thinking in Paraíso lindo!!

[@newtravelescapes]

I would suggest Lindo or Maya. Your kids will have lots to do and participate in while you're 'busy' at the swim-up bar. 😁 Maya has bigger rooms depending on your family size but Lindo costs a bit less.

[@BRJohnGalt]

We went to the Lindo last October and upgraded to connecting rooms through our travel agent. Was around $60/day.

[@newtravelescapes]

@@BRJohnGalt great advice! Thanks for sharing. 😊

[@heatherspinkturner3681]

I loved your overview very clear. There is a difference in price between Lindo and Maya and also it seems all Lindo rooms are near a pool. Can you suggest which is better for a family with children. We plan on being 6 adults 3 kids all 2 and under

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you! I would suggest Maya but they are very similar so if you can get a better room at the same price then go for Lindo. If you look at the resort map I would choose a room category that gives you a nice balcony in an area that you like best for when the kiddos are all napping. 😊

[@mostwantedmtl]

Great review, was wondering if you have been to any of the Catalonia resorts, if so, how you you compare them with Iberostars? Here's a few questions about the Ibero.. 1.how is the food quality at Iberostar Maya, is it truly 5*, I am from Montreal, so you can imagine we love our gastronomy lol, 2.do they also have 24h snack bar to eat 3. Is there a nightclub? 4.How are the evening shows, are they included in the Maya ? Thanks so much ahead 🙏

[@newtravelescapes]

Hi! Thanks for asking but I don't have enough experience with Catalonia to give you a fair comparison. Soon, I hope. 😊 They seem to hold their own with the review ratings. Being from Montreal, arguably the best foodie city in Canada you'll need to adjust your expectations. 😁 All-inclusive food likely won't be making the Michelin Guide but some resorts do a very good job with many of their restaurant dishes. It is wise to remember that you often get what you pay for. Maya has good food and we enjoyed most everything we ate there. As always, some dishes are better executed than others but the nice thing about an all-inclusive is that if it is not to your taste, order something else. It was not as good as the food at the Grand but a very good option for a family resort. The hours often change at the coffee shop for snacks but I would count on it closing at 10pm. Some of the restaurants in the plaza stay open later for tacos and burgers. Different times of the year and occupancy levels, the restaurant/snack bars can vary. The galaxy night club is open in the central plaza until 1am and it is 18+. I think they let some younger guests in earlier but it is 18 + later into the evening until closing. The included evening shows/entertainment was decent. Pretty typical as far as resort shows but if you have never seen them they are entertaining. There is an extra charge show in the plaza theater. It is expensive, so ask around and see if other guests thought it was worth the splurge. Hope that helps a bit! Have fun vacation planning. There are so many options to choose from.

[@DGH19]

great review, we were thinking of going here this year, so to recap we want lazy river wave pool etc we would want Lindo NOT beach? thx again

[@newtravelescapes]

Thanks! Yes, you want Lindo or Maya. Maya is slightly more 'high-end' than Lindo but both have access to the water park. 😊 Do a dive into pricing on multiple sites because sometimes Lindo and Maya are so close in price that booking Maya becomes the better choice because you get access to everything (except Grand).

[@cuongdo9958]

Nice !Thank you very much. Just wonder would you recommend the Maya (upscale, more expensive) or the Beach ? Thanks again !

[@newtravelescapes]

Depending on how long you are staying. Beach is good for a long weekend on a budget. Maya imo is better for a week with better food and the water park plus access to everything else. 😊

[@Chiquete2023]

beach!!!! food is wonderful anywhere!

[@vickycherry2067]

A note- guests of Paraiso DelMar have access to Paraiso Beach facilities.

[@newtravelescapes]

I did see that they were talking about changing it and those staying at both Beach and Del Mar could both go back and forth. Is it allowed now? If so, that is a nice perk for those staying at Del Mar. 😊

[@qbase1]

great video! Just a question. if my family book at the Del Mar are we allowed to use the water parks and slides at the other resort? thanks!

[@newtravelescapes]

Thank you! Unfortunately no. when we were there guests of Lindo, Maya, and the Grand are the only ones allowed to use the water park.

[@qbase1]

@@newtravelescapes thank god I asked before I booked! Thank you again for this information!!

[@newtravelescapes]

@@qbase1 happy to help! 🙂

[@bonniebryan8464]

Are you allowed to use the coffee shop in the Maya lobby if you stay at the Lindo?

[@newtravelescapes]

No need. Lindo has it's own coffee shop. ☺️ There is a second one at the Plaza.

[@lorihouppert2794]

Do you have any insight on an accessible room at the Maya in terms of location of rooms and what it looks like?

[@newtravelescapes]

I am not an expert on this but as far as I know, The Maya has five wheelchair accessible rooms with king beds and bathrooms with roll in showers. I believe they all have patios with garden views. Most of the rooms (except the penthouse and family suites) look the same with minor changes here and there as well as location differences. It may be worth sending an email directly to the resort and asking them or ask your travel agent to message them and get you more specific details. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.

[@micheleduke2200]

Building 60 is the closest to the beach, pool and restaurants. The Maya does have elevators.

