Needs some TLC

My hotel room was clean and nice. My one concern that the pool has been out of service for a year. No one at the front desk spoke much English (if any), so it was hard to ask any questions. There seemed to be some problems with the elevator and some toilets, but I had a good vacation there. This hotel is a long way from the airport (1 1/2 hours), and it is closer to Trinidad than sites in Cienfuego. The hotel just needs some TLC and updates.

Average hotel, nice beach, great location!

HOTEL The main hotel building was very similar to the Hotel Tropicoco near Havana. Made of concrete, the hotel was built by the Soviets in the 1980s and in one word, it was ugly. The saving grace was that it had a very nice beach and of course, was close to the charming town of Trinidad. The superior, ocean view section (where we stayed) was built about 17 years ago and was much nicer than the original part of the hotel. The swimming pool was closed. There were two bars near the entertainment  [... read more]area, one served quite good sandwiches, hamburgers and French fries and the other one offered various drinks, including cold beer—bring a big mug! There were also two bars in the lobby area; we often used the one close to the patio, which was open in the evening and served excellent cappuccino and Spanish coffee. On the lower level (below the lobby) were two stores (‘tiendas’) selling alcohol, clothes, postcards, souvenirs, etc. as well as a bank, which was very convenient. There were also other vendors, offering carvings, arts and crafts, postcards, books and the like. BEACH The beach was nice and sandy, there were loungers and palapas, but they were quite difficult to get (I write more about them later). Once a group of French speaking tourists from Canada were conducting a very animated and loud conversation which lasted for a long time; I was sure they could be heard by half of the sunbathers on the beach! The beach was quite long and it was possible to walk along it towards the east for several kilometers. OUR ROOM #8312 The room was located in the ‘superior section’ and from the main hotel lobby required a three minute walk as well as climbing the stairs to the third floor. It was a rather small room, but it was okay. We had a nice balcony, facing the ocean and the beach, from which we could admire sunsets. A couple of loungers/chairs on the balcony would have been nice, though! The TV had plenty of channels, including CNN and Canada’s CTV, albeit from Montreal (in English). The air conditioner worked, yet we tried to sleep with the balcony door open and drawn curtains so that mosquitos could not get in (as a matter of fact, I do not remember being bitten by any mosquitos or sand flies). The bathroom was small, had a bathtub, we always had hot/cold water. There were two small beds. The small fridge kept our beverages cold and the safe was free. We got two magnetic cards; both opened the door and one of them also opened the safe. The maid did a great job cleaning the room every day. Since the entertainment area was close by, we could clearly hear the music from our room. Incidentally, we never went to any performance. RESTAURANTS The main dining hall/restaurant (Bahia de Casilda) was adjacent to the lobby. We always skipped lunch, only had late breakfasts and twice or thrice dinner there. For breakfast we had some fruits, salads and fried eggs with bacon or omelets as well as very good yogurt (not available every day). Dinners offered the regular fare, there were three cooking stations and I was always able to find something I liked. The red wine was quite passable. Most of the time we sat at the end, near open windows, which were also used by several birds that were flying in and out. Overall, I had no problem with any of the food that was served—although the selection was not as plentiful as that in other hotels in Cuba we had recently stayed at. Then again, I never come to Cuba to expect some amazing food anyway. At the lower ground floor there were two a’ la carte restaurants—Italian and Seafood (Restaurante el Pescador). We dined twice in the latter. I found the food quite good, some dishes were excellent. We also wanted to try having a meal at the Italian Restaurant, but were informed that it served only pasta, so we skipped it. It was also possible to have one meal at the adjacent Brisas (in its top restaurant), but since only six Ancon guests were allowed to eat there every evening, we never did get to go. It took some time before we managed to get a voucher for another restaurant at the Brisas under a giant palapa. We had a very casual, romantic and tasty meal and enjoyed it very much. By the way, all the vouchers were obtainable from the Public Relations desk. HOP-ON-HOP-OFF BUS TO TRINIDAD One of the main reasons we went to the Ancon was its proximity to the town of Trinidad, which is one of the most beautiful towns in Cuba. Located 10 km from the Hotel Ancon, it was a very short ride from the hotel by bus or taxi. However, there was also a hop-on-hop-off bus, departing from the Hotel Ancon to Trinidad at 10:00 am, 12:30 pm, 3:30 pm and 6:00 pm and from Trinidad to the Ancon at 9:00 am, 11:00 am, 2:00 pm and 5:00 pm. It cost 2 CUC both ways (keep the ticket if you are planning coming back). WHAT WE DID NOT LIKE We did encounter some inconveniencies which we believe should not have occurred—and they certainly negatively contributed to our overall experience. 