Melia Cayo Coco: Melia deserves its good reputation

We've been to 11 different resorts in 4 different areas of Cuba, and found this resort to be right at the top of our list for many reasons. You will not be disappointed by a visit to it, understanding that it is Cuba you are going to. Given the difficulties we have all experienced over the last almost 2 years (plus hurricane Ida), we were very happily surprised by the excellent condition of virtually all of the resort. The grounds are neat and well maintained, the rooms all were clean with s [... read more]trong, hot showers, and the beds comfortable. The lagoon rooms have nice sunrise/sunset views, and in the shallow water you can see some fish (look near the mangrove roots for 4 - 6 inch barracuda floating motionless), Whistling Ducks (endangered on the mainland where they are hunted), and some entertaining small jellyfish that mainly lie upside down on the bottom of the lagoon looking like algae. Except for a couple of visits to newly built resorts we haven't been to a better maintained resort in Cuba - a bit dated but in good repair. We were a bit concerned that we'd find food to be an issue given the supply difficulties that Cuba is experiencing, but I have to say that this was the best food experience that we've had in Cuba. One of us was vegetarian and had no difficulty finding a satisfying meal at any mealtime - the specialty restaurants (all 3 were quite good) each produced a special meal without hesitation when asked. The buffets were all well staffed because no one is allowed to serve themselves with only a couple of minor exceptions (yogurt in glasses for example). All staff wore masks all the time everywhere, and all visitors wore masks when approaching the staff at the buffets, bars, stores, reception desk etc. The resort manager meets every arrival and explains what they are doing for our safety, and asks that everyone respect the efforts being made by caring about others' well-being. He sets the tone at the resort - we found all of the staff welcoming and very responsive to any sort of request (that they could meet). The same was true (somewhat surprisingly) at the airport where the staff seemed less officious than in previous years and worked hard to keep things moving. There is an initial lineup on the way in while they inspect the online form that Cuba wants filled out before arrival. Masks are worn in the airport and on the bus, but are generally not worn on the resort except in close proximity to others indoors. COVID testing for return flight: It is well organised here. Your airline rep (Sunwing, Air Canada etc) will tell you what day to go for the test – the doctor waits between 8 and 11 am every morning in front of his office by the lobby. He fills out an official form, you sign, get nasal swab and are done in 5 minutes. You will pay $30US at reception by credit card at checkout time (or before if you want). The results will be delivered to reception the night before you leave probably around 8pm. This resort has had no cases among staff or guests to date. We know the Tryp had cases this week most likely due to the lax approach certain guests there took. The resort layout works well with everything a short walk away. There was a gentleman there in a wheelchair who told me that access was decent everywhere - a little rough in places but not restricting. The room was large enough, with one rocking chair, one dressing table stool and 2 plastic chairs on the balcony. The air conditioning worked well with a remote. We unplugged the fridge every night since the compressor can be loud. The water is very hot (after a minute or so, so be careful), and the pressure in all four rooms we had was strong throughout our stay. Closet includes 2 umbrellas and many wooden hangers. Currency: Cuban pesos are only good for tipping. 20 pesos is about $1 Cdn. $1US is the handiest bill (coins are useless of course). If you are going to use Cdn bills, try to bring new ones down - the Cuban banks reject bills with even the slightest blemishes - since they will have to take them to the bank to convert into useful money. All tours and all purchases in shops are purchased in US$ using credit (VISA, Mastercard on a Cdn bank - not Capital One, Citi, AmEx etc) or maybe debit if you have a US dollar account. Because our cards need a PIN there is no need to lug around passports anymore. The Gaviota Commercial Center (10 minutes walk from the resort) has a number of small retail stores that accept cash. Cigars: The shop at the resort has a reasonable selection, the shop at the Pullman has many more (to go there walk down the beach and ask the security folks to go to their shop. They will radio for permission and direct you to it. Prices are all the same. Once a week a man comes to the lobby and sells cigars that he rolls for significantly less (they looked fine to me but I'm no expert). The large store in the Colonial is now closed along with the resort. The shop in the airport was closed when we left in the middle of the day, so don't count on it. Birds: If you are interested in birds, get in touch with Paulino Delgado. He's great. There are a pair of Black Hawks that cruise the beach each morning, Cuban green and West Indian woodpeckers that visit, 10 different types of warblers nearby, Anis, Bullfinches, stripe-headed tanagers, 2 types of oriole, kingbirds etc. all easily found within a half kilometer. The sports bar has 2 small pool tables that are in good repair with decent cues, and 4 TVs that show various sports (and one music video channel). It has outside tables for smokers overlooking the lagoon. Speaking of which, we were never bothered by smoke as we have been at some resorts, and yet smokers are well accommodated for at all of the venues. Rooms are all non-smoking, but balconies are covered and have ash trays. The sports center was also relatively well equipped. They have one table tennis set with decent paddles, a reasonable tennis court, a fusball table, an air hockey table, and even an archery range with both left and right-handed bows and decent arrows. Pedro enjoys teaching boxing and knows what he is doing. He also is available for tennis or any of the other sports if you need a partner. He's a great person. We tried to scuba dive, but the Gaviota Dive boat failed on us so we missed out. And they didn't bother calling so we wasted half a morning. There are 2 other scuba places on the island, but we found out too late to switch. One is just down the beach in front of the Pullman resort (it also teaches kiteboarding - 3 hour lesson to start, or just rent the board). They pick divers up off the beach in a smallish boat and do 2 dives in the morning - deep then shallow. You can also go out with the shallow dive just to snorkel - reasonable price for one hour on the reef. We’ll try that next time. The other scuba place is on Cayo Guillermo which will send a bus for you. We'll probably try them next time. We tried snorkeling from the beach with little success because it was a bit too windy all week so the water wasn't clear enough and the reef is a long way out. There was a volleyball game on the beach most afternoons, and Jesus and Joel at the bar kept everyone happy. The bar has 5 or 6 tables under a roof, and there were lots of palapas on the beach. My guess was that the resort was about half full so there was no crowding anywhere and no waiting for drinks etc. Even if it had been full, though, I think that they have the capacity to serve everyone without much waiting. The last night we took music and drinks and watched the sunset from the ruins of the old Sol resort on the point at the west end of the beach. You get there either on the beach or on the road from the lobby. It gives you a nice view up the beach towards the Tryp resort (don't stay at it, it has changed for the worse). We had one problem that didn't really get resolved. On the third night a group of locals moved into 3 of the rooms in our building with one of them between 2 of ours. From about 2am until 3:30am when I finally got up and went to reception a few of them were shouting and banging on their doors and one of ours. Once I complained, reception called them and they quieted down. They left the building until 4:30am when they came back and woke us up again with loud talk. Customer Services called them the next day and so they were quiet for one night, but the next night at 3am we went through it again. Melia offered to change our rooms, but I decided not to - a mistake as it turned out, although I was pissed off that they weren't moved instead. So, if you encounter noisy neighbors jump on it right away with reception and make sure it is actually fixed. We ended up having to re-organize our rooms since our daughter was very uncomfortable (to say the least) having a couple of drunken 20 to 30 year old men banging on her door and shouting in Spanish in the middle of the night, not to mention losing the better part of 2 nights sleep. This was the only negative we encountered there, and I think it is not something that is normal there. But it was infuriating.

