Grand Memories Varadero: This resort needs some work done

The grounds were beautiful, too bad the same effort was not put into maintaining the rooms and facilities. The staff were friendly and did the best they could with what the had. The dining rooms needed a proper cleaning, broken chair should be removed and tables should be cleared to allow other guests to sit and eat. On the last day they ran out of clean coffee cups so we had our coffee in glasses. If you want a spot by the beach prepare to wake up a 5am to do so. I made three attempts, at one p [... read more]oint waking up at 6am to get a spot only to be told that I would have to get there earlier. The beach is beautiful but I was only able to be there for a short time as it was too hot to not be in some form of shade. Convert as much money as you can at the airport because the bank at the resort ran out of money. We heard through the grape vine that the resort was being bought over effective at the beginning of the month. That may explain things. Thank God for wonderful weather as it made up for what the resort lacked.

Sol Turquesa Beach: Spacious Resort with Excellent Service

A well planned resort with plenty of space around several pools and a wonderful beach, the Memories Hologuin provides a very restful vacation. The activities are as excellent as the staff who lead them. The front desk was invariably helpful with the tricky internet and the handy currency exchange desk was efficient. As with most Cuban resorts the food situation was not always of the highest caliber but there was always something tasty to eat and the servers were invariably courteous and helpful.

Riu Palace Tropical Bay: Elegant fun!

I had a wonderful time at the Riu Palace Tropical Bay. From our initial encounter with the front desk staff, to the bar staff, to the housekeeping and finally to the animation team....Everyone was extremely positive, kind, helpful and sincere. They made me feel like a valued guest as they often remembered my name and took time to have nice conversations with me. Sharon at the 24 hour bar was a gem, Jemaine in the dining room was charming and the spirited animation team (in particular Chicken and [... read more] Sweetie) really made each an every day. The dancers were phenomenal (Megatron , Chicken, Popsicle, etc.) as they are well trained by their very talented choreographer. The resort and grounds were pretty and the food was delicious, but the staff made our trip so much fun.

Riu Emerald Bay: Disappointment at lack of Professionalism

We were very disappointed in the inability of staff to understand or speak english, we had many times that we were unable to get questions answered or things solved. The key card for the room door did not work for first three days, it would work once then not again. Each time this happened it meant waiting for 10-15 minutes for an elevator to go back to the lobby, try to find the manager on duty as we had very quickly realized it was pointless to try to speak to most of the front desk staff. The [... read more] manager would reprogram the key card and then it was another wait for the elevator to go back up to get into the room. We had issues with the toilet contin ually running all day and night and the dead bolt stopped working on our door after the fourth day. The evening before we were to check out I inquired about being able to stay in the room until 2:00 as our bus to the airport the next day did not leave until 3:30. I was told that I had to pay an additional 500 pesos each on the spot to be able to check out late. I did try to ask the front desk staff why the charge was so much as check out was to be at 11:00 and I was only needing a few hours more. I was told that they room needed to be cleaned by noon and if they could not do that we had to pay extra. I did tell the desk clerk that I thought that was very funny as we had never had our room cleaned by the maid service each day of our stay until after 3:00-3:30 p.m. To make paying this fee for late check out seem worse, we were told on the bus ride to the airport by a number of people that they were not charged at all for late check out and that it was included i the "upgraded room" we had booked. Others said they were charged anywhere from 150 pesos to 800 pesos for late check out. We were told by our travel agent to take US $$ and that the hotel would change to pesos for us. Imagine our surprise when the front desk staff told us that the hotel does not accept US $$ at all and would only change Canadian dollars. As for the actual resort, we could not swim in the ocean at all the entire stay - dangerous rip tides and jelly fish. A taxi driver told us on a trip to town that swimming at the beach by the resort is never safe and people are rarely in the ocean there. While the pools were lovely and the chairs comfortable the lack of enforcing rules made each day an adventure by the pool. Children were allowed to run and scream continually on the pool deck, for several days we had to put up with adults and children playing with a hard soccer ball in the pool and continually kicking the ball against the wall of the infinity pool. Hard footballs were thrown back and forth in the pool by adults and children. Diving was not allowed but it seemed to be fine for young adults to jump into the pool doing "cannon balls" and splashing people on the deck in chairs. There were many hotel employees around the pool many times during the day but there was never anything said about this type of behavior. Imagine my shock when I was told very rudely at the towl hut that I was only allowed ONE towel per day and that I could not exchange a wet towel for a dry towel ?? REALLY?? thats the one rule that the staff could enforce?? At dinner service in the main restaurant children again were allowed to run without parents seeming to care what they were doing - several times waiters were almost knocked over or had trays of drinks hit by running children. Both adults and children seemed to not care if they dropped food or made a mess, on one occasion we sat and watched a full grown man drop his entire bowl of ice cream onto the floor out of his bowl, after looking down and laughing at the floor he proceeded to walk through the ice cream and go to re-fill his bowl. A maid with a sweep broom and dust pan immediately came and tried to sweep up the ice cream into a pile until she could go to get a proper mop and I found myself telling her how sorry I was that the man was that rude. While there was allot of food available in the main dining room it unfortunaely was the same dishes over and over and almost of the food was prepared ahead of time and kept under heat lamps. It was rare to be able to get something made fresh. Truly disappointing in what was classifed as a 5 star + resort and for the money paid.

