Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Nice Resort

The hotel was large but comfortable and we were quite satisfied with our room located just off the lobby on the first level. We thought this might be a problem as the hotel bar is there as well, but there was no problem as it usually quieted down before midnight. I did not find customer service as helpful as they could have been. On two occasions, I waited quite some time to even talk to someone and after they had, they waited on other customers who came to the desk after me. It appeared that i [... read more]f you spoke Spanish that you were taken care of right away. I got tired of waiting to be served and on one occasion an acquaintance who spoke Spanish went back to the desk with me, explained my request (in Spanish) and they looked after me immediately. There also was not a sufficient supply of beach towels and we waited three days before we were able to get ours. Otherwise the hotel/bar staff was friendly and helpful as was the lady who took care of our room. The beach is beautiful and we reserved our spots every morning. There were Catamarans and Paddle Boats for free on the beach. I absolutely loved the catamarans and we were out just about every day!! The pools were clean but COLD! As with most reviews I have read, the food was not great but this seems to be the consensus for most resorts in Cuba. There were two buffets to choose from plus two Al la carte options as well as a 24 hour grill available. The buffet in the main hotel was not very good but the other one in the Bungalows and entertainment area were much better. The all night grill was great for eating with hamburgers, sweet potato fries and pizza being served. One has to wonder why the buffets would be so different being in the same resort but they were. The Coffee & Piano Bar on the second floor was great for just relaxing and listening to the music or playing cards. This Coffee Bar had absolutely the BEST HOT CHOCOLATE I have ever had!! Nightly shows were very entertaining with musical groups and other shows going on every night in the entertainment area. They encouraged audience participation which is always a lot of fun so was very enjoyable. The water show was certainly spectacular and was very well done. The other guests were quite friendly and I met a few people from other areas of Canada. Also reunited with a lady who I met 5 years ago in Cuba the first time I travelled there! I have been to Cuba three times and I would have to say this is my best trip overall.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Our trip was amazing

When we first arrived we did find that the gardenview room was not ideal for our family and the front desk quickly provided us with the option of upgrading our room to the tropical room. She let us view it first so that we could decided. We liked it much better. The upgrade fee was only 36 CUC for the whole week!. We then made reservations at 2 of the their 6 restaurants on the property. The Grill and the Cuban authentic restaurant. It was a nice change to the regular buffet meal. The buffet mea [... read more]ls were freshly prepared and we even requested French toast and instructed the chef how to and he was happy to oblige! We tipped the staff for their great service, but that's totally optional. We also took the cruise/snorkeling/dolphin excursion and it was amazing! The crew on the catamaran and the trainers at the dolphin marina were all incredibly friendly and helpful. It was an experience of a lifetime!

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: The resort was the best!

The grounds were some of the best I have ever seen...but why can't they have good food? The people were the best, the beach was wonderful and there was always something to do. The market next to the resort was fantastic! Cuba is so nice but I can't understand why they can't do something about the food.

Starfish Varadero: Needs lots of upgrades

The weather was 28-29 C. all week. The beach is wide and wonderful, the ocean was peaceful all week. The front desk staff could never provide change for tips, always saying it was the banks fault.Not the most friendly group. The hotel has 220 electricity, therefore if you have any North American 110 service appliances, like sleep apnia machines, then you are in for some trouble.The rooms are certainly 2 star.The dining room is too small to accommodate the number of guests. I once heard some sat  [... read more]they ran out of cutlery! When at the front desk, I heard to many times that " your room is not ready yet"

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: nice vacation

the room was ok, the food so and so. I ate fresh chicken or pork every day...but the people were great. I like going back to Cuba every year. You feel alive. Nice beach..the water excellent ... if the weather is on your side.. the dream vacation.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Love this resort

Although the resort was busy, we always have a great time at Club Amigo we are fans of the resort and will not go anywhere else. The more you return to this resort the better you feel one week is just not enough time.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: A good 3 star resort

