Relaxing Paradise

The place: the bugalows/ location has been renovated so its even better than last time i had been. As usual everything was clean and smeeled of peace and paradise. The food: i was positively surprised that it had greatly improved. The buffet was good and more varied than usual, there was even seafoods someday at the buffet. The a la carte was also delicious vut dont forget to book in advance. Activities: the snorkling is unmatchable , the coral reafs and the wildlife you experience is mesm [... read more]erizing, you'll never forget it. The entertainment staff works hard at making your stay perfect. Staff: friendly with a family atmosphere. By day 2 everyone is on a first name basis since the place is so small you know everyone quick Definitely recomanded to anyone wanting to relax a week

Restful and relaxing

Villas Jibacoa is a quiet and restful resort. If you are looking for night life pass this resort by. There are many return customers but I don't think I will be back. The food is ok but the staff is friendly and helpful. The snorkeling is great and the beach is amazing. The drinks varied greatly depending on who was bartending and that wasn't good. The villas were quaint and had dual voltage so charging phones etc was available and the a/c worked. The resort is close to Havana and one could  [... read more]get to Havana in a taxi (recommend Leonardo and Lehnar (guide). The main complaint was the beds; they were very hard! All in all a relaxing budget vacation.

VILLAS JIBACOA VERY QUITE AND SNORKELING PARADISE

I stayed in hotel for two weeks April 22 to May 6, 2017. Travel with family and friends. Arrived in late evening with heavy rain, but that was the end of bad weather actually. Sometimes wind was strong but not bad. I want to mention jelly fish. Appears one day, blue ones, and in couple days was OK. Lots of birds singing and chirping - sparrows, woodpeckers, grackles, doves, and others. Place is very big and very quiet with one building as hotel and rest of bungalows. I stayed in hotel room and [... read more] was happy. Lots of trees, flowers well maintained. People were very friendly everywhere. Buffet restaurant was very clean, waiters very helpful. Food was actually very good with enough variety and very good quality. I want to mention just delicious chicken, beef tails and rabbits. Good soup was every day. Restaurant has a grill, but on it was only fish. Why not meet like chicken or pork and beef? In days when crowd, wasn’t enough food and that should be improve. Also you can have always cold beer and good wine for lunch and dinner. Drinks were pretty good except in lobby bar you have to pay beer 1 peso. That should be change. If you go there don’t mist good brandy and Spanish coffee. That bar is open until 10:30 pm. That could be problem for somebody. Beach is not bad but I have to mention a lot of grass in the water. That is not very pleasant when you swimming. There is no Wi-Fi, only one computer, very old. Sometimes is crowd around it but you can have a drink and wait. Entertainment is not bad in my opinion. Some local bands were playing and thy are very, very good. Dancers are not bad too. Attendants are very low, only elderly people. Usually around 30 attendances. There is no Disco for yang people, that’s way into this resort you can see only elderly people. Quick resume: Very nice and quiet place with friendly people, good food and snorkeling paradise. Also price is very wort it.

Great Little Gem!

The size and location was what drew me to this resort. It was small and cozy, and close to Havana. The grounds were imaculate and the staff were very accommodating. The food was not great, but there are a number of restaurants close by that served great food, and staff made reservations for us. The beach was amazing. I saw many people snorkling and finding shells. We booked a bungalow, and were so impressed with our rooms. We spent many evenings on our patio enjoying our surroundings. Spoke to m [... read more]any people who have continued to return to the resort many times, always a great selling feature! A bonus for us was meeting many Cubans who were also vacationing at the resort.

Great for Snorkelers/Divers

Wonderful staff and great beach for relaxing. As avid snorkelers we loved the area around our resort. If you're not fussy about food - worth the trip for natural beauty. Definitely skip the Catamaran and opt for the Jeep Exercusion. Only 1 hour away from beautiful Havana. Perfect for couples/families looking for a quiet getaway.

Lovely, quiet resort!

The bungalow accommodation are great! Very clean and well manicured grounds and facilities. Food was very good, staff very friendly! Beach is lovely and very quiet. Great place if you are looking for a quiet relaxing vacation.

Amazing Value!