Barcelo Solymar: Under Renovations

We booked the Barcelo Solymar hotel, when we got there they put us in the Arenas Blancas which is a cheaper hotel and we still got charged the full price for the Barcelo Solymar. The food was always the same every day they made everyone put their bags at the door where it could easily be stolen, so while eating always worried that it would go missing. Not very impressed, at the time of our booking i’m sure they knew it was closed due to renovations it took for ever to be able to book to sta [... read more]rt off and i had already stayed at the Arenas Blancas twice before so i wanted a change and the buffet is bigger at the Barcelo solymar and a bar pool and a bigger lobby bar. This review is for the Arenas Blancas not for Barcelo solymar it was closed for renovations and we were not advised about it and we paid more for this hotel, i paid for 2 weeks plus a land person for 2 weeks. Denise from Moncton NB

Memories Flamenco Beach Resort: Decent resort

Not the best in the world, but still decent enough keeping in mind the money you pay! I being the diamond club member was not given all those extra services as promised. The only plus point with diamond club was the diamond club restaurant. rooms were okay, beach was excellent! 50% of the resort staff only spoke Spanish which didn’t bother much but still they don’t speak much English.

Memories Jibacoa: Great getaway!

The hotel is located alongside only one other hotel. This makes the beach great for walking. There are no crowds at all and we felt we were on vacation. From the moment we arrived the service that was provided was second to none. We took the Diamond Club and the staff was outstanding starting with the easy check-in. The room was very comfortable and clean. All the rooms are close to the pool area, the beach, and the restaurants/buffet. We went snorkeling right off the beach and the water w [... read more]as warm and clear. We also used the peddle boats and went sailing on the Hobie Cat. You can also take out a kayak and snorkeling equipment. No reservations were needed and they were always available. The staff at the beach bar who brought drinks and worked at the bar were outstanding. As the hotel was not full there were many empty chairs and therefore, there was lots of space between you and other guests. You also did not have to get up early to save a chair at the pool or at the beach. The food at the beach was very good. We ate mostly at the A la carte restaurant. The food and service were great. At the buffet, they have staff to serve you and you point out what you would like to eat. No guests are handling the food. All staff was wearing masks all of the time. The Covid tests and results were provided at the hotel. We stayed there for one week and will go back again.

Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria: Great deal for the price

This hotel provided an overall good experience for us, especially for the low price that we paid. (Beach/facility) The beach was gorgeous and the weather was wonderful every day we were there. The lawns and vegetation were well taken care of. The resort was on the smaller side which was a huge pro. It was not a long walk to get anywhere Ie/ it was a 2 minute walk from the room to the beach or the buffet. There was a small gym, tennis courts and soccer field. I very much enjoyed the gym during [... read more] my stay. I might also add that there seemed to be ramps all over the resort, so I believe that it is relatively accessible if this is required for your needs. (Room) the room was very nice, my partner has been to Cuba 5 times, and he had indicated to me that this was the nicest room he has ever stayed in. Each room had a balcony and fresh flowers were put on the bed every day which was a nice touch. The room was also re stocked with water, beer and soda every day. (Food and drink) the bars were wonderful, though they sometimes ran out of things, the bar tenders were very kind and would recommend things based upon what we had been drinking. Though not available every day mojitos were amazing and I highly recommend them if you go to this resort. I did have a hard time with the food however. I am a vegetarian and found that there were not many options for me at the buffet as almost every food offered contained meat. There was a 24h snack bar and a beach hut that served grilled cheese, which I lived off of for the week. Additionally there is an omelet bar in the morning which was a fan favourite for my group. If I were to make one suggestion for this resort, I think that having more fruit and vegetables available would be beneficial, though I understand that there are supply chain issues at the moment which could prevent this. (Staff) is he staff were quite friendly, specifically a waitress named Rosy made our trip much more memorable. She was always willing to seat us outside on the balcony even though it was not open at the time we stayed there. She even had our table set up with a dinner setting and twinkle lights one night as she knew we were coming. Truly this woman is a sweet heart and deserves a raise! (COVID) COVID seemed to impact the food offered at the resort a bit as there were some restaurants that were closed when we visited. Masks had to be worn in the buffet, lobby and before we were seated at the a la carte. Also there was a staff member spraying sanitizer in our hands when we entered the restaurants and buffet. At the buffet the food was only served by staff members, and the tables were cleaned after each group left. As far as the covid test to re enter Canada, it went very smoothly. They organized for a doctor to come to the resort 72h before we left, and got our results the afternoon before we were set to depart.

Memories Caribe Beach Resort: pleasant

rooms were large and clean, very comfortable, would like a door on washroom The gardens were beautifully kept. The beach was perfect. The food was ok, service was sometimes poor (we waited for our silverware while our food was getting cold, they would not give any to me when i approached them.) The bars\cafes gave good service and were very pleasant. Staff were friendly, usually acknowledgeing us with a hello as we passed them. Musical entertainment was enjoyable, very talented. Pizza at [... read more] the beach was delicious. All staff practised covid protocal - wore masks and practised self distancing and sanitzing. There were no clear cut rules for wearing masks by patrons in the dining room. I was not comfortable with this . Food was put on your plate by workers while other people stood around not wearing masks right next to you. Everyone should at least wear masks when they are getting their food. Hotel needs to make this a rule. Other suggestion would be to have servers behind glass and on other side of bar.Also give cutlery out while you are gettting your food.

Playa Pesquero: A great place to get away!

If you like the water (ocean) and you enjoy spending the day on/around the beach this is the place! Great snorkeling right at the resort. Food is typical, however Caletones (seafood), Romantico and the Trattoria were great. Pub face at La Pipa (beer garden) was good. The people are amazing. FYI, no more CUC, so take as many Can $5 bills for tipping as you think you might require. We felt extremely safe and look forward to going back!

Melia Cayo Coco: What a gem!

First, the staff. They are amazing friendly people all around. The beach is amazing and probably the best in Cayo Coco. Service is amazing, rooms are comfortable albeit a little dated but really, who cares when you are in paradise. A la cartes were good. Buffet was ok but honestly, I’m not picky. All in all, great trip during pandemic. Bravo!

