Above Average

My partner and I just got back from Memories Flamenco Beach resort in Cayo Coco, Cuba, we went with some friends from Ottawa and I would say overall that this resort is above average compared to other Cuban resorts we have been to. We have vacationed at 4 star, 4.5 star and 5 stars throughout Cuba (Varedero, Holguin, Cayo Santa Maria, Camaguay) and in our opinion this resort would fall into a 4.5 star Category. I have found that Cuba is all about managing expectations. You know before going to  [... read more]Cuba that the food is average, the beaches are beautiful, the weather is unpredictable, the drinks are flowing and your value for what you pay compared to other destinations is pretty good. Saying that everyone has there own quirks that can make or break their experience. There were a few minor issues that happened but nothing to ruin the week, deal with things and move forward, find a silver lining. The one issue was the resort was having problems their water supply lines, not sure what it was but on a few occasions the tap water was not available so you make do, we used bottled water to brush our teeth and used the hand held shower nozzle to fill up the toilet tank and flush. The staff at this resort was like others we have been to, very nice and they seemed eager to please. The staff was not looking for tips but when they did receive money or other items they were very thankful. The food at the buffet, al la cartes and 24 hour bar/grill was adequate; I find like any buffet the food can get repetitive but not enough to ruin the trip. The buffet was very clean, the wait for fresh grilled anything was not to bad, it varied from 1 min to 10 min. We always bring "Franks red-hot sauce" to add some flavour to some dishes. The resort offers 3 a la cartes; Mediterranean, Cuban and Asian. The Mediterranean, Cuban was really good. The service and food was great. The Asian was just okay, Service was good but the food was again just okay. (may I suggest installing cooking grills and cook the food in an open atmosphere. The 24 hour grill/bar was good for late night snacks or as an alternative to the buffet for lunch or dinner. They had 2 open grills where they offered pork and chicken daily with rice and local vegetables (just make sure pork and chicken is cooked well) The resort had 2 pools an upper and lower pool. The pools were kept very clean, the lower pool had a swim up bar and the drinks flowed very well from there all week. Azis was the bartender that stood out and never failed to make a great lemonade and dark rum bevy. The pool did get a little busy at times as the beach was not your typical Cuban beach so I think more people hung around the pool than normal. The beach has a lot of corral and we new this by reading the reviews before we went. When you walk down the path to the beach you have the option to walk straight out onto a small pier, turn left and walk along a boardwalk that goes over the corral or turn right and walk on to the beach. The beach was small and not as nice as any toher beach we have been to but we knew this before we went so not a big deal. There is a beach about 10 min by bus if your looking for the the beaches that Cuba is known for. The silver lining here was that the snorkeling was great right off the beach. I would recommend this resort, overall it was a great vacation and the staff at this resort helped to make that happen. Thank you for reading my review and I hope this helps you in your picking your next destination.

Best bang for your buck!

This is a fantastic resort with an amazing staff that want only to make sure that your visit is special. Food is great, beach is rocky in spots but otherwise very nice. Pools are nice and a fun spot to hang out.

Great Resort but.....

Been here before and have to say the staff are great. Entertainment at night is fantastic. Food is good especially the a la cartes. Only issues were the fact they had some boards on the way to the beach that were loose and potentially dangerous that went unfixed for 3 days. Normally I wouldn't complain but it was very obvious to the staff and management. Second thing (not resorts fault) was that the Beach on the Diamond Club side had exposed coral which is tough on the feet. It would appear they [... read more] had alot of beach erosion. They had a coral crushing machine on Site but it wasn't completed in this area yet. All in all great value.

