Grand Coco Bay

We (myself, my husband, 3 kids) stayed at the RCB Dec 17-24 and had a great time. Best part - beautiful uncrowded beach. The grounds are a little sparse right now - the vegetation is young since it is a new hotel. The road is close to being finished. There was no smell around the grounds but there is some garbage just outside the grounds where all the construction trash has not yet been picked up. The rooms were nice, and we thought the food was decent - the buffet was ok, the speciality restaurants were very good. But you will never please everyone with the food. Put too much spice in something, someone will complain its too spicy. Not enough, someone says its bland. Drinks are good too - they will make them to please if you ask. We thought the staff was very friendly, IF you were friendly too. Most speak English much better than the visitors speak Spanish. Note - use your room safe even though you have to pay for it. On the second day, the cleaning staff cleaned our kids room and cleaned out their purses, which were inside the dresser drawers under clothes. They lost all of their xmas money ($230) and we heard many others complain they had lost items too (electronics, CDs, etc.). Talking to Guest Services is pointless - we spoke to them for 6 days trying to get some sort of compensation, were told stories for days about 'talking to the manager', then on the last day were told there is nothing they can do and they are not responsible for anything lost in your room. It was a bummer but we were determined not to let it get us down too much. Playa del Carmen is a great town, expecially at night, and a 20min walk from the hotel. Walk it - its worth it and good for you too!

We went December 5-12/03. Was my second time to this area and had to take some of the things about this resort in stride. Improvements have been made from the previous reviews. They now have a decent amount of chairs and tables in the front lobby bar for people to sit. A small snack bar in the lobby with peanuts, chips, etc. would be nice for them to add. They also have a person serving you as well. From what I read before, service has improved greatly. Overall, staff works very hard to make sure you are taken care of. People to serve you at the snack bar eating area, someone on the beach getting and retrieving drinks, and staff serving you drinks at the buffet. The exception still being the poor service at the front desk. The buffet still has a long way to go as the food is still at a 3 star. Name tags for the food now. And yes...if you have kids...not much on the menu for them at the buffet. The food would get tiring very fast if not for the snack bar and a feature menu item being cooked for supper. The snack bar/pool bar closes to early. The beach is great. No blendered drinks at the show, but that is understandable as who wants to hear a blender running while watching the entertainment. Was not impressed about the cheapness of the $3/day US funds to have use of the safe in our room. Rooms were kept clean and neat. The plane ride: Sky Service was awful. Did get the basic boxed lunch. Had to pay for pop as only offered tea or coffee. We were cramped in like a bunch of sardines. Yet the staff did their best and encouraged us to complain in hopes things did get better. A 40 minute walk along the beach to Playa del Carmen. Overall....one makes the best of what you are offered and would have to say it was a great time. If they improve the food, leave the snack bar open longer, snacks and better selection of drinks in our room fridge....this will be a true 5 star.

We just came back (Dec.l5th/03) from an 8-night stay at the new reef coco beach resort. It was a great holiday and we enjoyed every minute of it. Road in was bumpy but they are working on it every day, and it will soon be all in beautiful paving stones. Check-in was smooth and we got a lovely ocean view room. Clean, new & nice. Lobby area is very attractively done and the entire resort faces the pool area which meanders through to the beach. We wanted a smaller more intimate atmosphere. This is our 5th time to this area, and we have stayed in the Barcelo Maya and the Iberostar Tucan resorts previously. We enjoyed the RCB more. It may not be quite as elaborate or have as many shops, facilities, etc. but the ease in getting around from the pool to the beach, to the restaurants, etc. and back to your room makes up for that. The staff is warm & friendly. Food is very good and we found that there was lots of variety. The a la carte restaurants (2) are excellent and make for a nice relaxing dining experience. Snack bar by the pool is great for lunches -very informal and good food. Beach and dive shop activities were really fun. I went on a snorkelling excursion and enjoyed it. Also, there were sailing lessons and scuba demonstrations, etc. The activity staff are very enthusiastic and friendly. The beach itself is beautiful- clear turquoise water and white sand. There are some boats anchored outside of the swimming area, but they are usually gone most of the day and not a problem. The swimming area is never crowded in the water - maybe 6-8 swimmers. Water is nice & warm. The pool is very nice & clean, but a bit cooler. Lots of shade & lounges by the pool. Lots on the beach too, but they get taken more quickly. To the right of the resort, about a 20 min. walk along the beach is Playa Del Carmen. Cab ride back is $3.00 US The only criticism I would have is that the theatre and shows could use improvement. The theatre is not 5 star - it is not tiered and the chairs are uncomfortable. The productions are enthusiastic and fun, and improving all the time. They do have two nights of professional shows which are excellent, so try and find out which nights they are on. All in all though, if you want a nice relaxing holiday right on the beach you will love this resort. It seems like a good place for children also. All the ones I saw seemed to be having a great time. Go, relax and enjoy!

