The Reef Coco Beach

The hotel is not the same as pictured in the brochure...the beach is 60% smaller than shown, at least 10-15 fishing boats in front of the swimming area, rocks, and weeds, and both sides open to the public, ocean view is visible when the wind blows the palm trees out of the way, the food is repetitive after 3 days and small selection, $3 surcharge for the a la carte, very poor access to the (one) bathroom, no beach/pool bar service, upgrade to ocean view gets you just that and no access to the beach bar which is an extra $20 per person per day, poor entertainment, staff is great, especially the housekeeping, rooms are ok, pay for the in room safe and lucky to get a coffee maker, no king bed. no stores ,vendors or medical that I saw. I have been all over Mexico and by far this was the poorest hotel for what they charge and the rating is false.....no more than a 2.5 stars. [Details]

Overall the experience was very good. The hotel was very clean and maintained. The staff were generally very friendly and helpful. Oscar, Victor and Jorge at the pool bar were all great. The only improvements needed would be more use of the disco and more events around the pool. [Details]

Very good staff from check in to checkout. Very clean resort including public washroom areas. Second time there and would go back again. Very close to 5th Ave. [Details]

On arrival, no rooms available and that was after we were 7 hours delayed. They upgraded us to "suites" for the night but then we had to change rooms the following morning. In the suite, the shower took 15mins to go from cold to lukewarm. They charge for everything including he in room safe and internet access. Only two a la carte restaurants and one you have to pay 6$ per person. [Details]

very good resort.everything was up to our standard. have no complaints. [Details]

Here are a few points:
-Food is good/wait staff was excellent
-Pool is nice/cool water
-Drinks are good/pay $18US for premium for 24 hours
-Beds at the beach are a nice touch but pillows were filthy (bring your towel)
-beach is very small/no chairs unless u get up with the sun
-boats weren't an issue until they start going -then you get a wiff of gasoline
-rooms are clean (stains on the sheets a couple of times)
-There are seagulls EVERYWHERE pooping on everything around the hotel. Don't drop a french fry or you will be in trouble. I'm not exagerating! The hotel needs to address the bird problem!!
-The hotel staff are excellent (William is the best bartender ever)
-the shows are typical (Micheal Jackson, magician...)
-the weather was perfect but extremely humid/hot
-5th avenue is a great shopping trip
-the Sunwing Rep is nowhere to be found when you have a problem/emergency as we did
-we had to get taken to another resort due to a blown pipe in our room (the entire floor heaved up/smashed tiles)thought there was an earthquake. Long story short.

I wouldn't recommend this hotel until they take care of the bird problem and do some piping maintenance. [Details]

The weather was great, however I booked the upgraded package and that did not happen!!!
The first three days they changed my room. They charged me for the safe which was to be included if we wanted to use the al a carte restaurant we had to pay.
room #1 beside the lobby and was being painted could hardly breath when I walked in and was so noisy could not sleep first night( I found out everyone who stays in that room moves the second night due to noise.
The second night they moved me to a pool view room no bar no bathrobes no coffee maker still did not have upgraded bracelt recieved at 5pm that day the bracelet.
The third day they moved me to another room being painted I complain they gave me another room, still no coffee maker, bar, bathrobes. so they brought one.
Ihe toilet was broke the shower did not drain we called front desk but they never fixed it my boyfriend fixed the tub the toilet we used a bucket to flush.
We still never received the room we paid for which were very nice too bad I guess the other guests that bought premuim were having some same issues.

This is the first time I have had an issues with hotel. or tour operator in over 15 trips.
The management was not concerned,
I would say this was the worst treatment I have ever received
I was basically told to suck it up.
I have never complained before but as they say there is always A FIRST TIME.
too bad this could be a great place if management was more engaged [Details]

Great proximity to town, long secluded beach, great staff!! [Details]

Was a more family orientated resort. Quiet at night. No free wifi/internet which was a first for us. Never have we had to pay for a wifi password before. The staff was amazing and more than accommodating! Beach was okay but littered with debris to either side of the resort. All in all it was just okay. [Details]

