Valentin Perla Blanca: First and Last time - Absolutely Horrible!

The Hotel is wonderful, built with great thought and the design is awesome. There is no sandy beach to walk on but the water is beautiful! It takes a lot of work to ruin such a nice resort, thanks to the wonderful management! Went for 3 nights and 3 days, reached there at 830 pm to find out that we didnt get a king size bed as we had confirmed and booked. 2 single beds put together sure solves the problem but its not the same. Disappointing! SInce we we were starving we decided to go chec [... read more]k out the dinner buffet which was another huge disappointment. there was barely any food left and nothing was being refilled. The buffet lacks decent food during breakfast, lunch and dinner. Long lineups for meats and fish and meat was not cooked well at all. We have travelled alot in Cuba and in the Carribean, stayed in all kinds of resorts with various star ratings (3.5 star and up) and i have to say this was the worst resort for food! The Italian A la Carte restaurant, Dolce la Vita was absolutely horrible, there was no such thing as Italian food. It was a disgrace to call this place Dolce la Vita. The only place that had decent food was Oh LA LA, the French restaurant. Thank god we had a dinner reservation there. The hotel was half closed so all facilities were not open either. There was a huge influx of vacationers from Spain so most of the servers in the buffet restaurant were too busy serving and ensuring their Spanish comrades were well looked after while ignoring the rest of the crowd. I feel bad for writing such a horrible review but this place warrants it and more than that deserves it. I ended up getting a very bad case of food poisoning the next day. I have never had food poisoning in my dozen vacations down south. I suffered for the rest of the trip. When we were checking out, we heard from fellow vacationers that half the people they talked to suffered the same fate. The beach sports rental guys are awesome, very helpful. Were really looking forward to having a good time here, based on hotel rating we were positive. Sad to say it was a disaster. We were there to celebrate my girlfriend's birthday, huge regret! Fellow down south all inclusive vacationers, please find another place to stay, for your sake!

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Great resort

This was our first trip to Cuba and definitely not our last. From check in to check out the staff were all very nice. We had a few staff who could not speak english at all, and would look at us and smile or point to another staff member who spoke english. My first night there, the shower head fell missing my head(it was a very big heavy shower head). Luckily, there was also a hand held shower head, because they did not come to fix it until the day before I left. We loved the swim up bar.  [... read more]It was great having the snack bar, that you could get something to eat any time of the night. I must say the food was not as bad as some of the reviews. Like every place in the world,you are going to encounter something(food) that you don't like, but you will never go hungry, you will definitely find something you like. You don't have to make reservations for any of the A La carte restaurants(which is great),but be prepared to stand in a line up, unless you go between 6 and 7. The grounds are clean,but sometimes the public washrooms had no toilet paper. We were totally entertained at the club,but it was about a five minute walk off the grounds, at the market place. You can get a drive there on the cart, but be prepared that sometimes the driver does not always comeback to pick you up. Sometimes there is also a cover charge at the club. Make sure you take the double decker bus to the other marketplace. The one thing the hotel needs to improve on is the towels in the room. They were all discoloured. Thank you to Yunie who did a great job on my room everyday and working hard getting me towels that were usable. The beach was great, but somedays you have to go early to get a spot in the shade.(there is a bar on the beach) The nighty entertainment was fantastic, especially the "Michael Jackson" tribute.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Good vacation

I have been to Cuba 6 times now and have to say that this hotel was one of the nicest. The room was modern and the beds and pillows comfortable. The beach as always was breathtaking. I will say that this hotels beach was the longest I've seen. If looking at the water, to the right was the busy section with music and entertainment. To the left, it was quiet. Also, the farther to the left you went the more coral there was. I like a sandy bottom and the small patches of coral did not bother me  [... read more]at all. I go for the beach at it was not a disappointment. The lobby had a quiet upstairs and a lower area where there was nightly live music before the show. The lobby patio was beautiful. The food was just fine! You will not starve. The service was hit and miss. Mike's coffee was fabulous for my speciality coffees and Yuel was very kind. I would like to note that although some of the staff seemed inattentive, I felt that some of the guest were down right rude and bossy. Also, if people want to go to a beautiful resort than do your best to keep it clean. So sad to see empty cups all over. You may be on vacation but it doesn't mean you have to be lazy! Overall, I would gladly go back to this resort.