1). It was very difficult to get a lounge chair on the beach—unless you ‘reserved’ it early in the morning by placing something on it—it was Catherine who religiously took care of this issue early in the morning, at 7:00 am, to be exact. We noticed that some people occupying lounge chairs did not have any wrist bands—only later did we realize that many tourists from town (i.e., Trinidad) arrived every day by bus to enjoy ‘la playa Ancon’ and perhaps some of them simply used hotel beach loungers. It was a pity that security guards did not make sure that lounges were occupied by paying hotel guests only! Moreover, adding more chairs/loungers would be an even better solution! 2). The checkout time was at 1:00 pm, so we had packed up everything in advance and went to the beach in the morning to enjoy the last day of our vacation. We came back to our room at about 12:15 pm and when I tried to open the safe (where our passports, money and cameras were), neither magnetic card worked. I called the reception to report this issue and was told to come with the card so that it could be reprogrammed. Two minutes later Catherine called the reception and asked the receptionist to send somebody over to our room as it was difficult for us to come—she wanted to shower—besides, it was not our fault, after all. The receptionist insisted on her coming to the reception—and simply hung up on her, thus forcing her to take a walk to the lobby and join the lineup of people checking out! It was still about 20 minutes to 1:00 pm—yet we also found out that now both cards ceased to open our door as well! Well, we had the perfect right to use our room (including the safe) until the checkout time and it was quite disappointing and nerve wracking that the cards stopped working BEFORE that time—if anything, they should have had a ‘built-in’ grace period of at least 30 minutes instead of making our last hours unpleasant and testing. Incidentally, we had a similar glitch several years ago in the Club Amigo in Guardalavaca. 3). On Saturday around 9:00 am, before breakfast, I went downstairs to the bank to exchange money, but it was closed. I asked the sales lady in the nearby ‘tienda’ if she knew when the bank would be open; she said it was closed on Saturday, but the reception upstairs (in the hotel lobby) could exchange money. Thus I went to the reception, only to be informed by the receptionist(s) that it was impossible to exchange money there; instead, she suggested that I try going to a bank in Trinidad. As I always tried to double check everything in Cuba, a few minutes later I asked the public relations lady (whose desk was next to the reception window) about the bank downstairs. Lo and behold, according to her, the bank would be, after all, open today, but around noon, since the exchange rate had not arrived from Havana yet and sometimes it did not come until noon. Around 11:00 pm I went to the bank and it was still closed; I was hanging around it for another 30 minutes, but to no avail. So, I again asked at the hotel reception when it would open—this time I was told that the bank employee was on lunch. For the next 30 minutes I kept checking whether or not she was back, yet the bank’s door was closed shut. Finally, for the second time I asked the ‘tienda’ sales lady if she knew when the bank employee would be back from her lunch. “The bank is closed on Saturday”, she repeated. “It’s not what I was told in the hotel reception”, I said, “The bank employee is supposedly having her lunch”. She looked at me incredulously and briskly called the reception; after a brief conversation she told me to go there to change my money. Indeed, the reception employee (the same I had spoken to in the morning) was expecting me and without any problems exchanged my $100 Canadian into 68 CUCs (albeit a few days ago I had gotten 70 CUCs at the bank downstairs). This whole episode left a rather bitter taste in my mouth—after all, for several hours of my precious vacation time I was chasing after a non-existent employee! CONCLUSION Since we go to Cuba with a very open mind, overall we liked our stay. Although the hotel’s crude, concrete architecture was not too appealing, we had been aware beforehand what kind of establishment we would be going to—and that was why we booked a room at the Superior Ocean View Section, which was a very good choice. The hotel staff were not as nice, friendly and attentive as those in the other hotels we had recently visited, but they were still adequate. The food was good, the room clean with plenty of hot water and we could count on catching the bus to Trinidad—visiting this charming town was the highlight of this trip. Would I go to this hotel again? If the price were right, maybe I would consider it, yet I would rather pay more and pick the adjoining Brisas, a Spanish, colonial-inspired design. Nevertheless, I had, as always, a great time in Cuba and I am looking forward to another trip in November or December!

Fine for one week!