Lots of things to love about The Reef Coco Beach. Great location (only minutes from 5th Avenue), always a place to eat at (whether it's the snack bar, or buffet), VERY children friendly (activities every day for the kids and the activities staff were very friendly and enjoyable), housekeeping was immaculate, front desk staff was great. David, the bell boy, was always willing to help you out. Private beach in front of the resort, so no Mexican sellers hassling you on the beach either, that was a huge change from Puerto Vallarta. They have their own photographer there, he did a wonderful job on the beach shoot I had done. My common-law and I had a couple's massage done at the Ya'ax Spa in the resort, and that was wonderful as well. If you're looking for a smaller resort in Playa Del Carmen that is close to downtown, this is definitely the place for you. If there is something that you're not happy with, just tell them, and they will do their very best to make your stay as enjoyable as can be. Not all of the staff members could speak English though, so that was really the only bad thing I have to say about it, and that's such a minor thing as there are always other staff members to help you out if needed. Great place for young couples as well, like my common-law and I, there are a few different bars, including a sport's bar that turns into a disco at 10:30 PM. [Details]

The hotel was great staff was amazing and rooms were super clean. Will for sure be back to this hotel [Details]

Our flights, both inbound and outbound, were on time - with champagne service as promised. The Reef Coco Bay is a wonderfully clean hotel with amazing service. We travelled in September, so the weather was overcast most days. Our room was very clean as was the entire facility. There was always someone cleaning or painting or doing maintenance. The staff were all immaculate in white uniforms. The food was very good, hot and tasty. You did not require a reservation for the specialty restaurants. The staff in all the restaurants were very attentive and helpful. The beach was ok, but snorkelling wasn't possible - possibly due to the time of year, and the sand being stirred up. We could walk along the beach into town - about 15 minutes walk, or take a taxi for $5 US. We did book a trip to Tulum through our rep. and the trip ran very smoothly. We participated in the pool volleyball, and the entertainment people were always trying to get people to participate in activities. The nightly entertainment was pretty touristy, and not quite our thing, so we opted for a walk on the beach after dinner. The only negative (and this is not a hotel issue) but some of the South American guests, who travel in tribes, tend to be loud and don't believe in waiting in line for anything. They tended to only be there at the weekend though. Overall one of the best hotels I've stayed at - and will definitely return to the Reef. I travelled with my daughter, and always felt safe, both in Playa Del Carmen and at the resort. [Details]

This is our second stay with Coco Bay and it just keeps getting better. You don't need reservations for the special dinners any more you can go as many times as you want. All the staff are very friendly,treat them like you want to be treated, one day a lady came to the beach and the chair she got was broken, the security on duty noticed and quickly brought her a new chair, she tried to tip him but he refused to take the money he just wanted her to be comfortable, what a gentlemen. We walked to town a couple of times and my wife even went to town on her own and felt very safe. Please remember this is not a luxury resort it is small and they do have boats anchored off shore because the reef protects them but those are a couple of reasons why we love it here. Small, clean, friendly and right on the beach! Can't wait to return next year. [Details]

Just returned from our family vacation at Grand Coco Bay we have 2 children under 7. This resort suited us very well not too large and fancy, but friendly and convienietly located close to town. We enjoyed walking into town by beach and by street. We were given a room with lovely ocean view but despite conversation with front dest about a quiet location it was right above the disco in the resort's sports bar, so after our first loud night we were moved without issue to a ground floor ocean front room, this was much quieter and we loved the view and the ease of bieng right on the beach. Resort was safe, friendly and buffet food mostly good with enough choices for all the family. The 2 restaurants were both very good and we did not need to reserve. Room was clean, pool clean children spent most of day in the pool hot tubs were same temp as pool. had no problem finding sun bed by the pool or beach. We loved the beach, nice soft sand, clear warm water, despite the boats in front of the hotel if you dared to snorkel past the boats out to the reef the snorkeling was fantastic - husband said he saw more fish here than at Xel-Ha!!
Activities/entertainment were low key, there was a few good shows/dancing. [Details]

Food and Staff GREAT!!! Badly needs updating. Upon arrival one light fixture broken, Two burnt out, bathroom faucet loose and towel rack loose and hanging. Beach good. Close to Playa and shopping. Would return if price is right. Not a 4 star. Small resort everything close at hand. [Details]

hotel was as expected, very clean but little bit older, but is in very good location. It has everything what we expected, we will go back definitely. [Details]

great if you get a very good price, ok location in Playa del Carmen, 5th Ave is a pain and I tried to avoid due to aggressive store owners, food at buffet was pretty good and changed every day, grounds are kept very clean, lots of lounges by pool and beach, drinks could be better, friendly staff, internet much too expensive and lacks wifi which is a major draw back [Details]

