Melia Las Dunas: Fair resort, if you can get a deal

This must have been the 20th time that I have been to Cuba, the third time that I’ve been to Cayo Santa Maria, so I knew what to expect. The hotel was a bit disappointing as it was rundown. The patio door was not locking, the rubber Underneath the front door was broken, allowing bugs to come in. Not that we saw many in the room. We did see quite a few ants in our room. This could be resulting from the fact that our housekeeper was putting flowers on our beds almost every morning. A nice gestur [... read more]e, but I’m sure that’s where the ants were coming from. Considering the supply shortage in Cuba, I did not know what to expect. Cannot blame the hotel for this, but it was a chance we took. The food was subpar compared to the hotel that I had been to previously. Subpar to any Cuban resort that I’ve been to. The beach and the ocean was amazing as usual, one of the nicest that I’ve been to in the Caribbean, the staff at the bar, at the restaurants, we’re generally pleasant and friendly, our maid was amazing, one of the best that I have ever had. I had friends who have stayed at this resort in the past, and they have all claimed there was not much entertainment at night. But the week I was there, there was sufficient entertainment, shows at night, musicians, playing, dance, parties, one thing that was surprising to me was that they were not many Canadians staying at this hotel. We ran into a family from Quebec, and two different groups from Toronto. Besides that, all the other guests appeared to be either from Europe, or different South American countries. At every resort that I’ve been to, I’ve always run into Canadians from various parts of the country, but this time around it appeared to be rare. Hearing someone speak English was a novelty. Lol. The resort itself is very big, so be ready to walk a lot. There are staff that will drive you around to your room, but sometimes the wait could be long making it worthwhile to walk. After a couple of days, I had blisters on my toes from walking too much, probably because I was walking with wet sandals. I did not try the pool because I am not a pool person, but it appeared to be clean. Albeit very chlorinated. This is a fair resort if you can get a good deal if you are OK with a resort that is somewhat rundown. My next time around, I will probably be going to the Meliá cayoSanta Maria , which is formerly the Playa Cayo Santa Maria. it’s the adjoining hotel right next-door. But is much smaller, and catered more to Canadians, from what I recall., although times have changed from my last time there which was pre-pandemic.

Iberostar Coral Ensenachos: Beautiful resort, great value for the price

We stayed at Iberostar Coral Ensenachos in a group of four in August 2024. It was our second time at Coral Level and the third time at this resort. We lived in a spacious villa with two bedrooms. It was clean and very well maintained. Customer service was excellent, all our requests were fulfilled in a fast and precise manner. The food was very delicious, and the food selection was very decent. There were two restaurants at the Coral Level part of the resort: El Colonial (for breakfast and dinne [... read more]r) and Pelicano (for lunch). There were options to eat at the family part of the resort but we chose not to as the food at Coral Level was so good. All personnel at Coral Level including administrators on call and restaurant staff were very professional, helpful, and well-mannered. The main attraction of this resort is its beautiful Ensenacho beach. Our hotel section had its beach restricted to the Coral Level stayers only which was nice because it resulted in fewer people on the beach even at prime time. We never used a pool, so I can’t comment on this. Another thing that we admired was the resort’s garden - it was just awesome! Now, what I would improve on this practically perfect resort: I would add more electric cars because there were not enough of them this year and waiting time was sometimes annoying. Also, it would be nicer if more palapas were added to the beach and the distance between palapas expanded. In all other ways, Coral Level at Ensenachos was a great value for the price and we would highly recommend this to our friends.

Paradisus Los Cayos: Amazing Experience!!

Amazing hotel, just like the pictures. The staff here are very nice and accommodating. Nice beach and pool and lots to do at night. Only down side is you don’t get much options when it comes to food.

