Playa Cayo Santa Maria: Great time

Overall great time. Not much to do, but that's the point of a vacation right? Pools and beaches are amazing, food so-so, shows were fun, beds were kinda hard. The snack bar had great chicken fingers and pizza. We would go back.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria: Big Fun

The service at this hotel is amazing. Beautiful beach and pools. Really spread out so lots of room for everyone in terms of chairs and space at the pool and beach. Food was not great, even at the a la care. New Years celebration was really fun. Hotel is really far from the airport. Made for a long day. Beds are hard and rooms are small

Memories Paraiso: Marvelouos Memories

Where to start..... we returned home on December 24th and it was the most relaxing amazing trip we have had as a family. My husband, son (14 yrs) ,daughter (12 yrs) and I LOVED the beach the most. Everyday we would put our towels on chairs (we were Diamond Club members) and go for breakfast, otherwise it was difficult to get them in the shade. There was always someone there who would literally run if he saw you looking for lounge chairs to assist you. Some days they didn't come around as much t [... read more]o take your drink order, but it was nice when they did. Remember to bring a bubba or some sort of thermal cup not only because the ice was sometimes already melted by the time your drink arrived, but the cups were not much bigger than a bathroom dixie cup. Oh where to start on the beach..... it was like icing sugar or baby powder and oh so white and it was like that right into the turquoise blue water. No rocks, coral, weeds or even many fish. You did have to watch out (only some days) for the jelly fish. By the afternoon they were mostly gone. Included were all the beach boats: Hobie Cat catamaran (they drove we tipped $5), kayak, huge ocean paddle boats, wind surfer and small sailboat (laser) Not sure why some peoples reviews of the food was not higher but we found it was great. There was always something you could find you liked and we especially liked the made to order grill. We had lobster 3 times, once on the buffet, once at the Diamond Club dinner and the third time at the International a la carte restaurant which we would highly recommend. The 3rd a la carte we went to was the Seafood restaurant and it was the best. It is in the market (staff are not part of the Memories resort and do not speak much English) which happened to be very close to our hotel room but the seafood was very fresh and we liked the dining atmosphere. Diamond Club upgrade is well worth the small additional price in our opinion. The staff go out of their way to give you the best service. For instance they asked if I wanted a cappuccino in the main dining hall they might put chocolate sprinkles on top or once I got a red heart. We always tipped the staff and brought juicy fruit gum and lifesavers to give them daily. When we arrived we didn't have a toilet seat on our toilet, can you imagine. We went right to the Diamond Club to advise them on the Wednesday we arrived and by Thursday evening we still did not have a seat. First thing Friday morning we spoke with Alex and he had it fixed in a matter of hours. The staff are all so friendly and I don't know how they do it because most of them work every other day because they travel 2-4 hours just to get to work. They work 16 hour days. Oh yes and don't forget to tip the maid as you will get animal towels if you do. If you leave a tip for the bar fridge staff you will also get extra beer, water and pop. The only excursion we went on was to swim with the dolphins. Something we have always wanted to do with our kids and were just waiting for them to be old enough to remember it. Although our daughter was nervous at first by the end of it she now has a new favourite animal. They are only around 10 minutes away from the hotel and the show beforehand was great! The cost is $79 for adults and $48 (kids 12 and under) for 30 minute swim. The four of us went with 2 others and we had one dolphin. They let us swim for 45 minutes. We were able to have 2 different rides each(foot on dolphin nose, dorsal fin or dolphin on it's back with you riding on top - your choice), dance, touch, put your head in their open mouth and many other things. There is a professional photographer and the cost is $18 per person (or family $45 and we got over 200 amazing photos) or $10 and they will print off a photo for you. This was an experience of a lifetime.

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Amazing resort

Just return : 2 January 2015 Spend the New Years in Iberostar ...good choice. Check in: It was great, they had a room with tables & chairs, along with champagne for adults & juice for kids. They gave us a quick welcome greeting, scanned our passports & gave us our packages. Park Suite, 2nd floor, huge rooms. Minibar is restocked everyday and the HDTV was great. Lots of cartoons and HBO movies. The food was good, always plentiful selections and great service. Beaches are gorgeous, ..10.. 15 m [... read more]in waking, some sea life to see around, barracuda, starfish, clownfish, squirrelfish, stingray. The entertainment was great and the staff were always friendly . High recommended Flamingo show. Grounds: Very lush, lots of trees, bushes, plants, amazing flowers, cactus. Many birds, hummingbirds, butterflies. Nice pathways & walkways throughout resort.

