As we were getting married in the second week we were most upset upon arrival at the airport to be told that our upgraded rooms were not available, neither was one of the restaurants. We did not mind about the splashpool / high ropes as this was not an issue for us. We were however given a refund of

This resort was not finished we were moved the day we arrived and knew nothing until we landed. After a 10 hour flight the last thing you want to hear is that the holiday you have been looking forward to all year isn't going to happen. It was quite obvious to everyone (excecpt FC) that it was never going to be ready and a holiday of a life time turned into a night mare. We all should have been informed before we got there and given the choice to go somewhere else. After having a long illness I was so looking forward to this holiday it cpould have had a happier ending had we been given the choice to go some where else earlier. As others have said I am sure this resort will be great once its finished its ashame we were never given the chance to enjoy our holiday. we did go twice to the resort. The second day we arrived and the tennth day so we do know what it was like and what the staff were like.

Hi, have just returned from holiday village, the most disappointing holiday I have ever had.
It reminded me of Butlins, it was very noisy and nowhere to get away from it all and relax.
Althought we stayed in the adult only section, the only thing that seperated us from the families was a rope fence. The noise from the entertainment pool was constant. In the evenings and well into the night we had partygoers laughing, shouting and screaming. (There was also a big fight while we where there!)
The buffet food was quite poor, but the adult only Med restaurant food was very nice, although limited menu. The Oriental was again limited menu but quite nice.
The sea at the hotel beach was quite rough and dirty brown in colour unless you swam out about 40m, we were told it is not normally like this so maybe it was a seasonal thing, I really don't know, we travel to quite a few caribbean islands and have never seen the water so uninviting!
The rooms are called Royal, there is definately nothing "Royal" about them, functional is probably how they are best described.
Diving was quite good, but be warned it is drift diving at the moment, which, so we were told, is also seasonal, but the currents were quite strong at times.
We left Saturday 24/5 and at this time the splash pool was still not working, although they had been working on it most of the week, so may be ready anytime now.
Hope this helps a little bit.

We just got back today (june 1st). it is still not fully complete even one month after it opened. The kids splash pool is full with water now but the slides were still not open and the kids monkey climbing frame had only just been delivered. The royal suite jaquzzi was not working and the only other jaquzzi is full every day by kids screaming and splashing about (probably urinating in it too) ...hardly relaxing! The landscaping is nearly complete now and does look very nice but we left during some pretty terrential rain and the builders were in fixing leaks to the roofs which was effecting the electricity in some of the rooms.
There is very little to do in the evenings for young couples since the entertainment and shows stop at 10.45pm and the adult only bar is very quiet and although nice and cool it does not give a great atmosphere. Could do with a bit more music in there and maybe some music videos on the tvs instead of american sport. We often ended up heading into the town in the evenings after the shows which were improving.
Simon and Nicky are trying their best in difficult circmustances but the hotel manager is rude and uninterested in any complaints.
Rooms were kept pretty clean although they did tend to through away stuff that they thought was rubbish even if it was stuff you had put on the side to keep.
Pool activites during the day were good fun and there was not too much pressure put on people to join in if you were too tired. They all had plenty of energy despite the heat especially Flaire who must be drinking too many red bulls!! ;-)
Had a very good gym with some pretty good equipment with tvs on each wall.
Im sure it will be a nice hotel when complete but it did seem to have a lot of screaming kids for my liking and there were also a lot of loud americans in the hotel since part of it is still operating as a timeshare.
It does have a very nice beach and the staff are very friendly especially in the mediterranean restaurant which was absoultely superb.
The food in the buffet was ok...a bit repetitive but always clean and plentiful.
The day we left we heard they were about to close the relaxation pool and royal suite pool for a week or so for re-painting but I would check this with first choice.
If you find the beds a little hard ask for a sponge top to make them softer and keep your eyes on your belongings and make sure they are locked in a safe at all times, there were a few thefts during our two week stay and we were told that one of the cleaners was caught wearing a pair of trainers taken from one of the rooms.
The iguanas were nice to see and they ceratainly were not aggressive in fact they ran away when you came too close.
We had no mossy bites which made a nice change.
Over all it has potential of being a nice hotel ...just needs to iron out the last few glitches.

Sunday 11th May- Sunday 26th May 2008
Well where I start. I booked the holiday for me my husband and my son who is five, Like everyone else I was a little unsure if the hotel was going to be opened in time but being hopeful set off for Mexico. Flight from Manchester was excellent arrival in Cozumel was a little tainted as we were kept waiting for an hour or so as the flight attendants hadn

We have just returned from the resort after spending a week there. We had a lovely time overall, yes there are problems with the hotels main complex (food being one!!) but considering you are on a beautiful, sunny island in the Caribbean you really don't care too much as most of our days were spent on the beach or at sea. You make of it what you will.

