Crown Pacifi Huatulco

The Crown Pacific climbs up a steep hillside to provide ocean views. Newer hotels have been built between it and the beach. Most of the rooms still have a view and are quite large. It is a little dated and there are little items in need of repair. A couple of nights, an air conditioning unit made a lot of noise. However, the staff makes up for this with excellent service. A shuttle runs constantly to ferry guests from their rooms to the hotel restaurants and the private hotel beach. You can call the front desk to send the shuttle. The rooms were cleaned daily and sometimes the maid left flowers, although sometimes forgot to leave new towels. The food was more to Mexican tastes and was good to excellent. Lunch was served at the beach restaurant, breakfast at the hotel, and dinner sometimes at the hotel and sometimes at the beach. The majority of the guests were Canadians or Mexicans, a refreshing change from the usual American tourists.

Huatulco can be a semi-Cancun experience if one stays within the confines of the nearby resorts. There are not very many restaurants or nightclubs. If you want a bit of unspoiled Mexico, hire a taxi to take you to a deserted beach.

If you want great value, a more authentic experience of the Mexican culture and environment, a chance to get away from the crowds and do a little reading, this is the place for you. If you want an American experience in Mexico and to party and hook up, you came to the wrong place.

We just returned from a wonderful two week vacation of the Huatulco area.

Crown Pacific is a wonderful hotel, very clean, courteous service and very relaxed,friendly atmosphere. We were on the 10 level, had a wonderful view of Tangolunda Bay, even from the shower with the sliding doors that would open if you liked. Service up the hill to the 10 level, we had a shuttle bus, or a tram to the 7 level pool and restaurant. We seldom had to walk, unless we needed the exercise. The shuttle would take you over to the beach club, around 3 block walk maybe-lots of chiars and pool there as well. Food was good, altho we did frequent a restaurant along the plaza a few times. A small Plaza between the Crown & the other two resorts, where you may purchase anything you wish, and an internet to use & rental store. Very accomadating, everything.The two little towns of Santa Cruz, and La Crucesita are very nice, clean and only a taxi ride away of $2.50 U.S. each way.Around 3 & four miles. Beautiful golf course, if you happen to like golfing, but we felt it was pricey.Many tours available, with taxi or through tour companies, you could price different areas out with them.Weather was beautiful,between +32C to +38C each day. A slight breeze blew off the bay.I would recommend this hotel and area to anyone wanting a relaxing real Mexican holiday.

Just returned from a wonderfully relaxing week in Huatulco. I'd go back again in a heartbeat, but not necessarily to the Crown Pacific. It's an exceptional value for the money I do have to say, but checked out a couple other hotels when we were there and I think for variety would try probably the Barcelo next time.

We were in room 733 which overlooked the rooftop pool and the bay below. I do have to say the rooms are exceptionally large (at least in this room) and the balcony was very nicely sized with two deck chairs and a coffee table. Perfect for sitting and watching the world go by/and or the sun set or rise.

One of the critical items I had read about this hotel prior to booking was the amount of walking that was necessary to get to and from your rooms. I have to comment I have no idea what they're talking about - to access your rooms which, indeed, are up a steep incline, you can have your choice of a tram which was available or the furnicular which transported one from various levels to the lobby/bar/restaurant on the ground floor, so if you do decide to mountain trek, that's your own decision, not by virture of necessity.

The beach bar and the pool bars do not open until eleven o'clock and close at six o'clock which seemed like a rather odd time to close. The lobby bar opened at either five or seven - we never did figure out which the "set" hours were as it seemed to vary day-to-day, and closed at eleven p.m., so if you're looking for something where you have drinks/cocktails available round the clock, this is not the place for you.

This is definitely a low key-type resort and the animacion staff, try as hard as they might to get a water volleyball game or beach volleyball game going, often as naught their pleas fell on deaf ears. Everyone seemed to be content to do not much of anything.

And if you have a chance, rent a private boat to take you around to the different bays. The friend I was with was a little bit leery of booking a small boat so we ended up taking the larger catamaran from Santa Cruz, and have been regretting that decision every step of the way. You'll see more and appreciate it much more than if you go with 100 other people. I understand from some friends who did rent the private boat that the snorkeling was fantastic, but due to the situation of the larger boat and their one planned stop, didn't see diddly squat, and am disappointed with that.

