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At Hilton All-Inclusive resorts, meetings and events are enhanced with unexpected “surprise and delight moments,” Nicole Tilzer, Hilton’s Vice President, All-Inclusive & Resort Strategy, told TravelPulse.
Take, for instance, a recent small-group dinner at the Hilton Cancun Mar Caribe All-Inclusive Resort, where guests sipped welcome cocktails to the tunes of a classical cellist on a grassy lawn fronting the region’s famously azure Caribbean waters. As they approached a long outdoor table adorned with colorful blooms and citrus accents, they observed a small wedding party taking photos on the wide, white-sand beach below.
While the wait staff served short rib and lobster under the moonlight, the atmosphere became even dreamier. A white-clad crooner holding a rose bouquet emerged from the beach and—with the backing of a mariachi trio—sang a traditional serenata to a female singer who appeared from the shadows.
Such pop-up performances that celebrate the local culture are one way Hilton All-Inclusives cater to the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) market.
“All-inclusive resorts encourage guests to re-energize and embrace the destination,” said Tilzer. “With plenty to do right on property, the convenience of an all-inclusive stay eliminates concerns about additional expenses or planning during downtime, offering unmatched value, and making meetings and events as memorable as they are seamless.”
With Hilton expanding its 15-property all-inclusive portfolio, Tilzer outlined for TravelPulse what makes the company stand out in the segment.
The Hilton Difference
With a long and storied history, Hilton backs up its all-inclusive resorts with an enviable hospitality legacy—this is the company that invented the piña colada, after all.
“We bring over 105 years of hospitality experience, expertise and service culture to this category that has been, up until recent years, disparate, much more independent, more ‘mom-and-pop,’” said Tilzer.
Guests count on Hilton All-Inclusives to deliver the service the company is known for, Tilzer added, “For our guests, it’s the trust, the reliability, the friendliness of being Hilton. We are focused, above all else, on our Hilton hospitality.”
That hospitality extends to the way Hilton works with travel advisors. “We have built entire teams around travel advisors and travel advisor relationships,” said Tilzer. “For us, it’s very much a two-way street. We want to know what’s working for the advisor, what’s going to help them to succeed with their clients.”
Guests turn to travel advisors for the same reason they book all-inclusives, noted Tilzer: “They want the friction removed. They want to hit that easy button and know that it is still thoughtfully crafted.”
In addition, Hilton’s vast sales organization can reach customers in the MICE segment who may not have previously considered all-inclusive resorts. “The category is naturally stronger in weddings, celebrations, social events and incentives,” said Tilzer, “but we’ve been able to bring in a lot more of that conference and convention feel.”
Hilton Cancun outdoor event space. (Photo Credit: Hilton Media)
Distinctive Properties That Reflect the Destination
While Hilton’s all-inclusive portfolio includes both new-builds and conversions, all share “a sense of place,” said Tilzer. “Nothing is cookie-cutter.”
The portfolio’s trademarks are exemplified by three popular Hilton All-Inclusive properties on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula:
Opened in May 2022 as a new-build, this eco-chic 735-room property features Tulum’s only purpose-built event center. The vast, elegant Tulkal Event Center—with 55,000-plus square feet of indoor and outdoor space, as well as soaring 23-foot ceilings—is tucked behind a mangrove forest. The Hilton team can add such local flair to an event as a Maya shaman welcome and a Mexican fight ring exhibition on the covered terrace. Thanks partly to the center’s flexibility, 60 percent of the resort’s business comes from groups, with families being another top market.
The resort’s guestrooms—including 56 suites—occupy 12 buildings surrounding a secluded bay, with speedy tram service that transports guests throughout the property. Its sprawling layout means most rooms have an ocean view. The complex includes 13 restaurants and bars, including five signature restaurants; nine pools; dedicated areas for kids, teens and adults; and a well-equipped fitness center.
The resort—along with select additional Hilton All-Inclusives, such as the Hilton Cancun Mar Caribe—also offers the Enclave elevated guest room category, with exclusive benefits like the Enclave Lounge, private pool access, private check-in/check-out, a dedicated concierge, additional food and beverage offerings, and more.
The Hilton Tulum Riviera Maya shares both its convention center and spa with the adjacent 349-room Conrad Tulum Riviera Maya, which opened in January 2022. A calming sanctuary surrounded by jungle, the Conrad Spa features 16 stand-alone cabins for treatments, including four for couples. All services start with a Mayan cleansing ritual and clients can book spiritual ceremonies with a shaman.
Occupying 100 secluded acres on the Mayan coastline—yet conveniently located just 20 minutes from both Cancun’s airport and its bustling Hotel Zone—this 715-room resort boasts one of the largest convention centers in the region, with nearly 70,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space. More than a third of the resort’s occupancy comes from groups, as the spacious, flexible center offers such advanced capabilities as freight elevators that can transport cars for automobile conventions. Adjacent to the convention center is the Waldorf Astoria Riviera Maya, home to a luxurious spa, which gives planners another accommodation option for top executives.
A new-build property that opened in November 2021, the Hilton Cancun features a light, airy design inspired by the surrounding natural beauty of the Caribbean. The shape of the building resembles a coral formation, for example, while the lobby’s elegant chandeliers evoke jellyfish and seashells. The interior hallways allow guests to walk from one end of the resort to the other without going outside.
The resort’s 12 all-inclusive dining experiences range from La Luce Italian trattoria, where a chef prepares pizzas to order in a wood-fired pizza oven; to the open-air Maxal Taqueria, with a rotating selection of tacos; to the all-you-can-eat Ice Cream and Churro Shop, where guests can order warm, sweet cinnamon and cinnamon-chocolate churros. Additional amenities include a splash pool with slides, two additional oceanfront pools, kids’ and teens’ clubs, a state-of-the-art fitness center and an amphitheater that hosts daily entertainment.
