We had a very enjoyable stay at this Holiday Inn. It is a very short walk to markets and restaurants, about 5 minutes. Another couple of minutes and you are on the beach whether you slip through one of the hotels like the Barcelo or use the public entrance to the left of the Barcelo. There is an OXXO convenience store close by as well to grab some munchies, beer, etc. The only thing I would have liked that was not available is a refrigerator but there was ice to lay my beer in to keep cold . The beds are a little firm for me but we still slept great. Also there was always at least one person at all times that spoke English so that was helpful. For the price, I highly recommend this hotel if staying on the beach is not necessary.

This is the second time I stay here and I'm very satisfied with the service and the attention I received from the staff. The Front Desk clerks were very friendly and helpful. I would not hesitate to book my next trip in this Property.

This is a great hotel and offers a real "Mexico Holiday" experience. The rooms are not fancy, but clean, neat and air conditioned. It's every thing you'd expect in a Holiday Inn. They have a complimentary business center and a really nice pool with swim up bar and pool service. There are not many Americans at this hotel. They are two blocks away at the big all-inclusive resorts where they like to pack you in and keep you there. You'll see mostly Mexicans on Holiday at this hotel. I just loved to sit by the pool all day and get my frosty beverages you can say Rum Punch right?" and snacks and soak in the sun. That seems to be what many of the hotel guests did as well. Don't get any meal plan. There is a shopping plaza about one block from the hotel with a huge variety of quality restaurants and shops with Mexican prices. The beach is only a 2 block walk away if you prefer sun and sand. They offer tours of the area via the hotel concierge. The staff speak broken English so really not a problem if you don't speak Spanish. Most of the restaurants near by have staff who speak English. Our entire stay for 3 nights with alcoholic beverages and food pool side was less than $450.00 for both of us. If you want Mexico this is it!

I had seen mostly mediocre reviews (and one really sour one) before arriving. My experience in Ixtapa was one of the best holidays I've had in the last few years. Here's why...

This hotel isn't right on the beach, but that's accessible a number of ways (Ixtapa is more of a commercial loop than a town) and you're not paying a fortune for a view of the ocean.

While many "all-inclusive" resorts and hotels tend to start with splendid service and then taper off halfway to three fourths of the way through your stay, the service and staff at the Holiday Inn remained excellent until we said our final "adios" on our last Sunday. The food bar isn't quite as huge as the 4-5 star joints, but the food was excellent and actually did change from night to night. I'd rather have a little variety in my selection than stare at the same "ice swan" carving night after night while the canteloupe gets stale.

I've travelled through four continents and this is one of the few foreign hotels I've stayed at where the water pressure and temperature are good and the water stays inside the shower stall. Did I mention free internet with the all-inclusive package?

Worth the money in Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo:
1) Fishing - we left early, spent an hour waiting in the gulf then bagged two, six foot sailfish one after the other. It took me about 15 minute to land mine, then my daughter took 10 minutes to land hers. A local restaurant prepared it for us (see below). Cost: about $120/person not including taxi.

2) Swedish massage - $35.00 for one hour. Wow! (At the hotel)

3) Parasailing - $25.00 for a 10 minute ride - just remember to get your butt way back in the sling before takeoff or you'll feel like you're sliding out of the harness 300 feet up.
They launch and recover you on dry land so I did this in my street clothes. During the ride my hands were free to take some nice photos.

Now the beach: About a 10 minute walk from the Holiday. Our tour guide "arranged" for us to use the palapas (umbrella w/ table) at an associated, beach hotel but I was uncomfortable as soon as I saw hotel security eject two families (who were guests at that hotel) for lack of palapas reservation. I was much happier just paying about $20 for a palapa at the public beach. In Ixtapa there are vendors on the beach but they don't pester you to death every second like they did in Manzanillo two years ago.

If you want to go out to eat (instead of the hotel) try the 'El Arborito' restaurant in the middle of the 'fleamarket and mall' area between the Holiday Inn and the beach area. Their cook prepared our sailfish three different ways, it was incredible and the tab for four people came to less than $50, including the tip! This is the kind of place Rick Steves would find if he wrote about Ixtapa.

If you're bumming around and want a "brunch" try the chips and guac at that restaurant, with a corona beer (with a piece of lime of course) and top it off with their fried banana. Superb!

Taxis are fairly cheap, averaging about $5 for a 15 minute ride to the marina and fishing in Zihuatanejo (which is the real town).

Any downers here? Not really, although their check-in is around 3pm, so if your flight gets there in the morning you may be walking around the pool and bar area for awhile.

Oh, also, if you've never had a trophy fish mounted, be prepared for major sticker shock! I was going to mount mine but the best offer I could get was "only" $500.00 - down! (out of $1100-1200) and that doesn't include shipping. Needless to say, neither my daughter or I opted to mount our trophies.

But those are little things...

I would recommend this hotel and town to anyone thinking about Mexico.

One more thing: All of the key people (concierge, headwaiter, maitre 'd, etc.) at the hotel do speak pretty good English so communication was never a problem with us, even though I'm the most "fluent" one in Spanish - about 10 tourist phrases, total.