Travel agent neglected to inform us about important changes

My wife and I have vacationed at this resort 9 or 10 times since 2001. We have made friendships with many of the staff and families in the neighbouring community. Each year we take items including bicycles to help folks out with the extreme poverty that they face, especially those who don't benefit from tips in the tourist economy. We also love to snorkle on the beautiful offshore reef. We were expecting to do the same again this year. Each year in the past we have been able to put a deposit do [... read more]wn and borrow snorkeling equipment from the resort. As we now know, this ended last April,(after last year's vacation). We book vacations through an agent rather than on line, expecting there will be some advice and heads up from the agent about any changes we should know about. The fact that the freshwater pool was empty until the day we left was disappointing but we could have done nothing about that. However had we been advised about needing our own snorkeling equipment we could have taken fewer give a ways and included our own equipment. For that lack on information I am extremely upset with our agent of many years, Shauna Langille and will not be booking through her again. The resort however is wonderful and the staff very friendly. Take your own snorkle equipment and you'll have a great time.

Wonderful snorkelling

Room was great. Food and service were excellent with lots of fresh fish! Beach is big and sandy. Just lots of wind while we were there second week of jan so lots of waves so not so great for snorkelling but we did see lots of coral and fish. Even a sting ray and barracuda. Only problem is jeff and I came home with a very itchy rash altho my brother did not get it. We spent some time in the little huts on the beach with all the comfy pillows and he did not. Could we have picked something g up f [... read more]rom there? Please pass this along to the resort in case more people have experienced this

Great resort

Best 3 star ever, more like a 4 star. Bottle of rum and cigar. In the room when I arrived. Best coral and most fish I have seen. I'm going back in March. 609566666668 qerryuuggcccvggghghhhhhggvguudxvhjyrzuytsxhutxfgfcgg

Home away from Home!

Amazing resort! I have been here multiple times. The staff go above and beyond to make your stay enjoyable.The bungalows are set in a park-like setting. It is nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and the mountains. If you are looking for a 4 or 5 star, don't come here. Rooms are a little dated, although there are new flat screen televisions.... The food is adequate, you won't starve, but I always bring extra food with me....It's the location and the awesome staff that make this my "go to" ho [... read more]me away from home".....

Great Little Resort

It was my first time going to Cuba and didn't know what to expect, Karol with Trip Central was great answered all of my questions and was honest in his comments on the resort. The resort is definitely older, but very well maintained the grounds we worked on every day we were there. We had a bungalow facing the beach, even with the resort full it was never noisy or too busy outside our door. The beach was great never to crowded one of the pools was being re-lined but even with just one p [... read more]ool it was never too busy. Staff was great very friendly and helpful The coral reef was amazing....bring your own gear they don't rent it here. If your looking for a nice ""chill"" relaxing vacation this is your spot if you want more action I would suggest the big resorts in Varadero.

AMAZING TRIP!

Honestly the most beautiful beach ever! Many activities offered, for example the catamaran to go to Cayo Blanco, everyone is really nice! Altough i will say that the food was not great, but that is definetly the only negative point to this resort! Everything besides that was great! i loved it!

Diamond in the rough

What a great little spot a great surprise for what we paid 8th dec to the 15th 525pp.Will defentley go back a lot of repeaters great beach,grounds and staff food was good do not be afraid to book this resort.

Some good some not so good news.

