I recently stayed at the Fives for a week as it was the resort my cousin chose to have his wedding at. I have been to Mexico twice before but I had never stayed in Playa del Carmen so I was definitely looking forward to getting to see a different part of Mexico. I love a good beach vacation and choosing a good resort can certainly be a difficult decision given all of the options out there. Hopefully my review of the Fives will help you narrow down your search!
The Rooms
The rooms at this resort were actually some of the best rooms I’ve seen at a resort. They were very spacious, updated, clean and comfortable. The staff kept the rooms well stocked with water, pop and beer throughout the entire stay, which I appreciated as I tend to drink a lot of water.
My only complaint I had about my room was that there wasn’t a chair or a floor length mirror in the room. I usually prefer to sit down to do my hair and make up because it can take me quite a long time to do it but that wasn’t an option as there was no chair in my room, which meant the bed was the only place I could sit unless I wanted to sit on the balcony.
The Restaurants
One of the things I liked the most about this resort is there was no limit on how many a la carte’s we could book during our stay. Resorts I have been to in the pass will limit you to 3 a la carte restaurants during your stay and the remainder of the time you have to eat at the buffet. There are several lunch options available and there is 6 a la carte restaurants you can book. I recommend booking your reservations sooner rather than later so that you can get your preferred restaurants and time slot. The a la carte restaurants you can choose from are Mexican, French, Italian, sushi, Thai or Mediterranean. I definitely recommend booking the a la carte restaurants as they are significantly better than the buffet. I personally did not enjoy the buffet and did not return for a second chance. The a la carte restaurants were half decent but there is definitely room for improvement, and I certainly had higher expectations given the price I was paying at this resort.
Beach
Being on the beach and in the ocean is one of the main reasons I travel so if I’m at a resort you will find me 99% of the time on the beach. Because of this, I can be pretty critical of beaches. Overall, this beach was pretty good. The sand was super soft and there was a lot of lounge chairs to sit on. One of the downsides was the sandbags in the water that they use to reduce the waves. While I appreciate they are trying to minimize the waves, it does affect your view of the ocean.
I will also warn that there was quite a bit of seaweed washing up on the shore. It wasn’t as bad as the last resort I stayed at in Mexico and there were workers working daily to clean it up but that does also affect your swimming. Thankfully, there wasn’t enough seaweed for there to be a smell.
Entertainment
Entertainment could be found every evening on the basketball court, and they usually had a band or a dj playing in the main courtyard. Daily activities were also planned at the pools so there was definitely no shortage of fun things to do.
The Staff
This is the one thing I can’t say enough good things about. Every staff member I dealt with during my stay was incredible. They were all very friendly and helpful and I definitely felt they made my experience and stay that much better. I didn’t have any issues during my stay so it’s possible that my opinion may be different if I experienced issues, but my entire stay was without issue.
Would I come back?
Overall, I had a great time at this resort. However, in my opinion it was not worth the value of the trip. I think if they elevated the food then it would definitely take this resort to the next level, and I would probably recommend it but since I found the food to be subpar, I just don’t feel comfortable recommending you stay there at its current price point. There are definitely similar resorts with better restaurants that you can stay at in Mexico for a fraction of the cost.
