I stayed at the Fiesta Americana Grand Coral Beach for seven nights last April for a much needed vacation. I'd have to say that in terms of service, this is one of the best resorts I have ever stayed in (and I have stayed at several luxury resorts). I will present this review in different categories for easier reading.

LOCATION: Offering one of the most ideal locations in Cancun's hotel zone, the FAGCB is a short walk to the Forums by the Sea Mall, an entertainment center that offers several restaurants (Hard Rock Cafe, Rainforest Cafe, Carlos'n'Charlie's), a food court, retail outlets, as well as nightclubs (CoCo Bongo, Dady'O across the street). For the convention goers, the Cancun Convention Center is literally across the street from the hotel. There are also a few Mexican outlet stores within a short walking distance that sell handicrafts, jewelry, tequilla, souvenirs, etc. Also nearby are Playa Caracol where water taxis depart to Isla Mujeres, and the Xcaret terminal, where day excursions to Xcaret, Xel Ha, Chichen Itza and other tours can be purchased from. The location on the northern end of the strip also offers an amazing beach (more on that later) compared to others in the hotel zone. Yet inspite of its central location, the hotel manages to be very quiet at night, making it the perfect haven for relaxation.

CHECK-IN: Upon arriving at the porte cochere, I was greeted very warmly by the bell staff who offered to take my luggage. Check in was quick and efficient. The front desk agent who checked me in was friendly and welcoming. I was also given a cold glass of juice while being checked in. I asked for a room on an upper floor and was gladly given one. One of the bell desk personell then escorted me to my suite while informing me of the hotels' amenities and services. Once we got to the room, he gave me a quick tour of the suite which was appreciated.

ROOMS: I have always believed that the most important part of any hotel are the rooms and the rooms here do not dissapoint. At about 550 square feet, the room (junior suite) was elegant, clean and comfortable with gorgeous views of the beach, pool and the distant Isla Mujeres. According to their welcome literature, they have started a renovation plan last year that included new mattresses, new bed linens, and new furnishings in the room. Further renovation and refurbishment of the rooms and public areas is supposed to continue this year as well. Judging from the previous room pictures posted here on TA, I can say that the room I got was partly refurbished. Gone are the dark grey with blue floral pattern comforters. The bed linens are now white down duvets with a 300 plus thread count cover. The bed sheets were also in white 300 thread count sheets. The mattress and the pillows had the right amount of firmness and were very comfortable. There is also a 32 inch Sharp Aquos flat screen TV (though not HD and no HD channels are available) offering programming in several languages (Spanish, Japanese, French, and English). Some of the English channels include CNN, Fox News, BBC, HBO, Starz, Discovery Channel, ABC, and more. Visitors from the Miami area can watch their local news as there is a live broadcast from an NBC affiliate. The step down living room area leads to a balcony with a breathtaking view of the beach, pool, the amazing colors of the Carribean Sea, the neighboring resorts, and Isla Mujeres. The balcony had a couple of chairs and a small table and was a wonderful place to just sit back, relax and enjoy the views and sounds of the Carribean Sea. The bathroom was rather small but was perfectly functional. Unlike the newer resorts, the shower and bath tub were not separate. The pressure from the shower was excellent. Bathroom toiletries were from Gilchrist and Soames. The minibar had all sorts of snack items and the minibar fridge had sodas, bottled water, fruit juices as well as alcoholic beverages. As other reviewers have mentioned, the price of the mini bar items was very high. There were no free beverages and snacks in the room- not even the cofee. From my previous experience however, these prices are typical and should be expected at hotels of this level of quality. If I have to nit-pick about the room, I would have to say that the air conditioning was quite loud and didn't really cool down the room that much.

RESTAURANTS/DINING: The resort has 4 main restaurants (Vina del Mar, La Joya, Le Basilic, and Isla Contoy), 1 fast food outlet (Coral Cafe), and 1 bar (Lobby Bar). There is also 24-hour room service offering a variety of international dishes, quick eats (sandwhiches, pizza, burgers), deserts, and main entrees such as steak, chicken and fish. There is also a selection of entrees from La Joya, the resort's signature Mexican restaurant on the the in-room dining menu. I dined at Le Basilic, as well as Isla Contoy, the beachfront seafood and steak restaurant. The food at both establishments were excellent, albeit very pricey as expected. Le Basilic is an upscale French Mediterranean restaurant with an intimate and romatic setting. The service here was attentive but not obtrusive. The place also has an extensive selection of Mexican and international wines. Isla Contoy had a more casual feel and offered great views of the Carribean while dining. Their seafood market lets you pick and choose a wide selection of fish, lobster, prawn, etc and then have them grilled. Price depends on the weight of the item. Alternatively, you can just order from their a la carte menu which offers more choices such as steak and chicken. I also had daily breakfast at Vina del Mar. The buffet breakfast here was included in the package rate I got from Orbitz. If not, the buffet costs $25 USD if I remember correctly. The selection of breakfast items here is diverse. There is a cooking station where the chef can prepare eggs and other dishes to your liking. A wide variety of Japanese and Mexican breakfast items are also available as well as fresh fruits and all sorts of pastries. Ask for an outdoor seat for great views of the pool and the beach.

