The Hotel was nice but the food was very bad, so much so that we ended going out to eat at nights , the beds were comfortable but some areas of the hotel were under construction and we ended asking them to change us from our room. over all I would not stay there again.

We stay at the Gran Melia almost every year. The atrium is gorgous with all the greenery inside. The rooms are always clean, comfortable, and well kept. The pool is gorgous and inviting. The breakfast buffet is delicious and staff is attentive.It's a great location right next to the Marriott. If it was possible It would be great if they had some type of entertainment at night.

If what you are after is sun, beaches with a dash of excursions, this is great. If you are also a scuba diver you will have even more fun.
The hotel has excellent restaurants and the people are very accommodating.

We stayed at this hotel January 19-22, and from the moment we walked in we had a lovely experience. We encountered nothing but pleasant individuals at the check-in desk, at the concierge desk, all the way to everyone who served food and drinks and delivered luggage. It helps if you know at least a little Spanish - it is Mexico, after all! Any effort you make with Spanish goes a long way. But for me (the non-fluent Spanish speaker of our pair), the staff made every effort to communicate in English if I didn't quite understand. Everyone was extremely kind.

Check in: We originally reserved a regular ocean-front room without the all-inclusive package, but I had heard about the Red Level and was interested in finding out more. I was not harassed or forced into it, instead I chose to upgrade on my own and the front desk staff was more than accommodating. We even arrived a little before official check-in time and, had we stuck with our regular room, it was ready, but a Red Level room with an ocean view was also available. What a great decision!

Red Level: If you are debating - just do it. The Red Level has its own exclusive building, and I feel that it was worth every extra penny, especially because it covers the daily complimentary breakfast buffet in the lobby of the building, the daily reserved cabana (no fighting for chairs with the 6 AM towel placement), the Red Level pool, the Red Level pool/beach food and beverage service (sadly, not the food itself if you didn't get the plan, but it still wasn't that expensive), the Red Level concierge who can get you reservations for restaurants on or off property no matter what time of day you ask, the evening "happy hour" (ie: free drinks from 7-9)...and the list goes on. The longer you're there, the more I feel you would be able to get out of that service. It's just worth it.

Room: Fantastic ocean view with a great balcony. The room was quite large with a king size bed (with comfortable furniture), and ... all important to me, a luxurious bathroom with a rain shower! We also had two lounge chairs on our balcony where we could lay out and watch the stars at night. Definitely get an ocean view room. Room service was great, it was always clean and had twice daily service. The only interesting part was that the door on the cabinet that contains the room fridge was always off its hinges when we returned each day. Bad hinges, I guess? However often they checked, I don't remember seeing any miscellaneous charges for things that we didn't eat or drink from the fridge on our bill.

Food: We chose not to get the all-inclusive package because we knew we wanted to venture off the property for some of the meals. We only ate at the buffet place once (the first day because we were starving!) which had decent food, but at not inclusive prices, it was $44 for a salad, another small plate of food, 2 beers, and a steak. Ouch. Mostly we asked the concierge for recommendations and reservations at great restaurants nearby or went to places we could wander around and grabbed a cab to those locations. It was well worth it. We had fabulous food off-site. The one restaurant that I had heard excellent things about on site was the Mexican restaurant, Ku-Nah. The service was great and the food was interesting and good, but far from spectacular. Overall, the best food we had on-site came from the beach bar menu - the ceviche and guac & chips were outstanding!

Nightlife: As others have indicated - this is not a "party" hotel. It's a relaxing, couples-type place. Small children were a rare sight. The lobby bar closes at 11 or 12 I think, but if you go, there are comfy lounge chairs and a great 2 for 1 happy hour from 5-7. If you're looking to party, venture outside of the hotel!

Beach: Beautiful soft white sand beaches. Great chairs. We spent most of our days alternating between our cabana and lounge chairs. Winter is a tough time to go in the ocean in Cancun as red flags were up each day, but that doesn't mean you can't dip your toes in or just plant your feet and get smacked by a few gorgeous blue water waves. Of note - there was a big storm there at some point that carved away a huge portion of the beach. There's a giant step down from one level of sand to the other that runs the entire length of the beach. Step down (and up) carefully! By the way - the water really is as blue as it appears in all of the pictures.

Overall resort: It is stunning! Words cannot begin to describe the atrium! It has a tropical feel and a welcoming open atmosphere. So beautiful! The Red Level has an equally impressive atrium. There are ponds throughout the lobby which contain more koi fish than I've ever seen. I felt relaxed just being in that environment. I truly enjoyed my stay at the Gran Melia and definitely recommend it to anyone who can appreciate a true find when they see one.

PS - If you really get the good service that we received, it helps to show appreciation to those who are trying to make your stay as pleasant as possible. Right now with the exchange rate (13 pesos per USD), you can probably afford to reward a few individuals here and there.