Review of Coco Bongo, Cancun

Coco Bongo is one of the most established and unique nightclubs in Cancun. With a capacity of around 3,000 it’s a fairly sizable place too. Located in the heart of the Cancun party center and offering a mix of live shows and music, blending Cirque de Soleil with artist impersonators and the ever present open bar, Coco Bongo is a must see for any visitor to Cancun.

Our visit was last Saturday night. It’s always a good idea to get there early as the club fills quickly and good vantage points become scarce after 11pm.

We waited in the express line for about half an hour before they opened the doors around 10:30pm.

Ironically, the express line is actually longer than the regular line. Probably a sales tactic to get people to go in the first place if they think they receive some kind of VIP service.

It was fairly clear that, at that time of night, all the clubs are competing for the same customers. The careful management of the line, allowing only a trickle of clients at a time to enter, ensured the line looked long to passers by and would entice more to join the queue. One nice touch was that staff handed drinks out to the customers waiting in the hot Cancun night.

The price of admission is $45 or 475 pesos. I think that the price is higher on Friday and Saturday nights, with other nights of the week costing $5 less. The price of admission obviously includes the open bar deal.

Once inside a series of escalators takes you up to the top of the club where you then make your way into the amphitheatre type nightclub. The club consists of a main stage high up to the front with a central bar (both for the service of drinks and for dancing on). The club also has three or so tiers of seating, with the lower areas having a bleacher style and private tables occupying the upper levels. What seems like hundreds of waiters attend to the clubbers. A well placed tip at the beginning of the night ensures you’ll get good service all night long and don’t have to queue at the bar for your drinks.

The show starts about 11.00pm and on Saturday was opened by a Robbie Williams impersonator, closely followed by a Madonna lookalike. Set against a backdrop of bubbles, ticker tape, balloons and streamers falling from the ceiling it’s a spectacular sight. Scantily clad dancers trumpeters and drummers complement the acts.

There are also a couple of shows consisting of guys who hang from sheets above the crowded bar and perform synchronised gymnastic and acrobatic routines.

Beetlejuice and The Mask also provide entertainment as they fly around the club and dispense drinks of tequila mix direct from the bottle.

Around 2am the show is pretty much over but the night continues with a mix of 80′, 90’s and latin pop to suit all tastes.

All in all Coco Bongo is a not a place you’d want to visit every night of your vacation in Cancun but everyone should experience this unique concept at least once.

I’ve now added a Video clip of the Coco Bongo Show.