We enjoyed our 2 week stay Dec 12-26/05 in a 1 bdrm suite in the Tower. 1st room had ants and they tried for 3 days to kill them with spray, finally we moved. They had not problem doing this for us. Street noise is a reality and to be expected when you want a main drag location combined with beachfront. You should be out and about anyway and at night turn on the bedroom aircon fan to drown it out. Inn At Mazatlan’s location is good with walking distance to the Golden Zone, lots of nearby supermarkets, eateries, etc. Found all areas of the hotel (lobby, pool, restaurant, public bathrooms) clean, lawn/garden area kept and facilities adequately maintained. Doormen were pleasant, helpful and friendly, as well as the restaurant staff, and though we didn’t find the front desk or other staff unpleasant, they just didn’t seem as pleasant. The streets and neighbourhood at night were not intimidating nor did they feel unsafe. Although the Inn At Maxatlan is rated a 4 ½ star by Mexican standards, by the American scale it would rate a 3 star hotel at best. But still a n overall pleasant experience.

Always found Mazatlan vendors and store staff to be friendly. The sheer volume of beach vendors can seem overwhelming, but never did I feel highly pressured, intimidated, etc. Just say no. Most of them have a very good sense of humour and are kinda fun. And say no to all the timeshare offers. Your 90 minute session will turn into 190 minutes and you surely didn’t go all the way there to sit and get high pressured into spending a bunch of money you don’t have.

We read other reviews before going and provide the following points in echo to some of those reviews and adding our own findings.

Don’t take the all inclusive. Lots of great restaurants and eateries with various foods experiences (Western & Mexican) within walking distance. Panamas’, Los Arcos, Poncho’s and Country Casa are the best foods experiences with affordable prices. Many small eateries (like Chalvas across the street), taco and hot dog stands everywhere. These are good too.

Do take the Country Tour (a whole day tour to Copalla) to see “real” Mexico. Don’t take the Stone Island tour. It was filthy, poor food, and a complete waste of ½ day. Asked the doorman to get an English speaking pulmonia driver to take you on a city tour ($20/hr) instead of on the bus. And I would also suggest spending the better part of a day in Old Mazatlan, down around the market. An interesting experience beyond words.

Parasailing was safe and enjoyable.

Exchange your money at American Express – best rates of exchange.

Use pulmonias to get around, always ask how much to your destination before getting in.

Old, noisy, dirty, filled with screaming children and parents who don't seem to care, the Inn at Mazatlan was a horrid experience. The restaurant is overrated and over priced, and the rooms are in desperate need of rehab. Changing suites didn't help drown out the street noise, nor the untrimmed palm trees that block the ocean views. Unless you get into the new tower which seems to be used only as a time share come on, the rooms are dark, dingy and dirty. Lights don't work, knobs are missing from the appliances, and requests for repair get the, 'manana' response. Talking to other guests in the hottub we were not alone in our disgust. We all felt the positive reviews for this place must be written by time share owners trying to recoup their investments.

Our sixth floor room at the Inn at Mazatlan was clean, spacious, and had a wonderful ocean view. Unfortunately, the night-time traffic noise prevented us from fully enjoying our stay. Located at a traffic light on the main drag, you hear reving motorcycles, loud bus brakes, and zooming cars trying to beat the light. Fellow guests on the twelfth floor said they were also very unhappy with the amount of noise. Friday night included blaring music from a coffee house across the street. If you are looking for peace and quiet, pass on this property.

We just returned from a week-long stay. The hotel is older, but clean and well maintained. The staff were very accomodating. We had a few small problems with the room. The coffee maker leaked, the toaster didn't work, the drain on the shower stopped up and the fold out couch wouldn't go back in so they replaced the couch. The mattress on the fold out was very old. The pool areas are very nice. The vendors are somewhat of a pain. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the street noise. On Friday and Saturday nights especially the locals cranked up the music in their cars while driving around. Also, the loud honking that goes on outside on the main drag while trying to sleep. We did locate fans on the air conditioner control that blocked a lot of it out. Overall a good experience. We got this room for a very good price for listening to the timeshare presentation.