What’s up, guys? And welcome back to another Mexico all-inclusive resort review. I’m giving you all the details and thoughts and opinions of a recent trip at the Moon Palace Cancun. Massive resort, very well-known. Is it worth it? How much did we pay? Would I return again? What’s the good? What’s the bad?
If you’re new to my channel, I do a lot of Mexico vlogs. I love Mexico. It’s 2 hours from Texas. Very easy trip. And this time, we chose the very hyped-up Moon Palace Cancun, which is only about 10–15 minutes from the airport, which was fabulous.
But a question on many travelers’ minds is: Is Moon Palace Cancun safe? Let’s dive into the details of the resort, its layout, and what you need to know before you book.
The Resort Layout: Massive and secure
We stayed at the Nizuc section of this big resort. They have three different sections that I will break down: Nizuc, Sunrise, and The Grand. Nizuc was chosen because reviews said that this was a newer addition with better air conditioning.
Check-in was a breeze. We actually had VIP check-in because I booked underneath a member of this hotel. There’s the normal check-in line and we got to go upstairs in this really fancy little area with cocktails and food.
Look how massive this resort is. If you do not like to walk, do not come to this resort. However, we love big resorts. I love being spaced out from people. I don’t like to be on top of people at the pool. I like to have plenty of pool bars, plenty of restaurants to choose from just in case I don’t like a restaurant.
Getting Around Safely
Because of the size of this Resort, you need a golf cart pretty much to get around almost everywhere. We were staying in building 94, so it was the furthest away from the lobby. So we either had to wait for a golf cart or you had to walk about 10 or 15 minutes. Now the golf carts they do have running at all times so it wasn’t too difficult to get a golf cart.
The Moon Palace Nizuc and Sunrise, yes they are next door, but you still have to take either a golf cart or even a bus to get over there. Now you can walk but it’s miles. So I walked there one morning I think it was almost like three miles.
The Beach Situation: Not exactly paradise
The one thing that is not letting me rate this resort five stars is the beach. The beach is not good here. So if you are looking for a beach destination, this is not the resort for you.
Unlike some other Resorts, this is not a seasonal problem. This is actually a year-round issue for the Grand. The actual Beach part itself is very beautiful; it’s clean. So every morning they have tractors that clean up the seaweed. But one thing about the seaweed is they take the seaweed every morning so they work really hard to clean off the seaweed and they dump it over on one side of the resort. We were staying on that side of the resort in building 94 and sometimes the smell was so horrible you could hardly go outside.
This area where this resort is located is just not the prettiest beach. So, when you’re paying that high price tag to stay at like even the Grand right here and you’re getting this type of beach, I just I don’t know if it’s worth it.
If you plan to explore beyond the resort, perhaps to find better beaches or visit the leather capital in Mexico, make sure you have your documents in order and aren’t traveling with a moldy passport.
Pools and Activities: Where the Real Fun Is
The pools are insane here. Lots and lots of space. We hung out at the activity pool most of the time. They had so much to do here. They had a FlowRider, which my husband partook in.
Even though it was a family-friendly resort, there weren’t a lot of kids when we came because we went in September. However, if we would have went here in June, I don’t know if I would have liked it as much with all the kids that might have been there.
The Grand Water Park
They also have a huge water park for the kids. I know this area, this resort is great for families because of this water park. I mean, it’s pretty awesome. They had a lazy river. They had big slides. They had kiddie sections.
There is a height and an age restriction on some of the slides. The requirement is for the big slide they have to be 12 years old and 62 inches and then the other slides they have to be at least 10 and 47 inches tall.
Nightlife and Safety
I love that they had golf carts and these buses to take you to different resorts. We hung out a lot at the Sky Bar. Lots of fun things, pool, they even have hookahs that you can buy, just a really good fun time until the actual clubs open.
So, we love the nightly entertainment. Very, very impressed with that. I don’t like to go to resorts that are just closed down at 10:00 at night. So, this one was great for that.
COVID Testing Experience
Now comes the dreaded COVID test. It actually wasn’t too bad. It took about 5 minutes to get our results back. And we chose to test uh the day before we left. The crazy thing is the airport didn’t even ask us for our negative COVID test. Like literally, we could have not even done it and no one would have asked.
Resort Membership and Scams
Before booking the Grand and Moon Palace, you should try to find a member to book your reservation under. The way the membership works is they do allow almost anybody else to use the membership as long as you are staying for a minimum of Seven Nights. And the membership rate can usually be anywhere from 15 to 20 percent lower than the regular rate.
