One week before leaving for Cozumel, I had read some really bad reviews of the El Cozumeleno. I started to freak and thought about canceling our reservation. I called up a college friend who has been to Mexico dozens of times and he gave me some good advice. He said "Don't cancel, you and your wife will have a great time." My fears were lessened.

We landed and went through customs quickly. But we got ambushed by the Mayan Palace time share people. Avoid ALL time share people. Buy your own tickets for transportation/van from the airport, there are no regulars taxis to take you.

Got to the resort, and I was very critical of everything because of those bad reviews. But each day we were there, we realized how nice the El Coz was. The entire grounds were super clean, they were cleaning the pools at midnight, and talk about thorough! My wife and I had a smooth check-in, they had everything we requested. Beds are hard, but I brought a ten dollar foam overlay from the states with us, which made the bed much better. We did not bring it back. I would highly advice this unless you like rock hard beds. Our room was a very nice and clean, ocean-front room with the large balcony. The shower was big and easily holds two! Counter tops in bathroom were natural stone/marble, with two areas to get ready. In-room safe is a must and free, don't lose the key! TV was horrible, no current shows, no ABC, NBC, nor CBS (we had some rainy times). If we had our boys with us this would have been more of a problem. Reading was nice! No ATM at the El Coz, we had to walk to the Melia to get pesos not US dollars. Cash is king down here, take plenty of it, and always tip, it is a small price to pay and respectful. I did not use my credit card for any of the shops in town, did not trust them with it.

The pools were top notch and clean, but I wished they had more natural shade, to get out of the sun. We usually took two lounge chairs in the sand under a Sea-grape tree. Basketball goal in pool was fun. I was planning on drinking beer a fair amount but it was only on tap and had a really weird taste that I could not stand. One guy said "Just drink it fast, then it doesn't taste so bad". I drank tequilla and rum drinks instead, they were excellent. I did not like the way they cleaned the plastic drink glasses, with tap water still in them, so would ask for styrofoam cups.

We ate in the reservation restuarant once. It was no better than the buffet and the buffet is open air next to the water. The ice cream was killer. The birds flying inside took some getting used to but they did not leave any deposits that I saw. The fish was always good, and overall it was above average. The coffee was nasty and I did not trust drinking it, go to "Coffee Bean" in town. "Calientes" is a great little sports bar in town, got to see Pacers in NBA playoffs on their only big screen TV. "El Foco" great tacos.

The scuba diving was excellent, the dive shop there was very good, Antonio and his staff were very helpful. Ask for big tanks. Discounts for cash. Watch out for thimble jellyfish right now.
Rent a car/Jeep and go to "The Other Side" of the island, it's beautiful.
Rent a surfboard at Punta Merena and scratch Nikki the Kawatamundi (sp?).

We loved the El Cozumeleno and would go back in a heartbeat!

We stayed at the El Coz from May 9th through May 13th and had a GREAT TIME!! Please don't believe everything you read.

The biggest issue seems to be the food. It is really not as bad as some say. They just need a little more variety. The breakfast omelets are SUPER. The lunch is ok and the dinner buffet is good. Remember that you can always order off the menu and reserve dinner in the inside restaurant. It is good! Please tip Lizardo as he makes the best omelets!!!!

The rooms are great! The ocean view is wonderful! It was a perfect resort for us.

The service is very good everywhere. On the second day of our trip, our toilet had a problem flushing. We reported it in the morning and it was fixed by the early afternoon. Please remember that things like this happen even in your house, so don't complain about it. If you report it nicely, they will fix it right away. Such things should not be an issue when reviewing a resort. Things do break from time to time.

Before you book any tours or activities, it is best to go to the dive shop and talk with Antonio. He is a straight shooter and will be very honest with you. The best part about his tours is that they leave from the El Coz and never stop anywhere else to pick up others. NO WASTED VACATION TIME! The snorkel tour is EXCELLENT!! And do the sunset cruise too. The cost is little for this cruise. Don't tell Antonio the cost is too little as I do not want him to raise it for next year.

The entertainment nights are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The entertainment is great, so plan to be there those nights. The other nights we spent either in town or on the beach watching the sun set and the moon light reflecting off the waters. The kareoke bar opens at 10 and is fun!

The drinks are fine and not watered down. They try to please all and burning drinks to please those that are used to alot of booze will only turn off others. If your drink is not up to your standards, ask for a double and you eill be allright. They will do anything to make your visit enjoyable!

All in all I felt that everyone did all they could to make sure my wife and I had a great time. WE DID! I will be returning to this resort in the near future. If you have any questions please feel very free to contact me at maddmurf@ncn.net and I would be happy to answer any questions.

TRIP REPORT: EL COZUMELENO RESORT AND HOTEL, MAY 1-8, 2005

Hotel:
The El Coz is a beautiful resort hotel in my opinion. My wife and I stayed in the South Tower, newer rooms. Very spacious, comfortable, great view of the ocean from our sliding glass doors which led out to a nice balcony, with two chairs and a little table on it. We were on the 5th floor. All the rooms are ocean front, with room entrance in the back leading into the room, then the balcony. No need to special request ocean front, they all are. Nice room colors, b right rooms, large bathroom with separate dressing area, large closet. Rooms are cleaned daily. We even got new sheets daily. In room safe for the family jewels, etc.
The Hotel is basically immaculate with crews cleaning this and that almost constantly.