The answer to this question will decide whether or not you want to go to the Grand Coco Bay Resort (GCB). I have been to other all-inclusive resorts in Cancun so my point-of-view may help.
If you're looking for a place to go and party like mad then GCB is NOT the place for you. This resort is much more family-orientated. The sports bar is the last to close around 2 am. This bar is located on the second level next to the 2 themed restaurants close to the beach so it is a stroll from the majority of the rooms - and it is on the 2nd level which means a very LONG STAIRCASE to go up or down. Wouldn't advise negotiating it when intoxicated; have a glow on, ok, but not drunk.
This means that the lobby bar and dining are bar are closed relatively early. Somewhat inconvenient as I would like to be able to sit and chill in the lobby talking with the friends that we met to have a beverage before heading up to bed. Personal thing, to be sure.
But, unlike a lot of resorts in Cancun where there is at least one bar open until the wee hours of the morning (usually a lobby bar), this means that partying to the sun rises is not going to happen unless you BYOB to GCB and sit on the pool deck.
This leads me to the next point. The pool closes at 8 pm! The pool's submerged lights are on until about 11 pm but out you go at 8 pm. Ditto for the whirlpool. Even for someone like me who didn't go there to party, this is ridiculous. There isn't a lifeguard on duty at all during the day time so cost cannot be the rationale for closing things down so early but the security personnel will politely, but firmly, ask that you get out of the pool. To my mind, this has to change. Make it 'adults only' (i.e. over 16) after 8 pm until 11 pm or don't have a closing time at all. Getting drunk and drowning can happen in the day time (unlikely because there is always someone around the pool during the day) but I'm guessing that the liability issue is what concerns the owners. Waivers can be a part of the documents that you sign upon checking-in when, presumably, you're stone-cold sober.
Related to this is the hot tub. There is one, honest, there is. But, it is in the section reserved for black wristbands only – what those wristbands imply I don't know – and by reserved I mean that there is a low, wooden fence with a gate in it to demarcate this area from the rest of the second level rooms. The hot tub is located right out in front of one of these ‘reserved' area rooms so visiting it can elicit some venomous looks from the occupiers of this elite area. Not very friendly and not very well situated, in my opinion.
Back to the bars. As I've mentioned, there is the lobby, sports and dining room bar and a swim-up pool bar. Note that I didn't mention a beach bar because there isn't one! When on the beach, you have to go to the buffet, dining room bar which is located at the end of the pool closest to the beach in order to get a drink whether it is alcoholic or not. Okay, who am I kidding! It's a bit of a stroll to get a cold one! This is in spite of the fact that there is a small, empty building on the far end of the beach that was totally empty and could be used, an area where massages are given about the mid-point of the beach area where I saw only 1 couple receiving a massage upon our arrival during the entire week (BTW, the massages are done while nude with a towel covering the private areas and people walk by the massage area to get to the beach – not for me and I'm not a prude, honest!) and at the other end of the GCB building where the water sports are stored there is a place there for the beach bar. My vote, and the informal poll that I conducted while there with other beach-goers supports me, was to get rid of the massage area and put the beach bar there. Some changes would have to be made to open the area up but it would be well worth it. I've already touched on the rest of the bars except for the swim-up pool bar. I love this type of bar, I really do! And the physical arrangement to swim up to it was great. However, the bar has 2 levels – one on a level with the pool deck and the lower one on level with the pool stools. As the pool deck area is directly across from the snack bar and services the majority of pool-side patrons, it can be a wait until one of the staff notices that you're down in the pool. In addition, the alcohol supply is only on the pool deck level where the 2 staff members are located. These workers are BUSY throughout the entire time that the pool bar is open. A third person on the pool level or who helps out on the upstairs but focuses on the pool level might be a good idea.
This leads me to my next point: the staff. One word: GREAT! Friendly, helpful, fun. From the grounds workers to the servers to the entertainment staff to those who take care of the rooms. All great! If you can't speak Spanish (like me), then you can still make yourself understood; they may not all have a good command of English but they get the point.
Vacationers at GCB come mostly from other parts of Mexico – the vast majority, I would say are citizens of the country. For me and my fiancée, not a problem. But some tourists did. If this is going to be an issue for you, do NOT go to GCB. Enough said. Aside from Canadians and Americans, there are quite a few Europeans: Dutch, Italian and French being the predominant countries with a few Eastern Europeans. We found everyone to be friendly and easy to get along with.
