Essence at the Fives Beach

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Star rating

The hotel

Looking to create your own memorable moments in Mexico... well we're sure the Essence at The Fives Beach deserves a spot in your Wishlist! Sitting on a picture-perfect beach in Playa del Carmen the stunning Essence at The Fives Beach delivers all your holiday desires. Starting with their generous all-inclusive plan that offers global cuisine and impressive cocktail lists in 10 trendy restaurants and bars, that's enough to keep any foodie happy! You have a choice of inviting pools, beach club, dreamy spa and a kid's club playhouse, where little ones will be entertained for hours thanks to the energetic activity programme. Phew! Plus there's a great selection of rooms to choose from too. How does all that sound? It's clear to see a holiday here combines a blissful beach break with something a bit more 'extra'... it's no wonder it’s proving popular with fun-loving couples and families.

Amenities

  • Tennis
  • Babysitting service
  • Kids Club
  • Bar
  • Evening Entertainment
  • Internet Access
  • Restaurant
  • Room Service
  • Spa
  • Swimming Pool
  • Beachfront location

Where is it

Perfectly sat on the white sand coast of the Caribbean Sea in Playa Del Carmen. Transfer time from airport: 35 minutes.

Hotel information

663 air-conditioned rooms. All with a balcony or terrace with pool or garden views, air-conditioning, LCD flat-screen television or smart TV, WiFi, coffee maker and daily stocked mini-bar. 

With features of contemporary coastal style, Deluxe Rooms have a large balcony or terrace with garden views, and either 2 double beds or 1 king- size bed, sleeping maximum 4 adults or 2 adults and 2 children.

All Inclusive includes: a welcome drink upon arrival. Meals and drinks at 10 bars and restaurants, plus casual dining options in the open-air eateries. Domestic and international premium liqueurs. Personal concierge in pool and beach areas. 24-hour room service.

Modern 1 Bedroom Resort Residences enjoy a separate living room with double sofa bed, and a full kitchen, as well as 1 king-size bed, sleeping 2 adults. These rooms are also available as a Swim Up Residence, where you can dip into the pool straight from your patio.

2 Bedroom Resort Residences feature a master bedroom, living room with double sofa bed and a second bedroom with 2 double beds (or 1 king-size bed), and a full-size kitchen. These rooms are also available as a Swim Up Residence, where you can dip into the pool straight from your patio.

1 Bedroom Penthouse Resort Residences have their own rooftop lounge area complete with a pergola, barbecue grill and a whirlpool tub.

  • Booking Bonus: Book by 30 Sep '25 to receive up to 65% off the accommodation cost for travel until 23 Dec '27. 

    Terms and  conditions apply. Any applicable offers have been calculated into the prices shown. Offers may not be combinable. Blackout dates apply. 

14 restaurants and gourmet corners including Flavours (family-friendly buffet restaurant with International dishes, open for breakfast and dinner), Lizzards (healthy delights and natural ingredient-based cuisine, open for lunch), Natura Day Club & Grill (adult-only, grill restaurant, open for lunch), La Brasserie (Bistro restaurant serving the best of International cuisine, all-day dining), Oka (sushi bar, open for dinner), Mestizo (authentic Mexican gastronomy, open for breakfast and dinner), Arezzo (adult-only restaurant, Tuscan cuisine, open for dinner), Sea Olive (Italian dishes, open for dinner), Koh Thai (Thai cuisine, open for dinner). Pop up food corners including pizza slices, Mexican bites, burgers and sandwiches and other pop up delights. 4 pool bars and 4 signature bars. Coffee shop*.

Daily and nightly entertainment.

7 outdoor pools. Spa*. Gym. Outdoor tennis courts. Basketball court. Running and jogging circuit. The Beach Club with loungers and sun beds. Aluxitos Play House (4-12 years) offering fun supervised activities for kids, ranging from fitness classes, arts and crafts and tennis lessons. Interactive cooking class*. Joy & Wellness Programme (variety of activities designed to refresh and renew both body and mind. These include yoga classes, sport activities, evening entertainment and cooking classes).