We stayed in the villas section, room 3216, of Club Amigo from Dec 19, 2014 to Jan 2, 2015. Our whole family joined, 11 people, from Dec 22 to Dec 29. The also were in the Villas (4 rooms - block 2) For the first week we seldom had hot water. After that we had lots of hot water every day. The rest of the family had lots of hot water every day. All the rooms were equipped with remote control air conditioning. The air conditioner was very quiet and work well once you figured out it various modes [... read more] of operation. The air conditioner in one room constantly leaked water onto the floor and was never fixed although repair men were sent several times. The beach is very nice and the kids enjoyed snorkeling on the reef which is in front of Christopher Columbus beach. They also liked going to the flea market which is right next door. At the beginning of our stay the resort was only about half full and the only buffet that was open was the one in the Atlantico hotel. The buffet in the bungalows section open on Christmas eve and stayed open after that. We often dad breakfast and lunch at the 24 hr snack bar to provide some variety in our meals.At the snack bar both breakfast and lunch are served a la carte at your table. For breakfast there was juice, coffee, eggs any style including omelets and toast. At lunch they served hot dogs, hamburgers, fish and chips, chicken and chips, pizza and spaghetti. As the resort filled up service at the snack bar was often quite slow. As the resort was not very full we were able to eat at the a la carte restaurants 6 times in our 2 week stay. The only one that we did not eat at was the Italian restaurant in the snack bar. The menus in the other 4 were quite similar. They all basically had fish, beef, pork or chicken dishes. The food in the a la cartes is only slightly different than the food in the buffet but it is nice to have table service. The younger kids preferred the buffet because they had a greater choice of foods and the did not mind eating the same food over and over again. For some reason there were no oranges or grapefruit this year except on Christmas and New Year's eves and there was seldom grated carrots or beets for salads.

Carisol los Corales: Good value for the money

I like location, weather, facilities, staff and service. Food is good as well. Very good and safe location for family with kids. My only suggestion is to arrange kids entertainment in evening. It wouldn't take much but will means a lot.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Detailed Personal Review of my 7-day trip