We've been to Viva Azteca in Jan. 2003, it is a 4 star and the service staff, food and atmosphere were far better than the Reef Coco Beach. So when booking the Reef Coco Beach I was excited about what a 5 star would be like. Well the rooms are smaller but the pool is larger. The whole resort being new was very clean but very stark and lacked atmoshere. The pool area was by far the nicest area of the hotel. Food was not at a 5 star level the buffets lacked imagination in presentation, and was all pretty bland and the same . Don't get me wrong we always found something to eat and it was good but not excellent by any stretch. It also was very repetitious. The restaurants both Spanish and Italian offered good food but not exceptional, the deserts were the best part. The poolside snack bar had quite good food, service was very slow though and not that friendly. The beach was nice but with the reef off shore providing shelter many boats were parked right in front of the resort. I like my view of the ocean unobstructed. If you weren't in the roped in swimming area you had to be quite careful not to get run over. As others have mentioned there is really no where cozy to hang out for before and after dinner drinks. On the positive, the location is within walking distance to Playa Del Carmen via the beach. All in all I think they were improving with every day. Although many service staff needs training in providing friendly attentive service, even tips did not seem to help.

Me, my wife, and my two children (ages 3 and 6 years old) have just returned from our first visit to the Reef Coco Beach Resort. We were there for 7 nights from Nov. 28 - Dec. 5. I gave this resort a rating of 3 out of 5 stars. When we first arrived there, we were not too impressed with the resort; so I would give it a 2 out of 5. However, as our vacation went on things did get better; so I would give it a 4 out of 5. Thus, overall a 3 out of 5 would be fair. Yes, the plane trip there was very cramped. We left Calgary on a very full and crowded plane. There is not a whole lot of leg room, but the flight back was much better as we had a bigger plane. Just a note for you newbies like us, please remember to KEEP your EXIT portion of your VISA as you will need this to get OUT of MEXICO. Otherwise, the flight was excellent. You must also watch the weight of your baggage and carry ons for you will be charged quite handsomely if you are over. When we arrived we had a bad feeling about where we were going. It did not look as though we were going to a tropical paradise. The "road" if one can call it that was very, very rough. A new road is being built, but I would not expect it to be completed anytime soon. When we arrived, we were given a groundfloor room by the lobby right under the wooden ramp. The creaking noises of people walking up and down the ramp kept me up at night, but I did get used to it. I tried to get another room, but I was told the resort was full. It did work out OK though as we did not spend too much time in our room anyways. The kids club and playground were right next door too so our children could play freely on their own and still be under our watchful eye. However, the view of the ramp was less than appealing. When I read the Sunquest brochure, it read that this resort boasted 200 well appointed rooms "all" with a partial ocean view. I guess the emphasis should have been on partial. All we saw was the underside of a ramp. For those of you with children, the kids club and it's supervisor, Melina are just excellent. Don't be afraid to leave your kids there. It's not the Oceaner's lab on the Disney Magic, but your children should be entertained for awhile. The food however, is a different story. There is virtually no kid type food in any of the resturants except for the snack bar which probably has some of the best food although it is "fast" food, but I did not come all the way to Mexico to eat hamburgers! The Sunquest brochure also read that the snacks flow virtually all day long, and the pool and snack bar are open until until 2:00 a.m. Again, this is wrong. The pool and snack bar close early. One can get late night "snacks" at the Miramar buffet restaurant though. Again, the emphasis should be placed on "virtually". The highs of this resort are the beach, the sun, the ocean, the pool (which was cold for being a heated pool), the kids club, the size and coziness of the resort, and somewhat the food. The lows are the isolation from civilization, the service, some of the food and the "could give a d***" attitude of the staff. The RCB is represented as a 5 star resort. It is not. It is a 3+ or 4 at best. Again, this is another misrepresentation. When I booked our vacation, I thought I was getting a 5 star resort at a good price. What I got was a 3+ or 4 at not so good of a price. This resort does have potential though. The beach and location are excellent. The room are relatively clean for Mexican standards, but there is no 5 star treatment. The service or lack there of, is the biggest downfall of this resort. The front desk staff are useless and not helpful at all. We were never approached on the beach to see if we needed anything. Most of the time we had to return our own dirty dishes to the snack bar. A lot of the wait staff looked miserable and unhappy. In Alberta, we have a saying, "Smile - you're a tourist attraction!" A slogan that would go a long way here. The food is also not 5 star quality. At first the