Food is the next issue. I use the word ‘issue' with cause because this is a personal assessment. I spoke to some Europeans and their opinion of the food was, well, it's unprintable. Derogatory, to say the least. Same for other Canadians that we met. Now this is where it comes to a personal assessment. I've been to Cancun and other, much more expensive resorts and, yes, the food there was far better than that at CGB. No question. But did you catch my descriptor for the resorts? “Much more expensive” You aren't going to get lobster and shrimp, you aren't going to get haute cuisine (except for one themed restaurant) but the food is well prepared, has quite a variety and we thought was quite good. Breakfast buffet was almost the same as at the more expensive resorts, same goes for the lunch and dinner buffets minus the lobster and shrimp. The snack bar was actually quite impressive and a lot of people obtained their lunches through this venue. Pizza, good fresh sandwiches, quesadillas, chicken wings, chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, French fries, nachos are the things that I can remember and a LOT of the patrons were lined up there throughout the day. Really, very good.
The two, themed restaurants are Italian and Mexican. Now, even though GCB is billed as an all-inclusive resort, you are only supposed to attend these restaurants once each during a week-long stay. Some people weren't impressed with this and I can see the concern. Having said that, I've been to expensive all-inclusive resorts in the Dominican Republic where the finest restaurants were similarly restricted. Again, an example of you get what you're paying for and I don't mean that in a negative way. The Italian restaurant is quite good but the fare is nothing that you cannot get at a good restaurant here at home. Fair enough. But the Mexican restaurant took us by surprise. This is close to haute cuisine, in our opinion. Only one Tex-Mex item on the menu – fajitas. The rest were all dishes from across Mexico. The soups were excellent, the octopus carpaccio was phenomenal and the entrees all looked, smelled and the ones we had tasted excellent. We highly recommend this restaurant to those who want to explore good food!
The building itself is somewhat older – I would guess was constructed in the late 70's or 80's. But, it is still in good shape and they do maintain it. Our room was exactly what we needed – a place to lay our heads, shower, etc. – and the A/C worked very well and kept our room nice and cool. The only drawback was the water pressure in the shower. Made taking a shower a challenge, to say the least. The stopper for the tub was also in need of repair but I managed to get it to work for a soak when needed. Again, a challenge. We would've preferred a queen-size bed rather that the two doubles but we made do. The room has a small fridge with 2 Mexican beers and 4 sodas which are free. They are replenished every second day but, for a fee, can be restocked earlier. Why someone would is beyond me but there it is. Rooms are clean, tidy and attended to each day.
To get into town taxis are available for $5 – they took US and CDN at par while we were there. You can walk it if you're so inclined (we did) but if you're loaded down with items from the pedestrian shopping mall in Playa del Carmen (a great place!) then the taxi is an option. No worries about getting ripped off. They all take the most direct route and the fee is fixed.
Entertainment. Nightly shows in the theatre in the main building – don't mix the Mexican night, we did as we were on an excursion and it sounded like great fun! – which is mostly dance shows (very good) and there was a comedy night (didn't go but heard that it was quite good) and a casino night (3 tables) with pretend money. The sports bar has karaoke a couple of nights in a week and has big screen TV's and a projection TV for sports. As an aside, the walkway outside of the sports bar was one of our favorite spots for a night-time drink – a beautiful view of the ocean and a wonderfully, cool breeze blowing in!
Tipping. Yes, it is expected but no one is pushy on the subject. We tipped when we thought it was appropriate and it was appreciated.
Beach. It is not very wide but there is more than enough room for the daily afternoon volleyball game - you gotta play! - but some thought that it was too small. There are also boats moored just offshore - about 50 m (150 ft). The boats are there and NOWHERE else along the beach and they don't all belong to GCB. My thought is that GCB rents out the moorings for some extra income but that is only my guess. Some people really didn't like the boats being there. My fiancee wasn't too thrilled about it but it didn't bother me much. I could still swim out for a good enough distance and, if you wanted to, the moorings can be 'rest stations' along the way - just be careful! I don't recommend it but I saw some swimmers doing this. As the waves are very calm compared to Cancun, body surfing wasn't possible so, for me, the boats weren't an issue.
To go back to the initial question, if you're looking for a quieter, relaxing place to go which is good value for your money, we recommend GCB. [Details]

