Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: Awesome resort for all!

Grounds well maintained, friendly staff, rooms need some upgrading. Pool active place, beach is awesome!!!! Lots to do and participate in on resort! Food good ! Cuban people love Canadians and the reverse is true! Many clients return every year and enjoy the resort as the staff remember them! Felt very safe walking around the resort! Great for kids! Had a very enjoyable time!

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Amqazing Vacation

Iberostar Ensenachos Is the most beautiful resort we have visited. The grounds are very well maintained, lush and beautiful. The staff is incredible they go above and beyond to make your stay amazing. The accomidations are well kept up and your every need is met with a smile.

Hotel Mojito: Been to Cuba 23 times. This was the best!!

I have to say, that I was not quite sure about this resort. I had stayed here many years ago when they had different owners. Well for number one. The staff are amazing! They really make you feel like family... I have to say that the clientelle that is attracted to this resort are just as friendly. The room that we had was very large clean and the bed and pillows were very comfortable. The food was the best that I have ever had in Cuba. There were stations that offered fresh hot food. The a [... read more]lacartes were really good as well. The bar service was excellent too. Never had to wait for a coffee or a drink. What I am saying, is if you treat our fellow Cubans like how you want to be treated there is never a problem. The beach was incredible! The only negatives that I have, and MANAGEMENT take note.... The boardwalk to the beach was very dangerous and we could see that someone could get hurt. We did complain and nothing was done.... Take a close look at it...as well, we are both swimmers and the pool was filthy. You need to take a look at that. Not once the whole week was it cleaned... But other than that it was a perfect holiday. We really like the gym and Jorge was a treat. He really knows his stuff and if you need any direction for fitness he is your man. We know, we compete hard core in triathlons. We plan to go back next year for 2 weeks and if there is an indication that people love this resort, most of the people we have met are repeat clients... I give it a 5 star all the way....

Iberostar Origin Tainos: Stunning beach - disappointing food

Lovely resort and as we had a bungalow away from the pool and festivities, it was a very peaceful trip. We spent most of our time on the beautiful beach and ate in the a la carte restaurants while we were there. We were warned. The food is bland and not great. I was surprised that it was all true. Sadly the food was awful unless we stuck to the simple eggs, bread, fruit and so on. Some salads at the buffet had some taste, but the two restaurants were sadly disappointing.

Iberostar Waves Quetzal: Great resort with beautiful sandy beach, friendly staff, amazing jungle

We had a great time during our stay at Iberostar Quetzal. We stayed from April 7th to April 14th The weather was pretty good, day time temperatures during our stay were around 30 degrees Celsius and it rained only once but at night. Some days it was windy at the beach. We found the Iberostar shows and staff performance better than in other resorts we visited in the past and we were always looking forward to see the nightly shows. The staff at the resort was always friendly and helpful, sp [... read more]ecially Karlos from entertainment. WiFi was available throughout the resort and we never had an issue with it. The resort grounds are well kept. In particular, we really liked the small jungle between the pools and the main restaurants and lobby. It was very peaceful. You can see lots of wildlife like: monkeys, flamingos, peacocks, swam, docks, Iguanas, turtles, agouties etc. We also enjoyed that the grounds have two good quality tennis courts and at 8:00 am a tennis pro would provide some basic ball feeding to practice your strokes. This was a pleasant surprise and it was a great way to meet other tennis players in the resort. The ball feeding lasted about 30 min and afterwards the Pro would pair players to play a game. The food was excellent with good selection and quality. The a la carte restaurants we enjoyed most were the Japanese and Italian. Finding reservations for a la carte restaurants was never an issue. The main buffet is open from 7:00 am to 10:00 am (breakfast), 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm (lunch) and from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm (dinner). It would be nice if there is less gap between lunch and dinner at the main buffet. The beach at the resort is one of the best in the area. It is very wide, sandy and there aren't any rocks. The water was clear with beautiful shades of green and blue. Seaweed started to wash up after our 2nd day and the staff was working hard to clean it up but they were not able to keep up with it. They need more staff and equipment to clean it. Beach chair: We always found enough beach chairs and shade and it was never an issue during our stay. The resort is located close to Playa del Carmen. I takes about 30 minutes to walk to Playa del Carmen or 5 minutes by taxi. One night, we walked to Playa del Carmen and enjoyed the street performers located at "Parque Fundadores" close to Quita Avenue and Benito Juarez Avenue. It was such a nice surprise to watch these shows of the Mexican and Mayan culture. It was a great place to seat down, rest and take some pictures. Make sure to tip the street performers. I was amazed at how good they do the street performances. Later we walked along 5th avenue where we dined and shopped. Overall it was a great resort and enjoyed our vacation at this location.