food was bad, then it gradually became acceptable to being quite good. The fruit was of low quality, but it too improved. However, it became canned peaches and pears. I could have that at home. When I am in the Carribean, I expect good quality fresh fruit. Since this was our first time stay in Mexico, we thought, "Oh well, this must be good for Mexican standards!" That is, until we took a day trip to XEL-HA. The food and wait staff at our restaurant were excellent. Then we thought, "Now wait just a minute here!" The Miramar is a buffet type of restaurant with so-so food. It's saving grace is dining by the poolside at night, and watch and listening to the waves crash against the beach in the morning. This was very nice, and it was nice and casual as it should be on the beach. The "Italian" restaurant was in a word - awful. It was the first time in my life that I did not each a meal in a restaurant. The service was also very slow and just not happening. We left and went down to the Miramar to have supper. The food had Italian sounding names, but was definitely not Italian. We ordered, what we thought would be a safe bet for my son, roast beef. However, when it arrived it was 1mm thick, raw, and tough as rubber. My six year old son made light of the fact that he just did not know what was good or what was bad here. Because of this, we did not try the Mexican restaurant. The snack bar probably had the best food, but the worst service. It took forever to get anything there especially when it was busy. Try the waffle fries instead of the french fries as they are much better. I think so anyways. Do not expect the Reef Marina or the pool bar to be open if it is slightly windy, cloudy or raining. Bad weather? We are closed. I said that this is a POOL bar. I am wet already! What difference does it make if it is raining? The nightly entertainment was excellent. It was energetic, and entertaining. The kids disco was also very good at least when any staff decided to show up. One night, the staff did not show up. Thankfully, the DJ did. So all of the kids and a few adults went up on stage and did their own thing. We had to provide our own entertainment. The kids had fun anyways. Also, do not order a CHI-CHI or any other drink requiring crushed ice as YOU will be sent outside to the lobby bar to get YOUR OWN drink. Apparently, the wait staff will not do this even though there is a pass through to the lobby bar from the lounge bar. That is what I mean. It is the little things like that. To me it is the quality of your experience and the service that you receive that distinguishes one star from the next. It is also funny that many of the Reef Coco Beach signs around the grounds seem to have "lost" one of their stars. One's "mini bar" in his/her room is only filled every second day. When we arrived, there was only 3 cans of coke is our fridge. I tried to get some water. Even though water is "free" the staff treat it as gold. I tried to get some small bottles from the front desk, and all they would give me is one bottle. I tried to order some from room service. Several hours later another bottle showed up. One morning, we were actually in our room when the water guy showed up. I asked for 6 big bottles. I later found out that you can refill your bottles in the Miramar restaurant. I found that this water tasted alot like the tap water. It was strongly chlorinated and safe but not very palatable. The actual bottled water, in my opinion, tasted better. I had my digital camera and camcorder stolen, and lost my watch. As usual the front staff was very helpful. Jose would not even give me the phone number of the Reef Marina. (There is no phone book in the rooms). The attitude was basically "too bad so sad". In summary, if you are looking for a relaxing and quite vacation on the beach, this is the place. This is what we were looking for and got it. However, if you think that you are going to be pampered with excellent service and food, this is not the place. For 2 days we had no face, excuse me, wash clothes in our room. I phoned housekeeping, but there was no answer. I phoned the front desk and was told that I would have to wait until tomorrow. It took them a day to figure out what I was asking for in the first place. Room "service" is slow and pain staking; don't bother with the effort. All in all, it was a good vacation despite the theft. We talked it over and we would probably go back again in a year or so. I am confident they will be on track by then. This is the type of place where you have to make your own memories as the experience will not be given to you. To quote an old saying, "When you are given a lemon, try to make lemonade." Only at the RCB you have to get up off of your but from your comfortable chair, walk down a ways, and get your own lemon!! For Canadians, make sure you have changed over to the American greenback. The loonie, like every else in the world, does not fly very well here. The exchange rate at the hotel is very low. The rate was 6.5. The rate at the local bank was 8.0125. The rate on my visa was 8.5. There is also no ATM machine in the lobby or anywhere near the hotel. You have to take a cab into Playa Del Carmen to go to the bank. The hotels and the stores give a better rate on the Euro and the American green back which was 11. Most stores give 10. Good luck and may your vacation be an ejoyable experience filled with happy memories. I just hope my "tips" help you along the way.

