We just returned from a wonderful week at Iberostar Cozumel with a group of 12 which included 40-50 year old adults and teenagers. This was our second experience at an Iberostar property. The grounds were gorgeous and well maintained. Lots of wildlife! The pool areas were large and while the chairs filled up quickly, the pools never felt crowded. One of the reasons we chose Iberostar again was the food, and it did not disappoint! The snack shack at the pool area was open daily 10ish-5ish and had burgers, hot dogs, fries, chips and guac, assorted fruits, and salads. The chicken salad with blue cheese and apples was my favorite. The buffets (breakfast/lunch/dinner) always had a huge selection of items that changed daily. Our absolute favorite was the night they had a fresh crepe station with a girl making crepes that you could top with chocolate, peanut butter, strawberries, mascarpone, whipped cream, bananas, nuts, etc. The best desert of the week! We also really enjoyed the smokehouse and Mexican restaurants. Wait staff and bartenders were a pleasure. Everyone was kind and friendly. The show each evening was entertaining (the performers were outstanding) and my youngest looked forward to them each night.
I can only think of a few things to improve. They seem to be short staffed-- there weren't any waiters serving drinks around the pool regularly. I saw one server maybe once or twice all week. So you had to get in the pool or go up to the beach bar, which seemed to always have a few people in line. Another negative-- we stayed in the Presidential suite which had its own private pool. Unfortunately there is a huge ceiba tree next to the house which caused huge, fluffy white puffs of fibers to literally rain down from it all day. By afternoon, the pool was filled with them. I did call to have the pool cleaned and the staff was there very quickly. By the end of the week, it looked like it had snowed, the fibers completely covered the grass in the pool area. We learned the second day that the huge white puffs triggered my daughter's seasonal allergies, which left her stuffy and uncomfortable. What stinks is that there aren't many of these trees around the resort, so the one next to the Presidential suite is unfortunate, causes a huge mess, and may cause some guests to be sick. We also had a negative experience by the pool one morning. A couple that we were with went to breakfast, while we went snorkeling at the pier. When we met back up at the pool, an older woman had taken their towels and shoes off their chairs, and placed them on the ground so that she and her husband could set up on their chairs. The older woman admitted to moving their things because they were empty for an hour, but refused to move as she felt that made her entitled to their seats because they left for breakfast. This is no fault of the resort, but something to watch out for. We ended up sharing our chairs with the couple, didn't let the poor actions of an individual ruin the beautiful day, and enjoyed the rest of the evening.
We did one snorkeling excursion with Adrian Cozumel (came recommended on Facebook) and he was great! Very kind, thoughtful, and great with the kids. He took us to two great snorkeling spots (too windy for el Cielo so he made a last-minute change) and he even took tons of pictures and video and sent them to us for no extra charge. The boat was very nice and since it was just our group, we had plenty of room.
Overall, another great time at an Iberostar property. I would definitely recommend this resort. The variety of animals on the grounds, the pools, the food, the accommodations, housekeeping, entertainment, were all wonderful.
