This was my second stay at the Presidente' within a year. The first day their hotel staff stole my wallet from my room! Didn't get it back. There were so many bugs in the room that after one night I counted over 50 bites on my body. If it wasn't windy there would be hundreds of flies around your plate at the open-air restaurant. We switched to a reef side room to get away from the bugs in the room. Other guest told me that they had gone into town to get those insect repellant coils to burn in their room. The food wasn't the quality that we had previously experienced. We also experienced waiters that could speak perfect English one day and claimed not to speak English the next. The difference seems to be that they are under new management now and now they are promoting Mexico’s style of time-shares. Expect that call to your room in the morning asking if you want to come to the sales pitch.

From the moment we were greeted by the bell-hop until the moment we left the staff could not do enough. EAch day upon a return from my morning walk, I was greeted with a bottle of cold water. When I asked what station ESPN was on as I wanted to watch the Australian Open, the front desk printed out the entire schedule and left it under my door. The beach frontage is beautiful and extensive - you can be with people or compeltely private. And walking in to snorkel couldn't be easier. The outdoor grill restaurant had quite good food although the breakfast buffet went from an extensive hot and cold selection to only a continental breakfast midway through out stay. As we don't eat big breakfast that was okay but we never understood the change. The Italian restaurant had excellent food and service if a bit pricey. The grill was a good choice for dinner. Our room was spacious and we're glad we went the extra dollars for the water view. I had a massage at the new spa which was quite elegant and the tennis courts (of carpet covered by sand) play very well. The best time to play was about 4:30 when it wasn't so hot.

All in all this will be one of our favorite places for years to come.

My wife and I stayed Nov 2 -9 2004. Overall we had a very pleasant experience but we agree with a review that said this hotel is nice but it ISN'T a 4-star, luxury resort. The salespeople from the timeshares that follow you around the lobby from the moment you check-in are very annoying. DO NOT TALK TO THEM other than "no thank you" - unless you want to be hassled your entire time. We were there at off season and were able to upgrade from ocean-view to beach-front for an additional $50 a night which included the buffet breakfast for both of us every morning. This was a great deal as breakfast was delicious and convenient. The beach-front room was so nice. We could come and go from the beach without having to go back into the hotel. The rooms were nice, not great, they all smelled musty (and we had to move rooms twice so it wasn't just one). Our clothes smelled for a long time afterward, even after multiple washings. The rooms lacked that little extra you expect from a luxury hotel. We had bugs in the bathroom and mechanical problems. The beach was nice and nearly deserted while we were there. The service there was spotty. Like most places in Mexico if you introduce yourself and make some small talk, in spanish if you can, with the waiter it usually goes a long way. The homemade coconut ice cream in the warm afternoon was truly heaven on earth. The pool was small and the water cool. The pool was disappointing but the poolside loungers with the big terry cloth pillows were the perfect place for a good book or a nice nap in the sun. The swimming and snorkeling out front of the hotel was fun and convenient. The service seemed not up to what the rest of Mexico is. We've travelled to Mexico 4 other times and the service was the least attentive here. It's a nice place to go but don't expect a luxurious 5-star hotel. With that in mind have a great time.

We stayed at the Presidente from January 1-8 and are vowing to return next year.

We chose the Presidente for two reasons, scuba diving for my husband, and on-site snorkeling for my 12 year old daughter and myself. We weren't disappointed. The dive operation was very professional and convenient, with dive boats running from the hotel. My husband, an experienced diver, recommends that experienced divers choose the small boats. He had no difficulty making payment with a credit card. And the snorkeling was incredible! I don't know where else you can walk out your door and jump into a virtual aquarium. When we weren't snorkeling, we enjoyed feeding the fish with bits of bread we'd saved up from breakfast.

We had a "deluxe" room, located on the second floor of the low rise building right on the beach. Ask for a room in the 3200's. I think this is the optimal choice, because it was away from the more populated tower and had a close up view of the ocean with private balcony. There are the "reef suites" on the first floor even closer to the beach with your own outdoor patio, but, while a suite would be nice, it appeared to me that the patios lacked privacy. Besides, from my conversation with the person at the Intercontinental 800 number, I believe the reef suites cost twice as much. While the Presidente is a "5 star" hotel, it does not equate to a 5 star, say, in Hawaii. Nevertheless, the room was large and serviceable. Our only complaint is that our room was freezing because the air conditioning was running so high. We complained to the front desk so much they finally turned it off. Then we slept with the balcony door open, but since there were no screens we woke up rather mosquito bitten. Obviously, that was not the answer. We continued to complain until finally the AC was adjusted to a comfortable level. Our advice-- keep complaining early and often until finally you are comfortable.

Even though the property is not brand new, it is beautifully landscaped and well maintained. There are armies of workers doing everything from tamping down the sand at night, clipping coconuts from the trees as a precautionary measure, driving around on bicycles making room service deliveries. Everyone is extra polite and greets you with a "Buenos Dias."

Being rather unadventuresome, we chose not to eat in town. Instead, we ate every meal at the open air restaurant until the staff welcomed us like family. The meals were expensive, but good. An adorable cat named Pancho wanders in at meal time and sits by your table waiting for you to slip him a few tidbits. Many diners are happy to oblige. Our waiter told us that over Christmas week a lady bought Pancho a whole lobster. Dinnertime entertainment was a delight for mostly everyone, a classical guitarist who played acoustic sets of Eagles, Clapton and Pink Floyd. We saw several couples taking advantage of the "romantic dinner" that the Presidente offers, a single beautifully dressed table on the beach surrounded by a perimeter of candles and torches, with your meal served by a waiter who hovers at a respectful distance.

We rented a car from the car rental desk for a drive around the island. Renting a car is not anything like the states. The fellow cleaned out our car by tossing out a few bottles. After we saw the designated rustbucket, my husband had to go back and have them switch it for fear that the transmission would drop out. We went to the Chankanaab Park for snorkeling, but really it was not any better than the hotel and it was more difficult to get in and out of the water. The drive around the island was unremarkable. Now that weve done it once, we wouldn't bother to do it again, unless you are on the margarita tour. The hotel can hook you up with excursions to Chichenitza and Tulum, but since Cozumel is not really convenient to those sites, the trips sounded a little ambitious. We lacked the motivation to go, but will save that for our next trip!

All in all, we enjoyed the hotel immensely, recommend it highly and will definitely go back.