Dec 7th, 2003 Having just arrived 4 a.m. this morning back from Mexico here is a recent update. I agree with most people the flight has changed greatly and not for the better. However having read some of these reviews some were a little harsh. I agree all the rooms are not best quality and certainly not 5 star quality at this time but keep in mind this only opened the 1st of November. When we arrived and were escorted by a very friendly bell hop to our room I can say Itoo was not to pleased with my room. Our room was right under the (main lobby - theatre- wooden ramp ) leading to the pool area. It was very noisy, a little damp and odor was musty smelling. The same evening I approached the front desk and spoke with the lady in charge, advising her my accomodations were not acceptable. She advised me there was nothing that could be done, In a very professional voice I advised her that was not acceptable and asked to speak with the manager. I was told to come back at 9 the following morning. I was greated the next morning by a very pleasant, helpful manager whom understood my concerns and immediately responded by placing us in a much nicer room with an ocean view and king size bed. We had a marvelous time the rest of our stay. We thoroughly enjoyed the buffet style meals ( although no food was labeled, kind of made for an interesting challege as to guessing what we were putting on our plate) and had the pleasure on the night before our departure to try the italian a la carte restaurant. It was excellent food, terrific service and I am sure in a few months this restaurant will be up to par with other 5 star hotels. The evening entertainment was excellent, my biggest complaint with this hotel is they need to have more social activities. It was dark by 5 and everything shut down, we would go back to our room and watch tv waiting for the buffet to open at 6:30, eat and then go back to our room again and wait until 9:30 for the evening (usually one hour) entertainment. They advertise a snack bar open until late, not the week I was there, they advertised the pool bar being open late, we were sitting poolside on Friday night with friends 8 of us and they packed everything away and we had to go back up to the main lobby, or by the beach if we wanted a drink. Overall, we found the food very good, the service, very good, the entertainment committee catered to the younger crowd, they really need to learn when they walk by people to take a few seconds and at least have eye contact and say hello. We found them a little unfriendly to the older crowd. We are still young at heart...... The hotel needs to look at making a bigger main lobby bar facility, with numerous rooms and only approximately 12 stools there were not many places to sit, alternative places to go. I would certainly go back again but not for a year until they ironed out some of the kinks. If you are looking for a quiet, relaxing time, and really like laying by the pool, or on the beach then I recommend this resort, but if you are looking for night life and a little more excitement than I suggest you look at other resorts.

We just returned from The Reef Cocoa Beach on Nov 22nd after 7 aweful days I must say it was definitely not what we expected for the money we paid! We left Toronto on a Skyservice flight packed in like Sardines in a poorly ventilated Airbus. Lady in front of me puts on perfume my allergies go nuts! I ask for more ventilation. Not possible 2 hours of sneezing and sniffing! No inflight movie as not working! Boxed Cold lunch that was more cardboard than food. YUCK! Arrived in Mexico. Hurried out of the airport by a Sunquest representative to the waiting vans. Unfortunately the van would not hold everyone. One seat short 2 ladies ended up in another van. Handed the voucher to speak with our Sunquest rep the following morning at 9:00am. We are off to the hotel. Drive does not speak English. He is running as fast as he can go and hits 150Km /hour repeatedly. Misses on a signal stop and locks up all 4 tires. This guy is a menace! Some passengers are concerned if we are going to get to the hotel. Definitely a little scary! Dropped at hotel. Driver and van gone in a flash. We are at wrong hotel. We are at the Reef Hotel not the Reef Coco Beach. Complete confusion on part of this hotel as to what to do. We ended up getting taxis flagged down for enough cabs for 9 people. We had to pay for the taxis ourselves as when we arrived at Reef Coco Beach no means made to pay for the taxis for us. The two ladies in the other van arrived at the correct hotel Lucky them! Luggage was taken from front of hotel to our room by a very pleasant attendant We get in the room No king bed! Crap! I paid extra for a King Bed! I run down to the front desk and speak to the supposed manager at the front desk. No kings available fully booked we will put you on a list. We are not pleased as we paid extra for the king bed. We have 2 doubles. We never got moved to a king room ever! Some list! Took in the entertainment put on by the sports and entertainment committee. Run by a young lady originally Ontario. Excellent show every night very impressive! High energy! One of the few highlights of our trip! Now things start to go wrong! In retrospect the Toilet seemed a bit slow right from the beginning but I thought it was because new hotel new toilet water saver type. We struggle with it for the first couple of days. A slow runner at best! Another couple left in lobby until 2:00am because of water on floor in cousins room. They are told: Sorry fully booked no rooms available we will put you on a list. At 2:00am the resort offered to send cousin to hotel in Cancun. 