Secrets Aura Cozumel - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

7299 reviews

• 

  Views fantastic - A+; food was a C-, won't go back because the room smelled like dead things

  The ocean views are stunning, the staff are kind and helpful, and the swim up bar pool was wonderful. As a vegetarian, if you do not upgrade to Premier status - meaning that you can eat at all the resort restaurants, instead of three - I would have had to survive on cheese quesadillas for nine days. For a resort in Mexico, the only truly good Mexican food we had was the day we went into San Miguel. If you're a meat-eater, you might feel differently. The food seems designed for a very bland Standard American Diet eater. No spice; no salt; no pepper....I'm sure the resort needs to cater to that. The room smelled POWERFULLY of mold. We were so tired when we got in, we just wanted to crash. I didn't think it would be a big deal. I tried to ignore it as the week went on (after all, I wanted to spend most days out at the ocean or pool), we left the doors (both) open as often as possible to air it out, but it just smelled profoundly and overpoweringly awful. It hit me in the face every time I walked into the room like a dead fish slapped me in the face. I'm now home, and everything I brought with me came back smelling like a corpse. I'm washing my first load of clothes for the third time ..now with vinegar now to try to get the dead-thing smell out. If I can't, I would be adding the cost of a week's worth of clothes I need to burn to the total cost of my fabulous Cozumel vacation. It was obvious that when the hotel was built, it was meant for luxury. I don't blame the housekeeping staff at all - the only thing that's going to get that kind of smell of death out is to rip out walls. Unfortunate.

  Jan 21, 2025
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  Best staff, best service.

  We loved Arbey Aguilar as a promoter, The staff at Oceana were incredible. Victor, Yanely (best hostess ever), Omar, Daniel, Oscar, Gabriel and very special mention to Sergio, a true professional. He made our visits incredible. Housekeeping was excellent, room service was faster than expected as well! The staff here makes the vacation.

  Jan 21, 2025
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  Disappointing, sad, rundown property

  Very disappointing experience. Very sad, tired property in need of extensive renovation and maintenance. Our room did not even meet the quality of a Motel 6. Everything smelled of mold and was very dirty. Tons of mosquitoes and other flying bugs in our room. Toilet needed replacement, had to flush multiple times and made a horrible squealing noise. Never enough pool and beach towels, not enough pool & beach loungers for the number of guests. Food was below average, lack of quality & choices and the only Buffett for the whole resort was not in a good location. Nice beachfront and very good snorkeling, but would never return.

