We returned from Hotel Cozumel and Resort on June 8, 2005 after a week long stay.

The hotel was amazing! Very clean and comfortable. Everywhere we looked they were trying to improve the hotel. While we were there, they moved the gift shop from the main lobby area to near the pool. The new store is bigger, brighter, and cleaner.

Check in was smooth for all our guests. Only a few people had to wait for rooms. The drinks were great. Many of my family members enjoyed the "mangos". I liked the "miami vice". The margaritas were strong but good. We joked about the beer being "light beer" because the glasses were small. Overall we enjoyed the bars. When the pool bar got busy, we just went inside to the lobby bar.

The food was adequate. Everyone found something they liked. The breakfast was amazing!!! So much food, and yummy omlets made for you. I enjoyed the pineapple juice more than the orange juice. The chocolate milk was ok.

The service was amazing. It was a little slow the first night but improved after that. We ate at all 3 restaurants.

We were there to get married. I can not rave enough about this place. It rained for 15 minutes before the ceremony was to start. The hotel staff had everything set up by their outside gazebo and quickly moved it to their restaurant that is facing the ocean and gazebo. After it was finished raining, I was waiting in the underground hallway, and they asked me if I wanted them to move everything back out by the gazebo. I told them that where they set the stuff was good enough. The wedding was more beautiful than I had expected and the flowers were amazing. I was not expecting all the flowers they had. When we returned to our room later, they had decorated our room also and had a bottle of white wine waiting for us with flower petals all over and towel swans kissing. The room was great!

The only complaint I had is with the onsite dive operation. We had booked several dives with them. The only one that was completed was a night dive that I did. My husband tried to dive the night dive with me (thursday) but didn't feel right about the dive so he resurfaced after going about 5 ft down. We cancelled our other dives because it was raining off and on during our stay and we both do not like to dive in the rain and thunderstorms. We have done that before and did not like it. They tried to convince my husband to not cancel the dives. (scheduled for monday 6/6 and tuesday 6/7) We did anyway because we were running out of time. (we left the morning of 6/8) They charged us roughly $90 for ONE night dive. We will not be using them again.


Overall the hotel has a great staff, great service, and you can't beat the price. We will be staying here again

My husband and I visited Hotel Cozumel and Resort June 8-12th , along with a group of around 30 friends. I had read several poor reviews of the resort shortly before we got there but we decided to go anyway. All in all, we enjoyed the trip and the resort very much.

I'll start with the hotel staff, grounds and beach. Check-in was a breeze and the front desk staff was really nice. No complaints there. I want to add that one of our friends had several hundred dollars stolen from her room on the first afternoon we were at the hotel. It was reported immediately and the hotel staff took care of the situation. Our friends money was returned to her a day or two later with the culprit located by the security codes on the door locks. This was quite impressive but you may want to be sure and use the safe in your room. Be sure and take the safe key with you at all times.

The layout of the rooms and the large pool was fantastic. It was well maintained and clean. It didn't have a "real" beach but did have some sand on a rocky shore that acted as a beach. I enjoy walking out into the surf and wading around as well as listening to the waves so this was a little disappointing to me. However, it was a divers and snorklers paradise because there were many fish along the shore. Dive trips left directly from the dock there which made it very convienent. There are also lockers and a "wash up" area so that the divers can clean the sand from their gear and store it for the next day. There was a small pool on the little "beach" where they gave free diving lessons to the guest. The walking area around the large pool was slippery at times and I was surprised at how many barefooted people we actually saw slip and fall down by the pool. Luckily, we didn't see anyone get hurt.

The rooms were roomy and clean. I had no complaints about the room or the maid staff. They were always friendly and greeted us each time we saw them. Each day. they left some type of animal made from white towels on our bed after cleaning our room. This was a special treat that we enjoyed and bragged about. We were among a very few in our group that that got this treat. The rooms were kept around 60 degrees which was too cool for our friends. They made the mistake of turning their air off, which caused the ceramic tile floors and walls to sweat and let off a strong molded odor. When they cooled the room back off, the smell and the sweat went away. I would advise that you leave it cool to avoid that problem.

We noticed during a rain storm that water had ran down the hall and into room 1026, which was beside us. There was standing water around that room several times during our stay. They put towels around the doorway to stop the water but that was after the fact. I was just glad it was not us. I think I would try to avoid room 1026 if at all possible!!

The activity staff was friendly and kept things going by the pool. It rained on and off the first full days of the trip but the activity staff kept other things going inside the bar to help us coop with the rain. Overall, I was pleased with them.

Okay.. The food and the bar staff are next. I'm not sure where to start here. We have traveled to all inclusive resorts many times and have came to know that we don't always like "all" of the food but we have always found something that we can eat. Breakfast was nice, no complaints. Lunch the first day was really good but the same thing on the menu for lunch got old. Maybe it was just that it all started to taste alike. I can't say it was bad food but after 4 days, we were ready for American food. Several people in our group suffered with vomitting and etc. We were told the water and ice was safe so we are not sure exactly what caused the illnesses. I am sure some of it was alcohol induced but I know of 3 cases that had nothing to do with alcohol.