Iberostar Selection Paraiso Lindo: Something for everyone

We enjoyed our stay at Iberostar!!! We stayed 10 days in April 2017 The resort is HUGE, so it literally has something for everyone. The staff was first rate!! Everyone from cleaning staff to the night lobby staff went out of their way to help and always with a smile! Good food!? Wow.. GREAT food! and first class service at every restaurant and the buffets! This place cost a little more but wow they deliver a first class vacation!

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Meh~

Excellent layout, beautiful beach, dilapidated hotel unfortunately with cold jacuzzis, mediocre food & drinks, busted elevators and light fixtures,most of the public bathrooms closed or had no soap, broken doors, slow service, tip motivated, line ups for everything, no lobster, no banana chips. Came home with gift of dysentery. Nightly entertainment was Cuban typical. Only go if the price is right. I've had better in Cuba. Note: cost is less expensive at the airport for cigars, local brand alco [... read more]hol, coffee, and currency exchange in case you are wondering.

Iberostar Waves Quetzal: Awesome vacation

The staff were amazing,great service, clean rooms and good food. All the à la carte restaurants were good except the Mexican restaurant was just ok. Rosie from the lobby bar is excellent and made our vacation. Edwardo the consierge was also amazing. I would recommend this resort to friends and would go again

Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: Fantastic Resort

Last year, we had a group of 12 go to Varadero for our vacation. We chose the resort due to cost. This is normally a huge mistake, as was the case last year. This year however, we had to be weary of cost as we decided to take the couples, but also a family vacation. We had 6 couples and kids… all told, 25 people came on this trip. This year, we decided on Cayo Coco at the Iberostar Daiquiri. From the moment we got off the bus, we were confident we had made a fine choice. We could tel [... read more]l instantly we had found a friendly resort. Pleasant front counter staff, nice porters, and lobby bar staff greeted us. Although we were a large group, front counter processing to get us our rooms was efficient and relatively painless. On to the rooms… My spouse had asked to be in the renovated Holguin building. We were delighted to have a room that faced the water, which was an unpaid for delightful upgrade. Due to our large sized group, we had made some specific requests to accommodate the children being close to parental figures… all of which were completed with no pressing or issue from the resort. The rooms are designed nice, with lovely balconies and tastefully decorated.. A pullout couch was available in the room for additional guests (children). The bathrooms appear to be modern. Each renovated room had a walk in tiled shower. The rooms were cleaned daily with towel art greeting us when we arrived back to our rooms. The mini fridge was restocked everyday with pop and beers, along with a large bottle of water to be used for drinking or teeth brushing…. Overall, the rooms were very nice. My only negative comment for the room I had, and I also appreciate that this is an individual preference… the beds were something to be desired. For my taste, there was very little support and not overly comfortable. When you consider that you are going on a vacation, and spending about 8 hours a day plus perhaps a siesta, one hopes the bed to be a comfortable getaway. The resort amenities… This would be considered a relatively small resort. There is a very nice resort entrance with a lobby bar that makes pretty fantastic cappuccinos. Seating is ample, but fills up quickly in the evening, but this may have been more our issue as we often were trying to accommodate 10 to 15 people for our nightly time together. The main pool area is large with 2 main areas and 1 area for the little ones. The largest section of the pool did have a swim up bar. Only comment here would be, if you are looking to have conversation at the swim up bar, it does include a trickle down waterfall, which causes quite a bit of noise that was noticeably distracting. I realize that is a bit trivial, but still was a thing. The poolside chairs are similar to an episode of survivor.. Get there early if you want a coveted spot. The resort has 4 restaurant areas. Of course the main buffet, a Mexican, Italian and finally a Cuban. I will go into detail about the main buffet, but will quickly review 2 of the three a la carte restaurants. The Mexican eatery was a nice distraction after a few days. It is quant, has a small staff, but big on taste. I had the chicken fajita, which I found to be most delicious. I had a potato based starter soup which was nice, but nothing extraordinary. The drink of the night was a margarita which let me tell you went down better than any tequila drink ive ever enjoyed, evidenced by the 8 consumed before dinner ended. Take the opportunity to enjoy this restaurant. The Cuban restaurant was served from La Marina, which is the wooden structure just off the beach. This kitchen is used during the afternoon for an ad hoc lunch buffet which when we were there had fish, chicken and the standard round meat burgers from the post war era. For dinner, I had a Cuban Beef dish served with veg and potato. It was very tasty. Others commented the fish was under cooked, so be weary. The Italian restaurant is an outdoor facility adjacent to the