ugly, dirty, small, bed bugs
only the location is good

Hotel Fusion is a great hotel for a no frills stay in downtown Playa del Carmen. Located right off of famous 5th ave, complete with a great casual beach club on site with excellent service!
My husband and I stayed over the holidays so it was definitely pricier than the off season rates where I think then, anyone would feel this is a sweet find deal during those times, we payed holiday rates and that was common for all the hotels during those dates. Ah well, I still really enjoyed the cozy colorful room with a pillowtop bed and basic shower was all just fine for us. We wanted to stay near the beach and in downtown over the NYE so this hotel was truly perfect for us. The front staff was friendly and offered a welcome drink our first day and we had the free continental bfast daily which was a simple but a nice start to each day.

By day here, we really liked that we were close to bus station to head to Tulum and Coba Mayan Ruins, or many other excursion meet ups or we would just stay at the hotel beach club utilizing the free towels and lounge chairs which Fusion provided. At night there are so many places to head out for dinner along 5th ave, the location really is great for evening walks on the beach or on the ave, we generally would make a circle nightly, always opting to beach walk home to our lovely hotel at night after dinner. If you don't feel like walking just sit at a table in the sand at the Fusion lounge, they have really great food here too.

We loved the live music and fireshow entertainment happenings out on the beach in front of the hotel at night and by day the vibe was chill and relaxing.. I recommend the Fusion for those that do not stay in their room much and are more concerned about Location Location.. rather than a pampered luxury style room. Also note yep, as noted.. the hotel has live music at night so if you are one that goes to sleep early this spot may not be for you, there are rooms in the garden area that seem a lil quieter but don't count on it. ;) We had no issues with the noise in the garden after around 2a. When we did have one issue at the hotel the staff was quick to resolve the issue, showing great customer service! I would love to visit here again someday for more fun in Playa!

I feel a bit mixed in reviewing this hotel. The reception desk staff were fantastic. The rooms were basic and if it hadn't been a beach location hotel, the money paid was too much. Additionally, we had room 9 and it was too close to the beach to sleep early. I was told the first night by waitress staff that we couldn't sit in the beach chairs, because they were all reserved. There were so many open chairs and tables. As a guest of the hotel, I was disappointed by this approach. However, I made my reservation for the next night and enjoyed an ocean view table in the sand the second night of our stay.

I love this hotel for the location, the tables in the sand, the reception staff, the entertainment was fantastic (fire shows and belly dancers) and the gardens in the back of the hotel. The room was basic but quaint in a rustic way.

I would definitely stay here again, but I would choose to stay off season (to get a lower room price) and in a room away from the beach.

A quick and dirty rundown of the Fusion Beach Hotel:
The location is right on the beach -- extremely affordable for beachfront accommodations. The hotel also is located right in the center of Playa, which makes walking the famous 5th Ave. really fun and easy. It's a trendy hotel and bar/grill, so live music plays well into the wee hours of the morning. If you like to party until you pass out, Fusion is perfect. If you need to get shut-eye for all-day excursions, you might want to find a different hotel.

The room: Our traveling party included two adults and two children, so we needed a room with two beds. The only rooms with two beds are located WAY in the back of the little complex. The room we had was the basic of the basics. It had two double beds, the smallest dorm fridge you can buy, a nightstand, a bathroom with walk-in shower, a TV with cable service and a single air conditioning unit that made the room either too cold or too hot. We had a window opened in the bedroom and a small window in the shower stall. There was no balcony, which made it impossible to hang dry wet swimsuits/clothes. Getting into a cold, wet swimming suit was the pits. The room was a "Garden View," but there wasn't much to see out our window -- a tree and some green ground foliage. Maid service was excellent, and we tipped accordingly. PLEASE TAKE NOTE: THERE ARE NO IN-ROOM SAFES!! The reception desk says they have a safe, but when we went to place my laptop and our passports, we found the laptop did not fit under the desk. There really is no safe at the reception desk: They put your stuff in envelope and write your room number on it. When we retrieved our passports, we were not asked for any ID or anything, so we didn't feel safe leaving anything at the reception desk. So if you have a laptop, passports or any other valuable items, you must either leave them in your room or keep them with you at all times. This made our trip troublesome because I was so afraid someone would come in our room and steal our stuff when we participated in water sports and other activities.

If you are looking for a place to just sleep and shower, Fusion is the best place to be. It's like a Motel 6 or Super 8 on the beach. It was fine for us because we spent nearly all our time on the beach or participating in water sports and sightseeing. If you are looking for an up-scale boutique resort feel, you should stay elsewhere. There is no swimming pool, no hot tub or any of the extras.

The restaurant/bar: Fusion's food/drinks and service were really good, but very pricey compared to other places -- even within the tourist zone. If you venture two blocks north of 5th Ave., you can find local food vendors, where you can get a ton a food for just USD $3 or $4/person. We ended up walking to Walmart and stocking up on snacks, soda, bottled water and beer and just taking that to the beach with us. It was much, much cheaper than ordering everything from Fusion's restaurant.

Presentation Scams: Everywhere you go in Mexico, many, many people will offer you free tickets to parks and even money if you go to some presentation at a "new" hotel resort. These people will try to stop you at the airport, while your walking down 5th Ave., and even in Walmart. Unless you intend to spend $28,000 on a resort room time-share-like program, just ignore these people and keep walking. The presentations take about 2-3 hours, and you get pressured into investing into a resort. While the free ticket offers may sound tempting, it really isn't worth it unless you have nothing better to do than sit in sales presentations during your entire vacation.

Bottomline: If you have off-site activities planned, Fusion is a great basic place to rest your head. If you want to stay put and relax with some extras and a little pampering, Fusion is not for you. The only caveat: THERE ARE NO SAFES FOR VALUABLES.