Absolutey amazing, would go back in a heart beat!

This was my first vacation with my boyfriend and it was one ill never forget. The room was beautiful, we booked a standard room and ended up with a pool view which was beautiful. The pool was gorgeous and always very clean. The beach was right on the resort and was unbelievable!!! The staff were always friendly and service was decent. The food was okay, obvsiously not Canadian food which no one should expect but all in all it was good! I honestly have no complaints about this resort. It was just [... read more] amazing. If people write bad reviews about this place, they are being WAY to picky and ridiculous. Haha

Family vacation

We went to Varadero with two our children. They have amazing sand beach which is great for children. Quality of food was average. Room service was excellent! Kids club needs lots of improvement. Rooms are big but not renovated. We were at the ocean view room and it was nice and quiet.

Had an amazing time!

Overall had a fantastic time; The accommodations/rooms/hotel were basic nothing above average for Cuba; the grounds were beautiful and well maintained; and the beach was beautiful, almost too good to be true as it seems there wasn't a rock in site amongst all that white sand.

Fantastic Beach!!

This was our third trip to Cuba - 2nd to Varadero. Definitely prefer the beach over Holguin. Although most resorts in Cuba have shortages of supplies and if you go with the flow and remember that, you will have an amazing time. There was only one pool but it was large and had a bridge separating it so it sometimes felt like 2. All pools were well maintained and the resort staff are all trying to make your vacation special. When I factor in how little we paid for flight, hotel, food and drinks -  [... read more]you can't find better value for your money. But based on previous trips, there were a few issues that I was very surprised by. 1. The cleaning of our room was a REAL disappointment. Everything worked fine, the shower had lots of water with good pressure, but the room and bathroom were not cleaned very well. Although the usual towel creations were made, the cleaning could have been improved. The sink and toilet did not appear to be cleaned daily - some marks were on the sink for 3 days. The same garbage was in the the balcony ledge from our arrival to our departure. Now this may have just been our cleaner, as we went with friends and their room was better cleaned.We had a leaky shower and had to use a towel on the floor. I tipped daily and increased tip one day and requesting clean shower towels - we did not get them!! The towels were unchanged for 3 days and sometimes only small towels used for the scuplure were available. My belief has always been that the room does not have to be great, but it MUST be clean and this did not fit the category, that is why I am giving the room only a 2 star. The rest of the resort was very clean and well maintained. 2. The beach bar was quite a distance from the main beach and did not include beer!! There was a restaurant with a bar serving beer close to the beach bar, but it was only open from 11-3 and sometimes closed early - so you had to go to the pool bar if you wanted beer after 3pm. But there was bar service 24 hours. 3. The main restaurant was totally enclosed and although they kept the doors open, it was always too hot to eat there. There were limited tables outside, but were advised many times to return our plates and cutlery. It would have been nice to get table service outside as you had to go in scrounging for cutlery. The main entry area with the main bar was well ventilated with doors open. 4. Food is always hit and miss and this was no exception. The breakfast buffet had a nice selection with 2 omelette bars, smoothie bar, good variety of fruits and vegetables, pasta and breads. Lots of choices at dinner - grilled fish, shrimp several times and other cooked to order meats. I realized why sometimes the food tasted bland on the day they served cauliflower and brussel sprouts. I tried both and they tasted as if sitting for hours in water - they were firm - but completely flavourless. The hamburgers and ham and cheese sandwiches made on panini grill were very good, as was the lunch available near the beach. Overall, you can always find something you like. These are all minor details as the beach, pool, weather and staff make for a memorable vacation. We booked a deep sea fishing trip and had the experience of a lifetime. Nicholas and Jorge were exceptional - with additional fees, Jorge dived for lobster and fish and they cooked it on the boat for us!! The fun of catching 2 barracudas added to the fun!! Would not return to this resort - but then I usually prefer to go to other areas. I would recommend this resort - but do advise that it is not a 4 star.

Awsome resort

The hotel was very clean..Food excellent for Cuba..remembering that Cuban food is not spicy but tasty..Staff very friendly and helpful..Lots to do for example sailing, kyaking...beautful beach..clean water..GREAT vacation

Great Resort

Clean hotel, well kept grounds, good variety of food, fresh fruits. Good entertainment, around the pool, Good entertainment in the main lobby. Good shows every night, Three restaurants. Clear beach. Overall Good hotel.

Great time

I went with my sister, our room was well maintained and clean. There is a great animation team at the pool and by the beach..it is hard to find a chair so you will have to be there early ... the buffet had lot of options from fries to sushi however there was no A/C. Overall it is not a five stars so you get what you paid for and the staff are very nice and friendly i wanted a good deal because i knew i was going to book lot of excursions...Playa d'Oro is situated not far from Plaza de America al [... read more]so it is close to club Cueva del pirate (The cave) which only opens on mondays but its a club you SHOULD go to. The beach is incredible dont miss the sunset !

