My husband, 4 year old son and I just returned from a wonderful week at the Iberostar Quetzel. This was our third visit to this resort (second time with our son), and it continued be be as nice as we remembered it.
I had emailed in advance, and our room request was honored for the most part (we got the building, bed arrangement, and direction of the room requested, but were put on the main floor as opposed to an upper level). Ultimately, being on the ground floor proved to be quite convenient for us, although a couple of nights, it sounded like there was an elephant walking in the room above us! (not the fault of the hotel)
The beds are hard, as everyone points out, and this year we didn't have the mattress toppers, but were so tired at the end of the day, we all slept very well anyway. The room was clean and cool. One negative was in regards to housekeeping - there were 3 days where we were not provided with replacement facecloths, and after we used up the large bottle of water for brushing teeth etc, it was never replaced, so we used the smaller water bottles in the fridge for that - not a big deal.
The jungle continues to look beautiful, and the beach is by far the best in the area. We sat on the Quetzal side, and since that is where the dive boats come and go from, there were never any beach chairs in front of us, so we always had a fabulous view of the water. We had to walk a few feet over to swim in the ocean, but that gave us a chance to drip dry when coming back to our chairs. All of the beach activities take place in the middle of the beach, so if you want action, stay in that area. The beach bar was always busy, but there was also a waitress taking orders if you didn't want to get up yourself.
The staff were all wonderful - everyone greeted us when passing on the trails, and were very friendly. Special mention of Mauricio of the Star Friends - he became my son's best Amigo while we were there, and my son loved seeing him every day. In the buffet restaurant, all of the staff were great, but David always went out of his way to chat with my son and ensure we never had to wait for refills of drinks.
Our son enjoyed the kids club every evening at 8 pm - I think it was fun for those kids in the 3 - 7 age range, but any older, and the games would seem too simple I think.
There was a mix up in dinner reservations on our last night - I had requested the Japanese reataurant, but was given the Italian - not sure why I didn't check the ticket more closely, so I have to take some of the blame myself - but we still had a great meal. We also ate at the Steakhouse (always great), and enjoyed the Tropical as well (the shrimp were fabulous). The buffets always had something, even for the fussy eater in our family. We found the buffet on the Tucan side was usually quieter and more relaxed for both breakfast and supper, and the food is the same. At lunch we tended to eat at the beachside restaurant and often had the hamburgers hot off the grill. I know it's been mentioned in many other reviews, but ladies, don't bother wearing spiky heeled shoes - you'll have a hard time managing the jungle paths or the wood path on the Quetzal side.
We really weren't bothered by any vendors on the beach - there were people walking around selling jewelery or cigars, but they didn't pester you if you didn't take an interest. Same for the staff offering massages or spa services - they were friendly and didn't hassle you if they remembered you from a previous day.
We had pictures taken with all the animals, and also did a family photo shoot with the photographer from the resort. I did feel pressure from the photographer when I went to see the photos - she offered me a "deal" for $800 US, and seemed put off when I only selected 7 shots (which was still $105 US). I didn't like how obviously unimpressed she was with my order - and I wonder - if it's not your wedding, do people actually spend $800 on vacation photos?
We ordered room service for our son twice, and were very pleased with the speed of service, and how hot the food was when it arrived. We also have to compliment the bell boy for how quickly he came to pick up our luggage when we were leaving.
After 3 times at the same resort, we have already decided to return there next winter, because why be disappointed by a place you don't know, when this resort has everything we need for a wonderful vacation.

Beautiful grounds. So lush. The hotel pool was beautiful and fun to swim in. The food in the buffets was good but the restaurants was excellent. I loved the Coco-Loco drinks. We don't drink alcohol so they made all of the specialty drinks for us virgin. I didn't like the topless women on the beach. I have 6 boy and I won't bring them because of the nudity. The rooms were clean. We loved visiting. We didn't like the Tropical restaurant but the Steak House, Mexican,

Two hotels seperated by jungle - monkeys, peacocks, flamingos, Agouti , Iguanas-great if you like wildlife! Main buildings are single storey, tall & thatched & wall-less creating fantastic natural air-conditioning (netted to keep birds out of restaurants) Rooms bright & comfortable but views mainly of the jungle. Excellent choice of food including opportunity to try Mexican dishes & good a la carte dining. Well staffed & extremely attentive & friendly especillay around the pool & beach. Cleanliness well above average. Could be improved by more tables in the bars.
Take insect repellent to spray during the day as well as nightime.
Would definitely go again !!

We had such an amazing week here. Service staff is fantastic and here is a summary of all aspects of the resort. We recommend this resort to everyone. Adults, families…you will be impressed by the beauty of this jungle environment. They will go out of their way to make sure you have a good trip.

Room: We were in building 29 which was furthest from the beach. Let's face it, we booked Tuesday and arrived on Friday...I wasn't going to complain. This room was comfortable, clean, spacious and on the third floor as I requested. They are quiet. I felt like there was no one else in the building. Although we were near the entrance of the resort, we did not hear cars unless we were on the balcony overlooking the beautiful lush jungle environment. I think third floor is a good idea as lower you might get more humidity. We had no odor or mustiness in our room it was perfect. The bathrooms are modern with a large shower stall. There is no tub, but we do not take baths so that is not a problem. There is a safe. We had to call to get it re-set, but they came right away and everything worked smoothly for the rest of the week. There is plenty of closet space. Television was great, but we aren't there to watch tv. Our building was right next to the disco, but we barely heard anything except for some people leaving, but you would hear people going back to their rooms wherever you are on the resort so it was not a problem. The air-conditioning is extremely efficient and the quietest I have ever seen. Building 29 may be furthest from the beach but walking through the jungle every day is an adventure because you are meeting peacocks, agouti, coatis, iguanas, monkeys, chickens, ducks, swans, turtles...so many I am sure I am missing something...it is sooo interesting. This building is right near the lobby, lobby bar, the dinner reservations desk, buffet, excursion booking, tennis courts, spa, bicycle rentals, main street if you want to walk to market or Playa del Carmen. Therefore I didn't mind the location at all.

