Ventus at Marina El Cid Spa & Beach Resort

This resort is wonderful. The staff is exceptional, the rooms spacious and modern, we were in building 32. I think there are 8 pools including rooftop bar and pool on building 28 and 30. Great spot to watch sports. The food and restaurants are delicious. The problem with this resort is the beach and water. It's disappointing, checkout yourself

Hotel Marina El Cid is a great choice for a relaxing getaway. The property feels welcoming and well cared for, with a beautiful waterfront setting that adds a calm, vacation-like atmosphere from the moment you arrive. Rooms are comfortable and clean, and the overall layout makes it easy to enjoy the pools, walk around the resort, and unwind without feeling rushed. The staff are friendly and attentive, helping create a smooth, pleasant stay. Whether you’re spending time by the water, enjoying on-site dining, or simply taking in the scenery, it’s an easy place to settle in and enjoy. If you want a comfortable stay with a nice marina vibe and warm service, Hotel Marina El Cid is definitely worth considering.

This was our first time staying at Ventus, although last year we stayed at Marina and decided to return to the same resort group. Unfortunately, this year was a bit of a letdown. We arrived after a long day of travel and spent nearly an hour checking in, as staff repeatedly tried to upsell room upgrades. Since we were already familiar with the rooms from our previous stay, we had specifically booked the room we wanted. There was also an issue with our reservation showing our child as 13 when they are actually 14, resulting in an additional charge of $28 USD per night. The distinction between 13 and 14 was unclear to us, and the entire situation left us feeling unsettled right from the start. While we do love many of the amenities at this resort—such as Delores for lunch, Amores Coffee, the pools, and the dining options—the overall experience felt underwhelming due to what appeared to be significant understaffing. At the pools, there were often only one or two servers available. Each bar typically had only one bartender, and one afternoon at RUF, the bartender disappeared for approximately 45 minutes. Several evenings of entertainment were also disappointing, including casino night, movie night, and Mexican fiesta. Out of the seven nights we stayed, the only show we truly enjoyed was Tuesday night’s fire and urban show, which was absolutely amazing. We would like to give a special mention to Jose at the Waves bar—he was very friendly and made excellent drinks. We also loved the new pickleball courts and appreciated that equipment was available at the front desk. One downside to the Ventus rooms was the lack of storage. There were no dressers, only a TV stand with two drawers, so we had to live out of our suitcases for the entire week. While housekeeping was excellent, our room was never restocked with water. We were also extremely disappointed to learn upon arrival that the beach bar with the swings had closed in February 2025, as this was something we were really looking forward to. Overall, service was noticeably lacking, which made the experience underwhelming—especially since we traveled with friends and family. Because of this, we are likely to try a different resort next year.

The resort was amazing! Service, pools were clean, heated one was my favourite in night time, hot tubs and the beaches! Food was incredible, stake being barbecue in demand as you wait! I have been in hospitality business since 1993, worked with all kinds of people in Canada! I have never experienced more love and compassion in my life from the employees that served us in all areas smiles were never short, or the love hand over the heart greetings as we walked by! I had tears leaving touched by the experiment ! My first time in à resort with my daughter and her fiancé! I do not want to forget the gardens and the people maintaining them! Love love Marina El CID, Venus and Venus-Ha paradise with the tallest oh my God beautiful trees!

We stayed at Ventus at Marina El Cid with our family and overall had a good trip, though there are some important things future guests should know. We arrived around noon. While official check-in is at 3 PM, the front desk did check us in early and advised us to pack light and explore the resort or grab lunch while waiting for the room, which was helpful. We inquired about an upgrade at check-in. The first staff member wasn’t very helpful, but a second one later provided better options. We agreed to a ~$400 USD upgrade; however, when the charge was processed in pesos, the total came out nearly $80 more. This was blamed on the exchange rate, which felt excessive. My advice: clarify the exact peso amount ahead of time, bring pesos, or consider paying cash to avoid surprises. We did receive a Gulf-view room, which was nice. The room itself was clean, a good size, and well maintained with no complaints. The resort grounds are very clean and well taken care of. Staff overall were friendly and helpful, though a few individuals seemed a bit grumpy—nothing out of the ordinary. One thing we appreciated was that no one was aggressively pushing for tips. Food was mixed. The French restaurant was excellent—very good food and noticeably better service. On the other hand, Kobo Japanese hibachi was disappointing. The performance was weak compared to other hibachi experiences we’ve had, no soup was served, and the food quality wasn’t great. Even our kids commented that they’ve seen better shows and eaten better hibachi elsewhere. One major difference from other resorts we’ve visited is the lack of poolside or beach snack options. There are no snack bars for quick bites like burgers, hot dogs, or fries—you must go to the buffet for meals, which can be inconvenient, especially with kids. Entertainment at the pools was very limited. There were some small kids’ activities and a few sports like beach volleyball, pool volleyball, and beach soccer on certain afternoons, but nothing close to all-day activity programming found at many other family resorts. The first four days were unusually chilly, so the heated Ventus family infinity pool was a big plus and was used heavily by our kids. A highlight of the trip was Thursday evening’s Urban Taco Night—great food, amazing setup, excellent music, and local artists showcasing their crafts. It was a standout experience and felt special. Overall, Ventus is clean, calm, and well maintained, but it’s better suited for guests looking for a quieter resort rather than a high-energy, activity-packed family experience.

