TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

Good resort with kayak and hobie cat experience. Most of restaurants are good except the buffet. Some of food are totally burnt and black. The late dinner pizza at first club is even worse than frozen pizza

We were a large group of 13 people, and at every turn we were welcomed and accommodated. Absolutely incredible experience, would give more stars if I could.

I chose this hotel because it was recommended in an article I found about SCUBA diving in Cozumel (see my the review of the dive shop at https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g150809-d13981988-r949255592-Pro_Dive_International-Cozumel_Yucatan_Peninsula.html). I also stayed in the “Royal Level” suites, so some of this review will be from that perspective. As soon as I arrived at the hotel the person at the front found me on the check-in schedule, called a bellhop, and I was taken to the Royal Level reception office. I was checked in by Odalys who was both welcoming and professional. During my check-in they had a bit of trouble with their internet, since I was a bit hungry after my flight, Odalys suggested that I grab a bite at La Carreta, the specialty restaurant dedicated to the Royal Level. I found the staff polite, professional, and friendly. I felt like I was in a 4-star restaurant. The food tasted fresh and well prepared. Overall I found the property easy to navigate and well maintained with one adults-only pool and everything else being pretty family friendly. The entertainment in the evenings was ok, but not anything to prioritize in my view. The staff around the property were polite and helpful. In terms of food, my experience at the specialty restaurants was pretty good, but the buffet food left a bit to be desired. I did like that the buffet option made it easy to have a casual (or quick) meal, but even when I was trying to grab and go they wanted to show me to a table and do a bunch of stuff that I felt was just in the way. I just wanted to get to the food so that I could eat and run (I had a lesson to get to). The wi-fi was reliable the whole way through and fast enough that I conducted a meeting via video call with no problems at all. Room service was pretty good in that they delivered the food I requested in a timely fashion and it was almost as good as that in the specialty restaurants. The beach area was not very big and a portion of it is sloped, so it was tough to get comfortable in the beach chair on that part of the beach, though the water in front of it was very beautiful. The pools were a good size and well maintained. The gym was small, but had a good mix of cardio, free-weight, and strength training machine equipment with everything being in pretty good condition. Besides it’s proximity to the dive shop, the spa was the crown jewel of this hotel in my experience. They have a sauna and hot tub in an area that requires a reservation (I believe each time block allows a maximum of two or three people) and the reservation is for the entire area. Like everything in the spa, this area was super clean and comfortable. I also experienced a massage with Danelys (I hope I got that right) on my second day and she tailored the massage completely to my needs. I felt much more relaxed afterwards. As a testament to how attentive they are, Danelys knew when I was going to check out and she knew that I wanted a massage on my last night but there was no availability; when there was a cancellation she called me to let me know of the cancellation and I was able to get that massage. Now that’s service! Sure, she had an incentive to call me, but the fact that she remembered is, I think, a big deal. Another experience I had was that of getting a car rental through the concierge service of the hotel. There was a car service company that had a representative at the hotel, but they usually left in the late afternoon. I was trying to reserve a car in the evening for the following day. Francisco helped me out pretty quickly. I did pay a bit of a premium, but what I needed was a bit unorthodox. I loved how easy the process was through Francisco, since he had a contact at a rental company that he could get a hold of. Someone from the rental company came out the following morning to bring the car to the hotel. I would definitely stay at this resort again when visiting Cozumel. Since I spent so much of my time dealing with the diving class, I would like to return just to relax.

During a 4 night stay, the best the 3 of us could get was one slot for 2 people at the Mexican restaurant that had the same menu as the buffet. Staff very unhelpful and unpleasant, and this after 20 minutes waiting to try to make reservations (after being rebuffed before). Staff and management made no attempt to resolve issues. Front desk stands around in groups ignoring long line of guests patiently waiting.

Our 2nd visit, we don't normally visit a location twice, but we decided to try Occidental Cozumel again, as we enjoyed the 1st visit. Overall, we had a great vacation, but a few issues. Their "no smoking/vaping" policy is a joke. Despite a $1,000 Pesos fine for smoking in room, that did not stop person below us (I phoned desk, nothing done). Also smoking around pool, I questioned staff, they said they could do nothing? Again the "French Canadians ", smoking in restricted areas, had to move several times, also because of their loudness, we could not carry on a normal conversation. Staff was great, for the most part. Line up for buffet the norm. Rooms, clean and spacious. We enjoyed the quality of food. Not, related to Resort - we had just wintered in Mazatlan, everything in Pesos, Cozumel everything in usd ?? we only brought Pesos, anytime we bought something, the clerk had to get their calculator out for Pesos ???