Over rated resort

December 20th to January 3rd, 2024 I’ve been to this hotel 21 times since 2018 obviously the hotel went down during the closure in 2020 and 2021 and is having difficulty getting back to the 4 star status. The hotel needs major renovations and the grounds have been neglected, there are not enough workers to keep up the work. There is a lack of fuel therefore a lack of employees, they work very long shifts and do the best they can. There is too much lack in everything. The public areas  [... read more]are clean but the lobby washrooms are terrible usually no toilet paper and most the the toilets don’t flush properly. Night drinks in the lobby are served in flimsy plastic glasses, the staff are told to say there are no glasses but they have glasses during the day! The rooms are descent but need work, no hot water for showers (this has been an ongoing problem) I was told that the hot water is turned on for a couple of hours in the morning and at supper time. During my 2 week stay I had hot water, not boiling hot twice. My showers were luke cold or cold. The telephones in the room do no work. The meals in the buffet, in the trays are cold, even when the trays are replenished the food is cold. To have a hot meal in the buffet we have to stand in a long lineup. The entertainment music is very, very loud, even with ear plugs the music was loud. So it’s boom, boom. boom from the center lobby, boom, boom boom from the kids theatre and boom. boom, boom from the Music Festival publicity for December 30 & 31and the Disco was opened at the Plaza Estralla so the hotel closed their hotel disco. The entertainment team was trying to get everyone to go the the Disco & Music Festval $$, I was told that there would not be any entertainment at the hotel. I spoke the Acting manager, he said he would speak to a higher up. Thursday, Dec 28th there was no entertainment and no music, the dancers and some entertainment went to the disco. Friday, 29th the show was a bit earlier then they went to the disco. Saturday, 30th no entertainment, no show. Sunday, New Year’s Eve management decided at 3pm to have a New Year’s Eve party. They had a show and the music was full blast all night. 2023 there were 3 Music Festivals (that I know of) which attracts more local cubans who are rude disrespectful, yell, take over the place. I was told there will be more music festivals. Christmas and New Year’s Eve, the locals take plates full of food to put in their bags to take home, they are triple thick in front of the buffet counters, I could not even see what was in the trays and the cooked meat lineup to the end of the food counters, they were leaning against them with their hair hanging over the food. New Year’s Eve supper I had 5 small bananas! I later went for a sandwich at the 24hr snack bar. The higher management has decided to go towards the music festivals and the regaeton music/ dancing. This type of music is for the younger generation even the animation team is geared to this music. The hotel had 2,000 guests for New Years, they cannot handle that many guests. We had to wait in long lines to get into the buffet most nights and was worse Christmas and New Years. All power went off one night in all the hotel at supper time, they do not have a backup generator or do not have fuel to operate it. Everyone gathers to the lobby, there were only 2 bartenders to serve everyone, later there was a 3rd one added. The 3 bartenders were working with the flashlights on their phone so see. There was a small emergency in a corner and another one in the office. The power went out at supper time in November also. I arrived at midnight, the next night ‘greeters’ came to ask for a review. One night my handicapped friend went to get a cart to take him to his room, there were no available carts, he had to walk with one leg and a cane in the rain to go to his room. I cannot go to a hotel that caters to the local uneducated cubans and to the younger generation with full blast music any more . Sadly, I had to say goodbye to my many friends that I have made over time. Sunwing, the plane as delayed at least one hour departure from Montreal. There were 4 plane arrivals at the Villa Santa Clara airport. Needless to write customs was packed. Return flight also delayed, this time there were 6 planes departing, the lineup to check in was horrendous. My plane was supposed to be 4th to leave, they put it last.

Melia Las Dunas

Lots of variety at the buffet but it’s like a 40 minute wait for an omelet if your hotel even has eggs (heard lots of them didn’t). Lots of food shortages, couldn’t get a pina colada my entire week there to save my life :( Mostly just lemonade or coke to mix with hard alcohol or you’re drinking beer/wine the whole time. Tipping $5 USD is the only way to keep servers serving you or else you have to go stand at the bar. All the employees said hi to my husband but wouldn’t even look me in the eye o [... read more]r say good morning to me, didn’t matter if I was the one tipping or not. Lobby is pretty and that’s good because it’s the only place that we could connect to wifi.

Dirty room, cockroaches at bufet, sharks in water

Very nice gardens, fumigation for mosquitoes and black flies. Food ok. Dirty room 3111, disgusting floors and tub. Yellow, stained towels and bed shits. No refills of anything in the fridge. Staff don't pay attention to you if you don't tip, at the beach bar staff is grumpy and unhappy. Beach not cleaned of weeds. Apparently management has no money for this job. 3 days we had sharks in the water beside shore. Staff saying this is normal for November December. This sharks don't eat people. Really [... read more], you want to try? To get beach chairs and shade you have to wake up at 6am everyday. On Thursday to Sunday Cubans arrived, it was nightmare: long lines for food, no food left after them, they fill their bags with food, very demanding and rude, noisy, they took over the resort and it was crazy. Evening Entertainment only on Saturday and Sunday, the rest of the days was some music, demonstration of clothing which they sale afterwards. You have to tip separately for: cleaning, toilet paper, towels, to refill your fridge, to eat at the restaurant, to have coffee, to go with catamaran, basically for everything. This is my second time at this resort. Never coming again. I do not recommend this resort.