Butlers in the pool and beach areas. 24-hour room service*. Dry-cleaning/laundry services*. Babysitting service available*. 

Guests staying in the Mexican state Quintana Roo are required to pay a travel tax of $11 per adult (over 15 years old). The payment can be made prior to travel, upon arrival or during your stay, as the tax will be imposed upon departure. There is also an additional Environmental Sanitation Tax of $4.25 USD per room, per night that will be added to your hotel bill (payable locally, subject to change).

* Denotes local charge. 

Rating summary

  • Location Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Sleep Quality Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Rooms Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Service Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Value Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Cleanliness Image of the Tripadvisor rating

Traveller rating

  • Excellent (13135)
  • Very good (2708)
  • Average (1145)
  • Poor (557)
  • Terrible (666)
Image of the Tripadvisor rating A 5 Star Experience or a Lottery of Inconsistency?

Aug 11, 2025 D584BKdenisew

Sadly, I have come away from our family holiday to The Fives with more negatives than I expected (I am generally a positive person in outlook and LOVE my holidays!) This, however, is my experience bearing in mind the cost of the two week holiday was over £3,000 (GBP) per person. There were nine of us including three children and one of the… Read more
Sadly, I have come away from our family holiday to The Fives with more negatives than I expected (I am generally a positive person in outlook and LOVE my holidays!) This, however, is my experience bearing in mind the cost of the two week holiday was over £3,000 (GBP) per person. There were nine of us including three children and one of the children was a three year old. Total cost of the hotel (no trips) was nearly £28,000 (GBP). 1. Room - we had booked two ‘deluxe’ double rooms and a two bedroom apartment. These were in two separate ‘villas’ - villa 3 and 4. This was perfectly fine. What was not in any way fine or acceptable was that we (grandparents in our 60s) were given a ground floor room overlooking the children’s water play area which had the decor of a prison cell and an unpleasant damp smell. The size of the room was okay but it was VERY basic, dated and did not have the luxury feel that you expect from a 5 star hotel. There was no privacy in this room. Stains on the net curtains. Telephone didn’t work. Needless to say we were disappointed so we went to reception to ask if we could change rooms. The lady at reception was helpful and looked to see what she could offer. She found a room on the other side of the resort and so we climbed into the golf cart to go and view it. It was very nice, much more modern in decor and didn’t smell (bonus!) BUT it was TINY. I imagine it would be a room normally given to American guests who often only have short vacations of 4 or 5 days. Our two weeks worth of clothes would not have fit in the wardrobe and there was absolutely no room to store the empty suitcases afterwards. Back to reception. Is there anything else you can offer us? We were told no, nothing at all but we could have an upgraded room - like the one we just viewed but larger. This would cost us close to an additional £1000 for the privilege of getting the room we expected in the first place. No thanks. Is there nothing else at all? The (still very nice) lady offered us a more modern room in villa 4 but it wouldn’t be available for another three days. Okay, we’ll think about it. At the end of the three day period, as we’d unpacked and got used to the fading unpleasant smell, we decided it simply wasn’t worth the hassle of packing up all our stuff again. We’d already spent a few hours unpacking, waiting in reception and viewing rooms that weren’t suitable, we didn’t want the stress of going through the process all over again. The other members of our party had better quality rooms and were satisfied with them. 2. Sunloungers and shade - we are reasonably early risers and usually we get up, find sunloungers and spend half an hour lounging on them before going to breakfast. For us, this means around 30 - 40 minutes, which has to include the walk to the restaurant, then back to the loungers. Not at this hotel. They told us that their policy is to remove towels and your belongings after 15 minutes. Why? This is a little strict and regimented, isn’t it? Yes! But it’s the only way they can manage the problem of not having enough parasols. If you move from your lounger and PRIZED umbrella, you may not have it when you get back! We tried asking for a parasol when we couldn’t find enough shade, to be told that there were no more available - actually, there were plenty available, but staff won’t take them from empty ‘luxury’ and chargeable beds, even if they’re unoccupied - just in case somebody might want to pay for one later. Okay, so they’re running a business, but shade in a spot where you’ve found a sunlounger isn’t a luxury, it’s a basic health requirement and should be available to all guests to ensure they don’t get sunstroke. Solution, simple. Buy some more parasols! Looking back on old reviews, I can see that this has come up before, on more than one occasion, but nothing has been done to sort it out other than the implementation of a management system (the 15 minute rule) that is applied inconsistently and doesn’t actually solve the issue. The dappled shade from a tree in 36C+ heat is NOT enough, believe