Melia Buenavista: Fantastic Resort

This is our second time staying at the Melia Buenavista. This is an amazing all inclusive adults only resort. The staff are friendly and accommodating and the food has improved a lot. The atmosphere is serene, relaxing, and calm beyond repair.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Nice hotel grounds

Nice grounds, spacious rooms, clean, beach is ok, other hotels in Santa maria have better beaches. Food was VERY disappointing, even for Cuban standards, buffet the same every day, and food just COLD at all times. Long line ups for grilled food.

Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria: Great Resiort

Too long of a ride from the airport; without a drink being offered on a long bus ride. The food is repetitive over and over and no real salads; however quite tasty. Pasta/Omlette/Pizza cooking bars were very good. A bit understaffed in the buffet as there were long waits for coffee/water and I had to get it myself. The restaurants (French is the best). I wanted plantains at the seafood restaurant and was refused as they could not give it. My dinner sucked and all my family got sick and man [... read more]y other persons on the plane. Staff is friendly and overworked. Management needs to beef up on the food variety and focus on quality and not quantity. The hotel had no beach towels and I waited 3 days to get two and I never changed same. I was disappointed in the rooms, we only got 2 towels for many days and had to keep asking for three and my son was with us. There were no towels until evening in the rooms. It is a new resort and needs lots of work. No fans in the Entertainment area and it was so hot, people were leaving the shows. The beach snack bar is the best, the food is good and staff is amazing; however the pizza guy was sweating and no fans or comfort for him while he cooks. If you do not tip in the buffet, no shrimp for you. I spent 17 pesos a day tipping. The lady in the buffet with the shrimp was hiding the shrimp pan under and only gave shrimp to higher tipping persons. The lobby bar and beach bar were really good and the guys were great in meeting customer needs.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Bad food, nice premises, fair beach

Traveled at the beginning of August Weather was amazing The resort was very nice and well maintained; rooms were modern and clean Cleaning of the rooms sucked; we slept on the same sheets for a week; towels were dirty; on a few occasions they missed to provide shampoo and soap; the shower was never properly cleaned Room service sucked; if you forget to tip them you only get one beer in your fridge instead of two and only one pop although there are two of you in the room The buffet was [... read more] poor; huge line-ups to get food (not of the best taste and quality); the variety wasn't there either. Fruits were amazing though. They were in mango season and those were to die for. So was the papaya. The beach was far; quite a walk from anywhere in the resort; most of it was very narrow, with a lot of stones and little to no shade. Only a portion of the beach where all the activities were happening was nice, plenty of palapas but you had to be early in order to get one. Getting to the resort was a long 2 hour bus trip. Had one gone to Cayo Coco instead he could've been changed and on the beach in less than an hour. Personnel wasn't very nice, and tips weren't appreciated, they were a given. One thing was great - the reef, you could snorkel there and the amount of fish was unbelievable. Gorgeous. Overall, we had a good vacation but would not come back and definitely would not recommend this resort to our friends.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Not so great

The lobby was pretty and plenty of seating. Actually, the entire resort had plenty of seating and very clean. The grounds were not very tropical, lack of flowers. The walk to the beach felt like I was in the desert rather then on a tropical island. The beach was beautiful and plenty of shade. There was free water sports but the catamaran rides were on first come first serve bases which meant you were just hanging around in the full sun waiting for your turn. Other resorts I have been to yo [... read more]u sign up for a time. The pathway to our building was very narrow so you had to walk single file could not walk beside someone. The buffet was terrible and I am not referring to the quality of the food but the quantity. We were told on our bus ride in that mangos were in season but yet it was almost impossible to get mango at the buffet. The mango tray was always empty so when it did come out people would take huge amounts that left nothing for the others. I felt like platters were always empty but plenty of rice. The service was terrible you had to track someone down to get you a drink while at the buffet dining (and I was tipping). When you did order a drink it would arrive when you pretty much had finished your meal. As far as the rooms they were very nice and spacious, the air conditioning was great no issues there, the showers were large and great water pressure again no issues there. My only complaint about the rooms is cleaning service was not so great. The bed was made, towels changed but beside that nothing else. The two glasses in the bathroom that you use to rinse your mouth when you brush your teeth were not changed once (again I left a trip every day). Sorry one more complaint, at the a la carte's you are offered dessert but yet you can't get a cup of coffee with it?