Melia Internacional: Cuba’s Best Resort

This relatively new resort does a lot of things correctly. The physical assets, including the rooms and public areas are in great shape and are well maintained. The beach is spectacular and the pool areas are large and very accommodating. The food is very good, particularly at the a la carte restaurants. The staff are friendly and anxious to serve. We would recommend.

Iberostar Selection Holguin: Go somewhere else !!!

Terrible experience !!!! 7 days a week, I ate pasta . Other options are really not good !! And , I was wait 20-30 minutes just for pasta . Local people always coming to beach. No privacy!!! Food : Terrible 😣 Room: good 😌 Desert and fruit are not good 👎

Grand Aston Cayo Las Brujas: A beautiful, spotlessly clean, modern resort !

We (a group of six) just returned from a week at the Grand Aston. We thoroughly enjoyed it, and were made to feel SO welcome. It is a beautiful, modern resort with exceptionally pleasant, helpful staff, and some of the best food we have ever had in Cuba. We were very impressed with how careful the staff observed the necessary protocols. They were masked at all times, and did not hesitate to gently remind guests to put their masks on in indoor spaces. There were a number of hand sanitizing [... read more] stations throughout the resort. The public washrooms were very clean, well supplied with toilet paper, and the liquid soap containers were always full. Our room was very nice.....I was sharing with a friend, and the room, initially, only had a double bed. I requested a second bed, and one was immediately moved in, and made up..... within minutes, and with no fuss at all. The bathrooms were clean, with great showers.....excellent water pressure, and lots of hot water. For the first couple of days, the resort was very quiet.....only about 150 guests. On the third day, a large number of Cuban families arrived, and the place really came to life !! It was lovely to see everyone enjoying themselves, especially the kids, but the music was just a little too loud, and the number of people at the buffet a little daunting, so for a very nominal amount we transferred to the much quieter adult only section (with adjacent ocean view rooms, which was lovely) for the last few days. This gave us much easier access to the beach, a large quiet pool, a great snack bar (which also served breakfast, lunch and dinner.) And a well stocked bar right beside the pool. This is a really nice resort......the beach is lovely, the ocean calm and clean (and quite shallow for quite a distance, which is great for small children), and we had a lovely holiday !

Starfish Jibacoa: No Covid Social Distancing

In the dinning room (which was a buffet) there was absolutely no social distancing. Let me explain, the hotel occupants or guest were comprised of approximately 80% Cuba tourists and 20% Canadian tourists. The Cuban tourists were shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip, rude, abnoxious, pushy and jumping line to get their food from the buffet. It was unbelievable!!!

Club Kawama: Fantastic memories

Another unforgettable vacation at Club Kawama. From check in to departure you truly feel as a welcome member of FAMILY. With strict Covid rules in effect, we found the staff impeccable both in adherence too and enforcement of said rules. The service was easily at par with any 5 star resort I have been to in Varadero. Clean, clean, clean. Always a staff member cleaning and disinfecting in front of you, behind you. Can't wait to go back.

Hotel Los Cactus: Wonderful Break

After being closed for many months we were excited to be back again for 3 weeks. The employees were as always respectful to our needs, the hotel grounds do need some work but with the number of trees it is an ongoing task. The rooms we stayed in were clean and functional. The beach was terrific, white sand & aqua water what a site for sore eyes. This is not a 5 star resort but staff is friendly, the food is excellent, the liquors good and the wine poor. We will never stay anywhere else in Cuba.

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Very Beautiful Hotel but No

This hotel is amazing, staff is amazing food was okay, drinks were disappointing. My complaint is that it was 80 to 85% Cuban guests and as much as I love the Cuban people, when there is a lot of alcohol consumed, they get loud and rude. I was served after many Cubans even if I was first. I would not return for this reason. I paid top dollar for a five star hotel and expect to be with others who have done the same.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria: I would recommend this resort

I liked this resort because they were masked at all times. At no time did I feel at risk to covid. They were very accommodating. Food was very good. Had no issues. The beach was absolutely gorgeous. The rooms were very clean. Bartenders were quick to get drinks and always very pleasant. I would go back to resort again.