40 minute ride each way and had to return in the morning for 9:00am session. The couple arranged for a cot to be put in their room for the cousin to sleep on. This does not sound good!Day 1 Sunday Check with from desk on 1st day after talking to Luz our Sunquest rep to see about the king bed. I am told: Sorry fully booked no rooms available we will put you on a list. This becomes a definite theme for every request at the front desk!Day 2 Monday taking it easy Toilet still a slow runner! Notice smell from lagoon next to property. Not pleasant! We book a day trip to Chichen Itza Leave at 7:30 am on TuesdayDay 3 Tuesday Return from Chichen Itza the toilet is not working I called down and have maintenance take a look. Plunge toilet seems to free up a bit.Day 4 Wednesday toilet plugged again Called maintenance same thing. Told do not put paper in toilet put in trash can! Ok we dont put paper down toilet even though other guests indicate not an issue for them. No notice indicating to do this in the room or anywhere I can find. I now have meet with Monte Zuma and his revenge we are not happy! The room now smells horrid all the time because of the paper in the trash can. Taking Imodium and seems to have settled Monte somewhat.Day 5 Thursday Toilet plugged again. Same story.Day 6 Friday Toilet plugged first thing in morning Wait in room for over 1 hour and 4 calls to get someone up to look at. 2 guys no English close the door and mess about for 15 minutes. We are heartbroken at this point and decide to spend some money and get out of the resort for the day so we go to Xcaret. Just an excellent day! Unfortunately as we grabbed a cab to return to coco beach I twist my ankle. Ouch! We return and the toilet is plugged again and overflows on the floor. I am now exasperated and have a throbbing ankle so I let the front desk have it in person over the toilet loud and in from of other guests. To this point I have been very discrete about the toilet problems. I let loose but no swearing just load enough that everyone in the Lobby know what I am upset about! I am told that I cannot speak that loud and that way in Mexico! Maintenance is sent up again and reveals at that time that the water closet in our room had problems before we arrived! I am now beyond upset! Manager is now willing to offer some compensation for our issues I list my issues with him and state no pesos and no coupons I want refund. We are offered the extension from 12:00 noon to 4:00pm to stay in our room. The room now definitely has a smell to it either imagined or real we are not sure.Day 7 It is now Saturday We check out and Monte has returned! This is going to be a fun day! We spend some time sitting at pool until pickup at 4 and making 3 trips up the ramp one at 9:00 then 12:00 and then again 2:00pm. My ankle is killing me! The offer of compensation was 4 days all inclusive back at this same resort. Not acceptable! I am told to deal with your travel agent. I informed front desk manager that I want to speak to his Manager. Not in resort could not tell me when they would be. Again so helpful!The Sunquest catalogue for this resort indicates a 5 star. We where able to see some other resorts when we took a day trip to Chichen Itza as the bus picked up other tourists. Nothing of the like that we where staying at. There was not nor could I see a place for the following:Internet café Jacuzzi tub Tennis court. There where no pay phones anywhere near the resort. The road was still not completed and the access to the resort thru town was full of potholes. There where open lagoons of water next to the hotel that smelled! They fogged for mosquitoes and it blew right thru the lobby area where all the guests where sitting.The highlights of this resort where limited to the sports and entertainment committee and their efforts to entertain where outstanding! The food in the Miramar was so so at best and seemed to lose a lot of appeal as it seemed to be rehashed and rehashed and presentation was just not there a lot of times. Sometimes the hot foods where not even warm. Fruit was not ripe nor sweet.Of the Sunquest guests returning on Saturday with us everyone had a complaint with the resort of some type ranging from couple and cousin issue mentioned about to a couple that requested not to be on the ground floor being told: Sorry fully booked no rooms available we will put you on a list. We heard many stories on the bus back to the airport. Gee this driver actual drove with some care. He stayed under 100km/hr. Speed limit is max 80km/hr. Everyone on the bus indicated they would be contacting Sunquest about this resort. Definitely not a 5 star. One of the guests on the bus was a travel agent at best she rated it a 2 star. I am so disenchanted with our holiday. This was to celebrate 25 years of marriage and we feel we where taken completely. There was absolutely no room on the plane for my legs. I feel that is unacceptable seating for a 3 hour plus flight! I have flown commercial before with no issues for room but this was unacceptable. There was no in flight movie either way. I feel we paid for and did not receive the movie. I expected a room with a king bed we did not get nor see any attempt to get us one really. I expected a toilet that worked. That just did not come to pass! I expected the front desk to deal with my concerns appropriately. I can get better service at a Macdonalds. I felt I was treated like a second class citizen rather than a customer paying for a 5 star resort! I have traveled in the US and Canada and not once have I been treated this way in any establishment before in my life. We expected an in flight movie we did not get We expected a trip of a lifetime! What we got was closer to a nightmare! I am requesting a refund for this trip.These are not what I would consider to be start-up issues these are just not acceptable issues. Definitely beware of this resort!!!!!!!!!!!