Awesome Resort!!

The rooms were spotless clean...the staff like family. The food was very enjoyable and the nightly entertainment was excellent. We had an oceanview room and it was an amazing view every morning to wake up to.

Mediocre Resort, Amazing Beach

From my last experience I would not rate this hotel as a 5 *. It was not terrible by any means, just not what I expected. I loved the size of the resort & how close to the beach we were. The beachfront was not overly crowded & the water was really warm. Probably the most beautiful beach I've been to-you could walk forever! Where the resort fell short for me was in the service department which is not typical of Cuba. The light in our bathroom burned out on day one, and I notified staff right away [... read more]. They wrote it down but never came to fix it, leaving us literally in the dark. We only received fresh towels on our first day. I had wiped the sand from my feet with our used towels & they were laying on the floor as I was expecting to get new ones- each day the cleaning staff would hang up the used dirty towels to dry. They were disgusting by the end of the week. There were some amazing staff who were beyond helpful & friendly, but expect to tip if you want anyone to offer any service. The grounds were always kept clean. We did not encounter any bugs or moldy smells. The food was ok. Plenty of variety- you would never go hungry. The drinks & bartenders were really great. For what we paid I was fairly happy with the resort but did notice a difference from other 4 stars.

Nice resort but not a very friendly atmosphere

Rooms were sub standard and room was not completely ready for our arrival. 2 days, the room was not cleaned. Pool was nice but deck chairs were very uncomfortable. Dining room staff were not very friendly.

We loved it!

We were pleased with the hotel. The service was great, front desk was helpful and accomodating especially Llanette. I would rate this as 4 *for building as our first room the lock on main floor was broken but within a short time we were given a key to check out another room and were moved in. Llanette was great and wanted to make sure we were happy with it. The bathroom was quiet new and view from 4th floor was nice. We don't require a high class hotel and don't need them in Canada so wouldn't e [... read more]xpect elsewhere but it was clean and lots of activities. There is lots of Cuban music everyday at lunch by the beach bar and the main dining room sometime at night. Lots of fun in the lobby with entertainment and live music, then games till 10 pm. Every night after that is "SHOW TIME" for less than an hour. The location is great as you can ride the double decker bus to town (10 mins) and back all day for just $5.00 each. The markets are a great place to shop. Save your $$ by staying away from Plaza America, very expensive! The beach is gorgeous, crystal clear water, temp was amazing 33degrees most of the week. If you are looking for a place to complain about move on. Your not needed here, after all no place on earth is perfect. We had the best time ever and can't wait to return!

Some flaws

Although I thoroughly enjoyed staying at this resort, there were a few things that would have made my stay way more enjoyable! When reading the ad about the hotel, it states that internet is available at this hotel. A couple days after arriving we tried to use the internet and asked the front desk where we could do so. We were told that the internet was not working that day and to try again later. After looking around the resort, we found the room that was supposed to have the internet in, only  [... read more]to find that they did not have computers at all for guests to use. After speaking to some of the locals, we later found out that only 5 star resorts have internet use in Cuba now. The other thing that made me enjoy the resort less was that we never had clean towels. After the first day, we asked for clean towels only to find that they just reused the same towels that we had before. After asking once more for towels, they let us know that their laundry facility was not in working order. A housekeeper was coming around door to door letting us know that the laundry was not working. Although this may not have been their fault, I don't like taking showers, only to dry off with dirty towels; kind of defeats the purpose a little. I do have to say that I seen housekeepers come around to different rooms several different days with clean towels, even though we were told there weren't any. Also, after speaking to other people who stayed at the resort, they had let us know that they had clean towels every day. Enough with the bad stuff, and on to the good. The beach was absolutely stunning! I also liked that locals were not allowed to come right up onto the beach to sell things, and if they wanted to sell things, you could go down closer to the water to buy them. I myself, bought a couple of cute dresses! :) Another plus about this hotel was the food. After reading many comments about Cuba, I found that many people did not enjoy Cuban food. I found that this resort had many different options, and there was always something different to eat. I will say that their desserts are definitely not like ours. If you go for the desserts, I suggest the ice cream! :) The excursions that the hotel had to offer were also quite enjoyable! On our stay we did the day trip to Havana (which was absolutely stunning and very informational) and we did the Jeep Safari. Although I wouldn't classify it as a "Safari", this excursion was a favorite! Snorkeling, cave swimming, and a trip to a ranch were all included. All in all, I had a wonderful time at this hotel. If little things like I pointed out earlier were fixed, I probably would have rated this a 5 star. I would love to go back to this resort and see how much more I would enjoy it if these things were changed! :)