Beach: In our opinion the beach was the best on Playacar. They work so hard to get rid of the grass that showed up a few days during the week, but it isn’t slimy greasy seaweed, it is more rigid and if you encounter some in the water it isn’t creepy. The water was warm and clean and beautiful. You can walk to the left and you will notice when you walk past the other hotels that their beach chairs do not go past the lifeguard chair…which means they are pretty far from the water. At the Iberostar, not only can you drag your beach chairs close to the water, but you can get a parasol from the towel rental and you are set for the day and you can protect yourself if you have had enough sun or like me you are sun-sensitive. This is a huge bonus in my opinion. There are barely any vendors on the beach and they are very respectful and not annoying at all. There is someone selling silver jewelry, the parasailing guys and sometimes the women from the spa asking if you would like a massage. Walking on this beach is a dream as there are no rocks at all. We played volleyball every day. There are other activities on the beach and in the pool area (salsa dancing, Zumba ect.). If you want to have fun, there is plenty to do, but if you just want to sit and read a book quietly, no problem. There is no music blaring all day like we noticed at other resorts. The animators are all friendly and they work very hard to make sure everyone is having a good time.

Dressel Dive Shop – We were able to book a snorkeling expedition for $40 US. They take you out 15 minutes to the Inah reef where you snorkel for an hour. We saw fish, rays and a giant turtle that was so beautiful and unreal. We felt like we were in a Disney movie. The guide would dive deeper and pick up sea urchins, star fish and other sea creatures. It was worth every penny. We also would take a couple of kayaks out (singles or tandem) when the wind cooperated. Our best outing was when we went straight out to the buoy and came back easily with the waves behind us. It was a lot of fun. We should have taken a catamaran refresher lesson at the beginning of the week so that we could use them whenever we wanted. The course is $40.00 and would have been worth it…oh well.

Restaurants: The buffet restaurant – we only went there for breakfast and our first night. The breakfasts are fine. They only had bananas two mornings, but the rest of the time we always ate way too much. You can have made to order omelets, crispy bacon, beans, sausages, fresh fruit, many different kinds of bread, yogurts, donuts, pancakes, waffles, French toast…I could go on and on…you will not starve. For dinner, I can’t comment too much because we were exhausted the first night. The wine was horrible…seriously foul. One night we walked through after our dinner at an à la carte and they had a lovely roast beef and a crown roast of pork. It looked really good.

El Bonsai Restaurant – Japanese – This is a show. The food is decent, however very salty…they add salt and plenty of soya sauce. It was quite good, but not my favourite. You are with a group. It is a fun atmosphere and you get to meet other people. Fun to watch. We had a combo (octopus, chicken, beef and shrimp).
La Gondola restaurant – Italian – This was the best restaurant at the resort. We are not pasta people so we didn’t even eat pasta. We went twice. The service and food was excellent. The appetizer buffet had smoked salmon, wonderful cheeses and many interesting selections. The wine was quite good too. We absolutely loved the lamb chops, rib-eye steak and the red snapper with mussels. All meats were cooked medium rare to perfection and the fish was excellent too. I recommend this restaurant to all.

The Tropical restaurant – Seafood – Was OK. I had the red snapper and my husband had the shrimp. I could taste the garlic powder (not fresh garlic) and it was kind of overpowering and not great. It was my least favourite à la carte.

La Marimba Steakhouse – Very good food. Appetizers (salad) were tasty and the steak was cooked perfectly. This was our second favourite à la carte.

La Hacienda Restaurant – Mexican – We had a pretty good meal here. My husband had the beef skewers flambéed with Tequila. I had some sort of pineapple chicken tacos that were very tasty…but they were tacos. The beef skewers were a little tough, but it was a decent meal.

The lunch buffets on each side of the beach (the steakhouse and tropical restaurants are lunch buffets during the day) were wonderful. The sea bass, roast chicken, nachos with different kinds of salsas, hamburgers (outside) were delicious. The chili, paella one day, margaritas all made our lunches tremendous! Loved it! Top all that off with delicious cappuccinos…are we in heaven? Don't forget to get your hard ice cream near the beach bar. The coconut is fantastic, the mango is great too!

Shows – I am not a fan of resort shows. I am usually too tired to enjoy them. My husband enjoyed the magic show and we both enjoyed a tribute to the Academy awards. They work very hard to put on a good show.

Ok, in all fairness 4.5 would probably be my rating however the only things that knocked off the .5 were not an important reflection of the week we spent here. The only negatives were: We waited over an hour to check in because they seemed a bit disorganized and short-staffed at that moment. They were very polite and seemed genuinely sorry for the delay. Have a drink and relax after your trip. The beds are uncomfortable (hard), but if you order your foam topper straight away, this will not be an issue. Housekeeping came and brought me one on the 2nd day and it helped a lot. I believe oceanfront rooms have more comfortable beds as I spoke to some people who mentioned that there beds were great. The tennis courts are a little strange, but that will only interest a small percentage of people who play. We managed to enjoy them nonetheless. The buffet wine is virtually undrinkable.

All in all you will definitely not regret choosing this resort. We were pleasantly surprised.