Fiesta Americana was very relaxing and a lot of fun due to the staff and intermingling with other guests. I visited with a large group for a dive vacation the first week of February 2012. I wouldn't call the resort five star as I've stayed at some ritzy places. This is not one of those but it is very good for a Caribbean vacation. As long as you understand that, you should be happy there.

Room: I stayed with a friend on the 7th floor with an ocean view. The room was mainly just for sleeping and was more than adequate. It is not spacious but is comfortable. Everything in the room was clean and working. The view from the balcony as well as when we exited the room were beautiful. Keep in mind that the resort is south of town on the coast. One side has the ocean; the other has the canopy. The service to the room whether cleaning, restocking, or turn-down, was top-notch. As a diver, I loved the early morning cup of coffee as well as fresh bottle of water for the morning and soda (quick sugar) post dive. We rarely heard anyone in the adjacent rooms; sometimes we used the A/C to beat the humidity.

Food: I ate at the buffet every day and all three meals. Food was available 7am to 10pm, and I'm not even factoring the snack bar inside. The food quality ranged from average to very good depending on the item, but the resort did a wonderful job of providing food choices each day to suit all tastes - plus there were plenty of healthy options. For example, I had fruit, vegetables, meat, and grain portions. Each night was a different style of food. Also, the healthy for the soul options - the desserts - were exceptional and small portions so you could sample several. There was no lack of nourishment. And, like many others, I was concerned about the revenge for drinking the water. At the resort, I drank the water and ate the food washed in water; I never experienced a problem. The potable water is delivered and filtered.

Service: Once again, service was top-notch, and I think this is the big thing to take away from this write-up. My friend sometimes sat down by the pool to relax. Within minutes someone was checking with him to see if anything was needed, like, a drink or towel. At dinner, we were constantly checked for drinks, clearing of plates, etc.

Location: the resort is about 10 minutes south of town. So you are not "in the action" if that is what you are looking for. You can grab a quick cab to downtown for minimal money if you want. Some in my group rented scooters. I rented a jeep to go to the Mayan ruins and then travel to the beaches on the north side. For the ruins, I can recommend a guide. The cost is nominal for the information that you get.

DiveHouse: the divehouse is the scuba dive business right across the street. It was part of my package for staying at the resort. Each day, they had about 3 boats going out, with ours having 20 people on board. The vessel (Dive House III) was a fine size for this. We had two divemasters most days (with a third joining us a couple times), plus a captain and a crewhand. The boat departed in a very timely fashion and was fitted with enough tanks, supplies, etc. I also liked coming up from the first dive to get fresh fruit and water for the next dive. The captain and crewhand were on top of helping us get in and out of the water as well as set up and break down of equipment. The divemasters were excellent in the briefings, guides, and education of what we would see and what we saw. They were also very nice people. For our Divemasters, we had David and Orlando, with Esau joining us occasionally. Victor was our crewhand, and I apologize that I do not recall the captain.

When we came up from the bottom, typically after a drift dive, the boat was not far away. So they did a good job of tracking our bubbles and staying with us while under - even with other dive groups being in the waters. We never felt unsafe in this crew's hands.