Lawman:
I checked Trip Advisor Cozumel and the people there made Reef Club sound like
Hell on earth. If they're right I should cancel right now and take the loss.
A guy I know was just there and said it was fine. Other people say it's better than before and love it. What I'm looking for is someone that was there recently and can tell me 1. The condition of the beach. Is it destroyed, under repair or what? 2. Food.
Should we plan on the buffet or on going out? Is it Army food or better? 3. Is the hotel safe ie: not contaminated food, sewage smells, etc? 4. Is a $300 upgrade to a ocean view room worth it? 5. Is construction noise a problem? Are some locations better than others? What should I ask for?
I trust the opinions of ScubaBoard people over other sites. What do you think?
Well, if you ask 20 people, you're likely to get 20 answers. Opinions are highly subjective and relative to individual experiences.
I can't answer all of your questions because I haven't stayed there (since I live here), but I have had many divers stay there:
The beach is fine - NOTHING (that comes immediately to mind) is still destroyed - it's been over a year and the people of Cozumel busted their buts to get things put back together ASAP. With VERY few exceptions, everything is back to normal or better than before Wilma.
Reef Club food has never been good. I actually have eaten there when I was invited by the manager. Anyone who has high expectations of AI food will be disappointed. It's bland, boring and repetitive and often includes leftovers.
Cozumel is a safe island, period. AS far as stuff being contaminated...contrary to the AMerican mentality, Mexico does have health regulations and safety standards. If it was contaminated, it wouldn't be open. Tourism is out livlihood and no one wants the tourists to get sick, so necessary precautions are taken. You're just as likely to get sick in the states from bad food as you are here.
Don't drink the tap water anywhere on the island though. I shower and brush my teeth with it daily, and have for 6 years without problems. Anytime you ask for water ina restaurant or at the hotel, even if served in a glass, it's going t be purified/filtered water...same with the ice.
I can't speak from 1st hand experience, but I don't think any hotel on the island would warrant a $300 upgrade...so I would say no on that, especially for the Reef CLub, where the buildings are more like cabanas and none of them get a true full frontal ocean view. You may get an ocean front cabana...but not worth an upgrade IMO.
Finally, despite what people THINK, the Reef CLub DOES NOT have a pier. There is a pier at the north end of the property, but it belongs to Sand Dollar Sports, the onsite dive shop. They built it, paid for it and maintain it and justifiably so, charge for it's use. The pier fee is $2 per diver per day. I give my divers the option of covering this fee, wading out waist deep to the boat and jumping on from shore, or being picked up at one of our designated pick-up points (which we also pay for).
Hope this helps.
BTW...FWIW...IMO...there are better options.
