TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

We We've been going here for several years now. We like that the area is large and the carefully maintained garden is full of all sorts of interesting animals and birds. Very good management. The disadvantage is that it is impossible to swim in the ocean. We went to a nearby resort where there was a good beach and a sandy bottom. But the pools and jacuzzi are wonderful.

El CID was amazing! The rooms are great and the housekeepers keep them super clean - Carmen cleaned our room all week and she even hung our wet clothes for us when we left them on the floor! Our butlers - Alberto and Bráulio - were fantastic! They were both super friendly and checked in with us multiple times per day and made sure we had everything we needed. The restaurants are all great and the service is excellent. The pools are amazing and there is a beautiful beach only a ten minute walk away (the beach at the resort itself is not impressive). There are shows every night and the ones we went to were just amazing - so fun!

This hotel was so amazing. The staff went above and beyond for us. We had the platinum club package and it was so worth it! Indira (our personal butler) made sure we were taken care of to the best of her abilities, she was one of the best butlers we had during our stay. She surprised us and set up our room with decorations after our engagement the first night. If I could give this hotel more stars I would. I highly highly recommend staying here. It is very family oriented as well. We also had one more butler who was just as amazing he was on top of sending us itineraries for what the day had to offer. I was super impressed with this place I will definitely be back!

This was our fifth visit to Marina El Cid and it lived up to our expectations! In fact, this time, we got married here because we love the resort so much! Room/Butler Service - we were upgraded to a Platinum Suite and it was excellent! Beautiful ocean view, spacious with his & her bathrooms, plenty of room to spread out. The space came in really handy on the wedding day when it was crowded with the bridal party getting ready. Also, with the Platinum Upgrade we were given butler service which was exceptional! Shout out to Alberto & Braulio who seemed to materialize every time we had a question or request. They were instrumental in assisting us in booking our dinners which was great because sometimes there were a fair number of us. They really helped make our week a great one! Thanks again Alberto & Braulio. Restaurants - we thoroughly enjoyed Kobo, Aakat, and La Marina for dinners. Lunches in La Mercado were excellent as always, thoroughly enjoyed every lunch! There is a selection for every possible taste. Found the French Restaurant to be a disappointment this time. Service was erratic and several plates came to the table cold or at best luke warm. 2 of our party had severe stomach ailments immediately after eating there. Pools/Beach - We didn't use the beach at all. In any of our previous visits we've never used the beach other than for short walks. As stated in many reviews the beach isn't a great one. Having said that, they are working hard to keep the seaweed under control. The pools are so nice & plentiful that we don't miss the beach. Our favorite pool is the infinity pool with poolside drink service and excellent views out to the beautiful azure sea. The main pool at El Cid was fun for the kids. Additionally, there is a huge pool at Ventus and another large pool just steps away at Ventus Ha. Both are excellent. All the pools have poolside drink service. The Wedding - our wedding planners were outstanding! Guadalupe and Pedro took care of every detail and made our wedding day everything we had dreamed it could be and maybe even a bit more! Planning from afar can be difficult but they really looked after every detail, and we couldn't be happier with the result. The actual day went off without a hitch, everything was smoothly timed, and every detail attended to. They were extremely professional to deal with and very accommodating to some last-minute changes we made. Our ceremony took place on the pier and we both felt it was outstanding! The officiant, Gabriela, was wonderful and really added some personal touches to the ceremony. We had 45 minutes to take photographs on the grounds and right after they arranged a series of golf carts to whisk us off to our reception. The reception was held on the esplanade by the marina. It was magical! The lights strung out, the sound of the ocean, the moonlight over the sea, a cellist playing during dinner, it was all so atmospheric. The florist used by the hotel did an absolutely beautiful job with all the flowers, the bouquet, centerpiece, boutonnières, etc. They were all stunning! The wedding cake which was selected from a picture online turned out to be outstanding! It was so lovely and really delicious!! The dinner at the reception was great. The waiters were excellent, professional in appearance and demeanor. We had Caprese salad as a starter and it was delicious! Next was either beef or chicken main course, both of which were very tasty. We ended with a chocolate domado which was really a great finish! In short, we enjoyed every aspect of our wedding day at El Cid. If you're considering a destination wedding, don't hesitate! Check In/Check Out - this is one area where El Cid needs to improve. It takes sooo long to check in! There has to be a way to speed up this process. Perhaps a junior person on the side who can say, "after you have checked in, please see me and I will show you the resort map & features". That might speed up a very slow process. We did the pre check out the night before our departure date and the process was very smooth. We got our exit pass and had no issues at all. Our bags were stored in the baggage check and were pulled out promptly when our ride service arrived. Overall, we had an excellent stay and we wil most certainly be back.

There are so many things to do...... pace yourself . A full day of activities, followed by a full day of pampering.