Iberostar Coral Holguin: I can't wait to go back!!

I have been to Cuba many times before, and I have to say my week here was the best ever! The resort itself is stunning, very clean with awesome rooms. No matter what time of day or night (we arrived very late), the staff was friendly and helpful. The bartenders were excellent! No shortages stop them as they can get quite creative if you tell them what you like! They also tell some pretty good jokes LOL! The service staff was very good; our room was cleaned from top to bottom daily, with plenty [... read more] of towels, toilet tissue, and plenty of shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, hand soap and lotion. The food was good and there was plenty of it. I have no complaints about the food. Now let's talk about our Butler Extraordinaire, Junior Perez! I don't have the words to tell you how great he made our trip. It was like all you had to do was think about something, and you turn around and there is Junior making it happen, always smiling and helpful! Junior and the staff turned a great vacation into an awesome one! In all my trips to Cuba, I have never booked a resort twice, but I am already booking another stay here in April, and probably again next January.

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Great resort

We have been to Cuba a few times before just not to this resort, so we did have an idea what to expect in Cuba but it was pre-pandemic. Was there for an inexpensive & relaxing vacation first time since 2020. The resort was very clean, outside grounds as well as in the lobby/restaurants. The maids did an amazing job in our rooms, always had fresh sheets/towels and bottled water. The beach was great, clean and beautiful. Just a couple down falls were anyone with mobility issues this may not be [... read more] the place for you. Lots of stairs, even to the beach you take stairs. Yes there are elevators in the buildings but sometimes they were out of order. Also if you are diabetic Cuba may not be the place for you. No diet pop whatsoever. We did ask our rep as well as every bartender and all replied the same, no sorry none available on the island. We were willing to leave the resort to go shopping for some but nope not available. You must remember you are in Cuba and some food and some daily personal need items may not be available, they are still trying to recover from the pandemic. Felt very safe there. Canadian money is preferred. Toonies and loonies not so much but the bills are. They will take u.s. money also. Overall it was a great trip.

Playa Pesquero: Almost perfect

Everything was even more than expected from a country with a 63 years US embargo. The beach is lovely. The pool area is beautiful and very well kept. The gardeners are doing their job perfectly. The rooms are very good, but for someone who visited luxury places may not like it. Food is good and enough. Just don't go before closing if you want to have a choice. The most beautiful experience was outside the resort when I took a trip to see how the local people live. They never ask you, but if you  [... read more]give them a small gift they are very thankful and you can feel, it comes from their hearts.

Playa Pesquero: 10th time back

just got back from 9 days, was excellent weather, supplies are dwindling, no chicken, beef , only pork, getting little sick of that, breakfeast good, but we come back for the people, most honest and loving people and will do what ever they can to make you time there enjoyable, be heading back in March with family, cant wait""

Playa Pesquero: Wonderful Hotel

A huge resort and at the same time incredibly cosy. It’s the staff From front desk check in to every single employee we crossed over the course of the week, I would say A+. Grounds are kept gorgeous, rooms were kept clean and restocked mini fridge daily. Beach was incredible! One side full of family more with small kids and the other quite quaint and chill in sun or under little almond trees with a great feel. Spoiled on beach by waiters who offer endless smiles and love. Along with your drin [... read more]k order. Tons of free activities all day from pool to beach. Volleyball ongoing, tennis pool ping pong. All under the open warm air. I will bring up the food. There wasn’t a huge variety. In fact I ate the same thing for a week. What I ate I loved though. The COVID really really hurt them there. They missed soda waters, Coca Cola, running out of many things. Choice was pork many ways and fish were sardines in cans made many ways. Papaya and bananas were abundance but no other fruit. We felt for them. Didn’t bother us one bit.

Playa Costa Verde: PCV home away from home

We have been at PCV before and we could see that some upgrades were done during the covid shut-down period. The bungalow blocks were freshly painted, steps going to the second story were replaced in many bungalows, the lobby and cigar lounge have been updated. The beach was beautiful all always, water was crystal clear and its great snorkeling right out from the hotel, if you go a bit further out into the bay. All staff was friendly, helpful, and personal. The food at the buffet is as good as it [... read more] can get with what gets supplied to the resort. The cooks manage to create several different dishes, yet with same ingredients. There was enough fresh cabbage, salad, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers to create a variety on our dinner plates. The bread was better than a couple of years ago. There are enough scooters for rent, but very few are actually in good working condition, so you might have to wait a couple of days, if you want to rent a scooter. Reading some of the bad reviews on Tripcentral about this resort must have been written by tourists who came to Cuba with wrong expectations in the first place. We have not seen any rude/negative behaviour from any Cubans (staff or guests), yet it is not difficult to find fellow Canadians behave rude, careless, and disgusting; leaving plastic cups everywhere around the pool area, filling half filled cups with cigarette butts, etc. What is most disappointing is to see guests leave plates filled with food as they leave the buffet area, which will then have to be thrown into the garbage, while the cuban people outside of the resort have no food to speak of. Shame on those tourists! The resort PCV is dated, but kept clean. Its the staff that makes this resort stand out from the other resorts in the area of playa Pesquero.

