I recently had the opportunity to visit the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila resort on Mexico’s Riviera Maya. This new all-inclusive resort in Mexico just opened their doors in December 2025, so I was one of the first travelers to check out the property. The Bahia Principe Grand Tequila is an adults-only resort situated between Tulum and Cancun, and the hotel is committed to celebrating the culture and heritage of this region of Mexico.
In this guide I’ll talk you for a quick tour of the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila. I’ll take you to the pools (including the Hibiscus swim-up bar), the buffet and à la carte restaurants, and the white-sand beach. I’ll give you my impressions of this new resort and help you decide if it’s the right all-inclusive resort for your next trip.
Technically, I stayed at one of the adjacent Bahia Principe properties, the Bahia Principe Luxury Sian Ka’an. Staying at that property gave me full access to the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila’s restaurants, pools, amenities and services. This article is based on my walk-through of the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila in December 2025.
Note: Like always, I paid in full for my trip and didn’t disclose that I was a blogger. This is an unbiased overview (if not technically a review).
Where is the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort?
The Bahia Principe Grand Tequila is the newest of the five Bahia Principe all-inclusive resorts on Mexico’s Riviera Maya. The resort complex is located in Akumal, which is between Cancun and Playa del Carmen (to the north) and Tulum (to the south).
On the resort property, the exact location of the Grand Tequila section is between the Grand Coba and the Luxury Akumal resorts.
Although the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila resort is new, this development is not. Previously, it was part of Grand Coba. After a fire took place at the resort in May 2025, the brand decided to use the renovation and reconstruction period as an opportunity to set aside a new, adults-only section of the property.
Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Map
The layout of the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila resort sees guests pass through a spacious Mayan-inspired lobby to reach the guestroom villas, which are situated around two pools. The map above shows the Grand Tequila guestrooms (in pink) and the Grand Coba guestrooms (in yellow). Distances are short, and a quick walker could cross the entire map shown above in five or six minutes.
The gym and spa facilities are shared with the adjacent Grand Coba resort, and can be reached on foot in less than three minutes. There’s also a small shopping plaza called Terraza Village where you can find a small pharmacy and small gift shop. A larger pharmacy, many market vendors, a convenience store, a church and a casino are located at the resort’s main shopping plaza called La Hacienda, which can be reached by free trolley.
There are several nice green spaces throughout the resort area, and I often saw both coatis and agoutis running around the lawns. You can also expect to find iguanas, birds and butterflies on the resort grounds.
Restaurants at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort
There are four restaurants at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort. Guests can also access the à la carte restaurants at both the Grand Coba and Grand Tulum resorts, bringing the total number of restaurants available up to 12. For every seven-night stay, guests staying at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila can reserve up to three à la carte dinners across the three properties.
⭐ Important Note! ⭐ À la carte restaurants have very limited capacity across the entire Bahia Principe complex. Make sure to reserve your à la carte dinners on the Bahia Principe app when you check in online ten days before you arrive. If you wait until you get to the hotel, you probably won’t get into any à la carte restaurants.
Cozumel Buffet
This is the main buffet, which is open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner. This was my preferred place to have breakfast and lunch (even though I was staying at Sian Ka’an) because the serving area was more spacious, the seats were more comfortable and it was a bit more quiet.
The hotel buffet has a good range of sweet and savory breakfast options. Expect to find standard fare like fresh fruit, yogurt, pastries, pancakes, French toast, bacon, ham and potatoes, alongside some Mexican dishes and a made-to-order egg station. There are espresso machines in the buffet so you can have a decent coffee with your meal, or you can pour from the fresh juices on offer.
Lunch options were definitely more on the meaty side, but even as a vegetarian I was able to put together plates of pizza, pasta, cooked vegetables, salads and even gazpacho. The only thing that was really lacking for me was the vegetarian protein selection (which was pretty much non-existent). There was a reasonable selection of desserts, including my favorite: coconut ice cream.
