Marival Residences Luxury Resort

We stayed in the summer of 2018 - overall a top-notch 5-star medium-sized resort. We are not owners, so my review is of the resort only, not timeshare ownership.

1 - Medium Sized. I was a little worried that there wouldn't be much to do...and that is kind of true, but not really. There isn't much happening at the resort (no big pool parties, only a few activities for kids, etc) but....but...if you want that stuff, you can go to the Marival Emotions Resort that is a free 5 minute Golf Cart ride away, where your all-inclusive package carry's over. So you can go over there for big parties, lot's of stuff for the kids, etc. Keep in mind Marival Emotions is a large 3-star resort (so a big difference in atmosphere), not as fancy, but much more lively, and a bit crowded.

Bottom line - we found it was quite nice to go over for the parties and lively atmosphere when we were in the mood - but also be able to escape it back to our (much more luxurious exclusive) resort when we wanted peace and quiet. It was rather nice to be able to choose.

2. - Visiting Marival Emotions for a few hours (while fun) makes you realize how much nicer Marival Distinct Luxury residences is...so it's always a treat to return "home".

3 - Food and drinks are all "top shelf".

4 - Service is outstanding with people remembering who you are, what you want, etc. The staff go above and beyond to treat you well, and I feel it should be returned to them in form of tips. (It makes a major difference in their compensation - a few dollars here and there from you may double their compensation, it means a lot to them, so while they don't ask for tips, do keep this in mind)

5 - The timeshare presentation was not required, but you can use it as leverage for something you like. We insisted we wouldn't got unless they upgraded our room to a rooftop Penthouse suite...and they did it (I think we agreed to pay $199 extra or something like that). But then we had our own rooftop private pool, patio, and shower. It was cool. It was one of the few times it made the presentation worth it.

6. The presentation was pushy, more than high-end resorts in the USA (IMO) - so unless you're getting something really nice as an incentive, I would refuse to go. (Don't let this deter you from enjoying a nice stay though, it's a really nice resort, 5-stars all the way)

7. I put 3-stars for locations since it's not really near anything, and it's nestled behind some houses not beachfront. They do have a beach, but you need to walk about 300 meters to get to it...that being said the beach area is super nice, with it's own restaurant, infinity pools, etc,...so it's worth the walk, but just FYI.