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Comments: We always enjoy the Fiesta Americana in Cozumel and this time was no different.  Rooms are clean, hotel is kept nice and the staff is friendly.  We like the location, just far enough out of town to miss the cruise ship hustle and bustle, but not so far that we can't just zip to town.  If you are use to mega resorts, I don't believe you will really find them in Cozumel.  However, this is what we like about the Fiesta Americana. 

Comments: We stayed at the F.A. all inclusive.  We had a problem with TNT vacations when we checked in.  I wouldn't use them again.  They said we didn't pay all inclusive when my agent told me we did.  My agent in the states had to resolve the arrangements. The hotel was a little better then Ramada Inn or Holiday Inn.  There is no workout room. (Even though their website and pamphlets say they do. We spoke with the concierge about this.  Who knows if they will change it.  The rooms were clean.  The workers were very friendly. Bur ha trouble speaking English.   The food was O.K.   Breakfast buffet was the best.  The menu never changes.  There are 2 restaurants even though they say they have 3.  Snorkeling was good.  Not as good as other islands we have been too. There was garbage all over the sides of the roads, and I would not advise anyone to walk down unless you were with a group. FA is a mile from Chakanaab and a half mile from Dzul Hal. You should take a cab to Chakanaab
 but is it OK to walk to Dzul Hal. If you walk to Dzul hal make sure you go about 300 yards past the shops to enter into the water. The current will float you back to FA so you just hop into the water and float. Leave any of you stuff on FA's beach its safe there. Playa Corona was a good snorkeling spot but decide to go there when there are only one or two cruise ship in port. All the jeep, and other tours go there so it can get crowded. El cid's plane wreck was not as great as written about. Don't let the guy outside El Cid haggle $10.50 out of you. Just say you want to walk through. He wanted us to pay $10.50 to walk through the lobby and snorkel. We didn't pay. Through out the vacation make sure you never have anything with lettuce . This is where the virus from the tap water lives and breeds.
We rented a car from Avis from home and paid $34.95 a day.  No problems returning the car.
Of course we were caught in the tropical storm Claudette.  No problems there.  Just had to eat all the meals in the main dining room.
Any questions write and we'll answer.
Joanne 

Posted by Sandy on 06/02/03

We just spent a week there, 5/17 to 5/24. The rooms were nice & roomy, the staff was beyond freindly & helpful. We didn't do the AI because we got a better deal on European. The price of food & drinks was outrageous! But we spent more time eating & drinking elsewhere. I would stay there again, I really liked it. Some of the best snorkeling is right there. And yes! the placement of the toilet is weird, you either bang you knees, or wedge yourself in for a long night if you drank too much.

Posted by Jodi on 06/01/03

We've always stayed in the casitas & really liked the privacy they offer.  They all have hammocks on the balconies & it's very quiet there, unlike the main part of the hotel. The trek to the beach wasn't too bad, as long as you were prepared & took everything with you.  The staff have always been friendly & helpful.  We've always liked it, although our last trip in May was spent at Sol Cabanas & we really liked that, too.  For the price, Sol Cabanas was a great bargain.