El Cid is a timeshare (sort of) based resort. We stayed at Ventus, but the resort also includes the Marina and Ventus Ha (confusing, I know). We were all Inclusive, I don't know if other options exist. We are not "members." The Good: the food is good (cruise quality or better- with 2 exceptions), lots of dining options, awesome staff, great facilities, free kayak rental, life guards on the beach, a very nice spa, well stocked gyms, adults only pool, incredible fauna everywhere, carts to take you anywhere in the resort, and many other nice amenities. Alex is a great resource in the concierge/guest services area. While his job is to get you to go to the timeshare presentations, he will be very helpful before and, more importantly, after the presentation, even if you didn't buy. Milka is also an amazining ball of energy. The Bad: the timeshare/ points thing is bad. They tell you 1.5 hours, but it's never less than 3 hours and was 4 for some. You have to go to the restaurant to watch the salesperson eat (a huge waste of time), then listen to a long sales pitch. After you survive the 1st, they tempt you with a 2nd presentation which is a different program, but with the same sales techniques. Please read other reviews for El Cid Leisure club and the El Cid points program BEFORE attending any sessions. The Tappan style restaurant was typical, with relatively lackluster food. Everyone gets the exact same thing. Our drinks arrived when we were half way through our main course. I always seem to get the chef who seems to wish he was somewhere else vs entertaining us. The fish restaurant also struggled with service and food. We arrived at 6pm, dessert was served at 7:45. We had an appetiser and entree with very long wait between each. There were only 2 fish entrees on the menu. At a fish restaurant?????? The mahi mahi had no flavor but was served with a sauce that provided some flavor. The salmon was great. Apparently members have a better menu. The poor service at the restaurants reduced the service rating. The internet is expensive, each device requires its own plan (no sharing), and we (T-mobile) had to leave our room to get a good signal. The ocean at the hotel (at least when we were there in Dec.) was cloudy, unlike the water off Cancun. More: This is an American resort. With few exceptions, you will only experience Mexico outside the resort. The tours are reasonably priced (cheap by cruise standards) and cheaper if you go to the sales thing. The other restaurants were quite good, but getting dinner reservations to the restaurants can difficult- you can only book 2 restaurants a day. Some only had seating at 4:30 or 9:30, even when 3 or 4 days in the future. In a couple of cases we just walked into the restaurant and asked if they had a table and they did. But this is not recommended. The room attendants did excellent work and housekeeping was very responsive. Lots of bottled water, sodas and beers are stocked for free. They have areas set aside just for kids and there were many more kids than we expected for the 2nd week of December. I had a lot more, but Googlle limits the length.

This resort was amazing especially for the price. We loved the heated pool as it was a bit chilly. The lunch market is amazing and delicious. Rooms are new and beautiful. They are constantly cleaning painting and keeping care of the grounds. Only thing that wasn’t great was reservations times. Very hard to get a decent time for supper. Also Beach is beautiful but the water isn’t clear. Just take a short ride to Puerto Morelos for beautiful beaches.

Overall service and quality was excellent. Staff were great and paying for the platinum club was worth it. Access to the restaurants, bars and amenities at all the resorts were lovely. The resort isn’t as huge as you think it is and is quite easy to navigate around. The beach at Ventus isn’t large but the pool areas are. The beach at Marina is not bad. There seemed to always have chairs available on the beach. Ventus Ha was not beach front but has pools (did not visit). The food scene - getting reservations were not easy. We were there with friends so it was quite difficult to get a reservation at the a la carte restaurants. We were part of the Platinum Club we were able to make reservations for our entire stay. Our friends were not so could only book 72 hours ahead (or something like that). This is important because there is only ONE dinner buffet available. The dinner buffet had theme nights and we did get a lovely server (can’t remember his name but he we often sat on the patio just outside the main patio. We tried 3 a la cartes during our stay. Two were at Ventus Ha (A’akat & Kobo) and one was at Ventus (Ile de France). Wear bug spray if you’re going to the restaurants at Ventus Ha. There are so many plants and the aesthetic of the resort is beautiful but there is no breeze. Our legs got chewed up waiting to check in for our reservations at both the Ha restaurants. (Suggestion: perhaps adding a fan just outside the doors to prevent this for your guests would result in a more comfortable experience.) Our rooms were honestly not bad - just a little dated. The mattresses could be replaced but the pillows were surprisingly comfortable. The bathroom sinks were remarkably low. I am 5’7 and my husband is 6’2 and it was honestly really annoying. Other than that, the shower pressure and view and cleanliness was great! Huge shout out to Alan & Braulio who checked on us every day. Making sure we had everything we needed. Special thanks to Alan for remembering my husband’s birthday and decorating for him. It was just such a nice surprise! The staff here are so kind and friendly. Jerry (server at Marina’s lobby bar and pool) is amazing and has great vibes. He read our group exceptionally well. Check-in took a little bit of time but wasn’t outrageous. Check-out was fast.