I stayed here as a Back Up Plan trip after my American Airlines flight to board a Virgin Voyages Adults only cruise leaving from Miami, Fl was delayed and then ultimately cancelled! I made the mistake of booking a same day 7am nonstop flight thinking if it gets delayed a couple hours , it shouldn’t be too bad and I should still be able to make the cruise. This was BAD thinking! When they announced that the flight was cancelled, there were no other flights available leaving in time to catch the cruise and the nearest airport was 2 hours away in NY. We did think about making the drive , but after calculating possible traffic and parking and what time the plane would board, we decided we wouldn’t make it. We pretty much accepted the fact that we would not be able to enjoy this new cruise ship that had been recently released and decided to drive back home.
On the way home we called the airlines and explained about our cancelled flight and asked for full refund as well as called cruise line and explained the situation and were able to also get a full refund back from them. So besides a day gone to waste that we took off from work, we didn’t lose any money thankfully! I was texting my two best friends that were in Mexico to vent about the horrible day we were having and they came up with the idea of us flying to Mexico to join them! We already had this adults only trip planned with time off from work, babysitter arrangements, dog sitter arrangements, and we were sad about possibly not going on a vacation we were so excited about.
So we started researching flights and resort cost. YIKES?! Yes this was extremely last minute, literally trying to fly out to Mexico the next day! Flights were about $800 per person and the resort was about the exact same, $800 a person, making the total for two people for this 3 night adults only last minute trip a whopping $3200. We kept going back and fourth deciding if $3200 was worth paying so much for only 3 nights and kept reminding ourselves about how hard it is to get days off from work as well as we will probably never do another adults only trip in YEARS since we really wanted to bring the baby with us but the resort our friends were at was adults only, meaning no kids
We ultimately decided to take the plunge and the first thing we did was book the flights to get that part secured. We then proceeded to book the room. We saw it said NON-REFUNDABLE. We NEVER book anything nonrefundable but since we KNEW we were going for sure the next day we decided to hit BOOK! All this was in a matter of about 30 minutes after we got home from the airport and told the babysitter they could have the day off. We were already packed so that part was already done and Mexico didn’t have any requirements to enter so that made the decision even easier. Now that the hotel and flight was booked, we booked our travel arrangements from Cancun airport to the resort on Viator website.
The day of our NEW and IMPROVED trip arrived and it was better than what we expected!
Let’s break down each area of this AMAZING Trip to give you a detailed review of my experience while I was at TRS Coral for 3 days!
Arriving to Cancun Airport: We arrived in Cancun Airport and after we collected our bags, we started heading to leave the airport and passed a bunch of Timeshare workers in black shirts asking us who was our company shuttle with to the resort and that they would assist in helping us find the shuttle. This was an obvious trick to reel you in to attend a 90 minute timeshare presentation with them in exchange for a free or discounted stay or excursion. If you have a longer stay, sometimes this may be worth it but in such a short stay, it’s best to avoid them and tell them no thank you and continue all the way until exiting the airport. After exiting airport, we saw the shuttle driver waiting for us with a sign with our name. We hopped in the van and made our way to the resort! I do want to mention that if you book your room directly with the Grand Palladium website, which the cost may or may not be higher, it does come with free airport roundtrip shuttle included!
Check in: When we arrived to the resort, we were greeted with yummy drinks! They asked us to wait in these lovely comfy white couches until a check in agent was available to check us in. 10 minutes later, we were greeted to check in. Check in was friendly and easy and we were handed a resort map, told what restaurants were open to eat while we waited for our room to be ready , and given a black and white TRS hat!
Food: If you are a foodie, this place is for you! Try ALL the restaurants available if you can for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I would personally skip the Buffet Isla Blanca, which was not located in TRS, but located in Grand Palladium and it was nothing to brag about. The quality was not the same as what you experienced at the restaurants and trust me, it feels good to be served in a restaurant for FREE when you have to pay top dollar for high end restaurants back home! Some of my favorite meals I was able to enjoy were: Helios: Chips Guac, Seafood Soup, Quesadilla, Philly Cheesesteak, Paella, Margaritas, Ceviche. Everything at Helios was amazing and I highly recommend eating here as much as possible especially with the incredible view! Also during breakfast at Helios, they have a taco stand, do not miss! Bhogali: The Naan , Lamb, and Butter Chicken were out of this world! Capricho: This is where we had an amazinggggg brunch! They have a buffet selection of food as well as made to order food! This place is a do not miss! Make sure to order the Chilaquiles with green sauce, onions and scrambled eggs! OMG I am still dreaming about them!!! The crepes were amazing too!! El Guacho: Please get the steak, mashed potatoes and queso dip! A MUST!!! Poseidon: The Views, The Views, The Views!! Wow! Eat at the second level!! Get the quesadilla, chips and guac, and tacos. Everything was amazing! El Dorado: This was my least favorite restaurant as the portions were so small that we left out of there hungry!
