Trip Report on Hotel Barracuda

[waynel]

Hotel Barracuda is exactly what I thought it would be. A roof, bed and window unit AC. It hasn't changed since I first saw this hotel in 1988. I spent the past 15 years diving with my dear departed wife in Coz and I can just say this...no way would she have stayed in Hotel Barracuda. If you have a wife that dives with you (or not) but views your trip as more than just diving, then this is not your place. No phones in the room, no flat screen TV, 2 towels but no smaller hand towels, no shampoo, coffee maker, hair dryer, room safe, etc. It's simply a bed, an old tv and window unit. Perfect for the "dive bum" I've become since my wife's passing. Upon check in, I had to switch rooms because my room door wouldn't stay shut or locked. In fact, it was one hinge away from falling off completely. Hot water is a gamble. Only one night with no hot water, but there was another night with no water at all. The front desk? "Maintenance will be here at 8am to fix it." If you want to put your passport, cash etc. in a safe it goes in the safe behind the front desk. It's $1 US every time you take something out. It's posted on a sign. What's not posted is that when you check out...it's $2 to get your stuff. The ants in the hallway and a few in your room aren't too bad and a little guy comes around about 8am to sweep them up (saw that on my no fly day). The No Name Bar downstairs is where many of the American expats hang out. Mike, the owner and Jane, the main bartender are great to party with. Mike once owned the French Quarter restaurant in Coz where my wife and I frequented often. He sold it, got bored and bought the No Name. And Mike knows EVERY American who owns a business (dive ops, restaurants etc.) in Cozumel. You might read a ton on websites about moving to Cozumel, but if you want to know what it's like to live in Cozumel (like I'm considering) that is the place to get all your info...starting a business, buying a house, possible job prospects (just about zero for at least a year)?Mike will tell you the real deal, right down to what the fine is for a DWI in Cozumel. But as for Hotel Barracuda, like I said, perfect for a dive bum like me and....cheap, cheap. Cost me (on Expedia) $1,000 for the room and to fly from south Louisiana for seven nights. About 1/3 of the cost when my wife and I stayed in the "real resorts". Bright side? That means I can take 3 trips a year to Coz!! Unless I get a new girlfriend

 

[drrich2]

Appreciate the review. I was a little curious about it in case I ever make it down for a week. I think part of a successful week is calibrating one's expectations to what the destination offers and picking the right hotel and operator. This helps.

 

[uncfnp]

Hotel Barracuda is exactly what I thought it would be. A roof, bed and window unit AC. It hasn't changed since I first saw this hotel in 1988. I spent the past 15 years diving with my dear departed wife in Coz and I can just say this...no way would she have stayed in Hotel Barracuda. If you have a wife that dives with you (or not) but views your trip as more than just diving, then this is not your place. No phones in the room, no flat screen TV, 2 towels but no smaller hand towels, no shampoo, coffee maker, hair dryer, room safe, etc. It's simply a bed, an old tv and window unit. Perfect for the "dive bum" I've become since my wife's passing. Upon check in, I had to switch rooms because my room door wouldn't stay shut or locked. In fact, it was one hinge away from falling off completely. Hot water is a gamble. Only one night with no hot water, but there was another night with no water at all. The front desk? "Maintenance will be here at 8am to fix it." If you want to put your passport, cash etc. in a safe it goes in the safe behind the front desk. It's $1 US every time you take something out. It's posted on a sign. What's not posted is that when you check out...it's $2 to get your stuff. The ants in the hallway and a few in your room aren't too bad and a little guy comes around about 8am to sweep them up (saw that on my no fly day). The No Name Bar downstairs is where many of the American expats hang out. Mike, the owner and Jane, the main bartender are great to party with. Mike once owned the French Quarter restaurant in Coz where my wife and I frequented often. He sold it, got bored and bought the No Name. And Mike knows EVERY American who owns a business (dive ops, restaurants etc.) in Cozumel. You might read a ton on websites about moving to Cozumel, but if you want to know what it's like to live in Cozumel (like I'm considering) that is the place to get all your info...starting a business, buying a house, possible job prospects (just about zero for at least a year)?Mike will tell you the real deal, right down to what the fine is for a DWI in Cozumel. But as for Hotel Barracuda, like I said, perfect for a dive bum like me and....cheap, cheap. Cost me (on Expedia) $1,000 for the room and to fly from south Louisiana for seven nights. About 1/3 of the cost when my wife and I stayed in the "real resorts". Bright side? That means I can take 3 trips a year to Coz!! Unless I get a new girlfriend

I am a dive bum but even I wouldn't accept those standards. Thanks for the honest heads up warning.