We stayed at the Reef Coco Beach with our 4 and 6-yr olds from Nov 9-23 and had a wonderful time. First the positives: the staff were very friendly and helpful and took particular interest in our kids and their needs. The food was very good, particularly the soups and desserts. There were always ample hot entrees if the cook-to-order menu items were not of interest. We did not try the ala carte restaurants, so cannot comment on them. The pool was beautiful with ample lounge chairs and large umbrellas for shade as needed. We were challenged to find lounge chairs on the beach because we took our time getting up and going in the morning so the early birds got them first. The beach was beautiful, with the exception of a bit of construction litter, eg bits of concrete, in the sand. The water was clean, but a bit murky because of windy conditions. We did enjoy the kayaks with our kids. The room was immaculate and kept very cleaning by the housekeeping staff. We required medical attention for a throat infection. The hotel staff contacted the physician who came to our room within an hour. He was professional and had the appropriate antiobiotic with him, so we have nothing but praise for him. Entertainment staff were very friendly and gregarious, and worked like troopers to entertain. The evening shows were performed by the staff whose enthusiasm more than made up for their lack of showmanship. They put on a nightly show for the kids as well. As for the negatives, the road to the hotel is appalling. The road is poorly marked, so even the cab drivers were challenged to find it. No doubt this will be remedied soon, as the paving stones are already there to begin the road improvement. Although the staff in the kids' club were attentive and there certainly were no safety issues, there were not alot of activities for the children. Likely this will change as the staff gains experience. All in all, a fabulous experience and we don't hesitate to recommend it for a family vacation. We stayed at the Copocabana last year and loved it too. Very different environment, as the hotel rooms are distant from the restaurants and pool. The Copocabana is situated on perhaps the best beach on the Mayan Riviera, so that can't be beat. The Reef Coco Beach compares favorably - depends on the experience that you are looking for.

We arrived to what we thought was going to be a trip of a lifetime. As we entered the street that took us to the hotel. We became very nervous because the street was very much under contraction. The street had major holes and really had a bad smell to it. Once we arrived at the hotel we were told immediately that the hotel was overbooked and we would have to move to the Reef Club Playacar for three nights. Of course no one could explain this to us in English. Luckly my family has previously studied Spanish and could understand some of what the staff was saying. After two days at Playacar we returned to the Coco Beach hotel. Only to find out that our rooms were not ready and that they couldn't put my child next to me. I was very unfortable with this. The mini bar only had Coke, Water and beer. No diet coke or even Sprite or white soda. Of course no coffee pot in the rooms but coffee was availble via room service if you had pre-ordered it. Don't try calling for room service and explaining that you would like two pots of coffee. They don't speak much English. The only food at the resort, with any taste, is from the Snack bar. They have nacho's, french fries, hamburgers, BBQ chicken and ribs. Of course the worlds best ice cream. The vanilla taste like cake mix. The Sports and Entertainment staff is TERRIFIC. They go out of there way to keep you entertained and participating in activities from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM daily. You can keep yourself and family busy by doing streching, volleyball, water aerobics, water polo, water basketball, afternoon volleyball, dance lessons, step aerobics. They even have a late night show at 9:30. Not only will you but your children will love spending time around the pool watching the staff entertain and involve you in events. This is the BEST part of the whole resort.