Amazing vacation

This hotel is amazing, it was my third time here as I knew what to expect and was going with my daughter and sisters for there first time.. they loved it ! The hotel is very clean, the staff is very friendly and helpful! I found the food to be amazing there was something for even the pickiest of eaters! The beach and pool are both amazing and the staff is always trying to keep you busy! The only thing better is if all the a la cartes would have been open, but the buffet was excellent! Of  [... read more]course it was slow season so that was to be expected! At least we always had a place to lounge pool side or beach! That's a bonus!! I will be back

Great resort, enjoyed it very much

Beautiful grounds with lots of trees and bushes. Gardeners do a great job! Excellent beach. The food is simple but good tasting and nothing to complain about. Restaurants are very good with regular food elevated to new level, much enjoyed.

Awesome Lobby Bar!

It’s a long drive from the airport to the hotel, (approx 2 hrs by the time you drop off others at various hotels) but the resort grounds are absolutely beautiful and nicely manicured. The lobby bar is excellent and a large gathering spot where there is always entertainment, including violinists, sax players, singers etc. the food is not bad for Cuba and essentially plentiful when we were there the week of Apr21. Some minor shortages like milk a day or two. Not all restaurants were open. The a [... read more]la Cartes were ok but nothing special. The beach and pools are awesome. Virtually no sargassum. It’s a place where you go for the beach and pool with little close by activities. Hotels have Catamarans, paddle boats ands kayaks but that’s all. Overall, we would go back for the beach and relaxation.

Melia las dunas

It was our third time at this hotel and our best. The hotel rooms were freshly painte, new air connditinners (sitent), and the grounds were well kept and overall the hotel very clean (and rooms serviced every day). The food (buffet, outdoor grill, cafe, restaurants) were excellent; there was ample fresh vegetables (letice, tomatoes, cucombers, squash, aubergine...) and grilled fish of all types, chicken, pork, beef and seafood, and great deserts.... we lacked of nothing. The beach and pools  [... read more]are spotless and the key assets of the resorts. I would return again.

Wonderful Vacation

We had a wonderful 2 week vacation on this beautiful resort. Our room was clean and comfortable. The grounds are beautiful & well maintained. The food was good. The beach is beautiful. The staff including Allyea, Lily, Yosneil, & Amaria in the lobby bar, Barbra in the bbq, Frank & Nuriely in the Buffet, Yari our housekeeper, and gardeners Hector & Mickey were amazing.

Not what I expected at all

I stayed 10 days alone & struggled with hot water and water pressure the whole trip. (My last 2 days, I did not have any running water, couldnt even flush the toilets. I brought this up to them and I only had water near the end of my trip. I even paid extra for the room (3 hours) due to my late flight, I wanted extra rest and wasn't feeling well and STILL had no water in my room. Waste of money & plus the extra money I paid for extra time in my room!!!) I requested with my travel agent a top flo [... read more]or and the front desk refused to grant me the top floor. Every day for 3 days, I came in the morning to the front desk to ask for the top floor. Finally after the 3rd day they gave in but only to a top floor room which was far away from the necessities. They lacked necessities like toilet paper, working appliances in the room, towels, etc. Beach wasn't very clean, a lot of seaweed. There was a lot of food options but when buffet was open, it was always cold. I never had any staff greet me when I was seated for any drink or if I needed anything. They would only honour those in groups of 2+. Staff wasn't very pleasant regardless of being polite and tipped. Also, a very outdated resort. I was told if I didn't leave anything for the cleaning lady, I was going to be left a letter to warn me that I needed to tip her. Overall, DO NOT recommend!!!

Fantastic Resort!!

This resort was amazing. It was surrounded by nothin but friendly resort staff. Not to mention a very clean resort ! Funtastic resort ….Beaches were out of this world beautiful and water was goregeous. we went on a Catamaran tour with a lobster dinner was great! met some really kool people from Nova Scotia.

Great resort in Santa Maria

The Good: Food was quite good for Cuba, they had a variety of food and the A La Cartes were great as well and were fairly easy to book. The 24h grill had burgers, hot dogs and fries and was very good/convenient. The Beach was amazing and there were many Palapas for shade. The rooms were large and kept very clean. The grounds and the staff as usual were amazing. Beach towels were available and if you went at the right time, it was easy to replace dirty ones for new ones. Minor annoyances: D [... read more]ue to shortages, they would run out of Milk, Bread at the Grill, Plastic cups (bring your own and you are fine), Ice and some of their iced drinks.

