Right after Christmas, my family and I escaped for a weeklong vacation with some friends at Hilton Tulum. We’d been looking forward to this for a year – when the Midwest was subzero during the holidays last year, we decided to give ourselves the gift of tropical breezes, so we planned in advance. Even though it felt like we had waited an eternity, our time together at Hilton Tulum didn’t disappoint.
The Vibe
Since we stayed during one of the busiest weeks of the year (December 28 – January 4), the resort was at a high occupancy, but it is designed with plenty of elbow room, so we didn’t feel cramped. We were able to easily get pool chairs together, and the one day we didn’t, we were ready to rent a poolside cabana bed for the added perks of bubbly & a grilled seafood lunch anyway.
We stayed in Casa 6, which is part of the family section and near the kids’ club so most of the other guests we interacted with were also traveling as families, which was perfect for our kids to make new friends!
How I Felt
After the holiday rush, our time together at Hilton Tulum was just what we needed – lots of relaxation and fun. We enjoyed being able to quickly access the pool from our room, and anytime an adult or kid needed to grab something, it was simple to go back to the room without having to dig through our beach bag to find the room key since each guest wears a bracelet with a chip in it to allow room access. This just made life a little easier and more relaxed for the week, which I think any frazzled parent can really appreciate.
The Digs
My family of four stayed in an Ocean View Family Room with two queen beds, and our friends booked the same category. The resort management assigned connecting rooms, which was very convenient. The room was modern and bright with all the amenities we needed. There were no extra pillows or bathrobes upon arrival, but I called, and they were delivered to us in minutes. We also really enjoyed the room’s easy location near the family pool, kids club and the most impressive playground I’ve ever seen at a resort! Everyone appreciated the room’s included mini bar with plenty of drinks and snacks, as well as 24/7 room service which was easily ordered from our phones on the resort’s guest portal. Since we stayed during the college football playoffs, my husband and son were both very glad that the room’s TV had all the sports networks available.
The Agenda
We mostly spent the week relaxing at the resort, enjoying the family pool, walking along the beach and swimming in the ocean. I would recommend taking water shoes as there are some rocks on the beach, but that didn’t stop us from having a great time swimming. I also was able to enjoy one of my favorite beach activities – hunting for sea glass. One day we took a combination tour to see the nearby Mayan ruins at Tulum, snorkeled with sea turtles at Akumal beach and swam in a cenote. There were plenty of other nearby sites and activities in the area, but after the rush of the holidays we were all eager to enjoy as much downtime as possible.
The Eats
Hilton Tulum includes a variety of dining options, and we tried as many as we possibly could! I thought the food was great – several notches above most all-inclusive resorts. Everyone really liked the hamburgers, whether they were at the food truck, room service or buffet. The beef was of a higher quality than you get at many restaurants.
The property had a variety of quick grab and go options for our kids’ never-ending snack requests. The café in the main lobby offered yummy pastries and specialty coffees, and our kids were constantly visiting the poolside food truck for nachos and hot dogs, as well as the churreria for churros and house-made ice cream.
We had a la carte dinners at La Luce (Italian), Auma (steakhouse), Maxal (modern Mexican) and Noriku (Asian), and all were delicious. My favorite was probably Maxal because we sat on the patio and enjoyed a brilliant sunset along with our freshly shaken margaritas and guacamole. Each of the a la carte restaurants had signature cocktail and mocktail lists too, which everyone in our group enjoyed trying.
On New Year’s Eve, we had a memorable five course dinner at Vela Sur. Of course, they were very busy for the holiday, but our server was excellent, and I was really impressed with her service. It was a lot of fun to have so many courses as a family and see our kids get to try foods like vegetable ceviche, foie gras, lobster bisque and filet mignon. After dinner our kids were too tired to stay out, so I asked the server if we could take wine back to the room. Even though it was a hectic evening, she didn’t mind going to the bar and getting us several glasses. Then we went back to our rooms and called for room service. They were also extremely busy but still didn’t mind bringing us the multitude of desserts our kids requested and a bottle of sparkling wine, on the house, which it seemed is not normally included but they offered it to us to celebrate the holiday.
Why I Would Go Back
I would go back to Hilton Tulum for another family or adult vacation to enjoy all the sites and tours in the area, and I would be very eager to return if I was flying into the new Tulum airport since the approximately two-hour transfer time from the Cancun airport is less than ideal. I also didn’t have a chance to visit the spa on this vacation but would like to one day, as well as experience the Enclave upgrade.
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