SLS Cancun 5 gwiazdki

Hotel was pretty, the staff were not friendly or make any effort with guests. The hotel had no character, it was soleless. Nothing going on, no entertainment . Hotel provided coffee sachet for first morning and after that we had to pay to have a satchet in room. Absolutely souless and not friendly. Nowhere to walk for entertainment. It’s an expensive 5 star hotel but I won’t be coming back. Terrible 👎4 star hotel.

I am under 50 and I have never spent time writing a review. However, our recent stay at SLS Cancun, a luxury hotel, wasn't great. I am kind and the type that no matter the service, even if it is bad, I always tip 20%, I feel it’s the right thing to do. What frustrates me about our recent 7 day stay at SLS Cancun is while I can have a good time with my adult daughter anywhere, the service made the stay less enjoyable and I wish we had just picked an all inclusive somewhere else. The room smelled bad and each day got a little better but I believe it’s a very pet friendly hotel because the menu had three pages of “dog food” you could order. I actually never even mentioned the smell because I didn’t want to be a bother. When we arrived, I was informed even though my reservation through amex we would not get a property credit. Amex clearly stated we would get a property credit, because the stay was back to back in my name, which would make sense it would be in my name we wouldn’t get any credit for some nights! If I had switched some nights to my daughter's name then I could get a credit which made no sense to me. I had never had this happen and have done many fhr stays. I politely emailed the manager just confirming this and they didn’t respond. Night one, I asked if I could have a blanket because I’m used to a lot of weight at home and we only had 1 bed and sometimes my daughter takes the covers and they said, there were no blankets available. They sent a flat sheet and I tipped of course and put it on the bed. When they serviced the room, they took the sheet and I called and asked for a blanket and they sent a sheet, I tipped again. I asked one more time when I was at the front desk and they said they would send it right up and I said great, I’ll go wait in the room. It never came. On night 4, I took a beach towel and put it on the bed as a blanket. I will say the hotel is very aesthetic and pretty and the infinity pool is pretty. It is also in a very safe area and you can’t even get to the hotel if you can’t get through the gate which, being two female American travelers, is why I picked it. The bathroom had two sinks and the right side didn’t work. I asked a few times and again, gave up and day 5 simply said we are checking out Sat and probably they might want someone to look at it for the next guest. We just shared the left sink no biggie. They did come that day and get it working to my surprise despite the fact I had asked the previous mornings. There is a free bus that will take you around the area. When I saw it pull up, I said is there a free shuttle and the front desk said, “oh I didn’t tell you about it, you may have to wait on it.” Again, fine, but would have been great to know. Throughout the 7 days, the thing that became evident was the service. I’m not sure if this hotel is new or renovated but there was a patch in the bathroom that hadn’t been done and the drywall section wasn’t painted so I thought maybe our room was added because parts didn’t look done. The toilet paper thing wasn’t mounted so it would spin so we would just keep the tp on the floor because the holder was broken. Again, we didn’t say anything about this because after a few things that happened why bother. I joked the last two days to my daughter if I should try again for the blanket and she said no, they won’t every bring it. The last morning, like every morning I would ask for 2 coffees because coffee and breakfast go together. That morning I asked 3 more times and the same guy I asked sort of nodded like I've got you, like he was doing me a favor to get coffee after my daughter was done with her breakfast. Again, not a big deal but when every morning those around you do get coffee and things in a timely manner, it gets a little frustrating. This was the theme, where the people around us would get there food, get their check, get coffee and we would have to ask several times. At the beach club I ordered tacos and an appetizer and drinks and asked the girl three times if I could sign and she would say she would come back, an hour would go by and I’d ask again. I waited over 2 hours patiently. This happened the next day and because I didn't want to wait 2 hours, I figured they would charge it to the room and add 20%. He chased me down to sign. By the end of the stay we both decided we would not come back. Not only would they not honor what clearly said through amex we would get a property credit, the service was poor and unwelcoming. $150 credit and wouldn’t honor it, honestly it was fine we ubered to nearby places to eat and only talked to them about it at check in. Another thing that made no sense. We pre-booked transportation online. I told the girl, we were leaving at 11 in case they wanted the room earlier to be nice. Then she asked if the transportation was through them and it wasn’t and she said we would have to take our luggage beyond the gate and wait. It became normal to have things like this happen, like we were a bother. Then I was like wait, this company was allowed in the gate and dropped us off but upon picking us up, they said happy shuttle was not allowed through. Since we were leaving I asked why, that seemed odd. I even sent a message through whatsapp to Happy Shuttle and they said they hadn’t had that happen. This is just some of it but we felt like they were doing things on purpose and mind you some of the nights, the rate was $549 for a non all inclusive. I wouldn’t recommend this hotel and was very disappointed by the stay and service. A blanket, coffee with breakfast and allowing a reputable company to pick us up apparently is too much to ask for. Amex shouldn't put this as a FHR.

