Hotel Cozumel & Resort
Cozumel Hotel & Resort is at heart a diver's hotel with a full resort program attached, and that framing is the key to whether it belongs on your shortlist. It sits at Km 1.7 on the southern coastal road, a short taxi or about a 20-minute walk from downtown San Miguel and the ferry pier. An underground tunnel runs under the road to the beach club and the hotel's private dock, where boats leave for the reefs of the Cozumel marine park. For certified divers and anyone doing a PADI course, that convenience is the draw.
Traveler Insights
Pros
- +Dive logistics are about as easy as Cozumel gets: a dive shop on site, an underground tunnel under the coastal road to the beach club and private pier, and boats leaving from the hotel's own dock
- +The hotel bills its pool as the largest in Cozumel, and most rooms overlook it, with generous deck space and palm shade around the edge
- +Beach club across the road has about 100 m of fine white sand with deck chairs, hammocks and Balinese beds under palms and a big palapa
- +Close to downtown San Miguel at Km 1.7 on the southern coastal road, a short taxi or roughly 20-minute walk to the restaurants, shops and ferry pier
- +More going on after dark than its dive-hotel reputation suggests: karaoke nights, themed dinners, evening shows and live music are all on the hotel's own program
- +Genuinely family-friendly, with a kids' club, playground, babysitting on request, family suites with bunk beds and two-bedroom master suites with full kitchens
- +Pet friendly, which is rare among Cozumel's resort hotels, and ten rooms are specially adapted for guests with reduced mobility
- +West-coast sunsets from the beach club are consistently praised, and the Cozumel reef system is a short boat ride from the pier
Cons
- −The beach club is across the coastal road from the hotel, reached through the tunnel, and ocean entry is mostly off the pier, so this is a dive-entry shoreline rather than a wade-in swimming beach
- −Food is the most common complaint: both main restaurants, Los Girasoles and Los Arcos, are buffets, and travelers report cold breakfast items and repetitive dinners
- −No à la carte dinner restaurant appears on the hotel's dining page, so anyone wanting a special-occasion meal heads into town
- −Some rooms show their age, with dated decor and occasional maintenance issues despite the hotel describing its 180 rooms as recently renovated
- −Some amenities like coffee makers and bathroom toiletries have been pared back in recent years, which repeat guests notice
- −If the underwater world is not your main draw, there is less reason to pick this hotel over the beachfront resorts further south
- −Wi-Fi reliability complaints are consistent, especially from guests uploading dive footage or working remotely
Food is the property's consistent weak point in traveler feedback. Los Girasoles serves a sea-view buffet at breakfast and lunch, Los Arcos by the lobby runs the breakfast and dinner buffet, and Los Delfines at the pool covers snacks and grilled meats from 11 am to 5 pm, with room service from 6:30 am to 10:30 pm. Cold breakfast dishes and repetitive dinners come up repeatedly, and many guests walk into San Miguel for seafood at least once. The pool is the standout, billed by the hotel as the largest in Cozumel, and the beach club has about 100 m of white sand with hammocks and Balinese beds. Room types run from standard pool-view rooms to junior suites with terrace jacuzzis and two-bedroom master suites with kitchens. Staff are generally described as warm and accommodating, and the evening program of karaoke, themed dinners and shows is livelier than most dive hotels bother with.
This hotel is ideal for dive-focused travelers, PADI students, underwater photographers, and families who want a kids' club and a big pool without paying for the island's larger beachfront resorts. Guests who also want to bring the dog will find few alternatives on Cozumel. It is less compelling for travelers whose agenda is beach lounging or upscale dining. Snorkeling and kayaking are available from the beach club, and scooter trips around the island or a visit to the San Gervasio ruins are easy to arrange from the town-adjacent location.
Common Questions
Do I need to be a certified diver to stay at Cozumel Hotel & Resort?
How does diving work from the hotel?
Is the beach good for swimming?
How is the food?
Can I bring my dog?
What is the best time of year to visit for diving?
Restaurants (2)
| Type | Restaurants |
|---|---|
| Buffet | Los Girasoles, Los Arcos |
From the resort's own dining pages. Only restaurants the resort lists are shown.
What's nearby
Playa Palancar25 min drive · 12 mi
Chankanaab Park10 min drive · 5.2 mi
Downtown San Miguel de Cozumel3 min drive · 1.1 mi
Museo de la Isla de Cozumel3 min drive · 1.4 mi
Punta Morena Beach25 min drive · 12 mi
25 min drive · 11 mi
More things to do (16)
- Playa Bonita · beach35 min drive · 18 mi
- Playa San Juan · beach11 min drive · 5.2 mi
- Ferry to Playa del Carmen · excursion4 min drive · 1.4 mi
- Punta Sur Eco Beach Park · nature50 min drive · 22 mi
- Playa San Martín · beach30 min drive · 15 mi
- Playa La Caletita · beach2 min drive · 0.8 mi
- Playa Casitas · beach4 min drive · 2.1 mi
- Cozumel Sign · viewpoint4 min drive · 2.0 mi
- Cozumel Planetarium Cha'an Ka'an · museum6 min drive · 2.6 mi
- Caleta Marina · marina8 min drive · 3.2 mi
- Playa Paradise (Cozumel) · beach20 min drive · 8.3 mi
- Playa Mezcalitos · beach20 min drive · 10 mi
- Selvas y Humedales de Cozumel Reserve · nature20 min drive · 9.6 mi
- Mirador Chumul · viewpoint25 min drive · 13 mi
- Laguna Colombia · nature35 min drive · 16 mi
- El Mirador (Km 31) · viewpoint40 min drive · 20 mi
Amenities
Seaweed & sargassum
Cozumel gets sargassum, typically worst May through August, and mostly on the east coast.See the month-by-month guide →Google Reviews★ 4.2 · 3,495 reviews
“Good snorkeling outside of the hotel. The quite nice beachclub/area could use a changing room, toilet and showercurtain. The bikes cant be used in the evenings, which sucks if you don't use the all-inclusive option. This is a problem as there is not...”
“Enjoyed my stay here; the food was limited in options (which can be a good thing for those that can’t handle too many options). The staff is friendly, the man-made beach is secluded with some amazing views of the cruise ships and a wicked sunset view...”
“Just on my last day of a six night stay at Hotel Cozumel and Resort. Here are my pros and cons. Pros: Very clean - the rooms, the grounds, the pool. Also food safety is solid. Snorkeling - an amazing spot to snorkel just off the resort. You will see...”
