Beach beautiful

Hotel needs lots of work Showers are so bad water everywhere . Food in restaurants is not great so we end up eating at Grand Memories buffet.. Not worth the money at Sanctuary. Grand memories would of been ok. Next time different resort.

Romantic Getaway - Awesome!

We just returned from a fab vacay July 10-17, 2017 and plan to go back Sept. 2017. The Sanctuary Grand Memories, Adults Only resort is amazing and we cannot say enough good things. We are definitely beach people so would spend our day there, then to the pool late in the day. The beach is beautiful and well maintained, not crowded, designated area for the resort Diamond Club members which included bar service right to your lounge chairs and no children. Draw back is the washrooms are quit [... read more]e a walk from the beach if required. Most days the staff at the beach would ask non Diamond Club members & guests with children to move to another area. This was appreciated as we do pay extra to be in this section. Another draw back is the entertainment at the pool or lack of.....but as mentioned, we spent a majority of the time at the beach. The bar at the pool and food is very good....you even get bar service while in the pool.....enjoyable! We requested our housekeeper Jeny who is adorable, friendly, soft spoken and would keep our room immaculate with fresh towels and little surprises each day sometimes with fresh flowers, towels in different shapes etc. She is the resorts gem!!!!!! Our Butler Hanoy made great friends with my partner sharing their passion for baseball. Both having played baseball and my partner who had tried out for teams in the MBL, they certainly bonded and have become great friends. Butlers Jose, Abel, Mauricio & Rubin were terrific as well. The staff in the Sanctuary bar lounge and restaurant are fun to be with, friendly and smiling. We had no issues with food, presentation was beautiful. The bartender Julian is another baseball fan who was enjoyable to talk with...... The resort cart driver Tony is a character, funny and can tell he loves his job and meeting guests. He will make the drive to the main resort lobby or restaurants a blast, so cheerful. The big disappointment was the entertainment hours in the Sanctuary lounge. The bands would only play from 9:00-10-10:30.......The bands interacted with the guests, getting them to sing along, dance etc. but they need to extend the hours of the live music. Crazy not having the bands until at least midnight.....Not sure why this changed or perhaps being low season.....This really needs to improve! All the staff at the resort are friendly and have big smiles. The grounds are impeccably well maintained. The walk to the beach is super close! Special thank you to the new Director of the resort Mateusz Kos and Residence Services Lucia for making our stay so memorable..... I would highly recommend Candice Anger as your travel agent. Candice is an experienced agent and most helpful, outgoing and goes out of her way to meet your requests and help assure you pick the right location for your vacation. She makes your vacation a dream......Thank you Candice for making our recent trip one of the best and look forward to working with you on more trips in the future....

Tranquil side of Grand Memories

The hotel grounds, rooms and amenities are good. The snack bar is convenient for those who like to stay by the pool. Food is okay. The restaurant is quite nicely decorated although it did not have any air conditioning (Temperatures soared to 32 during my vacation, which is great outside, but not indoors ) Food was again, okay. The bar and lounge was great! Nice and cool, great place to sit and watch the TV, or connect on the WIFI. The hard working staff is what makes the difference here. They  [... read more]are great! I ensured to tip them always!! The beach is amazing. Lounging area at the sanctuary side is quite small, although we found comfortable lounge chairs and shade in the morning. ( keep in mind June is low season) be sure to buy the delicious pineapple drink in the actual pineapple from the beach vendor! There is a small bar in the middle of the forest path to the beach. Great for mojitos, beers and soda pop. Overall, it is the staff that make this a great resort!

