Our family stayed at El Cid 4/7-4/14. This is a very nice resort if you are looking for total relaxation it's wonderful. Very quite the construction on the cruise ships dock directly in front of this resort didn't bother us at all. In reading some of the reviews I concerned that because they allow cruise ship passengers to use the pool and beach area it would be crowded but that wasn't the case we always found chairs at both. The hotel staff was wonderful and very friendly we never had any problems getting anything we needed, and check-in took less than 30 mins from the time we arrived until we were in a room with our luggage. If you want a nice relaxing laid back vacation I recommend Cozumel, if you want to party in the bars until sunrise... go to Cancun. I don't recommend renting a car anywhere in Mexico too crazy and dangerous, taxi's are the way to go and you can pretty much get anywhere you want to go in Cozumel for $6.00 on-way and most of the drivers we had were very friendly, little or no language barrier at all. As for the timeshare folks, we didn't find them pushy in the least...if you say I'm not interested they thank you for your time and let you get on with your vacation. I would not recommed this resort for famlies with teenagers as there really isn't much for them to do and they tend to get bored but for families with small children or just couples looking for a relaxing, romantic vacation this place is great.

We just returned from two glorious weeks in Cozumel at El Cid La Ceiba. The hotel is located near the cruise ship terminal at Puerta Maya. There are a few things that this hotel does to welcome you that we have never experienced before. When our van pulled up to the hotel & we were waiting to check in, the staff welcomed us with cold towels & rum punch. Tell me, isn't that a great way two start a vacation? Our suite of rooms (3 rooms in a privacy area as we were six people) were cool when we entered. Cold water was available, & the most beautiful towel creations we have ever seen. Each day we were the recipients of an elephant, turtle, swan, or some other animal towel creation. The maids were artists. Dinner that night was a welcome treat. The general manager, Salvador Sanchez Meza, introduced himself to his guests, & readily made himself available for questions posed to him. He made us feel so comfortable & welcomed, as if we were in HIS HOUSE. His staff was so efficient, & he was not above helping, if there was a crowd. You don't see that in a lot of hotels. He worked with his staff to make each & every quest feel regal. On most evenings he would approach the tables of his guests & ask if there was anything he could do to make our stay more enjoyable. His presence was felt during our stay, which only made us feel more at home. Anything we asked, he answered. It was as if our comfort was his utmost wish. He went so out of his way to see that all of his guests were completely satisfied. He knew most of his guests by name, & always had a smile for each of us, even when we knew he was in the middle of solving a problems of some sort. This
is very unusual in a hotel of this size. He ran the hotel like a fine
tuned automobile. His running of the hotel staff only reflected his wanting El Cid to be a #1 hotel in Cozumel, which we believe it should be. His staff admires him, as he is a fair & trusting employer. When we were leaving, he was there to make sure that we enjoyed our stay, & asked if there was anything we could suggest to make El Cid more memorable than it was. There was nothing we could suggest other than bigger light bulbs in the bathrooms. We laughed at that. Loved being at El Cid, loved the entire staff, & Salvador, who makes you feel like you are a guest in his home. If you are not a diver, nearby (four miles) are beautiful beaches (Nacha Cocomb) where for $5.00 you enter a beautiful beach, get a chaise & pulapa. Do not miss going to this extra special hotel, & if you are a scuba or diver, this is paradise. The reef, & fish are amazing, as are Salvador & his entire staff. Jean & Bob Pomarico 4/14/-4/28/07, room 1531

El Cid, well as i liked to call it The Seed was disappointing at best. Others reviews complained about noise because of construction, we didnt experience any of those problems. El Cid is said to have been fully renovated after the hurricane, Im pretty sure the room we had was not renovated. The bathroom was disgusting. The shower head had rust on it, and the lighting in the hotel room and bathroom was terrible. The bathwater, well you can forget about taking a relaxing bath here, unless you enjoy the look of soaking in piss colored water. We stayed in a studio and it was in the main part of the hotel. We thought we would be staying in the tower, which is where i presume the new remodeled rooms are at. I think those are for the timeshare owners though. About the only cool thing was housekeeping, every time they would have some new towel animal laid on our bed with flowers. This hotel seems to only care about timeshare sales, and owners. As for being harrassed by timeshare sales, i guess you have to look older than 25 or 30 to be bothered by that. The hot tub, was more like a warm tub. I wont stay at this place ever again, nor would i go to cozumel again either. The island is based mostly on cruise ships. the whole place literally closes down after the ships have left. It is unbelievably cool at night, and i have never experienced womens restrooms without toilet seets, and used t.p. in the wastebasket instead of being flushed. I have been to other parts of mexico that were not nasty, but this place was pretty dirty and nasty. Dont expect things to be cheap here either. i had the misconception that mexico is cheaper than vacationing in the states, well not in cozumel, or playa. The only remotely cool thing in this area was the clear water, good snorkeling and the mayan ruins. If you do decide to go to cozumel, dont spend all your time on the main strip, the other side of the island was probably the nicest as far as beaches go. Final advice, dont stay here!

My family and I stayed at the El Cid from March 24-27. I have to say I was disappointed. The front office staff is not very friendly, and check in was not pleasant. I did however find the Concierge to be pleasant and eager to help. Upon my return from the El Cid I discovered I left my camera in the room, I have made repeated attempts to get in contact with the El Cid but I have yet to receive any response. The rooms are average, and the location was inconvenient. Everytime we wanted to eat we had to take a taxi into "town". However, above everything it's the front office staff at this hotel that made the stay unpleasant.