we've just returned from ONE WEEK at the Reef Coco Beach...first time to mexico and can say we were extemely disappointed ....here are the facts so people can make informed choices....before booking this trip was plagued with many problems from the onset in toronto..SKYSERVICE was awful...first charging lots of $$ for over weight...we had one bag each and it cost us $91.00 in overweight ,we pack very little..????HINT(check weight before u leave), also could not sit together and we're packed in like sardines... and we checked in 3 hrs before flight...then we were feed a disguising cold boxed meal...ham sandwiches for breakfast??( so go prepared ). ...it was a fairly long line to get thru Mexican Customs..but buses or van were there waiting for the trip to hotel, it went without incident except for very bumpy ride over unfinished road to hotel...the road may be done in 6 months if your lucky ....remember it's on mexican time...lets make it a year.... let it be known there is NO checking into your room until 3pm so be forewarned AND PREPARED...also don't expect a kingsize bed only 25 in the whole resort...after many comprimises we ended up in an ocean view on the bottom floor, 2 small beds and a safe that did not work (we were able to use security box at front desk..BUT don't loose the key...IT'LL COST U $100.00)...we had wanted king size bed, balcony, upper floor , ocean view..we were there on a very SPECIAL anniversary and got nothing special...no bottle of wine or note from management in Congrats..... .. the rooms are very basic and on the smaller side...there is a blow drier and some hangers..no alarm clock but wake up calls were on time... Food..nothing special...sometimes the buffet was good..most times just okay...ate twice in the italian ...first time ..fabulous ...2nd time...very different, not same quality as night before...and was sick afterwards...threw up and then was fine... went deep sea fishing and caught a fish and Guillermo saw that it was cooked for us....we tipped him quite well though...he 's a very nice man...food at the snack bar was fairly good and a good selection but very slow service....service at the bar was fine but drinks were only so-so...giving no name BRAND Bailey's...each time the same drink tasted differnt Luz the sunquest rep was helpful but couldn't do much, but at listened and sympathized ....it was well known the week before the hotel sent 25 people to cozumel for 2 days to a different hotel ...paid for transportation and everything...it seems they overbooked...but it was only offered to people there for 2 weeks... the beach area was on the small side...nice sand....but nothing special...every morning people up early staking out their chairs with towels... the way the hotel is situated around the pool it can be pretty noisy.....and u hear everything going on...one couple fighting at the pool side for quite awhile at 2 am one night...security just stood back and watched..laughing...i guess the pool bar is not open late anymore as lots of complaints the weeks before...it closes at 6pm now.... also they were spaying with DDT in the field beside the hotel.....and fumes and smoke were very THICK at times... the area around the hotel is not very nice it's fairly bare, some areas of bushes and alot of areas with stagnet water and very smelly at times...i'm sure in few years it might be nicer... ...there is also NO internet available at the hotel...u have to go a few minute walk to a small restaurant to use there computers...they were lovely people and very nice.... had some very scarry incidents with taxi drivers...they can be very rude and will charge whatever they want....on average it'll cost between $3-5.00 to go to Playa del Carmen, and $5-8.00 to go to Reef Playacar( the other Reef Hotel).... went on a few tours...Chichen Itza...very long day 7am to 8pm..and most of that is on the bus..u only get 2 1/2 hours at the ruins...and don't eat lunch til 3pm...so go prepared...no free drinks on bus either.. did a shopping day to Cancun...WASTE OF A DAY...obviously tour company getting a kick back from places they took us....they don't provide lunch...again not til 3pm....but offer u this great deal of a $15.00 hamburger including 2 beers from Planet Hollywood....or u can eat at McDonald's in the mall on your own... also went deep sea fishing we had our own boat...we did caught something but most of boats did not and it's 5 to 8 people sharing one boat and u have to flip a coin to see who gets to reel the fish in...it's a bit of a scam... so be careful when booking these....also transportation is not included there....this is where u need to be careful of taxi drivers coming back...they charge whatever they want and all get together , so if u try to shop around on price they jack it up to the roof....and your stuck as it's quite aways from the hotel....it eventually cost us $15.00 and he wanted our fish.....he was NOT A NICE PERSON and it was a very scarry experience... in summary this is certainly NOT a 5 star resort...and was a very big disappointing holiday!!!!