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Amazing Resort

just returned from Gran Muthu Almirante, it was amazing. The resort is spotless. Our room was Oceanview and we had a beautiful view. I believe the quality of food was 5 star quality we were able to have seafood, chicken, cheese, bread, butter etc at every meal. They had cleaning staff always cleaning for fingers prints. As much as the resort was full it never felt crowd. The lobby bar has entertainment and great service 24 hrs a day. The beach is beautiful and the beach bar has great servi [... read more]ce even though they are very busy. There are 5 pools. One being a kiddy pool with a pirate ship . But they are never busy but still beautiful. 24 hr beach restaurant is really nice as well. It's a very family resort. The buffet is great. The restaurants are super. Everyone is so friendly and helpful I recommend it highly and can not wait to go back

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Great resort

The hotel was great ,service and staff were great, my family and I had a great experience. Definitely coming back again. Daily intertainment . The location is good. The staff tries their level best to accommodate the guests. Many thanks .

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: An okay resort

The resort was clean and the grounds well maintained. However, I would not deem a resort all-inclusive when they supply you with one bottle of water (because we cannot drink the tap water) and then advise that you must purchase water thereafter. Similarly, they ran out of wine every day in the afternoon but you could purchase wine at their store for $17.00 a bottle. Wine was not available at the buffet unless, once again, you purchased it for $17.00 a bottle. Only 2 restaurants were availabl [... read more]e so it was not possible to eat in the restaurants often and it was necessary to eat in the buffet. As one may have surmised, we like to have a glass of wine with our dinner and that was, obviously, not possible. You could not get drinks at the pool swim-up bar because they did not have glasses so unless you were able to obtain a plastic glass at some point and hang onto it, you could not get a drink at the pool swim-up bar. The worst was when their entertainment set up their speakers and played music so loud that it was deafening in our room. We were not happy with that nor were the people with children or the elderly who were unable to even res. We will not be returning to that resort. Okay if you do not have high expectations.

Playa Costa Verde: A great resort!

We like units being only 2 stories and 16 large rooms per unit. Our room was clean, the water was hot and very room had a balcony. The grounds were well maintained and all areas were clean. The beach was amazing!! Food was what we expected for a Cuba.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: First Time & Loved It

We travelled as a family just 3 of us including our 14 year old son. As far as resorts go it was what is expected in Cuba. Enelvis gave us a villa with a living room and separate bedroom which was ideal. Both air conditioners were fairly new and worked well. If you are in the main building near the pool the entertainment can be loud if you go to bed before 11:00pm. The bungalow area of the resort was closed as were some restaurants, pools and bars. It's still a huge resort and you can walk a  [... read more]short distance to explore the village. The food was plentiful but mostly the same. Although the bread was fresh there was no butter at all only Mayo on some days. The Creole soup and roast chicken were my favourites. We had lunch at Bennys a la carte and it was a treat to have fish. We did 2 a la cartes and they were both fine. Book them as soon as you arrive. The Beach of course was beautiful with powdery white sand. These things are not what we travel to Cuba for, it's for the staff. Enrique, Rudolfo, Lucy, Enelvis, and too many more to list but most of all Lester from entertainment who provided info about horseback riding, which was the highlight of our trip. The staff are all so hard working and just wonderful people. I hope we will have the chance to visit again.

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: very good hotel

It is a lovely hotel ,the rooms were nice and comfortable, the facility was full at the time of our visit, ala carte was good, food was good and service was good as well. Beach is excellent, very friendly staff. Definitely would recommend this resort.