Because of the price we did not have high expectations except we were hoping for a nice beach and closer proximity to Havana which we were planning on visiting. We were pleasantly surprised. The grounds are amazing. A nice large resort which is a pleasure to stroll through. Our room in the "villa" was large and clean with no musty smell which is common in hotel bathrooms. The buffet building is very nice with a large variety of food. We had fresh fish everyday, and chicken and other meat d [... read more]ishes with a variety of sides. The cafe bar had delicious cappucinos, expressos, etc. We were not disappointed and we hope to return some day.

Friendly and relaxing

I hesitate to write this review because I don't want too many people to find out about this place. The physical setting is extremely nice, with clean, well-maintained units spread over a well-groomed campus. The food is ok, the staff are very friendly, the swimming isn't great but the snorkelling is very good. There are a variety of activities, but it's also a great spot to just relax. A lot of guests come back year after year for good reason.

Small and personable

Villas Jibacoa is a small resort. The beach is not great for whose who like playing in the water, however it is awesome for snorkeling! Simply snorkel right off of the beach! Coral right off of the beach! A couple of feet into the water... your seeing beautiful colourfull fish. But make sure you bring your own equipment. Service at the resort was good. The rooms are clean. Food was good, but not much for variety. We eat pretty much the same thing every breakfast, but I also eat pretty mu [... read more]ch the same thing every morning at home, so it was good.

Lovely resort!

The resort grounds and rooms are well-maintained and it shows. The resort beach did have some litter, perhaps some garbage cans in dedicated areas would help. The staff and resort activities were so much fun. Love the hiking tour and scuba diving.

Would't go back

It's my first review that I'm writing in my life and I have travelled quite a lot to Cuba but I have been so disappointed about our last vacation and I felt I have to let people know about this resort. The resort, beach are wonderful, no complaints but the food was a misery. At the lobby bar we had to pay for some drinks, like for an example for a bottle of beer we had to pay 1 CUC....First day when we arrived it was noon and we went to eat something but for our disappointment there was nothin [... read more]g left. We had the same food almost day by day. One day we went for lunch around 14:15 and again there wasn't to much food left but more then that the kitchen staff saw us with the empty plates walking around trying to find something to eat they didn't care they continued to clean up the buffet. Completely ignored us. Anyway I have had so much cabbage and carrot salad that I'm sick and tired of it.Our only decent lunch was when we went to visit Havana. The worst part is that I came back very sick to my stomach. We had the feeling and I have to add that we've been talking with other Canadian tourists and they felt the same way that we had a big disadvantage not knowing Spanish. Some of the staff members were really nice but others were the complete opposite. Too bad, like I have said the place is gorgeous and pretty clean.

Beautiful!

My husband and I stayed at this resort from April 12-19. I was so excited when we walked out of the lobby and the ocean right there. We stayed in a bungalow room with the beach right in front of us. Even though the resort is spread out it was a short walk to anywhere. It was nice going to the beach and not have to fight for a chair. It was serene, beautiful. the food was good. All the staff were great. A little less wind would be the only thing I would change. Very pleased with this pic [... read more]k.

Great resort

It was a very friendly and helpful resort We have been there twice and had a great time The beach is great The food is fair The rooms were okay The staff is very friendly and helpful We got what we paid for and everything we expected

Third time not so lucky

This was my third visit to Tropico (Villas Jibacoa) April 15-22. While I did see some improvements around the resort, I also saw some declines. We were in Bungalow 19, which is a great location and close to everything. The bed was comfortable and the room was clean, although it did need some TLC (huge stain on the ceiling, AC leaked, duct tape across the top of the door.) This did not make or break the holiday, however my husband was sick for 5 of the 7 days and ended up on antibiotics. El  [... read more]Medico was excellent and the cost very reasonable. I did find a decline in the food. While I always found something as I am far from a picky eater, when the doc says to my husband, no fish, no pork, no beef, and no eggs . . . there isn't much left. He ate rice and toast 3 meals a day for 5 days. I found the food was the same every day for lunch and dinner. There should be a bit more variety. My biggest concern was the number of locals at the resort. I do not begrudge a local resident a visit to the resort, however, they took over. As paying customers, we were treated as an inconvenience. It was very disheartening for me as I truly did like this resort. When the extended local families arrived, the music was turned up, the staff catered to them, and we were left feeling that we were an intrusion. When there are families of 8, 10+ people, it was difficult to find a chair by the pool, or a table in the dining room. Anyhow, with the exception of the repetitious food and the influx of locals, I enjoyed my stay. Not so much for my husband. Due to these two issues, I would hesitate to recommend this resort to anyone.