Just returned from Villa Jibacoa. Here are the positives: beautiful grounds. Wonderful snorkelling right by the hotel with lots of fish to be seen. Rooms were simple but serviceable and clean. Maids were prompt and thorough every day. Beach was lovely. A nice quiet resort - not overly crowded or busy. No long line ups. The down sides: FOOD. If food is a biggie for you - this will be difficult. The buffet was really hard to handle- very basic and repetitive. Three of our groups came home with s [... read more]ome pretty uncomfortable food borne illness that hit on about day three. The a la carte.... is worse than the buffet. Really poorly done. I am a make the best of it kind of person - but this was really poor. We did enjoy a great meal out at El Cacique down the road where the food was plentiful, tasty and reasonably priced. When booking a driver through the hotel ( we went to Havana) ask for one who has a little bit of english ( unless your spanish is good - it was very difficult to communicate what we were looking for and where we wanted to go - eventually paid a translator. Their usual tour invoves taking you to anywhere that tourist pesos can be spent and they are not that interested in taking you off the beaten path. They are quite insistent that they know the 'best restaurant '. Lastly - our flight was delayed - we arrived late and hungry to a lukewarm welcome and had to find our way in the dark to our bungalows with barely a point in the right direction. Some of the staff were a bit cool towards guests but Nadia in the dining room - Marcos who led the guided hike in the mountains ( very worthwhile) were rays of sunshine. Also our air Transat rep was very helpful. Havana was an amazing city to spend time in. One day was not enough. If i had it to do over again i'd have booked a room there for one night and spent a couple of days soaking it in. In some ways it was good value. In other ways - we are still paying for it in illness three days later which is disappointing - and we ate and drank cautiously avoiding anything that seemed iffy. Overall we enjoyed our time but would not return to this place.

Beautiful site

The site is beautiful with its the surrounding mountains, its mature trees, the landscaping, the well kept grounds. Staff is friendly and helpful. Food is not great but the cooks do their best considering the many shortages. The bungalow I was using was clean and I did not mind the furniture being old, the bed not that comfortable because the room was vast and peaceful. The air conditioning was quiet and efficient. Beach sand is coarse and there is algae but it is compensated by the amazing cora [... read more]l reef reachable by swimming. Bring your mask and snorkel !

Second Visit This Year!

Just returned from Villa Jibacoa. We are repeat customers. Great to see our many Cuban and Canadian friends, also met some new ones as well! Things that needed to get fixed are being fixed, we saw many improvements. Best trip we have had so far. Had a great time snorkeling and enjoying the sunshine. Ruddy is doing a great job in the A La Carte. Looking forward to returning in the new year.

Great vacation

This was our first trip to Cuba and it was very enjoyable. Beach was really nice and great for snorkeling. Room were clean and adequate. Buffet was better then expected, everyone always warns the food in Cuba isn't good. Not as many fruits and veggies as other destinations but we didn't go hungry. The restaurant was very good. The staff were friendly and helpful. Entertainment every night. Would go again.

Great value

As soon as you arrive, the friendly staff are there to make sure you have everything you need. We arrived late ( 1 am) and the check in went very smooth. The grounds are a park like setting. The gardeners do amazing manicuring and is very pleasing to the eye and camera. If you get a bungalow, which I highly recommend, it's like having your own little cottage even though they are attached with 3 other bungalows. The beach is the best I have seen in Cuba. The sand is coarse but the water is c [... read more]lear and clean. We had no problems with jelly fish. We were told that they have a cycle and sometimes come closer to shore. If you have snorkelling gear, take it. The reef is amazing. There are 2 paddle boats you can take out and enjoy the views. We just stuck our water proof camera a few inches under the surface of the water and got some really good photos of the reef. I cannot drink the Cuban coffee because it is so strong so tea filled in that need for me. My husband had the cappachino which he enjoyed. The specialty coffees at the lobby bar are good as well. At breakfast there was an omelet station or you could get eggs any way except poached, it's a grill. The juice is from crystals so don't expect fresh squeezed. Lunch I always had the pasta and soup over rice. Sometimes I had the Cuban sandwich . If they don't have the sliced ham out, just ask the staff dressed in black and he will get it for you. There was a wide variety of foods available but I played it safe and only ate what I knew. Supper was the same for me. My husband ate a lot of different foods that I wouldn't try. They had fresh grilled fish(tuna or cat fish). The dessert bar was well stocked as were the homemade buns and breads. I would say the buffet wasn't the best I have seen but I didn't lose any weight during the week of Dec 1-8 2016 that we were there. It's a quiet place with activities all day long. Alot of return guests also. Some had been there 40 times. Some families from Havana came and enjoyed themselves as well. We didn't do any excursions except one night we chose to go to The Tower restaurant for supper. They also have lunch with the same choices. It was worth the $15 CUC's each. The Transat rep Roberto was helpful and always smiling. He told us if you leave something out on the porch expect it to be missing when you go back for it and that is true. Your room on the inside is a safe place though. We didn't get the safe(at an extra cost) but we didn't need to. Consider taking jewelry, shoes, makeup, gardening gloves or chocolates instead of giving money as tips. We didn't tip money all week and we got the same attention as anyone else did. There are two pools one was almost completed and the other pool was not too cold. There are always plenty of chairs and shaded spot whether you are on the beach or at the pool area. The Cubans are great people. We would go back to this resort

