Park Royal/ Iberostar????

[kwest]

Who would have thought I would be asking about all inclusives after backpacking around Southeast Asia, Nepal and Africa for a year before my son was born. But, now with child, we enjoy convenience. We liked the AI experience last year in Cozumel and will be back this January. Last time we stayed at the Wyndham, we'd kind of like something a little nicer, but Cozumel Palace is a bit out of our price range. Any comments on Park Royal or Iberstar would be appreciated, or if you have another favorite, I'm open. We already got a fantastic deal on airfare so are now just looking for a place to stay.

(((kevin)))

 

[cicopo]

I've stayed in both, but the Park Royal was under a different name & ownership then. They are very different properties & come with different pro's & cons. The Park Royal is close to town but the man made beach isn't really a beach & it's very small. The Iberostar is located on a very long beach but has a rocky section just below the waterline, but by using the pier or walking north a bit you have no entry / exit issues. Iberostar is small hut style buildings, Park Royal is like a big hotel. Park Royal has dress codes for some of it's restaurants, and I think some restrict bringing kids into them BUT I may be wrong about that.

 

[PARADISE HUNTER]

I've stayed twice at the Park Royal in the past two years and have many good things to say about it. Cicopo's comments are all correct. I'm not sure I would reccomend PR for a young child. How old is your son? Another issue with PR is the broken stone walk ways. They look great and are no problem for a adult walk on. But I think that a new walker or younger kids who run EVERYWHERE (I have two in that catagory) would end up with bloody knees fast.

Otherwise, for the money, the hotel is great. The location is great for both diving and going into town. The food is pretty good, the staff very friendly and the property is beautiful. It was completely rebuilt after Wilma and you can tell.

If I was going to Cozumel with my 5 and 7 year olds, I would first look at Allegro. We love a beach and I think they have the nicest. Lots of activities for kids.

Good luck and have fun.

PH

 

[soonerwink]

Was at the PR in June. Other than the rough walk paths, I think it is a great place for small children. They have a kids area with pool and slides. The small beach is shallow and perfect for small kids. There are a lot of rocks once you get into the water, so you do need water shoes or booties. They even have shows at night that the kids love. Even though it is closer to town, it is too far too walk both ways. It is also next door to Del Mar Aqautics dive shop. I didn't like the one associated with Park Royal. I have stayed at Allegra, and they do have a much larger beach, and a kids club and shows also. I will be staying at Park Royal again next year.

 

[kwest]

Thank you for the comments. My son is 6 and is entertained for hours just playing in the sand at the waterline. The picture of the Allegro's pool looks like a kids dream, but I haven't heard too many positive comments about them otherwise.

Although I feel Iberostar probably has a nicer beach and a more spread-out resort feel it is important for me to get in some night dives and Park Royal's location would make that a lot more manageable. Right now Park Royal is also about $1,000 cheaper, but since I'm not going until January I will hold off to see if any deals come up. Last time we just walked right in to the Wyndham without a reservation and got a great deal

(((kevin)))

 

[sugarkitty3733]

My boyfriend & I stayed at the Iberostar in August & we liked it so much that we're leaving this weekend to go again.
The pier has a step ladder to get in & out of the water about halfway out. There are many things to see but I have to state a small word of advice. The swimming area is roped in & before about 6ish in the evening you are not allowed to swim past the enclosed area or under the dock itself due to the number of boats in operation. But if you think your son would be adventurous enough, grab a couple of dive lights & get in the water after dinner for a night snorkel. We saw many lobsters, rays, loads of fish & even octopus about 8 feet off of the end of the dock. Lots of fun. The lifegaurd also told us that there are many rock free areas to swim just north of our beach. We took a walk that way & sure enough, he was spot on.
As far as our dives went, we went with Dive With Martin instead of the on site dive op. The prices for 5- 2/T dive days run about $275 & they pick you up at the dock & bring you back in time for lunch. The Dive With Martin staff are top notch!
Hope this might help a bit.

 

[ggunn]

Thank you for the comments. My son is 6 and is entertained for hours just playing in the sand at the waterline. The picture of the Allegro's pool looks like a kids dream, but I haven't heard too many positive comments about them otherwise.

Although I feel Iberostar probably has a nicer beach and a more spread-out resort feel it is important for me to get in some night dives and Park Royal's location would make that a lot more manageable. Right now Park Royal is also about $1,000 cheaper, but since I'm not going until January I will hold off to see if any deals come up. Last time we just walked right in to the Wyndham without a reservation and got a great deal

(((kevin)))

Night diving on your own is easy to do at the Park Royal, and if you're even a little bit adventurous you can get in there and drift to Villablanca or Blue Angel. The Iberostar is within the marine park, so technically you'll need a licensed DM to go with you if you shore dive there, but the PR is not in the park.

PR is also within cheap cab range to town.

 

[kdbeckstrom]

My husband and I have stayed at the Iberostar twice in the past year and had a great experience both times. Last trip I too was trying to decide between PR and Iberostar. I suspect you won't go wrong with either one. For us staying at a resort that doesn't resemble a hotel is always a plus. There were only a couples things about the IB I didn't care for - one was the rocky waterline and the other was the food. I think the food was probably no different than any other AI in Cozumel.

For our diving we used Dive with Alison instead of the onsite dive op. We heard good things about Dressel Divers, but never got around to diving with them. We just prefer small group dives.

 

[MMM]

I have a friend who has stayed twice at Park Royale. His kids are 2, 3 and 12 now and one year younger a year ago. His wife (non-diver) loved it and the kids cried this year when it was time to go home. As others have said, it's much closer to town and they went in several times for meals.

 

[sharky60]

I'd check into the Occidental Grand before staying at the other 2.

A couple friends of ours stayed at the Park Royal a couple of years ago when were on the island. We visited them on the site...it's very nice, but they said restaraunt waiting times were very long, it took them over an hour to get thier food for diner, EVERY NIGHT! AND if you went to the bar to get a water, they gave you a styrofoam cup of water...no ice, just 8oz. of water!!!! That ain't gonna last too long in the Mexican heat!! Also there were no refrigerators in the rooms, so you couldn't go buy some bottled water for yourself and keep it cold without having to go buy a cooler also and getting ice was a hassle, no ice machines on the hotel room levels.

some of this may have changed, but that's the way it was then.

As far as the Iberostar goes, I've heard it just really isn't that "diver friendly", they charge for other dive ops then their own to use their dock, they don't wan't you to hang scuba gear off the balcony to dry, (one guy said in a report that the room didn't even have enough space, so he hung his wetsuit off the tv!!)

We've stayed at the Occidental Grand and it was very nice!! the grounds are beautiful, the food was very good, not the same thing day in and day out on the buffets either, and it was only a 10 min. boat ride to the reef!!!

Drawbacks are there just isn't much to do at night and going to town will cost you about $20 one way by cab.

My personal choice would be to pass on the AI and find a nice place that meets your other needs closer to town and patronize the fine eating establishments in town. You really do yourself a disfavor if you don't eat in town some, there are many, many very good restaurants of all price ranges.

If you want a sort of mix of AI and non-AI, Blue Angel Resort (formerly Caribe Blu), is now offering breakfast and lunch on dive days as part of your dive/hotel package. They are now also serving diner and Eva has come up with some very nice selections for the diner menu.