Stayed here in 2001 and really enjoyed the place. The beach was in great condition and we took advantage of all the free stuff we could do at the hotel. Shows at night were wonderful and colorful with audience participation many nights. The food was OK. Not great, but it is an all inclusive and I got what I expected. The staff was very friendly. Many did not speak much English but then again, I am in their country so that is my problem. It actually made for unique conversations and all the encounters were positive with everyone. My only negative was the room was damp. Lots of moisture and accumulation of water. Clothes were always damp. I didn't find that good at all. It was that way our entire stay. The food in their gourmet restaurant was fantastic. Wake up early and book it every other day for a change in the food.

WARNING! Now that I have your attention, unfortunately, you'll need to read on. My girlfriend and I traveled many miles (and through numerous airports) to seek relaxation and adventure at the Melia. What we uncovered were violent stomach illnesses and the worst meals--bar none--we have ever tasted. What started out as somewhat enjoyable at first quickly progressed into a terrible trip far from home. The food was inedible, the beach was in horrible condition, the rooms were slippery and musty and fly-infested, and the resort staff spoke little English. Need I say more? In conclusion I need to warn you that you'd be making an enormous mistake by even considering a stay at this hotel resort. We wasted a solid week feeling both physically sick and like vitrual prisoners in our rooms counting the hours until our return flight home.

I agree that this is a 3 star resort not a 5. I will start with my positive comments. Clean rooms and well appointed, clean pools, staff accomodating and friendly, food at Cafe Paraiso, activities - a different show every night and activities throughout the day, drinks by the pool and the lobby, you can snorkel right off the beach and see a lot of fish, snorkeling equipment and kayaks are available. My negative comments are, the beach seems to collect a lot of debris, but they do their best to keep it clean, there is no sun by the adult pool and on a breezy cloudy day it is too cold for swimming, the overall appearance needs some upgrading, buffet food adequate - nothing noteworthy, a/c in rooms very hard to set properly. Game room definitely is in poor location and needs new equipment. One of the restaurants had recently been damaged by fire but I felt they did a good job improvising without the use of this facility. We just left yesterday and I wouldn't be surprised it if was opened by tomorrow.I had a wonderful time there and would recommend it to someone that was looking for a 3 star resort. We felt our vacation was very inexpensive and we probably got what we paid for - but not the 5 star resort we expected.

By the time I had read the last few reviews for Melia Cozumel, I had
really had it at that point, and needed to write a "review" of my own.
Six months ago, I married my best friend at the Iberostar Hotel in
Playa Del Carmen (June 15, 2003) and honeymooned in Cozumel. My husband
and I spend 2 incredible weeks at the Melia. So to hear these "reviews"
from people whose sole purpose is to whine and complain is really
frustrating. People don't seem to understand that a 5 star hotel in the
United States or Canada IS NOT a 5 star rating in Mexico (if you don't
know that, you didn't do your research.) What one may see on paper and
see with your eyes can be two different things - right or wrong, thats
just the way it is. I grew up taking trips to Mexico with my family, so
I knew what to expect. Maybe its because I was on my honeymoon (...and
lov'in life) when I was there, but I found every single employee at the
hotel to be very accomodating and very willing to do whatever it takes
to make our honeymoon most memorable. What a wonderful culture !!!!!!
The ruins, the people, the food, the ocean-life: just AMAZING!!!! FOOD:
I will never forgive myself if I don't mention that the best meal I had
on that entire island was the 'chicken with black sauce' at "La Choza"
(sp) restaurant. It was an ancient Aztec recipe, and I have, honestly,
thought about that meal many times since we left!!!!! I could have had
that dish at least four days in a row!!!!!! Now, to the OCEAN: I think
its pretty ignorant to chastize a hotel because the ocean has sea weed
in it and its muddy - outside of raking the sea weed as quickly as they
can, on top of all the other responsibilities they have, is the most I
think they can do. I am also realizing that the condition of the ocean
can be EXTREMELY VARIABLE. I don't doubt that there are days where
there is 70 feet of sea weed and 100 feet of muddy water, but I also
think that ocean conditions are seasonal, or perhaps its a combination
of the tide and the seasons (...again do your research.) My husband and
I had the most beautiful ocean to snorkel in everyday - we never had to
deal with dirty ocean conditions!! I don't know if its because we were
there in June, or if we were lucky, but it was the most wonderful daily
adventure to step out onto our patio and walk the 10 yards to the ocean
to swim with the fish, stingrays, and (harmless) sea snakes.
In the name of pre-wedding research, I practically lived on this web-site, for about 2 months, before we got married to read what was being said about the Melia. I read many reviews from people who liked Melia and many reviews with negative things to say. By the time we were about to leave I was really worried that I had made the wrong decision in choosing the Melia Cozumel as a honeymoon destination. It only took the first couple days at the Melia to realize that I had made an excellent decision! I can't tell you how many times I turned to my husband, in complete shock, to wonder how ANYONE could complain about a hotel and experience like this. It just seems to me that if you are too busy complaining about air conditioning filters, the wind along the ocean (...are you kidding me?), and the fact that there where only 12 channels in your room , you should turn away and never go back to Melia again! (Do us all a favor - I saw too many rude tourists demanding this and demanding that...) As for me, I will never forget the memories we had or the people we met. Yes, at times we had to ask for something twice, and yes it was extremely humid, so everything was really wet, and yes sometimes the drinks were on the weak side, but WE made it into the kind of trip we wanted. (Who said life was completely perfect with every expectation fulfilled?) I first heard these wise words from my trusty travel agent..."people have a tendency to complain about every little thing because many times they know they can get money back, or discounted merchandise." I think one of the last reviewers was able to convey this very sentiment by stating, he/she would send their "review" to the hotel to see what they say and a follow-up to see what they"do." I guess some people where born to complain...