Memories Azul Beach Resort: terrible buffet

poorly managed, supplied and maintained, SunWing should be ashamed. Certainly not a 4 1/2 star. food was very limited and resort allows guests to feed entire table while others wait for one person-one serving

Royalton Cayo Santa Maria: This IS an example of an AMAZING RESORT!

First of all I would like to say that we are very seasoned travellers and I have been to Cuba about 6 times previously. We are RIU diamond members and although we do try different hotel chains from time to time we are used to RIU Palaces and tend to compare everything to that level of quality. I’ve now stayed at 4 of the top 7 All Inclusives in the world and I can honestly say that the Royalton deserves to be in the top group! The Wonderful butler service: I learned within minutes of being her [... read more]e at the Royalton that I could get basically whatever I wanted by asking nicely and using the butler service. No, a butler does not mean that you get your own person following you around everywhere you go, but it does mean you have someone that will do everything they can to make your stay a little easier, a little more romantic, a little more … anything you can come up with! Yoldy (Joel-dee)was our butler in 11 block and MAN was he good! Yoldy set us up a private romantic lobster dinner on our balcony, saved our sunbed, had the chefs prepare dinners that weren’t even on menus for us (pizza & Lobster!), made and changed all of our dinner & spa reservations, prepared our room, flagged down drivers to take us to the market, spa and memories – the list goes on and on! Yoldy even made dinner reservations for us coordinating with friends several times! One night he even found us because we got “lost” at the bar and he delivered us to our friends intact – even had our drinks forwarded to our restaurant! Appreciate and you SHALL receive!! Alexis was also a WONDERFUL butler, unfortunately not ours however he seems to be everywhere so we adopted him as ours and he was more than willing to cater to us! We chose the Royalton specifically for the butler service after having experienced it in Cancun at LeBlanc Spa. Now that I have had a butler, I’m not sure I want to experience a vacation without! The Wonderful Service Staff: Managers met us at the lobby to offer us drinks and wet cloths, our luggage was brought to our room while had the most elegant and easy check in EVER! I never stayed somewhere before and had no need of the reception service at all. We handed over our passports, unpacked and were at the poolbar with drinks in hand within half an hour of arrival! I almost felt guilty when filling out response cards because I couldn’t say anything about reception! I just simply never used them until we were paying our bill on the way out! Leniel is the golf cart driver (bell boy) at the front during the day. He was the first staff we encountered and he was amazing! He took my husband to the market every morning and drove me to the spa for my appointments. He was ALWAYS smiling, chatty and available to tote us around. The resort is small enough to walk around without wheels however we enjoyed our little drives and a chance to visit. People like Leniel are what makes your vacation – that personal touch that takes it to the next level! All of the drivers, gardeners, pool cleaner (Yulanitis) and service staff were great. I love the hospitality of the staff here. It’s such a small resort (122 rooms) that you really get to know the staff as you see the same faces day in day out! We were there for 16 days so we really got to talking to a few. The Wonderful restaurant service: To clarify I am talking about the service, not the food. The food was typical for Cuba although presented well it tended to be under-seasoned and overcooked. The restaurants were very elegant, nicely set up and easy to find. Waiters and waitresses were quick to serve, take orders and in our experience always got it right. One night I asked for a difficult side dish and our waiter Misbel came through. It took him three tries but he was determined to get it right and didn’t accept it when I said don’t worry about it. He really went the extra mile and that is what the restaurant service was mostly like. I was a little apprehensive about a la carte dining because I was fearful with having so many people to serve that orders would be wrong or I would be waiting long periods for simple things like water being filled or more wine. Never the case, these servers were on it. Yuslaika (You-Lee) was also our favorite waitress for breakfast/lunch. She became so well acquainted with our orders that she was able to tell us what we wanted. She always had our little sides ready too! That was outstanding! Really made us feel special and welcome. I really thought dining at the