More about Zamas Hotel
Zamas - Tulum
by TripAdvisor Member sfslinky
We stayed here by accident. We were visiting Coba and decided to stop and eat at the restaurant at Zamas. It was so delicious and we kept looking at the outdoor cabanas. They let us look inside at two of them - one had a private bath, one had an outdoor shower. We decided that it was so peaceful and wanted to spend a few nights there. We checked out of our hotel in Playa del Carmen the next day, rented a car and drove back to Zamas in Tulum. The rocky beach was only a few feet from our cabana and it felt like we were alone. The staff would come early in the morning to open the restaurant but when they left in the evening, it really felt like you and the stars. The accommodations are rustic but very quaint. There is a water bottle for you to use in the bathroom and a mosquito net for the bed. You can hear the ocean all night and all the nocturnal sounds when you drive back. If you go into town, bring a flashlight so you can see where you're going when you get back. The restaurant was just a few feet from our cabana. You could eat there, or they can bring your food to the balcony outside your cabana where you can eat at your table, in your room, or on the hammock outside. Sigh!
Zamas rules!
by A TripAdvisor Member
I have a feeling the people who hated Zamas so much but, gee, really liked Ana Y Jose, must be schilling for them. We had an amazing time at Zamas, our room was spectacular, second floor suite, ocean and jungle views, the food was great. We didn't have any problems with service. The staff was friendly, and we loved the live music. It's true, their beach isn't the greatest, but just walk a few yards down the road to the Maya Tulum beach which is really nice. Not everything is going to be perfect anywhere, but if you have a good attitude and are open to new experiences and can be flexible, you can almost always have a good time.
Terrible experience at zamas
by A TripAdvisor Member
Staying at zamas for 3 days was a terrible exprience. We stayed on their better and more expensive location "top floor Oceanview de Casa" which is on a street very noisy and is is very difficult to sleep. There is no door on the toilet ...., full of dust and so on ...
The beach is very little, rocky with only a small swimable area.
The restaurant is more expensive than the other restuarants in Tulum, the quality of food poo, the service very slow and you have all the time to check the bill since there was always something included that you have not ordere ad eaten
So we have a very nice travel in mexico except Zamas.
Very Disappointed by Zamas
by A TripAdvisor Member
When planning our vacation, we found Zamas ranked as the #1 lodging in Tulum. While we were echanted by the Tulum area, we were very disappointed in Zamas. We highly recommend that you look elsewhere for the following reasons. 1) Service was cool at best, dinner service seemed to take forever. 2) We stayed in "Oceanview de Casa," which as it turns out is on a busy street directly in front of a speed bump. It was very noisy. 3) The beach is rocky with only a small swimable area. 4) Finally, and most diappointly, Zamas' owners were present during our entire stay, but seemed not to care one bit about their guests. They literally did not greet us--didn't even say hello during our 7-day stay--or help when we complained about the noise or the long waits at dinner. On the other hand...we did enjoy the food, and the beachfront setting with live music is a very cool. Too bad the service and our room were not equally good.
We enjoyed beach hopping and would highly recommend other places: Ana y Jose's, Vita e Bella top among them for the beach and lodging and Casa Cenote and Oscar and Lola's for hanging out.
Zamas is AMAZING!!
by ElenaandSteven about ZAMAS
This place is awesome! Its an Idylic little resort on the coast near Pueblo Tulum with the best resturant in the Mayan Riviera by far. the food is increadibly fresh and delicious. It is said that no one ever gets sick here!
Try the Local Mayan specials...and stay a few days...be sure to book early though for lodging. The word is out about Zamas.
Word of warning about the beach
by TripAdvisor Member Harlowquinn
We had originally planned to stay at Zamas, but were frustrated by the inability to speak with someone by email or in person about the accomodations. We were eventually told they were full and so we booked further down the road. Boy, was I glad for this happy accident!
We went one night to Zamas for dinner, as I heard that they had the best seafood in the area. Zamas in general, seemed a bit shabbier than the cabanas we ended up staying at and their beach was horrible! Very small and incredibly rocky. The restaurant was just okay -- no better or worse than ours.
I did not see the inside of any of their cabanas, so I can't speak to that. I do think that if someone was going for a beach vacation, they would really be dissapointed.
Restaurant has worst service encountered in Mexico
by A TripAdvisor Member
After reading the reviews, I looked forward to dinner at Zamas but found the service to be the worst we encountered in our 10 days in Mexico. Food was not much better. Absolutely would not go back.
Horrible service, rocky beach
by A TripAdvisor Member
We decided to stay at Zamas during our tour of the Yucatan in early March 2005 based on the reviews here and in Frommers. I have to say that our 4 day stay at Zamas was certainly the lowpoint of our trip. Either our experience was atypical or something has changed at Zamas over the last year or so.
We arrived around 3pm and were greeted very cooly. We even had trouble getting the staff to tell us where to go to check in (its a small desk next to the bar in the restaurant). Somebody showed us to our room down the beach and just dropped us off with no instructions or suggestions about how to enjoy the facilities...just a key and goodbye.