Comments: Upon arrival at the hotel, my wife and I were given the option of a tropical casita or room in the main hotel.  We selected the tropical casita and were pleased with the choice.  A casita consisst of 4 units, two upstairs and two downstairs, in a "jungle" setting complete with iguanas on the porch, birdsong, and diffuse sunlight.  The rooms were were well furnished, large and clean.  We appreciated the more private setting.
Fiesta Americana is located a few miles south of San Miguel.  This makes for a more relaxed atmosphere, but requres a cab or rent-a-car to get into town.  There were always cabs on standby.
If you are expecting an expanse of white sandy beach with pounding surf, you will not get it here.  You do, however, do get the opportunity to snorkel in warm, blue, crystal clear water. 
Fiesta Americana has its own dock, and the dive shops on the island do pick you up form their dock.  We did not use Dive House, the in-house shop for two reasons.  First, their web site was under construction and there was a lack of information (it pays to advertise).  Second, a local diving instructor in Wisconsin recommended a different organization. 
The night life at Fiesta Americana is subdued.  But if you enjoy sitting by the shore on a warm tropical night under the stars, who cares- especially after a day of diving beginning at 8AM.
The food was good.  We had an all inclusive.  Food and drink  is very expensive here without it.  Without an AI, they also charge for bottled water--you can't drink the tap water.  Like a prior reviewer, I don't understand why it was necessary to sign a check for everything.  These checks were usually slow in coming to the table.  One other complaint was, that as the hotel occupancy dropped, the management eliminated the breakfast and diner buffets.  While you could still order off a menu, a dinner reservation was required for the restaurant.
Last year we stayed in Playa-del-Carmen and were incessantly harassed by time share and other vendors.  It didn't happen here.
I would stay here again.

Comments: We just returned from a 7 night all-inclusive stay at Fiesta Americana. We were extremely pleased with FA, and can't say enough good things about it to our friends and family! We would definitely recommend going all-inclusive-the prices of food and drinks are very high and it makes a much more relaxing vacation when you don't have to worry about the bill. All-inclusive provides everything, we even snorkeled and kayaked for free. The snorkeling was great, we saw beautiful fish without having to leave the resort! We rented a car for a day, and highly recommend doing so, as it was great to see the rest of the island, the locals and the beaches on the east side.

The staff was extremely friendly and seemed to enjoy their jobs. They definitely go out of their way to make your stay more enjoyable! Our room was nice, nothing fancy but we spent most of our time by the pool or in one of the three restaurants so it wasn't a big deal. The upkeep of the resort was impressive and this was by far a classy place.

One weak point of the resort is that they did not follow through with any extra "group" activities-it was more of a lay around and do whatever you want kind of place. Another annoying thing was that even though we were all-inclusive, we had to sign every bill we got (at no extra charge, but we never figured out why we had to do that!)

We would definitely return to Fiesta Americana in Cozumel and hope your experience is as wonderful as ours!

Comments: We just returned from a 5 day vacation at the fiesta.  We thouroughly enjoyed our time there.  We also were there on an Apple vacation deal so had an excellent value with the all-inclusive.  We did enjoy the all in-clusive in that when you add up drinks and the meal costs, it adds up fast and with the AI you do not have to worry about escallating bills. You can still go out for an occasional meal for variety but you also save taxi fare by eating in house. We did enjoy some very good food at the hotel.   Two outside restaurants that we did enjoy with recommendation was the "La Mission" just south of the Plaza in town and "Coconuts" on the east side of the island - tables in the sand amoung palm plants on a cliff overlooking the ocean!!!!!!!!!  Be sure to take one day to rent a car to tour the island.  Also with local recommendation, great off the shore snorkeling can be had (better and cheaper than Chankanab) at Playa Corona - just south of Chankanab.
We checked out several other hotels on the island and each had their strong points but we were quiete happy with the FA.  Things that i really enjoyed were 1.the ocean views offered from the balconies  2. the setting and beautiful views right by the ocean at the open air restaurant for breakfast and lunch.  3. great snorkeling right in front of the hotel.  In fact alot of snorkel boats stop right out in front.  As others noted, a short walk up the road to Dhu Ha and you can drift snorkel back to the hotel and see quite a bit - I spotted two beautiful spotted eagle rays.
Also I was very happy diving with the "Dive House", They seemed very thourough and helpful.  Diving the "Santa Rosa Wall" was an unbelievable 'trip'.  Also night diving was very good.  There was not alot in the way of nite time entertainment except for Mexican nite and was not as "tropical" as the Iberostar or as good a beach as the Allegro but if you like great views of the ocean and like to snorkel and or dive; you can be closer to town but away from the cruise crowds, this is a great place.