Spa at Zentropia: This is an absolutely DO NOT MISS! OMG! I think this was the best part of our entire trip! Now, the spa services are not cheap, but they are absolutely worth every penny! No matter what massage you pick, it comes with full day access to the Zentropia spa services which include, indoor and outdoor rooftop pools, saunas, steam rooms, and more! The outdoor rooftop pool had a bar that made you drinks or smoothies while enjoying an amazing view of the resort. This spa is definitely where you want to catch all your instagram worthy pictures! You also get a cute white or black robe to put on as well as slippers and a locker to store your items, make sure to keep your phone! LOL
Rooms/Butler: We booked an ocean view room, which had a balcony. The room was very nice and spacious and each room came with a Butler that helped you with anything you needed. Each floor had it’s own butler. When checking into room, make sure to make ALL your restaurant reservations as well as nightlife reservations with butler as soon as possible as almost everything books out days ahead! You can also ask the butler a bottle for one of their local alcohol brands and they bring it to you as a souvenir free of charge! I had also arranged with the butler to decorate our room with rose petals and champagne for a special Valentine’s Day celebration and he made sure we came back to a room set for the perfect occasion! The rooms also come with robes and slippers to get comfy! Make sure to tip the butler well because they work hard to make sure you have an amazing experience to remember!
Beach: The beach wasn’t anything over the top but it was very nice. I did notice that the beach in the Palladium Travel Club Private Area was a lot cleaner than the main beach area. I also saw a very romantic dinner set up on the beach which I am sure you can arrange a special dinner on the beach with the butler.
Pools: The pools were very nice and not too cold. They were clean and had spectacular views! I could not stop taking pictures on the pool beds! The pool beds outside of the pool have to be booked a day before and they charge for them. You are welcome to sit in any pool chairs that are open and available free of charge.
Sister Properties Access: Now this resort is inside a HUGE resort property owned by GRAND PALLADIUM. By staying in TRS Coral Adults Only Resort, you had access to resort hop over to either Grand Palladium or Family Selection, which both are family friendly. If You stay at Grand Palladium, you cannot resort hop over to TRS Coral nor Family Selection. If you stay at Family selection, you can resort hop to Grand Palladium, but not to TRS. Again, TRS is adults only and no kids are allowed. There is a shuttle van that takes you to any part of the resort you are allowed to visit. I did notice Grand Palladium had all the entertainment and nightlife as well as a Kid’s Club. TRS does not have any entertainment or nightlife on their resort so if you are staying in TRS, you have to walk or take the shuttle over to Grand Palladium.
Nightlife: The nightlife is only in the Grand Palladium side! And it is a MUST visit! The have a rooftop open air bar with DJ that was so much fun! They also have performers doing shows that start around 8pm every night. I also saw some live music where you can dance the night away! The best nightlife they have is a charged event that includes food, drinks, and a show called CHIC Cabaret, also adults only. This show was PHENOMENAL and worth every penny! The good thing about this resort is you can charge everything to your room and pay with your card at check out.
Vacation Club: The Grand Palladium has a Travel Club, which is very similar to a time share and it’s pretty private. No one at the resort will approach you about it. I actually had to visit the Travel Club Lounge to ask about becoming a member. The longe is located between Grand Palladium Resort and Family Selection Resort and has a private pool and bar with more premium alcohol as well as a cleaner, private beach. Prices all depend on the packages you choose and may or may not be worth it depending if you are Grand Palladium resort Loyal as they have many properties all over the world.
Covid Test: At check in they give you a card to go on a website and set up your own appointment to take the covid test. Make sure you pick the day that is required to take the test depending on what country you are flying back to. The test was $25 per person charged to the room and was super quick and the results were in your email in 30 minutes.
Check out: Check out was very easy and you took care of any room charges you made with a credit or debit card. If you signed up for the free Grand Palladium Rewards Membership on their website, make sure to provide your membership number at check in or check out as you can earn points for discounts on stays or services. Also ask them to print your covid test results as well!
Leaving from Cancun Airport: OMG the lines were scary! We were checking out around 2pm and got to airport 2 hours early which was a mistake. I suggest arriving 3-4 hours early as the lines to check in for flight were so long I was scared we were going to miss our flight! Since they check for covid test, you could not check in on the app nor at the airport kiosk. Thankfully there was someone from the airline with a sign with the flight number pulling people from the long line to skip ahead but you have to be paying attention!
Overall Experience: Overall, I had an AMAZING stay at TRS Coral Costa Mujeres Mexico! I would absolutely return but of course would stay at the Grand Palladium side to be able to bring my kids! The only downfall is that I would not be able to enjoy the amazing Restaurants in the TRS side nor the amazing view from their pool but Grand Palladium is also nice but more geared to family even though they also have a swim up bar! I give this resort a 10/10 because the food, service, quality, and amenities were more than what I even expected! Thank you TRS Coral staff for making this trip so memorable for us!