same places would feel repetitive but it actually was fun because of the staff. Again, ask and you shall receive! One day my husband let a waitress know that he LOVES hot peppers and the next day Belkis had a selection of them to put on his burger! Exceptional personal service! These are the things that makes this resort a 5 star! The Wonderful Bartenders: We frequented Yidiel (Je-deal) at the pool bar and Frank at the Lobby Bar. Now, there are a few other bars but we gravitated towards these two in specific and again, it was the people. The bar tenders got to know us and what we liked to drink, made sure they had it and by the end of our 16 day visit our drinks were being poured as we walked to our seats. Yidiel is a lot of fun, a ball of energy and excellent at catering to your tastes. One day he made me about 10 different drinks trying to find a new favorite for me to enjoy. My husband would spend most of the day at the pool bar enjoying chatting with Yidiel while I lounged on my bed reading while having drinks brought to me from Yidiel. Again, excellent 5 star service. Not one time did we have to wait in line for a drink! Frank at the lobby bar makes AMAZING breakfast coffees, mojito natural teas and Conchenchera (sp). Like Jidiel Frank went out of his way to make sure our drinks were perfect and always gave them a special touch/flare. The first day we arrived my husband (who is the PICKIEST coffee drinker ever) explained to Frank exactly how he likes his coffee made and it was done perfectly by him everytime he went in for one. Everyone wants a bartender with a memory and attention to detail like that! Again, 5 star service! The beverage choice was amazing as well. I have been to 5 stars that boast a good drink selection but rarely have I experienced this. Cognac’s, Brandy’s, Tequila’s, Rye’s, Whiskey’s and Vodka’s – all name brands and some vintage choices as well! There were some very expensive bottles on the bar that were not just for display. They were being poured freely. I was impressed to see this as nothing was watered down and they really were serving the best. The wine was pretty good for house wine, be sure to ask to try the different wines though – don’t just assume what you were offered is all there is! There were a couple whites, reds and a blush so try them all until you find what you like! I found a white I really liked and as soon as the servers realized it they made sure it was available to me at the restaurants and the bar! We also bought a bottle for a special celebration one night for a hefty fee ($85 CUC) but we knew the damage upfront and decided it was worth it. True 5 Star bar service and drinks. The Wonderful Views: Everything during our stay was like eye candy. The pools were lovely, the beach was incredible with powder sand and perfect colored water. The gardens were just amazing for a resort that has only been there a couple years! I really felt like I was walking through Eden. The gardeners never stopped and they were an artistic bunch. There was beautiful artistry shown all through the walking paths, around the pools, and even off the paths. They even grow their own herbs! The level of care that goes into the grounds here is stunning. I took so many photos of the gardens and flowers and displays! It actually amazed me with as little rain as there was (two nights it rained) that the plants bloomed and thrived the way they do! Great job! All and all we had a fabulous vacation, very relaxing and fell in love with the Cuban people. The Royalton is a VERY VERY low key resort. The entertainment team play some games, host dancing and Spanish lessons as well as yoga, beach walks etc. They even do “wellness” hand and foot rubs around the pool. They are not there to play drinking games, play loud music and wake you out of your relaxed vacation stupor like most 3 star AI’s. I would say this resort is for an older or just quieter crowd. The Managers at this resort let their presence be known, talk to their guests and follow up and through with any concerns. Raoul was great in checking in with us and the love he shows for the resort and all the attention he pays to details is very impressive. The Christmas Eve dinner, shows and entertainment were phenomenal! We were thoroughly impressed and although we have spent some Christmas Eve’s at AI’s we have never seen anything like that before! Well done! This is most definitely a 5 star resort but with 3 star food. We will not be returning to this particular Royalton but this decision is based on the secluded nature of Cayo Santa Maria. The resort strip is at the end of a long causeway which makes visiting Cuban towns difficult and expensive. We hired a taxi for a day to go visiting but it’s such a long trek that we did it only once. I hope to visit another Royalton soon!

