My boyfriend and I just returned from our 7 night vacation. We had a fabulous time. The service at the hotel was excellent, the staff is very friendly and eager to please. The IMC desk is helpful but the concierge didnt speak much English. We got lucky with our gardenview room, it was in a corner and therefore quiet. The halls echo so I suggest requesting a corner room. It was very spacious and well airconditioned. The bed was very comfortable and the water pressure was strong. The beach at the hotel was nice with plenty of chairs. Its a little annoying because its very rocky and there is only a small entrance to access the ocean by foot. The snorkeling is good, $10 a day for equipment per person. The brunch was excellent and included with our room rate. Otherwise, lunch and dinner was very average. We did not try Arrecife but heard it was ok and pricey. Our favorite restaurants were La Choza and El Moro for Mexican. La Cocay and La Veranda were also very good. Downtown is a tourist haven (think hagglers), the shops were not upscale. If you rent a car definitely check out the Palancar Reef Club for some quiet time and good food on the beach. We did a snorkeling/snuba trip on the Zorro, it was well worth it! The grounds of the hotel are kept well. There were lots of kids by the pool area on most days when we were there. The weather was good 6/8 days so we were happy. We would recommend this place.

El Presidente was just as the many earlier reviews indicated. We were very pleased with the resort and have already recommended it to some folks!Cautions - this is a very kid friendly resort. which isn't a plus if you want a placid, adult getaway since there are a lot of them and the only pool is right at the kid center. - the employees are NOT on mexico time. they are very professional and energetic. so much so that it distracts from relaxing, but it is great if you want to stay at state-side speed. - the downtown area is a carnival barker atmosphere and hectic from the cruise ships which are now ALWAYS in port, but if you are staying on the island - after your first trip down the locals figure out who you are and leave you alone. not very far off the beaten path are some very nice, quiet places.- if you like to get into the local culture when you travel, you'll be disappointed. The entire population is trained to support the resort industry - literally free education through college, guaranteed jobs, but only for that industry. It's more like finding out what it is like to work in Disneyworld vs what it is like to live in Oaxaca.

The property was well maintained but not world class. This was our third trip to Coz and our first stay at the Presidente-twice we stayed at Fiesta Americana Reef hotel. The hotel restaurant was quite good, although pricey for the quality. The concierge was limited in her ability to arrange anything. Air conditioning was loud and ineffective in our ocean view room...it took 5 days of complaining to get another room. The deluxe room was clearly superior but the hallway created a nice echo chamber effect. The beach is likely the best on the island-good sized with great food/drink service. The included buffet breakfast was very good quality.

Had a medical conference and stayed at the Presidente from Mar 6-13/2004. I read on these reviews to buy the Ambassador status for $150.00 Definitely worth it! Received a free room upgrade as well as daily fruit baskets and also FREE buffet breakfast for two each day. Did not use it every day but still that alone was more than the 150. Service was the best of anywhere in the world that I have travelled (which includes Cayman, Hawaii, Bahamas, Florida, Mexico). The only complaint is that the beds are not very comfortable (but I am told that is true anywhere in Mexico). They did go out of their way to get a feather tick to put under the sheets which helped. I went into town for quite a few meals as the food at the Caribeno, while good, was not as good as many places in town. We hit La Choza (best shrimp but smaller portions), Pancho's (best overall experience in Mexican food), La Cocay (an absolute MUST visit-no credit cards-not open Sun and Mon), Sonora Grill ( not bad but the only place I would NOT go back to-give it a 7-8/10), French Quarter ( also a MUST visit, especially if you are nearer the end and want something other than Mexican. Try the ribs-absolutely the BEST anywhere in the world, twice baked potato also to die for), and our last night La Ariceffe at the Presidente (I had the grilled lobster-very expensive but unbelievable). It was cheaper most nights to take a taxi to town and eat at these restaurants than to eat at the house restaurants at Presidente. Ariceffe is great but VERY expensive. and you don't want to eat there every night and miss some GREAT eating in town. Serice at Scuba Du was great but it was even better when you could get on some of smaller fast boats with smaller groups. My last 2 tank dive was unreal!! My buddy was experienced and the dive master let us dive our full computer profile without having to go up with those were air hogs. Service at Scuba Du was by far better than anywhere else in the world that I have dived. ( 9th or 10th dive trip). I would go back in a heart beat. Snorkelling was as good at The Presidente as anywhere on Cozumel including Dzul-Ha and Chankanaab. Actually I think the snorkelling is over-rated in Cozumel but maybe I have seen too much elsewhere. The diving is top-notch though. Beware the currents and they can suddenly shift direction. I am a VERY strong swimmer/snorkeller and I had to work very hard when I ended up far from shore swimming against the current to start and then the current shifted and I was against the current going back too. I could have bailed out and gone to shore at one of the ladders ( but I was stubborn) but you do have to watch yourself there. The reef at the far north side is better but the barge on the south side is fun too. The beach is awesome there and like I said service is absolutely top-notch from the top all the way to the housekeeping staff. Even the taxi drivers are very nice, thouhg some drive like maniacs. ALWAYS ask for the rate to start from though. Should not be more that 50 pesos to town. The beds were an inhibition to my enjoyment though.