me, we tried it! On one occasion we insisted on staff finding us a parasol for the children (we were directed to the female supervisor) but this was considered an unreasonable request because our group of nine, already had one. We were grudgingly given a parasol (taken from another family who had temporarily moved away from their sunloungers) and heard the young attendant muttering under his breath about the fact that we already had one umbrella. More stress for everyone and guilt for us because we had initiated the removal of a parasol from a family who thought they had secured one for the day. When they returned I felt obliged to apologise as they could see we now had the parasol that they thought was theirs for the day. For the entire holiday we felt stressed about whether we would get a parasol in the place where we wanted to sit. This resulted in us making compromises such as not sitting together or sitting in places where we didn’t actually want to sit. NOT a 5 star experience. We witnessed families putting down towels and belongings on sunloungers the night before they were planning on using them - sometimes they were removed by staff and sometimes they were not. We overheard an elderly couple saying they had put their towels on loungers with personal items and they had been removed after half an hour (they were only going for breakfast). The inconsistency was confusing. We did not do this, but were made to feel as though we had. The general feeling was that staff became defensive and less pleasant when you asked for a parasol for the sunbeds behind the beachfront pool cabanas. 3. Pools - lots of them. Some in excellent condition, but we didn’t find one that had cool water. They are all like warm baths and you can’t cool off in the sea either (see 6 below). Another disappointment. 4. Restaurants - the lack of a dinner buffet makes it challenging to get fed at a reasonable time. This won’t be news to you if you’ve read other reviews. After a very bad experience at the Bistro restaurant we decided to follow the advice given by other TripAdvisor reviewers and we went at 5.30pm every night, religiously, to the restaurants available to us. We also split our group and most of the time did not attempt to go as a party of nine. This worked for us. Meals were generally good but there are significant issues at the Bistro restaurant and we would recommend avoiding it unless you are happy to wait for a least an hour and a half (once seated) to get your main course. Service here was poor (slow) and the meals not great either. We also had a vegetarian in our party and she felt that she was not catered for adequately. 5. The Environment - this is special. If you enjoy the company of animals and wildlife is your bag, you will love what this hotel has to offer. We saw coatis, raccoons, monkeys, iguanas, butterflies, birds and insects that both delighted and enriched our holiday experience significantly. The gardens and grounds are maintained to a high standard, although there are a few plastic bottles and items of litter in the cenote/rainforest walk that are disappointing to see. Mosquitoes are everywhere and you may need to buy the local repellent as we tried deet and a citronella based repellent but neither were really very effective! 6. Beach - The sand is lovely but the sea is not. There is a huge amount of sargassum and the staff work tirelessly to try to clear it but it is an impossible job and not the fault of the hotel. The red flag was flying most days and it wasn’t pleasant to swim in. Nothing more to say. 7. Entertainment - the entertainment team are excellent. We participated in a few of the daytime activities but the heat made us all a bit lethargic, and in any case, we were only able to take part if there was someone who was willing to stay behind to guard the loungers! The evening entertainment was generally of a high standard and we really enjoyed the shows, live music and discos. The entertainment runs on a one week rolling programme so you will get repeats if you’re there for a fortnight. 8. Highlights - most of the staff are hardworking and outwardly lovely people who appreciate you saying please and thank you and giving a small tip so take some pesos or dollars. Santa Sirena restaurant in the Beachfront section of the hotel offers a truly outstanding and 5 star worthy restaurant experience - book it if you can. It is for adults only. The Mexican nights and the beach barbecue were truly magical, especially as the sun went down and the lights came on. To sum up: The Fives Beach Hotel offers elements worthy of a 5 star rating but there are also issues which may leave you feeling that actually, you’re only in a 2 star hotel or receiving a 2 star experience. You may be lucky, especially if you come as a couple or small group of 4 or 5, and you may get the full 5 star experience across your entire holiday. Unfortunately, we did not. We put on a brave face and made the best of what we could, but it was not what we paid for and it wasn’t what we hoped it would be. Owners and managers take note: 1. Do not give your guests rooms that need updating; 2. Buy more parasols; 3. Management systems need to be effective and robust; 4. Ensure you have enough staff to implement your systems; 5. Train staff to ensure there is consistency and all your guests receive a quality experience; 6. When guests make reasonable requests, make sure that your staff do their very best to sort them out willingly. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Hungry at an all inclusive ?

