I also have returned from my Mexican vacation (Riviera Maya). I was at a resort with 2 friends (sorority sisters from way back). One owns this as a time share. The resort was very nice, lots of wooden walkways connecting all the buildings and pools. The food was very expensive, the shops were expensive (so that meant I spent nothing on things as I’m too cheap).
The beach was a disappointment as in was about 20 feet of sand (nice) but the water was very very rocky and at low tide (there wasn’t a big difference in high tide or low tide) you’d have had to walk a long way to get to swimming depth, and it was impossible to keep your balance to get out there. So it was a ‘pool’ vacation.
We went to Playa del Carmen one day and that wasn’t very exciting. Real nice breakfast at a restaurant (the Ape Bar?) but the shopping was just junk (and expensive). When adding the $30 taxi ride (each way) made it an expensive day.
We did do one tour, a trip to the ruins at Tulum, swimming at a cenote (swimming hole) and then snorkeling to find turtles. Also saw stingrays and a huge starfish.
My friend is a photographer and she was very happy with all the birds, crocodiles, coati, and iguana she found.
I don’t think I’d do it again, just because I like to get into the ocean more on my vacations.