Amazing beach, water, view!!

Just got back from a quick 4 day vaca. As I said the beach was the best I have ever seen, worth the 90 minute drive from airport. The hotel and grounds are very dated!!! Room was clean, but again dated. The people were all very friendly!! I would not go back due to the poor quality of food, but I was aware of this. I can scratch Cuba off my bucket list!!

Great week

Loved it the resort is huge 3 pool areas good drinks always entertainment going on day and night beautiful beach food well it's cuba buffet not so great but can't complain overall. Food in the market and ala carte better but a great week for sure sun and fun

Amazing resort

From start to end, this amazing resort filled our needs for a wonderful vacation! The food was pretty good! The entertainment was good! The grounds were kept clean and beautiful! The beach was amazing! All staff we came in contact with, bus staff, chamber maid, information desk, checkin/checkout staff, food/restaurant staff, lobby/bar staff and sunwing staff, were all nice and willing to serve/help with a smile. We would definitely recommend this resort! The price was exceptionally well priced.  [... read more]We will be going back to this resort in the future! :)

More of a three star

The resort was a very large and not enough cards driving around to drive people. The food was very good but it was the same food all week long not enough variety. The rooms were nice and very clean. The public bathrooms were horrific they were always filthy half of them didn't have toilet seats and they always stunk. I was very shocked to see that there was a wheelchair bathroom that had no toilet seat on itthey should be ashamed of themselves for that. Okay for a very small children not good fo [... read more]r teenagers not good for elderly people it was better more for adults that want to go there and just drink. The entertainment was amazing. Overall we probably won't go backI don't like all the walking. And I especially don't like standing in a line out for an hour to exchange my money or to book a restaurant. The lineups were very long and the staff were very very slow.

E

No lunch and dinner tables available a couple days before New year . Frustrated family sit together. Water will sent due to the tip. Need remind them to bring towrls just for the tip purpose. Can not change beach towel everyday.

Marvelouos Memories

Where to start..... we returned home on December 24th and it was the most relaxing amazing trip we have had as a family. My husband, son (14 yrs) ,daughter (12 yrs) and I LOVED the beach the most. Everyday we would put our towels on chairs (we were Diamond Club members) and go for breakfast, otherwise it was difficult to get them in the shade. There was always someone there who would literally run if he saw you looking for lounge chairs to assist you. Some days they didn't come around as much t [... read more]o take your drink order, but it was nice when they did. Remember to bring a bubba or some sort of thermal cup not only because the ice was sometimes already melted by the time your drink arrived, but the cups were not much bigger than a bathroom dixie cup. Oh where to start on the beach..... it was like icing sugar or baby powder and oh so white and it was like that right into the turquoise blue water. No rocks, coral, weeds or even many fish. You did have to watch out (only some days) for the jelly fish. By the afternoon they were mostly gone. Included were all the beach boats: Hobie Cat catamaran (they drove we tipped $5), kayak, huge ocean paddle boats, wind surfer and small sailboat (laser) Not sure why some peoples reviews of the food was not higher but we found it was great. There was always something you could find you liked and we especially liked the made to order grill. We had lobster 3 times, once on the buffet, once at the Diamond Club dinner and the third time at the International a la carte restaurant which we would highly recommend. The 3rd a la carte we went to was the Seafood restaurant and it was the best. It is in the market (staff are not part of the Memories resort and do not speak much English) which happened to be very close to our hotel room but the seafood was very fresh and we liked the dining atmosphere. Diamond Club upgrade is well worth the small additional price in our opinion. The staff go out of their way to give you the best service. For instance they asked if I wanted a cappuccino in the main dining hall they might put chocolate sprinkles on top or once I got a red heart. We always tipped the staff and brought juicy fruit gum and lifesavers to give them daily. When we arrived we didn't have a toilet seat on our toilet, can you imagine. We went right to the Diamond Club to advise them on the Wednesday we arrived and by Thursday evening we still did not have a seat. First thing Friday morning we spoke with Alex and he had it fixed in a matter of hours. The staff are all so friendly and I don't know how they do it because most of them work every other day because they travel 2-4 hours just to get to work. They work 16 hour days. Oh yes and don't forget to tip the maid as you will get animal towels if you do. If you leave a tip for the bar fridge staff you will also get extra beer, water and pop. The only excursion we went on was to swim with the dolphins. Something we have always wanted to do with our kids and were just waiting for them to be old enough to remember it. Although our daughter was nervous at first by the end of it she now has a new favourite animal. They are only around 10 minutes away from the hotel and the show beforehand was great! The cost is $79 for adults and $48 (kids 12 and under) for 30 minute swim. The four of us went with 2 others and we had one dolphin. They let us swim for 45 minutes. We were able to have 2 different rides each(foot on dolphin nose, dorsal fin or dolphin on it's back with you riding on top - your choice), dance, touch, put your head in their open mouth and many other things. There is a professional photographer and the cost is $18 per person (or family $45 and we got over 200 amazing photos) or $10 and they will print off a photo for you. This was an experience of a lifetime.