pools. Also used for lunch to feed the masses and those not wanting to venture to far from the pool. I cannot comment too much on this dinner option as a few members of our party told us that this option was a kin to Pasta Murder and to avoid. May have been a bad night, but I will let you be the judge of this. Buffet This is the main source of your sustenance for the time you’ll be here so a look at the three meals will be more warranted. Breakfast… if you like eggs and either French toast or pancakes, you will be in heaven. There is very limited choice. The side items such as pastries and such are limited or not very tasty. The bread is good, but who can really mess bread up. Fresh fruit is available such as bananas and pineapple, or other fruit to which I was not familiar. Lunch Again, a routine of pasta station and hamburgers.. bread, fried options… There were a few days chicken was available along with beef, freshly made on the grill. Dinner A lot like lunch, a few additional items. My delight is a very nice gentleman who was there every evening making alcohol soaked bananas. These were flamed to caramelize the whipped cream and flambé the fruit. This was a daily sin for me. To gain favor, this artist of the tree fruit does enjoy a nice glass of red wine brought to him. Food Synopsis. I have been to Cuba three times. This is the second best food Ive had while on vacation. That’s to say, it was good, not great. I don’t believe anyone goes to Cuba with thoughts of culinary greatness. I am happy to say, no one in our group had any health related issues as it pertained to the food, so to me this is a win. Drinks While I am not a large drinker, I was able to breach the tipsy threshold a few times on this trip. The bartenders are not shy about their skill of the free pour. Being drunk is an easy achievement here if one desires. There is a large selection of liquors, Buckanaro on tap, powdered Peña Colada, and a couple other frozen slushy type bases to accompany the plethora of Rum to be had at this resort. A strong recommendation would be Amaretto and the Red Slushy. Taste exactly like the red freezies we all had as children, with a delightful after glow. The Beach. What can you say…. It’s beautiful. Given how big the resort is, they have minimal cabanas. Bring your own source of shade if this is an issue for you or be up early and stake your claim to one of the coveted spaced. There are plenty of fish to enjoy right off this beach, just bring some bread down, your snorkel gear and you’ll be in fish mania. Excursions This will be some first and second hand accounts in this section. In our introduction session, we were outlined the few options we had for leaving the resort to enjoy the island of Cayo Coco. Mine and two other families chose a relatively new option, which for a price that sounded reasonable, turned out to be not. We went on something called the Ultimate Adventure. This included a swim with the dolphins, a catamaran ride out to an island close to Pillar Beach, Snorkeling, lunch and of course return. The dolphin swim was a best value of the overall day. That being said, I have a moral objection to this practice, but the other members of my crew and other two families engaged and quite enjoyed. From there we went to the marina to be greeted by a diesel smelling boat that was not was expected. The captain and first mate that did not speak English transported us. We got to our snorkeling destination and due to poor water conditions only allowed us less than 15 min in the water. On top of that, in their first attempt to land us in a good spot to snorkel, dropped the anchor and did not secure the rope to the boat. This lead to about 20 min of moving about to find the rope/anchor to reattach. The challenge here was that due to not moving too much, the diesel fuel cause more than half of us to not feel well prior to going into the water, which made our attempt at snorkeling that much more challenging. Finally lunch simply didn’t meet any level of expectation. Overall.. this excursion was a very VERY expensive bust. Another group of 5 guys chartered a boat for a day of fishing and came back regaling us of a fantastic time and they highly recommended. Some of the parents of the young teens took the open air public bus ($5 CUC per trip) to the new climbing attraction at Cayo Coco. Although it was quite a distance from the resort, it was a fun time and very cost effective for the time spent. This was also recommended for the younger kids. The final excursion was one that in retrospect, I am upset I didn’t participate. This was the Jeep/Powerboat/Alligator Farm/Lunch trip. There were 8 from our group that went on this and came back absolutely raving about it. The main takeaway I got was that the jeeps could be driven “Like they were stolen”. It was a high energy, thrill based adventure that was quite enjoyed. If im ever on this island again.. this will be number one on my to do list. Recommendations Overall it was a fantastic week for Cuba standards. If you go here with the expectations of a first world resort, it will fall short. If you are thinking a cost effective resort, with free flowing drinks, salt of the earth people who truly do enjoy being around nice people. I was able to have a relatively quiet, low key experience in a nice, well kept environment with edible food and fantastic company. If you want a place that if calm, not a party atmosphere, child welcoming resort, you cant go wrong with the Iberostar Daquiri.

