Ventus at Marina El Cid Spa and Beach Resort

We were a party of 6, us 2 (grandparents), son and his wife and 2 grandsons (17 and 21). Went for 1 week late July. This is a long review and if anyone has any questions please ask.

I want to be honest with this review so firstly the hotel is lovely, pools clean and lots of room with no need to “reserve” chairs. Rooms clean with plenty of hanging space and as would expect aircon. Staff absolutely great, polite, respectful and can have a laugh with you. Entertainment of an evening is a bit hit and miss, although there were a few small bands that were good. Location is good about 30-40 minutes from Cancun and airport and about an hour to Tulum. The roof pool in Ventus Ha was great with fantastic views and we met some really lovely people where we spent a couple of hours or so singing and chatting. If anyone remembers us Hi, it was great meeting you all. I was the old guy who loved to sing (badly).

We would return and possibly invest in a time share if not for the following;

My son, a platinum member, booked two twin rooms next door to each other with swim up. He had email and called several times in February and everything was clear and agreed.

We arrived and had 2 standard rooms with pull down beds. This was not acceptable so we complained and was met with lots of sorry but we cannot do anything as needed approval from time share company and no one was available until Monday, this was Saturday. We were also told there were no rooms available and that they were overbooked and some people on arrival were being located in other hotels. I do not believe this as the place did not look that busy during the next few days. I feel this was a delaying tactic. They did suggest that they could move us on Tuesday to adjoin rooms but they would still be single not twin. In the end my son agreed that they could put a couple of beds in their room to accommodate their sons.

On Monday my son met with the Time Share people who initially disavowed themselves of the problem but finally agreed and some weird arrangement was made such that my son would pay for a room for the boys but could claim it back! The hotel seemed to forget they exist to look after people who stay with them, the people we met including a duty manager seemed unable or unwilling to offer a resolution. This might be a company policy they were following but it still left us with a nasty taste in our mouths.

We were all moved on Tuesday as previously agreed along with our boys having another room, although not swim up.

At this point I should mention that the room we had on the first few nights had no coffee or body wash and the patio area had not been cleaned (there was a dirty towel and T short from previous guest) under one of the chairs. Coffee was asked for and arrived. Body was took two phone calls to get more shampoo! So I ended up going to guest relations and the guy there went and got some for us.

Finally we settled down to enjoy the place, and enjoy it we did but a few minor things that could easily be fixed should be looked at. There are large sunshades over about 20% of the sun chairs, as I said it did not seem too busy so we always found one. It would be so easy to add more portable sun shades for areas where they may not want to bolt any more down. Some people even though it really was not necessary did go out early morning and reserve their chairs, and despite the signs clearly stating anything left for over 1 hour would be removed we saw no sign of this, perhaps again as it was not busy.

We tried as many restaurants was we could and all were good with attentive staff, food was good also with an exception to the evening buffet at the Marina my wife and daughter-in-law went to. The buffet at the Ventus we were staying at was closed. Service was poor with no offer of drinks and food was generally awful with poor presentation and steak as tough as old boots, I’d give this a miss and book for one of the other ones.

Last two points.

Mosquitos are a nightmare if they like you, despite us using jungle strength spray I and my 2 grandsons were attacked badly, for example I am now sitting at home nearly two days from leaving site and I can still count approximately 50 bites on one leg alone. No attempt was made at fogging. I know fogging only kills flying mosquitos and we are a street away from swamp land but I am sure everyone would have appreciated fewer bites. I also understand that the hotels in the area are very Eco conscious but if they were that Eco conscious there would be some way to put a plug in a sink so you did not waste water when trying to have a shave.

Last, but not least, this is a family resort with parents and younger children well catered for but if you have a teenager there is nothing for them. Anything that may be organised seems to finish at 8pm, try telling a teenager to go to bed at 8pm! Our 17 year old grandson likes to play pool and although this was in a room attached to the bar in Ventus there is a distinct separation with a glass door between but security would not let him play in there. He was not allowed in the bar when entertainment was on even though he was only drinking soft drinks, and one security person even came out to the reception area where we were sitting to enquire if he was drinking alcohol, if he had gone further there would have been a very loud argument and response from myself and my son. This was nothing to do with the security person as we were not in a bar area. There are areas that could easily cater for teenagers playing music, some games like pool or air hockey with a soft drink bar and should be considered

We came to this resort based on recommendations from friends and were unfortunately very disappointed. We've stayed at several other resorts in Mexico and wanted to give this one a try because of the positive reviews we received.

The biggest issue was the food and service. On multiple days, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, several food items were unavailable and staff simply told us they were out and would not be replenishing them. As vegetarians trying to make healthy choices, the already limited options became even more restrictive.

Room service was also extremely slow. We ordered food on multiple occasions, and each time it took over two hours to arrive—even during non-peak hours.

Service throughout the resort, including at the pool and restaurants, was consistently slow. The staff themselves were friendly and hardworking, but it was obvious they were severely understaffed. This appeared to be a management issue rather than an employee issue.

Unfortunately, our experience ended on another disappointing note. Our flight was canceled, causing us to miss the final night of our prepaid stay. While we understand that airline cancellations are outside the resort's control, we had hoped they would show some goodwill by offering a partial refund, a credit, or even compensation such as a spa service or resort credit. Instead, our request was completely denied without any acknowledgment or effort to accommodate the situation, which left a poor final impression.

On a positive note, housekeeping was excellent. Our room was always clean, well maintained, and serviced promptly.

Overall, while the rooms and housekeeping met expectations, the lack of adequate staffing, inconsistent food availability, slow service, and inflexible customer service significantly impacted our vacation. Unfortunately, we would not choose to return or recommend this resort based on our experience.