El Cantil Contacts? Changing Venues....

[cowboyneal]

I've been staying at Casa Mexicana for my trips to Coz a long while and while I love it, their pricing is getting a little out of control. Where do I get a (st)deal at the El Cantil? Anyone have a good contact or website to reserve through? Gracias!

CN

 

[Christi]

I've been staying at Casa Mexicana for my trips to Coz a long while and while I love it, their pricing is getting a little out of control. Where do I get a (st)deal at the El Cantil? Anyone have a good contact or website to reserve through? Gracias!

CN

There are no special deals to be had at El Cantil. The rates are set and aren't really negotiable, especially during high season. The place is in high demand and rightfully so.

 

[cowboyneal]

Funny, I just got 2 emails with increasingly decreasing prices from 2 owners...go figure...guess you just have to know how to do it...it must be a New York thing...ha...

CN

 

[Christi]

Funny, I just got 2 emails with increasingly decreasing prices from 2 owners...go figure...guess you just have to know how to do it...it must be a New York thing...ha...

CN

You just have that special charm What size unit are you looking for?

I was told that due to contractual obligations, that even the owners have to rent for whatever the established rate is for their size unit. Sounds like that's no longer true...or it could have been BS all along

 

[scubawife]

Funny, I just got 2 emails with increasingly decreasing prices from 2 owners...go figure...guess you just have to know how to do it...it must be a New York thing...ha...

CN

If you're just looking at the "studio" units - a one bedroom lock-out of a larger unit, then you'll be better off staying with Casa Mexicana, or spend the $'s and check out the newly renovated El Presidente.

Any "deals" for El Cantil condo units will come directly from owners. If you do a Google search for "El Cantil Cozumel Sale" you'll get several owner's websites as well as rental agencies who book units contracted to them by owners. Find a unit you like and then email the agencies who lists that unit in their rentals and ask if they have any specials. Very often you'll get responses with prices lower then what's listed for some dates that they either have no interest in or historically don't get renters. (This works with all rentals pretty much everywhere, not just El Cantil)

I stayed at El Cantil earlier this month for the first time. I don't usually go for luxury accommodation on dive trips and based on what we got for our $$'s, I'm not so sure I'd stay at El Cantil again. What you're paying for really is the location - walk to pretty much everywhere in town, oceanfront with an great oceanfront view. And of course, the private jacuzzi on your private balcony (We had a very cool, rainy, windy week and it was great to step out to the jacuzzi right from the bedroom.) Nice if you plan to spend most of your non-diving time at the condo and like to eat some meals in. Otherwise, spend your money at a nice hotel

One caution with El Cantil - the unit you rent will only be well equipped if it's owner has chosen to equip it nicely. If there's something listed in the features of the unit that you know you will want, double check before booking and make sure they actually have it. Just because it's listed doesn't mean it will be there when you arrive.

The onsite staff is fantistic. Always friendly, nice people and they will help with anything at any opportunity (even came running 1/2 way up the block to help me with grocery bags the first day we were there). Before you can get some pesos out of your pocket for a tip, they're gone.

 

[scubawife]

You just have that special charm What size unit are you looking for?

I was told that due to contractual obligations, that even the owners have to rent for whatever the established rate is for their size unit. Sounds like that's no longer true...or it could have been BS all along

I'd say it's what building management likes to tell people so they rent through them. I don't know if it's the case in Cozumel, but in many destinations, building management will tell owners that they can't advertise discounted rates - post on a website, print ads etc. As long as the building gets the weekly fee for maid service and maintanence when the units are rented, they don't really care what the owner is getting.

 

[loudives]

Try www.vrbo.com

Stands for vacation rental by owner.

 

[cowboyneal]

What size unit are you looking for?

Excuuuuuussse me???? (bahahaaaaaa)...

Thanks Wife and Lou...that's where I found the owners direct on vrbo, through which I have rented places in the Bahamas, on Saba and a couple other places...great resource...Christi, you KNOW I have the charm (or I am just cheap but in a nice way, no one can figure out which...ha)...by the way, there is a great fare sale going on right now on all airlines, so it's a good time to book a flight and get down to Cozumel to visit all our (your) friends there!!!!!

 

[jayjoans]

Ok, so this thread got me wondering if I overpaid for a unit at El Cantil in Feb. I've looked at VRBO, and searched Google for the same size unit we have reserved. From everything I've seen, the prices I've found elsewhere are identical to the price listed on the El Cantil website.

I"m not sure there are deals to be had at the El Cantil, dealing directly with the owner or not. It may just be that some owners are more aggressively advertising their units on other sites that lead you to believe they are discounted.

Cowboyneal may have more info than I was able to gather on the net, but I'm satisfied dealing with El Cantil directly. The manager was also a great resource when I called and asked about the different units. With his input we chose a particular 4BR with flat screens in every bedroom, 3 kings and 2 twins (perfect for our group) in the north building so we would have unobstructed views of the ships and port rather than just a closeup view of the north building had we rented the unit in the south tower we were thinking about.

Don't forget the 12% hotel tax..