We booked our stay through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts, opting to pay a premium based on the promise of elevated service, concierge support, and potential room upgrades. Unfortunately, the experience did not live up to those expectations. Prior to arrival, I emailed the hotel twice requesting an overview room and received no response. At check-in, we were told no upgrades were available and advised to check again the following day. When we did, the only options presented were paid upgrades — at prices that did not align with the hotel’s own publicly listed rates (hotels.com and SLS website). We were also told that the American Express upgrade benefit was unavailable, while simultaneously being offered paid “upgrades,” which made it unclear what actually qualifies as an upgrade under the FHR program. While some of the issues we experienced may seem minor individually, together they detracted from what should have been a seamless stay at a five-star property. Breakfast, which was included as part of the rate, resulted in a call to our room two hours later requesting that we sign a check “per policy.” When the check was brought up, we were then asked if we were sure we didn’t want to leave a tip — with preset gratuity options starting at 15% — despite the breakfast being fully included in our stay. Being chased down to sign for a complimentary benefit felt unnecessary and uncomfortable. Additionally, at the bar, I ordered a Chandon St-Germain spritz and observed the bartender use a house sparkling wine instead of the advertised Chandon. While small, details like this matter, especially at a property positioning itself as luxury. Booking through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts typically costs more than booking directly or through third-party sites, but that premium is usually justified by enhanced service and special treatment. In this case, the experience felt inconsistent and below the standard expected of both a five-star hotel and the Amex FHR program. Overall, we were disappointed and expected more attention to detail, transparency, and service.

We stayed for 7 nights in a suite overlooking the ocean & pool. The included breakfast was phenomenal & the staff were attentive and thoughtful. They work very hard to ensure our stay was perfect. Angelo our room attendant & Israel one of the waiters all worked diligently. We enjoyed walking to the nearby mall for dinner most nights. All the restaurants are excellent. The hotel is mostly residential, only the first 4 floors are for quests. We enjoyed being away from the crowds & relaxing away from cold snowy CT.

Unfortunately, our experience at SLS Cancun raised serious concerns about billing practices, internal controls, and fulfillment of promised benefits. Multiple reviews warned about sketchy charges and questionable currency conversions, and we experienced this firsthand. During our stay, the hotel attempted to charge us for a bottle of Patrón (360 pesos) that we did not consume. We do not drink alcohol at all. When we disputed the charge, the front desk, supervisor, and manager claimed they had photographic evidence showing the bottle missing from a room they repeatedly referred to as “Room 214.” This was especially concerning because we were actually staying in Room 204, and staff could not clearly or consistently explain the discrepancy or confirm which room the photos were taken from. Additionally, the photos they showed us were allegedly “before” images taken prior to our arrival. However, those same photos showed chips missing from the minibar that we had eaten that same day, which directly contradicts the claim that the image was taken before we checked in. When we pointed this out, staff were unable to provide a logical or consistent explanation. We were also given a complimentary bottle of champagne upon arrival, which we did not drink. We explicitly asked staff to physically check the bottle to confirm it was unopened as further evidence that we do not drink alcohol. Despite this, staff continued to argue the minibar charge rather than verify the facts. Tamara at the front desk was particularly argumentative and dismissive throughout this interaction, escalating the situation instead of helping resolve it. In addition, several Fine Hotels + Resorts (FHR) benefits promised through AmEx Concierge were delayed or not delivered as confirmed. Complimentary drinks arrived late, and privileges that were explicitly promised required repeated follow-ups, undermining the value of booking through a premium program. Based on the contradictory evidence presented and the inability of staff to accurately track rooms or minibar items, we were left deeply uncomfortable with the hotel’s billing controls. At a minimum, there appears to be a serious lack of oversight and verification. We ultimately ensured the incorrect charge was not applied, but the experience was stressful, time-consuming, and unacceptable for a property positioning itself as luxury. BEWARE: Carefully review your bill, document everything, and do not assume minibar charges or promised perks are being handled accurately.