Iberostar Quetzal Hotel

Very, nice all-​inclusive resort! The hotel was nice; rain forest like ambiance and various local animals everywhere. The peacocks will eat from your hands but do be careful of the other creatures; they don’t seem as friendly. The animals do get loud but that is part of the character of the resort. The shrieks of the peacocks do remind us of «Kevin» in the movie «Up». Also, the rat-​like critters are not rats but agouti or guinea pig cousins… my visiting sister in-​law thought they were rats and screamed at the sight!
There was plenty to do at the hotel. The staff was always busy organizing activities into the late evening hours… pulling guest into forced-​entertainment servitude. Subsequently, the guests ‘are’ the entertainment for everyone! There is even a guy at the tennis court just waiting for someone to whack a ball back to! The pool was superb and so was the sandy beach… just watch the seaweeds – some pest in them gave my wife itchy red bumps around her waist. The 1-​hour/​day sailboat, boards and kayaks free-​for-​use are also included and fun against the waves. We also got gratis-​hour of therapeutic water spa to relax in. Schedule the free photo shoot on the beach, too… the guy is funny and takes terrific memories! The evening shows and dance was also fun. You can also walk a short distance outside the hotel compound to some shopping but for the best deals or other nightlife, you’ll need to take a taxi to town or Walmart… fare is about $ 9 for four passenger and doubles after every increment above four passengers.
We stayed as a family of five… all adults… and for 5-​days. The rooms were wonderful; very clean, nice décor and comfortable. We had large, connecting jungle-​view rooms on the 2^nd floor; with all the amenities, hair dryer, safe-​box, 110v power, mini fridge with included drinks and snacks. Our adult-​aged children laughed at their kid-​decked room, accented with candy, balloons and toys. Although the rooms were nice; the hot-​water for showers wasn’t always available; so watch for the occasional cold-​showers. Moreover, each rooms had an occupancy-​sensor that shuts the power down when movement stops or when everyone leaves the room. This made recharging electronics very challenging; when everyone is out or have gone to bed! The hotel should provide at least one outlet in the room that doesn’t power off… or guest will need to bring in a cat, tie toilet paper to the vents, capture one the critters, bring a candle-​turntable, etc. to keep the room power on with some kind of movement.
The food was fair… The buffet got boring after a while… seemed like the same stuff everyday with maybe one thing new added. Hamburgers, beef and steaks were nice but the hotdogs and pizza are a skip… pass these up! Also, the cold cuts and cheese serving area needs to be colder… I like my cheese firm, not soggy! The included, two formal dinners does help break up the buffet-​monotony. Book your dinners early, the steakhouse option was fully booked and we had to settle with the Bonsai and Italian dinner… The Bonsai was good and recommended but the Italian restaurant tasted like another extension of the tiring-​buffet offerings. Room service is also good… definitely, get the tacos! The drinks, on the other hand, are on the lighter side. Our kids switched to tequila-​shots in an attempt at getting some kind of buzz going. With exception of the room and a couple of restaurants, the bars, buffet, lobby and rest of the facility was «open air» so be prepared to battle the mosquito attacks! I recommend some strong stuff like Deep-​woods-​Off. We tried the regular Off but the hotel’s jungle-​like atmosphere breed some very aggressive blood-​suckers!
Pro:
— Nice rooms
— Lots of hotel activities
— Good shopping bargains in town
— Free Wifi in the Lobby
Con:
— No public trans or shuttle… taxi only
— Buffet needs more variety
— Bulletproof mosquitos
— Hard to recharge electronics