Playa Costa Verde: Jan 1 -8/2023

Before I review the resort I must comment on the travel experience. Every detail that Sunwing controlled was delayed from start to finish which was a major fail. I would definitely look for a non Sunwing travel package the next time we vacation. On to the resort. This is my 9th vacation in Cuba and first time at the Playa Costa Verde feel that I can fairly compare this to the other 4 star resorts we've stayed at. The rooms are very dated and would barely rate them 3 star. There are no ocean f [... read more]ront rooms and ocean view would be a stretch as there is a natural wetland between the resort and beach so not worth the extra surcharge. We were in a ground floor room and all through the week there was construction noise above us, ie moving furniture, running water, sometimes til 330am. Called front desk on four separate occurrences of which one call was answered and noise stopped but resumed the following night. The grounds were well kept and appealing to the eye. The staff in general were not very inspired. There were a few friendly faces but most seemed like they didn't want to be there. As far as the tourists go, 90% Quebecers. Large groups, very loud and obnoxious. Would avoid this hotel on that fact alone. Also found that the hotel was hosting locals as well, apparently a perk mandated by the government. Not a problem with them being there except I found the resort amenities strained by the influx, was not able to get a seat at the buffet one night, had to eat at the snack bar. The food and drink were the worst we've had in Cuba over the years. No potatoes, no mojitos, no cereal. I know that the food offerings are usually repetitive in Cuba but there was little variety to choose from. Of the a la cartes, Cuban was best, Japanese second and Italian would be a pass. Not sure if this is a complication due to covid or the ongoing embargo but it has noticeably deteriorated from our last visit (at a different resort). Met people that have vacationed at the costa verde for 13 yrs and said that this was the worst that they've seen and would probably not return. As we are beach people, that is the saving grace of this resort. One of the best beaches we've been to, not over crowded and plenty of activities aside from soaking up the sun. Fantastic snorkeling right from the beach, volleyball courts busy and entertaining, non motorized sporting equipment always available. Beach loungers usually available but safer to get out before breakfast and reserve. Not too overcrowded like the neighbouring Pesquero, the whole beach side by side, six rows deep! We decided not to do any excursions but were disappointed when the scooter rentals out front were unavailable due to multiple breakdowns. 75% were out of service due to a lack of batteries. Shoppers are out of luck, this is a out of the way location and the trinkets and souvenirs are not widely available. There is a small flea market across the street but mostly hustlers looking to buy what you have. We enjoyed our vacation in the sun but feel that the issues with the airlines and the constraints with the resorts, apparently a Cuba wide problem, would probably avoid Cuba til things get sorted out.

Grand Memories Holguin: Beautiful resort

Beautiful resort Entertainment not very good. Pools nice. Food good for cuba, after covid. Missing veg. Beach long . They are working very hard to cleaned. New managment "Memories" Improvements are coming. 👍😀

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Close but no cigar!

It is a lovely facility but lacks in Cuban decor and ambience. I have travelled to many parts of Cuba over the past 28 years and have stayed in different hotels and even casa particulars. The rooms were nice and comfortable, had a safe, refrigerator, hair blower etc., but we never did get the room with the king bed that was requested. The facility was also very full at the time of our visit and the service was very slow especially at the lobby, beach, and snack bar bars. The a la carte staff wer [... read more]e all very good but the food was mediocre as best. It was actually disappointing that the seafood restaurant over cooked everything. The Japanese restaurant was entertaining but the food was below average. The Italian restaurant was good and the staff were also very pleasant and efficient. The International restaurant food was okay and the staff too. The buffet was okay but that's it. I do know that it has always been an economically depressed country and their are excellent resorts there with exceptional service and food at the same cost or even less. I'm hoping this is just growing pains and wish them all the very best in the future but for me it was overpriced without good service or food.

Aston Costa Verde Beach Resort: Costa Aston Verde- loved it!

The hotel was was very clean, the house keeping was amazing, staff was awesome. We liked every aspect of the resort. The food was good hat they could offer to the best of what was available. I would like to mention here that my wife is a vegetarian and they always made sure to serve her something veg. Best people I would say.