Worth it if you want peace and quiet, upscale amenities,

There is barely anything I can say negative about this resort. First I want to thank Jose our Sanctuary contact for making all arrangements for our convenience, ala carte reservations and extended use of the room for my guest as I left earlier in the morning. Catamaran excursion was booked easily with our Sunwing Rep Jonny and all went as planned. We found no issues with choices at the buffet, food was plentiful and good variety. The ala carte restaurants were well hosted and meals were present [... read more]ed very professionally. The Deluxe Junior was well appointed and maintained very well by the friendly cleaning staff. Liquor tree was a nice addition also the well stocked bar fridge. We spent most of our "water time" at the pool which was welcome relief from the heat. The staff at the pool bar were incredibly friendly and hospitable. The poolside food and drinks were the best. I suppose the only issue we had, which has been mentioned before, was at the beach. Small area for Sanctuary and other guests would claim the all the lounges and shade for the day even if not there. Hence spending most of the time at the pool. We have traveled to many 4 and 5 star resorts in Cuba and I would definitely put this in the top 5 we have stayed at.

Loved the Sanctuary Grand Memories.

We were 4 ladies of varied ages. Two in our sixties and two in their forties. This was my first time at an adults only resort and everything was so nice right from the moment we arrived. Special treatment and a tour of the resort showing the restaurants and facilities was a great way to be welcomed. Nice touch. We enjoyed an excursion to Havana in an old car with a guide. Fascinating day. The rooms were spotless and large and the grounds were immaculately kept. Beautiful pool and the beach was l [... read more]ovely and free of any seaweed. Lots of chairs at both. The al a carte restaurants were all very good and the lounge bars were a great place to socialize. The nightly entertainment was extremely good in the theatre and other areas. The beach was just a 3 minute walk from the rooms. I am definitely using Sunwing again as this was a vacation without any issues at all and I plan on returning this year to the Sanctuary with my family. Thank you Judy Donaldson for such great service booking our vacation and follow ups.

Amazing Resort - Great Food

The 18+ Sanctuary Section of the Grand Memories was Fantastic. The restaurant allows for sit down breakfast, lunch and dinner which is made to order by the chef in the kitchen. You also have full acdess to the Grand Memories Resort and their buffet and a la carte restaurants. I went to the Japanese which was good. I would rather eat at the Sanctuary Restaurant that had Lobster / Steak and Mashed Potatoes / Chicken / Pork / Cuban Lunch / Calamari / Ice cream. Very good. Rooms had bathtub an [... read more]d separate stand up shower. 3 Levels but there is no elevator (all stairs). Bring mosquito repellent as they bite a lot at night on your legs during the show. The entertainment was amazing. Magic Show / Michael Jackson / Cuban etc. Internet is $2 CUC an hour. Do not change your Canadian money to US, there is a bank that will give you $70.00 for $100.00 (May long weekend stay 2017). Electrical outlets will charge your phone with no need to bring convertor. Free sail boat to the ocean for snorkling - Lots of water games, Yoga, Dance Lessons on beach during day

Relaxing Retreat

This intimate feeling resort was exactly what we were looking for. The scale of our side of the resort allowed for a relaxing retreat. We had the ability to access the Grand Memories larger side for restaurants and events but only when we wanted to. We were completely contained within Sanctuary if that was what we wanted. It allowed the staff to be personal and friendly. It allowed the opportunity for the other guest to become acquainted. Not a party atmosphere unless you wanted it to be.  [... read more] Food was fine. There were times that it wasn't consistent when ordering the same thing. Room could have been cleaner in areas and housekeeping services could have been consistent with the towels etc but this did not alter the great time I was having. I went knowing I was going to Cuba not in Canada. Loved the Butler service especially Maurico, Rubin, Juan and then bar staff at the pool side.

