The rooms are fine and all the personnel is very kind. On the other hand its noisy they are constructing all around (it's easy to get a pneumatic hammer pounding at the other side of the window) There was just a small pool available and the parking lot is also very small. The internet is hard to get, no wireless, at the business center only, not available at night and sometimes neather at day.

Four days of tranquility, good service, friendly staff, and an overall attitude of accomodation and safety for all us scared visitors who venture to Mazatlan! This hotel is secure! The staff amazingly watchful, caring and sincere. The hotel mgr, Eduardo, makes his guests' needs a priority. From the housekeeper to the front desk to the concierge to the restaurant to the valet to the taxi driver - I never once felt apprehensive. I am a 61 year old single lady who traveled alone. Toured all of Mazatlan (almost always on the "Pulmonia" mobile which is a kick), a financially stable and growing Mexican city that impressed me enough to consider retirement there. Absolutely fabulous seafood for a song! Gone are the pathetic stray dogs, mosquitos, time-share hounds, beggars, and sewer smells. It's not yet overrun with Americans and still is true to its Mexican culture and richness. The coastline is only dotted with high rise hotels. Tipping is actually appreciated. No rip-offs. Spring-breakers few (thanks for the warning US gov) so it was enjoyable all around. Mexican employees still sing to themselves as they work in Mexico which is enough to get me to move there. Three more days was needed!

A friend and i visited Mazatlan for the first time for a week Jan 31-Feb 7, 2009. I have been to Mexico many times, but enjoyed this first visit to the city. :et me first say that I have read many many of the other reviews about this hotel prior to my stay and i did take the advise of others with regards to earplugs (but as a side note the night club, during non-spring break weeks, is only open friday and saturday nights. So you will need your earplugs those nights, but no others). So here is a lowdown of the good and bad of the Emporio as well as Mazatlan.
The good: The Emporio was excpetional, the staff was outstanding at all times and very friendly. only a few spoke english, so please be patient, they are very nice and genuine people (I have an advantage of speaking spanish so that works in my favor). The pools were very nice, but rarely used as they are not heated and very cold in the "winter" months. the hot tub was great and acutally hot! I did not eat at the hotel, but spoke with several guests who ate their every morning and loved it! The rooms were very clean and done so in a very quick manner. I always left some candies and a few singles for the maids. The beach was great and the security did an amazing job of ensuring that the local kids/teens did not disturb the guests or sit in the "hotel guests' chairs. We ventured off every morning for a stroll along the Malecon, and it was beautiful! Check it out, and the view is free! We ate breakfast about two blocks away at a quaint place called Playa Bonita (across the street from the Ramada), the waiter, jorge, was always welcoming and waiting for us. the food was perfect (taste and price ($4.50 for breakfast including juice and coffee). i would highly recommend checking it out! it is only open for breakfast. We also ate at Tony's on the beach, near the Marina, several times. The portions are very large and the food was excellent and priced very resonably (under $10 for a dinner/per person). Also, there are fruit vendors on the beach i would highly recommend this for an afternoon snack. the best fruit we bought was from a gentleman wearing a red baseball cap (I never caught his name).
The bad: While at the Emporio the warm water was hit or miss for showers, especially in the afternoon. But that is the only complaint I have about the property.

Mazatlan itself is a beautiful city, if you keep and open mind and don't mind a little trash or exhaust/dust. The people as wonderful and embrace tourists. i had a very lenghtly conversation with a beach vendor and he indicated that tourism is down, painfully low. It is about 40% less than what it was one year ago (this was very vivid when looking down the beach at 3pm and only a few people were walking the sand) although it is not advertised as such. So please, shop with the vendors and if you have a little extra money spend with them, you will find a much better deal than you would in a store! By doing this you are supporting another economy and someones family at the same time.

I stayed at the Emporio for 3 nights at the end of Jan.'08, and loved it! It was my first trip to Mexico, and my first time travelling alone, so I was a little nervous. The staff at the Emporio did wonders for allaying any fears I had about being a SWF traveller, and helped me out in anyway they could with whatever I needed. (Although the staff are considered bilingual, it helps to know some basic Spanish~ you put in the effort to communicate with people in their own language, they're going to treat you better!)

When doing research for places to stay, I chose this hotel for a number of reasons:
1. Almost every room has a HUGE balcony over-looking the central courtyard and pools, with a fantastic view of the ocean. (I refuse to travel from -50*C Canada to stay somewhere that does NOT offer a room with an ocean-view balcony~ Call me a Princess! I don't care~ I'm not doing it!!!)

2. Most of the people who stay here are local people, especially families with young children = Excellent, laid-back atmosphere! And you know what? That also means a fantastic opportunity to dust off ye 'old spanglish dictionary! :)

3. The location of the hotel is superb~ right at the beginning of the tourist zone, within easy walking distance to some excellent restaurants.

4. It's on a beach~ 'nuff said.

I did not opt for the all-inclusive package, and am so glad I didn't~ There are so many wonderful restaurants nearby, it would be a shame to miss any of them. I did partake of the breakfast buffet at the hotel every morning, which I found to be wonderful, but I'll admit, I was stuck on the made-to-order omelettes and fresh fruit with fresh baked pastries and juice and coffee ~ I wasn't all that adventurous. (The coffee puts Tim Horton's to shame; I feel traitorous saying that, but it's true.)

The beach bar also serves up some [----] drinks, all made with purified ice, which is considerate of them. In typical Canuck fashion, I usually stuck with whatever strongest beer they had.

The rooms aren't huge, but more than adequate~ I've stayed at 4**** hotels that weren't as nice. I ended up staying in #417 and #309. (The phone didn't work in 417, so they moved me the next day~ no problems! #309 has got one of the bigger balconies on the property!!!) The beds~ MY GOD, IT WAS COMFORTABLE!!! Shocked and pleased by that one, I was expecting near-plywood-pillowtop. I think that was the best part of the room~ that, and the huge ocean-view balcony of course. It was big enough, that I had enough room to lay out my Yoga mat, plus leave the patio table and 2 chairs set up. (yes, I brought my Yoga mat all the way to Mexico~ took up valuable luggage space too, dammit.)

The bathrooms are very basic, but they're CLEAN, with CLEAN towels, toilet paper is provided right next to the toilet that flushes, and the hot water works in the shower, which is really all a person needs. The hotel supplies the guests with complementary toiletries, which is a nice touch, and provides a free bottle of water upon arrival.

To get more bottled water, you can pay what the hotel charges, or you can walk North down the main street to a pharmacy, about 2-3 blocks away, and pick up your bottled water for about half the cost. Also, pick up a phone card to use the phones in the lower area of the lobby~cheaper than placing collect calls home and way cheaper than dialling direct from the room.

The only thing I did not foresee and can understand people's frustrations over is the noise level at night, but obviously, no one has any control over that. Mexican architecture being what it is, I don't think insulation is used at all, if ever. Combine that with the fact that every single door to all the rooms are on the outside closest to the street~ a very VERY busy street that is one of the main traffic arteries through town in fact. And then you've got a nightclub/bar not even a 1/2 block away to the North pumping out the bass at a consistently deafening level. Both of the rooms I had were on the North side of the building = NOISY!; the East side is right over the street; the South would be the best bet, I would think. The closer you can get to the beach, the more the sound of the waves will drown out the traffic and the bar. Earplugs work well, I was fortunate to have brought them. Those that don't bring them~ good luck sleeping!

Overall, I had a fantastic time in a beautiful place. I would definitely consider returning to the Emporio, no question. Heck, I'll even bring my husband next time! :)