I stayed at the Melia for a week with my girlfriend and we had a fabulous time. Just like everyone is saying the food was not the best but I have had much worse. I think we rate the food on what we eat at home and they are cooking with totally different food so it is not really fair. I went to a few different hotel beaches there and the Melia by far has the most sand and less rocks, great sand to sink your toes in. I see people writing about how damp and muggy the rooms were, did they realize they are in humidity and any hotel you go to is the exact same way. So just expect to be damp all the time because you are in a humid climate. Staff was fantastic they were always willing to help, and they all spoke pretty good english. They spoke better english than i did spanish. We had an oceanfront room that was beautiful and I thought well worth the little bit of extra money. Out of the hotels i went to in Cozumel the Melia was the best for what I was looking for and I would rather have some seaweed in the water and soft sand beach than Clear water and Rocky beaches that you need shoes for like the Cozumeleno next door and the Playa Azul down the road.

We booked a 3-night stay there through an online agent (Faredeals/Funjet), and the whole package was absurdly cheap ($500, including airfare). We aren't really all-inclusive people, but found the lodging, facilities and staff of the Melia to be great. There seem to be a lot of complaints about bugs and the stench of humidity - these weren't really a problem for us. The staff are all incredibly helpful, friendly, and spoke better English than anyplace I've been in Mexico; locals in Cozumel in a general sense had an adequate command of the language. It's true that you may be accosted by salespeople both at the airport and in the Melia proper who are trying to get you to enter a timeshare of something - surely a sale for them must be lucrative, otherwise they wouldn't be hustling so much - so if that sort of thing doesn't appeal to you, tell them immediately and politely.

The food seems geared to keep Americans wary of travel comfortable, so you can expect fried things and various foodstuffs you'd recognize. Fine and easy to deal with, but not particularly inspired. The drinks seemed a little weak - watching a bartender pour a fat volume of liquor into a cocktail didn't have the punch I was expecting.

We ended up renting a scooter and going to the east side of the island, which I'd recommend to anybody with a sense of adventure (or anybody, really). The beach is far more beautiful, interesting, and remote out that way. As for other negative reviews you might read here, take them all with a grain of understanding - half the island doesn't even have electricity! The entire coast got trashed by Hurricane Wilma in 2005! Applying five-star American standards to places there strikes me as foolish.

We just returned from spending 1 week at this resort. The food is ok but not alot of variety for 7 days. Seemed like we saw alot of the same food everyday on the buffet. The Cafe Pardiso is not that great . They did not have free internet and we had to pay 5.00 for 30 minutes and it was very slow. The rooms were very clean and nice. The staff was very nice and friendly. The bartenders were good but a couple of them didn't seem to want to use the better brands when we asked. They acted like they didn't have it. The best bartenders were Jesus and Enrique . They would use the better brands and get more if they ran out. They were alot of fun and we really enjoyed them. The waiters could have been a little more attentive especially at the buffet .The beach was ok but if you wanted to snorkle you did need to walk down past the pier which wasn't any big deal. The spa was nice and I would recommend it.I would try another hotel for variety if I went back but this one is fine.

Have been to Mexico several times. Cozumel and Rivera Maya, Playa. Was disappointed at beaches in Cozumel since the hurricane. Hotel was fine but not much happening. Kids were pretty bored. We love snorkeling and were really disappointed with the water at this hotel. Full of seaweed and murky. Walked down to El Cozumeleno, where we stayed 3 years ago. Better there but still murky and not the same as before. Hotel had good food, paid the $30 a night to upgrade to the M experience as we had read. Cold rooms with all the extras, so that was a perk. If looking for a laid back hotel and some quiet time, this is good. Just don't expect much snorkeling or activity.