I recently returned from a one week vacation .I knew in advance that the hotel was the Soviet style architecture I dislike but it still bothered to have to look at it :) especially after touring the Brisas down the beach which was Spanish colonial. Plus,it seemed that it was not only ugly but not particularly functional . Busses pulled up where pedestrians crossed ,lots of area seemed underused and some safety issues The pool had been closed since May. Luckily I was staying in the detached super [... read more]ior ocean view room ( with balcony although no furniture was there) I was shown the regular rooms and they were small with no balcony.I could hear the blaring entertainment both in the late afternoon and evening tho.:( I did not use any of the entertainment services.I would have happily done "stretching class" as I do daily yoga but it was at 10am ..just after eating breakfast :( 8-9 or 11-12 would be better) I would have gone to Spanish classes too but they were not offered. I did not use any excursions or on site marine services. The beach was very nice but loungers got snapped up early .. beachgoers who were not hotel guests were partly to blame. It is a public beach and busloads of tourists come for the day…and leave on the 6pm Transatur bus from the parking lot at the end of the beach.,after,thank goodness, picking up hotel guests We crammed 69 people into a small bus one Monday evening. en route to Trinidad.Accolades to the driver! altho the comfort/safety level was unreal. Cubans are on the beach each early morning persistently begging for your clothes.I did promise one man some stuff on the day I would be leaving (and he kept reminding me daily:)but I still kept getting hounded on my 7am power walk by the same people I constantly said no to ,which annoyed me. Also a group of Cuban women hung out at the parking lot area and I was mercilessly pestered for stuff while awaiting a taxi.Yes ,I understand their situation very well (and yes I may be very well doing the same in their situation) and I am very generous in giving stuff and CUC but I don't like constant bombardment ! I never had this issue in Trinidad I will say . Orientation was well worth attending and "Audi" was helpful ..and much in demand for restaurant vouchers.(read: frequent line ups for this ) Restaurant service was so -so but I never ate lunch and tend to not need a lot of help.I did tip after meals and sometimes sat with a long time regular (23 years ) who was very generous all round. I encountered some frustrations trying to get same day a la carte vouchers. I did enjoy the Pecatore restaurant because it was partially outdoors and the Brisas Cuban buffet Campanosa outdoor palapa style restaurant we could get vouchers for. I found the buffet to have good food but curtains covered the large windows to the outdoors which I always felt like pulling back to let in natural light. Also there were really no outdoor dining tables. Our room was nice ..3rd floor ( I had emailed to request upper level using 4 different emails addresses provided but all emails were undeliverable. Cleaning service wonderful (perhaps because I left daily gifts:) I always had hot water at 5pm ish so I appreciated that.Air worked well too. Bar service in the main building near reception was spotty and the adjoining outdoor patio nice except when it rained.very limited covering. Great Spanish coffee in the evening! Reception service was ok but there were frustrating problems with ambiguous information on changing money on the weekend and a very long line up when we arrived at 10pm to check in. My safe (free I may add) would not open when packing for departure within check out time limits and I had to run to reception ,line up and get my key renewed despite calling them from the room and asking for assistance.(my partner had mobility issues so its not reasonable to expect people to do this) The towel service was frequently out of towels or closed when I tried to use it . The Castillo Bar /Restaurant was great all the time I used it late afternoon except for the day of the wedding where guests were pre and post ceremony celebrating there.Also 2 of the a la carte restaurants were unavailable that evening due to wedding but,for me,in return , it was fun to watch the wedding :) The bus to Trinidad (UNESCO site celebrating 500 plus years)) from the hotel was on time (2CUC each.).I wish there was a later return from the city to coincide with the 6pm departure from the hotel. Also, bus stops at near by La Boca a where there are many casas/hostals to rent and fun to wander or bike around. (rentals at local bar) The bus to and from the airport was timely and the driver loaded our bags for us.

You get what you pay for

Let's start by saying that the Cuban people are amazing, hard working, genuine people. This was an affordable hotel for new years for my family, my boys loved the basketball net, brought their own ball then gave it to the locals the night before we left, you should have seen the look on their face, priceless! TRINIDAD city is raw but beautiful, tip the people & bring down lots of stuff to give out.

