What others have written about Cayo Espanto is certainly true: the island is very pretty, you have your own houseman who is always only a walkie-talkie call away, and you will be overwhelmed with food and drink. Nonetheless, our Cayo Espanto stay left us with a dismal feeling over our otherwise blissful 3 week honeymoon which involved stays at 5 properties in Belize and Costa Rica.

1. Our houseman neither smiled (seriously, not once) nor offered a single proactive suggestion or recommendation during our entire stay. We would have to characterize him as unwelcoming, unfriendly, and otherwise robotic. This led to a very odd, creepy and strained feeling, especially considering your primary interaction is with your houseman. And, no, we're not jerks or difficult guests. In fact, the bizarre vibe made us hesitant to ask for much of anything during our stay. From reading the property's book of guest comments, it was clear that guests who had Obed as their houseman (we did not) were delighted with his friendliness, warmth, good humor and excellent service. You are paying for the highest level of service, and your houseman determines, in large part, the quality of your stay -- don't take your chances, do yourself a favor and insist on Obed as your houseman when you make your reservation. Once you're there, the nature of the arrangements at Cayo Espanto don't seem to lend themselves to requesting a different houseman.

2. Contrary to their marketing, Cayo Espanto is nowhere near big enough to handle the charade of being each guest's own "private island". There are five (soon to be six) casas and some administrative buildings on what is a very small property. The moment you leave your casa and try to walk anywhere outside your door, you impinge upon other guests' enjoying their "own private island". Sitting in the lounge chairs on your casa's dock, you find yourself staring at two or three other couples sitting in lounge chairs on their docks. Because everyone is made to pretend they are on their "own private island", the end result is just weird. On one long, rainy day we ended up feeling trapped in our casa with absolutely nowhere to go and a very unsettling sense of cabin fever. We'd have much prefered if Cayo Espanto had just dropped the whole privacy charade and at least provided some opportunity for guests to interact (perhaps an optional nightly cocktail hour). We understand that's not consistent with what they claim to be selling, but pretending there's nobody else there gets old pretty quickly and makes the place seem painfully contrived.

3. You are surrounded by water but cannot swim in it. We were covered with stinging sea lice within 2 minutes of entering the water. (we certainly would have appreciated at least a word of caution or warning from our houseman, who silently handed over snorkels and masks when requested). As we now know from reading other reviews here, others have had the same problem.

4. Although Cayo Espanto was by far the most expensive place we stayed on our honeymoon, the room was not even close to the most luxurious or comfortable. Although aesthetic tastes certainly differ, be aware that the floor is cement, the furnishings sparse and the bathroom dark and dank. On a rainy day with cabin fever, the room lacked any comfort or coziness and was downright depressing. Also, it was the only place we stayed where no one bothered to say "Congratulations" or "Happy Honeymoon" much less offer us a congratulatory bottle of wine or champagne as 3 of the 4 other properties we stayed at did.

5. Be aware that the price does NOT include gratuities, so you might as well tack on another couple hundred bucks (which we curiously felt compelled to do despite receiving lackluster service).
Also, wine is not included and excursions are extra. The excursions seemed extremely overpriced except for the private 2 tank dive ($250) with German, the divemaster at Cayo Espanto. Our dive was terrific and we thoroughly enjoyed our day with German.

6. Be aware that there is ongoing construction. This wasn't overly disturbing with the music or TV on, but our casa was the farthest one from the construction site. We felt terrible for the guests in the casas right next to it! It's a very tiny island, so anywhere you are, you're going to hear it. What really disturbed us was how they dealt with the whole issue. When we received marketing materials for the new over-the-water casa to open in August, we specifically asked whether there would be construction during our stay and were told (three or four weeks before our trip) that there would not be, but that they'd let us know if that changed. Surprise, surprise, one week before our arrival (when we were already in Costa Rica and unable to change any plans) we received an email telling us that the construction would be going on, but that they would do their best to "minimize these occurrences" of noise, and that they "appreciated our understanding", and could help us change our dates or make other arrangements if we desired. We wrote back expressing our serious dismay -- after all, $1,600 a night doesn't get them a lot of understanding a week before our arrival. So, did anyone, even once during our stay, follow up with us on whether the construction noise was an issue....nope. Not once.

And that's really the issue right there -- the difference between personal service and actual caring. We've traveled all over the world, and have experienced everything from the most refined luxury to the most bare-bones hostels. Even the simplest, most humble place can prove an extraordinary experience if the owners and staff truly care about their guests. Sure, Cayo Espanto has a wonderful checklist of things to make you feel special -- cold towels on the dock every time you arrive...check...radio ahead to have a drink waiting for you...check...have the chef come over and read you the evening's menu...check...tiki torches next to your table for dinner...check...a line of staff members waving to you when you first arrive...check. But no list of luxury touches can make up for unsmiling, unwelcoming staff members robotically going about their duties.....

We understand Cayo Espanto has garnered nothing but positive reviews in the past. Unfortunately, our experience was very disappointing. Although we would rate our experience as a 2-3 or so, with the expectations at Cayo Espanto's price point, we have to give it a "1." Although the concept of the private island in theory sounds fabulous, the best way we could describe our stay was odd and disappointing. In comparison, we had amazing accomodations, luxury and service (and truly wonderful staff) at other places that were half the price.