My wife and I just returned from the Aura in Cozumel and absolutely were in awe of the accommodations. The place is truly a five star place.

My wife and I go to Cozumel every year and have stayed at numerous resorts and have finally found the resort we will continue to return.

Daniel and his staff at the Aura are eager to please and ensure an absolutely fantastic stay. The Food was outstanding at every meal. The Wyndham property itself I thought was very good as well. Booking the Aura means you have free reign of the entire Wyndham property (including Sabor) and the restaurants.

The rooms come completely stocked with soft drinks, water, and beer and 24 hour room service. We stayed on the second floor and had a great view of the ocean and pool. I believe all the rooms faced the ocean...the first floor rooms had pool access from their balconies.

The place never seemed crowded and maintained a quiet vibe. We had a hard time adjusting when we returned home!

I would recommend this resort to anyone at any time without blinking. We will definitely return to this resort.

great time best vacation ever already booked next trip next jan, defintly going back the staff at the aura we awesome, fishing was great,massage was great. and the rooms were very clean and food was very good!!!!!going on the wet bkies on the ocean was so fun, the view was breath taking!!!!


harry & rhonda

Aura is the top tier of the Wyndham resort in Cozumel. I actually had booked for the mid-level, Sabor, but was upgraded mid-stay. Aura is worth every penny to upgrade. The food was excellent, the service was fantastic and the rooms were incredible. Since it's adult-only, it was very quiet and relaxing -not at all the party atmosphere you would expect from Mexico. It would be ideal for honeymooners or older couples. Although if you were looking for a party atmosphere, the Aura wristband will get you into any part of the entire resort, which includes the adult-only Sabor and the regular hotel area. I would definitely go back and pay for the upgrade to Aura.

As you wake up from a deep, restful sleep, you're disoriented for a moment. You hear the ceiling fan whirling around, providing you with an extra breeze after the previous day's heat. You start to regain your senses more, and you become aware of the sound of waves lapping up against the shore. Not big waves, mind you, this is the bay side after all, but gentle waves that make a soothing, inviting sound. You slowly get up out of your bed and stumble over to the closed curtains, careful not to bump your shin into the couch or the large coffee table. You touch the curtains, and open them just a peek, so your bleary eyes can adjust. Yes, it's another sunny, gorgeous day outside. You fling the curtains open and let the bright Cozumel sun stream into the room, illuminating the joyous possibilities of the day ahead. You open the sliding glass door and step out onto your balcony. The warmth of the sun envelops your body, and you look out over the pool, to the palms, to the beach, to the pier, to the azure waters. You're at the Aura, and it's going to be another blissful day in paradise.

You walk back over to your significant other, who doesn't want to get out of bed at first, but they soon realize where they are, and suddenly can't wait to get out of bed and get the day going. "What should we do today?" you ask. Of course, you already know the answer. It's pretty much the same thing you did yesterday, because yesterday was just about perfect, and that's what you came here for. Breakfast at Isola, lounging by the pool, snorkeling by the pier, a little Hobie Cat sailing maybe, then lunch at Hava Grill, more lounging by the pool, possibly some kayaking, then back to the room to shower and change, maybe some reading on the balcony with a cocktail, and then back to Isola for dinner. Yep, sounds pretty perfect.

And that pretty much sums up our week at the Aura. I'd be hard pressed to think of a more relaxing time in my life, which is the main reason anyone would book a vacation at a resort like this. There are just so many wonderful aspects to the Aura, but there are a few minor kinks as well. Since the main purpose of our trip (consisting of four adults ages 28-30) was lounging, drinking and eating, with a little activity thrown in, those are the facets of the trip I'll focus on.

First off, practically every employee of the Aura was amazing. From the wait staff at Isola and the Hava Grill, to the cocktail servers by the pool, to the bartenders, to the activities staff, to the front desk, to, well, basically everyone. We never met any staff member in our stay there who didn't greet us with a smile and an "Hola!" or "Buenos dias!" By the end of the week we knew virtually every employee by name, and they all went out of their way to make our stay as pleasant as possible. When we left, we were sad, because it kind of felt like we were leaving home, and I suppose that’s one of the best compliments you can pay to a resort.

As far as the food goes, we thought everything was fantastic. The dinners at Isola were incredible, and the menus had enough variety that you could try a different combination every night, and you were hard pressed to be disappointed in any of them. The porcini mushroom risotto is one of the most delicious courses I've ever had, which is why I couldn't resist ordering it a few times during the week and devouring it every time. Other highlights of the eclectic menu included lobster ravioli, cream of asparagus soup, and stuffed chicken. The only real problem we had with the dinners is that sometimes when we would order filet mignon or another type of beef dish it was a little overcooked, where medium would turn out pretty much well done. Fortunately, it still tasted great.

All of our breakfasts were also eaten at Isola (barring the occasional room service), and they were very good as well. Most mornings I had the muesli with strawberries and an egg white omelet made to order. We never saw any buffets during our stay at all.

For lunches, we ate at the Hava Grill on most days. Their thin-crust pizzas are excellent, and you should definitely try the ceviche (especially the shrimp version), but if you sit down at one of their umbrella-covered beachside outdoor tables for lunch, you must try the tacos. They're not on the menu, so you'll have to ask for them, but you'll be glad you did. If you'd like, be sure to ask for the salsa and guacamole on the inside of the taco. It's obviously quite a simple meal, but they're absolutely delicious.