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: Nice room but…

My first room was incredibly musty/mouldy! So bad it was hard to breathe. We were able to change our room and it was much better, but still musty. My friends changed their rooms because the air conditioning was not working well, and it was constantly 25 degrees. Too warm. Their second room was perfect. No mould, and good air. Ask for room 806! Mine was 805, and it was still musty. I had to wash my clothes twice when I came home to get rid of the smell. However, I have to say, the resort was [... read more] beautiful, and the beach was gorgeous! The staff were more than pleasant and eager to help! They made it worth the stress when things were not comfortable. 24 hour room service was a plus for sure! Tip these wonderful people at least $1-5 USD per room service delivery. They need it and appreciate it. I also brought clothes to give the maid staff, that I no longer wanted, and they were delighted to have something new and different because they do not have much choice or money to buy new clothes. The food was very good! I loved all my meals, and cannot complain about it. They made a big effort to make meals special in the dining rooms, and that was not unnoticed! Thank you Royalton for the service and effort you put out there. You certainly aim to please and rectify any concerns of your guests! I will return!

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: Tropical Paradise

The Royalton exceeded our expectations! The rooms were clean and spacious, the food was tasty and plentiful and the staff was friendly and attentive. Having a butler added to the experience. Over the week we had Omar, Michel and Javier taking care of us. Each morning they connected with us to see if we needed anything and checked in again at the end of the day. The level of customer service at this resort sets it apart from the rest.

Grand Memories Santa Maria: DO NOT COME HERE

The only good thing about this location is the beach. The beach is 10/10, everything else need improvements, some buildings needs to be shut down. Hotel needs an overhaul. Staff said that the resort opened 14 yrs ago, but seems like it was 60's or 70's operation. The details and descriptions on the website are all lies. This is the only vacation I've been that I was excited to come back home because of how bad it was. I have seen previous review, citing how locals are treated better than touris [... read more]t, 100% true. Locals doesn't have to wait for their turn to get food from the buffet. They take bread by basket not by piece, take food in the buffet with their hands. If you are 20 minutes late from the opening of the buffet, don't expect to get any food. NO EGGS for breakfast. One ala carte open on our 7 days stay. Served food was all Cuban, same soup for 7 dinners. Severe shortage of food. Coffee machines are available in the room but no coffee to brew, bring your own I guess. Pool is filthy. No towels and no room service. No freaking telephone in the room, all concerns you will need to go to the reception. We are a family traveller, we were given a moldy, musty, not suitable room at 2AM. The staff said we do not have any other option but to take the room and that we will be given a new one next morning. We had to stay in the lobby, to protect our asthmatic son from getting sick from the room they gave us. They said that managers are not available to solve the problem. It was an awful experience. We will never come back in this place. Restaurant outside the resort selling lobsters, it was advertise as lobster not lobster tail, for $25 USD, salty and overcooked. Liquors are stolen by staff and being sold to guest. Look elsewhere, Santa Maria is a beautiful place, but avoid this hotel. Save yourself from headaches. If you chose this hotel, prepare to starve, prepare for headaches. Bring OTC meds, clinic in the hotel is a quack.

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: 3 star hotel at best!

The rooms were dated, need paint and new furniture, the beach was beautiful and the pools are pretty good, but missing tiles, and in need of repair. The staff is very attentive, however the food is terrible, and the lack of types of liqueurs and common mixes for typical drinks is very disappointing

Vila Gale Cayo Santa Maria: A great choice for a quite retreat.

This resort is a great option if you’re thinking about heading to Cuba. Although Santa Clara Airport is far it is worth the drive once you arrive to a super clean, well managed piece of paradise. The ocean is amazing and clear with lots of room and loungers The resort is well laid out and well maintained for the most part. The staff go out of their way to accommodate your needs. Planning to head back in the next 3-5 years.

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: Great Resort

Grounds were well kept, lobby was clean had a nice breeze and overlooking the infinity pool, room was nice and clean bed and pillows were comfy, a/c worked fine. Food seemed repetitive. Staff were always courteous. Butlers Maria Rosa and Javier were very helpful. Ran into a couple of issues in our room and they were addressed right away. Anay from housekeeping was awesome always gave us what we needed.

