We stayed at the FiestAmericana over the Labor Day weekend for 3 nights. Our first experience upon arrival was not pleasant. We arrived straightaway from the airport by cab at around 1:30 pm, and were advised that our room (a suite in one of the casitas) was not ready, and that since check-in time was actually 3pm, we should just leave our bags with the concierge and check back later.

This we did, but we were stuck in our traveling clothes, and with the temperature in the 90s and no A/C in the common areas of the hotel (they depend upon an open architecture and natural breeze for cooling), this became quite uncomfortable very rapidly. An hour later, I checked back and was told that our room was still not ready. It was at this point that I mentioned we had bought the all-inclusive and wondered if we might have lunch..."certainly!" was the reply, but I wonder why we were made to sit in the lobby for the first hour when we could have been availing ourselves of the amenities before?

Our room did not become available until 4pm, and I never found out why we were not offered an upgrade or the like, but regardless, once we got in, the room was quite nice. The bed was a little hard, and there was a problem with the stopper in the sink, but these were minor annoyances...the room was very comfortable and appealing overall.

BUY THE ALL-INCLUSIVE. I cannot say this enough. The central district of Cozumel, like most other tropical resort destinations, is sea of shop-owners trying to persuade you to buy their wares. Fine, but it grows wearisome very quickly...they're trained to prey on the cruise-goers who have a short time at port, so every person on the street is treated as a mark. In short, you will want to spend most of your time at the hotel, and the all-inclusive package here makes it very comfortable.

The best feature for us was the main pool, which is bi-level and features a swim-up bar. Let me take this point to say that the service people at the FiestAmericana are VERY friendly, always willing to accommodate, and they make first-rate pina coladas and bloody marys.

There was a bit of a fly problem during our dining experiences, which made open-air dining a bit of a challenge, but we still found it worthwhile to brave the flies as the views of the sea are spectacular. More bothersome was that one day at the pool, we became an attraction point for a swarm of bees, who were very interested in our pinas...we stuck to less sweet drinks thereafter, and they left us alone.

The highlight as far as dining goes is definitely the hotel's restaurant. The all-inclusive gives you a pick of the menu, and I can testify that the filet mignon was *superb*. Worth the all-inclusive in itself!

So my overall impressions were that this is a friendly resort, that is rough around the edges, but makes for an enjoyable experience. It's a great option for a long weekend, but I wouldn't stay longer unless I was going for the diving.

Good hotel, but do not expect a Hyatt. We were there for the diving and it work well for us. We booked a casita, and it looked great, but the room did not smell well. We asked to be moved and were the same day (to a more expensive room in the main building), no questions asked.

Alfonse at the dive shop is a great scuba instructor. He relates very well to teens. Diving around Cozumel is great.

We ate in town (Guido's and Mission are both a little expensive but good). Also Coconuts is worth the drive.

Do visit the Maya ruins early in the morning. You have the jungle to yourself.

We feel so sorry about the storm that must have hit the island hard. It was just barely recovering from the previous hurricane.

The staff were very helpful especially when we had to make urgent arrangements to leave before the storm hit. While we were there, we enjoyed the all- inclusive food and drinks very much.

Not an upscale hotel, but it serves it's purpose. The general maintenance of the hotel was lacking. Both ice machines on the south side of the hotel were inoperable, one had an "Out of Order" sign and the other just didn't work. The vegetation around the beach area needed some TLC. The grass was totally overgrown and many bushes were dead and needed removing. The safe in the room was missing (didn't need it) and there was no remote control for the TV (didn't really need it), but we got it a day later after reminding the bellman.

We did not do all inclusive ($26 p/p for bkfst plus lunch or dinner with no drinks, or $50 p/p all meals). The food was pretty poor and expensive. A litre of water was 35 pesos ($3.20) , a local beer was 37 pesos ($3.36), a plate of eggs 67 pesos ($6). For breakfast one morning, an item we ordered was missing several key ingredients. When we pointed it out, we were told that they were out of those ingredients, so we sent it back. Our replacement order was oatmeal flavored with cinnamon and honey. The oatmeal had no cinnamon and the honey was to be added yourself. If you have taste buds, go into town to eat (at least dinner) but be prepared to add USD 12 to your meal cost for round trip taxi, but, you will find great tasting meals at half the price (not including the taxi ride).

There is not a sand beach leading to the water. The sand area is built up above the rocks, BUT we knew that before arriving so it was no suprise, as was the road you cross to get to their beach area.

Overall, the staff was friendly, jovial, and helpful, although a bit lackadaisical. The accomodations were fine, so long as your needs are not Hyatt or Hilton. I got what I paid for.