The only odd thing I noticed was that you were never given a spoon, so if you wanted to serve yourself oatmeal, soup or ice cream you also had to chase down a staff member for a spoon. Beer, wine and soda is available in the buffet, or you can grab a cocktail from the lobby bar and bring it in to have with your meal.
I didn’t visit the Cozumel Buffet for dinner, but in my experience resort buffets are usually pretty similar at lunch and dinner. I believe Grand Tequila does some weekly theme nights in the buffet, including an Italian Night, Asian Night and Mexican Night. On these evenings you can expect to find more offerings from these cuisines, alongside the normal fare.
Nikkei Mashua
One of the two à la carte restaurants at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila, Nikkei Mashua specializes in Peruvian-Japanese cuisine. The menu features dishes like sushi, seafood and woks. At the time of my trip they only had one vegetarian option (a baked potato) and weren’t available for booking via the app, so I skipped it.
The Smoked
The second à la carte restaurant at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila is a traditional smokehouse, specializing in meat dishes like smoked brisket, pulled pork and “bourbon barrel chicken”. Impressively, they have a vegan burger on the menu, and most of the side dishes are vegetarian-friendly.
La Casita = Sala de Despecho
By day, La Casita is a quick-service, food truck-inspired restaurant offering grab-and-go dishes like burgers, pizzas and chicken nuggets. Vegetarian options are… unpalatable.
At night, La Casita turns into Sala de Despecho (“Heartbreak Room”), a nightclub with an additional entrance fee. For guests staying at either of the “Luxury” properties (Sian Ka’an or Akumal) the price is $10 USD, while for guests at the “Grand” resorts entrance is $25.
For late-night snacks after La Casita becomes a nightclub, Grand Tequila guests need to head to Grand Coba’s all-night Piscis Restaurant.
Bars at the Grand Tequila
Besides La Casita, there are four other bars at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort:
- Daiquiri Lobby Bar (shown above)
- Hibiscus Pool Bar
- Chido Terrace and Village Bar
- Sports Bar
Between the four, drink service is available from 7:00 am to 11:00 pm. If you want to keep drinking after that, you can pay to attend a party at Sala de Despecho or head to the Piscis Restaurant at Grand Coba.
Pools at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort
The Bahia Principe Grand Tequila has two pools on the property: the Activity Pool and the Iguana Pool. Although I was staying at Sian Kaan I spent most of my poolside time at the Activity Pool, as I liked the music there and it was pretty easy to find an umbrella with shade. When I wanted to chat on the phone with my friends and family back home I headed over to the Iguana Pool, which usually didn’t have anyone around.
The Activity Pool
This is the main pool at the resort, which is sort of split into three sections. I took this photo from a bridge in the middle of the pool.
The side shown above has a swim-up bar and louder music playing (often reggaeton, house or hip-hop). Sometimes they put up a volleyball net in this pool, and there are other games and activities around it.
Behind where I was standing when I took this photo there is another section of the pool that is quieter. It’s further away from the music and activities, making it better for relaxing with a book or napping in the sun.
To the left of where I took this photo, at the opposite side of the bridge, there was a very shallow little pool in front of a DJ booth. I assumed it was for foam parties and the evening pool parties, as I never saw it in use during the day.
The Iguana Pool
This is a teeny-tiny Jacuzzi-style pool, featuring several unheated whirlpools that are good for relaxing (with or without a drink) but not for swimming. If you’re looking for some peace and quiet this is the place to chill out, as you’ll probably the only people around.
The Beach at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila
The Bahia Principe Grand Tequila is not right on the beach. To reach the waterfront you can hop on a trolley (five minutes) or walk (ten minutes).
The dedicated adults-only beach area for Grand Tequila guests is located at the south end of the Bahia Principe Grand Tulum resort. This area is fine for suntanning and taking a quick dip in the water, but it’s not the nicest part of the beach. Unfortunately, at the time I visited this part of the beach there were many families with children occupying the adults-only beach chairs, and no staff members were around to ask them to move.