Comments: Had never been to Cozumel before and so relied on info from the web regarding hotels and packages.  The reviews on line for FA were very helpful, though a particularly negative one for FA was a bit off-putting ( I swear the writer had an axe to grind with someone and took it out on the hotel!!)   When a local (Mpls) tour operator offered a great air-hotel week-long package which included FA as a choice, we grabbed and held our breath....  We couldn't have lucked out more!!  We arrived about 9 pm and were given a 2 double-bed room on the 5th floor with great ocean views. (All rooms have balconies and face the ocean).  Views from the first 3 floors are partially blocked by palm trees, the pool area, and the large palapa where special parties occur (all ending at 10 pm, when a wonderful quietude settles over the place.)  The staff is very friendly, the facilities extremely clean, the man-made beach inviting with many individual palapas and padded lounge chairs, the mul
 ti-leved pool visually stunning and never overcrowded, and a wonderful reef right off the hotel beach where we snorkled daily seeing lots of varieties of fish and even two eagle rays!!!  We ate most of our meals in San Miguel (a $6 US taxi ride away), tho had breakfast at the hotel's Reef Beach Club restaurant across the street from the hotel on the beach. (Breakfasts consist of two choices of buffets: continental [$8.50 US] and large [$14.50 US].  Both choices are over-priced for the quality and numbers of selections.)  Lunch is a la carte...  Would we return?  No question!!

Comments: I purchased a hotel/dive package directly from Fiesta Americana. Having never been to Cozumel before, I really lucked out with this selection. The hotel is beautiful, with 3 restaurants onsite and one of the nicest pools on the island (complete with swim up bar an area where you can drop your lounge chair in the pool and sit in about 5 inches of water). The staff was very friendly, the room I had on the 3rd floor was very clean and comfortable. It had a large balcony and a nice inroom snack bar. Everything in the hotel looked brand new, the paint, the flooring, the pool, the restaurants, the lounge chairs, etc. The beach area, which if you've never been to cozumel, is a more like a seawall with sand trucked in. They have two large areas where they have poured cement steps so that you can walk down into the water for snorkeling. They server you drinks and food right on the beach area. Now, for the diving. The Dive House, which is the local dive operator, is right the
 re onsite as well. They have their own private pier, and 3 very large/nicely equipped dive boats. All of the divemasters were very experienced, very friendly, and extremely knowledgable of the various reefs. If you're doing 5 days like me, they put you on the same boat with the same dive masters... so you don't end up diving the same locations twice. I was extremely happy with them.. they are top notch. I even blew my console on the last dive of the trip, and the divemaster allowed me to use his brand new backup rig for free. Even if you don't stay at this hotel, The Dive House is worth a taxi ride everyday just to dive with them. Saw sharks, stingrays, barracuda, turtles, and huge lobsters. I got some great photos and found out that drift diving is really cool.. vis was 100+.

Posted by Panchita on 11/27/02

cabanas at Fiesta Americana

They are behind the hotel in a 'jungle' setting and you walk down the path, up the driveway, through the lobby, around the pool, across the bridge, and down the stairs before you hit the beach.  In most cases, that's about the time that I realize that I've forgotten either the sun block or my mask and snorkel or my book etc. etc. etc.  
Oh well, like my Dad says "a little walk won't kill you, Cookie."

Comments: We stayed for six nights at the FA and absolutely loved it!  We had a fourth floor ocean view room - no extra charge.  I have no recollection of the toilet placement being odd!   Our room was very clean as was the rest of the hotel. I just read an earlier review that blamed the hotel for their travel agents poor planning in sending them in hurricane season. The hotel has no control over the weather!!!  When we were there we woke up to 80 degrees and went to sleep at 80 degrees - perfect! I'm not sure what a swamp cooler is, but our room was air conditioned - however we slept with the balcony door open and it was wonderful. The hotel caters to divers thus the tile floors that the gentleman almost slipped on. Carpeting would soon be ruined by wet divers.  The diving was fantastic - just a walk across the walkway and excellent divemasters from The Dive House. I do think you would have to be a diver to fully appreciate the FA and not someone who is in Mexico just lookin
 g to party.  We like being outside of town as taxi fare is very cheap.  We also rented scooters for the day which were delivered and picked up at the hotel - all arranged by the staff of the hotel.  We found the staff to be friendly,however will admit they did try to rip us off on currency exchange.

