I hate to rain on your parade, but I just returned, on Nov. 13th, from a week's stay at Coral Costa Caribe. Personally, I would not return there. My husband & I had a lot of problems with service. The lock box in our room had the lock left in by the last guest & it took them 3 days to remove it so we could use the box. Also they charge $16US for the lock per week - not just a deposit, but a fee! The alarm on the clock/radio in our room was broken & they refused to replace it,saying we didn't need it because they have wake-up calls. The day we were to leave, we did not recieve our wake-up call, overslept and were late leaving for the airport. Chaise lounges were plentiful, but we had to wait 4 hours the first day on the beach to get towels. After that we just kept our beach towels a few days before attempting to exchange for clean ones. There is no good snorkeling from their beach. We paid $15US per person to go out snorkeling with the water sports people several miles away and it was lousy. Ocean very rough & very few fish. We did have some good snorkeling during the Catilina Island Cruise. Also through the water sports people, it was $65US per person, an all day trip with lunch provided. There they had a good reef, clear water & lots of fish. The maid service is lacking. We consistantly were left without washcloths and/or handtowels. They have inadequate seating capacity in the buffet restaurant. Good luck with your large group - get there early! We often were unable to get a table for two & had to share a table with other guests. For the Mexican & Italian restaurants you must make a reservation, and are only allowed to eat in each of them one time.(They give you vouchers when you check-in). The only other restaurant on premises is cash only - not included in their "all-inclusive"! We thought the "snacks" - pizza, burgers , etc. were terrible. It rained the night of 11/11 and the only elevator in the main building was put out of order because the water was just pouring down the elevator shaft. It was still not fixed when we checked out on 11/13. We were on the 4th of 6 floors, and had to use the stairs the last two days. The last day, after not getting our wake-up call, when we called for a bellman to come for our bags so we could check-out, it took three calls, 20 min. apart, and we ended up carrying our own bags down 4 flights because the bellman never did get there and we had get going. They said it was because they only had 2 bellmen & they were busy! Also, after the rain, the outside hallways leading to the rooms had about 2" of water we had to walk through each time because it just did not go down the drains as it should have. We went horseback riding at Crazy Horse. We did the 3hr ride through the countryside for $35US per person. It would have been OK if it hadn't rained. We were supposed to go from 3-6, but started an hour late, got totally soaked during the ride & didn't finish until after it was totally dark. Got really sore backsides from the wet jeans in the saddle for three hours too. Unless you ride a lot I would suggest the one hour beach ride. Over all, the entertainment people,"The Chocolate Friends", were very nice and friendly, as were the bartenders, but the people at the front desk are clueless. Regarding drinks, you can't get all drinks at all bars. Some don't have wine, some don't have pina coladas, it is kind of hit & miss. Also, if you get a pina colada, it will be alcohol-free unless you specify you want rum in it. Never ran across that before!! Always thought you had to specify "virgin" if you didn't want the rum!! Well, enough said. Good Luck and I sure hope you don't have as many problems with the place as we did! Maybe we were spoiled. We've stayed at Couples in Jamiaca and Sandals in St. Lucia and they were both excellent!!!!! I would highly recommend them!!!