Standard Cuban resort

This is was my second visit to Hotel Ancon. Things did not change that much in 4 years, the beach is still fine, but more sea weeds are now growing. One day there were jellyfish, but it was rare occurrence. The resort is now about 30 years old and added some more buildings and beach bar at the east end. There is also a new beach bar at the other end (near Brisas), but it is not part of the hotel. Food was fine, so was the house red vine (Spanish). The bank is still only open only few times a wee [... read more]k, better change money in Trinidad. The bus to city (2 CUC/Return) is alway on time. Coffee bar in this all inclusive hotel has several drinks, which are not included. Which part of 'ALL inclusive' means NOT Included? Entertainment is pretty good, except there is no interaction between the entertainment team and the guest. Biggest complain is that there are new groups arriving every evening, spending the night and leaving in the morning. The resort have the feeling of railway station or airport as the suitcases are on the move constantly. Pool was closed for renovation, but I was notified of that. During my 2 week stay, NOBODY worked on the pool. I prefer room with the balcony and asked to switch my room for one. It was done after 3 days without much fuss. The room with balcony (in the main hotel blg) is smaller than a room without balcony.

Best beach on the south shore.

Clean, friendly, (but small with balcony) 7th floor room overlooking the beautiful beach. Pool out of service but we were well warned. Useful shuttle bus into Trinidad, but left 5 minutes early on 2 occasions!

Good resort for the price

My second time at Club Amigo Ancon. If you know what to expect you'll have a fine time. This is a 2 star resort but I loved every minute of it. While the hotel itself is a bit outdated the staff are mostly quite nice, made some good friends with many of them throughout the week there. The resort has 2 sides, the older soviet style block and the newer smaller 3 story building. Well worth the extra few dollars to stay in the newer "Tropical" rooms, more secluded, newer beds and pillows and nice ai [... read more]rconditioning. The food is ok, I'm happy with rice and beans and some meat for every meal, there are also 2 grills serving various meats/fish and a pasta station. Bring some hot sauce or your own favorite spices as Cuban dishes tend to be a bit bland. Try doing dinner one night in the town of Casilda with some locals. There are 3 fancier a-la-carte restaurants at the resort, the Italian is the best, the International is pretty good, the seafood one was a disappointment. The beach is fantastic, some seaweed, but mostly warm and sandy. You can walk a few kilometers down the beach to either side of the hotel, there are some public beaches as well as secluded beach areas to the east. Be careful of sand flies when it gets dark though. Probably the best thing Club Amigo Ancon has going for it is its proximity to the town of Trinidad. 2 cuc shuttle bus or a ~10 cuc taxi ride. Lovely colonial town, cobblestone streets, lots of little bars and restaurants, shop, artisans, and things to see and do. Also a nice national park nearby with good hikes, waterfalls, swimming, cliff jumping, horseback riding...etc.

Not what I have experienced before at this hotel

====================================== Review from latest trip to Club Amigo Ancon (June 7-14, 2015): (I can't rate this stay as more than 2.5-stars. As a frequent vistor, it was disappointing! Better in January - April.) 1. At this time, the hotel is undergoing their Summer Maintenance (as expected). 2. As a "senior", I was given a room on the 3rd floor - the highest - while younger people had rooms on the main floor. Since there is no elevator, it meant that I needed to climb 3 flights of stai [... read more]rs every time that I returned. 3. On check-in: When my key didn't work (for about 5 minutes), I was told by reception - "Well, you're only here for a week, so it's not worth changing the room for you". (See Item 4) My response: "So, I should spend the week in the hallway??". Seems that the pivoting door handle doesn't work if you pull down (the usual), but you need to push it UP! 4. The promised Oceanview Room faced directly away from the ocean - I could get an ocean view if I walked down the hallway to an open area. 5. Due to the rain (not blaming the hotel for this one) ....There were Crabs of all sizes, and more bugs than I would like. I had more bites than I've had in ALL my previous visits to Ancon! Meanwhile, it was "business as usual" - no REAL attempt to handle the bug (including Sand Fleas) infestation. On the first morning, I had 3 bites - when I applied cream, the area spread to a larger area! (Yes! I was worried that it was infected - it has now disappeared.) 5. When I asked for a Band-Aid, I was told that I'd need to visit the pharmacy at "Brisas" - the neighbouring hotel! 6. The Hotel Ancon Bank was closed - and the Reception did not have currency for conversion until the day before my checkout. The only possibility for Currency Conversion was a trip to Trinidad. (If you don't have Cuban currency, how do you pay for a bus trip to Trinidad?) Also, the Massage Area was closed, the "Hospital" was closed, the Gym was closed, and the Cava Bar was closed (all in the same area of the Hotel). I understand that the Hotel is not working at full capacity, but I should not have treated as a "person who expects a handout" - Item 3. Conclusion: If it has rained more than usual prior to your visit, don't visit! Don't expect any real courtesy - it's the "Slow Season" so they have limited staff to deal with everything. Don't expect the "All Inclusive" perks - the food is mediocre and repetitious. (The 24-hour bar is your best option - drinks, fries, and pizza.) Entertainment is minimal - music, a Magic Show, and not much beyond that. The beach is always nice - the white sand and warm ocean helps.

