Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen
Secrets Moxche is the modern one. It opened in October 2022 inside the gated Corasol development just north of Playa del Carmen, and it was built for people who want a resort that looks like something: eight pools with eight different personalities, three man-made cenotes you can actually swim in, dense tropical planting that turns each section into its own zone, and a hidden nightclub called Gypsy that you enter with a daily password. It is adults only at 18 and up across 485 suites, and it pulls a younger and more social crowd than Akumal or Maroma. It also doubles as one of the region's busiest wedding venues, with a rooftop gazebo over the water and a private pier.
Traveler Insights
Pros
- +Eight pools, each with its own look and crowd, plus three man-made cenotes built into the property. The cenotes are the thing almost no other all-inclusive on this coast has, and they are the most distinctive feature here after the pool count itself.
- +Eleven restaurants and eight bars with no reservations required. Bisou is a AAA Four Diamond French room, Suki does pan-Asian with a 12-seat omakase table and teppanyaki, Allora is Italian with a wine cellar, Ember is a smokehouse, Bamboo is Thai, Dos Almas covers Mexican with a taco bar and tequila and mezcal tasting, and Coco Cafe runs 24 hours.
- +Gypsy, a hidden nightclub that needs a daily password to get in, open 10:30pm to 1am, with Dark Horse also running to 1am. A real late-night scene is rare across the Secrets properties and this is the best of them.
- +Cocktails are a strength, not a weakness. Current guest reviews single them out as well balanced rather than watered down, with the mango margarita, pina colada, Miami Vice and Bahama Mama named most often.
- +Modern design with dense planting that breaks the resort into zones, so each pool and building feels like its own place rather than one big deck. It opened in October 2022 and the finishes still look new.
- +A serious wedding property: a rooftop Sky Wedding Gazebo looking over the Caribbean, a private pier, an air-conditioned multi-level theatre and an experienced coordination team.
- +Preferred Club is a genuine step up rather than a badge. It adds Seasoul, a seaside seafood restaurant kept exclusively for Preferred guests, a private lounge and beach club, and the Observatory rooftop.
Cons
- −This is a pool-first resort and the beach is not why people book. The white sand, waiter service and non-motorised water sports are all real, and guests do name the beachfront as a highlight, but with eight pools and three cenotes competing for your day the shoreline is the part that gets skipped.
- −Dinner runs on a buzzer, not a booking. The standard restaurants are first come first served, and if you show up at 7pm or later the wait runs 25 to 60 minutes. Eat at 6pm or after 9pm and the problem disappears.
- −Check-in is the weak point in the arrival experience and can drag past 40 minutes even with Preferred status.
- −At peak occupancy the bars get visibly understaffed and drink waits stretch, which is the complaint that shows up most consistently when the resort is full.
- −Housekeeping is the soft spot in the worst recent reviews, including a late September 2026 stay that reported dirty rooms across several days. It is not the norm here, but it is the failure mode to raise with the front desk immediately rather than at checkout.
- −A lot of the best extras carry a fee: the spa hydrotherapy circuit, the Allora wine cellar and tasting, the Observatory rooftop restaurant and the Dos Almas tequila and mezcal tasting are all charged on top of the all-inclusive rate.
- −Sargassum is a live risk and 2026 was the worst recorded season for the Mexican Caribbean, with Quintana Roo clearing roughly 125,000 tonnes between April and August plus unusual surges in January and March, easing through late September. No month is dependably clear now, which matters less here than at a beach-first resort but still shapes what the shoreline looks like.
The food has moved, and anyone reading older write-ups is reading about a different resort. A repeat corporate guest on their fourth stay in three years wrote in late September 2026 that the kitchen has steadily improved, and current reviews praise both the restaurants and the breakfast buffet. Eleven restaurants means you will not repeat yourself in a week: Bisou holds a AAA Four Diamond award for French, Suki runs a 12-seat omakase table alongside teppanyaki, and Ember, Bamboo, Allora and Dos Almas cover smokehouse, Thai, Italian and Mexican. The drinks are genuinely good, which is worth saying because this resort spent its first seasons with a reputation for weak pours that the current bar programme does not deserve. The real friction is logistical: no restaurant takes reservations, so dinner means a buzzer and a 25 to 60 minute wait if you arrive at prime time, and check-in can be slow.