The Sales Pitch Warning
The sales pitches start the moment you get there at check-in and continue until you check out. Mostly they are trying to sell you a membership to the Palace Resorts. Their main goal is to get you to go on that sales tour and they’re going to throw a lot of Resort credits at you.
I personally would recommend that you don’t go on these tours unless you truly want to become a member because even the resort credits there are so many stipulations behind them rules around them and you can’t use them in large quantities towards almost anything.
Which leads me to the resort credits. I actually do an entire video about Resort credits and why I think they are a scam. Because what the Palace Resorts do is they offer you a pretty large amount of Resort credits to either a book or sometimes like I said to go on the sales tour. But when you actually go to use the resort credits there’s a lot of different rules and regulations.
Dining Options and Reservations
Regarding reservations at restaurants, most of the restaurants in this Resort do not take reservations. So the adults-only French restaurant takes reservations, Casa Mia (which is a Mexican restaurant), and the Steakhouse. However, places like the buffet and the Italian restaurant, which is really popular, do not take reservations.
So sometimes you have to wait a long time. Like I mentioned before with the large crowds, we had to wait an hour and a half before getting a table at the Italian restaurant both nights. And then for the steak restaurant, I didn’t realize that you needed reservations because again since some require it and some don’t, I was getting confused.
So when we went to eat there, they told us we needed reservations. Now it was our last night so luckily the manager kind of fit us in, but if the Steakhouse is someplace you want to eat which is the most popular, make sure you make reservations.
One great thing about this Resort is they have an app that you can do almost everything on including making reservations for the restaurants. I personally prefer a resort where you have to make reservations for every single restaurant because you know what time you’re going to dinner, you don’t have to wait in long lines.
The Crowds and Weddings Factor
Because of the size of this Resort, it tends to attract very large groups and large weddings. Now the last two times we visited the Grand, we really didn’t notice this as much, but during this visit we definitely noticed it and it definitely affected our stay. On one day they had 12 weddings among all three of the resorts.
So this time the resort was noticeably more crowded. So there were really long wait times at restaurants. You could just tell that the staff was also probably being pulled to tend to the other weddings because they were short-staffed in a lot of the areas.
One of the employees did tell us that they were making up for a lot of the weddings they couldn’t have over COVID, so that could have been one reason. But he did say that they do really host a lot of conferences and concerts and it is a huge wedding destination place.
Obviously, there’s no way to know this when you book it, but if you’re a smaller family it could definitely affect your stay in terms of crowds at restaurants and pools. And even in the game room, my son the first night couldn’t even get in there because it was so crowded.
Not an Adult-Only Experience
It is not an adult-only Resort. So they do have an adult-only pool and an adult-only bar and restaurant; however, they are not separate. So you are really in the middle of all the families. I would definitely consider this more of a family resort.
So that also means they do not have any adult-only buildings, at least none that I was aware of. So that means if you’re traveling as a couple, your room could be next door to a family with little kids and little babies.
In fact, we had a family next to us and we could hear the baby crying, we could hear the kids, and we even had a swim-out Suite. So you are sharing that with all the families around you. If you truly want an adult-only experience, there’s a ton of great options out there.
Final Verdict: Is It Safe and Worth It?
So, is Moon Palace Cancun safe? Yes, the resort feels secure with controlled access, VIP check-in areas, and constant transportation within the complex.
This is a good resort. I think it’s a little overpriced. We’ve stayed at some really good resorts for a lot cheaper. But I think the Moon Palace has just been around for so long and you’re kind of paying for the name.
If someone gave me the option of trying a new resort or coming back, I would try a new resort just because I don’t know. It’s a good resort, but it hasn’t like blown my socks off. The price is a little steep for this place.
Pros and Cons Summary Table
| Feature | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Pools | Massive, varied, FlowRider | Can get crowded |
| Beach | Clean sand | Brown water, seaweed smell |
| Dining | Many options, good quality | Reservations hard to get |
| Room | Nice amenities, CHI products | AC not cold enough for some |
| Safety | Secure transport, VIP areas | Large crowds, sales pressure |
We had a great time. Just remember to keep an eye on your belongings when moving between the massive properties so you don’t end up needing a lost luggage claim ticket.
I hope you found this post helpful and be sure to check out all of the other videos that we do about the Grand at Moon Palace in Cancun. So, if you’re interested in this vlog, please subscribe, like, and keep watching.