19 Best Hotels in Cozumel, Mexico

Although not on the beach, this distinctive and inexpensive hotel overlooks the water, and its oceanfront rooms, with comfortable balconies from which to enjoy the views, are worth the added cost. Other rooms might face Avenida Rafael E. Melgar, the town's rooftops, or the hotel’s indoor terrace, but all are immaculate and feature bathtubs (a rarity downtown). It all makes for an efficient and pleasant place place to stay in San Miguel, and the rates are surprisingly affordable for all you get—large rooms, free Wi-Fi, and a made-to-order breakfast. It's popular with visitors doing business on the island and those who prefer walking to everything they need.

The luxurious InterContinental has top-notch service, expansive lawns, pristine beaches, and spacious, modern rooms. Situated in a quiet patch of jungle, this property is away from the cruise-ship hustle and bustle, making it the perfect place for those looking to escape. Guest rooms are sleek and creatively utilize wood and earth tones to set the mood. The rooms are enhanced by luxe touches like outdoor rain showers, spacious outdoor lounge furniture areas, or whirlpool tubs with a sea view. The spa is the island's best, and active types can take advantage of the dive shop, tennis courts, 24-hour modern gym, putting greens, and daily roster of activities. There is even an adults-only pool away from the main areas and a dedicated kids' area located at the opposite end of the facility.

This newest entry into the San Miguel lodging sweepstakes is this snazzy, sleek, starkly modern hotel that offers an elegance previously unseen downtown. Rooms gleam with white walls and lots of polished woodwork. Deluxe and superior rooms have balconies, and they’re not that much more than the standard option. The building is angled such that all rooms have a view of the ocean. There’s a small on-premises restaurant but you are within easy walking distance to San Miguel’s many dining options.

The clean and bright guest rooms at this locally owned hotel, a big favorite among hard-core divers, all have balconies or terraces with hammocks and racks for drying dive gear. Outside, you'll find a pool fronted by a small lawn, plus a tiny beach with a pier for dive boats. Snorkeling is good right offshore. The adjacent restaurant of the same name has a menu of tasty dishes and tables on a second-story deck overlooking the water.

All rooms at this diver-oriented hotel are enlivened by simple Mexican artwork, but those with sea-facing balconies are lighter, airier, and don't cost that much more. Bilevel cabanas, which sleep three or four, are a good deal. In addition to a trio of diving associates offering a wide range of tours and services, the property has storage areas for your gear. A narrow beach across the street has palapa-shaded hammocks, a wooden sundeck with lounge chairs, and steps leading into the water.

Good snorkeling off the rocky shoreline and a relaxed family feel make this resort, which offers both hotel rooms and apartmentlike units, a north-coast favorite. The latter have one or two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a balcony or terrace. Most of the studio-size hotel rooms overlook the jungle; try to get an ocean-facing one on an upper floor for the best views and sea breezes. The hotel has an infinity pool, a small, man-made, sandy beach and its own PADI dive center. 

In high season, guests surround the enormous pool at this bright-orange Wyndham property, while activity directors enliven the crowd with games and loud music. The scene is quieter at the beach club, which is accessed via an under-street tunnel; however, the beach here is a rocky shoreline, not a sandy strand. The large rooms are reminiscent of a moderate chain hotel, with tile floors, comfy beds, and bathtub-shower combos. All-inclusive packages cover not only meals, drinks, taxes, and tips but also a scuba lesson at the hotel's PADI dive center.

Gleaming white in the afternoon sun, the Cozumel Palace seems more like a cruise ship than an upscale all-inclusive hotel, one where the music and flowing drinks in the tight confines of the pool deck area create a lively outdoor atmosphere. In sharp contrast, the romantic, multilevel bedrooms are airy enclaves with whirlpool tubs, luxurious bathrooms, stocked refrigerators, and balcony hammocks. Three top-quality restaurants and an outdoor snack bar offer numerous dining options and the buffet breakfast is not to be missed. The Palace Resorts chain has time-share and club programs, so salespeople are about. The small, man-made beach is a good place to hide from the pool area. The snorkeling along the pool's edge is made easy with several ladder entry locations.

Next door to the Puerta Maya cruise pier and shopping center, this smallish resort, part of a small Mexican hotel chain, is a comfortable choice, with some condo-style rooms that have kitchenettes. Most overlook the ocean, though you may have to crane your neck around the massive cruise ships parked in front to see it. The lobby and pool area separate two buildings, one facing a generous beach and the other above a smaller patch of sand bordering a shallow saltwater lagoon with a waterfall and a temazcal (outdoor sauna).