Cuba visit

It did not have the services of a 4.5 star hotel. NO INTERNET - Rooms - no daily clean towels, only 1 bottle of water for week and sheets were only changed when a demand was made. Bar staff and servers in buffet were wonderful and friendly. Buffet had no a/c nor fans and food was mediocre. It was so hot that it made you feel ill and ready to collapse. The international a la cart was fantastic with regards to our sever (osmin) ,the service and food. Our sunwing rep was excellent (ernesto). All th [... read more]at said we would not reccommend this resort to anyone and would not return. Deb and Joy ps magic show was greatest entertaiment for the week

Beautiful resort

The resort was beautiful all over the buffet was good they have 2 hot plate to cook the food.Beach and pool are beautiful.The rooms are beautiful the bathroom was remodel and awesome just have to watch your getting out of shower floor is sleeper.For breakfast are waiter was the best we could ask for.We found the service at the 24 hour bar could be a lot better.Woman had to wait for service and for me when I went to the bar when they finally got to me and took my Babba to fill with what I wanted  [... read more]they would turn to the other server and start talking together and not serving the customer like they should the snack bar the service was better the bbq on the beach side could've been open longer

Great resort and great value

We stayed at playa d'oro from April 12-19/15. We had a great trip. We stayed on the ground floor room 1009. It was decorated ok, the air worked great. Hot shower everyday. Close to the beach, the pool and the buffet. Had a king size bed that was very comfy. The maid service was good...gave her a 5.00 tip and a pretty scarf. We had numerous swans and our patio drapes were done beautifully. Went into the town of veradero for 5 pesos one day. It was very hot, but we persevered and got some souvenir [... read more]s. The weather was great, the beach was clean and the ocean was warm and beaming with colour. Breakfast was the best meal of the day. The food got to be a bit boring.....but we managed to find something to eat. We did not see any of the shows, they started at 10:30... A bit late for us as we are early risers. I would go back to this hotel. Happy travelling!

An ok resort for the money

The grounds and pool were great, as were the recreation directors, but everything else was below standard. Our superior rooms had 2 double beds that felt like boxsprings on the floor. We received 1 bottle of water which we had to keep refilling. They ran out of bath towels by the time they got to our room around 3.30. Cats on the lounge chairs andin the outside dining areas, and birds in the dining room. The birds sat on the plates and on the open food such as the breads. Coffee ran out and they [... read more] didn't replenish. Cutlery had to be waited for. We didn't come across anyone that we found to be overly friendly or helpful. If you have mobility issues, there is a lot of walking.

Fabulous beach!

Hotel was clean, staff friendly and helpful. Rooms adequate, but far from luxurious..they need king size linen for king size beds! They also need washroom facilities closer to the beach..have to go up to the pool bar for the one stall (out of three) open! Food adequate, but not memorable. Lunch at the Beach Bar the best. Would recommend it for value!

Awesome Resort

The service and the people were wonderful at this resort. Rooms were clean, food was delicious, the beach was amazing. The entertainment was excellent. Only issued we had was getting the elevator to stop at the correct floor.

Great Resort

My friends and I weren't able to go to our first choice so we ended up here. We were worried about this resort given many of the negative reviews we read but were pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. The rooms were the largest I have ever had and we had a beautiful ocean view. The pool was very large and great to cool off from the heat, although more lounge chairs were needed. You needed to get up early to save seats. The beach was gorgeous with lots of chairs available. The main buffet serv [... read more]ed breakfast, lunch and dinner and always had lots of food choices. The freshly grilled fish and shrimp were amazing as was the fresh pasta bar. The beach grill was great for lunches. Three a la carte restaurants were available but we didn't bother with them. We heard some positive as well as negative comments about them. We attended a few evening shows which were fun. I had a massage one day which was relaxing. The staff were very friendly and always willing to help whether you tipped or not. We enjoyed both the catamaran and jeep tours. We also took the local bus into Varadero for souvenir shopping at new flee market which had everything you need/want. All in all it was a wonderful vacation and I would return.

We had a great time!

This was our first trip to Cuba and we will return for sure! People were so friendly and fun. The resort location was excellent, only a 10 minute cab ride into Veradero. The resort was very well maintained and clean. Our room was clean and comfortable. Food was good, decent with the beach barbecue/grill being above average. Fish, pork, chicken, salad bar, fresh fries....definately something for everyone to eat. The beach is fabulous! We can't wait to go back next year :)