Riu Cancun: Great resort

We have been to Mexico 10 times - mostly the Mayan Riviera - and have stayed at 3 RIU properties. We enjoyed the Riu Cancun, it was very clean, the staff was fantastic, and the resort was in a great location. The beach was beautiful, the pools were great - all overlooking the ocean - view from our ocean view room was outstanding. My only criticism is that it was not an ideal family resort & the kids club was not great.

Riu Palace Tropical Bay: Great time at the RIU Tropical Bay

The Hotel is beautiful as you enter from the front. Reception was well organized and prompt. Our room was a standard room but with a king bed. The room was small but suited our needs. The room had a full bar, with mini fridge and coffee maker. The beach was marvelous and there are plenty of loungers. The non motorized water sports were great to have and I would recommend everyone to bring their own mask and air mattress for a leisurely day at the beach. The dining and buffet rooms were great. Th [... read more]e food was delicious and there is a great variety. The evening entertainment was standard, comparable to any other resort. Visitors should be aware that this resort does not have a disco so things are pretty quiet late at night. The only disappointment was the pool area. The pool is small and can be crowded. The loungers are quite close together and the area can get noisy. But the beauty of the beach makes up for it. And I should also say that the sunsets are the best in the world.

Riu Playa Blanca: A few shortcomings

Nice hotel, but being new there is no reason for some of the design flaws: only one set of elevators for the entire 7 storey hotel, which are located way at the front of the resort. This could be a major challenge for anyone who does not like 140 stairs to top floor.. Another major design is there is only one washroom at the 4 pools and it is a far as way possible from the swim up bar! Food and entertainment were good.

Sol Turquesa Beach: Solid Choice economical vacation

Very clean, more traditional Cuban resort. Staff was very friendly and accomodating. Food was average, but better than other Cuban resorts I've been to. Pools are very nice, five to choose from including small kids pool. Never an issue finding chairs, but ones in shade a little more difficult. Beach itself is ok, some seaweed to deal with for sure. Pizza and Burgers at beach hut were great. Rooms are average, clean and a decent size. Would definitiely consider returning, value is hard to beat. H [... read more]olguin is also a very nice area, with a small easily navigated airport.

Riu Lupita: Fun in the Sun

This resort's staff really works hard to make their guests feel welcome, happy and well-fed! We ate and drank well, and the kids loved the self-serve ice cream all day long. Not fancy, but completely relaxing and we enjoyed every minute.

Grand Memories Varadero: Pleasantly surprised!!

After reading many terrible reviews, my boyfriend and I weren't too sure if we had picked the right resort for our march break getaway. All I can say is, we did not encounter any of the problems that we read in any of those reviews! We were very pleasantly surprised. Arriving at the resort, the check-in was very quick and we requested to upgrade our room and this was done without a problem and for a little cost (we went from building 15 to building 24 which is ocean view). The employee at the fr [... read more]ont desk exchanged money for us because we only had canadian currency and the bank at the resort was closed; so right from the get go we were impressed. As for the grouonds of the resort, they were beautifully maintained, flowers everywhere and men working all day and night to keep it looking nice and clean. The hotel itself (rooms, villas, lobby) were in pretty good shape. There were a few minor cracks in walls and cracked tiles but nothing that really changed the overall quality of the resort. Our room was always cleaned by our maid and we had fresh towels every single day. The lobby was always very busy (such a fun place to hangout at night) and the staff was so helpful, always asking if we wanted a drink or simply saying hello. We spent most of our days at the pool with the swim-up bar...this was the best part of the trip. This pool was always clean and full of people. The staff around the pool and the entertainement crew were so nice and so friendly. All the employees on this resort always seemed to be in the greatest mood! Of course, the beach was beautiful, very well-kept and clean. As for the food, we did not go to Cuba expecting to have amazing food. The breakfast was very good and lunch at the beach snack bar was great. Dinner was alright, somewhat bland but we could always find things to fill our plate. We read many reviews saying that people got sick from the food...we did not, we simply made sure not to eat any items that we did not know what they consisted of. You simply need to be careful. Overall, this resort was very nice and the staff was very friendly and we really don't have a single complaint. We would probably rate this hotel a 4 star, we have been to five star and this is not quite as nice but no complaints, and very happy with our stay. Out of the 5 times I have been the Cuba, this has been the nicest/best resort I have stayed at yet!

Riu Palace Pacifico: Amazing Resort

From the pick up at the airport to drop off 6 days later, this was a fantastic experience. The hotel staff did everything posible to make our stay top shelf! Service was impecable, the resort clean and comfortable, food was great. No big crowds or line ups for anything. We will definitely be back again.

Riu Guanacaste: Amazing resort but..