Perfect vacation

This is a lengthy review, but we returned to MLD in February of this year after a couple of years of absence, and we have been impressed. We've got a room in villa 24 which was under renovation couple of years ago. Everything was clean and in working condition. The bathroom was about half renovated, with some items being new and others just kept up. We would warmly suggest to have the bathtubs replaced with walking showers if possible with a future renovation. This would add more value to the [... read more] rooms and more comfort to the travelers. Our room maid Carlos genuinely cared for us to love our room and went beyond his duty to make it happen. The grounds were as well kept as always, with splendid vegetation and even a bit of passing wildlife to enjoy. It was nice to see the pop-up coconut stations were the gardeners would entice us with fresh cut coconut water every day. We are not necessarily restaurant people and between the buffet and grill, we've found all we wanted every day, and some more. We've heard from friends returning from recent trips to the Caribbean that they've missed either fruit, food, deserts, or even cutlery and cups. We have not experienced any of the above. There was plenty of seafood, meats, cheese, fruit, sweets and ice cream to choose from, no shortage indeed. A nice touch to see sushi offered a few times as well. Many thanks to our preferred breakfast egg station ladies (sorry for not asking their names) and our dinning room helpers, especially Suyen, for their attention and care that we are satisfied and the food is cooked to perfection. Another very nice surprise was to see that the wi-fi is included in the price and available in rooms, restaurants, bars, and the traditional lobby. Best way to spend an evening keeping in touch with dear ones at a glass of wine or cup of coffee. Amazing service at the lobby bar, nicely stocked, and bartenders open to creative ideas (coffee made "special"... haha). There was entertainment every night and we've enjoyed especially the Esencia music playing couple. Lucky enough, we've got to listen to them twice during our 10 days stay. The fashion shows were also fun to watch early in the evening. We were not travelling with kids, but could not stop to appreciate how much time and care it was invested in the little ones at the resort, even though the kids club was under renovation. The ladies were busy from morning to late evening, with unwavering energy and creativity to make the kids happy. And last but not least, the beach was as amazing as ever. We had good weather, a bit windy in the afternoon, but not enough to keep us and others away from the sand and water. Free fun watching the pelicans patrolling and the seagulls making friends with people. Cayo Santa Maria offers long beaches and we clocked over 20K steps every day, a good way to stay in shape while lazing for so many days. We were definitely spoiled and enjoyed every bit of it. Many thanks to all that worked to make our trip an enjoyable experience, and looking forward to going back as soon as possible.

Post Covid, a reason for mediocracy

Love the layout of the resort, and of course, the beach is amazing. We returned here with friends based an awesome experience in 2018. Although the rooms were clean, they are in great need of renovations. Only half the guest room phones are working (ours wasn't). Stocked guest room fridges is no longer, despite being advertised; only response was "sorry". Was informed upon arrival that half the resort was closed, and then found out that the wonderful little shopping piazza was closed too; ver [... read more]y disappointing. The bar offered limited domestic beverages only; a few international items added 2-3 days before our departure. The food is what we expected; nothing great. I applaud the effort, but think they would be better off to featuring their own specialty items only; eg. ketchup garnish on a caprese salad does not work. The staff are very friendly and accommodating; they made the trip! The doctor's on site, especially Nurse Carlos and Dr. Miguel were amazing!! They were extremely attentive; cannot thank them enough. Thanks to all the hard working staff trying to make the best out of a difficult recovery.

Great Holiday😁

We found the resort very well maintained, clean rooms, well manicured grounds but the best was how friendly the staff was. We found the buffets abundantly stocked, lots of fresh fruits and salads. If I had anything to criticize it would be a lack of bathrooms at the beach. It was a super holiday and I would definitely go back.

Just the girls

The resort and the employees were awesome. Limited English but everyone was very helpful with any issues we had. The staff are very eager to please. The beach is one of the nicest beaches I have ever seen. White sand and turquoise water. The beach was always clean. Limited chairs available. Food was good. I enjoyed the rice & beans, squash and the chicken and pork very much. I will definitely return to Cuba!

Beautiful Place

Beautiful resort lovely people from the landscape staff , bar staff buffet and a la Carte restaurants and everyone in between . The food was good for what is made available to them. Some people will find a reason to complain. We come to enjoy friendly people nice weather and the beautiful beach We will be returning Feb

Beautiful Resort

Beautiful beach area. Pool was nice with lots of lounge chairs at both pool and beach. Service was excellent. Food was very good. Rooms clean , beds comfortable. We had a wonderful time at this resort and look forward to returning. Would recommend resort

Amazing beach Great for people who enjoy long walks

The resort was great Good food amazing staff The resort was at half capacity which actually worked well for people to space themselves. Always felt safe There were very few people who wore masks . We definitely would go back again

Great Resort

Well kept resort, Grounds and Gardens amazing, Staff very friendly, One negative review, Early morning departure Electric Transportation broken down, No plan to help clients, especially the elderly who had to lug luggage from 2nd floor and pull luggage (some from a great distance) to lobby.

Great resort!

The grounds are beautiful and the staff are extremely pleasant and helpful! Rooms are outdated but they keep them clean. Big resort so some walking is required. The food is as expected. Not the highlight of the trip but they do try. They have freshly grilled meat at the buffet and fresh hamburgers at the snack bars. I found the ocean so/so. There was a lot of seaweed and the waves were rough and extremely salty. Never seen chunks of salt so big in an ocean before. My son had to see the resort  [... read more]doctors and they were fantastic.