Playa Cayo Santa Maria: Cuba 6 Star ******

We had an amazing time at this spectacular resort. This was only my fifth trip to Cuba but by far the best resort experience and will now be my destination of choice. The bed was comfortable, the rooms were huge and clean. The beach was a bit beaten up by the high winds but the pools made up for it. By Cuban standards, the food was 6 star; I have always said you go to Cuba for the people, the sun, sand, sights and sea but in the case of this resort, I can say you can go for the food as well. If  [... read more]you can't find something you can eat at this Resort then don't travel from your own kitchen because you a way too fussy; they even have an ice cream shack at one of the pools. The staff were exceptional, the entertainment very good; very clean, very nice, very highly recommended!

Melia Las Dunas: Better than I expected!

The beaches are amazing. Pools, daily exercise, dancing are very uplifting. Food is good, lots of variety. Lobby is grand, rooms are clean, staff are friendly. A very relaxing trip. Heard lots of negative story about the trip to Cuba, experience no negative things, such as bug bites, bad food. Enjoyed the tennis court, sports center.

Melia Las Dunas: well worth the visit

A very big place. But don't worry there is lots of transportation, great if you like walking or running. I don’t know why some people moan about the food . Breakfast 8 types of fresh fruit , pancakes, crepes, smoothies, yogurt, cereal, 3 egg stations plus hot and cold tables. What do people have on a normal day. 3 days a week all you can eat lobster at the main area or beach bar. Enough of food I think you get the picture. Activities…dance lessons, good yoga (Daniel Animador will give you a  [... read more]good work out), good gym, the evening dancing with live music is great. Great long beach room for everyone and plenty of lounge chairs for all. The pool again room for everyone and plenty of lounge chairs for all this was in the November and December time period. The pool bar is staffed by Claudia, Jaisery and Javier the will take great care of you. The staff everywhere is very accommodating and attentive. If you like scuba the diving near by is good and the staff top notch.. For beginners they will do everything to help make sure you have a good dive experience. Good safety practices. One thing I wish they would do is take the lead to ban smoking in the main bar area. It is sickening to be having a drink at the bar and people lite up.. At home the would have to go outside in 20 below so why not at 30 degrees. (You won't see the staff smoking in these areas. )

Resonance Blu Santa Maria: Excellent value for the money.

The location of the hotel is perfect. The beach is amazing, it is the best beach period. Extremely friendly staff. Facilities are not the best but it is good enough. If you like fish, meat and fresh fruits, they have the best food. We even got lobster one night. It was our second time and I will definitely come back.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria: Amazing trip! !!!

Resort just perfect, no complaints whatsoever. Clean, food was great, beach is priceless, water so clear, great entertainment day and night!!! Christmas was amazing there. Only thing that could be improved is a little TLC to the rooms.

Resonance Blu Santa Maria: Nice vacation!

Food was OK.Room very clean.I went on a Cuba since 2006.many times and on Star Fish Santa Maria room is very clean.Entertainment was very funny ,we really like show every evening.Staff are very good ,they are not looking for a tip like on the other places. I will go again for sure.

Melia Las Dunas: Better luck next time

Great room. Buffet left a lot to be desired but al a carte great. Too large For us will pick a smaller resort next trip. Beach was unimpressive. Location of room very important. Lots to do for all ages. Entertainment was good.

Valentin Perla Blanca: You get what you pay for

The resort pretends to be a 5 star but in reality they are 3.5-4 stars, comparing to Melia Buenavista and Royalton(both 5 stars resorts on this destination). Don't be fooled with the low price - You get what you pay for. Period.

Resonance Blu Santa Maria: Amazing beach

Fed up of the same food by the third day! Uncooked lobster and overcooked, cold pig and chicken on for Christmas eve dinner, food on the hot table was cold, staff don't speak English, cant understand the MC at the evening entertainment programs, no facecloths, no body lotion, run out of pina colada!, water for tea not hot, could not change beach towels all week!, Sunquest rep was 30 mins late for our 10:30 AM orientation which really was a loss of a half day of our 7 day vacation, there was not  [... read more]sunquest rep last few days of our stay as he was on vacation so could not verify flight information and no-one knew anything!, you had to entertain yourself as the hotel did not organize anything during the day except for the last day when there was the Cuban day which was an attempt to create some fun. BUT the ocean and sand is breathtaking for- they were the best and made up for the shortcomings. The quality of the nightly entertaining was excellent.

Memories Paraiso: Amazing Resort!

Absolutely gorgeous! Wonderful beach, friendly people, clean room. Plenty of space for kids. Food is not a top quality, but is more than enough. After all, you don't go there to gain weight! Overall, highly recommended!

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Not the 5 star we expected when it came to food.