As I mentioned before, the bar service was remarkable. You can get any drink you want at virtually any time you want, and they're all made right. The Hava Grill is where most people do their drinking, but be sure to check out Brissas Bar, which is located on the roof above the main lobby. Wilder will be happy to serve you (he gets awfully lonely up there during the off-season), and you can enjoy one of the two jacuzzis located up there while looking out over the water and taking in a beautiful sunset. One potential downside you might see is that all the bars close around 10-10:30, but after a day or two there you'll get used to the tropical "early to bed, pretty early to rise schedule" and the 10 o'clock deadline won't matter so much. You can always go relax back in your room and have drinks brought up to you by room service. Or, when the disco is open, you can hang out there and have a great time dancing to the very latest in 80s and 90s dance music.

As for the activities, our group mostly stuck to snorkeling and Hobie Cat sailing. The catamaran sailing is great, as the beautiful blue waters in front of the resort are fairly calm and not heavily trafficked by other vessels. There are quite a few jet-skis running around, but they’re rarely a problem. It does help to have someone experienced at catamaran sailing like we did, and we saw a couple of capsizes, but they were quickly assisted by staff members on jet-skis.

The snorkeling by the pier in front of the Aura is actually very nice. Since the beach there is quite rocky, it’s a blessing in disguise for those who love to snorkel. There are several fish in the clear waters by the pier, and it feels like you’re in your own private snorkeling area. Be sure to take a swim by the ladder on the pier, as tons of baby fish hang out there. Don’t be surprised if you see a lone barracuda keeping a watchful eye over the area, he’s pretty harmless. If you plan on doing a lot of snorkeling, I suggest bringing your own gear. That way you’re not hindered by the closing hours of the activities center, or forced to use their well-used and bare-bones equipment.

If you want to go beyond snorkeling, check out the free SCUBA lesson, usually given at 9 a.m. each day at the main pool. You’ll learn basic techniques and get a feel for the equipment, and if you feel so bold you’ll be invited to join your instructor out on the crystal cerulean reef for a fee of around $70. For first timers, the dive can be a little daunting, and you may find yourself trying to do everything right instead of taking in and fully appreciating the undersea magnificence that surrounds you, but the experience is well worth it.

The kayaking at the resort isn’t bad, but you’re given a pretty small area to work with. For some extra fun, you may want to get a little creative. Several of us at the resort convinced the wonderful activities staff to let us actually take the kayaks into the pool and have a series of races around its river-like bends. It was a blast, and the lovely Adriana brought out shots of tequila for the victors.

So, overall, we had an amazing, relaxing, fun time at the Aura. However, as I mentioned before, there are some drawbacks that need to be ironed out.

The housekeeping and turndown service was a little inconsistent. The worst part was a pretty powerful musty smell in our room, which lasted for about the first 4 days. However, the other people we were with had no complaints about the smell in their room, and in the last few days our room smelled basically clean. But the initial smell lingering was mostly our fault, due to the fact that we didn’t make a complaint to the staff about it, and just tried to air it out ourselves. Also, sometimes the mini-fridge wouldn’t be restocked with water. However, during the last few days of the trip, they did start stocking it with two cans of Dos Equis each day, which was nice if you like it. The turndown service was good, but the time that they did it varied greatly, and you really didn’t know when they were going to come by and do it for you. Not that we really minded, it’s not like we needed the turndown service or anything, but it was a nice touch, it just needed to be a little more steady. And one other thing, the other pair we were with got a towel in the shape of an animal every day, and we only got one in the shape of a bowtie once. Not that it matters to us at all, but again, consistency is slight hitch.

The jacuzzis at the resorts, at least when we first got there, were actually colder than the pool. When you’re ready to soak for a bit in a nice hot jacuzzi, and you get in and the temperature is about 82, it can be pretty disappointing. We repeatedly asked if they could be fixed, but they didn’t seem to properly work until the last few days of our stay, and one of the two units on the roof never worked, as far as we know. This was also a bit of an issue at the Islander Spa, where the men’s hot tub was slightly above room temperature, and one of the women in our group claimed that the women’s tub was almost unbearably hot.

Aside from those bugs, there are a lot of real bugs at the resort. In the first floor hallways at night, there are hundreds of them clinging to the walls by the lights. However, that’s pretty much where they stayed, so they shouldn’t bother you too much other than the sight of them. After all, you’re outside in tropical Mexico, of course there are going to be bugs. They can’t put a large net over the entire resort or anything. One bad bug spot that did bother us a little was a line of tiny ants on a wall in the Luna Bar off of the Isola restaurant. They weren’t near any food or anything, but that’s something they should probably spray for.

There definitely isn’t enough shade at poolside or on the beach. I’m a fair-skinned person, so this is important to me, and there are only four umbrellas on one side of the main pool. They should definitely get umbrellas for the other side and also by the secondary pool. However, (and this is probably just an indication of the 20% capacity at the resort when we were there) you absolutely do not have to get up at 7 a.m. to claim an umbrella spot. We were usually down by the pool around 9 or 10, and we were among the first ones to get there, so we had no problems. Also, the palms on the beach provide a little shade, but not much, and of course it changes throughout the day.

Other than those few minor quirks, everything at the resort was great. After walking around the neighboring Wyndham, we were extremely glad that we decided to stay at Aura. Although the free shots of tequila at the Wyndham were fantastic. It’s next to the Islander Spa, and you should definitely check it out if you even slightly like tequila. We called it the “Secret Tequila Room.”

So, if you decide to book at the Aura, unless you’re traveling royalty, you won’t be disappointed. Just keep the drinks and tacos flowing, and enjoy your time in paradise, because that’s what it truly is.