  Jan 20, 2025
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  Amazing

  The FB pages for both resorts were super helpful for information and getting lots of questions answered before hand and while there Day 1-4 Secrets: Beach: -Amazing!!!!!!! -Decent snorkeling right on site. Saw tons of fish and multiple folks reported seeing barracuda. -First resort in Mexico were we were not harassed by beach vendors all day. Never saw one vendor on the stretch of beach we were on. -If you want a primo spot get up early and set out towels. Pool: -we didn’t enjoy the vibe of the Preferred Club pool at Secrets. Very loud drunk people, no music and you access the pool by ladder no steps. Many folks from the area go to the beach to smoke, which is a policy violation as the resort is smoke free. Staff did not seem to enforce this which was frustrating as we were excited about a smoke free atmosphere. -the main pool was awesome. Music from about 10 on. The playlist was fire almost all 80’s which is our jam! Great drink service and it’s right by the Barefoot Grill where you can order snack food. It’s also right next to Oceania which was great for lunch if you had preferred status. Food: (Secrets, Dreams & Sunscape) -Gogan sushi was very good. We arrived at 5:20 and there was already a line. We got the last table that seated 4. We were outside which we were not super stoked about but we took it. It was pretty warm at first but then the sun dropped and we got to witness a gorgeous sunset. We had the best service there. -Barefoot Grill was good for poolside snacks. Fresh made burgers, nachos, wings etc. -Oceana was preferred club for breakfast and lunch. Breakfast was okay. We loved the fish tacos, ceviche and augachillie at lunch. Some meals took a long time. I think they were understaffed in the kitchen but when the food came out it was on point. Breakfast here was okay but had limited options. -Market Cafe was the buffet which we enjoyed for breakfast. Lunch was okay but the food served seemed more like dinner food vs lunch. -Bordeaux was really good. The food and service were on point. At 515 there was a huge line. Thankfully we got seated about 540. We had a 2 hour meal that was delicious. Cordon Blue and the braised beef were scrumptious! -El Patio was the Mexican restaurant at Sunscapes. Overall not bad but definitely not one if the best places on the resort. Service was decent but not exceptional. This restaurant is at the Sunscape so there were a few screaming kids there. -Pizzeria. Pretty good. My wife got the pear and cheese pizza which was great. I got the shrimp pizza and it was ok. Carbonara pasta was delicious as was the Caesar salad. Gorgeous water view and to take in a spectacular sunset. -Windows was good with great service. -Oloio was good but kind of forgettable. -Annato is Asian/ Mayan food. The food was basically Japanese food with a few choices that were Mayan influenced. The food and service here was incredible and we got to witness another spectacular sunset. This was the only ala cart restaurant we visited twice. One warning is there may be kids there which kind of ruined the vibe with the screeching. -All the bars are great around the properties. Good drinks and friendly service. -We also loved the coffee cafe at Secrets for an early morning cappuccino. -We saw lots of reviews before coming complaining about the food. Overall, we were completely pleased and thought taste and quality were great. Room: Oceanfront Preferred Club. We were on the first floor and had direct beach access. It was incredible. Room was nice, bed super comfortable, and housekeeping was great. Just amazing! Other Things: Pros: -There are a ton of outlets around the beach and pools. Lots of folks have phones and iPads plugged in. -Staff was second to none. They were just amazing. -Snorkeling onsite was fun. I’m guessing about 300 yards from Dreams to Secrets. -We hired Adrian Cozumel to take us on a snorkeling trip. Picked us up at the Secrets dock (costs $10 a person) and took us to see turtles, star fish, shallow reefs and an amazing time at El Celio. One of the best excursions in our 20+ years visiting Mexico. -Great WiFi all around the resort -RB (Arby???) was fantastic entertainment around the main pool at Secrets. He was funny, friendly and inviting to activities. We enjoyed water volleyball daily as well as the 3pm trivia competition and bingo. He really created a fun atmosphere. -The app is handy to see what restaurants are open/ closed. Note: not all restaurants are open daily. We tried to use the app to order room service but that did not work. Cons: -Room was not ready at check in time at Secrets. 2.5 hours late which was frustrating after traveling all night and most of the day. -Most things did not open on time. Usually 15 minutes later than posted time. Workers would say they were on time”Mexican Time “, their words not mine. -Pool/ Beach towel stations were constantly empty. Witnessed so many guests go to get towels and there were none. Common theme no matter the time of day. Finally resorted to bringing used towels back to the room and exchange the next day once we found a place to hang for the day. Often towel stations were empty for 2+ hours. The towel situation is RIDICULOUSLY FRUSTRATING!!! -People start reserving chairs on the beach/ pool before the sun comes up. At 730 a.m., there was not a single spot available on the Secrets preferred beach. Pools seats filled quickly as well. There is a ton of beach space available so I am uncertain as to why more loungers were not available. I suspect but am not sure people reserve beach and pool spots which then limits seating for other guests. So many reserved loungers seemed unoccupied for a good portion of the day. -Lots of people smoke by the pools and beach despite this being a smoke free resort. This was extremely disappointing as staff did not seem to care. Super aggravating!!!! -the beach path between Dreams and Secrets is not well lit in the dark. Multiple steps that are tough to see. Several people fell. There was a couple sitting on their balcony warning folks about upcoming steps. I have a vision impairment so bring a flashlight or use your phone. -Most stairs around the resort don’t have handrails or lighting. Seems like a recipe for disaster considering how much people drink. Dispute a few things we were dissatisfied with we loved the resort, location and staff. So many Secrets/ Dreams snobs complained about this location/ food/ staff but we thought it was great. Day 5-10 Dreams Jr Suite Oceanfront. When we checked in they told us we were being upgraded. They ended up putting us in Master Suite Oceanfront. OMG, it felt like we hit the lottery!! Room was incredible. We had a full living room space with a kitchenette. Double sized balcony, gorgeous bathroom and a separate space that was the closet. We were so stoked to be in this room. Absolutely the best room in 30+ years of traveling to Mexico. Pool: -we didn’t love the vibe at the Dreams pool so we went to the Secrets pool right on the beach by the pier. Overall we had a fantastic stay.

  Jan 20, 2025
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  Not worth the price- Would not recommend.

  The food options were very limited and consistently below average quality, with many dishes being cold or poorly prepared. The pool area was constantly overcrowded, making it impossible to find a lounge chair or relax peacefully. The resort facilities were clearly outdated and in need of major repairs, with peeling paint and broken furniture. Our reservation was messed up upon arrival, and the front desk staff struggled to resolve the issue efficiently. Despite paying a premium price for our honeymoon, the overall experience at this resort was very disappointing and did not meet our expectations. We did not receive our turn down service that was booked for our Honeymoon package and the breakfast in our room was absolutely terrible. Our room was not cleaned until late in the day and we had to wait on the staff (leave the room) to wait for it to be refreshed. We were not given our choice for our arrival bottle of alcohol as it stated when we booked. They just set a bottle of cheap sparkling wine on our coffe table (not even chilled). There were guest complaining daily in the lobby to the staff. The staff was great aside fromt eh checkin lady. She was rude and short with us for asking questions. We will never go back!

  Jan 20, 2025