Amazing Resort!

Absolutely gorgeous! Wonderful beach, friendly people, clean room. Plenty of space for kids. Food is not a top quality, but is more than enough. After all, you don't go there to gain weight! Overall, highly recommended!

Excellent resort

Over the last 14 years my wife and I have travelled all over Cuba. We have embraced the beautiful people and culture on and off the resorts. We found Cayo Santa Maria a few years ago and fell in love with the location and stunning beaches. This time we brought our Grandaughters along 14 and 16 for the experience they will never forget. Having always booked with Tripcentral we deceided to stay at the Azul Memories Paraiso with the girls in the next room. It was a great choice, great entertainment [... read more], good food selection, awesome staff, well kept clean rooms and of course excellent beach. There is a few staff who made our trip exceptionally personable a huge thank you too Greta in the buffet, Yni and Eldys at the Italian a la carte. Also the amazing crew of the Fenix catamaran excursion highly recommend! We will return and I'm sure from what the girls experienced they will too.

Fantastic Vacation

We originally booked the Memories Resort Diamond Club Azul but because of my limited walking ability they moved us to the Paraiso section. So very glad they did. Diamond Club worth the $$. We attended 2 dinners with Diamond Club (Lobster) and one of the dinners was poolside with a synchronized swimming show. Rooms fantastic, Staff Amazing! Resort very large but it's not noticeable if you stay in your own section. Beach beautiful with an abundance of chairs and someone always willing to help you  [... read more]find one and dust the sand off for you. Room very comfortable and was always nice to have a little decoration left on our bed each day. Pool was beautiful, walkin with no stairs. People did save chairs every morning but we did not have any issues. They come around with cushions for your lounge chair every morning. Lobby always full of people and very entertaining. Saw several shows in the evening and they are good. Loved the little train that took you around the resort if you didn't wish to walk. The village which is between Memories Paraiso and The Royalton was a nice easy walk with a few restaurants, bowling alley and merchant wares. We did go to the Japan Tepanaki (extra cost of $22 each) and were very disappointed. We were the only ones in the restaurant and the show was not very impressive. Italian and Mexican restaurants were very scrumptious! The buffet - always something available. My favorite -bacon, fresh eggs, hashbrowns or a BLT for breakfast. I cannot say enough about our wait staff in the Diamond Club section - Michael, Jammy and Eric. They made our meal times something special. They always had a smile on their face and willing to assist everyone (even the ones who complained).

Good value nice place to relax

Second time to this area first time to this resort. It is a very safe, clean and pleasant place to stay. This area is for tourists only and a long way from the real Cuban people. You can take an excursion to some local towns where the people are nice. The resort has everything you need and there was no surprises. Food is good and lots of it. Safe place for families.

Little Things Make a Big Difference

The beach, rooms & staff were fantastic. Diamond Club was worth the extra cost. Food was average and food management was the big problem. Only place for breakfast was main buffet. Way too crowded and long line ups for basic things. Italian was the only decent el la carte. Resort is too big, 1300 rooms.

Relaxing Holiday

My wife and I were 1-8 Dec 2014, Overal the quality went down since the last time we were there (March 2014), especially the food. Hopefully the new manager can change that. Need more seating capacity at the lobby lounge.

Beautiful resort

I really like this hotel the people were very nice , kind and very helpfull i will recomended to my family and friends everything was perfect and clean the service was amazing so many shows and activities ....

Decent Vacation!

It was really not bad at all for Cuba! The beach was perfect, white powdery sand, crystal blue waters.. The food was "Cuba" but tons of options. We did get really annoyed that they cover all of the vegetables in bacon.. They could have some great vegetarian but for some reason, they love to sprinkle pig on everything! We requested they prepare some vegetarian dishes & they were happy to do so! The biggest problem (for us) at this resort (like a few others we visited in Cuba) is that they do not  [... read more]answer their phones… My daughter tried calling us from Canada 15+ times (it was important) and no one picked up the phone. ever. Overall, it was a lovely experience and we will return!