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: Buyer beware

My wife and I had not traveled in several years now, selecting Cuba and this resort as our first destination. Brand new hotel having been open for approximately one year. Traveled with Sunwing, from the start, the flight was over 3 hours late and we lost the first day at the hotel (each day is $500 to stay during the NYE time area). We are still waiting on our so called free gift, that was supposed to be have sent from Sunwing prior to departure. Arrival was pretty much as expected., we were [... read more] checked in and pushed to our room, we were not asked what type of room and were given a twin bed room. Not very happy having to sleep in a small bed or apart, we requested a room with a queen or king bed. We were told none are available, to come back. Day two, had us booked on a previously set up appointment, and no new room was forth coming, still sleeping apart from my wife. Set up appointments for the ala Cart dinners with our friends who also traveled with us. Service was very slow, with limited staff available to get drinks, no, they want you to stand in line at the lobby bar for 15 minutes to get your beverages. Seen two wait staff for over 100 people. Internet has upgraded, so that it is now available in the rooms, and is free, but you must renew it every 3 hours. No idea why they can not set it up as on while you are registered as a guest as you are given a unique password / login. So just another thing we had to manually do to stay connected in anyway (I run my own business and need to be connected in case of emergencies). Day three, pretty much more of the same thing, lines for food, lines for drinks, no idea why our payment can not afford more staff to service the people they have brought into their hotel. Still no room change available, we gave up on that idea and resigned to what we were given (this is not a cheap place to stay either). Food was mediocre at best in the buffet, watched the one cook coughing into his sleeve where he was cooking the non-editable "steak". No orange juice, just that "tang" like drink mix which is totally disgusting. Eventually they ran out of the tang as well. First ala carte, was pretty good, service was good and food was good as well. Day four, can feel I am coming down with something. Took the day off and stayed in doors in my room for the most part. There is no place to get medicine in Cuba, bring your own, or suffer. Day five, yes I definitely have some bug, glad I brought Tynenol, should have brought a decongestant as well. not coughing or hacking, so keep myself away from others and limited my exposure to people totally. Guess having separate beds might not be a bad thing, if you sick. Day six, still the same old horrible service to get beverages or anything else (like really they barely pay people here, hire more). NYE pig roast, ran out of pig (in a country that literally everyone grows them to supplement their groceries). Guess no roast pig for us this time. NYE diner over cooked lobster, and poor selection of holiday special foods. The nightly entertainment shows are so poor that we all were totally disappointed. Stopped going after the 4th left down. Watching one of the two "waiters" stop at a lobby table and talk with the people there for over 45 minutes, no wonder no one gets any drinks unless they get in the 15 minute line up. Now you may think well that is Cuba, but I have been coming to Cuba over 8 times, and thought (wrongly) that paying more would mean a huge step up in service and foods (we stayed at the Pullman in Cayo Coca and seen this first hand in Cuba), but no, the MGM is a horribly run place, with limited service that you would expect in a 3 star at best. Giving this place a 5 star is far from accurate, and if your expectations are to have a service based vacation, definitely stay away from here. The Pullman was leaps and bounds above this place, and I would never return to Cuba given the experience I have had here. In conclusion, wife and I got back to Canada, have tested positive now for covid, having got a parting gift of getting sick. Do not believe the ads where they show any type of preventative measures, there, they do not exist. Staff if limited in appearance, I put that down to management and the ones there for the most part were fair. As I look back, the price we paid and the service we got were far from being what I would expect from a five star hotel, and reality is, I wish now that I had gone literally anywhere else after having spent $5500 for two people.

Iberostar Coral Holguin: Great holiday in Holguin

A truly great experience, everything was the way it was described, we enjoyed every minute. The greeting we received from Junior and how he explained the room and the attention he showed us all week was a very nice touch. The bed was one of the most comfortable I've experienced in Cuba, the room was cleaned everyday by a very thoughtful maid. The shower was the hottest ever and it never went cold!! the shower gel and body soap are in dispensers so no fear of running out,and its eco friendly.  [... read more]The pool was well maintained and the beds and loungers were available most of the time (not crowded) the two beaches were beautiful and always room for everyone, beach staff always willing to help find a spot for you. We enjoyed all the meals both buffet and a la carte, always sometime tasty to eat and the service was excellent, always seemed happy and willing to satisfy. We didn't take in any of the shows as the selection side was extremely busy, there was some nightly entertainment on the Coral level and we very much enjoyed that. We never ventured off the property as we had no reason to, everything was at our resort that we wanted or needed. This is an excellent property to get some much needed R&R and thats what we received, thank you to all the staff for making our time at your resort very memorable, we will be returning again, that says it all :) Kelly & Lisa December 29-January 5th 2023

Gran Muthu Almirante Beach Resort: wonderful beach and peoples

The quality of the food is a bit low but satisfactory and the staff are very friendly. All facilities were clean and the feel of the sandy beach was very good. I want to go again next year with the clothes I used to wear, soap, and snacks for gift.

Iberostar Selection Holguin: Bring your own dinner napkins and toilets papers!

The rooms are clean...the check in was slow... the hotel is very nice but still need lots of improvement's. Was in Cuba many times before so I know what to expect, this time I was disappointed The pool was nice…the hotel property is huge and need lots of walking, we can't catch the shuttle easily...there is a small beach where the water shallow but lots of rocks...we had to walk between 5-10 minutes to the better beach which was nice, caught the shuttle only one time...little bar on [... read more] the beach but no grill or any place where we could bite something for lunch, had to walk back to the buffet basically that was the only place in that big hotel where was possible to eat something during the day...the 24 hrs. snack bar menu was very limited and the food was awful there...tried the ala carte restaurants in the evening it was the same food what had in the buffet so was no point to go there. Had no soda, tonic, juices for week and a half (it was only the diabetic juices which had no taste)…many times no forks end spoon on the tables...it was a little peace of toilet paper for napkins on the tables or sometimes nothing, the VIP section had a proper dinner napkin (that coast $35 US per person for a day)… drinks quality and entertainment was poor. It was a stinky washroom on the beach, but after couple days was out of order and wasn't fixed while our stay...the only availability was walk back to the hotel or use the bush or the ocean. The staff are friendly, polite and helpful of course...we love Cuba and the people we will definitely return but not in this hotel.