We stayed at the riviera section jan 12- jan19. before going on vacation i spend days, well months researching and choosing the perfect property for what we enjoy. the reason i chose this resort was the beach that offers everything-beauty, snorkling,great walking--action if you want and areas away from people if you would like also. we saw so many different fish the moment we put our masks in the water. even better than the snorkling at akumal...speaking of akumal. it is a 5-10 minute collectivo ride at only $2.00 per person..they take american dollars. never had to wait more than 2 minutes for one to come along and they will pick you up right across from the colonial lobby on the highway. also went to tulum and that was only $3.00 per person. so glad we didn't spring for a taxi or be stuck on an expensive tour bus..nice to come and go as we pleased.
as for the room- we requested building 60, 3rd floor, ocean view. we got everything but the ocean view. we were placed on the wrong side of the building..rm 6036..kind of a bummer being so close to getting exactly what we wanted. the room was very nice and we all slept great. my 10 year old slept great on the pull out couch and our king size bed was comfortable and huge. great view of the grand sirenis which was lit up nice at night.
the restaurants and bars were really wonderful..everyone that waited on us worked so hard and were so pleasant and very professional. all deserving of good tips. freddy at punta emelia beach bar made the best banana daquiris ever and the waitresses hustled. i loved the great beach bars and snack shacks..never having to leave the beach to overeat..great guacamole, and nachos. oh my gosh, the breakfast buffet..everything you ever will want. loved the fresh juice..my favorite was the celery,parsley and melon..sounds yuk but is refreshing and delishioso.
i was shocked at the talent of the entertainment staff when we went to the prehispanic show..i'm not much of a show person but was blown away by the dancing. my husband didn't come and i kept telling him all week how he missed out and even he would have been impressed.
the kids club was great and my resistant shy 10 year old even enjoyed it and made friends there. he spent a couple hours there everyday. loved the trampoline and found buddies to play football with. the girls working there are so sweet and great with the kids. i saw one getting balled out and threatened by a couple stating she should have reapplied sun screen on their child..the kids club girl had a clown outfit on and was just finishing entertaining a group of kids in what seemed like an exhausting relay race. geez, if you can't come back every 90 minutes and spray your own kid down you are pretty lazy parents. it made me sick. i felt very sorry for this girl while she apologized to this couple after she worked her butt off entertaining their child.
the grounds are huge and so much fun to explore..but exploring is my favorite thing. the transportation around the resort is great once you figure it out and get your bearings. i do wish the trains ran alittle more often as we waited > than 15 minutes quite often. not a big deal but the grounds are so huge you have to take the villa tram to the lobby then the other train from lobby to lobby..i like walking but too much makes my husband crabby. my feat ached pretty bad at the end of the dayand i am an active person and a nurse who is on their feet all day. if i felt ok to wear tennis shoes to dinner and on the beach it would not have been a problem. i did love the size of the resort though. so many things to see, drink, eat, and do. i would come back in a heartbeat. don't think anyother place could ever meet my high expectations like the palladium did...only maybe next time we will get an ocean view and paradise will have been found:)

The resort was beautiful, no doubt, however, the distances between all the amenities were the inconvenience. We have a 5 year year old and a 20 month old and a stroller that we had to lug around with us so the Riviera side of the Grand Palladium is way too far from everything. The beach front was gorgeous but if you are with a family and small kids, definitely stay in the Kantenah or Colonial side. This is where the kids club is located, the shows at night, the beach and just much more convenient with small kids. On the Riviera part of the resort, it is a 10-15 minute walk to everything (food, beach, pool etc.). Whereas the Colonial and Kantenah part, the rooms are directly near the pool and lobby where all the restaurants are located. (Beach has very good snack bar with fruits and everything!)
Other than that, the staff, the food, the train/trolly system were fantastic! Would go again but would stay on the other side! If you want a good pillow, $3/day to select from their pillow menu! Otherwise, you will sleep on hard ones!!

This resort is huge! It has 17 restaurants to choose from. The beach is one of the best. The sand is powdery and great for walking, there are some sandy spots for swimming and some rocky areas for snorkeling. We loved it for the snorkeling - lots of fish.
The staff was great, always friendly and willing to help. The resort is big so many evenings we called for a ride to the lobby and they were very accommodating, picking us up within 5 minutes. We had a great week at the Palladium and would recommend to anyone.

We visited the White Sands Resort from January 1st to January 8th. It was rather disappointing. The Air Transat representative marketed the place as superior to the Iberostar, but she was definately incorrect and probably made some good commission off of selling that falsehood. Our room was average - rather dirty and run down. The maid didn't do anything special like fold towels or leave chocolates, even though we tipped very well and were tidy and respectful. We tipped between 100 and 200 pesos each day and sometimes we had turn down service and sometimes we didn't.

The food at every el a carte was cold and tasteless. This was very disappointing, as we went to 4 el a carte restaurants. The hotel staff was lazy for the most part. When I asked for a coffee in the morning, I was told on two occasions that the machine was broken. I was told the same thing about the icecream machine at the beach. They closed the washrooms during peak times of the day and so we had to walk to our room, which was quite a distance from the beach. There was no hospitality team to speak of.

In short, there wasn't anything special about the resort. The beach, however, is beautiful as is the salt water pool area. Nature is consistently a good host!

Given the cost of this resort relative to others like the Iberostar or Barcelo, this is not the best choice.