Congo Bar Cancun — Restaurant in Cancún

I honestly never leave bad reviews, but this one needs to be said.

Last night my boyfriend and I were walking around Cancun when one of the many reps on the street stopped us to promote Congo Bar. The whole area is full of these people trying to sell you something, which already felt a bit much, but this guy seemed genuine. We wanted to have a fun night out, it’s our first time in Cancun, so we decided to give it a try.

He sold us tickets for $35 each and insisted we pay by card, even though I said I’d rather pay cash. He took us to Coco Bongo to make the payment, which made no sense but we trusted him (clearly the two places are obviously connected).

The moment we got inside Congo Bar, we realised what a huge scam it was. The place was nothing like what we were promised ,it had a trashy vibe, super loud hip-hop music, and people literally doing drugs in the bathrooms. Within five minutes of walking in, we looked at each other and said “nope.”

We went straight to the front to explain the situation and ask for a refund. The staff member said he’d call the manager, so we waited... and waited. Over half an hour later, the manager finally appeared but had no idea what to do. Then they made us wait another 30 minutes for the same rep who scammed us in the first place!

When the rep showed up, he started arguing with the manager, saying we shouldn’t get a refund. Honestly, it looked like he was the one in charge, not the manager. Eventually, they told us they “can’t cancel card payments”, which is just ridiculous. Basically, if you pay by card, you’re stuck no matter what happens.

They refused to take any responsibility, and there’s no proper way to contact them — no email, no customer service, nothing. So now I’m going through my bank to dispute the payment.

Congo Bar is a complete tourist trap. Don’t fall for the street reps, no matter how friendly they seem. Save your money and go...

Honestly, it’s the worst not only nightclub but a place where I have been in my entire life. Place is way too overcrowded. It’s not just packed every night, it’s OVER packed. Sellers don’t care how many tickets they sold. I doubt that capacity of such a small place is 2,000 people. Even after show ended, they keep selling tickets for just entry, even though it was hard to breath inside because of amount of people in there. If you want to experience something like “throwback to 2005”, go there. Music, shows, vibe are the same as in Las Vegas 20 years ago. I think they haven’t changed their playlist since 2000s. People there are getting buzzed up by cheap alcohol and do NOT behave in a proper way. It’s not “we’re having fun”, it’s more like “we’re going to emergency room in couple minutes” There are WAY TOO MANY stuff members. They go everywhere with a flashlight and you’re literally going to be blind by the end of the show. Alcohol is BAD. Please, if you drink there, do it carefully. Alcohol is cheap. Cocktails are bad. If after reading this you still want to go there, do NOT buy expensive tickets. VIP entrance is the same line inside with just regular tickets. Tables are $70 per person and bottles service(which is really overpriced and very old fashioned comparing to Toronto). Even with a table, people will literally sit on you. You can buy just drink entrance(the cheapest tickets available) and you will have 5 cocktails (EVEN IF YOU ASK FOR WATER IT COUNTS AS ONE COCKTAIL). Considering the fact that alcohol is bad, you will be fine with 5 cocktails ticket. Open bar DOES NOT WORTH IT AT ALL. If you’re in your 40s, definitely don’t waste your time. You have seen the same stuff in your 20s. Exactly the same. If you’re in your 20s, DO NOT EVEN GO. There are no young people and all the music is a...

The club is so overrated, and the way they treat the guests is just disgusting. If you buy regular tickets, you'll wait in the queue (and btw on the ticket the check-in time is at 7pm and you have to wait to enter till 8pm or after, standing in a long queue). While waiting in a queue, they will try to trick you into an upgrade for just $200, to get just as bad service as a regular customer, just get to be seated instead of standing through the night. Club itself is just an average or below average, perhaps it was cool back in the 90s with its aesthetics. Show is nothing compared to those you can experience in Europe.

We were standing at our table that did not have a "reserved"sign when we came in, when after 2 hours a waiter lady made us leave the table so some other people can take it (some of her friends. Just scandalous, and due to maltreatment we left immediately.

The finger food they are offering with the tickets - we haven't gotten any (not that we needed it, but it was advertised as a thing you get). I guess you just need to go and beg for it. Drinks are also provided on a self-service basis at bars, with no visible menu anywhere and are poured into plastic glasses (!!) which is weird for the club of this kind imo.

The locals must understand that hospitality is not just waiting for the tips for the pretty sh*tty job, but also provide proper service.

The bottom line, save your time and better spend...