Resonance Blu Santa Maria: Amazing beach

Just stayed at the starfish resort. It was beautiful. The grounds the room the staff all excellent. The beach is amazing. Nicest beach I have ever been to. The food not so good but hey its cuba n we didn't starve. Cuba ala care was decent. I would recommend this hotel n I would go back

Resonance Blu Santa Maria: very nice

Nice hotel great pool beach unbelievable very clean slow service food not the best I have had in Cuba not enough poolside entertainment but very friendly staff rooms were kept cleaning and tidy gift shop needed longer hours

Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria: Beautiful Resort!

The resort was new and beautiful. The ground keepers kept the exterior nicely and the interiors were quite clean. The food was way better than we expected, better than the time we went to Veradero. It's nothing compared to the quality of food we're used to but for Cuban resort standard, it was good. Pool was nice but we spent most our time at the beach. The only down side of the beach is that there are lots of seaweed and dead corals so I'd recommend bringing sea shoes. The Cubans that worked at [... read more] the beach were also super nice.

Valentin Perla Blanca: resort was excellent

resort was excellent , food was good you can always find something . staff was great and very friendly . except for front desk very abrupt and some times not courteous . did not like waiting in line for 1 to 2 hrs. to exchange money.

Melia Las Dunas: Disappointing

Very Disappointing, room's weren't clean. 2 days with no bath towels or hot water, and 3 days with no beach towels. I know its Cuba but for a Melia the food was not good. The beach was the best part of this trip, but not good enough to go back. Would not recommend this hotel.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Superbe séjour!

Ma 2e visite, très beau ressort! Superbe plage, propre, tranquille, excellent service, très bien mangé, très bonne animation ! Wow Michel au restaurant Italien! Tellement rie! Wow! Merci ! Personnellement j'adore!

Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria: Amazing Resort, service but not greatest beach !

hi, overall the resort is beautiful, excellent service, great staff, food was great as well. entertainment was so so, except one night the aqua show, the rest was a bit boring. most disappointing was the beach, beach wasn't clean (too much algae in water, which made it unpleasant to go in) but in beach service and staff were very nice and pleasant. thanks

Melia Las Dunas: Amazing beach!

I expected more from a Melia chain company. Simply got a dated hotel with little cleanliness present, whether it was in the lobby, restaurants or pool. They need to step it up. The pool was dirty and murky. After the 3rd day I refused to go in the pool. The food was barely there or tasteful. WiFi connection sucked royally and 1hr card was gone in minutes cause every time the system was trying to connect it would spend your minutes regardless. The beach was the saving grace. I wouldn't recommend [... read more] this resort to anyone that is expecting more for the name.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Good resort!

Nice resort, great open lobby for lounging, nice staff, the food got better near the end of the week. Too bad it's the last resort from the airport which takes 2hrs to get to. Also it's such a big resort that the bungalows are very spread apart from the lobby so the golf carts definitely came in handy for rides to and from the room in the heat!!! The room was very basic. Wish the same finishes and stone used in the atrium would be used in the rooms.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Ok

Room was not what we thought, CHECK IN TO A DIRTY ROOM had to have room cleaned again. water stains ,water leaking through wall, shower water running into bathroom floor, drains clogged, hotel not kept up at all. A lot of unfinished areas throughout resort! Needs some TLC Second day lost power early in morning for 3 hrs and then noon time lost power again around 11am Oh yeah and bottle if rum that was promissed, did not receive it until last day , and to top it off it was a 300ML. Bottle Ve [... read more]ry disappointed! House keepers done their best Beach was amazing though

Valentin Perla Blanca: awesome

I had a great time it was a beautiful place the people there are so friendly and nice the staff at the hotel I also got sick there and they took very good care of me I will definitely come back and visit there again it was awesome

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Good experience!

Beautiful beach and pools, great staff and service, good food especially at the restaurants, good entertainment. My family had a pleasant experience. I would recommend this place to others. Would try privilege next time.