Great resort!

Super staff. I have to specially point out Yailet at Customer Service as she made our stay really special. Beautiful beach, pools, great service, etc. But beds are REALLY hard. Romantico rest. ++++++

A rare negative review for us

Lets start with the positives. The beach and weather were fantastic. The staff other than the front desk were always courteous and provided great service. Each of us got sick a couple of times during our stay. The first time we attributed it to chicken either less than cooked or had been sitting out too long. We were both down for an entire day. One of us got sick on the salads (perhaps washed with water that wasn't purified). The other time was at the Italian restaurant. Generally the buf [... read more]fet never changed at all for the entire week. We only had hot water 3 days out of seven. We also had negative experiences at the front desk. We arrived at about 10 am and our room was not ready until 5 pm. We had friends staying at another hotel so I went to check at the front desk to see if there were any messages for us and was told no before I even told her what room we were in. The second time I asked which was a day later I was also told no right away and the person didn't check anything before answering.

GREAT HOTEL

I was really impressed with Hotel Playa Cayo Santa Maria. The hotel room is very clean. Nice lobby. All the staff are friendly. I really enjoyed watching the show at the teatro. 😊 I will definitely consider going back to this hotel. Overall experience was great.

Pleasant Stay

Third time to Cuba, first time in Cayo Santa Maria. Playa Cayo Santa Maria is a very typical Cuban resort. We had an enjoyable stay, but the resort is definitely seeing signs of weathering, understandable in the tropical climate.The buffet food was typical Cuban fare, highlights were the omelette, pizza, donut and crepe stations. The sandy beach area was a little small, as there was a rocky shelf that separated the water from the beach chairs. The turquoise water was still amazing. In general, I [... read more] would say this resort is a good value, but relatively average.

Very kind hearted and caring lifeguards

I would like to commend and thank the 2 lifeguards who assisted me when I dislocated my knee cap while on the beach...unfortunately, I was not able to get their names... as for the hotel amenities, it is ok...except that there are a lot of crawling insects on the floor of the room where they have transferred me to after the accident...and sometimes the flush is not working...otherwise it is ok... I did like the fried fish, grilled chicken (only less salt next time) and fresh fruit juice.. [... read more]..also the complimentary coconut...

Great Resort

This resort is beautiful and well kept. Rooms are clean, staff is friendly, the shower was great with really good water pressure. The buffet can get a little redundant especially for breakfast. The a la cart restaurants are definitely better than the buffet but you only get to make 2 reservations for a week stay. The beach is beautiful you can literally walk for hours, once you get down to it since it is a 2 level beach. Went to the Spa for a facial which was really great and relaxing and o [... read more]nce you get a treatment you have access to the thermal baths and spa all week, which is a really nice quiet place to go. There are several pools for whichever mood you are in, party, relax, sun, shade. All around great trip I would go back!

Mediocre 3 star at best,

The Hotel was well maintained, fairly clean for the most part. The rooms were too cold and no chairs on the balcony, though my friends said they were removed from the recent hurricane before we arrived. The food is not a 5 star even in Cuba. Same things every night and they frequently ran out of basics like potatoes and chicken. This is not the resort if you enjoy entertainment. There was no entertainment during the day except late afternoon by the pool with the swim up bar which was a weird set [... read more] up as the pool was sectioned off so we spent time at the snack bar pool. The beach was closed the majority of the 11 days due to extreame undertoe but that is mother nature and not the resort. It wasn't the nicest beach in Cuba. Most of the staff were good. A few would do things like take your drink order and instead of asking you to repete just never came back with your drinks. Then that staff would ignore you and refused eye contact. This was in the lobby. The ala carts were decent but not 5 star quality. I have been to Cuba multiple times and the Melia in Varadero is so far the only one who truly meets 5 star status. I would at most give this resport a 3 star rating. They did not clean the pool by the snack bar at all, it was starting to fill with sand from the beach. This is the perfect resort if you like plain basic food, or fish and quiet with a lot of children. I was under the impression the one pool was an adults only pool but all the pools were overcrowded and full of families. This is not the resort to go to if you like to socialize with new people as everyone stuck to there groups. I didn't buy internet so I cannot comment on that service. Most of the staff barley understand english, but the guests were heavily from Montreal. The cleaning staff did great towel art and were very nice. The shows were mediocre at best and not 5 star level entertainment. The lighting at night was non existent and to see walking through the grounds you need a flashlight or to take a cart. The magician in the lobby was good. I didn't access the spa but my friends loved it. If you go do the catamaran it was the best part of the trip and it included snorkling and swimming with dolphins and a dolphin show. Good for families who stick to themselves and do not have picky eaters for children. Not good for singles or adults looking for some energy or kids who are picky. Line ups for food were intense and people just walked right in front of others and took everything. The donuts were very good at breakfast. Not a resort if you expect entertinment, good food choice or an adults section. Geared for families who want basics with little entertainment. 3 stars at most even for Cuba. Next time I am going to the Melia.

