Memories Paraiso: Would not return

To start on a positive note, the beach was amazing. But that was about it. Food from the buffet was not that good, if you could even get to some. It was empty half the time. Some staff was super friendly, others not so much. So if you meet someone who serves you well go back to them. Alot of the staff speaks no English, so communication was not possible for us. Staff at the bar at the beach kept bugging us to get them plates of food for lunch, and when we didn't, they gave us poor service and se [... read more]rved us last. Staff bugged us for gifts. Some days room service didn't even show up to our room. Whole resort is definitely in need of repair, lots of things not working. Such as toilets, sinks, wash stations, tv, broken railings, missing tiles exposing sharp edges, no lights working on pathways at night. Also throughout the resort good luck finding a toilet with a toilet seat other then in your room. Some of the buildings are not open (patio doors to rooms open and you can see they are filled with mattress and other furniture). Well we were there they were throwing garbage off the roof onto the ground which was really loud, annoying and dirty. You literally had to watch where you were walking to not have stuff thrown on you. (Air conditioning units, chairs, cement bricks, bags of garbage). Over all a pretty run down location. As for entertainment they did have something every night for dancing. They also had a few things planned for kids. We didn't participate much with any of that but it seemed good. We spent our time all at the beach which made it ok. All in all I would not go back to this resort and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone I know. As for the actual booking of the trip, my experience was great with trip central. Everything on that end went smooth from booking, to airports, to the plane and bus rides. It was great.

Sanctuary at Grand Memories Santa Maria: Great staff!!

This resort was great , grounds are well kept, beach is spectacular! Food is ok you will always find something to eat just nothing wow. The rooms are kept clean by the maids and the added buttler service is great. The staff really makes for a great vacation!

Paradisus Los Cayos: Great resort with lots of potential!

Fantastic location, very peaceful and calm setting. The beaches, pools, food were outstanding. Staff were very good. They have some work to do in terms of fixing processes (i.e. booking restaurants, having an itinerary of what's happening, etc), which will happen as they expand and open up their full resort. We didn't think the Royal Service was worth the extra money.

Sanctuary at Grand Memories Santa Maria: Nice Resort

Very friendly staff, especially pool bartender named Carlos. Front lobby staff very accommodating and easy to speak with. Can even exchange money right in front lobby without passport. Butlers always around to ask for help or to book restaurant reservations. Rooms okay. Stains on sheets and towels/towels not changed once during week despite good tips and gifts. Beds firm but I like my mattress like that. Amazing water pressure in shower! Beach very nice. Private adult only area. Was windy and  [... read more]a bit wavy while we were there but could have just been the week we went. Bad sand flies/mosquitos in evening; bring lots of bug spray and after bite. Many people had a ton of bites by the end of the week. Pool beautiful and clean. Bit cool but I was still in all day every day. Lots of chairs to choose from, not always in the shade but the shade moves anyways! Food poor but it's Cuba so what do you expect. Food cold at buffet, meat impossible to chew, buns stale. Fresh cooked meat was great and the A La Carte restaurant at sanctuary was better than buffet. It was international and changed every night which was fun. Could get reservations at all times of day from butler but never got the other restaurants because you had to wake up early and get reservation right away. Drinks were amazing especially the Pink Lemonade drinks from the lobby bar! Overall it was good and I enjoyed my vacation but I dont think I would go back. Have been to Cuba before and had a better experience in past.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Gorgeous resort, garbage staff

The good: The resort itself is beautiful, large and the beach is top notch. The excursions are great (we did the dolphin one) however we quickly realized it's captive dolphins so it's a Cuban version of Sea world. The lobster dinner is fantastic but the dolphin show just breaks your heart, while simultaneously impressing you with their intelligence and skills. The Sunwing rep was great, friendly and very helpful. The bad: food is sub-par even for Cuba so make sure you book the different dinn [... read more]ers when you get there. They don't take American credit cards if you want to book or buy anything, but don't worry, they charge you everything in American dollars anyways. What logic is that? Very greedy on their part. Don't covert your money at the hotel- 5 Canadian dollars is 3 of their "pesos" which is hotel dollars not real pesos. 3 pesos for 5 Canadian? I don't think so. So we ended up just tipping in Canadian money. The staff are brutal. We were in building 34- some locked maintenance room with an alarm kept beeping for 6 days, 24 hours a day. I'm not making that up: 24 hours throughout the night beeping throughout the entire building 34. It's probably still beeping now. Complained multiple times a day to various front desk staff who repeatedly told us it was fixed (spoiler: it wasn't) they eventually compensated us 30 minute massages for our wives (but not the rest of the group). Then looked me in the eyes and promised me the beeping was fixed and would stop. It wasn't. It beeped for our entire 7 day vacation, the only reason I didn't notice it the first night was because I was completely black out. Housekeeping staff were inattentive, rarely changed towels and picked and chose what English they wanted to listen to. Leave your towel at the beach? That'll be an extra 10 bucks. I can still hear that beeping alarm in my sleep some nights. God be with you if you're in building 34.

