We stayed three nights beginning the 14th and left on the 17th. I had actually done research through expedia, mlt vacations, and funjet. I found the best price through funjet (atusa.com) and then called my travel agent to see if she could beat the price. She was able to match it but got a better accomodating flight schedule for us. So it worked out nicely. The hotel was highly recommended by close friends who visit yearly and are avid divers. This was our third trip to Cozumel. However, the first two were via cruise ship so we were interested in getting to know the island a bit better.

Upon our arrival we were greated promptly by the bellhops. These guys go above and beyond. They are amazing. I didn't have to touch my luggage, they pulled it to the side, stored it for us, and delivered it to our rooms. There were four in our party and two bellhops jumped on our luggage for us. I tipped each of them three bucks. The rest of the week, they remembered me and were friendly and always jumped at the chance to get a cab for us.

Our first experience with the front desk staff could have been a lot worse. The reservations were lost but, Martha at the front desk kept saying, "I don't have reservations but, no worry". We were given our fruit punch drinks and they were great. Martha got our wristbands and told us "No worry, go eat lunch." I wasn't worried, I knew it would be taken care of. So we went to each lunch at the buffett and then came back. We filled out some paperwork, checked in, got our keys and headed up to our room. Bellhops in tow with our luggage. Yes, they waited a good thirty minutes for us to get our room and then took our luggage up. We were in two rooms on the fourth floor of the old tower. 401 & 409. Upon entering our room, I figured there had to have been a mistake somewhere. We were booked for an oceanview room with king sized beds. We walked into a 700sqft room with a couch, tv, coffee table and king sized bed. The room was enormous! More room than what is actually reasonable. It took the sting off of having the tense moment at the desk during check in. Martha took care of us. She's such a sweetheart.

The food was above average. We ate the buffet for each meal except dinner one evening downtown at Palmera's. The breakfast was great each morning. Lunch was pretty good, and dinner as well. The buffet changed a few things through our visit but, was mostly the same "type" of food. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and nacho fixings were always available by the south pool. We kept a fluid schedule so we didn't tie ourselves down to reservations in the main dinning hall. Besides, the buffet was good enough that we didn't care that we didn't get to eat at the main.

I read several reviews about the beds being hard. They are. We had an egg crate on ours and it was still hard as a rock. I personally was so tired/tipsy by the end of the night that I still slept like a baby.

I had read some complaints about the drinks being weak. I ordered a margarita on the rocks at lunch upon arrival and the bartender filled a glass with ice, tequila, tripple sec, and had enough room for a little more than a splash of lime juice. I knew that if I drank like this the whole week I was going to be worthless. So, I switched to beer for the week. They serve dos xx on tap and that made me happy.

We booked our excursions through lomas travel at the hotel. Juan was great. He did more for us than just book excursions. He spent extra time with us answering questions and even helped us with the front desk during check out. Juan Kuk is his name. Go see him to book your excursions. He's very very helpful and not there just to sell you something. He's a good guy. We did the royal swim with the dolphins at Chakuunaab. Highly recommended. I'm no small man by any stretch and was glad to see the dolphins actually get me out of the water during the "foot push". We also did the helmet dive at Jeannie's next to the Barracuda hotel. Those guys were excellent as well. Great dive. We were the last group of the day (3pm) so it was just the four of us and they really took thier time with us. I'm not sure how long we were down but, it was a long time.

I ordered room service one morning while the rest of our group went on the canopy tour at Sky High. They loved the tour and I loved breakfast despite it was twenty minutes late. It was still hot and good and the waiter was vary appologetic for his tardiness. I tipped him a few bucks and I got more thank you's and sorry's.

I learned a few things on this trip that I actually was prepared for and was glad that I did. I've learned that the opinion of Americans in general is very low in countries like Mexico and Jamaica. Calling anyone "sir, ma'am, senior, or seniorita" goes a long way in earning respect. You get a better price when shopping the smaller stores when you are courteous. Also, take lots of one dollar bills with you. Tip your bellhops, waiters, bartenders, housekeepers, and cab drivers. You get better service across the board. A few dollars certainly can make your trip much much better. Also, you will find that you take at least two showers a day. It is hard on your skin. Take lots of lotion to rehydrate. (this was a recommendation from my wife that she wanted me to throw in). I also learned that if you attempt to speak the language or use as much of it as you know, they are much more receptive. I took the approach that I expect them to speak my language when they are in my country, I should be respectful and make an attempt at theirs when in their country. It makes them laugh and they help you along when you try to communicate. Again, it makes the mood better for everyone.

Go shopping when the cruise ships leave. The prices magically come down at the "mom & pop" stores and haggling prices is much more well received. I bought a pair of silver earrings for my mother with (fake) tanzinite. I liked them and new my mother would like them so I don't care that they are fake tanzinite. The store owner started at $90. By the time it was all said and done, I had the earrings for $35.

For the ladies wanting to get their hair braided: go downtown. There is a street on the north side of Palmera's that runs east and west. Go down the street just a 1/2 block. On the southside of the street is a lady who has a stand on the side of the street. She does an amazing job braiding hair. She's fast, has a great price, and sings the whole time she does hair and has a smile on her face. My girls have their har braded each time we go to Mexico. This, by far, was the best job they had had done on their hair.