If you come to Rincon - which I strongly recommend - you won't find a better place to stay than this family run hotel. It's right on the beach, the rooms are beautiful and well maintained, and the staff are super friendly and helpful. Villa Cofresi is managed by a lovely lady called Sandra Caro, and her husband Tito. It's big enough to offer the facilities you'd expect from a larger, more expensive establishment, but not so big that it loses the personal touch.

I stayed at Villa Cofresi with my girlfriend over Christmas 2007 and the New Year. We had looked at a number of hotels including "Rincon of the Seas" next door (overpriced and lacking atmosphere) and smaller guest houses (too basic and in some cases, not very clean) and, because we arrived very late and hadn't made any plans, stayed our first night in the “Lazy Parrot” (quaint, but cramped, and miles from the beach).

When we arrived at the hotel we were immediately made to feel very welcome by Sandra and her staff. Could we borrow an iron? No problem - we were given one to keep for the whole fortnight. Do you have any parasols for the beach? Two appeared the following day, and again these were ours to use throughout our stay. When we wanted to hire jet-skis they negotiated a discount for us. Nothing was too much trouble - we were made to feel completely at home from the moment we arrived till the morning we sadly had to wave goodbye.

The one event which really stands out above all others as an example of this hotel's fantastic attitude towards its guests is the way Sandra and Tito helped us with a shopping trip to Mayaguez.* We asked at reception for someone to call us a taxi to take us to the big shopping mall in Mayaguez, about 40 minutes' drive away. They tried a few numbers but no one was available for a few hours, which would have been too late. We were debating whether we should book someone to take us the following morning when Sandra appeared and asked us if she could help. She immediately told us that Tito had to go into Mayaguez anyway and would gladly take us with him. He did so, and would have waited for us to shop but we knew we were going to be a few hours and said we would find a taxi to bring us back. Well, we did a lot of good shopping, but the next day I realised that because of a mix-up I had left my bank card in one of the shops. Once again Sandra was brilliant. First she called around the shops to find my card and then said that she would pick it up for me in the evening as she had to go there to buy a few things for the hotel's New Year celebrations. She delivered it back to me personally at 10.30 that night. How many hotel managers do you know who would go the extra mile like this?

We were told that Villa Cofresi has been owned by Sandra's family for a number of years, possibly ever since it was founded. This is what makes all the difference. As owner managers, rather than mere members of staff working for some anonymous proprietor, Sandra and Tito instinctively understand that the success of their business depends on total customer satisfaction, and that's exactly what they give. The hotel has a genuine family atmosphere, with everyone working together to provide their guests with everything they need to enjoy their stay. As well as being ideal for couples like us - you can always find a quiet corner! - Villa Cofresi is also perfect for guests with children, because the beach bar (the only one along this stretch of coast, as far as we could see) allows parents who want to enjoy a drink or meal to keep an eye on their children swimming a few yards away.

In conclusion, I cannot recommend Villa Cofresi highly enough - just go there and you will see for yourselves. This is a special place run by special people.

* I should explain that we made the mistake of not hiring a car for our stay in Puerto Rico. We have travelled all around the Caribbean, and everywhere else the easiest way to get around is to hail a taxi or, more often, one of the locals who ferry people around to earn some extra cash. In Puerto Rico generally there aren't many taxis, in Rincon hardly any at all, so if you're planning to do any sightseeing you really do need to hire. Unfortunately we hadn't brought our drivers licences so we had to make do as best we could.

Fabulous place to stay with your sweetie or your family. We paid $168.95/night for this beachfront accommodation, but it was well worth the price. The room had plenty of space and a nice, spacious balcony. They have a great tiki bar, but do not recommend the finger food they have. Their restaurant, on the other hand, has fabulous food! I had the best pork chops I've ever eaten in my life. The staff is very nice and accommodating as well. We stayed there a couple of years ago and would definitely go back.

A friend and I stayed at the Villa Cofresi for a girls' vacation. The staff was very friendly and helpful. For example, my mattress was very saggy and they replaced it. I also locked the keys to my rental car in the trunk of the car and although the town locksmith was nowhere to be found the hotel staff went out of their way to find someone else in town who could help me.

The hotel was very clean and safe. The bar is noisy on Friday and Saturday nights, but our room faced the other side of the hotel and with the air conditioner running we could not hear much except a bit of bass. The hotel is not fancy, the room was enormous, which was very nice, and the bathroom seemed newly renovated (with a jacuzzi tub). Otherwise the furnishings were in line with your regular Days Inn, etc level. The breakfast was as a previous reviewer described, but the cereal is Kellogg's cereal in plastic packaging, the muffins are the commercially made ones, the fruit was pears or melon from the US, the waffles are freezer waffles, so it's nothing to write home about. Most of the activities and restaurants we enjoyed (snorkeling, horseback riding, surfing) were on the other side of town so it was good to have the rental car.

All in all I thought it a bit overpriced, the smaller hotels that were in similar price range seemed nicer from the outside, but this was a reasonable alternative.

We stayed Nov 26-30, 2007. Our room was very spacious, pleasantly decorated and furnished and had a most comfortable king bed. The floor was tile which seemed a bit cheesy at first but rather a good idea considering the sandy beach so close. There was a small refrigerator in the room so you could stock up on beverages from a grocery store and avoid the higher cost of drinks, etc. from the bar. Good selection of TV channels (like you would be watching much TV at a place like this!). Direct TV I think. Excellent view from the room, right on the beach. Some of the reviews I have read here complained of the noise from the bar. It did get a bit active, mostly with young locals. That could be valid if you get a room looking out on the bar. We were in a section of the hotel off to the side with a wing of the hotel blocking us from the bar so we didn't hear anything but the sound of the waves on the beach. The included breakfast was typical of the buffet style, cereal, some sort of muffins or pastry, the usual beverages, french toast, fruit or for additional fee, you could have whatever you wanted cooked. The bar menu was varied and quite good. There is a restraunt on the premises but we never got around to visiting it. Many other restraunts are close by. The menu offerings looked good tho. The service all around was excellent, from check-in to check out. Houskeeping, bar staff and the rest of the staff were always eager to assist with any request we had. We had a great time, very relaxed and just what we were looking for. I recall reading a review that complained of the pool and that it wasn't policed by the staff to keep locals out. I'm not sure why you need a pool 20 yards from a beautiful beach and a calm, warm Carribean sea but we happend to visit right when the hotel was having the pool refurbished. They had called all the reserved guests and appearantly most declined to stay after hearing that news. They weren't able to get ahold of me ( I changed phones and didn't let them know, my bad) so there were very few guests there at that time. I felt like we hit a jackpot! It almost felt like we had a private resort to ourselves. A great value for the money. If you are very particular and usually spend your time in places like The Four Seasons, the Hilton or some other such upper class (and expensive) hotels, you probably will want to stay some place like the Caribe Hilton in San Juan. If you want a comfortable, laid back, relaxing stay for a very reasonable price, I would highly recommend the Villa Cofresi.