[@newtravelescapes]

@@micheleduke2200 Thanks for sharing 😊👍

[@debbyhewitt5657]

Hi 👋 Does the Geand offer nightly shows or entertainment??

[@newtravelescapes]

Hi! The Grand has live music in the lobby bar every night. They also often have something going on in the rhapsody bar or the lobby garden. The show has an extra charge. If you look at the Iberostar app, then go to the "how to have fun at the hotel" then click on the "activities calendar" you can see the daily list of what is going on, where, and when. It is fairly quiet in the evenings.

[@chicky895]

Thank you!!! This helps a lot. How is the food and rooms? We read so many negative reviews about Iberostar collection that makes me nervous to book it 😔

[@newtravelescapes]

We really enjoyed the Grand. It is the best of the collection but it is adults only and focused on quality and relaxation. Maya is the best for families and we thought it was a great offering if you have kids. Smaller water park, lazy river and wave pool were a ton of fun. Restaurants at Maya restaurants are very good, especially the Steakhouse. 😊 Lindo rooms are a step down but the rest is pretty much on par with Maya except the lobby bar. Maya's kulkulcan bar is great. Beach and Del Mar are more budget friendly so you get less luxury there but a decent bang for your buck. We made separate videos about each of them if it helps. 😊

[@chicky895]

@@newtravelescapes thank you for your feedback. A lot of the reviews we read said that the rooms are outdated and the food is not great. We just want to go to a resort that is clean and we won’t get sick. We usually go up barcelo palace but we want to try another resort. We have teens so we are looking for something fun too

[@newtravelescapes]

@@chicky895 my pleasure! We found some of the rooms at Del Mar and Beach to be dated unless you went to the upper level categories. We thought the rooms and food at Maya were very good. Lots of stuff for teens to do. The beach area closest to Maya is right by the water sports. Another nice resort is Atelier. It is 16+. Pricey but it gets very high reviews. We also really like the El Cid resorts (Marina El Cid, Ventus El Cid & Ventus Ha). There is no water park and less to do but the pools and diving rock are fun and the restaurants are good. The rooms there are fantastic when you upgrade. We took our 3 kids there several times and booked a two bedroom ocean front suite. Those rooms are amazing.

[@chicky895]

@@newtravelescapes omg! Thank you. If you have a more resorts names pls share lol. Our kids are 23, 15 and 13. So we need something nice and fun. Barcelo was our go to but we want to try another resort 🤣😉

[@newtravelescapes]

@@chicky895 Another resort to check out that is Full of activities for the whole family is any of the resorts that include Xcaret. If you check out Xcaret it is a whole slew of activities that are included. They call it "all-fun-inclusive". It is more expensive but it includes stuff like zip lines, snorkeling cenotes, sailing, ferry to Isla mujeres etc etc. So much stuff is included you could never do it all in a week Xcaret.com has more info. It is a bit less expensive in October and July if that helps. An Xcaret vacay is an adventure and less relaxation but it is pretty awesome to have it all included and most things you can jump on the shuttle and go as often as you want. A vacation on steroids. 😜 Another that comes to mind is Hyatt Ziva Cancun. It is on par with Iberostar Maya and would be worth comparing prices. 😊 Good blend of beach and family fun.

[@Cocopancake528]

How do you think the sargassum is at the lingo in September ? Is the ocean usable ?

[@newtravelescapes]

It depends on the weather each day. We usually visit the area after Labour Day and sargassum is hit or miss on any given day. It doesn't seem to have a "season" like in past years. It used to be that sargassum levels were low in the winter but that is not the case any longer. When we were at Iberostar, we checked each morning. Some days we could get in the ocean. Other days we could not. Sorry that is not more helpful.

[@gonzalo1972]

Chances of sargassum are higher in summer.

[@user-np7fk2tw9p]

Hi, if we are staying at Del mar, do kids get access to the water park in the other resorts? Thanks

[@newtravelescapes]

Unfortunately no. The water park is for Maya and Lindo guests only. Del Mar and Beach have their own shared pool area. I'm working on those resort videos soon. 😊 I have some decent footage of the Del Mar and Beach pool area.

[@sanaabdelwahab1364]

You can purchase a day pass from the Lindo reception area that gives you access to the water park, lazy river, and wave pool if you are staying at Beach or Del Mar. I can’t remember how much it was. We did this last year, but honestly the kids (17, 12, and 10) enjoyed the pools at Del Mar/Beach the most and thought the slides , wave pool, and lazy river at the Lindo were a little “lame.” Lol. Mind you, we are from the DFW area and they are used to Great Wolf Lodge/ Hurricane Harbor type water parks. Not sure if that had anything to do with their opinion on it.

[@newtravelescapes]

@@sanaabdelwahab1364 That is great to know about the day pass. Thanks for sharing! 🙂 Very true that if you are used to a "true" water park resort these are not going to measure up. It is a nice addition to keep the kids busy while you have a couple of cocktails though. Lol!😉

[@dashalikesyou]

Do you have a recommendation for a wedding party to stay at? So people of all ages but traveling for a wedding and might stay for 5 days

[@newtravelescapes]

Is the wedding on site? If so, I would suggest Lindo (or Maya). Lindo saves you a bit of money but gives you a similar experience as Maya.😊 Because it is a wedding, they are a little more 'high-end' than Beach or del Mar.