Brisas Covarrubias: My perfect escape

Absolutely my perfect and preferred little escape, my first trip was 2005 and I’ve been there many of times and it’s now 2021 and my feelings is still very much the same, I love the fabulousness of friendship build through out the many years and very special with friendliness , future plans I am extremely excited to book another visit ❤️❤️❤️

Melia Cayo Coco: Nice stay at a small friendly all-inclusive resort

Grounds and public areas were well maintained and clean. Covid protocols were strictly adhered to by staff.I did come across a couple of items on the grounds that needed attention. While walking to the beach on the eastern most boardwalk over the dunes, I noticed a loose plank, which was a potential hazard to visitors. This was promptly fixed by maintenance after I pointed it out. There were also some exposed rebars extending from a wall entrance to the pool area (next to the boardwalk previousl [... read more]y mentioned), which looked dangerous if someone were to slip and fall against one. I did not point this out, but it should be obvious to hotel management and maintenance who pass it daily. We stayed in a ground floor classic room which was cleaned daily and felt comfortable. There were some minor issues which were an annoyance. Water on bathroom floor and plumbing disruption (no water during one day but back on by evening so not a big issue), old batteries which failed in the safe and door (needed to have maintenance replace). A sliding door that did not slide in the built in closet. I needed to lift and move it each time. The beach was nice and not too busy. It was blowing close to 40km/h wind gusts the week we stayed, but this can happen in Cayo Coco and Cayo Guillermo, which are off the mainland and more exposed. However, it was mostly sunny with highs of 28c which felt comfortable and the wind helped keep any mosquitos away. This is an excellent area for kite surfing. The a la carte restaurants were very good for Cuba, especially the Mediterranean restaurant. My only complaint was entrance to that a la carte requires a stair climb (no elevator) which is problematic for people with walking disabilities (clientele skews older here so a potential issue for some). The buffet restaurant had a good selection of food and I very much appreciated that the staff served the food rather than having everyone use the same utensils to fill their plates (big Kudos to Melia Cayo Coco for this!!!). I felt service (coffee and drinks and sometimes place settings) was a little slow at times in the buffet. The staff numbers may have been lower than normal in the buffet for a hotel close to capacity. More supervision could have helped. The bars were good (especially the lobby bar). Excellent service and friendly staff. No issues getting served anytime of the day. The reception desk staff were also excellent. I went there frequently to change money (CAD to Cuban Pesos) for tips and they changed it without issue. They also dealt promptly with any issues such as the safe and door lock batteries. The medical staff on site were also excellent. We had our COVID pre return flight PCR test on the Thursday morning and received the results Friday evening before flying back on Saturday. The doctor personally handed out the test results at reception. He was on site all the time. I found the garden staff to be very friendly. It was a genuine friendliness. They went about their work happily with smiles on their faces every day to keep the gardens looking great. Kudos to them. The entertainment staff were also great. We enjoyed the shows, live music in the lobby, live cuban music at the beach restaurant daily. We think Cuba is one of the best places for entertainment in the caribbean. Their entertainers are all well trained (from a young age I think). We saw some excellent dancers and enjoyed some amazing singers while staying at this hotel!!! All in all, despite some of the minor issues, we had a very good stay at Melia Cayo Coco. We liked the small intimate feel of the hotel and the friendliness of the staff. If you enjoy beach walking (which I do) there were KMs of walking either side of the resort along the beach. Walking to the right takes you past the Pullman and the areas for kite surfing onto a virgin beach with virtually no-one and long stretches of flats out to the sea. Walking to the left takes you to the rocks at the end of the beach..walking from there to the left takes you to a lagoon and you can walk for KMs past a number of hotels (Iberostar Mojito etc) to the end. If you choose that walk, prepare for some tired legs from walking in the sand. Thoroughly enjoyable though. If you like to fly fish ( the salt water variety) Melia Cayo Coco is a good place to stay. There are a number of flats nearby that you can try for the elusive but famed bonefish that salt water fly fishers dream of. I did bring my rod but opted not to go this time. However, I noticed three fly fishers staying at the hotel. They seemed to go every day during our stay and looked quite happy. A great week to escape from the wall to wall news about Covid and enjoy life for a bit.

Playa Vista Azul: Great resort

Since this was our first visit to Cuba during Covid, we were not sure what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised. All workers were wearing facemask and all surfaces were regularly disinfected. Hotel was really great, newer, with big rooms, walk in showers and flat screen TV. Food was really good, they had good selection in buffet but on smaller scale. You can book ala cart dinner every night, our favorite was Italian. Pancakes for breakfast, eggs, omelets, cheese, all kinds of bread. For l [... read more]unch and dinner they have chicken and beef grill. Really happy with our stay at this hotel. Hotel has two beaches, one with activities and one quiet. Infinity pool was nice too.

Melia Peninsula Varadero: Good Value

The hotel was very Covid lax until someone tested positive then it was mask and sanitizer everyone panicking. Food decent but hotel not very clean. Staff are friendly One maid stole my sons epi pen I guess it’s expensive to obtain. Wish they would of asked I would of gave it to them.