My boyfriend and I booked an innclusive 1 week vacation off [---] from February 28 - March 7 2007. It was between the Emporio Mazatlan and the Faro and boy am I glad that we made the right choice! The Faro is a little bit further from the Golden Zone however it is very accessible by bus to get to the Golden Zone or even downtown Mazatlan. If you are looking for a private gem of a resort to unwind, relax, and decompress from the stress of daily life, then this is the place for you. If you want to party hard, then move elsewhere.

I only have great things to say about the Faro even though I was slightly apprehensive after reading previous not-so-enthused reviews. The food is hardly as bad as some reviewers have made it out to be - one must remember that Mexico is a poor country and that one shouldn't be expecting gourmet meals. There is a choice of 2 restaruants - the Terraza which is buffet and there is always a made-to-order grill (ie. omelettes, fajitas, chicken, steak) and there is the Chiquita Banana situated right on the beach which you can order off their menu. Definitely try the Seafood Tacos!!! The fruit and salads are in abundance and were always fresh. The serivce is absolutely impeccable - the servers cater to your every whim so make sure to tip them well! We tended to tip $2-$3 USD each meal as they all make you feel so welcome and go out of their way to serve you what you want. We were stuffed after each meal..... delicious! The drinks are amazing - try their whiskey sour and chiquita banana!

The beach is a public beach as it is federal property however there was never more than a handful of people there at any given time. Staff will set up your beach chairs for you and bring you drinks and even lunch on the beach as you relax in front of the ocean. We often opted for the beach after breakfast until the afternoon when we would move to the pool where the rays were still pretty strong. There are about 70 steps down to the beach however this should not be a problem if you are mobile and moderately in shape. There are not too many beach vendors - maybe 3 per day, who will leave you alone if you act uninterested (or feign sleep).

The hotel rooms and grounds are maintained very well. Our maid did a wonderful job of cleaning our room and gave us extra bottles of water as requested. We ended up tipping her $10 USD for the week. The beds are comfy, tv had several English channels on it, plenty of hot water for showers and there is a safe in the closet. When we were taken to our room, the balcony overlooked foliage and I decided to call down to the main desk to ask for an upgrade to an oceanview room if available, willing to pay for the upgrade. Amazingly we got a new oceanview room upgrade "on the house."

The Hotel Faro is a secluded beach-front facility that is perfect for a romantic getaway or for quiet relaxation. There are no nightly entertainment acts or water activites but further into the Golden Zone, one can purchase tours or parasailing, etc. HIghly recommended resort if you're not expecting luxury. But if you want a quiet, private beach, gorgeous views of the ocean, plenty of tasty meals, unmatched service, and clean rooms, then this is a sure bet. I would return to the Faro in a hearbeat!

We have just returned from a week stay at the faro mazatlan resort Feb 10-17 2007 . We had such a good time, the hotel was alright, there was barely anyone staying there, maybe 40 people. So it was very quite, but we did meet some great people.
The service was great, the waiters were so fun & friendly. The food was nothing to write home about, breakfast was the best meal of the day, lunch was alright, there was a small menu to choose from, and supper was pretty much the same everynight, fajitas. But all-inclusive was worth it for the drinks! If you plan on staying there you better be in shape, because to get to the beach and the lunch area, you have to go down over 70 steps, serious!
We always dredded going back up, especially after a couple drinks. Our room was nice, great ocean view, maid service was great. There wasn't any nightly entertainment, unless you consider the kareokee guy entertainment, and it only lasted for 30 minutes, and the bar closes at 11 pm everynight. All in all, it was alright for my first time in Mazatlan, but next time I would like to stay in a more upbeat resort.

My family and I vacationed at the Faro 3/25-4/1. I had gotten quite nervous about all the negativity toward the resort right before our trip, but all in all, I thought it was one of my best trips to Mexico. The pool was a little on the small side, but it really wasn't too busy, so it wasn't a big deal. We had read the comments about it being too hot, and we agreed at one point in time, went and told the people at the desk, who prompty sent the manager out to test the water temp, and off went the heat. One of the big things I would comment about regarding all the problems stated in previous reviews is "Ask and you get, don't and you won't". Anything we wanted and asked for was there for the taking. The Chiquita Banana had a roof repair while we were there, and it was closed the better part of the week. They offered the a la carte items at the lobby restaurant during the same hours the Chiquita Banana would have been open (add or take a few Mexican minutes), and even had the food served to us at the pool. And yes, the waiters brought us drinks at the pool, too. We ordered lunch from either our waiter or the bartender if we wanted it delivered to the pool. It took us a little time to figure it out, but we had some wonderful lunches poolside. Fresh tuna on avocado, great fish tacos (we liked the ones that WEREN'T the Captain's Tacos - they had two fish taco selections, and the ones we liked were not deep fried). The staff was friendly, and more than willing to help. The beach was great. My kids loved the purple sea urchins on the rocks toward the little hill seperating Faro from rest of the hotel zone (the hill is a great hike with a beautiful view), and the crabs on the marina side. The water was usually calm enough that we actually could swim in it, not like Acapulco. The beach was clean, with many built-in tile tables and palapas. Easy access to the hotel zone beach, and my son and I even saw about 7 dolphins swimming not far from shore only one hotel down. Our room was first floor, but still had a great view since the hotel is built on a cliff. We enjoyed drinks on the balcony at night- and the bar even lent us their trays to carry drinks. The maids never messed with our stuff (dvd players, gameboys, dvd's), but did a great job keeping the room clean. Towels were a little scarce, but we just got new ones from the pool before we left if we wanted extras in the room. One thing we really loved about this resort vs many others we have stayed at in Mexico is that we didn't have to sign for every little thing we got (on all inclusive), including towels, MOST of the time. A couple times they did have us sign for towels, but most of the time, not. Don't lose your wristband. They will charge you if you lose it, and you need to turn it in when you ck out. You need to turn your remote control for the TV back in at ck out, too, but that's normal in MX. The beds were hard, as well as the pillows, but I could live with it. The buffet food wasn't as bad as some had made it sound. Omelets were awesome, lots of fresh fruit, fresh squeezed orange juice. I could always find something decent. We did notice that the hotel staff did not speak as much english as what they do in more touristy areas of Mexico. For example, I asked the staff in the lobby restaurant for the a la cart menu, and they gave me the wrong menu. Our pool waiter (Jose') got that straightened out for me. We tipped our waiters $5 - 8 per day for 8 people, and they were more than happy with that. For the money, the Faro was well worth it. Not too fancy, but not a dump. I'd go back in a heartbeat, especially for the beach. Worry not, future travelers.

After reading the negative reviews that were posted regarding the Faro, we were worried until we arrived, checked in and seen the view from our room. The view was excellent and set our minds at ease about our stay regardless of the negativity we had read. The rooms were a little outdated and in need of repair but hey we were in Mexico and with the view we had (room 1419) I would have slept on the floor. The beach was unbeatable very relaxing with only a few vendors. The food was so-so but not as bad as everyone had been saying. Hot dogs/sausages were at every meal but other stuff to eat as well and a menu to order off of for lunch. The omelet lady knows what she is doing and is worth waiting in line for. Hotel staff were helpful and always said hello. The Faro is worth the price and we plan on taking our children down next year to get a taste of Mexico and we wont stay anywhere else.