Grand Memories Santa Maria: Amazing Resort!! The staff there are also amazing!

Hi there. I am responding on behalf of my Husband James William and myself. we just returned from two weeks in beautiful Cayo Santa Maria Cuba. We stayed at Grand Memories as we have been for the last eight years. One of the main reasons we stay is because of the staff! They are beautiful people! We love this resort. The food for Cuban Resorts is pretty good! The grounds are always being primped and looked after very well! The pool area is very clean and the beach is absolutely amazing!  [... read more] We will definitely be booking with you again in the near future! Thank you for the wonderful service! Tracy Mannett and James Scott.

Melia Las Dunas: Santa Maria Meli las dunus

Second time there and again loved the beaches Blue cheese and calamari fantastic. A fantastic family afternoon on a cateraman cruise. Always fresh food and every meal can be cooked infront of you I love Cuba!!

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Awesome resort!

We were pleasantly surprised by the resort. Beautiful beach and extremely clean. Staff was great. It was very busy on the Saturday and there seemed to be families that were there for a nights vacation just on that day. If there is nothing you can find to eat that would be your issue. Something to satisfy all. Our only “complaints” would be not being able to get the coffee maker that was to be in our room. We asked everyday there but were told it was impossible. Secondly, the ocean view is  [... read more]not really ocean view. And finally and the reason we will not be returning to Santa Maria is the profoundly long transfer from the airport to the resort. 2 hours is too long for us. We will go back to Santa Maria when we can fly directly.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Everything was lovely except the main dish foods. They were Luke warm. There were two delightful exceptions which we discovered late in the week. These were omelettes which were made in a frying pan at the time, and to which you could include your own ingredients. The other was spaghetti whicH was also made at the time with ingredients of the guest choice.

The hotel, rooms, grounds, pools, beach and room service were all lovely. Junie, our maid service was sweet and accommodating. We were booked for two weeks but came home after one week. This was due to my husbands contracting diarrhea. He was confined to our room for 3days. We both LOVE MUSIC but there was a unrelenting LOUD thumping of music at the pool that one couldn’t get away from. ( we are both in our 70’s 🤨) At the beach, which we managed to get to on our last two days, had mu [... read more]sic but it was not constant and not as loud. We also spent part of one day going by taxi into the International Clinic to see the physician/ Pharmacist.

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: This resort was all I could ask.

My daughter and I stayed March 18 to 25 this year. We had a lovely room close to the central lobby in the spa section (no kids). The food was good not outstanding but quite good. The staff exceptional. I enjoyed the shows the beach was one of the best I've ever visited in Cuba. Been to Cuba more than 20 times. This place is my favorite so far.

Sanctuary at Grand Memories Santa Maria: 2nd time and we will be back :)