Pleasantly surprised!!

Great hotel!! Very surprised at how much better I found this place when compared to 5 star resorts in Mexico and Bahamas. The beach is huge and clean! Food is incredible, fresh fish all the time! Highly recommend.

We keep going back

We love this place. Sitting on the porch of our cosy and spotlessly clean room looking out at the ocean across the beautiful grounds we are in paradise.Great staff, two pools and a coral reef to explore are an added bonus. An hour to Havana allows an easy day trip.

Like coming home

This was our third time at this resort. Not crowded, fantastic snorkelling. Although we went later in the year than usual (April), we learned that the winds are fairly consistently high which makes swimming around the reef nearly impossible. We still managed to get in the water 3 days out of 7. This place is doing its best to update with a children's play area, new pool and definitely better food. If you like doing activities, this may not be the resort for you. If you like relaxing, enjoying  [... read more]the sun and staff, and maybe snorkelling, this is definitely the place for you

Garden Of Eden

Great holiday at a decent price point in a beautiful setting. Check in is a bit sketchy as they leave you on your own to find your room but once you find it you are pleasantly surprised. The grounds are absolutely beautiful and the snorkelling is great. Some of the staff are friendlier than others but the staff we did engage with were the best and were always concerned that we were enjoying ourselves. The buffet needs to be enlarged to accommodate large numbers and the food was adequate but  [... read more]temperature regulation was also an issue. A minor criticism would be the quality of the wine at evening meals. It appeared that the wine was regularly being "watered" down in order to accommodate the number of diners and at times was not even drinkable. On the whole the plusses definitely outweighed minor inconveniences and we cannot wait to go back!!

Pretty Good

It is always wonderful to return to this hotel. Although not everything was as good as in the past, we enjoyed ourselves. The weather couldn't have been better. Only one red flag day which was the day before we left. The ocean was so warm and inviting and it felt great to get in to cool off.....was very hot this time of year. We were in a bungalow and the room was kept extremely clean and we didn't have any issues. Plenty of hot water and water pressure was just fine. The food, well the f [... read more]ood this year was a disappointment. For the first 7 days, it was simply put - awful. Liver, liver and more liver was served up daily and it was certainly unappealing to look at the plates of liver ready to cook up. No fresh fish. No tomatoes at the salad bar. They really shouldn't disguise liver and claim it's beef !!!! The dessert table was wonderful though. The fresh buns equally as wonderful and several different kinds. The white wine, oh my ! was so watered down it was barely passable as a wine. Suddenly the food quality changed. We had beef dishes, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables and plenty of fresh fish ! The cook did an amazing job with what little he had. Wine was real wine. Couldn't figure out why, The manager really needs to step up and get better control of his dining room., Staff were as usual wonderful. Always love their greetings and smiles were plentiful. A disappointment if you like coffee early. No coffee at the lobby bar until 7:45 .... sharp! Many were saddened to see this happen. A very nice mixture of guests this year. Many from the east coast, a few Russians and a few Germans. Great people from all over. We did see some changes at the resort. They added some cabanas with cushions right on the beach. They looked inviting and a few families with children utilized them. Some rooms have finally been painted and didn't hear anyone mention mold in their room. Flat screen TV's ...which for some I guess is important? All in all it was ok. If it wasn't for the food issue, I would probably say it was fantastic but it was our great friends as well as the top notch staff who made it fantastic.

Will be returning next year

This was our first visit to the villas jibacoa and we will be returning again next year. We booked a bungalow and would definitely do that again. The pools were great and we could see the beach and ocean from the pool. The resort is very quaint and we enjoyed that. The only issue is the buffet is very small and one day they ran out at lunch. Thankfully there was still food at the snack bar. There are three restaurants within very close proximity. We went to Marios which was good and other g [... read more]uests confirmed that the two other restaurants were also very good. All restaurants are 15 pesos and I believe each include lobster diners. Next year we will take more money so we could try all the restaurants which will break up the repetitiveness of the dinner buffet.