We stayed at the Royal Islander Nov 10 -17th. It was a family vacation which included our 17, 13 and 5 year old. We decided to use the timeshare and were keeping our fingers crossed that there was enough to keep the kids busy since we were not staying at one of the inclusive resorts. After the first day, we realized there was nothing to worry about. The personal concierge assigned to you really takes their job seriously. They really try to make sure that you go to the attractions, restaurants that suit you. It's so easy to use any of the Royal Resorts that I don't see that it makes a difference where you stay. The kids loved the variety so we used all of the properties. Their favorite was the Royal Hacienda, mostly because the beach is better for swimming. The beach in front of the others has rocks and if the ocean is rough, you cannot swim there.

We felt the staff was very friendly. Everyone was pleasant and very helpful. We felt this way about everyone in Cancun. I don't know if it's better before the high season but taxi drivers, waiters, bartenders all went out of their way to please us.

Another concern was if we were going to spend more money without having everything included especially with three kids. They make it really easy at the resort by issuing everyone a card to charge. The kids loved using the card. And in the end, we spent less money as a total. We felt the prices were reasonable in the restaurants.

We'll definitely return again next year.

The Royal Islander was fantastic. Words could not describe the service we received as guests of the hotel. Everyone is assigned their very own personal concierge. Ours even came up to the room and helped us plan our week, he even made our reservations for us!

The rooms are spacious and clean. The kitchen has all the amenities of home, even a blender and a bar ware set. If you wish, you can even have your groceries sent up to your room so they are ready when you get there (you can order from the royal resorts website). There is a spacious patio/ balcony on every room with spectacular views of the ocean and pool. This hotel is handicapped accessible and they will make accomodations in the room (shower bench, commode chair and shower nozzle) if you request it in advance. Some of the free shuttle busses are handicapped accessible but not all. I do not believe that the restaurant "Paco's Tacos" is wheelchair accessible either, however the "Cayo Largo" is on the ground floor. The grounds are clean and quiet.

There are plenty of things right at the resorts to keep you entertained. Including the welcome party (on Sunday), pottery painting, bbqs etc. They offer free snorkeling equipment, free sail boat rental and a variety of other free services.

All of the staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. I can not think of one bad thing to say about our stay at the Royal Islander in Cancun. Good food, good drinks, excellent service in a beautiful setting!

We were at the Royal Islander Sept 1-8th. It was wonderful, clean, friendly and helpful staff...BUT after spending some time at the Royal Sands, I would book there next time. More going on at that resort. Although....all of the Royal Resorts were very nice.

I would say the staff was excellent! If you plan to cook in at all...you may want to take some kitchen stuff...as they provide only he most primitive of tools! (No cheese grater, wooden spoons, peelers, ect.) Other then that....fantastic vacation!

We had a great time at the Royal Islander! All the rooms have excellent ocean views. We never had a problem getting chairs at the pool or beach. The beach has a steep drop off, not great for young children and my teenage son could not skim board here. We used the shuttle service and went to the sister resort, Royal Sands, where the beach was better for skim boarding. I preferred the pool area at the Islander over the Sands. It had a smaller, quieter atmosphere. Service was great by the pool and ocean for ordering drinks. Our 2 bedrm. unit was clean and had plenty of room for 6. We used the shuttle to eat at Captain's Cove-it was great with a wide range of foods. My teenagers enjoyed the ribs, I had the fish sampler which had more food than I could eat! We also ate at Casa Maguay in the Luxury Mall. The Mexican sampler plate was excellent! I highly recommend the restaurant El Conquistador at the Royal Mayan Hotel. The food was fabulous and there was a guitarist that played beautiful backgound music (I bought his CD-it was that enjoyable). We also ate at Bubba Gumps. The food was good and we enjoyed eating outside and watching the crocodiles swim by.

We visited Tulum and saw the Ma;yan ruins. Tulum was just over an hour bus ride from the Islander. It is beautiful and a must see. We also took an excursion to Isla Mujeres. The crew that entertained us on the boat over was hilarious!! Their "show" was as much fun as the snorkeling we did. I would recommend the snorkeling, however, it can't compare to the Cayman Island's. The downtown area has tons of shopping but it is higher priced than the markets in Cancun.

The city buses are clean and I felt safe using them. This is much cheaper than taxi. One night a man and his son jumped on the bus with a guitar and started singing mexican songs. They were great and we all tipped them.

If you like a family,quieter atmosphere, The Royal Islander is a great place to go! I would definitely return to this resort.