This is a budget hotel but very clean and comfortable and with a brilliant location. Its within walking distance of all the bars, restaurants and clubs which is more than can be said of some of the other hotels in the hotel zone. (its all just across the lagoon so a 15 minute walk gets you there).

The decoration isn't brilliant and admittedly it's quite basic but for the money I paid I had no complaints!

Its located right on the lagoon and has a waterside restaurant which served really yummy breakfasts but I didn't think much of the evening meals. There was a brilliant view from our balcony of the Riu Cancun some of Cancun's nightlife.

We read reviews AFTER booking our stay and we were rather apprehensive to say the least. What we found was no where near as scary as what was written. "Ghetto"? The single family homes were 3 story, they had open garages so we saw vehicles - Mercedes, BMWs, Jeeps and SUVs. They had pleasure boats on the lagoon side. Across the street was a golf course. The hotel was walking distance to tour bus pickups. There is a small store nearby for milk and cereal - I woundn't recommend much else as the kitchen consists of a small frige, microwave, sink and a rusted portable 2 burner hotplate. The sheets were clean BUT a mattress pad would have been nice. The spreads needed to be retired. We slept fine. The steel door was reassuringly strong and we were not kept awake by noise. The elevator worked and the staff was helpful with our questions. We were in Cancun to visit the ruins and not the night life. (Plan on a 12 hour day when you sign up for a tour to the ruins) Since we were gone all day we didn't get the push for timeshares etc. The restaurant was excellent and we had a nice view of the lagoon and hotels on the beach. There was no odor from the water!! We would not hesitate to stay here again.

We stayed here as a family of six with children between the ages of 9 and 15. This is not a family friendly hotel. We were kept awake all night long by loud ,screaming ,drunk college students. We complained to the front desk numerous times, usually at 4:30 am when we'd been woken up for the third time, and they did nothing. One night the guys in the room adjoining ours were throwing around furniture and trying to get into our room through the adjoining door and banging on it. The front desk could care less. Basically they told us that they had no security and they were the only person working there at night and therefore could do nothing. The beds and pillows were so hard that we went to Walmart the first morning after we woke up and bought pillows and mattress pads for the beds. There was a nasty smell coming from the drain in the shower in my husband's room. We were supposed to have adjoining rooms as our family of six had to split up to fit and they never gave us adjoining rooms. The only good things were that the pool was quiet during the day as all the drunks were asleep, and the food at the little restaurant by the pool was delicious and cheap.

I've been to Cancun 6 times. 3 as a Spring Breaker and twice in the last year with my wife. The time that I stayed here, in Feb of '06 was hands down, the worst. The only reason we stayed here is because we actually were going to take a trip to Playa del Carmen and just needed a place in Cancun to stay for one night while we attended a friends wedding. Well, our trip got cancelled due to other issues with the hotel in Playa, so we extended our stay before arriving at the hotel....big mistake!
I have to disagree with anyone who says that you get what you pay for here....you get MUCH less! I've stayed in 5 star hotels and overnight motels, and this is the one place that has a seeming disregard for even attempting to keep up with the times.
When we first arrived and told the cab driver where we were going, he had to call the dispatcher to find the place! Not a good sign. When we turned off the main road to pull up to the place it did feel as if we were going into a crack den. It would be OK for an apartment entrance, but a hotel? No. So after checking in, we looked for the elevator to our room...there was none. So we took the 4 flights up with our luggage and sweating, finally made it to the top. Here, we found bags of cement and other construction materials directly ourside of our room! Once we got in the door we had to get ready for the wedding. We found a dingy bathroom with almost no hot water. I have seen better bathrooms in NYC subways! We managed to get ready for the wedding and left. Upon our arrival back, I felt as if I had to watch my back for muggers. Not a great feeling when on vacation.
Back in the room we found rock hard beds....not just firm, rock hard (i have an amussing video demonstrating it). We felt dirty lying in the sheets that may not've been washed in a very long time. Somehow we got to sleep.
The next day we awoke to the construction crew outside of our room. We then walked downstairs and asked to be moved and they did oblige, so I do give them points for that, but the second room was only a drop better than the first. At least it had hot water!

Now, from the pictures on the site, it looks spacious and nicely lit up. That picutre is a farce! Notice that it's taken from the ground looking up to make the place appear larger. In fact, it's quite cramped and the paint around the pool and the grounds is chipping all over.
The "business center" is a joke. It's a pay as you go desktop computer with a busted screen. If barely works...in fact, we used an internet cafe down the block to do anything. Here, you will find some decent and cheap places to eat. But, they are cheap for a reason, NO ONE GOES THERE. There is nothing special about it and in a desolet part of the strip. So why would they charge a lot?
The restaurant on site at the hotel does serve decent food. My wife and I had a few good meals there. The problem is the smell that comes from the lagoon that you are looking over! Every few minutes you get a whiff of sewage to go with your burrito...mmmmmm. We didn't even attempt to go in the pool, but there were a few kids that went in and came out with all of their limbs attached, so I guess it was OK.
Overall, if you're looking to save money, look somewhere else that is at least on the strip. Most other establishments take pride in their location. Not this one.