We stayed at the Copacabana from May 11th through the 15th. We were attending a wedding at the Esencia Hotel which is just up the beach. I read a lot of the reviews on here and took them all with a grain of salt, knowing everyone is different and not everyone would find things to their liking. I consider myself an "Average Joe", so to speak. So here is my impression...
Upon our arrival to the hotel, we were greeted by a bell boy. He kindly loaded our luggage onto a golf cart like vehicle and directed us to the from desk to check in. After checking in the bell boy drove us right to our room and took our bags up for us. We had a standard room. It was clean and spacious with a balcony that overlooked the central pathway between the lobby and the pool area. There was a small refrigerator that was stocked with some sodas and waters. They were free to drink and the refrigerator was refilled each day. The beds are a bit on the hard side, so if you are looking for a nice soft bed, you won't find it here. I had no problem sleeping though! The shower was really nice, all marble with a large glass swinging door. Plenty of room in there for the whole family at once!
The walk to the beach/pool area was delightful. There are plenty of iguanas and birds to check out along the way, and the trees and flowers were very calming. The pool is huge and never really filled up to capacity. Just beyond the pool was the beach, which is one of the best I have been on. Beautiful white sand, gourgous blue water with fish that swim right up to you! The waves are never really that big, so kids are able to navigate freely in the water without worry. There are plenty of beach chairs/hammocks, and lots of little nooks to slip away into so your not piled up with everyone on the beach. The beach is topless, which my 5 yr old son discovered, but never really payed much attention to.
The food was pretty good. I wouldn't go out on a limb and say it was great, but we always walked away feeling content with our meal. People have commented on here that when you order a drink (whether it be a water, soda or alcoholic beverage) it comes in a small plastic cup. This is true, but please remember that when drinking a frozen drink in this climate, they don't last very long!!! I found the cups to be the perfect size. They will make drinks in cups that you provide them, so if you prefer a larger size drink, just bring a big old cup and they will fill it up!
The entertainment staff were awesome! They had such upbeat attitudes and made hanging out by the pool enjoyable. All of the things they did were appropriate for kids and adults. We really enjoyed them and will miss them!
As far as the rest of the staff at the hotel, they were awesome as well. They were right there if you needed something, and always willing to assist you with a big smile on their face. They really made you feel welcome.
As you can probably tell, we had a great time here and had a hard time leaving. I would aggree that this probably isn't a 5 star resort, but it comes pretty close. Everything is well maintained and the staff were very helpful. I would truly recomend staying here. For the money, you can't beat it. We are already planning a trip back!

Spent a week at the Copa all inclusive and had a ball. Booked through Go Go tours and the flight and transfers went seemlessly. Mexican customs officials and all airport personnel were very helpful and patient consisdering our high school Spanish. The trip from the airport is about 50miles, so about an hour to the hotel with two stops for other passengers.

The hotel lobby was awesome, the desk clerk checked us in quickly and we were welcomed right at the front desk with cocktails and warmed towels to refresh, very nice touch. Our rooms were terrific, spotlessly clean, with an outstanding view of the sea. There was a constant breeze coming in from the terrace which made air-conditioning nearly needless. The bathrooms are all marble, the vanity, the floors and shower, very classy.

There is a long walk from the lobby to the pools and beach, but this is made quite pleasant by eco-conscious landscaping techniques used by the hotel. Also it doesn't hurt to walk a little after dinner & lunch! Speaking of food, the buffet dinners were good, if not great, but in my experience after awhile all buffet food starts to taste the same. Not to worry, there are plenty of places (restuarants) nearby for some alternatives to the all inclusives.

The health spa was fun for exercise and massages, overlooking the pool area gives you a little incentive to work out harder!

My wife and I are seasoned travelers and not easily impressed but it was hard to find fault with this fabulous value of a resort. The people (staff) were my favorite, always upbeat and accomodating. Go you'll love it!

Tom & Lena

april 22-29

The copacabana was a nice place. I've read all the reviews for the last three months. Every thing i've read sums it up (the good and the bad) . I understand the grips people have. I am fit , not lazy, not old, but my first day there (staying in building three top floor, end unit) the walk seemed long and understood how some people felt and etc. I think i have a postive attitude and realize Mexico is not home but this was my seventh time to cancun/mayan and at the copa the food raked lowest of all my visits. reviews are right on it. You can find plenty to eat. This was my first time to get sick though. I've always heard of others getting real sick. but i've never, until this trip and was i sick! it took me three days to feel normal after eating lunch my last full day there. I will return to the area again but would i want to go back to the copa? Not really. I like exploring the different hotels and comparing them to each other.
Have a great trip.

My husband and I stayed at the Copacaban Resort and Spa from March 27-April 3, 2006. We are 41 years old and have travelled to Dominican Republic 4 times, Cuba 1, Barbados 1. Every other year we travel with our children age 14 and 11. We pick hotels that are at least a 4 star rating and I use the reviews to help me with my decisions each time. This was our first time in Mexico and we cannot wait to go back. And as long as the reviews are close to the same we are planning to go back to the Copacabana, this time with the kids.

Arrival and Check In - Arrival at the airport went smoothly and there was a van waiting to take us to the hotel. We had two other stops before arriving at our resort, the trip took 45 minutes. It was wonderful just to see the country side and how the hurricanes had affected them. You can see some damage but along the main highway things have been cleaned up and most things are up and running or being completed. When we arrived at the hotel we were the only ones and we were greeted with a cold rum drink and wet face cloth. We had requested a room on the top floor as we usually do, but two days before we left my husband sprained his ankle badly. We asked for a room on the first or second floor and they were most accomodating. They got one of the bellmen with a golf cart to take us to the rooms that were available and told us we could choose whatever one we wanted. Went back to the front desk and chose the roomon the second floor. Keep in mind that this hotel was at full capacity as well. It was not ready but would be in an hour. Decided to head to the beach and return later. No big deal. Has happened at other resorts as well.