Also, the Crown Pacific in their website advertisies a mini-bar and a fridge in every room. don't believe it - as a matter of course, I travel with a collapsible cooler and was glad I do as we had a fridge in our room and it was inoperable and there were no refrigerators in a lot of other rooms, so be prepared to fend for yourselves. Also, ice is only available from the bar areas, so you will have to time your ice/drink requests to coincide with their hours.

The staff at the hotel was oustandingly friendly and was tickled pink with them - a couple dollar tips can work wonders with the bartenders.

The rooms were exceedingly clean and yes, the bedding was hard but certainly didn't stop any of us from catching our zzzs in the evenings.

The week we were there there was no problem at all with getting a chair on the beach at any hour and most of the time the rooftop pool was basically deserted.

The food is okay, but it definitely is food cooked for the masses. The desserts looked like they were to die for but I thought they were basically tasteless which is actually more than okay - less temptation. Do be prepared to try something outside the hotel just for a different experience and for food of your own choosing - there was plenty of variety and the fruits and vegetables were generally to die for, but was actually yearning for something that didn't come laden/smothered with sauces. The soups were excellent, however, that that comprised a couple of meals in lieu of the buffet.

To reiterate, this was a centrally located hotel where its off-beach location wasn't an impairment at all - the shuttles to/from the beach were generally there within five minutes or so even tho they technically operate on a 15 minute schedule and if you're in that much of a hurry, then you really need to relax and get in the vacation mode.

If you have any questions, be glad to respond.

Lynne

The Crown Pacific is a decent resort for the money, assuming you were able to take advantage of a last minute deal etc. If you paid full price for this resort I would be disappointed, esp. with the quality of the food.

Having said that, Huatulco itself is a nice area - clean, safe, quiet and no shortage of hot sunny weather - so I would definitely go back to the area, albeit not this resort.

To explain, my girlfriend and I were at the resort Feb. 7th to 14th on a Signature Vacations all inclusive package. We paid about $950 taxes included each, which is decent value for money for almost any mainstream all-inclusive resort. The bottom line is: if you want something fancier, or better food you have to pay for it - which we did by eating out on several occasions, esp. dinner!!

The rooms on the seventh floor are closest to the main pool (there is also a smaller pool at the beach). This is the ideal area to have a room, and the view of the Tangolunda Bay is quite spectacular, probably better than all other resorts in the area. All or most of the rooms are large suites, so even without the "all inclusive" aspect of the package this made the resort good value for money. Our room was on the top floor of the seventh level complex with cathedral ceilings etc. The room was huge, smartly decorated, clean, and relatively up-to-date (in terms of fixtures). The grounds are very nice and lush throughout the entire property. (Note: the mattress was hard as lead, but you'll get used to it...)

If you venture to the beach, and of course you should (duh?!!), there is a beach club area which you access either by walking or by "carillo". It's about 400m from the main hotel, so it's not a big deal that you are not directly on the beach as are the other major resorts. Again, the trade off is that you get a spectacular view from your balcony that none of the other large resorts have. Just make sure you get there early in the morning because there are an inadequate number of beach lounge chairs, and people put their towels on them early then leave - often for hours at a time. This pissed us off of course, but the key is just to get there earlier, unless of course you want to start a confrontation! No gracias amigos.

Most but not all of the staff speak some english, so be armed with some basic spanish skills, or better yet, an open mind. Most of the staff were polite (versus indifferent) so the language barrier was never a serious problem. Since you ARE in a foreign country be prepared to know a little about it...and things will go much smoother.

The major problem with the resort is that the food quality and consistency was often poor. If you like soggy vegetables and flavourless entres (with no variety from day to day) this will be your kinda place! Entertainment was also seriously lacking or non-existent. Sure, a "beer is a beer" and breakfast was decent (you can get a nice omellette or excellent pancakes for instance), but beyond that the meals were generally repetitive and unexciting. In fact, by day 3 we were looking for alternatives, and headed into town or to other resorts for lunch and esp. dinner.

One amazing nearby resort is the Quintas Real, which you will see on the hillside near the Crown Pacific. Dinner was excellent, and reasonably priced ($80 U.S. for two with tip and a couple of drinks). Once you see this resort up close you'll be green with envy and think you are in an episode of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Don't be intimidated, the place is cheap - considering the superior quality. We even considered staying one night because the price was fairly reasonable - about $300 US per night for a basic suite.

Other than that, the Casa Del Mar (up the hill the other way - south) was excellent for dinner and lunch - we had both. Further, the price was very reasonable too. Don Porfino's across from the Gala hotel is also highly recommended for dinner, and it's a lot of fun too.

