Tropical Paradise

The Royalton exceeded our expectations! The rooms were clean and spacious, the food was tasty and plentiful and the staff was friendly and attentive. Having a butler added to the experience. Over the week we had Omar, Michel and Javier taking care of us. Each morning they connected with us to see if we needed anything and checked in again at the end of the day. The level of customer service at this resort sets it apart from the rest.

3 star hotel at best!

The rooms were dated, need paint and new furniture, the beach was beautiful and the pools are pretty good, but missing tiles, and in need of repair. The staff is very attentive, however the food is terrible, and the lack of types of liqueurs and common mixes for typical drinks is very disappointing

Great Resort

Grounds were well kept, lobby was clean had a nice breeze and overlooking the infinity pool, room was nice and clean bed and pillows were comfy, a/c worked fine. Food seemed repetitive. Staff were always courteous. Butlers Maria Rosa and Javier were very helpful. Ran into a couple of issues in our room and they were addressed right away. Anay from housekeeping was awesome always gave us what we needed.

Not as Sunwing advertizes, misrepresented in the marketing of this resort

Pros: - Service and the people who work there are wonderful - Beach is excellent - Lobby bar is great. - Maids and butlers are wonderful. - Snack bar grill is good. Cons: - Food in general...... but this is not a problem for me, and understandable after the pandemic. - Cockroaches, many of them, in our rooms, in the lobby, everywhere. Got bitten by them as they were inside the bed, on the walls, around the floor, etc. This creates a major health hazard, hygene concern and many other  [... read more]health related challenges. - Run down rooms, grey worn down towels, linen have holes. - The manager chooses who to speak to while he does his rounds talking to the tourists......he targets a specific kind of tourist....there is preference from his part.....would be good if he talked to a variety of people there. He is nice though. I do hope things improve as this was a very good resort before and now at the most a 3.5* maximum given the present circumstances. Sunwing should warn tourists about the cockroach infestation.

Nice Resort

Royalton great resort, service is impeccable .this resort has wonderful staff and they all speak a perfect English. I would like to thank OMAR our room butler and JASMIN from housekeeping for their devoted service. The beach with the white sand and the ocean with the clear and amazing water was out of this world. Food and beverages were very good .This is definitely a 5 star resort. Bus ride from the airport is long but once you arrive at the resort it is worth it. Highly recommend the Royal [... read more]ton Resort.

Lovely resort

Best resort I have ever been to! Everyone is so friendly and go out of their way every single day to make your stay a wonderful experience! The beach is beautiful! I travelled with friends although it is considered an adult couples resort. We enjoyed our trip!

Stunning beach, resort and amazing service.

The Royalton Cayo Santa Maria is one of the most stunning beaches and compares to Turks. You can walk easily on the white sand for hours. You can get a palapa on the beach or pool at any time of the day. The pools offer spacious beds and surrounded by palm trees. The garden is lush with vibrant colours. The butler service Michele made our 23rd wedding anniversary very special from ballon’s, flowers, cake and bubble bath. There is an abundance of food leaving you satisfied. Highly recommend the c [... read more]appuccinos, croissants in the morning, quesadillas by the beach and fish options. My hubbys favourite dish was octopus with pasta. The staff is exceptional, friendly and keeps property clean. We had to use the medical services which were also available, quick and rectified our hiccup. If you’re looking to retreat to a quiet adult only property this is great one. Recommend bringing a bubba for the beach, bug spray and sweater for breezy evenings.

Excellent resort

Just got home from The Royalton Was there for a week I am going to try and give my most honest review we arrived late Sunday night March 31st we were greeted by our Butler Omar he is an amazing Butler. A cart took us to our room. When we got to our room it smelled very musty ensure you take air freshener with you we opened up the patio door be prepared there are no screens on their patio doors we did have a toilet seat in our bathroom and more than enough toilet paper for the week we didn't no [... read more]tice food shortages. Eggs were provided for breakfast six out of the 7 days there was no shortage of any types of alcohol both pools were wonderful the ocean was quite stunning if you have mobility issues ensure that you take a pool floaty for yourself as the resort does not have any to offer when going to the ocean the walkway is very uneven it's definitely a tripping hazard we tipped with American money and gifts on a daily basis the one thing we found was requested by the wonderful Cuban people was medicine we plan to go back next year for a week

Absolutely amazing vacation! Will be back

The grounds were beautiful and very well taken care of! Although the rooms are a bit dated, they were always clean! Despite some shortages, the lunch and dinner food was delicious and there wasn’t a single meal we didn’t enjoy! The beach… one of a kind and absolutely stunning! Lastly, the resort staff, these are the most hardworking, genuine, fun and wonderful people I have ever met!

Wonderful resort!

We had the best time at the Royalton in Cayo Santa Maria. The attention to detail and customer service is second to none. The food was excellent with numerous options each day. The beach is amazing and there was never an issue finding lounge chairs or a cabana for the day. This hotel provides each room with butler service. The butlers go out of their way to attend to all of your needs and the managers are constantly checking in with all guests. We will return without question!