Keep in mind that you are in Mexico!  It's not going to be just like here.  The food at the hotel was so-so and it was just about impossible to get a cup of hot tea, but all in all in wasn't so bad. I thought the breakfast buffet was great - yes, you have to shoosh the birds away, but so what! That's part of the fun!

We are returning to Cozumel November 2002 and will once again stay at the Fiesta Americana. We loved it!

Posted by Panchita on 10/14/02

Don't worry - we didn't do AI either...and we did okay $$$ wise.  There's nothing wrong with the hotel - even though it wasn't my favorite place, the grounds are well kept, the pool is nice, the rooms are clean and comfortable.  We stayed in the Casitas out back and they are a little bigger than the standard rooms but they don't have a view.  The breakfast buffet is okay but expensive - ordering off the menu is less and the food is just as good.  The restaurant out by the water was fine for lunch/beach snacks, but we always went into town for dinner - we shared taxis into town all the time to cut back on the cost.  Buffet food at the hotel in the evening was not very good, but I hear that the Mexican Fiesta night is excellent.
If you plan on spending the day on the beach, get down there to claim your chairs early - we were doing the 8am sprint because folks would leave books, towels, etc. and not show up until 1-2pm.  Service was okay at the front desk and restaurants, the only problem we had was with the Towel Nazi - we would turn in our towels at the end of the day and ask for clean ones (to keep overnight for the lounge chair the next morning) and he wouldn't give them to us even though he had a clean pile on the counter - boo!
Don't worry, have a wonderful time, and let us know how it was when you get back!

Posted by DEBI on 10/14/02

I absolutley adore this place. It is one of the finer htoels on the island . It has a dive shop right across the street, the staffi s absolutely marvelous , the rooms are fantastic and I wish we were staying there when we go Nov 3rd ....... we also got rebooked because of the hurricane and talk about nervous ..we are staying  at the Ibuerostar ..so  wish me ,luck ,..any chance ya wanna trade *lol* you'll love it ........

Posted by Rick on 10/14/02

The rooms are quite nice.  You'll like the room just fine.  Service is good.  I'm afraid food and drinks are going to set you back abit.  Get ready for $5.00 for a cup of coffee to go.

Rick

Posted by Max B. on 10/14/02

We have stayed at FA many times, & will again this November. It has a GREAT pool, a nice dock for ANY dive op to pick you up, & you can walk to Dzul Ha & snorkel back. The breakfast is pricey but good, other food ok, but we eat most of our meals in town. Too many good restaurants not to. The AI food does not look so good, at least not at lunch. We always rent a car as it's a ways back to town, We have also stayed at Presidente. The hotel & food may be better, but we prefer FA.

Comments: · When first planning the trip, the travel agent misled me about when it was hurricane season. She told me it was from the month of August to November.  Cozumel was windy, lightning, and raining the whole time we were there, and all the locals said that it was hurricane season. I was very clear in telling my agent I did not want to travel during hurricane season.

· The travel agent did not inform me of the need to have the marriage license when we checked into the airport.  Therefor we had to pay a $25 fee to get a notarization, we had to wait for the guy to show up and came way too close to missing our flight.

· Our room was not suitable for a five-star hotel or a Motel Six even. Our unattractive room was wet the whole time we stayed. Our floor, bedding, clothes, and our camcorder were wet and would not work. I would get up in the middle of the night to go to the rest room and would slip on the wet tile.

· It was really humid and very hot in our room.  They provided a swamp cooler in the room, however we couldn't use the swamp cooler because it was so unbelievably loud.  We tried to but could not handle the noise. I even tried sleeping with a pillow over my head. The uncomfortable room had ruined my husband and I anniversary.