Moving on to the bar and its staff. There was three bars on the property. One bar was located on the "beach" area and one by the large pool. The Other was located inside the main lobby area. I'll start with the main lobby area which I found to be the best. There were two bartenders that swapped off shifts. Both were very good. I would rate those two guys a 10 on any given day. Theirs drinks were good and they were very friendly. Now I wish I could say that about the main bartender at the big pool bar. WOW.. He was rude. Now you have to take in account that he has to deal with drinking, drunk and obnoxious people all day but he was snappy and rude several times during our stay. There is no menu or sign to indicate what drinks are available or recommended by the staff but don't make the mistake of asking him about drinks. Your best bet is to ask other guest around the pool what they are having and go from there. Dropping a fat tip in the tip jar will get you a smile from the bartender but don't expect it to last long. I enjoyed the Miami Vice and recommend it for starters.
Out of everything at the resort, the towels made into animals and left on our bed was the biggest treat and probably what we will remember most about this hotel. If it had a real beach, I would have rated it higher. While I don't think we would ever return to this particular hotel, I would highly recommend it to divers and snorklers.

Overall we were really impressed with this hotel. The hotel was very clean and the employees were constantly sweeping, cleaning, etc. The staff was very friendly and helpful. The maid left a different towel animal each day (turtle, swan, etc) which was a nice touch. This hotel is in walking distance to a cheap grocery/clothing store called Chedraui. We really needed this place because the airline sent our luggage to Cancun and we have to purchase shorts, t-shirt, etc.

The bathroom was a bit cozy but the rest of the room was comfortable and the patio was spacious.

Downside:
My husband got an ear infection while we were in Cozumel. He dunked his head under water at the pool and I didn't. I am not 100% sure that is where he got it from. The pool area is nice but we noticed that people were getting up early and "reserving" chairs with towels. You have to get down to the pool early to get a chair.

This hotel doesn't have a sloping beach. We didn't think we really needed one but decided that we would have prefered it. We ended up going to Playa Azul and paid about $5 to use that beach.

Just returned from a great stay at the Hotel Cozumel & Resort...This was my first visit to Cozumel, and I was very impressed with the friendliness of the natives, including everyone at the resort. I am a 50-year old US male, and travelled with my 27-year old son.

We were on a dive trip, so much of the day was spent rolling along under the sea. The reefs here are incredible! We loved Punta Tunich, Santa Rosa Wall, Palancar and Columbia reefs. Dive Paradise (the dive operation at the resort) was satisfactory. Would recommend that you pay a little extra to get the fast boats, or at the very least, profess to have deep superstitions about any boat named Saggitario or Tombo (these are the "dog" boats...we came to refer to the Saggitario as the "Sluggatario"). The Aquarius or better yet, the Tango are the boats to be on. Although not the "fast boats" , they are much speedier than the Sluggatario and Tombo. See if a few well-placed dollars can get you on these boats. The so-called "fast boats" are open hull small boats, and cost $15 extra, but will get you to your reef in a quarter of the time. Dive lights are a must, so you can check out the Grouper under the ledges on the reefs. Also, a 2 mil wetsuit is a good idea, as it gets cold at 70ft.

Unlike the guy who wrote the review a couple down from this one, I never saw even one cockroach at the resort...or anywhere else, for that matter. Yes, there are lizards and chamelions, but they are hardly a threat, and actually eat the other bugs. We had one mosquito in our room the whole week. But then again, folks, you're in Mexico. You have to expect bugs, just like you expect rats in New York City. The resort was spotless...there are a relentless crew of cleaning people who are constantly cleaning things, and picking up after the "uglier Americans", who can't be bothered to discard their plates and cups after eating at the pool (hint: don't complain about bugs if you're one of the people leaving food around that attracts them!)

Food for breakfast and lunch was very satisfactory...especially breakfast. We ate dinner out every night, just to sample the local cuisine. Try Aquario, a 15 minute walk or $3 cab ride from the hotel. Go near sunset, as it's right on the water. We had two amazing dinners in a row, and very reasonably priced, at that. Also, El Capi Navigante has a great seafood platter, and excellent seafood soup.

The only downside for us was the rather lame "entertainment" at the pool. There were some days when I just wish they'd just take a siesta, and let the rest of us enjoy some peace and quiet. It's a constant drone in the afternoon, and also from 9-10 in the evening.

We tipped everyone for the first four days, but did not notice any siginificant difference in the way we were subsequently treated. The drinks were not stronger, and the divemasters and dive crew weren't any more helpful, so we quit tipping on the fifth day...except for the maids, who I'm sure are dirt poor, and really earn the tip money. They left nice treats, flowers and very original "towel sculptures" in our room.

Take a cab to the Plaza to do your gift shopping. Barter with all the shop keepers (if they own the place....some shops are owned by big corporations, and hire employees, with whom you cannot bargain). If the store has no air conditioning, you'll find the prices are better.

If you don't dive, get certified before you come to Cozumel. It's easy, even if you're 50 years old and you'll never regret doing it.....