Excellent Resort

I sent a previous review, but I don't think it went through....so here it is again. We spent 10 days at Royalton Sante Maria (March 2024) and were taken back by what we experienced. The resort was more than we expected. Our room was great, very clean and looked after superbly by the cleaning staff. The two butlers we had; Andrew & Ariel were so helpful and provided us with everything we requested. The service staff especially; Leticia & Lilibet at the Eggcelence restaurant were both fantastic s [... read more]ervers. All service people were (English speaking) and conducted themselves perfectly and made your feel most welcome. Special 'kudos' to Leo the Entertainment Manager who turned out to be a super friend. He provided the guests in the main lobby with various entertainment ensembles each night. And, Danillo in the Jungle bar was so nice to us and even provided a cribbage board for me to beat my wife on. The beach area was beyond beautiful - the nicest beach we ever had the chance to enjoy in our 21 yrs of traveling in the Islands. The food was very acceptable. You could always find something that pleased you, especially pizza for lunch and soup for dinner accompanied with various meat / salad selections. Hats off to Alex (resort manager) and his management staff who took total care of everything in making us feel special. We will definitely be returning every year now that we found a resort second to none!!!! Paul/Maya McCarty Grimsby ON. Canada

Beautiful Grounds, Incredible Beach

The hotel is very well managed. Important to note, this is a 5* for CUBA. There are definitely shortages of food/drinks, toilets break down regularly, all toilet paper must be placed in waste baskets, room smells like sewage. Rooms are very large and comfortable, though tired. These are nobody's fault; this is just realistic for Cuba. The staff are incredibly hardworking and friendly. Having said that - there are MANY repeat travelers which reflects well on the resort but can feel a bit cult [... read more]like and if you're a first time guest you tend to feel a little 'less than'. Not a big deal. One evening, the table beside ours sent their food back because it came out 'cold'. Not something we would ever do. The general manager Alejandro and the chef came out and spoke to us, asking how the food was and advising if I didn't like anything to def. just send it back. The chef was shooting daggers - this was at Eggscellent. I didn't understand, yet, that he misunderstood and thought we were the couple that sent the food back. Again in the evening he approached and asked if everything turned out being okay and it was okay to send the food back. I explained it wasn't us who'd sent it back but he wasn't listening and just carried on walking. That morning, at 5 am, we received a room service order that we hadn't ordered, so - loud knocking at 5 am. I didn't think at first that this was related - and I hope not. You will not find a more beautiful beach at his cost so if that is your priority and you don't mind overlooking some shortages, okay food and tired but clean and spacious rooms, this is it. While it is a beautiful resort, I wouldn't return. Would give beach/pools 5* but lower pool is cloudy and not clean as the top pool is. The beach is a 10 out of 5.

Cuban Gem!

If you are focused on perfection and updated decor, abundance of food choice and unwilling to appropriately tip the hard working staff then The Royalton Cayó Santa María is not the resort for you. If you admire the beautiful tropical grounds on this smaller property, the cleanliness of the resort, the friendliness and accommodating staff then continue reading. My husband and I who are in our early 60’s from Kitchener, Ontario just returned home from our second stay at The Royalton. Both visits [... read more] were in Feb for 2 weeks and we absolutely love this resort! Situated on one of the most stunning Caribbean beaches, the sand is so white and soft and the water so clear and warm. There’s miles of beach to walk. We were always able to find a palapa. The resort has two beautiful, clean pools that are appropriately water filled as this is an adults only resort. The staff are amazing! At The Royalton you’re assigned two alternate butlers. Their job is to make your stay memorable. They are your “go to” people. On our first trip we were assigned Michel and Omar. On this latest trip we had Lester and Diana. All excellent and thorough. Both stays we had a junior suite which were comfortable, clean, had a good sized bathroom with shower and soaker tub. Each night we slept very well on the comfortable mattress. The rooms are dated but that didn’t bother us. More important was that we had a working toilet, hot water, safe, fan and a/c. Wifi was available in the hotel rooms but the service could be intermittent at times. Stronger wifi could be found in the lobby, lounges, and restaurants. Our maid Alina was the best! Aside from always providing a clean room, her towel creations and daily notes were inspiring. The culinary staff continued to offer tasty and nutritious meals despite the food shortages and supply issues currently affecting all of Cuba. Each dinner a new entrée was available. I would suggest taking small gifts for the Cuban staff, for which they are very grateful. Items we Canadians take for granted aren’t available to them for purchase especially medicines, shoes, clothes, hygiene products. There is a reason why The Royalton has so many return guests. This truly is a Cuban gem property!

Cuba at its best!

From the moment we stepped off the bus, we were treated royally. Every single staff member was warm and welcoming. Although the rooms could use a bit of a facelift/refresh, they were very clean, and the bed comfortable. People say the food in Cuba isn't good, but the Royalton definitely proves that wrong. This isn't a "party" resort although they do have wonderful entertainment throughout the day. It's a perfect place to go to relax, enjoy the amazing beach, and soak up the sun!