Great resort, fantastic people,beautiful country,weather unbelievable. But for a resort like the Riu I would have figured they would have had a more bountiful selection of fish dishes at there lunch and dinner.

Grand Memories Varadero: Our Stay in the RIU Veredaro

Had to wait till the very last minute to get our room, not 2:00, not 3:00, not even 3:30, no it was right on 4:00. Sat around the hotel from 11:30ish to 4:00 to get our room. Room was damp and musty smelling. There was always chairs available at the pool. And the weather was fantastic for sitting around the pool. Buffet never opened on time and the food was always cold. (Unless you had fresh pasta made) which I ate lunch and dinner most days.

Grand Memories Varadero: Decent Resort

The resort has a nice layout with pretty features and clean overall, however it is a bit run down. Also towels did not always get changed everyday and lots of line ups from waiting for food at the snack bar to making restaurant reservations, exchanging $$, etc. A bit disappointing was that the guests "hogged" beach/pool chairs even though the chairs weren't used, towels took their spots. Should be a rule not to be able to hog chairs if away for 1 hour or longer. Some of the staff expected tips b [... read more]efore they would pleasantly do their jobs with a smile. However, there were some staff who seemed to enjoy their job and being around people. They made our day! Piano bar was great at night to enjoy listening to with our friends. Before our trip, we did some research and knew to expect some of the downfalls of this hotel so we just took it easy and did not sweat the little stuff.

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: Bachata was good

Riiu Bachata was enjoyable, clean and well run resort. We would rate it 3.5 - 4 stars at most, not the 5 they have on the sign. We were not dis allusioned about this, as we only had expectations as high as the price we paid. that being said we thought the value was good. They work hard at keeping the resort clean. The rooms were noisy and hallway traffic noise easily came into the rooms. The room keys were annoying and entry card wrist bands would have been very nice ( we had these at the Great  [... read more]Wolf Lodge ) . This would require some updating by the resort. If you wanted to book an a la carte retraurant you had to get up early every day to do this. Other guests were annoying by reserving lounges early in the morning and not showing up till later to occupy the better spots around the pool. The Cruise ship terminal for Carnival cruise lines was under construction next door with boats expected in October. Rumors have it that cruisers can get a 6 hour pass to access the resort. I wouldn't look forward competing with cruise people as we'll as resort people. Lastly they had limited supply of kayaks which made spontaneous use of them impossible. A few more plastic boats for a resort this size would be nice. Overall we had a good trip. We will not return to this resort next time because there are so many others to try.

Riu Palace Las Americas: Fabulous resort

I enjoyed my stay very much, beach access was superb! This was my second visit and I enjoyed it as much as the first time. I will definitely go back to the resort for another relaxing vacation.The food was very good, many choices at the buffet. The restaurants are diverse, something for everyone. The service and the food, excellent

Palace St. Martin: Beautiful resort!

The resort is beautiful! The food was excellent, great quality and variety on the buffet. The staff were friendly and provided great service. The pool was very nice, with an infinity pool and you didn't have to hunt for lounge chairs as there were always some available. The location is very picturesque, surrounded by mountains. The resort was well maintained and always clean. It's somewhat remote from the main city (Phillipsburg) on the island but we took advantage of the shuttle to do a bit of  [... read more]shopping (cab rides are expensive on the island). I would defintely recommend this resort!

Palace St. Martin: Beautiful resort

Do not listen to the bad reviews about this place. Our room was beautifully renovated, fresh and clean, air conditioning worked extremely well, bed was so comfortable. Food was delicious best we've ever had at an all inclusive. Beach was beautiful, but unfortunatey week we were there had too much seaweed and beach crew could not keep up so it looked message (Mar 1-8). Wi-Fi was amazing, so strong. There is nothing bad to say about place, except the entertainment. Because the hotel is so remote a [... read more]nd you cannot get off the resort without taking an expensive taxi, they need to improve on that aspect, but it is not a dealbreaker. The T.V. had excellent shows to watch on it. So that's about it. If you go here, you will not be disappointed (unless you are a previous Radisson Blu guest or Riu Palace guest as they seemed to complain the most).

Riu Vallarta: An amazing get-away!!!

This hotel is top notch!! The staff and amenities are incredible. My girlfriend and I had such a great holiday and only left the resort one time!! We enjoyed the vendors on the beach! I know most people complain about them but we had fun bargaining and visiting and buying!! Fernando in the sports bar makes the best Americanos!! Every morning! The service at all the bars was awesome! All in all we would highly recommend this resort. The staff is incredible - they work SO hard to please everyone [... read more]! The guys that serve drinks on the beach have great memories to recall what we like!! A great great holiday!!

Riu Palace Peninsula: Outstanding Resort

All around excellent. Large lovely room with great views. Beautiful pool deck area with no struggles to get chairs. Pools located right next to the beach. Lovely white sand beach. Great quality food, especially at buffet. Very courteaus and friendly staff. Stunning modern architecture with a very thoughtful layout. A true 5 star property. Minor niggle, is no robes and the daily pool card towel hassle.