Five blocks south of San Miguel's main plaza, this small inn consists of two-story buildings set around a lush courtyard. Second-floor rooms get far more air and light than those at ground level, but all have coffeemakers, purified water, and bathrobes. There’s also a town house with a full kitchen and two bedrooms. There is no pool, but the ocean is just a block away. Dive packages are offered at a discount.

This sleek boutique property has quickly become the lodging of choice for a discerning young crowd. (It's plenty fun, if not quite as hip as the next-door Hotel B Unique.) Service is attentive; with so many areas to hang out around the pool and beach, though, catching the waiter's eye can be a challenge. Each room has clean lines and its own Mexican decor elements. The restaurant and bar are perfect for enjoying sunsets. Thanks to the hotel’s amenities, you can start the morning with a yoga class and then retreat to the spa, or spend the day snorkeling and diving.

This hip adults-only design hotel has a wellness, holistic, and boho attitude overall. The sister property of next-door B Cozumel, Unique features its own infinity swimming pool, spa, restaurant, and a rooftop bar with a plunge pool included. Wellness coach, yoga lessons, and alkaline menu are available upon request. Rooms come with king beds.

Jungle greenery surrounds this all-inclusive resort at Cozumel's southernmost point, where bungalow rooms are small but pleasant. Each has wrought-iron details, one king-size or two queen-size beds, and a terrace or patio with hammocks. Rooms with king beds have more space. There isn't much privacy if you are on the ground floor—pathways through the resort wind around the bungalows—but this is the most enjoyable of the reasonably priced all-inclusives on the southern coast. Reservations for dinner are strictly enforced. Significant discounts are available by reserving via the Iberostar website.

One of the first international-class hotels in Cozumel, Meliá continues to satisfy by offering guests a bit of everything, including a wide variety of restaurants and activities, including motorized and nonmotorized water sports. An 18-hole mini-golf course, plus well-equipped kids' club and games room, mean that children and teenagers will be busy and happy; a top-notch spa is available for parents to unwind and disconnect. 

Playa Azul feels like a charming, understated Mexican hacienda—there's elegance in its simplicity, and its spacious rooms overlooking the courtyard pool and ocean are tastefully decorated with Mexican furnishings. Palapas shade the lounge chairs on the sandy beach, and you can arrange snorkeling or diving trips at the hotel's dive shop. An on-site spa offers body and beauty treatments. The all-inclusive option includes the restaurant's à la carte menu, and the adjacent beach club serves lighter fare and live music on Sunday. The hotel offers frequent Web-only specials.

The elegant adults-only Aura offers the ultimate in all-inclusive service and a variety of room styles in four low-rise buildings that face a meandering pool with separate areas linked by a lazy river. Swim-up suites have direct patio access to the ground-level pool, while third-story solarium suites have narrow rooftop lap pools. The design throughout the seven room categories is sleekly contemporary, with dark-wood furnishings and contrasting sea-blue textiles. The outdoor, white-tablecloth dining is a special treat.

The lights of San Miguel are a distant glow on the horizon when you look west from the windward coast's only lodging, a small rustic inn that's run on generator power and has spacious, simply furnished rooms with patios or balconies. Two-story suites have a bedroom and full bath upstairs plus a living area, half bath, and kitchenette downstairs. Mexican-style meals are served on the open-air deck. Sleeping with the doors and windows open allows you to be lulled by the pounding surf. Sea turtles nest on the long beach beside the hotel in summer, and tropical fish gather by the rocky point.

The landscaped grounds here are lovely, as are most rooms, although, as befitting the price, there's a certain budget-hotel sparseness to the place. Several low-rise buildings framing generous lawns house the guest rooms, the largest of which have white Moorish facades and archways separating the living and sleeping areas. All rooms have sunken bathtubs and refrigerators; some have terraces or balconies shaded with red awnings. There are two small restaurants on-site, and many more are within walking distance in this tourist area. The sea is across the street from the rooms, gardens, and pool, and there's a dock for dive boats. Numerous dive shops are nearby.

This sophisticated white tower is one of the island's most luxurious hotels, with ultramodern decor and incredible ocean views. Dine in luxury at the Mayan-named Cuzamil restaurant offering Mexican-Mediterranean-fusion cuisine or enjoy a more casual meal at the water's-edge palapa restaurant. A rooftop bar and pool offer excellent views of the sunset and of the mainland 19 km (12 miles) away. A beachfront pool, kids' club, and small sandy beach complete the ground-floor area. An added bonus are three popular restaurants located directly across the street.