Later, after a cold shower, we went over to the beach area to hang out and enjoy the sun. The restaurant/bar is directly next to the beach so we just sat down in some available chairs and started reading. Expected that somebody would drop by and ask if we wanted anything...it would have taken about 5 steps from the restaurant tables to the beach chairs. When nobody stopped by I went to the bar and picked up some refreshments.
After a while we were hot and so decided to go into the water to cool off. Big mistake. The rocks under the water will shred your feet in moments. If you go into the water anywhere around Zamas you need flip/flops or water shoes. It's a pretty beach but complely non-functional.
Later that night we were excited to try out the restraurant - Que Fresco. Talk about a misnomer! It should be called Que Waito! because that's what you do...wait...and wait...and wait. Finally, you get somebody to stop by your table to provide very poor service. The wait staff/kitchen screwed up our order and similarly screwed up the order of the couply sitting next to us. The couple next to us repeatedly asked for a wine list and finally received the wine list after they had been served the meal. They were even more upset about the service than we were. The staff almost appeared hostile. We thought that maybe we had broken some unspoken rule or something and so were getting the cold sholder from the wait staff. We had to ask for the check 3-4 times and ended up waiting with two other tables around us for over 45 minutes just to get out of there. And to top it off....the food was mediocre at best. Nothing like what was promised in Frommers. Certainly the worst food we ate during the entire trip.
The next morning we thought we give them another chance for breakfast. Maybe a different waitstaff would act better. Wrong....Same service, same mediocre food. Ended up wasting another hour of our day just trying to get a check and get out of there. Very frustrating.
From this point on we stopped interacting with the Zamas staff. We went down the beach (south) and found many wonderful spots with terrific restaurants. We particularly enjoyed Ana y Jose and really recommend that spot. Terriffic food and staff. Very friendly and helpful. Ana y jose provided the food and service that we expected at Zamas and did not get. Even the mayan resort to the south of zamas is far superior to zamas. Also, as you get further down the beach from zamas the rocks give way to wonderful sandy beaches.
We ate terrific food in many different places all throughout Mexico and received great, friendly service everywhere except Zamas.
Skip Zamas...at least until they get their act together. The location is pretty but the downside is too great. You can get far superior rooms, food, service, and beaches just a hop, skip, and a jump down the beach.
great restaurant
by A TripAdvisor Member
I did not stay at Zamas, but I ate at the restaurant a few times when I stayed at Cabanas Copal in Jan. 2005. This was the best restaurant in the "Tulum hotel zone" area. The menu has a lot of variety and was not too expensive. The portions were a little big but the quality was excellent. They had a lot of Mayan dishes as well as Mexican ones.
A very lovely get-away
by A TripAdvisor Member
We traveled to the Yucatan in November 2004 and were very pleasantly surprised by how lovely Zamas was. We had a tiny cabana right on the beach- the sea was about 20 feet away from our door. We spent many hours lying in our hammocks watching the waves and pelicans diving into the sea. The facility's dogs also hang out on the beach through much of the day and they are extremely friendly and make you feel even more at home.
Despite the fact that our cabana was really small, it was beautifully tiled and there was no need for larger accomodations for the two of us. (Some of our neighbors had larger cabanas with a couch area that was quite nice and a beautiful bathroom indoors that we were a bit jealous of but ours was really quaint.) I had reservations about the outdoor shower idea but it was entirely private and I came to really cherish my showers under the stars. The showers are at least partially salt water but we felt entirely clean and generally satisfied by the temperature. The limited electricity was also a novelty; it proved to be very romantic given candles placed at the bedside each day.
There definitely were some bugs around but they were manageable with the mosquito net. We had no tarantula sightings- thank god.
The people who work at Zamas are very laid back and friendly. They seem to be really well-adjusted to the flow of the place and help to set the stage for visitors. The crafts they sell at the restaurant and at the little shop across the street are authentic and really beat the chintzy crap found in surrounding towns.
We really loved Zamas and would highly recommend it to anyone seeking a true escape. Enjoy!
Photos
Tulum
Beach view from the table
ANDERS & CARLA
Route 307: A typical Yucatan highway
Forum Posts
Tulum accommodation
by deb101
Any suggestions re accommodation in Tulum
Should I book b4 we get there or just look around when I arrive and find something then?
We want to stay on the beach in the hotel zone - double shared private bathroom - $30-$50-60US per night
hope this helps
RE: Tulum accommodation
by Fullmoonfever
dont know when you are going, but I dont recommend just showing uo, especially if its winter in north america. Hotels could be booked or you might end up in a junky hotel.
RE: RE: Tulum accommodation
by deb101
I am going mid June
RE: RE: Tulum accommodation
by Fullmoonfever
should be lots of hotels. I been there (actually north of there about 40/50 miles). we stayed in an expensive place, but i dont think you will have a problem finding a hotel for what you want to pay.
RE: RE: Tulum accommodation
by madamx
Hi Glen!
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Do you mean $50-$60 pp?
We are looking to stay in the area ourselves and I've been pondering: Dos Ceibas; http://www.dosceibas.com/index_en.htm and Zamas. Apparently the food at Zamas is ultra fresh and really delicious. The owner will flag down a fisherman for something for dinner. http://www.zamas.com/about.html
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