Good resort!

I was most impressed by hotel's swimming pools. They were very large & clean. At times when sea is stormy it's the only solution for those who like swimming. Rooms were nice too. Food could be better, however. I wanted to point out on some areas of improvement: Grand Piano in lobby was out of tune and needed repairs as well; pity that music lovers who wanted to play or enjoy live music could not do so. Wifi was not working very often not to mention that when it did work it's expensive. To [... read more]urs that are offered at the hotel cost extremely expensive even for non-Cuban standards. 3 or 4 such half day tours can cost the same amount as weekly stay in the hotel including flight from Toronto...

First time to Cuba

The rooms are good, only get a true Oceanview from the 3rd floor of buildings. The staff are very friendly and helpful. Went in the off season so not too many activities and pools/pool bars closed before supper started at 6PM. They definitely need to turn the lights on sooner, at least where the lights worked. Prepare to use cellphone flashlight in the evenings. Prepare to eat canned vegetables. The food is not great but I didn't find it as bad as others described. We tended to stay in the same  [... read more]server area for our meals throughout the week so we could leave one bigger tip to one person instead of tipping each meal to different people. No powered water activities at this hotel.

Great Resort

The hotel is nice, filled with great staff and food is pretty good considering it's Cuba. Our family enjoyed our stay and our rooms were pleasantly comfortable and always kept clean by maid service. The beach was nice but since we had young children the ability to get to the ocean water and tides at this time of year were not safe for them. This was a little disappointing since we prefer to spend our time at the beach. However, the resort offers many pools to choose from which was a nice alt [... read more]ernative. I would definitely recommend this hotel to couples and families who prefer the pool areas.

Nice resort for Cuba

The staff were excellent. The hotel needs a little update. The food had a lot of variety, but the same variety every night. I had asked to have my hairdryer checked because it did not work. Customer Service said they would look after it. No one did. The night before we left I asked for a wakeup call and that didn't happen either. Lucky for me I woke up earlier on my own. The pools were well kept. For a reasonable vacation I would recommend it.

Nice getaway

We stayed at the Playa Cayo Santa maria the week of October 9-16th. We have been to Cuba 2 times before to Veredero. Our first impression of the resort was good. The room was clean and spacious. The beach is beautiful when you get past the rocky part. I would recommend them try to remove some of the rock. I also would recommend they put patio furniture on the balconies. We were there on off season so I wasn't expecting a lot from the food to begin with. The food at this resort was not consistent [... read more]. The pizza never tasted the same...the snack bar was our favorite place to grab fast food. Also the beach grill at lunch time had fantastic burgers. I would recommend this hotel to other for myself I don't think we would return. We always like trying a new resort. I didn't mind the 1.5 hour transfer on the way to the hotel but when we left on the 16th I wish we didn't have the added time to our travel.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria

Very nice stay, room was clean and refreshed everyday. Pools are great, staff very friendly. Very restfull even with kids in the complex there was so many places to sit quietly. Good deal for the price.

Excellent Resort

Have been to the Cayo Santa Maria area 3 times now, different hotel each time. This is one we would all definitely make a return visit. The grounds were very well kept and lush. The food was a notch above the other hotels we stayed at before. Same items each day, but so many there was lots of variation. Pasta one day, stir fry the next, fish the next. english the next. Unless you eat some of everything each day, there was no need to say it was all the same every day. Didn't think [... read more] I would like the rocky elevated beach area, but it was very rustic and offered great views of the ocean. Lots of shade if you need it, and plenty of loungers. The pools were large, clean and again lots of shade. Party pool had very nice loungers, very comfortable. Had 2 a-la carte meals and both wer excellent. Down at the beachfront, staff were bustling around all the time getting drinks for everybody. Staff were very attentive and friendly, not looking to be tipped each and every time the gave service to you. All in all a great holiday and one I would recommend to others. Entertainment in the night time was generally not good, however, they had a band one night playing 70's music and they rocked the place. Everyone enjoyed and cheered for each and every song. my family of 8 people all had a great time!!

Great first time in Cuba

I was very skeptical about traveling to Cuba after many stories I've heard about the bland boring food, getting sick from food, bad service and dirty rooms. I'm happy to say this wasn't the case at Hotel Playa Cayo. I did a lot of research before booking a hotel, and most reviews for this hotel were great. Our room was very clean everyday, everything was functioning properly although the water pressure in the shower wasn't the greatest. No bugs or lizards were found in the room which is good [... read more] considering we had a room on the first floor. Many stray cats can be found wandering the resort but this didn't bother me, most were quite friendly. The food wasn't the greatest at the buffet but there are a few stations that are good such as the breakfast omelettes, fried rice, pasta and pizza. The 24hr snack bar was awesome, I recommend trying the shrimp skewers and calamari, but if you like french fries prepare to be disappointed (and their ketchup is NOT actual ketchup...) We were given 2 a la cartes and they were just average. The beach was pretty nice, but there are some rocky areas..nothing crazy though. The entertainment during the day there was good, they try to get everybody up and moving. Most of my time was spent by the pools, there are 4 to choose from, 2 more secluded and a lot of families at these pools. The other 2 main ones were in the center of the resort, I rotated between the 2. The nightly entertainment wasn't good at all, very boring and not funny at all although they tried.... There was one night that everyone went to the cigar bar after the show and it was a big party with djs and music, but most nights it was boring as those are your only two options on the resort. And last but not least the service was really good, especially if you tip (they'll definitely remember you) Overall id say my experience was pretty good, id go a second time and recommend this resort to family and friends