I dont think ill be returning

Lets just say that this vacation I wasnt too pleased with. The weather was cold enough to wear a sweater. The first and the last day was the only warmest day out of the whole 7 days. Th mosquitos are a killer. I WARN YOU to bring bug spray, after bite, and a mosquito net for the little ones and yourself. Consider yourself warned! As they dont spray the resort untill around 7pm at nite. And still that doesn't do not much. They food, let just say you eat the same thing every day just in a differen [... read more]t form. I.e. if you have grilled fish for lunch you will have breaded fish for dinner. (They just battered the fish) I kid you not. The staff are Extremely wonderful and nice. Their English is pretty good, better than what I expected. The beach is amazing, once in it. Memories beach is hidden I noticed that most people where taking an excursion to a beach that is 15 minutes away. Because their doing reno's on the beach so lets just say it doesnt look too appealing at first. I wasnt taking a trip to a beach 15 minutes away when I paid hundreds of dollars to have everything at my fingers tips. That also kinda put a damper in the trip. I was just glad to leave. Even in the plane the mosquitos were following us. I was just soo paranoid especially having a 8 month old baby with me.

Memories flamenco

Service was amazing. Food was fantastic for cuba! Fresh grilled fish, shrimp, chicken, beef. The only disappointment was the beach but new that going in. Rooms were very clean. Woukd rate it a 5 if the beach was better

Fantastic Vacation!!

This was our first trip to Cayo Coco but we have been to Cuba in the past. This resort was one of the nicest places we have stayed in Cuba. The grounds are beautiful and well maintained and the staff were very friendly and helpful. We only had some minor issues with management on our day of check-in due to room issues. The manager on duty that day was very rude and not helpful. Staff who were on duty the next day were very accommodating and resolved our issues quickly. The resort is very clean a [... read more]nd the rooms are spacious and very clean. The food at this resort was fantastic ( especially at the a-la-cartes). I would definitely recommend the Diamond Club upgrade as some of the additional perks were worth the small extra charge. Lunch at the a-la-cart restaurant was worth it alone. Excellent fish! The only negative at this resort was the beach. We had been warned that there was a lot of coral on this beach and the water was difficult to access but we were not expecting it to be quite so bad. If you are not a beach person (like we are) this should definitely not prevent you from visiting this resort. If you really like the beach, you may be dissappointed. We still spent most of our time on the beach during our visit and this did not prevent us from having a good time. The resort is currently doing renovations to improve the beach area. Once they have finished, we will definitely return!

Beautiful funfilled resort.

It was my first time to Cuba and was made very welcomed. Staff at Memories was very helpful and friendly. The kids had so much fun. And as long as my baby is happy I am happy. I will recommend and visit again. I also intend to visit other areas in Cuba like it there it reminds me of birth country. I was told food at Cubana resorts sucked I can say that this resort had good food choices and options for flavour added to order. I would recommend a choice of other types of fish preferably local fish [... read more] on the menue though. When I travel fresh fish is my main source of protein. I can get fresh meats in ontario but freshly caught fish a rarity. Deserts were wonderful breads n fillers (rice potatoes pastas etc) vegetables fruits yum and antipasto good choices. Fresh fruit juices loved it. Kids were in heaven. Meals were good choices.

What a disappointment.

We were not notified that the beach was under construction. More importantly we were booked in Bungalow #1 in Oceanview Diamond Club which overlooked this mess! After 8 days we finally got moved to Bungalow #5.

Memories Flamenco, Cayo Coco, Cuba

Resort was nice. People were great! Accommodations were good. Food was marginal at best most days. The beach is nice, though hard coral greets you for about 10-15 feet before you hit nice sand and water

Great for families!

Very clean grounds, nice grounds staff. Friendly hostess's. Variety of food- bbq, a la carte and buffet. Rooms were clean the main level or ground floor level suites do have more bugs. Pools were always clean, towels are provided there and you can exchange at the hut when needed. Always some sort of activities or games going on . Great night entertainment. The staff at the kids club were awesome. 15 minutes from airport. The beach had some open face rock on the beach but was being covered with m [... read more]ore sand. If you want to be in the middle of it all book residences 1, 2 or 3(closest to the beach) 4 gives you enough distance away from eh night life to fall asleep but yet still be able to walk a short distance to all amentias. Check in staff got us in our room early and were very accommodating especially with children. there are other Memories reports around Flamenco but are not as nice and are under construction. None of us got sick and are dreaming of the next trip back!!!