Pool, Etc.:
Huge main pool, free form. Built in Jacuzzi areas, several different depths for little kiddies to adult depth. Part of the pool is under a large roof with a waterfall, just in case you want to swim but have already gotten enough sun and need shade. There is a pool bar at the main pool, with stools in the water area. Very cool. There are something like two or three more pools, in what I think they call the quiet area. Plenty of lounge chairs, and didn’t seem to be the reservation of seats early in the day, which is a good thing. Bottom line, lots of swimming, plenty of activities if you want to get involved. If you don’t, no big deal. Water and beach volleyball, games, bingo, painting crafts, music, cooking lessons, and the list goes on. Very friendly, helpful and courteous staff, that is willing to do what they can to accommodate your requests. Towels can be had at the towel exchange by the pool.

Arranging Activities:
When you first go into the hotel, you will find a variety of little desks set up with people trying to get you to sign up for this or that. When you check in, you get this envelope on El Coz stationery. Inside the envelope is the “real magilla”, the stuff you can do that the hotel endorses, from Ocean Tours. They are located right next to the large free form pool. Go in and talk to a guy named Antonio. He will get you set up with virtually ANYTHING you want to do….. scuba, snorkeling trips (a real BLAST!!!) parasailing, evening catamaran cruises, an ADULTS ONLY cruise in the evening….imagine a party on a floating catamaran…. (Singing drinking, carrying on…. Totally fun!!! Did I say no kiddies???? I think I did.) the list goes on and on. And, if you need a special dive set up…. Just ask Antonio…. He will do what he can. Scuba intro lessons are free every day. Then go an easy dive with a minor fee. Dive Instructor goes along. Great dive by the way. Seriously, Ocean Tours seems to be the best choice. YOU GOTTA CHECK THE OCEAN WATER….. AS CLEAR AS A GLASS OF WATER!!! See it to believe it. Get Snorkeling stuff from Antonioi for free, and snorkel right off the hotel beach. Loads of cool fish to see.
Oh, you MUST see this lifesized Chess Set they have. Some of the larger pieces are about 4 feet tall. Lots of people playing chess… funny to watch. I don’t think on vacation, so didn’t play.

FOOD:
Ok, look….your Mama isn’t along cooking for you, and you ARE in Mexico, not the USA. Hey, be brave, explore, experiment a little. Food is good, and I ate at the buffet each day for breakfast and dinner. “Omelet Man” will make you any one you want. YOU pick the ingredients from several they have, take what you want, give them to him and shazam, he makes a great one for you. Lots of choices for all meals. Nice open air dining area, right on the beach. Nothing like having breakfast/ dinner watching the Caribbean right in front of you!!! I tried all sorts of Mexican dishes I hadn’t had before and most were just great.
I didn’t eat at the reservations only restaurant. Hey, I’m on vacation, and this guy doesn’t wear long pants on vacation…..that’s my rule and I don’t break it for anything.
Also there is an outside bar with tables and a line of munchies and food open all day. You can get your burger fix or hot dog fix there if you must. Other stuff there too.

ENTERTAINMENT:
Oh, did I tell you about the entertainment at night? Something like three nights a week, maybe more, there is entertainment going on. Mariachi band, dancers in costumes, this and that. And… watch out kiddies… you get drafted into participation in games and fun on stage…. Parents, get out the cameras for some funny stuff. Kids stuff is done early. Then the adult stuff…. Yeah, you do get volunteered into doing funny things. Hey, I did, and survived. Fun actually. Kiddies, now YOU get the camera and get shots of mom and dad doing nutty things. Payback is fair play, right?
Net net, the place is just fantastic in all ways. We enjoyed ourselves immensely and will be back next year. For families with kids, without kids, young and old, this place has it all. Even in town, the taxi ride is something like $5 each way. No biggie. Let me suggest this….. the staff there is just great. If you experience great service, a nice tip of a couple bucks goes a long way. Watch what they do for you, and you will see they deserve it.

Reported by:
Denny & Jamie from Burlington, NJ

This was my 5th trip to the Isle Cozumel and I have stayed at several resorts on this island. The El Cozumeleno was by far the cleanest, nicest and well kept resort that I have experienced on Cozumel.

I traveled with my wife, my 7 year old son, my 18 year old son and a bunch of other family members. Everyone of us loved the place. The 7 year old never stood still. There was always something to do for him. The food was okay, but hey!! it's an all you can eat buffet. If you eat at the same resaurant everyday of the week, the food, no matter where, will get boring and all taste the same. Bring a few bucks and head for town for a variety.The drinks were not watered down and they had Dos Equis Lager on tap!! IT WAS GREAT!!!

The onsite dive operator, Ocean-Tours w/Antonio, were great. The boat we were on was fast, clean and well prepared. Our divemaster- Jose-Louis was a blast. We hooked up with a U.S. couple who worked for Ocean-Tours. You would be well off listening to Michelle or Dan from Ocean-Tours regarding any extra-curricular trips you may be planning. Watch out for the tour-dogs in the lobby!

Now, I read somewhere about someone sniveling that the pool was too cold. WHAH!!! The ocean was 84 degrees, jump in that. The hot-tubs were luke warm at best, why do you need a hot-tub when it's 90 degrees outside? I, along with my entire family, found the pools to be very well kept, clean and refreshing.

I wil be back to stay at the El-Cozumeleno in the not to distant future. I found the staff to be very friendly, and pretty much catered to our every need.