Haven Riviera Cancun Resort and Spa

Totally enjoyed our stay at Haven Riviera. Maybe because we were there early in the week, occupancy was considerably down…so plenty of pool chairs available and lots of staff to wait on us! We did a partial ocean view suite…third floor…perfect. The rooms, pools, restaurants, bars and nightly shows all just right for a quick late summer break.

We stayed at Haven in 2022 and had such a wonderful experience that we decided to return. Unfortunately, this visit was a huge disappointment.

Before our trip, we paid an additional $567 to upgrade from a Partial Ocean View Serenity Club room to a Full Ocean View Swim Out room. Prior to arriving, I emailed the resort several times asking about the sargassum because I specifically did not want to spend our vacation looking at or smelling it from our room. I was assured that while there was some seaweed, it was cleaned daily.

That was not our experience at all.

When we arrived, the beach in front of our room was covered with several feet of sargassum. Our room was near the end of the property, and it was obvious that this area was not being cleaned like the sections near the main pool and restaurants. The smell and view were exactly what I had tried to avoid when I paid for the upgrade.

Thankfully, our butler, Gabriel, was exceptional. He listened to our concerns and helped us move back to the room category we had originally booked. We were also assured that we would receive a refund of the $567 upgrade charge since the upgraded room was not as represented.

Unfortunately, we are still waiting for that refund, and despite multiple follow-up emails, the resort has stopped responding.

To make matters even worse, both of us became ill with food poisoning and spent three full days confined to our room. During that time, no one from management checked on us. The only person who showed genuine concern throughout our stay was Gabriel.

The spa was excellent and was truly the highlight of our vacation. Gabriel’s outstanding service is the only reason I’m giving any stars at all.

Sadly, the overall experience was nothing like our stay in 2022. Between the misleading information about the upgraded room, the unresolved refund, poor food quality, disappointing service, and becoming sick during our vacation, we left feeling frustrated instead of refreshed.

We wanted to love Haven again, but this experience has made us question whether we would ever return.