chris

Went in Jan of 2002<BR><BR>Cozumel<BR><BR>Qik facts:<BR>1. best beach:<BR> &quot;playa azul&quot; right next to playa azul hotel, you can find this beach North of the downtown area, past the military base, heading towards the golf course,you can use their pool ( but why would you want to with a awesome beach nearby) food ( i recommend eating at the nearby rest. on the water down the beach from the playa azul, great view and good food, also this area is great for snorkling, tons of fish near the two piers at the beach - playa azul is a 5$ taxi ride from downtown - heading north 5 miles<BR><BR>2. Awesome Views:<BR>go to the west side of the island - take a jeep or taxi to &quot;mezcalito's bar&quot; it is breathtaking on this side of the island - big waves, no people, nude beaches, windy, tour down to the &quot;reggae bar&quot; on the southwest corner of the island - more views and drinks<BR><BR>3. Mayan ruins<BR>San Gervasio is worht the time, you could tour for 1 hour to 3 hours(we did a short walkl thru in 1 hour) tons of iguanas, cool ruins, you can find it on the way to Mezcalitos Bar, its half way between the east and west sides of the islands<BR><BR>4. Hotel:<BR>Hotel: Playa Azul, northside of island, 5$ taxi from downtown. PA ( Playa Azul) is a beach and hotel. We<BR>toured the entire island and feel that PA is the best beach for snorkling, seeing fish, swimming, relaxing. It is so blue you can see down 30 feet from the pier and see fish on the bottom. One night, it was a full moon, we walked out onto the pier and we could see all the way down to the sandy bottom, it was so cool. The PA Hotel is awesome, very small ( 60 rooms) and quaint. They play classical music at breakfast, food is ok but cheap. Rooms, they have a new wing and the original wing, we stayed in both. We wanted an upgraded room so we paid for a suite. The old wing suite faced the pool ( room 211) it was huge but kinda old. The balcony was hughe but not very private. It would have been great for a family, plenty of space and two bedrooms. The old wing has suites facing the beach/ocean. They have private balconies, the ones on the 1st floor walk right out to the beach (good for someone with walking upstairs problems). I would stay in these rooms in the old wing.<BR>The new wing, awesome. Our suite ( room 201) was beautifully appointed, a raised living room, two double beds, balcony facing the sunset/beach and a huge jacuzzi tub. Rooms 101,201,301,401, all have jacuzzi tubs on the balcony. 301 and 401 would be the best because they are up higher and more private.<BR>Any room in the new wing would be good, a little smaller but all with nice balconies facing the ocean.<BR>The staff at the PA Hotel are incredible. They are friendly and always try to make your stay better. Martha and Fernando own the PA Hotel. We had a problem with our room the 1st night and Martha upgraded us to the jacuzzi suite room. She said she did not want our trip to suffer because of a plumbing issue. She was so nice.<BR>There is a nice seaside rest. Next to the PA Hotel, it is the next hotel down, check out the rest. And the fish that swim up to it! Throw them some food and watch the action!<BR>Almost everynight around 5, a pod of dolphins would swim offshore in front of the PA Hotel. Beautiful!<BR>Don’t stay at the PA Hotel if your are looking for action! It is an older crowd that turns in around 9pm! Cozumel is a daytime place, at night things tend to quiet down except for around the crusie ship terminal.<BR><BR><BR>Food:<BR>Santiagos – great key lime pie and shrimp dinner on veranda<BR>Prima – great balcony terrace, awesome itlaian and steak<BR>La Veranda – very romantic outside patio, good food,<BR><BR>Bars:<BR>Baba Lou – spelling maybe wrong here, on same street as Santiagos Grill and LaChoza, very romantic setting, candles on every table, great jazz/latin live music, mellow place for cocktails<BR>

Kim

Hi Chris,<BR><BR>I am going to Cozumel in January just after the first of the year. I'd greatly appreciate any feedback you can give to the following: How is the weather this time of year? What day(s) are the cruise ships the worst? Any info/comments about the El Cozumeleno?<BR>Thanks in advance!

x

We did not enjoy the El Coz. Food was very poor, beach isn't that great, and pools were freezing. Jacuzzi was filthy. You can do better.

jim

Could you tell me what you paid per night at PA? There website quotes are in the $250+ range. That sounds pricey for non-AI. Thanks.

Karen

Jim,<BR><BR>I booked Playa Azul thru Travelocity which apparently goes thru hotels.com. For the dates I was interested in it was $40/night less than directly thru the hotel.<BR><BR>It was also offered at: http://cancun-reservations.com/

chris

PAzul hotel rate - we paid around 200$ per night - we asked for a suite - so - regular hotel room may be cheaper - 40$ per night - thats cheap - its worth 150$ per night anyway due to beach and service

gp2b3a

excellent report, thanks