Illusion Boutique Hotel

So-so for price - don’t let website fool you!

Hotel was.... okay, for the price, but don’t let the website fool you! The room pictures on the website must be one room that they fixed up just for pictures because we stayed with two other couples and NONE of our rooms looked even close to the picture. If you don’t plan to spend much time in your room and don’t care what it looks like then this hotel is for you. Beware... they are doing construction on a restaurant right below some of the rooms on the second floor. It is very noisy so you may want to request a room on the 3rd floor or pay for the 4th floor rooms. Pool is only 2 feet deep. I had also read on one of the reviews that Illusion was part of a beach club, this is not true! If you go down to the beach, you can put your towel anywhere you want (I read that this is Playa law - all beaches are for public use, even at the exclusive resorts) but you will probably have to pay for a chair or be expected to buy food or drink from one of the establishments.

We loved La Caprichoza. We ate lunch there every and went back many times for happy hour (which runs all day....). 2 for 1 beers and "local" drinks (margaritas, pina coladas, mojitos). Very good! The fire show at the Blue Parrot says it starts at 11 but it doesn’t start until midnight.

pictures are quite deceiving....

convenient to shopping and beach (busy). they supply towels for beach, but you have to pay ($2-$4) for a beach chair, or plop a towel on the sand. Thin walls and noisy. 2 foot deep pool (small) on top floor. No bar service, cheap furniture throughout. Continental breakfast (toast, croissant, coffee & juice), otherwise, there is a small menu to order from. Moldy smelling rooms. Nice staff. Allow full hour to get to airport. $32 per couple for our "van" style cab. Lots of night life and restaurants available close by. (burger king and starbucks up the street.

Right in the heart of Playa del Carmen

You can’t get any more central than this, yet it’s position around the corner protects you from the noise at night if you want some peace and quiet. Half-block from the beach, half-block from Avenida Quinta (5th Ave) it’s a great spot. Easy to walk to the ADO bus station to get to/from Cancun/Airport as well. Staff was great and spoke English at the front desk so no issues with language if you don’t speak any Spanish. One minor concern was the water pressure and waiting for what seemed like 5 minutes for hot water to arrive. If you require high-pressure showers and are impatient, this will disappoint you.

If you are not aware, ADO runs air-conditioned coaches from the Cancun airport directly to Playa del Carmen for roughly 80 pesos (about $7 USD). If you don’t have a lot to carry, it’s a great option and much cheaper than a taxi. Just walk past all the people trying to get your attention as you leave airport security with your luggage and walk to the ADO counter on the left near the external doors. They’ll tell you where the bus leaves from and it’s usually right outside the doors. It leaves every hour and drops you right downtown Playa del Carmen, about a block from this hotel. There’s also someone selling beer outside the doors in case you are anxious to get your vacation started...