Big resort

Negative: public beach, many domestic people, making noise. Poor entertiment, every day the same. So far from airport. CUC so hi exchange rate. Seafood restaurant has no sea food. Service frendly, but slow.

Well worth the visit!

The resort was excellent for kids and adults! I loved that they didn't undermine the kids but had everyday activities for them wee ones! Only down was the coral on the beach. It was so hard to walk on, I wish they would clear it up. Food was by far the best in Cuba!

3 star Hotel on a 5 star Beach - Perfect!

We picked this hotel because we wanted to visit Trinidad. We would definitely recommend the Superior Ocean view rooms that are right on the beach. We have been to Cuba many times and enjoy the music, dancing and the authenticity of this country. Food was good at the buffet and excellent at the 3 à la carte restaurant. The coffee bar was the highlight of the mornings and late afternoon.

Some excellent Services

Hector at the pool bar is a perfectionist with his bar tending skills, mohito's, Sangria and Pina Coladas were spectacular. Truly an artist! Also the coffee bar and beer bar were exceptional as well. The main dining room is too hot and stuffy

Club Amigo Ancon, Cuba

Hotel 3 stars that makes great efforts to be top. Food ok, restaurants help for the variety. Oceanview room ok but not so big. People are very very welcoming, great service. Scuba diving is great and Leo and Igor great instructors. Hector makes delicious and original cocktails. MariaElena very attentive to the clients and she offers great service either to the dining room or the lobby bar. Trinidad is a beautiful city.

Great Resort.

The Club Amigo Ancon Resort is very nice. The lounge is good, they gave us good room and upgraded us without charging any extra money. Over all the resort is very compact and enjoyable. The food is ok, very basic. But we have to remember it that this is 3 star. About the Gran Caribe Resort , I am very much disappointed. The main reception is nice, beach is nice, the people are very friendly. But the conditions of the rooms run down a lot. The food is average. I would not recommend any body to go [... read more] there. Though they have all kinds of facilities by book, to me it is a 2 star resort.

Very good budget vacation!

My sister and I (both seniors), spent a very enjoyable week at Club Amigo Ancon at the end of Sept.2014. Our room was really nice, with a beautiful view of the beach and ocean. It had an excellent bathroom (full tub, hairdryer etc. and spotlessly clean) with lots of hot water, and good water pressure. We had a mini fridge (fresh bottle of water every day), safe, and a top-notch, digitally controlled air conditioner. Also very comfortable beds. We were in the ''Superior '' building. The beach was [... read more] absolutely gorgeous, and the ocean nice for swimming....no rocks or coral, and a nice gradual slope into the water, which got deep enough to swim within a few feet of the shoreline. Perfect !! Lots of palapas available for shade, although quite a number of the beach loungers were cracked or broken. This resort is VERY accessible for anyone with mobility issues (or mom's with strollers!) ...there are ramps everywhere, and wooden boardwalks leading down to the beach. BUT, strangely,no elevators in the newer (Superior) building, which seems odd (and inconvenient!!) Unfortunately, the pool was completely unuseable for the entire week that we were there. It looked like pea soup, you could not even SEE the bottom!! This was not a big issue for us, as we prefer to swim in the ocean, but must have been very disappointing for people who prefer the pool. And the weather was HOT that week !! I have to say that the food was not the best feature of this resort, although this is possibly because it was low season, and they may have been gearing the food to the many local Cuban families that were staying at that time. The breakfasts were nice (eggs, omelettes, lovely fresh orange juice, fruit etc. etc.) but the food at lunch and dinner (with the exception of some very nice fish) was quite monotonous. We ate mainly at the 24 hr. snack bar, which served quite tasty pizzas, fries, burgers and sandwiches, and just went to the buffet for dessert (very nice ice cream !!). We certainly didn't starve !! It is a very long (3 hour) drive from the airport (Santa Clara), but the scenery is absolutely spectacular, so was quite enjoyable during daylight hours. In the dark, not so much !! We really enjoyed our week at Hotel Ancon....wish we could have stayed longer !!

Amazing and relaxing

Pool and beach where top notch. I've been to veradero twice and it is no where near as good. This is a place more for people who want to relax and party with their own friends and family. Veradero is more commercialized and for a younger crowd (16-24)