Moxche suits aesthetics-minded couples in their late twenties through forties who want modern design, pool variety and an actual late night. If a wide swimmable beach is the top priority, Secrets Akumal and its turtle snorkeling will serve you better, and Maroma is the quieter, more romantic pick. Expect roughly $500 to $700 a night for two in mid-season, with February the peak month and shoulder weeks dropping well under that, so it sits below the Cancun ultra-luxury tier while asking more than the big chain resorts. Note that since February 1, 2026 Quintana Roo collects an environmental tax of about $2 to $9 per person per night at the hotel. There is a golf simulator on site and discounted green fees nearby, with Gran Coyote about a 14-minute walk, and Playa del Carmen's Fifth Avenue plus the ruins at Tulum and Coba are all easy trips out.
Common Questions
How is the beach, honestly?
What is Impression Moxche by Secrets, and can I use it?
What is the Gypsy speakeasy actually like?
Are the drinks watered down?
Do I need dinner reservations, and what costs extra?
What's nearby
20 min drive · 9.1 mi
12 min drive · 4.1 mi
Playa Mamitas10 min drive · 3.1 mi
15 min drive · 8.1 mi
Xcalacoco Beach8 min drive · 2.9 mi
Playa del Carmen Fifth Avenue10 min drive · 3.5 mi
More things to do (15)
- Xenses · adventure park20 min drive · 8.3 mi
- Playa 88 · beach6 min drive · 1.4 mi
- Punta Esmeralda Beach · beach10 min drive · 1.1 mi
- Museo del Chocolate · museum9 min drive · 3.2 mi
- Frida Kahlo Museum Playa del Carmen · museum10 min drive · 3.5 mi
- Parque La Ceiba · nature10 min drive · 4.2 mi
- Voladores de Papantla (Parque Fundadores) · historic site10 min drive · 3.8 mi
- El Camaleón Golf Course · golf11 min drive · 3.9 mi
- Xplor · adventure park20 min drive · 8.6 mi
- Cenote Chaak Tun · cenote20 min drive · 6.9 mi
- Playa Maroma · beach20 min drive · 9.6 mi
- Delphinus Riviera Maya · adventure park20 min drive · 9.4 mi
- Iberostar Playa Paraíso Golf Club · golf25 min drive · 11 mi
- Puerto Morelos Botanical Garden · nature30 min drive · 18 mi
- Dr. Alfredo Barrera Marín Botanical Garden · nature30 min drive · 18 mi
Amenities
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Style & Rooms
Atmosphere
Room upgrades
Seaweed & sargassum
Playa del Carmen gets sargassum, typically worst May through August.See the month-by-month guide →Google Reviews★ 4.5 · 1,858 reviews
“Overall Experience We chose Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen for our wedding because it was an all-inclusive resort that checked nearly every box. From arrival, the private lagoon entrance and open-concept lobby made an incredible first impression. T...”
“We had an INCREDIBLE trip here for our 5th wedding anniversary. We stayed in a swim out room, on the preferred side. We can’t say enough good about the staff, but especially Elias at the lagoon pool! We spent half our time sitting at that pool and hi...”
“I would come to this resort again and I don’t say that about a lot of places. The property (pools, etc.) and service were amazing. I also loved the nighttime activities, such as the live music, theatre, and speakeasy. I heeded the advice in the revie...”
How It Compares
Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen vs Secrets Playa Blanca Costa Mujeres
Playa Blanca's beach against Moxche's eight pools, eleven restaurants and a password nightclub.
Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen vs Secrets Akumal Riviera Maya
Same brand, opposite priorities: Akumal's turtle cove and calm vs Moxche's eight pools and late nights.
Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen vs Excellence Playa Mujeres
Excellence's sheltered beach and quiet nights vs Moxche's eight pools, three cenotes and a password-only nightclub.