BEACH/POOL: As others have reported, the beach here is just spectacular. The resort faces Isla Mujeres, protecting the beach from the rough waves and wind during the hurricane season. As a result, the beach here is still wide and suffers from little errosion from the previous hurricanes. The sand is fine, powder white and the waves are calm and tame, making it ideal for swimming. This is in fact the nicest beach I've visited in a long time. I visited a friend who was staying at the JW Marriott and I was shocked to see how very little beach was left in that part of the hotel zone. Not only was the beach at the JW Marriott narrow, but there were several exposed rocks and the waves were rough as well. When my friend visited me the following day and saw the beach at FAGCB, she was just awestruck by the beautiful beach!! The beach had several palapas and since it was a slow week, they were pretty much available the entire time I was there. There was also an activities desk where one can rent jet skis as well as book snorkelling and scuba diving tours. The infinity pool here is one of the most spectacular I've ever seen. There are three large pools that are interconnected through waterfalls. The pool is also shallow throughout with a maximum depth of 4 feet. There are two swim up bars located at opposite ends in the pool area. There are plenty of chairs poolside and since the hotel was slow, there were always chairs to be had anytime of the day. There is also a small playground next to the pool dedicated for children. The service at the pool and the beach are fantastic. The waiters were always present to take your order and cater to your needs.

SERVICE: As others here have noted, the service at this hotel is simply top notch! All the employees I've encountered were very friendly, courteous and would go above and beyond to serve you. By my second day here, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that some of the staff already knew my name. When I met them any where in the resort, they never failed to smile and greet me by my name. The staff always answered with "It is my pleasure" after you thank them. This was my first trip to Cancun, and the staff did a wonderful job in wecoming me and making me feel at home.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS: The Fiesta Americana Grand Coral beach has been receiving the coveted AAA Five Diamond Award year after year since 1995. In fact, it is the only resort in Mexico to have earned that distinction. After staying there for a week, I can easily see why. Everything about this hotel exudes class and elegance - from the public areas to the rooms, restaurants, amenities and even to the clientele who stay there. It is really hard to fault this hotel. I certainly wouldn't hesistate to recommend this resort to anyone. If I ever decide to come back to Cancun, I know this is the only resort I will consider.

I traveled with my wife on May 7th-12th. From the start we were greeted with absolute pleasure. The day we checked in I was immediatly upgraded to a Master suite at no charge. The room was like a palace, Huge terrace, indoor jacuzzi, Large bathroom with an awsome shower.. We felt like celeberties.We celebrated my wifes Birthday, almost all the staff knew and were given a nice complementry cake almost everyday of our stay. This hotel is notorious for its gorgeous pools and prime beach location. They have a rating of 5 diamonds which is very prestigious award, i believe it is because of the way the staff is trained and the delicious food.. If you book with the hotel directly on their website, which is strongly recommended, they have a promotion of free breakfest. Definiatly take advantage of this.. it is the greatest setting for a morning breakfest, Nothing better then drinking freshly squeezed juice while feeling the morning breeze from the sea. The food is of a high quality and made there on the spot. This is not an all inclusive hotel, If you like your food made in pots for 700 people I suggest you book at the RIU hotel or any other hotel chain that offers "all inclusive"
I have read comments here about the drinks being expensive, yes they are expensive, but every hotel serves expensive drinks, that how they make $$.. Dont worry about the $8.00 drinks.. how often do you go on vacation???
Yes we went around the time when the whole swine flu was a big hype. The whole time we were down there I didnt see anyone wear a mask. In my opinion this was blown way out of proportion.. It is totaly fine there, dont let that be a factor in booking your trip.. There are still plenty of people there having a good time. If there are any questions or comments please dont hessitate to email me.
valimo03@yahoo.com
This is one of top 5 hotels out of all of mexico, according to all the locals and cabbies. see for yourself.
One more comment about the staff.. this is hands down the best staff that will ever serve you.. let me put it this way.. if there was not a coconut for you to drink your coctail out of, your server would be more than happy to climb the tree right there on the resort and get your coconut.

You haven't experienced "good service" until you stay at this resort! The place was almost empty. We just about had it to ourselves. The rooms was nice, very clean, fresh looking. Great pool! We really enjoyed our stay!

We just returned from Cancun on May 1st and stayed at the Fiesta American Grand Coral. This Hotel is quite luxurious and really did exceed our expectations. The main issue for me was around service and mostly at the front desk. When we checked in we asked for a room upgrade and we were told it was $150 a night more......I pushed back and they went to $120 and we said never mind. My issue here is that the entire Hotel was empty and it would have been so easy to please a customer by giving the upgrade. I also let them know that it was my Birthday and they did NOTHING......The Ritz would have provided flowers or would have comped a drink or meal. My other issue was that after a long day of travel we were pushed to meet with someone we thought was the concierge but in reality was their timeshare vacation person and I was really miffed about this. I ended up being really rude to her and telling her to have a toothbrush brought to my room because I thought she was concierge........HA! The Pools and beach were amazing and of course since the Hotel was empty we had plenty of waiters helping us.......I cannot imagine what this hotel must be like when it was crowded. We loved the pools because they were shallow and they were huge.....some people may not like the shallow pool......Drinks poolside were pretty good we always told the bartender to make the drinks stronger. We had breakfast once in the restaurant it was fine but usually we walked across the way to a large mall and had coffee and danish outside of hotel.......My final bit on this hotel was that they nickel and dimed you to death.....There are blue floats for the pool and they charged you $5 It is just so stupid. I mean you are a paying guest at the hotel give us the damn floats! They wanted $20 a day for intenet and everyone has their hand out everywhere you go........We found the conceirge folks to be complete idiots and unable to help us in any way. Useless......I think this hotel needs to train their staff.........Maybe they should call the Ritz and tell them they want to join in on their training sessions. Hotel was extremely clean.....Overall nice hotel nice beach........service needs improvement. We were there during the Flu pandemic and they gave us no updates and tried to act like it was not happening.....