Casa Del Mar Cozumel

THIS HOTEL WILL NICKLE AND DIME YOU TO DEATH. NO BEACH TOWELS UNLESS YOU WERE LUCKY. NO FREE BREAKFAST AS STATED. NO HOT OR WARM WATER FOR THREE DAYS. POOL WAS CLOSED FOR DAYS 3 THRU 5. BETTER OFF WITH AN ALL INCLUSIVE ELSEWHERE.

This was a dive trip for my teenage son so we chose a hotel across from his dive shop. This was good planning however the shop is quite a walk from the downtown/ferry landing so we ended up paying for taxi rides once or twice a day to town for anything other than diving. Room was okay for us but musty every day and shower wasn't in the greatest shape. Toilet could've used some repair also but was functioning with some patient attention. Found out some other travelers we met there were paying the same pp/pn price as we were, but they got theirs AI. SO JUST ASK. They called and got the AI (food is actually pretty good here) because the hotel doesn't really advertise that...The people had been there before several times and knew AI was available.The hotel is not fancy but reasonable for a budget vacation on a tropical island and we managed just fine. Staff was extremely helpful and always pleasant. Another heads up; I had trouble checking out because the guy at the desk at 5 am wasn't their BEST, so he couldn't figure out how to charge me for the meals/drinks I had charged to my room without charging me for EVERYTHING on the acct, which includes the room charge that I had paid in advance. I finally had to leave without a receipt (I had a plane to catch), telling him to charge my card for the correct amt and send me a receipt. This makes me very nervous about what will end up being charged to my cc. I am calling to straighten this out today...

The place was clean enough but very worn out. Bedding and towels were threadbare. Perhaps because I was traveling alone I got the room nobody wanted. No balcony (most of the rooms had one), a one window view of the maintenance building behind the hotel. The restaurant was average and convenient, I ate there all 3 nights and can't really complain. I went to escape the Chicago winter and lay around for a few days and I was able to do that, next time I will do that at a more comfortable place. Most, if not all, of the guests were there to dive and they all looked perfectly happy, and I suppose if I had gone for that reason I would have been perfectly happy as well. Lesson learned. Don't stay at a divers hotel unless you're diving.

The hotel is a ways out of town. That's OK, the walk isn't bad, but it's not an ideal location. It's a long way from the beach club associated with the hotel and the small ocean-front area across the street from the hotel isn't that great because the main road is 20 feet behind you and you've got boats coming and going in front of you. Most of the "ocean view" rooms have limited views (you can see it through the trees and buildings and across the street from you). The "hot" tub was cold, the "free" rental car is not free since you have to buy their insurance and pay the taxes which run up to about what you would pay if you just went and rented a car. The submarine tour was fun and very nearly free. The restaurant is decent and we found the staff to be hit and miss. Some were very nice and helpful and a few were rude with most just doing their jobs. A couple of the lights in our room didn't work, the maid forgot to give us soap and toilet paper one day, and the shower was luke warm most of the time. Most notably, the place is really noisy. The tile floors and concrete walls just seem to carry every little sound--people talking, using the restroom, etc. You hear it all. We did a variety of things on this trip--diving, shopping, beach-bumming, etc. I think if all you did was dive and you just needed a place to sleep, this would be an OK place. I would not recommend it if you planned to lounge in your room or on the hotel property. I've taken many trips to Mexico and Central America and this place is just mediocre. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either.

I spent a week diving in cozumel. the standard room was adequate and affordable for that.

Hotel staff is very friendly, but it would have made our stay easier if we booked a hotel in the Downtown Cozumel area. The rooms were smaller than we had anticipated. We switched rooms from the first one we were taken to because they were doing some construction on the side of the building and it was very noisy. Though we switched to another room for the same rate and amenities (Superior Room), the second room was twice as large! Too bad this second room had an unexplained insect (ants) problem in the bathroom...disgusting. All in all, the stay was decent, but I will book with a different hotel next time in the Downtown area.

The hotel needs renovation and appears old, smelly, and dirty. The bed and towels were clean, but old. It was noisy, but convenient for our needs. The dive shop was great, but needs lockers, and an easier way to get to it besides lots of stairs, or crossing a busy street.

This hotel is 90% used by divers, which means that there are plenty of free sunbeds for the non divers. Garden and pool area was well kept but it would have been nice with some parasols for shade by the sun beds. Reasonable prices in the restaurant but limited menu. Breakfast is rather bland. Shower was not hot. On our arrival we were greeted by a moldy smell in the lobby.

Ou hotel experience was great. What WASN'T great was our Orbitz experience. NEVER AGAIN. The airline changed our flight from a 1 hour layover to a 25 hour layover. When I called Orbitz to ask about the e-mail about a long layover, I was told it was changed by a FEW MINUTES. When we got to the airport and found out about the problem the customer service person tried to tell me I never called. A LIE. Not only that Orbitz did nothing to change the hotel (since we got there a day later we didn't get a refund on the hotel since no one called as they said they would to tell them we were checking in a day late.) EVERYONE is going to know about this terrible service. Never again.

We chose this hotel for the diving and we were not disappointed. The rooms were clean and comfortable but the food at the restaurant was pretty bad. It's location to downtown was somewhat inconvenient and taxi's are becomming more expensive. Overall, it was a good experience.