Best resort yet for relaxing vacation

Very clean, service was fantastic, food was awesome, location was fantastic. Royal treatment in cuba. Would return If traveling to Varadero. Loved the way everyone looked after us. Breakfast on our balcony every morning was a lovely experience

Amazing

First time in cuba and definitely will return. We had a wonderful time at this resort (sanctuary side). Loved the food the people the beach. Staff were amazing. Couldn't ask for anything better. xxx CUBA

Adequate

This resort was adequate, not what I was expecting, nothing special except the staff. Jose` our butler was great, the reception staff was great as well. Uli the chef at the Sanctuary restaurant went out of his way to accommodate my food restrictions, we were very impressed. also Judi our maid did a great job. The resort was old and needed an update, Our room had a view of the pool, no ocean views at this resort, our so called suite was just a room but had a balcony so that was good. We pai [... read more]d for the diamond club, a bit of a waste as there were very view perks. The beach was lovely but impossible to get a shaded spot as the beach staff saved the best spots for the guest who paid the most. We did not realise this until someone told us on departure. The food except for 2 exceptions was ok most of the time but bad a few times, lots and lots of house flies all over the buffet, the last day or two Yuk. The exception were the Sanctuary restaurant and the Oriental which were good all the time. All in all we have been to much better resorts for the same money, we will not go back. too many place to see in this world.

Santurary at grand memeries varadero

this was our best stay in cuba so far the service was top notch going to the alacarte resteraunts where great better then stuffing yourself at the buffet rooms we had the suite was roomy and very clean housekeeping there every day fridge filled everyday if you wanted more they would give it to you butler service top notch always there if you needed them very quiet resort we loved it no loud music or drunk people all around if you want quiet excellent resort if you want to party go somewhe [... read more]re else said that they had music in the bar til 11 that was great I guess the only bad thing they did not no how to cook bacon there 2 weeks burn every time no big deal I would go back tomorrow also bar staff and waitress they work very hard if your by the pool they come around serve your drinks and also take the food to you I forgot the most important thing the beach beautiful you can walk either way for miles water excellent no rocks nothing just jump in yes waiter at the beach

Good Resort

We enjoyed our week in Varadero at the Sanctuary at Grand Memories. The resort was clean, for the most part, but we did have some issues with our room - the stand-up shower drained so slowly that if you tried to use it, you flooded the bathroom and hallway - this was how we started morning one. Luckily there is a shower in the large soaker tub we used for the remainder of the week. The food was quite good, especially the Gala dinner. We also enjoyed the Asian and Gourmet restaurants on the GM si [... read more]de. We went to the buffet on the GM side once - dirty tables set with clean cutlery, missing tongs/spoons to pick up food, cold food, etc. Breakfast at the Sanctuary restaurant was YUMMY, although sometimes slow. Once suggestion - they need more shade available at the pool especially. The towel game was nasty - if you wanted a palapa in the Sanctuary section at the beach, or shade at the pool you had to be there before 7 am to mark it with your towels. We had Diamond Club and enjoyed top shelf liquor, 1 hr free wifi per day, and the poolside dinner. Our butler Hannoy was great. The room could have been much cleaner and bottled water was not always easy to get - we often didn't get the 2L/day as promised. My guess is this was an "off" week as many reviews for this place are fantastic. We likely won't return, but only because we like to visit different places in our travels.

Sanctuary: Both good and not so good

We stayed at Sanctuary at Grand Memories from March 31 to April 7. I have to start by saying that the staff here are terrific, especially the pool bar staff and the animation team. Sanctuary is the adults-only section of the Grand Memories resort. The pool area is smallish but lovely, and there were lots of lounges – though you have to get up early, as in most resorts, to get one that is shaded. That said, you might want to think twice if you have mobility issues, as my husband does: it  [... read more]is a long way from this section to the main resort complex. Yes, a shuttle is available upon request, but who wants to be reliant on that? The restaurant in Sanctuary is Ave del Paraiso. There is a small but adequate breakfast buffet, with some à la carte offerings. Dinner is strictly à la carte. We had dinner there twice, and, except for the desserts, it was mediocre at best both times. On the Sunday, we had lobster in a “hollandaise” sauce that had gritty, raw flour in it. My lobster tasted as though it had been kicking around the tank for a while, both in texture and taste. I ate only a couple of mouthfuls because I was afraid of getting food poisoning from it. We did enjoy the food at Sanctuary's pool bar - wondrous calamari, excellent hot dogs - and, oh, the ice cream! If it had been open later than 6 p.m., we would have eaten there. As it was, instead, most nights, we ate at the main buffet at Grand Memories, and it was generally awful. The cold offerings were limited and totally inadequate for the number of guests. There were long lineups for the cooked-to-order items. I ventured there one night when I saw beef on skewers. After confirming three times that I wanted the beef, I was given chicken, which was dry and inedible. On our last night, we ate at the Creole restaurant. We both ordered grilled chicken with lemon. The chicken had been roasted, not grilled, and there wasn’t a hint of lemon in it. Fortunately, there was a puppy in the dining area, and he was very happy to have my chicken. We had a good time at Sanctuary, but I would not return to this resort. There are a lot of alternatives in Varadero and elsewhere and, honestly, I do not understand why Sanctuary is now top-rated. Our previous experiences were superior.