Decent resort

I was very disappointed, we were diamond club which is VIP and we got treated worse then the normal guests. The food was average, they had buffet and stations where you could get a variety of meats cooked in front of you. The alacarts were okay, it was a lot of the same foods repeated but made a little differently. The rooms were very basic, no beach view, no view whatsoever, our view was a bunch of trees. We actually had a few problems in the room and called a few times and they never got fixed [... read more] properly. Our sheets always felt dirty, I don't think they changed them once! The layout of the resort was somewhat confusing. The beach area was very rocky entering the water and the VIP section was awful!! The staff wasn't friendly at all! The excursions weren't the greatest and way over priced. Overall I would definitely not go back or recommend this place to anyone!

Fantastic resort

people have complained about the coral on the beach. there may have been approximately 4 feet of coral that was no more than 3 or 4 inches high. cant believe people would complain about that. the beach was phenomenal. grounds were great, food fantastic if you couldn't find many choices your just too fussy and should stay home and cook for yourself. everything was fantastic. the staff was great with the exception of carlos an activity coordinator. people were dloing the aqua size and were told to [... read more] shut up as they were having fun laughing and having a good time. the next day I was in the pool talking to a friend that I had met at the resort, carlos came over to sell us ticket for a fashion show and I was still talking he looked right at me and told me You shut up. I guess these tickets were more important to him than my and the other guest enjoyment of the resort. what an idiot. the cleaning staff, waiting staff always bang on. the first couple of days in the buffet service was a little slow but as soon as they realized we were bringing little gifts, they were very appreciative and attentive to our needs. room was fantastic would definitely recommend going to this resort, great time, great weather, great beach,pool could have been a foot deeper but no biggy. I would go back but only been to cuba 4 times and always like to see something new, but if another deal arrises at this hotel I would definitely consider going back as it is on par with the best resort I have ever stayed at.

Nice resort

Nice family resort, food was ok at the buffet but very good at the a la carte restaurants, pools very nice, beach was ok, construction on the one side. We upgraded to diamond club, not worth it, the only extra was the diamond club VIP dinner so don't waste your money. all and all good times but will not return to this resort

The best so far

Already missing this place. Just came back from Memories Flamenco Beach Resort. We had amazing 2 weeks vacation from 8 to 22 September. And planning to come back in January. Everything and everyone who we meet there was simply ready to serve you. Thank you for relaxing 2 weeks at the paradise.

One of the Best

This resort is one of the better in Cuba. The short bus ride to the resort was a plus and the rooms were modern and comfortable. Food was typical, no great no bad. The resort staff were friendly and except for the waiting forever for a glass of water in the buffet restaurant at any time of day, the experience was overall very good. The only possible negative would be the rocky beach, but just bring your water shoes and you are set, plenty of shade for those who need it. The bar-b-que shack on [... read more] the beach was very popular and even being off-season sometimes ran out of fish!!!!!!! They should have two people there, one to cook one to serve, always a huge line up. Definitely would go back to this resort.