[@dashalikesyou]

@@newtravelescapes the wedding is offsite but nearby! So was thinking of an iberostar hotel

[@newtravelescapes]

@@dashalikesyou if you are going to be away from the resort a fair bit then maybe Beach is a better choice for your wallet. 😜. It depends on how often you will be away from the hotel. Is it just one afternoon and evening or will you be coming and going? It may not make sense for you to be paying more for Lindo or Maya when you can't take advantage of all that is included. Beach has a nice large pool area just not the waterpark that Maya and Lindo share. It is set a bit more into the jungle so there are more animals. Service is not quite as good as at Maya but it is certainly not bad at all. The beach is shared by all so that is not a concern. Rooms are simplistic but still clean and comfortable. Hope that helps a bit. I will have a video up about Beach fairly soon but I'm working on the one about the Grand for this week. 😊

[@brianbrucker71]

To the hotels offer transfer from the airport?

[@newtravelescapes]

Not included. You can contact the resort and book it through them or you can arrange your own transfers. We made a video about our favourite transfers companies. In case you find it helpful. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qpqXqKiplNJobs0si=16v6peOR6kQE4_MN

[@tomaszavaleta788]

If I stay at the iberostar selection paraiso lindo, will I be able to access the kukulkan bar

[@newtravelescapes]

No. As far as I know you can access everything at Lindo, Beach and Del Mar but not Maya or Grand. The snake bar is at the Maya.

[@pussydestroyer87]

You used to be able to go to that bar ~10 years ago. You used to be able to access almost everything at the Maya if you stayed at the Lindo but they wanted to make the Maya more exclusive.

[@2212mjm]

Does the Maya allow you to log in your Netflix account? So far Dreams Royal Beach in Punta Cana is the only resort with it available.

[@newtravelescapes]

Do you mean on a smart tv? If so, I'm not actually sure. We always travel with Netflix and Disney+ on a fire stick rather than logging in. With the new Netflix "non-sharing" policies I'm not sure how it works any more. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

[@user-rg2dm9in8w]

if you stay at del mar, do you have access to the restaurants for beach?

[@newtravelescapes]

You never used to but I believe that has changed recently and del mar guests can enjoy the restaurants at beach. Double check on the resort website but I do think you can go back and forth between the two now.

[@1Pueblito]

I just got back from Beach, it was nice but they don't have room service anymore.

[@audrey3042]

We are planning to stay at this resort. How did you enjoy it? How was the seaweed at the beach? 13:25

[@newtravelescapes]

We don't usually order room service but that is really good to know! thanks!

[@newtravelescapes]

Which Iberostar are you planning on staying at? We tried all of them but loved the Grand because it is adults only and high end but it was VERY quiet. It is more tranquil than exciting. I really liked the Maya and the Lindo as they share the water park and pool areas plus you can visit and enjoy the other resorts as well (just not the Grand). The Maya's food was a touch more upscale and the rooms a bit nicer but nothing significant. If you are deciding between Beach and Del Mar then I would say go for Beach and then you have access to everything at Beach and del Mar. They are more budget friendly and not as fancy as the other 3 but if you want to save some money and hit the beach they are good options. The beach seaweed levels changed every day. Some days there was very little and other days it was too heavy to get into the water comfortably. It really depended on which way the wind was blowing and if it had rained or not the previous day. I am working on separate videos for each of the Iberostar resorts within the complex, individually so hopefully those will help you get a better idea of what you get at each of them. 😊

[@audrey3042]

@@newtravelescapes We are going to the Maya for one week in mid-August 🤞. Thanks so much for the detailed reply. I really appreciate it 😊

[@newtravelescapes]

@@audrey3042 Fantastic! 😁Have an wonderful time. We really liked the Maya! Be sure to grab something from the coffee shop and wander down (or golf cart😊) to the Del Mar and the Beach as they have a lot of animals on their properties. The restaurants at Maya are superior so don't waste your time on the others, if it is not convenient. You may want to check out our Cancun airport E-Gates video & I will have a new one about the Visitax up tomorrow. They may be helpful. Have a great time!

[@dennisd4027]

Maybe I missed something but the bathrooms are a big let down here. No real privacy with toilet, one vanity, somewhat small shower. Personal preference I suppose but we recently booked a different resort simply because of this.

[@newtravelescapes]

Which Iberostar within this complex? We found the bathrooms at the Grand really nice. We could close it in for complete privacy if we needed. Bathroom privacy is a big deal to most of us and it does affect which resort we book depending on who is travelling with us, of course. TRS Coral has loft suites with a second half bath on the main floor. Hyatt Zilara Riviera Maya has the option to close everything in or leave it open concept along with a solid water closet door. Excellence resorts have semi private bathrooms (at best 🥴) at all of their resorts. Less private than Iberostars'.