Room- We chose a room on the second floor in building 1 close to the lobby and the dinner buffet. Our room was very large, all marble and had a king size bed. Yes the bed was harder than home, my husband has back problems and we slept just fine. The room was very clean and the shower was a room in itself. Our room had no smell. When we first went to the room our phone did not work, but it only took us a walk out the door and talked to the first gentleman that we found and within 15 minutes the problem solved. We later figured out that he is a manager and he could be seen at all hours of night and day doing whatever was neccesay, which also included clearing tables!! Our room was cleaned every day while we were at the beach and never had a problem with power or insects.

Beach- The beach is beautiful, it reminded me of our trips to Punta Cana, you could walk down the beach and feel very comfortable, we walked once my husbands ankle felt better down the beach and did some shopping at the couple of huts. The water was little rough but there were times that I was standing knee deep and the fish (looked like white angel fish) would swim all around my ankles. The water was very warm. There was snorkelling right off the beach where there is a little patch of coral. The sand never got hot to walk on unlike Cuba or the Dominican.

Pool- Activites The pool was large enough that it was never really crowed but we only spent time around the pool at the end of the day. We are beach people. They try to get you to get involved in their activites. We have never been to a resort that had so much going on for all age levels. They did not push you to play, they took the answer no first time around. The kids club looked great, they have a seperate pool and loungers for parents. They have a covered play area that has a railing all the way around it and a gate at the door, to keep those little ones in. There were alot of toys there to play with. They have a swing and slide set outside as well. You would see the line of children going for treasure hunts on the beach and playing games on the beach as well as a trip to the ice cream machines!! They would get refreshments and go for walks. The average age of the children there using the facility was 3-5. They certainly seemed to be enjoyoying it. The leader was so full of fun.

Food - We tried the Mexican, Carribean and the Buffet. The Mexican was my least favorite, I am not a picky eater and I will try just about anything. I wanted good Mexican food and I did not get that. I think the biggest problem was the language barrier, this was the only time we ran into it, and I feel that is was as much my fault as the waiters, my Spanish is not good to say the least! I wanted the sauce that my food came swimming in on the side, as well he did ask how our food was and did not fill our drinks the hour that we were there. Did not stay for dessert, went to Buffet to get something. We absolutley loved the Caribbean Restaurant. This is located where the lunch buffet is on the beach. They use half of the restaurant and it is amazing how they can tranform this to a very romantic place. I had the lime soup which I have since tried to duplicate and I had grilled chicken. It was delicious!!! My husband had coconut fish with grilled pineapple. He loved it. He had seafood chowder for an appetizer but did not care for it. Being from Atlantic Canada where we have some of the best seafood its hard to compare. They then brought around brand name liquers and you could choose whatever one you wanted. The dinner buffet had a different theme each night and you would never go hungry unless you were very picky. Lots of fresh breads and cheeses. All kinds of fresh fruit. They had hip of beef one night and lamb another, Mexican another, seafood as well. The breakfast with the made to order omlettes were delicious. Again, lots to choose from. After being at the Bahia Principe Punta Cana last year where there were many more choices for restaurants we got spoiled. My only wish would maybe be an extra restaurant included in the price. They did have a steak house at additional cost but we did not go. Friends we met went there and they loved it. Like I said we never went hungry and remember you are not in Canada or the U S.

Service - They bent over backwards to do anything for you, like I had said earlier my husband sprained his ankle, well did he ever get exceptional treament. He walked to the front lobby with his crutches on the first morning and they offered to drive him to the beach, while I walked the wonderful walk way. This continued the whole week. We would walk the back walk which was easier for him with the crutches, they would stop even turn there carts around to give him a drive. We joked all week that he had a ride on the laundry cart, the beach towel cart, the garbage cart and everything else in between. Even the waitresses would ask where it would be easier for us to sit. Alberto at the beach bar was exceptional! They had a waitress on the beach and would take your order and bring it right to you. A couple times it was slower than walking to the bar yourself but hey you are on vacation why are you rushing? They were constantly cleaning, even the beach washrooms were very clean.

This resort is set in a jungle like atmosphere and it is wonderful to enjoy the walk from the room to the beach. It was great at the end of the day to sit on the balcony and enjoy a couple of drinks and listen to the birds and see the sun setting through the trees. Lots of beautiful butterflies and animals to see. Enjoy this time.

Cannot wait to go back and do the excursions to see the countryside. Do not hesitate to go.

Negative - One last thing to include was 2 days before we left there were rude, obnoxious teenage spring breakers there. Some in a matter of 2 hours were so drunk they passed out on the beach or in the pool. The language was unreal!! Would not go when spring break is on in the mid west of the US!!! I felt sorry for some couples that we had met that had just arrived and still had five more days to stay. And believe me I like to have a good time but do not disurb others like these teenagers did. I am just glad they were in building 6 at the other end of the buildings. Management needed to take more control, but the sad part was that there were adults with them and they were drinking just as much and encouraging them and video taping them as one girl is passing out in the pool and sliding under the water. The friends that were trying to help her were so drunk they kept banging her head on the side of the pool. Hopefully she survived but it certainly was no thanks to the chaperones!!! This is really the only negative thing I have to say that was memorable.

Sorry this was so long but I know how helpful these reviews have been to me in the past and I wanted to include as much as possible. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.