Awesome Resort

This is our second time here this year, we came back because the resort is so clean and well kept, and the staff is amazing. The food is good, and the beaches are the most beautiful that I have ever seen in Cuba. We look forward to returning again next year.

Beautiful resort

Everything was o.k.exept getting a service of a shuttle.there was a man over 80 years old in our party, knee problems and we could not stop a shuttle whining by us with only two young people on boArd.the last day they have to walk to the lobby with their suitcases ,shuttle that we requested never came.

Too many little problems

Hello, I would like to post some complaints about our recent trip to Memories Hotel, Cayo Santa Maria, Cuba Nov 26th thru Dec 3rd. So many little issues that it drives you crazy! Room 6031, Shower Towels were filthy! We talked to the Sunwing rep and they sent up a nice bottle of rum. Problem being the next day we received dirty towels again! Brought them to the front desk and were assured we would get new towels that night. They never showed up ! Toasters in dining room didn't work. We asked to  [... read more]get them repaired but nothing happenedFood on the buffet was cold! Talked about it and nothing changedPasta station was very slow and after waiting a long time food tasted burnt!Bacon is raw, people were having the egg person fry it for them causing more delaysDirty plates and garbage around the pool area were there for 4 daysNo salt and pepper in the salt and pepper shakersCoffee served was cold,Capaccino Machine broken often,Went to get an omlette made and all the bowls were empty.No spoons available on tables. Had to ask and then rec'd a huge ladel or a mini spoonDiamond upgrade was not worth the moneyBeautiful Lobster meal ruined as food was ice cold.This hotel is not a 4 plus star ratingNon Kaluah being served out of Kaluha Bottles. I asked for Kaluah and was served something else? Diamond Club??Food on Buffet had been reheated so many times it was dried out and tough To sum up, we were at this same resort last year and it was a lot better than this. We will not be returning. As for the Sunwing flight, we had our granddaughter (9) with us and she wanted to watch the movie. She was in seat 17 F and could not see the screen. When we brought this up with the flight attendant she said too bad luck of the draw I guess!! Is this how Sunwing treats its customers. If so, we won't be back again.

Good Time

This was our 8th visit to Cuba, first to this hotel. Grounds were beautiful. Public areas were clean. Food in Cuba is getting better & better, more variety. Al a carte restaurants are improving as well. Italian was the best of all we tried. Public bathrooms needed more toilet paper, numerous toilets not always working. Some building look tired & more general maintenance needed. Power went off a few times but that is Cuba. One block of rooms was under renovation so that was a good sign. Buffet  [... read more]restaurants - food from grills good but found service slow, they could be doing more than 1 dish at a time. Main buffet - we found a drain hole (5 inches) in the floor that was open (no cover) in a high traffic area. This could have caused serious injury to an ankle or a child's foot. We pointed this out to a manager at the restaurant but by the end of our stay nothing had been done. The manager showed lack of concern for the risk to the guests or his staff. Enjoyed entertainment in Lobby Bar during the evenings. This would run before the theatre entertainment. It would be nice if the lobby bar entertainment would have lasted longer as not everyone wants to go to the theatre. Location - beaches are beautiful but long way from the airport. Not much to do in the area.

Great Beach

Great beach! Many hotel pools to choose from, good service at the pool and swim up bar. Hotel grounds were a post card, immaculate and flowers everywhere. Friendly staff. Hotel rooms are large but starting to show their age. Food was terrible but that its Cuba. This is one of those mega hotels so be prepared to walk - shuttles are not always around when you want them. Tip: when changing Pesos back to Canadian money, don't use the money exchange wickets at the airport, go to the snack shop or dut [... read more]y free at the airport and they change it back one for one - no fee involved.

Beautiful Resort

We had a lovely vacation. The resort grounds are beautiful, pools are clean and the staff was wonderful. Food was not great but that was as expected. We stayed in building 55 on the second floor with an ocean view which was great. We did not upgrade to Diamond club and did not feel as though it is necessary, the only real difference between DC and standard is really the butler service on the beach. We usually went to the beach between 9 and. 10am and always found seats. I believe you also get a  [... read more]bottle of rum in your room upon arrival and an extra a la carte but we heard they were not great and you can buy rum at the store for $5. We did the full day catamaran excursion and went deep see fishing. We thoroughly enjoyed both and would say that these are very good value for the money. I would definitely recommend this resort although would suggest you take some snacks to supplement meals especially for more picky travellers.