Aug 10, 2025 alexvZ7409DL

Who would have thought that one might end up hungry at a 5 star all inclusive. Well you can, at the Fives: breakfast is a buffet and lunch serves food across a few locations. But if you want dinner: here is your choice: eat at 1730 being the first in line in the no reservations restaurants (only option on) or starve until 0930 whilst waiting for… Read more
Who would have thought that one might end up hungry at a 5 star all inclusive. Well you can, at the Fives: breakfast is a buffet and lunch serves food across a few locations. But if you want dinner: here is your choice: eat at 1730 being the first in line in the no reservations restaurants (only option on) or starve until 0930 whilst waiting for all the other families who have queued since 6, get served. It is simple, there is not one family we met who will come back. Shame as the staff is extraordinary: the waiters, cleaners, cooks, beach people are always smiling, hard working and helpful. They make this place and their management doesnt deserve them in the least. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Two major negative issues

Aug 10, 2025 DCUTD Stalybridge, United Kingdom

The holiday was good food was decent! Now the buts 1) This place is no good for young families as evening meals are completely unreasonable! We had a 6 year old and no reservations are possible! It’s first come first served! We arrived at 1745-1800 and had a 2-2 1/2 wait every night for a child to eat! (The restaurants open at 17:30) There is no… Read more
The holiday was good food was decent! Now the buts 1) This place is no good for young families as evening meals are completely unreasonable! We had a 6 year old and no reservations are possible! It’s first come first served! We arrived at 1745-1800 and had a 2-2 1/2 wait every night for a child to eat! (The restaurants open at 17:30) There is no buffet restaurant it’s all themed for children as well. There are numerous tables empty averaging around 5 for residents who can reserve! 2) Do not agree a price for service with this hotel go somewhere else! We agreed prices in US Dollars Cash! And were clearly told we could settle the agreed amounts in cash! When we came to settle with cash on departure it was bluntly refused! Instead we were given a bill in pesos at their own exchange rate! Refuse their services as this is clearly fraud! Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Perfect family holiday.

Aug 10, 2025 kevinyQ9125HJ Cwmbran, United Kingdom

The accommodation was brilliant and the experience was made so much better by the staff who cannot do enough for you. The quality of food in the restaurants is great but actually booking is a little problematic. However, when this was discussed with a manager on the first night we had a set time booked at each restaurant we wished to visit. Luis… Read more
The accommodation was brilliant and the experience was made so much better by the staff who cannot do enough for you. The quality of food in the restaurants is great but actually booking is a little problematic. However, when this was discussed with a manager on the first night we had a set time booked at each restaurant we wished to visit. Luis at the Olive tree was particularly helpful. We were offered to look at two alternative room set ups to suit our family needs. The cost to upgrade was reasonable and fantastic for our needs of travelling with a teenage daughter. There are so many pools to choose from, but get there early so you get a bed with shade. Tulum trip was a great day out especially when you finish with a swim with turtles. 5th Avenue is worth a visit for an afternoon. Would strongly recommend this resort for a holiday. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Hydrotherapy

Aug 9, 2025 Kelly C

Tony was amazing! Highly recommend :) She really takes the time to ensure a great experience. I felt very cared for and can’t want to come again.