Whatever you do, take a trip or two into town (La Crucecita and/or Santa Cruz) and try your bartering skills! There are some decent cafes and restaurants in these towns too, and we never felt unsafe, even at night during Fiesta night in Santa Cruz. Also, the "Real Mexico" tour was excellent, so I would recommend it too.

Overall, would I go back to the Crown Pacific??? No I would not, esp. since it is actually being converted to condos!! (I saw the brochures, and this may explain the inadequacies of the facility) Some people were more critical than I, but if you are just there to relax and don't mind venturing out into other resorts etc. to find some better quality food (esp dinner) you'll have a good time and not feel cheated.

Had a great time.Town is small and clean.Easy to get to.I liked the food at hotel, though there is 2 great places to eat across the street.Beach is a walk from the hotel but I enjoy walking.Went fishing with Jesus Vasgues . Found him and his boat(white shark) on the beach. He is resonable and speaks english and french.Looking forward to going back again. Lot of fun for a reasonable price. LOVED IT

We just returned from a 2 week stay at the Crown Pacific, Jan 17-31 2005. The room was very spacious and clean. The bed was extremely hard. We stayed on level 9 where the rooms have a large jacuzzi tub with sliding doors that open to a view of the bay. Our tub worked fine but apparently some didn't. Some of the furnishings are a little worn but ok. If you are expecting to watch any television your options are slim with only about 10 channels of which 3 are english. This may seem petty except for the fact that there is only entertainment 2 nights a week and it is horrible.

The food was not very good on any night especially Fri & Sat. These were Mexican night and local night. If you are there for 2 weeks these are 1 of the nights you might consider eating out. There is a good Steak and Seafood restaraunt in the little commercial area across from the Barcelo called Don Perino. The jumbo shrimp for $220 pesos was excellent.

The staff at the Crown Pacific was for the most part not very out going but a few tried real hard . The animation staff which consisted of 1 guy was useless. In the 2 weeks we were there he didn't do anything.

The beach and pool areas were quite nice but were lacking in the chairs department. From Thurs-Sun you had to get up early and save a chair, but check them over because about half of them were broken. When we spoke to the rep we were told that there were suppose to be new ones arriving the first week of February.

We took some tours while we were there. The first one was to see the crocodiles and sea turtles. It was a full day and very good. It cost $35 US. No food or drinks are included so bring some money. If you get motion sickness at all take something with you as the roads are quite winding. We had one fellow get sick on the ride back to the hotel.

We also went on the Magic Falls tour. This cost $55 US and included lunch and non-alcoholic drinks. After the waterfalls and lunch we took a short walking tour of the coffee plantation. Once again if you get motion sick take something with you as you are travelling non-paved mountain roads most of the trip.

Lastly we hired a private boat with another couple for $120 US. The boats name was the MARYSOL and it was owned and captained by Tico. HE took us to 5 different bays and stopped whenever we wanted to to go snorkelling. It was a great trip. We saw several sea turtles and had dolphins swimming around the boat. You will have to supply your own drinks but Tico supplies the cooler and ice. We left at 8 am and returned at 3 pm.

All in all Huatulco is a great place to go and relax. The weather was fantastic sunshine and temps in the 80's every day. We never had to wear pants at night.

Even though our meals weren't the greatest no one got sick, unlike at the Barcelo where a lot of people got sick the 2'nd week. The cause was still unkown when we left but a lot of people on our plane were just starting to get better.

If you don't mind doing a lot of walking and eating sub standard food the Crown Pacific is a great deal. Just don't expect great things and you won't be disappointed.

If you have any questions I would be happy to reply.

Crown Pacific Hotel - Huatulco

My wife and I (early thirties) spent a week at the Crown Pacific Hotel (Jan. 24-29 2005).

Generally speaking we were pleased. The resort is exceptionally clean, and there is much variety. The food was excellent for breakfast (although bring your own Maple Syrup), very good for lunch, and average for supper. None of the staff speak very much English, so brush up on your Spanish. My wife and I had a strange rate where alcohol was not included, and we were treated very badly when we tried to pay for the few drinks we attempted to order. The staff does not seem to be very well trained in the hotel processes and rules - for example on our last day they made me climb up and down the equivalent of 7 flights of stairs to sign-out some towels for the pool. I could not complain, because of the language barrier.