Very Good Experience

“Very good experience” I posted this review on Trip Advisor My spouse and I resided at the Memories Flamenco in Cayo Coco from August 28th to Sept. 4th.. We had the Diamond club option. Check in was easy, we received our package and room keys at the airport before boarding our bus. Our room in Block #1, terrace was nice & clean. We really appreciated having the sink separate from the bathtub/shower and toilet room. The maid service was very good. On a daily basis, she had a towel our sheet  [... read more]ornament/design for us to admire at our return from the beach. The fridge & bathroom items... were replenished when needed. The food was very good at all the locations we ate: Buffet (wide variety of meats, pastas, breads, fruits/vegetables, ice cream, deserts, etc...) , lunch restaurants: Florencia (Air conditioned restaurant for Diamond Club visitors) was very nice but we preferred the quicker service at the 24 hr snack bar (menu was not as elaborate as Florencia) near building #2/pool as we wanted to return to the beach asap. We went to the Japanese and Cuban A la Carte restaurants and enjoyed both dinners. We did not try other A la carte restaurants. We had special coffees/liquor after our meal at the coffe stand facing the lobby area. The service at all the bars was excellent (We did not go to the Pool bar) service was with a smile. The pool was clean. The washrooms were close to the pool Bar and others somewhat close near the Snack bar. There was no washroom very close to the beach. We had to walk from the beach next to the snack bar. All the washrooms we used were kept clean and constantly monitored by the personnel. There did not seem to be any problems for anyone to obtain a Palapa/long chairs at the beach. We usually got there early after our breakfast and always had the assistance of beach employees who were happy to escort us to the location of our choice and provide us with the long chairs of our choice. The location of the Memories Flamenco is ideal for beach walkers. You can walk either way (North/South) for very long distances (Kms). The Beach is narrow and the sand is white. The only issue is that there are corals/large flat rocks when you want to enter the water. But after approximately 50 feet it is all beautiful white sand (no rocks or corals). I strongly suggest you bring water shoes for the first 50 feet. We did not have any, so after three days we always walked to the boardwalk and entered the water via there. It was beautiful (soft sand/shallow water) and we did not mind the small walk from the Diamond club area. We did not attend any night shows. We saw the Water show (synchronized swimming team) in the late afternoon at the pool which was again amazing. We had seen it in Varadero at night (we found it better at night). The famous Michael Jackson show was moved by one day to our departure day so we did not see it. The guests are mostly from Canada and Europe. All were pleasant and respectful of others. We stayed in Block#1 next to the theatre (night show) there was somewhat load music/speaking until approx. 22;30hrs. but we did not mind. The gym was a good walk away from Block#1. It is located next to the Spa (Block#10). The equipment and AC in the gym (change room with shower) is well appreciated. The Spa is very nice. The hard working hotel personnel are ALL wonderful, friendly & always give you an excellent service. Overall our vacation experience was very good and appreciated. My spouse and I would return to the Memories Flamenco (will buy water shoes) if we can get another fantastic low price deal (we paid $1300.00 (Diamond Club incl.) for both). To the Memories Flamenco hotel administrator/manager, may I suggest that you build another boardwalk leading to the Ocean from the walkway next to the Diamond Club. I believe this would not be expensive and would boost your number of visitors and beach entry appreciation. Room Tip: Buildings # 2, 3, 4 or 5 are closer to the two beach access areas.

Wonderful week in the sun (sept 3-10 2014)

this was the second time we have stayed at Memories Flamenco Beach Resort - this time we took our 3 daughters with us (17,18 & 22yrs old) and 1 of their friends. The girls had a blast, especially liking the pool party (3.30pm each day). The food was good (as always) and on Tuesday night they seemed to make an extra special enhancement to the evening buffet as everything was displayed with hand crafted sugar art, fresh sushi, elegant desserts with white chocolate drizzled towers - it looked and t [... read more]asted wonderful. The staff were always pleasant and extremely courteous. Our rooms were spacious, wonderfully located in block 1 (we had requested 1 of our 3 rooms to be disabled friendly) and it was fantastic, all 3 rooms in close proximity to each other and so close to all the amenities, it made things very easy to get around (BIG Thumbs Up to the staff for blocking us into those rooms) literally just got home and already starting to think of the next time we will go to Memories Flamenco Beach Resort

Amazing

We had a group of 8 and we loved the resort. The entertainment was the best I've seen on any resort. Amazing talent. The buffet was very good offering fresh food every day. The beach was beautiful and the pools were great with chair availability all the time. I highly recommend this resort and would go back myself.

Good bang for your buck!

The beach water was amazing, but i agree with everyone elses recommendation to bring watershoes, there is rock for about 2 feet of rock along the shore line. Some places up to 5 feet in. This being said, as we were there they had a bulldozer at the end of the beach that apparently is starting to dig out the rock at the end of the week. If the rock is gone i'd go back to this resort again for sure! Location was great too! The staff at the resort were amazing too; one of the best i've ever seen!

EXCELLENT RESORT

We had a fantastic time. Rooms were spacious and clean. Service was quick and efficient at all times. We were upgraded to Diamond and the people who handled the chairs at the ocean were so friendly!! Food was very good, no complaints. We definitely would go back.