Royal Decameron Panama Restort (Panama)

Our last mini getaway tour was to the the Pacific Ocean side of Panama. We went to the Royal Decameron Panama Resort. This is an all-inclusive resort and I was excited for this portion of the trip! I had only been to one all inclusive resort before, Hard Rock Riviera Maya. I had the best experience and would give Hard Rock 10/10. Honestly, it set the bar very high for any resort to meet. Now I am sure that covid has changed a few things with all-inclusive resorts, but I would have to say Royal Decameron doesn’t really compare. Google Rates Hard Rock at 4.6 stars, then I would give Royal Decameron probably at 2.5 in comparison (not the 4.3 that Google rates it). Anyways, we will not compare this whole review, but we will give our honest feedback!

Ambiance/Atmosphere: This resort is beautiful. Right along the Pacific Ocean and it has the views. We also had an ocean view room with a balcony to look out! The vibe around the resort is island beach vibes, which was awesome! The staff were friendly, however, very few of them spoke English. That would be my first complaint and downfall number one, barely any English. Even the map of the resort given to us, was in Spanish. Made it difficult at times to navigate and communicate. The times of bars and cafes listed on the map also were not accurate as we had to wait way too long to get an espresso in the morning. One more compliant, our room key. It was an actual door key, that was given to us on a string LOL. It just seemed very old school, and not something I expected.

Drinks: The Hard Rock had lots of bars, full of a wide variety and top shelf liquor! Royal Decameron had all the basics, but not a variety of options. Compared to the Hard Rock, they seemed short staffed. As there were no waiters, are staff walking around the pools and resort taking your drink orders. At the Hard Rock we will greeted by staff with drinks right at door. Royal Decameron had bars, that always seemed to have lines all the time. When we had lunch at the buffet, we didn’t have a full bar option either; another downside. My drink of choice was a caipirinha during our stay. They were strong and delicious, so that was the positive!

Menu: As foodie, the food was the biggest disappointment of our stay. We only stayed one night, so maybe I did not have time give it enough of a chance and maybe we didn’t select the best choices, but it was still a disappointment. The only place open when we checked in was the buffet. It didn’t have many options, but also seem like generic food, that was pretty bland. We picked the buffet for dinner, which may have been a mistake on our part, but again it was nothing special. The breakfast and lunch buffets the next day were much better. More variety of food, better options and food with more taste. My favorite was the crispy fried white fish and the creamy pasta!

Tips/Recommendations: Overall, it was a great mini getaway to check out the the pacific side of Panama. The water was warm, but not clear like the Caribbean side. If you plan a trip here, make sure you have someone that knows Spanish very well. If you have high expectations for all-inclusives, don’t expect too much. The ocean view room was a nice added bonus, but I do not think that it is necessary. Make sure you pick a restaurant, maybe the steakhouse, for dinner instead of the buffet. And as always, try something new each time!

Rating: 5/10
🤤🤤
Recommend: No

Live to Eat (& Travel & Drink),
Tiv