Amazing stay at the Royalton

2nd time at the Royalton and definitely will be returning. Amazing beach, rooms and food. Oven side grill was great for lunch time quesadillas. Butler Omar was awesome and took care of us all week. Highly recommend.

Beautiful grounds, beach & pools but rooms are starting to show there age

The grounds and pools are very well kept really great beach with lots of loungers. Or course the pool chairs are gone by early morning with towels on them. The butlers Ariel, Marisbia were very attentive to your needs. The bad was the lack of certain foods but that is problem all over. I guess we didn't have as many food problems as other resorts. The only bad thing that happened was I went to move a coffee table a bit closer to the couch and it collapsed, this was because there where no s [... read more]crews holding the 3rd leg in place. The table being very heavy and the top of the leg went down my shin, They did take me to the doctor at a The Memories resort and he cleaned it up. Salt water was the best treatment for it. This was fine for the first day but the second day the winds really picked for about 3 days, venturing into the waters would have led to a bigger problem. All in all was a nice time away, great water show the one night.

Excellent resort

We had a wonderful stay at the Royalton Santa Maria! I definitely recommend and consider staying again. The resort was very clean, the people were extremely friendly and the food was magnificent! The cleaning staff were wonderful especially Aleida who always kept our room clean and grabbed us everything we needed. Our butlers, Mairobis and Ariel were amazing as well. Always ready to make certain that we had the best time and were catered to.

Amazing Staff

Great boutique resort, easy to get around for someone with mobility issues as the property is fairly small. A lot of seniors vacation here so they need to up their game with the addition of railings to a lot of the stairs to hold for support. Bathrooms around resort very clean but not all always open and some of the handicapped ones were missing a toilet seat. Food a little boring as no buffet (except for a small one at breakfast) and only two ala carte restaurants, but tasty. A lot of people [... read more] still playing the towel game. We did manage to finally get lounge chairs around the lower pool and a Bali bed after complaining to the manager. He quickly rectified the matter by setting aside two beds and loungers with a handicap sign for ourselves and another couple, thank you for listening Alejandro!! Butlers were amazing, I have been to other resorts with butlers , but this resort you could always find yours, they knew who you were before you arrived, always attentive, and will bend over backwards so you can enjoy your vacation. Special shout out to our butlers Javier and Maria!! We tipped in American and Canadian currency, bills and coin, and it was never a problem. Try to bring a lot of over the counter meds for the Cuban people, Advil, Tylenol etc. they really need them.

Relaxing, low key and spectacular beach!

We spent two weeks over Christmas and New Years. A small, adult only resort with great care and attention by all staff. Alejandro (General Manager) and Micaela (Assistant GM) were ALWAYS present and checking in with guests. Our butlers, Maria Rosa and Javier took awesome care of us - confirming dinners, booking massages, etc. Executive Chef Jesus and his staff presented food beautifully. We loved the Quesadilla Snack Bar at the beach - awesome chefs Rosemary and Oslay (married couple). Each o [... read more]rder is custom made - the hot sauce is wow! Enrique, the bartender at the Seaside Bar took excellent care of us and was our Spanish tutor! All the staff were friendly and welcoming - always smiling and always greeting you. The food was good and generally available. Quality was good. The beach is the reason to go. We walked daily and never came to the end of the beach (4+ km). The ocean is a pallet of aquamarine. This is our third visit - we will return.

Not so good

I am saddened to say that the trip I just took to the Royalton was without a doubt the worst in 32 years of traveling south, including Cuba. Despite what we all know about Cuba (so-so food, lack of certain things), we used to return to Cuba because it's a country we love, with people and history for which we have a real admiration. Our last trip was in 2021 during Covid to Paradisius de Oro (RS). It was memorable despite the ever-strengthening embargo, and despite the shortage of foodstuffs (ev [... read more]en pepper). At the Royalton, things were also missing, such as eggs. But that's not what had a lot of influence on the negative opinion of me and my partner. First of all, it's the obsolescence of the place, including the rooms, and the feeling that the hotel owners don't really care. For example, I took photos of places where a simple brushstroke would have hidden mold and I saw this urinal separator wall which is held in place by 2 pieces of plastic screwed together with 4 screws because it came off the wall (and we are talking here about the toilets in the main lobby, those close to the restaurants). But above all, it was the presence of cockroaches (large and small) in and outside the rooms that I could not accept. In 32 years of traveling to the Caribbean, this is the first time I have seen this. The fact that food was only in restaurants (no buffet) didn't help either. It's difficult to have to sit down each day to order the same food, wait for it to arrive, and realize that it's a small variation of what we were served the day before and that we didn't like that much. With a buffet, it's easier to snack a little without agonizing over the whole thing. The existence of butlers is also in total contradiction with the crisis which is raging from my point of view. We did not feel the need to approach them other than to ask for what we are owed. Certain rooms did not have wifi for instance. As for the staff, Alexis is a superb butler. The manager of the Royalton, Alexandro, does his best and is constantly making his rounds talking to customers. For the rest of the staff, it depends. We have found that younger people do rather rough work while older people are totally dedicated to their work. I sincerely hope that things change in Cuba for the better!