The reviews on this hotel are pretty much across the board fantastic and I don't have much to add or change about that. It really doesn't get much better for the price. My boyfriend and I stayed in the Pandora room, which faces the street. My only warning would be that if you are a light or sensitive sleeper, you should probably make sure you book a room facing the garden, because there is some noise from the bar across the street (Bourbon Street) until about midnight and from people in general strolling down 5th Avenue. We did our homework and knew this going in, and since we're not light sleepers, it didn't bother us one bit. Just make sure to confirm what room you're in if that's the kind of thing that might bother you!

Anyway, the rooms are spotless, updated and completely charming. Pandora doesn't have a fridge, which would be a nice touch, but it does have a small cable TV, a nice safe and air conditioning that works a lot better than my central air at home! The staff is a joy to deal with, everyone is cheerful and friendly. They provide a large bottle of water everyday, which is a lifesaver, trust me. The front desk staff speaks perfect English and really work hard to make your stay perfect. The hotel is in a great location. The beaches can get very crowded, especially at the beach clubs further North, but if you stay in the area between the ferry and Lunata, it's much more peaceful and you can even find some natural shade under the palm trees so you don't need to search up and down the beach in vain for a palapa.

There doesn't seem to be a way to leave restaurant/bar reviews for PDC on this site, so I'll make some recommendations in this space. The first meal we had was the fish and shrimp tacos (fried) at Fusion Hotel just around the corner from Lunata and right on the beach. It was one of the best meals we had the entire week and we really liked the staff as well.

I think our very favorite restaurant was La Fe, which is about a 10 minute slow walk from Lunata up on the northern end. Prices here are extremely reseasonable and everything we had the 3 times we ate there was outstanding. I highly recommend the shrimp burritos, fried potato tacos and the chicken wrapped with bacon. It has a really relaxed, hipster lounge feel to it as well.

If you're looking for a great, cheap place on the beach for seafood, definitely try La Tarraya, not far at all from Lunata if you walk on the beach toward the south end of 5th ave. I loved their shrimp ceviche in an avocado. To be honest, you really cannot go wrong with shrimp anywhere in PDC, it seems to be one of the things most places do very well.

Our favorite bar was Pez y Vela, a couple minutes walk from Lunata towards the south end of 5th. They have swing seats at the bar and the bartenders here were our favorites by far. It's really the kind of place you can go and hang out for hours on end. The patrons are extremely friendly (not sure why everyone we seemed to meet there was from Wisconsin, but we loved them!), the people watching is great and the bartenders are fast and very entertaining. I loved their frozen strawberry margaritas and the food was actually quite good. We loved the the queso fundido, which was very simple but so tasty. I know a lot of regular PDC-goers are big Tequila Barrel fans, but to us, this bar kicked its butt.

I'll also recommend the YucaTrek tours we booked through playa.info. The Tulum tour was really cool, but I think if you do one tour, make it the Chichen Itza tour!

Great small hotel in the very heart of Playa del Carmen. Location could not have been better unless you want to be on the beach. Rooms were spacious, clean, and well air conditioned. Staff were very pleasant and helpful. Breakfast was adequate.

After a most unsatisfying one night at the Hotel Colibri, we walked over to Lunata and they couldn't have been more helpful to us. They had no rooms, but made several phone calls to local hotels and secured a room for us, at La Tortuga, which was fabulous. The only problem was that Tortuga could only accommodate us for 3 days, but we were able to book at Lunata after that.

At Lunata, our room was spacious, clean, and well-appointed with Mexican art. The staff was always very friendly and helpful to us.

The garden patio is a beautiful oasis to get away from the busy 5th avenue.

The breakfast needs some work, however. Even the name "Continental Breakfast" is an exaggeration.

In summary, this is a nice hotel and a good value, right in the heart of the bustle of 5th avenue.

Don

Our stay at Hotel Lunata was almost perfect. As many others have noted, rooms on 5th Avenue can be a little noisy but between the tv and earplugs (provided by the hotel), it's tolerable and some nites, not an issue at all. We stayed 5 nites and found it very easy to settle in and feel right at home. Staff was super friendly and helped create that homey sort of feel. The garden is gorgeous and actually attracts passing tourists looking for a good photo op. Breakfast isn't anything to write home about but, just steps away there are countless restaurants serving affordable (and overpriced) meals so you won't go hungry. Look forward to visiting again soon.