Excellence El Carmen - Detailed Review
Dates: August 2026, 10 day stay
Cost: $4700
Travelers: Couple in our early 20s, there for our honeymoon
Room: Excellence Club Junior Suite With Private Pool
Overall Rating: 9.5/10
My wife and I recently went to Excellence El Carmen for our honeymoon. We have never been to an all-inclusive before, and we were very satisfied with our stay! We stayed for a long time (10 days), and thought we could give a thorough review of the resort for anyone considering staying here.
Rooms: 10/10
We loved our room. We absolutely LOVED having the private pool — I would highly recommend it for anyone doing a romantic trip. We were in an Excellence Club room, and it was close enough to the beach to be able to hear the waves. The rooms were spacious, clean, and had everything we needed. The jacuzzi did not get very hot, so we barely used ours, but this wasn’t a huge deal for us as we preferred to be in our pool anyway. The patios were very nice. While we did not stay in an “ocean view” room, I would say that based on our experience, if you actually want a good view of the ocean, you’ll need to get a beachfront room. Most of the rooms in the resort are not super close to the beach.
Food and drinks: 8/10
It seems like people don’t have a super high opinion of their food online, and we admittedly have never been to another resort to compare it to, but we were very satisfied with the food! We went to almost every restaurant in the resort. Our favorites were Magna and Oregano. We had steak, sushi, lamb, and chicken, all multiple times. The lunch options were quite limited, and the breakfast was just okay. That said, we were excited to go to dinner every night and enjoyed all of our meals. We did have to dress nice every night for dinner, but we did not mind that, and there were casual options. We ordered room service almost every day for lunch, and it was timely and excellent! I do not drink alcohol, but my wife does, and she loved the drinks at the resort. There were plenty of bars with lots of options.
Resort facilities and vibe: 10/10
The lobby and bar areas were amazing. I thought the overall vibe at the resort was very laid-back. I’m not sure if it was low occupancy or just good design, but we never once felt like any areas we were in were crowded, and we didn’t wait in a single line. The resort had plenty of beautiful pools, the gym was great, and we loved our spa experience. We didn’t go to the nightclub or really any of the evening entertainment, but there were options for those who were interested.
Service: 10/10
We absolutely loved the resort staff. They were so kind and helpful. We brought $300 to tip the staff, and I wish we would’ve brought a little bit more. We had a situation where we were disappointed with our champagne breakfast in bed, and the guest experience team went above and beyond to make it right. The spa staff were especially great. Restaurants could be challenging at times with the language barrier. The staff work hard, and I couldn’t find any reliable information about their pay online, but I do hope they pay them well!
Beach: 6.5/10
This is probably the only “disappointment” from the trip - and it was still good. The beach was beautiful, and the sand was amazing, but it was very windy every day, and during this time of year there is so much seaweed. They do attempt to clean the seaweed but it doesn’t do much. The water wasn’t super clear (although it wasn’t super dirty either), and overall it just wasn’t super enjoyable to swim in. Personally I like to actually be in the water, but if you just want to enjoy the waves and the sight of the beach, it will be a great experience for you! There was plenty of seating, it never felt crowded or competitive at all. The beach staff were very kind and helpful.
Excellence Club Review
Due to the length of the stay, we decided to get an Excellence Club room, which was an extra $500 or so. We would say for us that it was worth it. We went to Magna (the club restaurant) 4 times and it was probably our favorite restaurant. They had an incredible 45 oz. tomahawk steak. Magna was the only other breakfast option outside of the main buffet, and the breakfast at Magna was very good. We also loved the hydrotherapy and our location in the resort. We hardly used the lounge or bar. There were two Excellence Club sections of the beach; strangely, however, one of them was easily the best section of the beach, and the other was easily the worst. We used the club beach section (the good side) every day. The Excellence Club pools were great and a clear upgrade compared to the main pools, although we did not use them because of our private pool. The Excellence Club reception desk was helpful. I would say that if you are only going for 4-5 days, the Excellence Club is probably not worth it, but if you are doing a longer stay like we did, I would recommend it. It helped add variety and comfort to the trip.
Some other notes:
Honeymoon package: If you are staying 6 nights or more for your honeymoon, make sure to request the complimentary honeymoon package before you go! It got us a 45-minute massage (which was amazing), a private beachfront dinner, a champagne breakfast in bed, and a bottle of champagne upon arrival. We loved all of those things. I found this offer in a footnote on the website, so make sure to take advantage of it if it’s your honeymoon.
Excursions: We did not go on any excursions, and we had plenty of fun at the resort. The resort did mention having snorkeling equipment available online - we never saw any opportunities for snorkeling at the resort and the ocean was too rough for most of the listed activities you could do on site. That said, there is a seasons desk in the lobby where you can easily book a variety of excursions. They seemed well-priced and fun.
Overall, we absolutely loved our trip, and would highly recommend Excellence El Carmen! It was cost effective in the Excellence ecosystem and we have no regrets about our stay. We are grateful to have been able to go!