This resort was a complete surprise and we just loved it!  We were able to do a site inspection in the morning and then we enjoyed the rest of our day experiencing some of what it has to offer.   As always, photos first and then our review.  Back to Mexican Resorts.

NOW Sapphire Fact Sheet

Now Sapphire is ideally located between Cancun and Playa del Carmen, and is a short 20 minutes away from the airport.

Size:  Now Sapphire offers 496 rooms/suites.  While that may seem like a lot of rooms, the resort itself does not feel too large, and it is easy to get from one end of the resort to the other. The resort also offers 7 restaurants, 1 cafe, and 5 bars and lounges.

Star Level:  We would rate this resort a solid 4 star.  As with other resorts we’ve reviewed, we were only here for the day (from about 9am to 11pm) and did not stay overnight.  We are basing our rating on the interactions, service, and food quality we experienced during our visit.

The service was exceptional, staff was kind, friendly, and helpful, and the facility itself was maintained really well.  Every meal we sampled was delicious, flavorful and fresh.

Category:  Now Sapphire is an active, fun, laid back resort that would be great for families, couples, and groups, depending on what people are looking for.  If you are a couple, seeking a bit more privacy and an adults-only experience, we highly recommend upgrading to the Preferred Club level, which offers additional amenities as well as access to the Preferred Club lounge and adults-only swimming pool.

Beach:  The beach at Now Sapphire is nice.  It is not super wide and when we arrived, there was a bit of seaweed.  But then, it had been rather stormy that week.  As the day progressed, there was a machine that removed most of the seaweed, so that was nice.

Since you can see the waves crashing on the coral reef directly in front of the resort, the beach itself is very swimmable.  See photos for a better idea.

Rooms:  The rooms are very nice.  They are generously sized, clean, well-appointed, and reflect perhaps a Spanish Colonial style with dark woods and neutral colors.  Rooms come with either a king bed or two doubles.  Preferred Club ocean front rooms also offer balcony jacuzzis, which is a really nice addition.  All rooms, no matter what room category, do offer room service.  The Preferred Club level gives you an enhanced menu as well as a pillow menu.

One nice thing about the layout of this resort is that all of the rooms were built on the south side of the beach while the lobby, restaurants, and bars were built on the north side, allowing guests the ability to find the environment they most need at the moment.

Activities:  The resort offers many typical fun activities like volleyball, tennis, basketball, ping pong, bungee trampoline (for kids under 12), non-motorized water sports like kayaks, hobie cats, windsurfing, and more.  There are also staff members present from local tour companies, so arrangements can easily be made to do special snorkeling trips, fishing, golfing, and so much more.  Oh, and I can’t forget to mention the enormous pools.  They were absolutely beautiful and really well-thought out!

Nightlife:  The resort is somewhat active at night, with live music, movies played outside on a big screen, and nightly shows/entertainment.  There is also a nightclub available, but it was relatively empty during our visit.

Dining:  We were able to enjoy three different restaurants as well as the cafe onsite.  For breakfast, we sampled the Market Cafe, a buffet which had a great array of breakfast meats, fruits, waffles and pancakes, yogurts, smoothies, and so much more.  The staff member serving us was outstanding.  He was very pleasant, had a terrific sense of humor, and really took care of our needs.  We were really impressed.

Despite our very filling breakfast, a few of our kids had a late morning snack from the burger stand as well, and the burger was hot and delicious!  I know, because they shared a few bites with me.

Later, we dined at the Bluewater Grill for lunch.  This restaurant is set on a deck with a fabulous ocean view, so our dining experience was really enhanced.  The food was excellent.  Between all of us, we sampled the nachos, buffalo wings, cilantro cream soup, and delicious, flaky fish tacos.  It was a memorable lunch!

We ended the evening at Now Sapphire’s small Asian restaurant, Lemongrass.  Wow…our server, Jorge, was one of the best servers we have ever had.  He was kind, courteous, thoughtful, attentive, and very friendly.  The restaurant was very busy that night, and we always felt very well taken care of.  Thanks, Jorge.

As for the meal, it was wonderful!  We sampled Vietnamese Rolls, different kinds of Sushi, Thai Salad, Thai Curry Soup (wow!), Peanut Satay with Chicken and Beef, Yellow Curry Beef, Red Curry with Chicken Medallions, and Beef Udon Noodles.  Everything was outstanding.  The only thing we weren’t 100% in love with was the Peanut Satay, as the sauce did not taste too “peanut buttery” but aside from that, everything was just excellent.  The food was cooked correctly, the meat and chicken were tender, and the flavors were very rich.

We ended dinner with delicious Fried Ice Cream and a few other unique options, but unfortunately, I did not photograph them, nor do I remember their names.  The one was like a Mango Mousse, and the other had Coconut Ice Cream.

I have to admit that we also headed over to the Coco Cafe to grab a few desserts, but only after we had taken a long walk.  We shared a little Cheesecake, a Chichen Itza shaped Chocolate Pyramid, A rich chocolate covered brownie (my favorite!) and a few macaroons.  Throughout the day, we had also enjoyed several different kinds of frappes.  It was hard to see the Coco Cafe close at the end of the night.

Overall:  This is a really excellent resort.  All of the staff members, with the exception of one blonde, female staff member working with the bungee trampoline, were pleasant, helpful, and genuinely kind.  It was a pleasure interacting with them.  The resort itself is also very beautiful.  The photos honestly do not do it any justice!  It was high noon when I took a majority of them, and with the harsh lighting, was not able to really capture the beauty the way I wanted to.  I guess that just means I need to go back for another photo shoot.  Seriously, this resort is beautiful.  It is calm and very relaxed.  I think a lot of this has to do with the abundant water and fountain filled areas, the lush landscaping, and the whole layout itself.  It’s very relaxing.