The area is spectacular - absolutely paradise. It's very difficult to access by vehicle, so there are not very many people. There are many local tours to choose from, and shopping in nearby towns that only cost a couple of bucks to visit by taxi. We went on the tour of real Mexico, which was phenomenal - just make sure you get an air conditioned vehicle. Our guide was Evuarado - he's the best! The area is very, very safe to visit. There was a guy at the beach selling tours, but I felt more comfortable booking one through the travel agency in the Hotel.

The Crown Pacific seems to cater mainly to wealthier Mexicans from Oaxaca or Mexico City. We bumped into more Canadians than Americans for some reason (we are Canadian). There were not very many people, although it was a battle for loungers either at the beach or at the Ocean. The shuttle service was excellent, we used it to go up to our room. You have to be in very good shape to walk from the supper area (down by the Ocean) up to the upper levels on a regular basis. There is an amazing golf course by the resort - bring your clubs if you can afford the green fees (not cheap).

We were in section 10, and the second highest floor in the resort. Sections 9 and 10 have the hot tubs, although there is a bizarre way of getting them started - you have to flip the switch, then the breaker blows, then you have to reset the breaker in the closet. The rooms are huge, at least the one we had. There is a big balcony, and you can open a big window over the hot tub to see outside to the balcony. The room alone made the trip worthwhile - it was amazing. On our last night there was pounding music coming from a nearby town or resort - woke us up at 12:30 am, but nobody else seems to have heard it. Otherwise the entire place was very, very quite.

We had a tiny Gheko running around our room - that was harmless. We were a little bit more concerned about the Scorpion we found on the bathroom floor. It was small, but we did not take any chances. It got a shoe and a one-flush salute. The coolest visitor was a 2 foot Iguana on our balcony. It was a black one - apparently those taste like chicken.

As this was my first trip to Mexico, I'm assuming the adventures of the air conditioning breaking down one night, the water breaking down one afternoon, the lack of consistent hot water, and the black oily stuff coming out of the taps when the water was fixed ... all part of the charm.

I just got back from a week at the Crown Pacific Hotel in Huatulco Mexico and would recommend it to most travellers in relatively good shape. It is built on the side of a hill so the all-suite blocks of rooms are terraced on a hillside. There are great views from most rooms and the pool is up on the 7th level so you get lovely views of Tangolunda Bay. There are shuttle buses to take you around the spread out grounds and something like a small tram car called a funicular which will take you up and down the hill. The suites are huge and have lovely balconies or terraces and though the beds are somewhat hard it wasn't a problem for myself or those in my family. The buffet does local foods well but like all buffets it does wear after a while and there are great restaurants in the nearby towns to give you a change of selection. Because it is a smaller hotel you don't get all the fancy extras but the beach club was adequate and the service was more intimate than the bigger hotels nearby. I am hoping to repeat this trip next Jan. and will book this same hotel.

Stayed at the crown pacific jan 2005. The hotel is a little worn around the edges but very clean and the staff are very good. We stayed in building 9. The room was spacious andWe had a beautiful view of the bay.

The had dinner at the beach club on Friday and Saturday night it was all mexican food and very good. The kids looked a little lost though no chicken fingers and fries of big macs. The rest of the week was passable. But we wanted to try some of the resturants in town any way.

Breakfast was always good fresh fruit, eggs any style, cereal, yougart.

Over all we realy enjoyed our stay at the hotel and Huatulco and would go back again.

We just returned from a week long holiday in Huatulco - a spectacular destination: perfect weather, gorgeous beaches, friendly people, and clean, clean, clean. The Crown Pacific is a charming 3-3.5 star all inclusive resort. We had a room on the top floor (10) overlooking the ocean. There was even a sliding door above the tub/shower that could be opened so that you could view the Pacific while bathing! The room was large and clean, and the balcony was huge! The staff is friendly, but few speak much English, so be patient. The 7th floor pool area is beautiful, with a great view of the bay and ocean. The restaurant is in a charming setting, and the food was mostly good (especially on Mexican themed nights). The beach club was nice, and it never seemed very crowded. The only drawback to the resort is its cliffside layout. There are little shuttles to bring you back and forth between the lobby, the beach club (which is across the street) and your room, but they run only about every 15 minutes. If you're in good shape and don't mind hiking up an downhill, it's okay, but I would not recommend this resort to the elderly or mobility-impaired. I think it was very good value for the money, but if you're looking for pampering in a luxurious settting, head to the the Camino or Quinta.