mo261

Just returned from 3 nights in PDC and 2 nights in Tulum. I ran into no post-hurricane problems at all...in fact you could barely tell there was a hurricane.
In PDC we stayed at La Tortuga which I highly recommend. The staff were extremely friendly and helpful and our room was clean,spacious and actually nicer than it looked on the website! PDC was a little too touristy for me. I loved Tulum. The beaches were beautiful. We had one lazy day of beach and massages, one tourist day to the ruins and one active day of renting bikes and snorkeling. You can be as lazy or active as you want. We stayed at Zahra and it was OK but the website makes it seem nicer than it really is. The family suites looked nice and spacious but our room was run down and smelled like the septic tank. The service was spotty depending on who was working.
There are nicer places to stay there. It all depends on your expectations but I think no matter where you go, you end up paying more than you should for "rustic" accomodations.
We ate at Zamas twice and I highly recommend them!

Christina

hi, thanks for the tips. I am researching for a trip to PDC next month and was considering the Tortuga but noticed comments on Tripadvisor about demolition/renovation in a building right next door and this was a very recent comment. I imagine that could be noisy. What did you see about that, and what location and type of room in the hotel do you recommend? This comment said they were finishing some renovations (maybe due to hurricane damage) in the Tortuga, I think in Dec., but they were just starting demolition on a building next door. Having been in a hotel down there with construction going starting very early and lasting until very last at night, I want to avoid that. How comfortable were the beds at the Tortuga, in your opinion. That seems to be a big problem in a lot of hotels.

cmsitaly

Christina- Playa Maya (on beach), Hotel Zanzibar (downtown) are supposed to be nice.

Christina

thanks for the mention of Zanzibar as I hadn't heard of that name and that is the location I am really looking for on the north end. I don't think it has a pool, though, which I'd kind of like. It's not too bad, though, although their cancellation policy is basically no cancellation at this point for me (they won't refund for cancellations less than 30 days which is pretty stringent and they require a very large deposit of 3/4 days pay). On the plus side, it's fairly cheap. Playa Maya doesn't have any openings during the dates I want.

hope mo261 comments on the Tortuga.

gr3664

we are planning 3 days or so at tulum - i'm a little unsure those places without electricity, or anything but white sheets and open windows, are going to be a little bit of a rip-off - what would you recommend around the area instead, was akumal better?

pepper131

gr -

I love Tulum and it's no pole-power electricity. There is solar-power at most places. What makes you hesitate?

Cabana rooms can be very lux: Ana y Jose, Coqui Coqui, Mezzanine, La Conchita, Suenos Tulum are a few.

mo261

There was construction on a building next door to La Tortuga and I believe construction started around 9 am. We were on the other side of the building and had an air conditioner that drowned out most of the noise so it was never a problem for us.
As far as Tulum, it is definitely worth going..just do your research and know what to expect. Pepper 131 has good recs