Iberostar Origin Playa Alameda: Just Ok

Resort is dated. They are upgrading rooms - make sure you request one of those. Staff seem like they don't want to be there - not helpful. Food is below average, even for Cuba. Bottom line is you get what you pay for. Spend a few extra dollars

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Iberostar Laguana Azul

After staying at Riu resorts we were expecting the Iberostar Laguana Azul to be at least equal in quality & service. We were extremely disappointed in the whole experience from waiting 4 hours at check-in and then having to change rooms because the first room did not have a working toilet, to the room we finally stayed in where the patio door did not lock, the bar fridge was all rusted on outside & beverage supply was never replenished for the week we were there. Maids do not damp mop floors i [... read more]n the rooms, we had to ask for facecloths, only receive 1 bar of soap every 3 days, elevators not working & food in the buffets always cold unless you lined up for an excessive amount of time to have items personally cooked. Many plates in the buffet area are chipped and cracked & staff have not been instructed on how to properly set up a table - every time we went, the silverware was different, there were no designated wait staff for each section so patrons received inadequate service. We realized we were going to Cuba where the people are all very friendly and helpful but did at least expect a higher level of service being an international chain such as Iberostar. In our opinion, this hotel does not warrant a 5 star rating but maybe a 2.5 - there are many repairs and upgrades that need to be made.

Iberostar Waves Paraiso Beach: Fabulous resort

We got an upgrade a free upgrade a junior suite to the Del Mar location at the resort! It was a 2 minute walk to the pool and beach. Fabulous resort, spectacular pool, great choice of restaurants. Great entertainment. Was disappointed with the beach because of overwhelming amount of seaweed----resort worked really hard to try and clean it up however it was impossible due to amount ----

Iberostar Waves Paraiso Beach: Loads of Fun!

The hotel was always clean with plenty of staff to cater to our needs. The food was good and fresh with many choices and variety. The pools were abundant and clean as well. This was a very family friendly resort. My family travelled together with 5 adults and 5 children with 4 of them under 4 years old. We were accommodated at every turn making our stay a pleasure. If I was to say one negative thing about the resort was that the tiles around the pool were very slippery when they were wet i [... read more]n combination with bare feet. Children, adults, elderly and many drunk people fell around us as the day progressed. It would be good if something were done about that. However with flip flops on it was fine!

Iberostar Waves Dominicana: `Clean and comfortable resort

Our trip to (Apr05/17) to Iberostar Dominicana was really good. The Puntacana airport is busy and is not wheel chair friendly. The resort is completely wheel chair friendly. There are 4 elevators and you can go to the beach by wheel chair. Also you can walk from beach to your room by bare feet. Beach is well maintained white sand and any body can go in to water. Rooms are big and comfortable. No problem with AC or hot water. The resort is big yet you can walk to the beach, your room and the  [... read more]lobby. Good selection of food with lots of fruits ,bread, meat and veggis. The beach restaurant is also good. the drinks are average. Entertainment is a waste of time except the Michael Jackson show. Iberostar Dominicana and Iberostar Puntacana are side by side, you can choose any one. We will go back again.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Great resort!