EXTREMELY NICE PLACE

This is was my sixth stay at this resort.Have been to Cuba over fifty times. Will be coming back to this hotel very soon.In the past year there was many improvements done to the rooms and variety of food was good enough to please everyone.

A tough week

Let's keep it short.The place is very basic--no frills and furnished out of a flea market. The food selection is almost the same at every lunch and dinner every day and not too appetizing unless you like to eat piles of rice. For the last couple of days we had to force ourselves to eat something--plain salads. On the positive side the rooms are Spartan but clean , the beach and grounds are well looked after, and the Cuban people are very warm and friendly. We will not be going back

Relaxing friendly resort

We were very impressed with the cleaniness and the beautiful grounds. The beach was amazing and very spacious. The staff were very friendly and accommodating and got to know you by name. We met many people that have been to this resort many times and return yearly. The food was good but the alacart was better. We recommend this resort for a great relaxing time.

Unique resort

spacious, well-maintained grounds with interesting trees and wild-life, relaxing atmosphere, very good beach for walking and snorkelling; rural location with scenic, hilly back-drop; only one hour drive to Havana

Wonderful

Grounds are extremely well kept. Food is so so with long hours between availability of food. Staff were fabulous. This was a gem. Would go back in a heartbeat. Restaurants that were close by were excellent, with cabs/cars available when required. Thank you so much for a great vacation.

Nice Resort

My wife and I enjoyed this resort. The snorkeling is great. The beach is beautiful. It's only an hour and fifteen min. to Havana. However, it's not for everyone. If you want luxury - this is not the resort for you. No marble counter-tops, no concierge and no gravy. But what it lacks in luxury, it makes up for in character.

Villa Tropical Jibaco - Quiet restful retreat

Beach & grounds were simply beautiful, service was fair to good. Food was fine, mostly cuban dishes, a bit repetitive for a two week stay but never went hungry. Waitresses and staff were pleasant to deal with and did their best to accommodate any requests for exra pillows etc. The rooms were neat and clean, large showers and always hot water. Stayed in room 6, beachfront view. Mini Fridge in the room and the AC worked great :) The reef is very large and beautiful, the wind can be a problem [... read more] as most days it was RED FLAG day... if the wind dies down enough to get out to it, it is worth the while to see it either snorkelling or diving. Dive Centre on site, 25 CUC per tank dive, dive master was very attentive and safety oriented. Equipment is of course older but he did a thorough surface check and buoyancy check. Bring your own snorkelling gear, no rentals at this resort. Small store located on the premises, it has a bit of everything. Money exchanged at front desk no problem. I was not expecting to pay extra for a safe, so be prepared for 2 CUC a day rental. Checkout is at 12;00 noon, so just a note... if you leave your room on that last day your key or safe will no longer work after 12:00 noon. Lots of friendly resort cats and dogs on the property. Very casual homey feeling. Great little restaurant approx 2 km off the resort called Marios for lobster tail dinner. he will come and pick you and return all included for 15 pesos. Tour Havana by taxi, approx. 60.00 CUC for the entire day, he takes you were ever you want to go and stays or waits with you all day.. Ask for Umberto, speaks english very well and he is very knowledgeable tour guide. I would consider this resort again... it is very small resort geared towards a quiet, relaxing stay.

Great Place. Good Snorkeling

Ive been to this resort twice now. I come here because the snorkeling and scuba diving is good. The rooms are always clean. The service is good. And staff are very friendly. The food has gotten better since my first visit. I will come again.