· I incurred a huge heat rash around my neck due to the heat, my pillow being damp, and the covers being damp.  My husband and I were there for three nights and did not get an ounce of sleep due to the conditions in our room. I cried every night I was so upset, and so tired from not having sleep.

· We ate at this supposedly five-star hotel and I received a live maggot in my food.

· My husband and I tried making the best out of the stormy days and decided to go swimming in the rain, when a hotel worker sprayed a huge cloud of bug poison that clouded over the pool area where we were totally infused in the poison.  This couldn't be healthy.  I think it is a huge health hazard.

· We tried to leave the third day, but our travel representative did not show up and I had to go and try to find help myself which is hard to do with not being able to speak Spanish.

· As a result of our miserable stay at the Fiesta Americana we were willing to pay any amount of money to leave, so we ended up paying the airline an extra $200 to go home a day early. 

Comments: Before I left for Cozumel I read some of the comments other guests shared and I was a bit concerned with my choice. After spending 8 days and 7 nights there I am happy to say that I was extremely pleased with FA. We were upgraded to a larger room on the 6th floor where we had a beautiful view of the ocean. We did not find our toilet too close to the wall and if we did, it would not have ruined our vacation. The staff was unbelievable. They were extremely patient, kind and aimed to please. At first I thought I was going to be disappointed about not having a wide beach, but once you experience the snorkeling thereyou won't mind it at all. There's always the other side of the island if you must have beach. Plus you get the snorkel equipment for free. Suggestion: Do not do AI...too many great restaurants in town to eat at. The only thing I didn't like was the food for dinner (which we only had once). Breakfast and lunch good, but pricey. I would definitely go back to FA

Comments: We really enjoyed our stay at the Fiesta Americana, nice clean room with a great view. It is a really colorful place nice lobby and friendly people.
Didn't eat there food was to expensive and drinks are high. Good snorkling right off the beach.
The only compliant was the loud birds that are arround the grounds. The first morning I thought that the sound was nice, but by the thrid day there singing early in the morning that is at 3 am had grown old. They sure are bunch of happy little birds.
I would stay there again

Posted by max beckmann on 05/15/02

We have stayed there many times over the past 17 yrs. it is our favorite. BUT, I would not do AI. The food , except for breakfast, does not look too good or too fresh. There are too many great places to eat in town & Domino's delivers to the pool.

Posted by Liz Reilly on 05/15/02

Ray, My husband and I went to cozumel on April 20th and were booked into the FA on the AI plan, we paid extra for a casita suite.  It was so horrible, that within two hours we had our travel agent switch us to the Allegro, which was amazing. We had one meal at the FA and it stunk.  It was absolutely nothing to look at and dead as a doornail.  It was very difficult to get a drink.  The casita was disgusting with corona bottles lying all around outside the room and dead bugs all over the floor in the room.  I could not believe that they actually had the nerve to charge more than the Allegro, which has numerous places to eat and drink and beautiful grounds.  FA does not have a beach in the regular sense.  They claim to have some little manmade thing which was a joke.  The Allegro has a lovely beach and expansive well groomed property.  Unless you are getting a really cheap, cheap deal, I would recommend not going there. 

Posted by Chelli P on 05/15/02

We stayed AI at the Fiesta Americana last August. We liked the hotel. I love the view of the ocean. The food was OK, but boring after a week. I would prefer to not stay AI, but with kids it is nice for them to be able to get food whenever they are hungry. My 11 year old probably drank the AI price in pina con nadas. We are going to Hawaii this summer and my son keeps saying he would rather go back to Cozumel and stay AI at the FA. He has never been to Hawaii so we will see what he says when we come back.

Chelli

Comments: We stayed from April 6-8 2002.  A very nice hotel;  we stayed in one of the Casita suites in the back.  We loved it as it was quiet, roomy, clean, and away from the crowds.  We loved waking up to the birds, crickets, and other wild life.  We slept with the AC off and the windows open.