Everything about the resort was wonderful....everyone there was so nice. Would go back in a minute!! Beach was beautiful, service was awesome and food was good! Rooms may need a bit of updating but other than that, perfect vacation!

Iberostar Waves Paraiso Beach: Good Resort- Huge

Pros - This was a good resort but very large. The pools were amazing, food great, staff excellent every where. We were upgraded from the Beach Resort to Del Mar closest building to the beach Building # 11 Cons - Beach was full of seaweed the entire week. Water too rough to swim in and beach not really nice to take a long walk on due to the seaweed. Staff worked very hard to clean it up with tractors but that wasn't enough to clear it up. Pool chairs also was a problem daily as people rese [... read more]rved chairs as early as 6 am and by the time you come down for breakfast as large as the resort was you could not get one chair. The problem being is that people put towels on the chairs and then you don't see them the whole day. They go to the beach. One day we had to sit on the cement on our towels and complained to Guest Services. They gave us a bottle of champagne and strawberries.

Iberostar Selection Playa Mita: Amazing Resort

The staff was great could not do enough for you. Nice clean rooms; always things to do if you wanted, nice quiet areas if you wanted. Food was great nice selection at buffet and 4 very good restaurants to choose from.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Mostly wonderful

Hello, I hope you don't take this honest review personal, I realize the 5 star accommodations aren't what we are used to in Canada, but I just want to point out a few concerns. First of all the air conditioner wasn't working, after 2 days I mentioned it to the front desk 3 times and eventually was moved to another room. The first room had ants, no screens on the patio door the fan was not adjustable and was barely moving. The lamps were not attached to the wall, but was hanging on with wires s [... read more]howing. However we had an very nice lady who did a fantastic job with our room upkeep. We requested a crib because we were traveling with an infant and were given one, however it was not up to standard! To be honest it was disgusting. The white rails were not white and the mattress was an old sponge with stains I cannot begin to describe. In my opinion, very unsanitary for anyone to sleep in let alone an infant, it looked like it had never been washed. Needless to say we did not use it. On a more positive note, the hotel itself was outstanding. Very beautiful, well kept & the staff we really friendly. Food was very tasty & plentiful as well as the variety of drinks offered. We didn't get to enjoy any night time shows or entertainment because we were in our room fairly early with the baby, but other guests mentioned they had fun. I definitely would come back to this hotel if the accommodations we a little cleaner and was given the opportunity. Please understand, I'm not upset, but at your request was very honest about my experience.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Very nice

Beautiful hotel and landscape. Great service and very friendly staff. Rooms was decent, a few thing could use improvement. Was not happy with the air conditioning in the first room, did not seem to be working at all. But staff was happy to relocate us after the issue could not be resolved. Food was pretty good, except the meats. But not many people go to Cuba for the food, it's for the gorgeous weather, beaches, culture and history. Amazing beach at this hotel. Lot's to do, beach yoga, water zoo [... read more]mba, dance lessons. Again the staff were amazing. They treated my daughter like a princess. Everyone was very friendly to us. The pool and grounds were always tidy and well kept. Had a wonderful 5 day stay.

Iberostar Selection Hacienda Dominicus: Top notch resort and service

We are a family of 4 with 2 boys travelling for March break. Overall we were very satisfied with the resort and it's management. The ocean was warm, shallow and had no seaweed. Excellent for snorkelling and waddling. Everybody at the resort was very friendly and happy to help-we never met a grumpy person. Management was always on top of any minor issues that arose. Our concierge, Paula was the most helpful person and arranged a surprise birthday cake and bottle of rum/fruits for my husband's bir [... read more]thday. Availability of family suite (2 connected rooms and 2 bathrooms) is what made us choose this hotel and what contributed to a happy holiday, as our teenage kids had their own space. Resort did not seem very crowded despite being March break and we always found a place to sit in the shade even after 10 am. Everyday we did a different activity,we never got bored in 2 weeks, despite being a relatively small resort. Evening shows are the only thing that were really lack lustre at this resort, and you could not find a place to sit in the lobby at night to have a drink, so we just walked around instead or decided to retire early, which we have never done before on vacation. Food choices were plenty, but they seemed to lack spice or taste- but you could add your own to taste after, as a wide variety of sauces and spices was available to help yourself from. Overall very happy with Iberostar.