Grand Memories Santa Maria: Terrible

This hotel needs an upgrade Immediately...it's run down and dirty. The website is showing better pictures of the resort....it's a lie.Big shortage on food....locals get treated better than anyone. The bartenders were stealing the better bottles of liquor and selling them.. The pool was dirty and filthy, I know the resort's not. I've fault for this but there are flies everywhere... Cockroaches in the room.

Vila Gale Cayo Santa Maria: Incredible Family Vacation!

The Grand Sirenis in Cayo Santa Maria was a dream! Being there the first week of July was amazing. It is a resort that has a capacity of about 1600 and we visited when there were only about 250 other visitors. There were no lines for food or drinks. The staff was pleasant and took the time for all of the families! Our family had two rooms across the hall from each other in Bungalow 2 and they were both clean and cheery! Modern decor and air conditioning was working 100%! The beach was stunni [... read more]ng! Calm waters all hours of the day. We all went snorkeling and saw tons of fish, star fish and little stingrays. The walk along the beach is peaceful and gorgeous. The entertainment staff at the Grand Sirenis went above and beyond for its guests! Caesar was always around for a great time! The evening shows were typical of Cuba and what others in 1st world countries would call low budget but the time and efforts the singers and dancers put into them was absolutely outstanding! Our family and many others were very thrilled with each event! The disco was fun too! We as parents felt very comfortable while our three teens stayed out in the evenings. They met so many others in their age group who also loved to dance the nights away! The foam party on the beach was a huge hit! The beach bar was super fun and Alex kept the drinks cold and coming! The beach grill was always hot and plentiful. Beach Volleyball happened at 10:30 every morning and all the teens were ready for action! Lester and Angel lead a 15 minute water aerobics session after volleyball! Afternoon pool parties and Bingo were a blast! Bartender Josyvic was a joy to have around all day! The drinks were always flowing and so were the jokes! Everyone asked about the food… it was awesome. No shortages. Always found something to fill your tummy. The snack bar was always bumping for the kids. We as a family tried two A La Carte restaurants and agree to “just always order the chicken dish” Cato Santa Maria is a place for family fun on the beach! We will definitely return as we have found a new home away from home!

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Stunning Beaches

We had an amazing week at Ensenachos. The main lobby is very grand and a great place to spend time in the evening. Check in was easy and our room was ready. The 2 beaches are amazing! Staff very attentive and kind. Food and drinks were good. Resort was clean and the grounds are very beautiful.

Paradisus Los Cayos: Very nice spot!

Rooms were clean, water and beer everyday. Amazing beach with crystal clear water. Food was very good no complaints about anything. Beach staff was great and drinks were also very good. The buffet restaurants were very good, quiet time of year.

Grand Memories Santa Maria: Surprise!

After all the "horror" stories I was reading about this hotel and Cuba in general-I was pleasantly surprised that it is very good -nice spacious rooms lots of food and wines -even sparkling wine! Canadians will never be tired of talking about amazing Cuban people and the hotel staff is perfect ! Beach is dreamy !!! Grounds are clean and green of course lots of mosquitoes and flies...so what?! All you need -bring your low expectations ,lots of gifts and US $ dollars -I am recommending this h [... read more]otel to my friends and this is the first hotel in Cuba I will return and back .Thank you to all the hard working staff !

Valentin Perla Blanca: Garbage!

False advertising on their website to say the least, complete waste…thanks trip central for selling this resort stay to my wife and I. I wish I didn’t go to this resort because it stressed us out, so much for a vacation ?????