The grounds were kept up very nice and the pool area was really nice as well. The service was good overall. Our room was very nice, large, clean and quiet. We are beach people so we were very happy with the beautiful beaches, how long they were and how quiet and non crowded when we went for a walk during the morning. It didn't seem as busy as we are used to in most places so it was easy to find a quiet place up the beach away from the crowds. As we were quite a distance from the bar, we were imp [... read more]ressed that the waiter came down to serve us on some of the days. This is our third time to Cuba and stayed in 3.5 to 4 star resorts before and found the food better, so with this being ranked a 5, our expectations were higher and certainly let down. The food is mostly kept under heating lamps instead of chafing dishes in the main buffet that didn't help much at all, so most buffet food was barely above room temperature. If you wanted something hot, you had to wait in line to have fresh meat or pasta cooked. I am okay with waiting in line, but 20 minutes for hot pasta and then another 20 minutes for hot meat left the other one cold by the time I got them both. 30-40 minutes standing in line for hot food does not define a buffet. Two people cooking at both the meat and pasta stations during the peak hours would speed things up. We went to the Italian and Japanese restaurants. Both disappointing. Italian creamy tomato basil soup tasted like no name canned soup with a drizzle of cream and sprinkle of dried basil. I had the chicken and the sauce was just plain and milky and the chicken so dried out I couldn't chew it. How do you go wrong with chicken? Japanese had potential but STOP PLAYING WITH THE FOOD! They put the meat strips on to cook and should have served it within minutes of putting it on the grill. Instead they wrote words with the meat. Then finally they placed it on the plate and then wrote "Cuba" on my plate with the sauce. By the time the last people were served and the meat hit my fork, the meat had been cooking for 30-40 minutes. The beef was like leather and I couldn't chew it. The pork barely chewable and they were out of chicken so I couldn't order the dish I wanted. Shrimp was like rubber. All this meat should only have been cooked a few minutes and then served as quickly as possible. Then our chef left at least half the food on the grill and went away and did not return. After 20 minutes, we asked the waitress if she could ask the chef to come back and give us a little more rice and vegetables as they were not quite as overcooked. He offered my husband more and then left, not offering anyone else at the table of 16 more food. Why would you not ask anyone for seconds? Website says internet available but it was down the entire week. Internet is not a necessity but we do like to touch base with our family once or twice while away. We read there was a shuttle running between beaches. We ended up walking it each time and never did see a shuttle. It is a long walk between areas and the shuttle should be running regularly. The beach bathrooms are very run down. Often no toilet seat, no toilet paper, no paper towel and no soap to wash and dry your hands. A five star hotel should at the very least make their bathrooms a priority. We dreaded going to eat and going to the bathroom. Hopefully some of the great service we experienced in other areas of the resort can be put into serving hotter, fresh food and maintaining the beach bathrooms better. We still made the best of our vacation and enjoyed the amazing beaches and quietness of the area but will try somewhere else next time.

Melia Cayo Santa Maria: Excellent Resort

Very good Hotel with all facilities like Tennis courts, gym in good shape. Nice beeches ocean access with helpful staff to accommodate us every morning. Lots of activities provided by very dedicated staff. Food was prepared by Mexican Chef with lots of varieties to choose from. Rooms nicely decorated with Hispanic accent, cleaned on time. Fridge stacked every day for drinks.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria: Playa Santa maria

Very nice resort -good for families or singles. Food was very typical for Cuba but you'll always find something. Rooms very comfortable. Best part is weather and beach. We went for Xmas and was our 2nd time. They had a special dinner for repeated guests, which was very special especially the food.

Valentin Perla Blanca: Some Growing Pains

The resort was breathtakingly beautiful. the weather was amazing, the beach was perfect, the staff were great and friendly. The food far surpassed expectations. The services, however, have warranted the 3 star rating, and that's being generous. I didn't have a single towel, be it the beach towel or even the towels in my room washed or replaced the entire week. The room was not cleaned either. I had to strip the bed myself and toss the bedding in the hall to signal I wanted them changed, and even [... read more] then I had to track down the maid to put a new set on ad she had once again skipped on my room. The water kept going out, which didn't directly affect me, but still unacceptable. The beds are very firm and I would suggest bringing your own pillows if you can fit them. Lastly, alcohol was consistently running out. And they spray this aweful diesel chemical on the plants (and you!) along the grounds each night, really bad smell... This won't surprise anyone but be very watchful of your bags and purses because they will be taken. My purse disappeared after a day on the beach, even my hat! Another friend of mine also had her change purse disappear. I really don't set the standard high, but for what I paid I did expect better. I made it a fun trip, and let most fall off the shoulder. Make friends with the guests and have a good time. But I personally won't return to the Valentin chain.