This was our second year in a row at Sanctuary and the plan is to return again next year. We selected Cuba in 2018 over other countries because we wanted to support their tourist industry after the horrific hurricane Irma in September 2017. Most of the gardens were still empty of the beautiful flowering shrubs and plants of Caribbean resorts, but each day we saw the gardeners beautify a few of the uncountable number of gardens throughout the resort. Returning this year, we were amazed the ground [... read more]s are almost all done and flowers were blooming everywhere. We still see the gardeners working daily, creating gardens of love ... literally 💜 We understand the labourous work of gardening and so appreciate everything they do and we make a point of complimenting and thanking them. The staff at Cuban resorts go out of their way to please and serve. They totally understand their lives and their country rely heavily on tourism. But, you must keep in mind that any where in the world, vacation or not, you get back what you put out. All the staff throughout Memories’ 3 resorts are incredible people with excellent attitudes and service standards. You should arrive with that same disposition and keep it the lenght of your vacation unless you truly encounter substandard conditions or staff. It IS Cuba and if you choose to vacation there you should not be surprised by the “normal” things about Cuba. None of it is a secret. My biggest complaint about my trips to Cuba always involved co-guests. If you believe people will treat you with respect after you continually disrespect people with an entitlement attitude as if somehow you converted to Royalty on the plane ride down, you are sadly mistaken and you are affecting anyone around you who can hear and see how you behave and how you treat these loving caring people. Of course we have had moments of disappointment about food quality or quantity, toilet issues, or a server who is having an off day, etc, etc. But, we have a good attitude no matter what we encounter. We expect these things are likely to occur and we are prepared to adjust and work around the FACT it is not a Ritz hotel. We exhume love to that cranky waiter so he/she knows people are good and care and are not judging them. Have you ever had something going on inside you that causes you not to be cheerful all day? Would it be nice for people to smile and thank you as if they didn’t notice? That’s what we do and we get a positive response every time. I am sure that person goes on to have a better day to the benefit of everyone they serve after. They are human beings, not emotionless robots so PLEASE treat everyone with respect even when things aren’t going your way. You also bring down the poeple YOU are travelling with ... especially the children. Second co-guest complaint is to be more physically aware of yourself and your surroundings. YIELD, WALK ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF PATHS, MOVE OUT OF THE WAY. DONT STOP WITH YOUR GROUP IN ENTRANCES OR BLOCK PATHWAYS... FIND A SPOT OUT OF THE MOVING TRAFFIC OF PEOPLE AND SHUTTLE CARTS TO STAND AND CHAT!! AVEZ-VOUS COMPRIS? MERCI BEAUCOUP :)

Grand Aston Cayo Las Brujas: Good Resort great price!

My husband and I stayed at Playa Vista Mar from March11th to the 18th. We arrived around 1pm and our rooms were ready for us right away. We decided to upgrade to the adult side and it was well worth the money. The rooms were nice, clean and bright. The maid service was excellent and the only down fall was that they didn"t have face cloths but we could live withhout that. The beach was amazing? One of the nicest ones I have seen in a while. Lots of fish to look at If you are into snorkeling. Th [... read more]e Adult side pool had an amazing bartender who made the best mojitos. Every breakfast and lunch we ate at the adult only restaurant. Lunch selection was amazing especially the calamari. The main buffet did a real good job of switching up their dishes. If you like steak, you will be disappointed. Chicken, pork and fish are their main proteins but this is something we expected in Cuba. The a la cartes were disappointing. Food was cold, meat over cooked. We found the buffet was better which is unusual for most resorts. All the staff we meet were wonderful they truly do an amazing job! I would recommend this resort for any one who wants a well priced vacation and is ok with a limited food selection.

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Good experience

First would like to mention that booking through trip central was a very smooth experince . Monique did an amazing job explaining and assisting in every aspect. Sunwing airlines also did an excellent job, very cuerteous and crew and their representatives in Cuba were all professional and and honest and went out of their way to assist. Although the flight time was not the best in early morning and late night. The resort in Cuba Cayo Santa Maria , I iberosrar occupies one of the best locatio [... read more]n on the island and by the beach is one of the best in Cuba . The grounds and gardens and massive , the length is the resort is maybe 1km in length . Lot of walking and excellent for nature lovers . Super quiet beach and location . The rooms are huge and well laid out. Safety was excellent , the hotel property and gardens deserve 5 stars even by western standards . The rooms are clean , a bit dated but very well kept still . Wifi was available for 1 peso for one hour. I noticed the wifi time run fast . Maybe you get 4 hours of working time if you pay for 5 hours. The wifi fairly strong in the lobby and rooms , but did not work on the beach but who needed that anyways. Food was in abundance but average quality . Fruit quality was very good. Overall I would go again specially through trip central and Sunwing airlines. Take an excursion and be generous with the Cuban people . They are very nice, very friendly and very honest . No scams or gimmicks of any kinds . Thank you from a solo traveler .

Valentin Perla Blanca: Decent at best

Pros: beach and pools are very nice and clean, service is good. Cons: MAJOR lack of beach chairs (1000 room resort, only like a hundred chairs on the ENTIRE beach), towel service (no one told us to keep track of the beach towels that we were supplied with within our room), and we left them on pool chairs on the first day assuming like every other resort, we’d go pick up some fresh ones the next day, instead it was a struggle to get replacements and they even threatened to charge our room (h [... read more]owever they didn’t and I tipped the maid enough to get new ones). Food was scarce (I already knew this was gonna be an issue as I’ve been to Cuba before) first couple days they didn’t even have fries lol Their gift shop is basically the size of a linen closet so don’t expect a big store like some resorts. I broke the sunglasses I had on the first day, so I went to the little store and didn’t see any glasses on a rack or anything but I asked anyway, so she reached under her counter and grabbed a small grocery bag that had random sunglasses, and the only male appropriate sunglasses were the 4 pairs I had to chose from.. so just beware... Oh... and the BIG ONE... We ended up leaving with BED BUG bites..., we looked the first day and every other day and didn’t notice anything but the last day we had bites on our legs and arms and we’ve been back home for a few days now still itchy as hell... so just beware. This resort is decent for sure and still had a great time, it’s very nice looking but they need to improve on the small things to convince me to come back compared to even a 3 star resort in StarFish that I had a way better experience at.

Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria: Great Resort

My husband and I had the pleasure of staying at the Dhawa kn Cayo Santa Maria from March 13th to the 21st. The rooms are beautiful and clean. There has been quite an improvement with the entertainment staff. Entertainment in the lobby bar was excellent, but once shows begin at 930, everything comes to a standstill. It would be nice to have music, even piped in, for people who don't feel like going to the shows every evening. Grounds are beautiful and pool very clean. Cuban restaurant excellent.  [... read more]Everyone who ate there raved about it. Snack bar left something to be desired. The food was good, but very limited, even though supposedly open 24 hours. Didn't try the a la cartes, however, gourmet was excellent according to anyone who ate there. Sunwing rep was excellent and always present. Beach is small but beautiful. People as always very welcoming. Definitely going back next year and will be booking with Tripcentral.

Playa Luxury Cayo Las Brujas: Solid 4 Star Resort

The Angsana is a gorgeous new resort located in Cayo Santa Maria located 90 minutes from the airport. It caters to 18 and up with the average age during our stay being 60 plus. Entertainment can be repetitive aswell as limited buffet and menu selections but you can always find something to eat. Now where this resort exceeds in is outstanding staff and service. If you prefer a smaller quieter resort with natural beaches then this resort is for you. If you prefer a more upbeat resort with a pa [... read more]rty atmosphere I would chose another resort.

Memories Paraiso: Amazing resort

We loved loved loved this place! The service was amazing. They were so welcoming and eager to get us anything we needed. The food was actually quite amazing. We had 2 a la crate meals ( Mediterranean and Asian) and they were better than home. Our room was comfortable and easy to get to. We enjoyed being able to hop on a cart and travel around to different spots with ease. They are renovating, but you can barely notice as they are quiet and clean up very promptly. They are always upkeeping the [... read more] grounds and very friendly as you pass by. We will be back for sure! We can’t wait!

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Great resort and time, not variety in food

All in all it was great. It was almost a 2 hour bus ride from the airport to the resort (with all the stops at the other resorts). Our bus did not have any bathrooms on board and did not stop. We had to ask them to pull over on the side of the road for my wife to relieve herself. The bus provide beers on the trip. The country side was really nice and they gave a lot of information about the different towns you go through. Upon arriving at the resort, it is very nice and you can tell it is big [... read more]. The lobby is at the center of the resort with 2 pools on either side (1 is the main one and party pool, where the other is more quiet and has a swim up bar and is close to the snack bar). The resort itself is very beautiful and well maintained. The pools were clean and not over chlorinated. The room that we had was on the main floor and faced the ocean, however there was no view of the ocean due to the sand dunes. The room was a good sized room, with a very comfortable bed, and the shower was great (good pressure, rainfall showerhead). We went to 2 of the A la carte resturants (1 was a privilege restaurant we got let into after making friends with a bartender). The food at these restaurants were the best hands down. Their seafood dishes were the best. As for the buffet, it was alright. Very bland, and did not change very much. During our stay there was only 1 day (our last day) where there were french fries, and no bacon. The bar service was generally very quick even during the busy times. The only time we had slow service (when there was almost no one in there) was in the snack bar. They literally stood at the bar and watched us sitting there waiting for water. We did 1 day trip, the catermeran, and I highly recommend doing this as it was a full day out in the water, snorkeling, lobster lunch, swimming with dolphins and unlimited booze. Fantastic time and would go back here again.

Melia Cayo Santa Maria: Quiet and relaxing

This resort was very small quaint easy to get around not a lot of walking to go anywhere The food was good, rooms were clean and decent.It close to the beach the ocean was nice The people were great.But the only downfall for this resort was the two-hour bus ride from the airport other than that I would go back in a heartbeat!

Gran Muthu Cayo Santa Maria: Nice place

The hotel is good and the pools and beaches are nice , room and service good also the staff are nice and friendly. The only thing I can say is a bit bad is the food Overall is a great place to stay and enjoy Cuba .