Vila Gale Cayo Santa Maria: Great resort

We enjoyed our family vacation here so much. The staff were so friendly and attentive, we honestly cant say enough good things. The beach was breathtaking, we highly recommend bringing your own snorkel there is such amazing sea life to see. We had great experiences with the food, we loved the snack bar for lunch as they served fresh pizza and many other things. Buffets were also very good, we enjoyed trying new things they also had things that were familiar to eat. Our 5 year old absolutely l [... read more]oved the kids dance party every evening. The second pool we found very nice if you have smaller kids its quieter. We had a few small issues with the room, staff were helpful in wanting to fix these problems. We definitely be going back, we loved it.

Paradisus Los Cayos: Avoid

This resort was a mistake and perhaps so was Cuba as a destination. Food shortages almost daily (bread being main one). Very limited menu (usually fish, rice and some veg daily). Resort was 75% empty during March break. Beach and pool was nice. Room was decent (few issues but were fixed). Wouldn’t go back again or recommend.

Grand Aston Cayo Las Brujas: Above Average Cuban Resort.

We had a relaxing and enjoyable time at Grand Aston June 6 to 13, 2024. The resort is fairly new and the design of the rooms and the public spaces is modern and colorful. We had no problems with the shortages we heard of at other resorts, Full range of liquor available, cocktails, wine, beer was steady, had omelets for breakfast every morning, pools were clear and in good shape. This resort catches nice ocean breezes in several areas. Of course the staff make the place, we had friendly ser [... read more]vice in the Lobby bar, the pool bar, from our room stewards, and particularly in the "Snack bar" which is really a full service bar with restaurant service that changes throughout the 24 hours it is open. We had one meal at the Cuban A La Carte, we all enjoyed it, we had some great meals at the Buffet, grilled chicken, fresh fried rice, Pasta of the day, some days we weren't into it. We ate often at the "Snack Bar" Our 'cons' are few: The beach is beautiful, and better for small children and sailing, but we missed the waves of the "main" beach on C. Santa Maria, - that's a preference. Some of the entertainment was louder than we like, with shouting to raise energy and v. high overdrive. We liked the guitar player and the sax player in the lobby and the more traditional Cuban/Latin music rather than the EDM/Techno versions. Lots of other people including the Cuban guests seemed to like it just fine. We would have liked to be in the Adults-only section since we were all adults, how to get there wasn't clear to us when we booked or when we got there, but when they told us we couldn't have a drink at the adult pool because we had the wrong wrist band, though we were clearly adults, that put us off a bit. In closing we had superb service, but best of all from Enrique and the team at the Snack Bar: friendly, professional, excellent food and drink - make that your main stop and enjoy. We all want to go back.

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: Not as Sunwing advertizes, misrepresented in the marketing of this resort

Pros: - Service and the people who work there are wonderful - Beach is excellent - Lobby bar is great. - Maids and butlers are wonderful. - Snack bar grill is good. Cons: - Food in general...... but this is not a problem for me, and understandable after the pandemic. - Cockroaches, many of them, in our rooms, in the lobby, everywhere. Got bitten by them as they were inside the bed, on the walls, around the floor, etc. This creates a major health hazard, hygene concern and many other  [... read more]health related challenges. - Run down rooms, grey worn down towels, linen have holes. - The manager chooses who to speak to while he does his rounds talking to the tourists......he targets a specific kind of tourist....there is preference from his part.....would be good if he talked to a variety of people there. He is nice though. I do hope things improve as this was a very good resort before and now at the most a 3.5* maximum given the present circumstances. Sunwing should warn tourists about the cockroach infestation.

Vila Gale Cayo Santa Maria: Amazing Resort

This was my 6th time visiting this resort and I won't go anywhere else. The grounds are well maintained. There is always something to eat and displayed beautifully. Way to go Joll. Customer service Patchy, Pedro and Jeanette where always there to make sure our stay was comfortable. The were very cheerful and there with a good morning or good day, everyday. My room was cleaned everyday and I was very happy with it. I highly recommend Grand Sirenis Cayo Santa Maria.