Being a travel agent, I travel on at least 4-6 trips per year to visit all-inclusive properties, where we do much of our business. My recent trip to the Iberostar Paraiso Lindo with a 2 year old was our first with our daughter. My thoughts as follows:

Location - Resort is nicely situated about 25 minutes from the airport and about 15 minutes from Playa del Carmen. Perfect for staying in the area.

Rooms - I believe that the rooms are appropriate for the price and the family element of the resort. We had to wait a day to get a crib given that it was a holiday week, but other than that felt that the rooms were above average in comparison to other area all-inclusives.

Food - Nobody will confuse their food with gourmet food but it is better than the average all-inclusive in Mexico. Tons of high-chairs were available for the youngsters with food choices enough for everyone. After 5 days I started to get slightly bored of the food, but usually that happens on day 2-3 of other resorts. Since you can go to restaurants at the other properties there, more than enough variety to choose from. All in all, better than I expected.

Grounds - Top notch...not elegant like a Riu Palace but very functional. Wave pool and other pools were great. Lazy river was fun. Only problem was that the pools are not heated and had a tendancy to be on the colder side (much cooler than the ocean). Love the fact that we never had any issues with lounge chairs, like many of the other resorts in the area.

Beach - Great beach...not many rocks in the ocean...tons of lounge chairs. Also, plenty of space south of the resort to walk before hitting another resort.....lots of more space than the beach at Playacar

Entertainment - For Kids - Super. For Adults - below average....but if I was going with just adults, the resort wouldn't be considered. Best kids program in Mexico....most of the kids there didn't want anything to do with their parents.

Overall - If I wanted to go away with my family or a group of families, I couldn't think of a better place in Mexico. Not as savvy as Beaches with Sesame Street stuff, but tons to do, clean, adequate food and beverage, nice rooms, and nice layout. We send hundreds to the resorts each year, but never went with my own child....seeing how she enjoyed it (and she was too young for most of the fun), made it very obvious that we would be heading back often for family trips.

If I can answer any specific questions about the resort, please email me at mitch@tripguy.com.