Guest of Grand Tequila also have access to the facilities at Grand Coba, so if you don’t mind being around kids consider hopping down and using the blue beach chairs here. It’s an easy walk from Grand Tequila and it was my favorite part of the beach for swimming.
⭐ If you like beaches, you will also love swimming in the Yucatan’s natural swimming holes, called cenotes. Click to learn more about a locally-owned, sustainable cenote tour just six minutes from the Bahia Principe resorts.
Activities at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort
I actually found the activity schedule at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila to be more appealing to me than the activities offered at my own resort, the Sian Ka’an. Some of the activities on offer at Grand Tequila during my visit included:
- Sound Healing
- Sunrise Yoga
- Bikini Parties & Foam Parties
- Beach Volleyball
- Live Music
It was clear from the activities here that the Grand Tequila was positioning itself as the younger, more party-centric alternative to the older, more relaxed Sian Ka’an. Both resorts are adults-only, but the Grand Tequila is definitely designed for people looking to get a little bit more wild and crazy.
If you’re an early sleeper, consider packing earplugs for your trip to Grand Tequila. Music plays by the pool until about 11:00 pm each night, and it can be heard from most of the guest rooms. I recently switched from old-fashioned foam earplugs to Loop earplugs and I’m obsessed – they’re soft and don’t stick out of your ears, which is perfect for side sleepers like me.
You can always see the activities scheduled for the week ahead on the Bahia Principe app. From the home page scroll down to “Destinations” and then choose “Riviera Maya”. From there you can choose any of the hotels, scroll down to “My Plans” and click on “Entertainment Program”. You’ll be taken to a weekly calendar that lists the events, times and locations. Unfortunately there are no descriptions of the different events, which can be confusing for events with non-descriptive names like “Sensorial” and “Mal de Amores”.
You could also consider taking an excursion from the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila resort to some of the popular attractions along the Riviera Maya. Personally I’ve always found prices to be better when booking online before my trip, rather than through a resort’s tour desk.
Other Resorts Connected to the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort
As I mentioned, I didn’t actually stay at the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila Resort. Instead, I stayed at one of the other four Bahia Principe resorts that make up the brand’s complex here on the Riviera Maya.
- Bahia Principe Grand Coba – This is one of the other family-friendly resorts on the complex and it’s located right beside the Bahia Principe Grand Tequila. At the Iguana Pool, only one hundred meters and a paint job separates the two resorts. Guests of Grand Tequila do have access.
- Bahia Principe Luxury Sian Ka’an – This is where I stayed and a full review is at the link. Like Grand Tequila it is an adults-only resort, but it is also considered to be one of the two “Luxury” properties in the development. It is unique from the other properties in that it is in the jungle, not right on the beach. Guests of Grand Tequila do not have access.
- Bahia Principe Luxury Akumal – This is the other “Luxury” resort in the complex. It’s right on the beach, at the south end of the resort. This is a family-friendly resort with lots of kids around. Guests of Grand Tequila have limited access to this resort – the restaurants are off-limits but you’re welcome to visit the adults-only infinity pool and nearby adults-only bar.
- Bahia Principe Grand Tulum – The last family-friendly waterfront resort is near the Hacienda Dona Isabel, at the north end of the property. Guests of Grand Tequila do have access.
From Grand Tequila, it’s an easy walk to the Grand Coba Resort. To reach Grand Tulum, you’re better of taking one of the free golf cart trolleys that come every five to ten minutes.
I also reviewed the nearby Akumal Bay Beach and Spa Resort, which is a smaller, family-owned resort located inside a turtle sanctuary.
Before you go to any resort in Mexico (or beyond!) check out my guide to the best drinks to order at an all-inclusive resort!
Planning an all-inclusive trip to Mexico? Pin this post for later!
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