 

[waynel]

Appreciate the review. I was a little curious about it in case I ever make it down for a week. I think part of a successful week is calibrating one's expectations to what the destination offers and picking the right hotel and operator. This helps.

Well glad I could help. See my separate post about BlueXT Sea. What I didn't mention about them is the SIT. It was always on the beach. Last year I dove with Dive with Martin. For our surface interval, they kept us on the boat just 100 yards away from the pier where ALL the six pack boats dock for their SIT. I mean if the dock was surrounded by boats, they just pulled up and tied off to one another. All the captains and guides would get off their boats and go sit under a grove of palm trees. They've even built some benches out of fallen palms. And of course, we, the divers could get out, play in the water, go up into the jungle to "do our business", etc. One of the advantages of hiring a six pack boat is exactly that...you can do your SIT on the beach. Now, the big "cattle boats" with 16-20 divers can't do that. They are too big. You just float when you do your SIT. But a fast, six-pack? No excuse for not docking. I will never, never dive with Dive with Martin because of that. Only thing I can think of, last year, is that our guide didn't get along with the guides from the other ops and didn't want to dock. Does doing your SIT on the beach with a fast little boat matter? Hell yes! You'll pay more for a fast six-pack boat, and valet service (they store your gear and have it ready for you in the morning) and you absolutely should expect your SIT to be on the beach. Ask them, and to be fair I was astounded Dive with Martin didn't dock. I've been using six packs in Coz for 15 years. If you book a small boat (even if your first dive is Columbia Deep, way south) you should be on the beach for your surface interval.

 

[Streydog]

Couple questions on Hotel Barracuda. How are the beds, I have read mixed reviews on them? What about noise after 10 PM or so? Are there decent chairs on the balconies?

 

[Trailboss123]

Couple questions on Hotel Barracuda. How are the beds, I have read mixed reviews on them? What about noise after 10 PM or so? Are there decent chairs on the balconies?

Do yourself a favor and stay here - Suites Colonial Cozumel
Dive here: Blue XT~Sea Diving - Cozumel Scuba Diving - Blue Xt Sea Diving
FYI @drrich2 If you want to go a bit more upscale on Cozumel, Cozumel Palace is not down south- it is basically located downtown and Aldora and Blue XT Sea will pick you up there.

 

[drrich2]

My only 2 Cozumel dives were via cruise ship, the 1 stop of 3 where weather didn't shut me out. I keep thinking about maybe someday dedicating a week there. If I came alone, I think I'd consider Casa Mexicana (keep reading good things, like good included breakfast buffet if memory serves) or maybe Blue Angel Resort, or if bringing the wife, now 4-year old daughter (& maybe mother-in-law), maybe Hotel Cozumel.

Every time I look into the cost of a Cozumel Palace stay I blanch.

Hotel Barracuda sounds like a fine place for the cheapest stay. When I look at it, the old adage about being 'penny wise and pound foolish' comes up. What do I get for that modest added cost to stay at another place? Reviews like the OP posted help answer that.

But the answer varies for everyone. We have a similar conversation when talking about Blackbeard's vs. Juliet live-aboards, and on Bonaire I've stayed once at Dive Hut instead of Buddy Dive Resort for just such a reason - cost containment.

Richard.

 

[scrane]

The Barracuda has never been perfect, but it is cheap and on the water. What had been a nice quiet setting has been transformed into a loud, obnoxious playground for overage adolescents thanks to the No Name Bar.

 

[ggunn]

Every time I look into the cost of a Cozumel Palace stay I blanch.

Hotel Barracuda sounds like a fine place for the cheapest stay. When I look at it, the old adage about being 'penny wise and pound foolish' comes up. What do I get for that modest added cost to stay at another place? Reviews like the OP posted help answer that.

That's one reason why I love Blue Angel; it's in the middle. It's more expensive than Barracuda but less so than the Palace. It's south of town but less so than the southern resorts. The dive shop there is more expensive than the budget shops but less so than the boutique ops.

 

[ronscuba]

What are the room rates at Barracuda ? I usually stay at Suites Bahia when I want to stay downtown. Bahia is pretty cheap and includes the breakfast buffet at Casa Mexicana, TV, hot water, wifi internet.