Hilton’s most recent all-inclusive addition, the 540-room Mar Caribe opened in October 2023 after a reflag and renovation. The resort’s prime location—nestled between 600 feet of pristine Caribbean beachfront and the Nichupte Lagoon—is in the heart of Cancun’s Hotel Zone and just 10 miles from the airport.
The resort has plenty of activities for all ages, making it a popular choice for families. Amenities include 13 pools, including an adults-only sundeck; a splash pool with water slides for kids; the Beach Bunch kids’ club for ages four to 12; the Sandbar Social teens’ club, with video games, ping-pong and more; 12 restaurants and bars, including a 24-hour cafe; and a relaxing spa with seven treatment cabins and a hydrotherapy circuit. Several spa treatments incorporate Mayan traditions, such as the Ancient Wisdom Ritual, in which local herbs and flowers are applied to alleviate stress and drive out negative energy.
Smaller groups can book the resort’s 2,000-plus square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, including a penthouse-level meeting room with ocean views, the Chala Sky Bar terrace and a beachfront garden. Advise clients not to miss La Luce, serving Italian cuisine, where they can watch the sunset over the Nichupte Lagoon. The restaurant is also a quiet option for breakfast, with menu options including chilaquiles.
Elevated Dining
As demonstrated by the three Yucatán resorts, Hilton All-Inclusives emphasize cuisine. “We focus on food and beverage, making sure that it’s not what you might think of as all-inclusive [food] from 20 years ago,” said Tilzer.
For example, the Hilton Mar Caribe’s Chala Sky Bar—a rooftop space exclusively for Enclave guests during the day—serves fresh ceviche, while its Waiting Bar boasts a collection of 178 types of wine (48 from Mexico) and 10 tequila varieties, with complimentary afternoon classes and tastings available. At the Hilton Tulum Riviera Maya, local fishermen deliver fresh seafood daily, while the extensive wine menu includes Mexican labels exclusive to the resort and the adjacent Conrad.
Several restaurant concepts are found in multiple Hilton All-Inclusives in Mexico. Maxal, for example, serves elevated Mexican cuisine with traditional ingredients. A recent group dinner featured such Maxal specialties as pork belly taco roasted in black chilmole, blue corn tortilla and avocado puree, and a vegetarian sweet potato steak in Oaxacan mole and agave honey.
Another concept, the Vela international buffet, features a vast array of rotating dishes, cuisines and live-action stations. Guests will find churrascaria, or Brazilian barbecue, every night at Vela at the Hilton Cancun Mar Caribe, where the Thursday night gala emphasizes seafood and the dessert selection may feature such sweet surprises as a donut wall. All Hilton All-Inclusives offer 24-hour dining options.
Hilton Tulum Riviera Maya Tulkal event center. (Photo Credit: Hilton Media)
Focus on Entertainment and Activities
Another selling point for Hilton All-Inclusives? “Entertainment is huge,” said Tilzer, “whether it’s in meetings or whether it’s throughout the resorts.”
Each resort’s entertainment team can help enhance meetings and events with memorable performances that will have guests reaching for their cameras. At the Hilton Tulum Riviera Maya, a recent group was greeted by performers dressed as catrinas—the Day of the Dead skeleton figures—and alebrijes, the mythical creatures of Mexican folklore. A group dinner at the Hilton Cancun featured such performances as a mariachi band, a Latin trumpeter and—the biggest surprise of the night—an opera singer who introduced himself as the chef before revealing his true profession as he burst into an aria.
Each all-inclusive offers up a full roster of activities for guests of all ages to enjoy. At Hilton Cancun Mar Caribe, daytime diversions range from Spanish lessons to paella cooking classes to pool volleyball, while kids in the Beach Bunch can choose such options as slime-making, origami and freeze dance. At night, guests can dance the night away at glow parties and silent discos, or enjoy casino nights, fire shows and themed entertainment.
Upcoming Openings
Just as Hilton is introducing all-inclusives to meeting planners, “we’re introducing this category to our Honors members,” said Tilzer. “It’s not something they would have thought of coming to Hilton for. Now we can welcome them in and show them the joy of what you can get in an all-inclusive.”
And as they do, demand is growing. “We’ve been seeing huge success when we open a new property, even before it officially opens,” said Tilzer.
Upcoming Hilton All-Inclusive openings include:
Expected to debut in June, this new 502-room resort in the coastal town of Miches, north of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, will feature 123 ground-level swim-up guest rooms, 18 oceanfront bungalows, a convention center, water park and spa.
Transitioning to an all-inclusive property when it reopens for the season in late April, this resort on the Greek island of Rhodes features 188 rooms and suites, each featuring a private pool, hot tub or expansive veranda. Activities on site inspired by Mediterranean culture include a beekeeping and honey-tasting experience.
- Sens Cancun Adults Only All-Inclusive Resort, Tapestry by Hilton
Giving adults another Hilton all-inclusive option in Cancun, this resort located just nine miles from Cancun International Airport is expected to open in 2026 after a complete renovation. The property’s nine dining options will include a brand-new rooftop bar and restaurant with spectacular views of the Caribbean and the Nichupte Lagoon.
Look for Hilton to continue to expand its all-inclusive portfolio. “We want to be a key player,” said Tilzer. “We want to deliver strong returns to our owners, and we want to over-deliver the experience to our guests. As long as we can do that, we’re going to keep growing.”
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