Great time at the Grand Memories Sanctuary

My husband and I spent last week at the Grand Memories Santuary with another couple. I really enjoyed the resort. The food was good, the entertainement was excellent. Roxanna and the staff at the pool bar were also excellent. As was our butler Able who bent over backwards to help us get réservations at our favorite restaurants both on and off resort.. The Santuary part of our resort was definatly worth the extra money. There we could relax away from the crowds (and children ) Althought the [... read more] rooms are a little dated,, the are clean and bright. I would definatly recommend this resort to anyone needing a affordable gettaway. This was our first time in a while staying in a 4*, and I barely noticed the difference from our usual 5*

Memories indeed

My name is Larry Kingsley. My wife Diane and I have returned to Cuba again this year simply because it is one of the most beautiful places in the world. This time we chose the Sanctuary at Grand Memories.The accommodations were impeccably clean and close enough to the pool and restaurant area, but also very close to the private beach. The staff at the Hotel was extremely helpful in all aspects of our stay, always making sure that we were happy. The food was excellent and the music as always wa [... read more]s extraordinary. I would recommend this hotel as a must stay for your next vacation.

Great resort

Our week at this resort was not only relaxing but fully enjoyable from the facilities to the staff we will return and recommend it highly. The grounds are very clean and very well maintained, the beach was clean and raked daily, the drinks were good and bartenders always had a friendly smile on their face and a warm greeting..

Beautiful s

Staff my room the pool the food lots to choose from the long walks on beaches everything was great. The room was large and I liked the two bathrooms and the supplies in the fridge and the garders they always had a smile.

Great service but the hotel needs some renovations.

We stayed in the Sanctuary section of the Gran Memories. I would NEVER stay at the main Gran Memories hotel but the Sanctuary part was ok. Our room was shabby (peeling, shabby furniture, leaking shower, leaking sink, leaking air conditioner, wood falling out of the bottom of the bed) but the grounds are well-kept, the staff is very nice and friendly and the beach is fantastic. The restaurants in the Sanctuary section are pretty good but I would STAY AWAY from the Gran Memories big buffet. (We're [... read more] not picky eaters but even we were turned off by that sloppy buffet.) The Sanctuary is very quiet and peaceful.

WOW...... you must go to this place!!!!

Adults only is truly a gem. Has it's own everything just for you... concierge, restaurant, bar, pool bar, pool, beach section. Amazing staff their to help 24/7. Do take an excursion into Havana (2hr taxi drive) with "I love Cuba Photo tours" search tripadvisor. You will be very happy.

Great Resort

I was pleasantly surprised with this resort. Perfect weather! The grounds were lovely, common areas were clean. Our room was above the pool with only a 2 minute walk to an AMAZING beach. The employees really went above and beyond what I would have ever expected. Our butler easily arranged all of our reservations for the week and booked a private trip to Havana as well. The food was pretty good, breakfast was my favorite meal, with al a carte and the ability to order an omelette everyday. The oth [... read more]er meals were decent, usually could find something I liked enough. Drinks were plentiful and the coffee was great as well. Matthew at Trip Central was very helpful and we had no issues with our flights, bags or transportation. Overall a great trip!