My friend and I stayed here from Jan. 23-Feb. 2, 2008. Its not a luxury property, so don't expect it. From what I understand, the hotel was severly damaged by Hurricane Wilma and has recently re-opened. The upside is that not too many people know about this place...YET. There is no dealing with the loud crowds, drunk tourists or crowded beach areas.

When we arrived we provided Veronica, at the front desk, with a copy of our itinerary. She asked if we wanted a room on the ground or second floor. We took the second floor for the view. (Although ALL the rooms here have a terrific ocean view). The ones on the ground floor have a glass sliding door opening to the pool area providing great access to the pool or beach area. Also there is NO ELEVATOR...so dont go above the 2nd floor unless you packed light.

The rooms are basic. Its not the Four Seasons. There were two full size beds. The mattresses were on the firm side...but this is common in Mexico. The bed sheets were clean every day when we returned. Fresh towels, soap, and toilet paper were replaced every day. We found that a little tip (10 pesos or 1 dollar) every day went a long way when the housekeepers came around. We left a lap top and digital camera lying around a couple of days and they were always there when we came back. The shower and toilet area was small, but nice (tile) and clean. The glass door to our balcony did have us concerned as there was a large crack running through it. It seems a couple of rooms had this. But it opened and closed fine, kept the bugs out, and the view was clear. The balcony was very spacious with chairs and a table to enjoy the sunset. The cable had gone out for a couple of days, but then we didnt travel thousands of miles to watch the tube.

Outside there is an infinity pool. It has a small shallow area for the kiddies (of which I saw none the whole two weeks we were there). Also has a deeper side to it. Down below the pool area there is a small cove, perfect for snorkeling. I rented some equipment next door at the Cozumel Princess for $7/day from Pepe's Dive Shop. Ask the hotel staff to feed the fish from the small dock out front as your out snorkeling---its an amazing experience! There is also a sandy "beach" area with a couple of palms for the sunbathers.

The restaurant was pretty good and decently priced. We usually spent 12 bucks on lunch for two. Keep in mind--its not a luxury property with a european chef on duty. The menu is NOT very extensive, but what they have IS good. My compliments to Nidia, the cook. She makes the best chicken taquitos and chicken club sandwhich I've ever had! They have a bar, but again the variety is not much.

We rented a jeep and were able to park it right in front of the property, off the street and in front of our room. The hotel is off the main road, but being at the north end of the island its pretty quiet after dusk. It also has great access to town. The front desk always had someone there 24hrs/day (Gerardo and Victor were always very helpful). The staff doesnt speak much English, with the exception of Victor. But they do make an effort to communicate! Besides, a little Spanish lesson cant hurt anyone. To the reviewer who mentioned "loud Spanish" in their review: Its MEXICO...the language spoken there IS SPANISH.

When we checked out, my friend accidentally took the hotel key with him. He didnt realize this until we had returned the rental car and were given the extra key hanging. We immediately contacted Veronica and explained. We were very thankful and relieved when she sent someone all the way to the airport to pick it up!

All in all, the property has a great location, helpful and friendly staff, is clean, quiet, safe and affordable. I am definitely returning to this place.

I have just finished reading two unfavorable reviews of this hotel. I stayed here at essentially the same time as the folks who posted those unfavorable reviews (Feb. 17-26). My experience here was just the opposite. It shows how each person's views of something are subjective and can differ.
We arrived and were in our room in five minutes. Requested a room with a minimum of stairs for my wife to manage with her bad knee and stayed on the second floor by the desk. Hot water was always there and generous. Our room was swept and completely mopped out every day. The parts of the place that we saw were freshly remodeled and painted. The desk staff were courteous and bent over backwards to help us with our small problems getting our rental car, setting up reservations for excursions, etc.
There was a small amount of noise because of our choice of room in a busy part of the building, but we had no problems getting our sleep, and we are early to bed, early to rise types. No bugs or any other problems of that type in our rooms. A tiny pair of geckos had moved in with us somehow. It was part of the charm of our room, and we briefly considered bringing them home for our grandson.
The hotel was adequately staffed for the complement of guests who were staying there. Possibly the folks who had problems on the fourth floor were too far from the active part of the staff service areas. They do need more guests to fill the place up and get it running more efficiently on economies of scale.
I loved getting up every morning and walking down to the dock and diving off it into 20 feet of gorgeous clear water. A good half hour swim and right to breakfast, where we augmented our free continental breakfast with omelets. Then we would laze in our chairs under the canvas cabana on the oceanfront, drinking iced tea and diving in now and then. After we got our fill of that, we took off to explore Cozumel. We have been to Coz many times, and this was the best. Very restful and peaceful. It was like having a home base in Cozumel. I described our trip to a friend and he said, "sounds like a second honeymoon."
This place is not for you if you like the party atmosphere and want staff jumping around crackerjack style to please you. It is not America transplanted to Mexico. Just a nice quiet, safe, sane, family style place to relax and heal up from your job and life. Isn't that what a vacation should be?
If you have something that is not up to your standards, you should always speak up and give the hotel a chance to fix it for you. Mental telepathy does not work. Moody looks do not work. Communicate, is what I would tell folks who are not having a good time. Don't forget a small tip. Mexicans count on that small gratuity and it works wonders sometimes. They are a very courteous old fashioned people with pride, and we could learn from them. Speak up in a respectful manner and things will get fixed for you. They need your tourist dollars and want to please, so you come back.That is all I should say on the subject of folks who are not happy with a place.
In short, I loved my stay here and would recommend it to a friend.

I stayed here one night last week. I would have stayed two but the hotel was fully booked for the second night on. This time I was in a room with no mini-fridge. Apparently just a few rooms have them. It was not a major problem since I was able to get ice from the restaurant. I would suggest adding ice buckets to the rooms.

The bed was fine as it was on my first stay. I did watch the total lunar eclipse from the balcony along the front door.

You need to let the hot water run about 5-10 minutes before taking a shower to get the water up to an adequate temperature. This is one area that could stand improvement. While the temperature was ok, I would prefer it being hot enough to have to add some cold water.

My wife and I stayed at the Fontan Feb. 16 - 23, 2008. First, let me say this hotel has a great deal of potential. Most of the rooms are ocean front, with unobstructed views. The web site states this fact. It's about the only thing they are straight about. There is no in-house dive shop. The hotel is affiliated with Aldora Divers, and they will pick you up at the dock for your diving. Aldora Divers IS an awesome experience.

The staff of the Fontan is ill managed. A pervasive air of 'who cares" is the dominant theme at this place. I know it's laid back in Coz, but it is bad here. The dive boats pick you up at 7:30 am. The free continental breakfast usually arrives at 7:25 am. Only once did the breakfast get eaten before the boats arrived. I like to walk around barefoot on vacation. Don't do it here. The floors are filthy. Good thing I had some throw away socks. I actually mopped the floor with a wash cloth, much to my wife's amusement. Speaking of wash cloths; we had to ask for those and towels every day. While some rooms had hot water, ours did not. It depended on where your room was. Also, there is no water pressure. The hotel seemed to cater to the locals. There were three parties while we stayed at the hotel. None of the people were staying at the hotel, as far as I know. Just a lot of loud music and loud spanish. Many other little disappointments. This a one star hotel that could be a 3.5 star with just a little work. I don't think the owner knows what's going on at this place. He owns Aldora Villa's as well, and we talked with some folks who were staying there. Everyone of them loved that place. We definitely will not go back to the Fontan.