How to Choose? Beloved or Excellence Playa Mujeres Resorts
Are you planning an adult getaway with friends? Yes, it is good to spend some time away without the kids too! It can be daunting to choose a resort. You do not want to disappoint anyone. Well, look no further than the adult-only all-inclusive Beloved Playa Mujeres or Excellence Playa Mujeres resorts. These are two of three adjacent modern and luxurious Excellence Collection resorts located on the calm white-sand beaches of Playa Mujeres, Mexico. Each resort has its own personality, so read on to see if the Beloved or Excellence Playa Mujeres resort is best for you.
Adult-only all-inclusive resorts are a great option when traveling with adult friends for ease of planning and unwinding without the sounds of other folk’s kids. Take a look at this article for several opinions — including mine! — on all-inclusive hotels: Are All-Inclusive Hotels Actually a Good Deal? Here’s What Travel Experts Say. We enjoy a four-night vacation for trips without the kids. Not too long and not too short!
These are my honest opinions and recommendations — I do not receive any compensation or discounts during our travel. This story does include some affiliate links for which I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please click the links to support my blog.
Resort Comparison: Beloved or Excellence + the kid-friendly Finest
Each of these gorgeous resorts has large well-appointed rooms, impeccable service, a wide variety of fresh and delicious food, abundant beverages, and tons of activities — all top notch! You really can’t go wrong with any of them. However, here is information to help you decide.
Note: Playa Mujeres is north of Cancun’s “hotel zone” and does not have the off-site restaurants, clubs, shopping, etc. found over there. If you are looking for a very nice adult-only all-inclusive resort in the hotel zone I recommend Le Blanc Spa and Resort. However, the Beloved and Excellence resorts offer a much better value.
1 | Excellence Playa Mujeres
A large luxury adult-only all-inclusive property with gorgeous winding pools, 10 restaurants, tennis courts, a theater and more. They told me the resort was pretty full but it never felt that way.
Food and drinks
So many choices and it was all just delicious. When you check in, ask what restaurants require a reservation. I highly recommend you get a reservation for the HIBACHI GRILL in the Spice restaurant. They take reservations daily at the concierge in the lobby at 9 AM — but get there a little earlier in case there is a line. Be sure to have a dinner at Agave, which is designed and decorated as a Mexican hacienda with a lovely courtyard. Also, hit The Grill and The Lobster House for al fresco evening dining and lobster tails.
Enjoy the themed outside dinners on select evenings. You will see them decorating and setting up all afternoon. Very impressive.
Lobby Bar: They set up a gin and tonic station in the evening near the lobby bar. Folks were raving about the peanut butter martinis. Try a Blue Balls shot.
Hydrate with freshly cut and decorated coconuts at the juice bar during the afternoon.
Evening entertainment
The evening shows in the theater were mostly quite good however late night at the Sports Bar was a little disappointing. The DJ was really really loud, and I wish the karaoke didn’t start so long after the show in the theater ended. I attended my first Silent Party while at the Excellence. Have you been to one? It was oddly fantastic! Do not miss out!
2 | Beloved Playa Mujeres
An upscale boutique-style adult-only all inclusive property. Note, it used to be kid-friendly but is now adult only. There are plenty of day time activities, but it is more low-key and peaceful than the sister resorts. This resort does not have the big evening entertainment shows every night.
Food and drinks
The Sushi Bar at Lupita Lounge makes for great evening appetizers.
The Mexican Fiesta on the beach had delicous food along with a mariachi band and a fire show. FITZ BITS TIP: Ask for dinner seats that will have the best view of the fire show.
Evening entertainment
The Mexican Fiesta dinner was followed by a nice fire show on the beach. Other than that, there is low key but quality entertainment in the courtyard.
3 | Finest Playa Mujeres
We haven’t stayed here but we visited our friends when they accidentally booked it instead of Beloved. This resort is the newest of the three and had a great vibe. While it is family-friendly, half the pool is adult-only and there is an adult-only building and restaurant. And, it has two of the only HOT hot tubs we could find.
Plenty of activities at each resort
You can be as active or relaxed as you want. Every night you will leave the next day’s activity sheet in your room. On this type of vacation, I really enjoy getting up and out and being active in the morning and relaxing in the afternoon.
Hit the gym or take a group exercise class
The gym was very well equipped, clean, and not overly crowded — even on rainy days. The group exercise classes were fun to try and a good workout. There was a variety of classes to choose from but our favorite was the beach boot camp. The pool Zumba was pretty blah, but at least it got me off of my beach lounger for a bit!
Spa + hydrotherapy circuit
Get ready to be pampered! Even if you do not schedule a massage or service, make an appointment for the hydrotherapy circuit. A MUST-DO! A personal attendant guides you through the hydrotherapy session including a sauna, several hot and cold pools, and a lovely head and neck massage. When we stayed at the Beloved this hydrotherapy circuit was included with our reservation. At the Excellence, you could pay a small fee for the circuit without a service.
Take a tennis drill
They have daily drills and you can check out rackets from the concierge in the main lobby. Nice facilities.
Go on a guided bike tour
You can check out bikes on your own or I suggest you take one of their daily guided bike tours. The tour previously stopped at a bird sanctuary but there were no birds there in our 2019 visit. The tour also stopped at their golf course for some putting practice.
Enjoy the water sports
You can check out Hobie Cat catamarans, SUPs, or kayaks. I didn’t see snorkels at the Excellence but they had them at Beloved. The waves were never big enough for body surfing — you need to stay in Cancun for those kinds of waves. If you are staying at the Beloved, the staff took us out on the Hobie Cats to snorkel at a sunken ship for a minimal tip. You can also pay an additional fee for a snorkeling tour or a tour to Isla Mujeres.
FITZ BITS TIP: Get out on the ocean early since small waves seemed to pick up in the afternoon. The water sports hut closes if it is too choppy.
And, so much more...
There are a lot of other activities such as sand volleyball, salsa dance lessons, archery, air rifle, Spanish lessons, and more.
If you happen to be at the Excellence when it rains, the staff works hard to keep folks entertained in the Theater.
How to get to Playa Mujeres
You will fly into Cancun Airport. Note that you will need a valid passport. It is an easy 30-45 minute transfer from the airport north to Playa Mujeres. Transportation to and from the airport is often an add-on, even with an all-inclusive resort. So, check your reservation. We have used Cancun Shuttle many times. They are reasonably priced and easy to find from their detailed directions on the reservation. You may have to wait for 20-minutes or so for your driver based on the level of service you reserved. This transfer will be much less expensive than reserving it through the resort.
Tipping
Excellence Resorts state that all taxes and gratuities are included. In my opinion, tipping is a personal thing and you should do what you are comfortable with. However, I like to bring US dollars in singles, fives, and tens for tips and incidentals for these trips. Tips are not expected but the staff seems very appreciative when we do so. I like to leave a few dollars for buffet meals and $5-10 for sit-down meals. We also leave a tip for the maid and a few dollars here and there for bartenders. I looked around did not see a lot of folks tipping at breakfast or lunch. You certainly do not need to tip, nor is it expected — however, I feel that little goes a long way here!
Pricing tip
Take time to research the trip as a full package and with the airfare and resort booked separately. Also, price out each of these resorts in case that helps you decide which Excellence resort to choose. And, look to see if the airport transfer is included or not.
- When we visited the Beloved resort it was less expensive to book the air and resort separately saving over $300.
- When we visited the Excellence resort we booked a Southwest Vacation package saving a couple hundred dollars per person.
Visited Beloved in 2017 and Excellence in 2019