Firstly we thought that the flights would be a bit excessive for only a weeks holiday (10hrs going and 9hrs coming back). However, the flights were actually really nice, there was plenty to do on board and food provided was fine. The air crew were also friendly and we had no delays. Be warned that you might want to take earplugs as the flights are full and sleeping can be impossible through crying children.

On arrival in Cozumel we got through the small airport fairly quickly and was greeted by two reps who arranged for onward transit to the resort. We had booked into the Royal Suites for extra cost which I think makes a big difference. The hotel staff and reps treated us very well on arrival and within 15 minutes of getting to the hotel we were on the beach drinking our fist Corona. We did not have to queue to book in and there was none of the trudging around an unfamiliar resort trying to find your room as it was all done for us.

Our room was lovely, very clean and stocked well with cold drinks. The room was maintained by the hotels cleaning staff every day (clean sheets and towels, fresh water and beer). We found no scorpions or other nasties in our room. The only visitor being a Gecko one evening.

The best thing about this resort is the location. It is right on the beach (which is amazing). From our suite the beach was 10 seconds walk away and the pool even closer.

The food at the resort is not the best, the buffet food is warm and the several themed evenings are average at best. The majority of the food served during the day and evening are burgers & chips etc. Not really much local cuisine which was a shame. The royal restaurant which can only be accessed by Royal suite guests is good, the food is cooked to order and the meals we had were better than what you would get in the buffet. would get boring if you eat there every night. However the menu doesn't change so it.

The reps are friendly and polite. We had no reason to complain so cannot comment on their customer services skills. The packages you are offered are varied but a tad expensive. There is no hard sell and you are left to pick want to to. We went snorkelling on the reefs (highly recommended) and swimming with dolphins.

This resort can be summed up by saying that it is actually two separate resorts. The royal suites and then the standard suites. It is well worth paying the extra for the royal suites as you get a much better service and access to better amenities. I am aware that families and also other couples who did not upgrade had plenty to complain about. Their reviews are posted and can be read, we had no such misfortune. We had a lovely holiday and only wish we could have stayed longer. The island is beautiful and there is plenty to do.

The royal suites deserve 4 stars as stated as you get a very nice personal service. The main accommodation is at a 2-3 star level. Mainly let down by the poor food and the shabby decorating If you book the royal suites you should have little to whine about. Every couple we spoke to echoed our views.

I always wonder about booking a holiday through a package company like FC.....it is a little bit tacky! But I was very happy with the resort I picked and as we payed about

Hi

I returned from the holiday village yesterday morning and am very jet lagged but had an absolutely fantastic time! I am surprised to still be reading bad reviews on the hotel!

We stayed in one of the Royal Suites which were lovely, the rooms were a bit smaller than we had imagined but they were cleaned everyday and the cleaners made a real effort and were all very friendly! Only problem we had was with the Geckos getting in at night!

The sea was a bit murky on a first week but after a storm over night we awoke to find crystal clear waters with fish swimming round your ankles!

The staff were all brilliant, look out for Sergio on the Mediterranean restaurant, hes a real star! They are all extremely helpful and offer to get you drinks while you sunbathe and unlike other countries they are not just doing it for a tip!

The food wasn't great, breakfast and lunch were good but the buffet dinner got a bit repetitive, but I'm a vegetarian so there want alot of options for me but I'm used to that!

The Mediterranean restaurant was without doubt the best, really good food and great service. We didn't try the oriental but the Mexican wasn't that good, only are there once!

The evening entertainment was more aimed at families so although we watched a few shows we tended to stick to the bar! we had a couple of nights in the local town San Miguel which were interesting...! we were very out numbered by the Americans!

During the day they laid on loads so if you have kids they wont be bored! the daily quiz was usually a good laugh!

The reps were both really lovely, I felt sorry for Simon who got alot of stick, they were both really helpful and the whole of the first choice team were all very friendly and would go out there way to talk to you especially Robin and Steve.

The splash pool opened on our last day, although it didn't look as if the slides were working, we did hear that they were closing the activities pool tho because of it turning people blue. We got our most expensive excursion free as compensation which was really good for us as we wouldn't have used the splash pool anyway!

The weather was on the whole good, although the last couple of days is started to turn a bit rainy so I'm not sure what its doing now.

Overall a really great holiday but obviously i cant speak for everyone because there did seem to be alot of people complaining on a daily basis whenever we walked past the poor reps desk!

It is definitely not 4* standard The rooms, although kept clean by the maid, were dated.

Food generally was poor, not much variety to choose from and not filled up quickly enough with flies on the food and birds scavaging for scraps of food. The chicken off the grill at lunchtime was not good standard it was fatty and you were lucky if you had 2 bites of chicken. The burgers didn