This is a four star hotel which punches well above its weight. Too bad that a five star rating is reserved for only the bigger monsters.
This is a small intimate hotel that does everything right. Extremely clean, young friendly staff, great food (who needs a million food options), everything is close by, entertainment shows had professional dancers as well as improvs by the the activities staff.

All the beaches in this area are suffering erosion, so its not the fault of this hotel if the beach isn't quite what the picture looks like. [Details]

Hotel was small and never seemed "busy". Staff make an effort to get people involved - but it is quite small.

food-wise - the buffet is small but always has at least one edible thing.
The Italian restaurant wasn't particularly good. The mexican restaurant was quite tasty. [Details]

This hotel is a 3 1/2 star at best. The food, especially in the buffet, and the comfortable beds may be responsible for the higher rating. The rooms were kept clean, but were in dire need of upgrading. Our bathroom flooded 3 times, the dresser drawers wouldn't work as the tracks were bent, and one of the sliding closet doors was stuck. When problems were taken to management, workmen were sent but the problem with bathroom continued. We believe they do the best they can with an aging facility.
Views from our oceanview room gave us wonderful sights of the Caribbean ocean as well as the pools.
The food quality and variety were excellent. We didn't tire of the selections in the two weeks we were there. Wait staff, especially Orbelin and Gabriella, were friendly and efficient.
Pools were cleaned constantly and grounds were well maintained.
Entertainment staff worked hard to provide fun for all. Evening entertainment was excellent, with professional shows brought in several times a week. [Details]

Lets start with the positive. Great location on a very, very long white sand beach. Within walking distance to Playa del Carmen town with a vibrant shoping and restaurant district. Hotel room is clean and basic. Airconditioning works well. Food is excellent. Buffet better than a la cart restaurants which is typical of all inclusives. The negative are the bar areas in the loby and near the rstaurants. They have poor atmosphere and are very loud. The evening shows are very poor (lip sink). No original singing or dancing and the shows start at 07:30 which is dinner time. Biggest issue are the boats anchored around the small beach area of this hotel only. The beach is being polluted by gasiline and oil from these boats. Only surrounding this hotel. [Details]

Very disappointed with beach and lack of chairs around pool and beach area. Staff was ok. Front desk reception staff not good other staff were good but did not seem to want to get you involved in any activites. Food was mediocre. Will not be back [Details]

Overall the experience was great had an awesome trip, friendly staff, and a very busy resort so easy to get food and drinks. [Details]

We arrived a little tired after a full day of travelling, but the hotels snack bar was still open after 11:00pm so we got a hamburgersa con caso and some fries and a cervaza. The hotel was overbooked thurs and friday so we were offered a chance to move over to Sandos Playacar 5* and was even better. HobieCat, beach area bigger, would be worth a little more cost at time of booking ($200 - $300) back to Coco Bay, you noticed the difference, but the staff more than made up for it. Happy [Details]

Overall a nice resort. Quiet for Xmas vacation which was great. Food was good, especially the Italian a la carte. Staff was very friendly and helpful. The only two negative things I can say is that there was no coffee machine in our room; they only provide one for the oceanview rooms and the bar in the main lobby doesn't open until 5pm. I would definitely return. [Details]

Very nice hotel, beach is nice but very narrow, all was very nice, the food and the staff. [Details]

First night there we arrived late. Got into my room which was not the ocean view I had upgraded for. Was too late to do anything about it that night. The comforter on the bed was literately crawling with miniscule insects. The next morning when I complained they said I could "upgrade" to an ocean front which I did but had to pay them more money. Not too pleased. [Details]

Wouldn't recemend this resort although for what we paid it was ok.would defiantly pay a little extra and stay somewhere nicer.the food was ok not the greatest if you are a picky eater.beach was very small with few loungers.you had to get a chair by 8 or you would not get one.the service was good would defiantly not rate it as a 4.5 star resort maybe a 3. Overall had a good time! [Details]

The beach is great and it is a walk to 5th avenue so it's pretty quiet. The staff were good but the rooms are dated and basic. The lounge chairs were plentiful but worn. We had small bugs in the bathroom and we could not open the balcony door without bugs coming in. I think we could have done better and would recommend only if you get a good deal. [Details]