We'd stay there again.  Only drawback is that it is far away from town; great if you have a car.  We rented a scooter for 2 days which was adequate to get us into town. 

just got back from coz stayed ay f.americanna was not a happy camper 1.  no beach 2.no entertainment 3. no babysitting services 3, onley 2 resturants not 3 witch did not have much choice for 1 wk plus their was a surcharge on 40 per cent of the menue   asked the manger to hold the surcharge  said he would get back to me i am still waiting  by the way it was all in the broucha dos anyone have info on f.a. or is it just me    elgordo @ vif .con   by by

Posted by Hop on 04/03/02

We stayed at Fiesta Americana last August for 7 nights. We enjoyed it very much but do not go all inclusive spend the time and go downtown to eat. We walked up to Dzul-Ha and snorkled down to Fiesta Americana.  I did a trip report dated August 10th you can find it above in trip reports.  We stayed on the 5th floor, nice view, and we used safe box at front desk lobby. Feel free to email me if you have any questions.

Posted by Liz on 03/15/02

Fiesta Americana is a great hotel, although I would not recommend the casitas, they are quite a walk from the pool and restuarants, the regular rooms are roomy enough for two people.

Comments: My wife and I stayed four nights at the FA in early February and the hotel exceeded our expectations overall.  Our room was on the upper level of one of the casitas in the back of the property.   Bathroom and bedroom were both large, well equipped, and well maintained (including an inroom safe which we did use).  We slept with the a/c off and enjoyed the tropical outdoor  sounds from the many birds, crickets, and other creatures that live in the garden area where the casitas are located.  We rented a car and found the FA's location ideal - close enough to San Miguel when you want to go into town for a meal, but far enough out that the hotel's surrounding are peaceful, and in a relatively unspoiled natural setting.   The pool is beautiful, and we had a very good meal in the hotel one evening.   Hotel staff were very friendly and helpful. If you dive the location is excellent, and there is a busy parade of dive boats swinging by the dock each morning to take people to the reefs.  The hotel does not offer or claim to offer a lot of onsite actiivities - but a large percentage of guests seem to be divers.  We would highly recommend FA overall.

Posted by Deb on 01/25/02

We were there in August.  They run a scam when you to check in.  They claim to have no ocean view room, as you were promised, but for $$$$ you can get one.  Don't do it!!!  You're not in your room hardly at all during the day when you could see the view.  Also, I agree, don't do A/I.  We did and the food and service was awful.  If you want to go into town to eat all your meals, it'a a $5 cab ride for 4 each way.  It really begins to add up if you're on a budget.  I agree with everyone else about the nice pool and snorkling in front of the hotel.  The rooms are OK.  I'm going back in June and staying within walking distance to town, NOT A/I, and with shore diving or snorkling in front of the hotel.  Probably Plaza Las Glorious or La Ceiba.  Haven't decided yet.

Posted by Max B. on 01/24/02

We have been going to Coz for many years & Fiesta Americana is our favorite. It is closer to the dive sites, has the best pool, OK rooms, OK beach, good service.DO NOT go AI. Eat in town. I hear the AI food is too expensive & not very good. I & everyone else on the board can give you MANY good places to eat in town. The breakfast is good but pricey. As for scuba, they offer a resort course. I use a dive shop in town which picks us up at F.A. pier.Please email if you need more info.

Comments: Several people were robbed large amounts of money at the hotel from the in the room safes.  The manager new of this problem and didn't warn anyone.  After we did talk with the manager he wanted us to kep quiet about what happened which really made us feel uneasy.  The secruity at the hotel kept taking my husband to the police station  for three days which he wasn't able to make a police report, either no one spoke english or it was closed.  We did get our money back in pesos two days later.  Then the last day the only day we actually had to ourselves they wanted him to go again to the police station,  but since our interpreter left we felt uneasy signing something we could not read.  The hotel made us feel very uneasy.  We carried all of our valuables around for fear that they would get stolen from the room.  

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