Paradise on earth

The resort was beautiful. The rooms spacious and clean. The food was great not that much of a variety though (same thing often or every other day) The only down side I would say was when we first arrived the screen door was open and there was a bunch of insects at night but they came an sprayed and we were good for the rest of the stay. Also, I think they were suppose to refill water pop and beer but we only got the water on a daily basis ( not a biggie as we didn't really drink much beside the [... read more] water)

9 weeks at the same hotel

This will be the 9th week at the hotel in the past four years. For us to return to a resort this many times, it is very special and make you feel like family from the first time you check into the resort. Mareyi ( customer service manager) goes out of her way to try to please you and make you feel at ease. The rooms are great and the a/c works great. Food is great and you will find something to eat there. But, the beach is truly stunning and you will not find another beach that the [... read more] sand feels like flour and the water clear and blue. Drinks were great and the cappuccino were to die for. Plenty of entertainment and things to do or not do while you are there. A special thank you to our agent Debbie Maguire who truly cares and listens to your needs,

We survived Hurricaine Matthew!

4.5 stars in Cuba is not the same as in North America. Overall impression; not spectacular but comfortable and safe for 2 ladies traveling together. A/C in the room was fabulous. Food was ok in the buffet, nice change of diet at the a-la-carte restaurants. Glad we brought our own peanut butter Pringles and granola bars for some familiar snack food. The pool closest to the beach was in rough shape, tiles missing and grating along the edge was broken in many places. A hard thing to fix though with [... read more]out inconveniencing incoming guests. Beautiful beach and lovely staff. They dealt with the hurricane as best as was possible.

Second trip to this hotel

We just returned from our trip. It was our second time staying there. We found out that the hotel had many returning guests. The beach is beautiful but this time there were many jelly fish and many people got stung. Food was below average for Cuba in my opinion and although I have visited Cuba more that 20 times, this was the first time my family and I got really sick from the food. The staff are great. Coffee at lobby bar is amazing. There are 5 pools for those pool people. Entertainment team i [... read more]s great with kids. I wish that the mini-disco started earlier. My kids go to bed at 8 but the mini disco starts at 9. Overall I would return again because we had a great trip and know what to expect form this resort.

Nice resort

Stayed from September 11 - 21, 2016 Bungallow 1 (Sunwing), rooms 137 (king bed) and 139 (2 twin beds) I believe Transat has better bungallows in this resort maybe not even as dated as our was. Beach is beautiful, white sand, turquoise and warm water. That's the reason you go to Cuba! :) We had a great hot and sunny weather in all 10 days, storm and rain only 2 evenings and 1 late night. Dry season starts from October till April and rain season from May till September. Mosquitoes - ye [... read more]s, but it wasn't too bad. Mostly only in the evenings and the staff was doing the "fogging" regularly both in the am and pm hours. If you see and smell the stinky smoke around the grounds that's what it is. There are other bugs too (like flying ants), make sure you keep your balcony doors shut at all times esp. if you have the light on in the room. Jellyfish - Haven't seen any in 8 days I was there and on the 9th I was stung twice. Sand, vinegar and ice cubes work quite well. Didn't feel or had anything on my skin the next day. You will also find first aid/red cross staff on the beach. Resort has nice and well kept grounds, but buildings and rooms, bathrooms are dated. If you are a pool person - there at least 3 nice big pools + kids pools. I didn't go in any as I prefer my salt water :) Food is nothing special but you will survive and you will try to make the best out of it. ;) A la carte restaurants are nothing great either but you will try it because you will get tired of the buffet food. I didn't like the asian Panda Rajo, the other 2 were ok. There is also a snack bar - only eat here if you must. Ice cream parlor - good ice cream! I was pleasantly surprised :) The entire resort staff are super nice and will do their best to please you and help you with your needs. Internet is 2 CUC per hour, works only in the lobby and the best in the am hours. I wouldn't recommend the massages in the resort spa - it is a waste of money - Paid 80CUC for 2people for 50min. I was curious because the resort in Mexico had an amazing knowledgeable masseuse staff so I wanted to compare. Here the staff was very nice and the spa is nice also, they just don't know how to massage properly. Other activities - I know they offer quite a few. I didn't do any. Overall, I had a very nice relaxing vacation but still would prefer nicer/newer looking resort buildings and more updated and renovated hotel rooms and bathrooms. Food - I know I cannot really expect better. ;)