we stayed for 5 days starting july 7, 2008. Cancun airport has really changed from what I hear. Very clean and everyone was nice. customs was quick and easy. but make sure to use the bathroom before you leave as its at least a 40 minute drive to the resort. Once through customs go directly outside. All those people by the exit on the inside are trying to sell time shares etc.
Once at the resort you are greeted immediately with a drink as you check in, and its off from there. We had trouble with our room upon arrival but we were given a new one immediately when we requested. All staff were very nice and gave us anything we needed . all you have to do is ask.
If you have a toddler/baby bring a pack and play to sleep in . the cribs are not the quality you would want you child sleeping in.
The rooms are very nice, and all tile. No Baths only a shower. the beds are a little hard, but if you are having a good time you won't even notice you'll be so tired. House keeping was awesome. They cleaned upon request when we went to the beach so the baby could sleep when we returned.
The pool is HUGE. Our 16 month old baby loved it. Perfect temp and the bar was nearby.
The beach was the really nice. the big sand bags were really fun to climb on. The beach was very clean. and we had no troubles at all. Be prepared the europeans sunbath topless, but unless you are actually looking for it you honestly won't even notice.
Bars are placed all over and easy to get to . little to no lines. drinks are a little watered down. but you can request more alcohol if you want it stiffer. i honestly liked them that way. Didn't have any problems with drunks/fights etc. I believe due to the strength of the drinks. last thing you want is a bunch of drunk dehydrated people wandering around. Try the zombi there's a little kick to it.
Buffets are awesome, we liked the food and there was a plenty to choose from. We only ate at the japanese steak house and had a good time.
Dress for the heat, and the humidity because its both.
In my experience you will have as much fun as you want. If you go in with a good attitude you will have so much fun you won't want to leave. go in grumpy and you won't get much out of this.

My friends decided we'd like to take a vacation at the end of our sophomore year in college. We contacted a travel agent saying we'd like to take a vacation somewhere around the caribbean or mexico for under $1,500. She came up with five places for us to select and this was the resort we choose, Iberostar Quetzal/Tucan in Playa del Carmen. It had tons of things to do other than going to the pool or the beach. We left May 17,2008 and we had a really rocky start with our plane being delayed 2 hours. Let's just say it was a very long day and we were tired and cranky. Playa del Carmen is roughly 60 miles south of cancun or an hour drive from the airport. We finally arrived at the resort and my jaw just dropped. The place was picture perfect. The staff was friendly, eager to meet you, and helped you with whatever you needed. Upon check-in, it's tradition that you have a drink. After that, we went exploring to check out the rest of the resort. So let me tell you a little bit about the resort...The whole resort is outside, except for the restaurants and the rooms. The pathways were lined with water and flowers. Also mayan statues and ruins. Everything had a tropical feel to it, even to colors of the buildings. Between the two sides, Tucan and Quetzal, they have a rain forest. You'll see peacocks, Large rodents, and Iguanas. On the Tucan side, they have tucans and on the Quetzal side they have Monkeys. Also separating the two sides is a huge pool. They have many pools; volleyball/sports pool, adult pool with swim up bar, kids pool, aerobics pool. You can even learn to scuba dive in the pool, they have that available. They also have beach volleyball, and beach botchy. What I loved most about This resort was the star friends. The Star Friends are the people (staff) that do the activities and shows on the resort. They know everything that's going on. They instructed different activities or sports everyday so you know that there will always be a game of volleyball or water polo going on. Anyway, about my trip, I loved the fact that it's conviently located close to shops, other bars, etc... One night we walked down to the shops. It was only a ten minute walk. The next night we took a cab down to the strip of bars and shops. Since we booked our trip through GoGo travel, we had the opportunity to book some excursions. Although we didn't book any you could do an adventure tour where they take you zip-lining through a forest and they also have a natural lazy river. You could also go scuba diving in a lagoon or parasailing. They have shows every night and dancing with a live band after each show. We saw a lip sync show (Justin Timberlake, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Jackson, The blues Brothers), a traditional Spanish dance, The famous Newly Weds Game, Mr. Iberostar 2008, and others. And after the shows, all the star friends go to the dance club inside the resort (The Mascara Club). They also have, every friday night, a group of people who go to cancun to go dancing. A bunch of star friends go and get other people to go...a bus shows up after the show on friday and they take you to cancun and bring you back. Unfortunately My friends and I were unable to go since we were leaving early Saturday morning. Also what I loved was they had either a live guitarist or saxophone player at the bars at night.

THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- bring plenty of sunscreen, sunscreen is really expensive down there.
- Make your reservations as soon as you wake up in the morning. I think you can only make two-three reservations at one time. The steak house fills up the quickest.
- The beds are kind of hard but you can ask for an egg top or something to put on the bed to make it more comfortable.
- After a few days of being outside all day and getting used to the humidity (since the resort is completely outside), I got dehydrated and got very sick. They do stock your fridge every other day in the rooms so you'll never go thirsty. Drink plenty of water.

My husband and I just returned from our wedding party/honeymoon at Iberostar Quetzal. (We eloped before going and just had a party with our family-- this was MUCH cheaper! Cost about $400 total!) I would definitely recommend this resort. Everyone was so friendly. Paulina Chahin coordinated our wedding party and it was great. She and the other staff members were so helpful and kind. The beach was beautiful and very clean. The resort is set in a jungle-like atmosphere-- wildlife (monkeys, peacocks, iguanas) is all around. Food and drinks are abundant. The rooms are comfortable but note the beds are very firm. We had some minor glitches (electricity would shut off and come back on and shower temperature would vary at times) but this was minor to us and no big deal. There is always a buffet open, but they have a few restaurants available but you have to have a reservation-- but they limit you based on the length of your stay. We were there for 7 nights and could only make 3 reservations. Not a huge deal but it would have been nice to be able to have more. Anyway-- really cool place to stay and we would definitely return.

We have just returned from our honeymoon here & I have to say I do not think we could of picked anywhere better! It was lovely.
The Hotel itself was great what with all the wildlife & the trpical feel , the staff were just excellent all very polite, very friendly & bent over backwards to help you, especially Gloria on reception who was just so friendly & helpful !
the food was very good & plentiful & the a la carte restaurants were great too , the steak house was fab & my husband tells me the Japanese was wonderful (I gave this a miss as I thought it would be all fish but apparently it wasn't so now I am kicking myself for not going!)
I can not think of any complaints I had about this Hotel alot of people on trip advisor have commented on the beds being hard but I personally found them extremely comfortable & Big!!!
For any of you worried about the recent stories about the beach being destroyed do not worry the beach is great they have rebuilt it & you wouldn't know anything had happened to it! There is lots of free water sport at this hotel (you have to pay for motorised water sports eg: jet ski's etc ).
The entertainment people are very good too! If your thinking of going to Mexico I would definately recommend this hotel. 10/10!