I have just returned from one week at the Barcelo, June 14 to 21 and had a great time.Booked my trip on Air Canada Vacations and had a very nice ocean view room. The hotel is very clean and the staff is very professional and go out of their way to make you feel welcome.The food is good and there is plenty of it with fresh fish and good meat.
The hotel was about 50% full ,as June is considered the low season so it felt like we had the whole hotel to ourselves.
I would strongly recommend that you try the El Faro restaurant which is located on the cliff facing the bay.The food is terrific and the view is to die for.Went on a few tours to see the area and was not disappointed, the countryside is quite beautiful.I would recommend the combo tour as it includes a visit to a coconut plantation and a tile factory both were quite interesting and gave you a feeling of how people live and work in this part of Mexico.
The weather was and is quite hot so bring some 30 strength sunscreen as temperatures quickly rise into mid 30's C. I would definitely recommend this hotel and the area as a great get away .

If you like to play tenis in your vacation, don't go to the barcelo.
There are only two courts but one is almost useless because the paint is so slipery and (whether you belive it or not) it has a decline. so it leaves only one "good" court. the problem is that the hotel tenis pro reserves this court for paying lessons (he claims that the hotel does not pay him) and visiting friends (most of the times, not hotel guests) so, even if he didn't have a confirmed student, he didn´t give us court 1. i think that may be the management of the hotel is not aware if this situation (we didn´t want any trouble, so we accepted his conditions), but something has to be done abuot this.
Otherwise, the hotel is almost great (the room ac is not strong enough).

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Barcelo from May 25 - June 1. We recently graduated from college so we were on a budget and didn't feel like "finding ourselves" on a backpacking trip through Europe. The Barcelo was PERFECT for our needs as it wasn't like stepping into the United States as many luxury hotels tend to be, but still had many of the luxuries we're used to. We were debating Barcelo and the Las Brisas, and were glad we chose the Barcelo because the all-inclusive package took a lot of stress out of our vacation. We had met a woman on our day cruise who said Las Brisas' dining was super expensive. There were a lot of things to do and eat at the Barcelo, but no one would judge you could just stay in your room and catch up on well-needed rest.

At the front desk, we asked for a king-sized bed so they upgraded us to an ocean view room. I think it was smart to begin our stay on Sunday, since many Mexican families stay only a weekend, which made the rooms available. We were on the 9th floor, and immediately checked to see if they got ESPN as the Celtics were in the middle of a playoff series with Detroit. The room had it, and they also played most major sporting events down in the lounge where we could enjoy a drink.

Speaking of the drinks, many of these reviews said they weren't watered down, but I beg to differ. While tasty, the mixed drinks didn't have any kick, so if you're looking to have a Cancun-for-spring break experience, you might want to stick to Cancun. The Barcelo is very family and couples oriented, and a young single or a group of young singles would feel very out of place.

The pool was gorgeous and always the perfect temperature. While there was no problem finding a chair, it is difficult finding a chair in the shade beginning on Thursday, when the families start gravitating to the resort. That's also when there starts to be kids in every nook and cranny of the hotel. Luckily, the beach is down a few steps from the resort and always had an open chair in the shade. We did prefer the pool because there were a lot of fun activities that were amusing to watch like a balloon animal competition, and what I can only explain as "alternative water aerobics." We would watch them from the poolside restaurant which was a nice change of pace from the buffet.

When you do find a place to lay, a waiter is there in minutes to take your drink order. There are also water sports there, where you can go parasailing or jet skiing. We went jet skiing and it was $40 for a half hour, and was worth it since I had never done it before and was scared out of my mind.

The food was descent. I have an especially bland palette, so I felt lucky to see pasta, chicken, and salad and not be disappointed. However, I would not recommend this hotel for any connoisseur (food or wine) as there was little variation. On the other hand the fine dining restaurant in the hotel, Don Quijote, was EXCELLENT, had a great wine list, and wonderful service. Of course, there were mixed reviews from the guests we talked to, but it might have just been what I ordered, the chicken suprema (or something to that effect) which was cheese-stuffed chicken with a side of whipped potatoes. For every 3 nights you stay, you get a free meal, and we definitely would not have paid extra to stay there.

House keeping was very efficient. We always left a small tip for them. One time I accidentally left them 200 pesos instead of 20, and they left it there, assuming it was a mistake. So they were also very trustworthy. They begin relatively early though, so make sure you put the do not disturb sign on the door if you're like us and enjoy sleeping in.

In fact, the only problems we had with the service was the front desk. When we arrived in our room, the mini-fridge and the safe were locked, and we had to ask repeatedly for someone to come upstairs, and one came for the refrigerator by nightfall, while the safe wasn't unlocked until the next day.

Other than that, the staff was perfect. The piano player followed through on one of my requests, one waiter put a little extra alcohol in my pina colada, and Alberto, who is the activities coordinator, was quick to book everything we wanted to do. Since we were on a budget, we had to choose wisely and ended up swimming with the dolphins and going on the Picante day cruise. Absolutely do both of those things! The dolphins and trainers were so great, and the Picante crew were awesome! The cruise lets you go snorkeling, sailing, and parasailing on their spinnaker, which ultimately saved us a lot of money since we didn't have to do it all separately.

One downside to the hotel were the paper-thin walls. So all you honey-mooners, beware that we heard the a person in the room next to us brushing his or her teeth. Also, the halls are long corridors with tile flooring so every sound was amplified. We thought someone was knocking on our door, when he was actually a few doors down. On more than one occasion, I was woken up by people shutting doors.

The most memorable part of the trip for me was walking on the beach at night. There are a few couples and families out there enjoying the ocean, and on our last night, there were even fireworks. Although, I think that was a one time thing, since we walked over to where they were coming from and there were police with giant rifles giving the man a talking-to.

Overall, we felt safe and didn't feel "played" for being tourists. There is a very important oversight we finally noticed on our last day, however. The hotel has a program called "Club Barcelo" where for an extra $25 per person, you can get unlimited meals at Don Quijote, and unlimited internet. Without that, you're paying $15 a day for internet. At least look into it when you get there.

Would I go back? YES! After I left, I was seriously considered moving there because it was so relaxing, especially after 4 years as an undergrad. Everyone was so pleasant and the scenery was beautiful.

My husband and I traveled to Ixtapa with two other couples. We had a room on the 12th floor and needless to say our room and view was great!!! Our flight arrived pretty early so our room was not ready so we went to go eat and sat at the beach until it was.

The food was okay. You will find something that you will like becuase their selection is pretty big. They have one restaurant in the hotel that you need to make reservations. The food their was really good.

The staff was very friendly and helpful. The shows at night were okay. We went to Carlos and Charlies in town and that was fun! They had crazy contest and games, which of course your on vacation and participate in all of them!!!

We went on a few excusions. We went zip lining which was a LOT of fun I definetly recommend. We also did a bike ride, then took a boat ride to Ixtapa Island went kayaking ,snorkling their and had lunch. We then took the boat back and rode our bike back. It was fun!!!