This review is about my entire holiday experience (hotel, plane, excursions, etc) - Party of 2 - Flight was delayed a few hours - Air Transat was great inflight, it was the first time I get in a plane that looks like a disco, and it surely got me hyped (lots if interesting lights here and there, I travel a ton, so it was the first I have ever seen such an ambiance of lights changing on takeoff, in-flight, and landing) - Arrived and as expected, had to walk to the arrival halls, which was fun  [... read more]walking on the tarmac as opposed to the normal building destinations (part of the experience? lack of funding? who cares! It was fun!) - So we arrived quite late, got on the bus and headed to Club Amigo, took us about an hour, with the bus dude giving a little brief of Holguin city, but he went off topic when he began talking about politics, which gave a serious vibe, like dude...Now one thing which annoyed me off was that he was speaking in French the whole time, no offense to the awesome language, but when I paid, they said French + English guides, and I am not about to raise my hand for translation) - Got to the hotel, packed and had to wait about an hour for my turn to check in which sucked, but again, whatever, it was still enjoyable talking to those on the same bus - Got our room, disappointed with the "Tropical Room", it was facing the main entrance of the hotel, not so tropic with lots of noise of buses and tourists (did not change room, as long as the room was clean) - The beach, had a walk along the entire beach early morning, the sand is super fine and beautiful indeed, the view is superb, as far as the eye can see of clear blue. One downside, was that the beach had some garbage, plastic cups, and other packs of this and that, it was minimal and did not affect much, but it was still there - Food, according to what I read here, I was preparing myself for terrible food, as most comments explained it in that way, I am quite pleased I read the reviews, as my expectations were low. So, our first meal at the buffet on the 2nd floor, actually had quite a large selection of food, and INDEED they are not spiced or anything, but food is better than I thought which was great. It was still excellent food compared to what the entire trip cost. I would say there is at least 20 different types of food you could eat, and probably a MAX of 5 that were enjoyable (whether its breakfast, lunch or dinner) - Weather, it was FAN-TAS-TIC, just what I wanted, clear blue skies and sun that burns skin to a 3rd-degree (whoa, a bit too exaggerated). It was about 28-33 Celsius the entire trip. - Free stuff on site, were the pedal boats, kayaks, snorkel gear, life-vest and the similar. All in great condition besides the worn-out snorkel gear (I would advise bringing in your own gear) - Snorkel sites, there are a few red-blobs floating around the ocean that I guess are there to signal nice sites to dive into, not much sea-life to see, but worthwhile nonetheless, if you venture about 50-200 feet north of the shore, it intensifies greatly! However, be wary, as there are some sea-life that can be dangerous, one of which was a black colored orb looking thing with spikes, STAY AWAY, one of us got to close and paid the price, punctured palms, thankfully nothing to serious but required medical attention. Went to the local in-hotel clinic, the nurse was extremely *EHEM* in dealing with it and annoyed me as I could of had done what she did way better. It cost 45 Pesos (ridiculous price, but bargained down to 20 Pesos for terrible service). So I would highly advise bringing in your own first-aid kid for such incidents. - The Al-A-Carte Restaurants, we booked two, they were the Cuban and the Grill. Lets start off with the Cuban, whoever established the place needs to be striped of their title, it was a FAIL, in every conceivable way. It was utterly terrible, ambiance was fail, everything there was. The only upside was possibly the utensils that looked like what grandma keeps for guests *ehem ehem* The Grill, was somewhat better because it was basically bbqed food, and you really cant go wrong with anything bbqed, it was some lobster (actually it was another type of lobster-looking thing), and shrimp. I would comparatively say its heaven compared to the Cuban one, but a fail compared to the buffet. - Excursion-wise, we booked the Deep Sea Fishing one. Quite a price, but we really wanted to do it, so we headed out for about 4 hours. Sadly for me, I got sea-sick, so I would advise bringing in medication for such an event, we caught some lovely looking fish, 4 actually, and to our surprise we could not take them off the boat for a bbq or something (not that we even knew what to do with the fish if they actually gave it to us, no place to bbq it anyhows, so whatever, but principle-wise was not making sense to me). I enjoyed it for about 30 minutes till I got seasick, what a bummer! We then had the Catamaran ride, which was offered free of charge within our trip, that was very enjoyable, went out to sea for about 2 hours, not much to say but it was quite fun. We met a taxi driver, and negotiated a price of 45 Pesos for a downtown Holguin trip, included the driver showing us cool spots for pictures, and cost was to go and come back to the hotel. Not much to do downtown, lots of walking, good places to buy souvenirs from, liqueur, and smokes. We had lunch at a local Cuban place called El Torre (highly advise you to go there, its near the Central Park, about a block away) *lost the card so cannot give you details, sorry* Another trip we took, was one with horses! There is dude called Freddy, stands near the bicycle rental place in front of the hotel entrance, offered a trip for 15 Pesos per person, for a 2 hour trip up the mountains to a cave entrance. I would highly recommended this, it was one of the greatest parts of the trip, lots to see, passed by local villages, unpaved roads, awesome scenery and the like. Worth every penny. - On the way back to the airport, upon arrival, airport was packed like a refugee camp, took us at least 2 hours to get into the departure area, maybe even longer than 2 hours, but it was quite hectic, people cutting lines, and if your in a bad mood it is easy to freak out so make sure you prepare yourself mentally for chaos. In conclusion, we loved the trip because we got what we paid for, if your looking for something better in terms of food and accommodation, pay more and you will get it! What would we do differently? - Book earlier, as we booked last minute, so we could of had an even better deal than what we had for the exact same experience - Bring own snorkeling equipment - Bring own bottles for the bartenders to fill up (as they give you a small plastic cup for the drinks, does not fit well with the ambiance) - Internet is a problem, there is NO wifi, they have an internet room with maybe 5 computers, only 2 work properly, and are quite slow, so prepare mentally for that. More importantly, change your email passwords to not include any symbols as the keyboards do not have them, weird I know. Its 3 Pesos for 30 minutes of usage. - Bring a first-aid kit for any unexpected stuff - Always buy water from the shops, do not drink from the faucets. Actually even the water served at the bars were tap water, and any coffee was made using tap water. - The 24 hour snack bar has mainly cheeseburgers and fries, usually no ketchup left, and can be uncooked, so make sure you tell the chef to make it well done (sign language can be difficult to express here, haha!). Some of the utensils used across the hotel are not cleaned properly, so make sure you carefully check them and change when needed. This is all what comes to mind, so there you go! We both enjoyed the trip to its max, met some great people on the way, found the people extremely welcoming and kind and easy to talk to (sometimes the hotel employees were a pain but I cant really blame them dealing with hundreds of people on a daily basis, so just let things slide and do not ruin your day). Have fun on your trips and safe travels everyone! Hope you enjoyed the review and found it useful! Stayed December 2014

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Great time at club amigo

This was our first trip to club amigo and our second trip to Cuba. We preferred the more natural area over the more commercial Varradero. The resort was well maintained and good service. We enjoyed our stay and would return. The staff were friendly and helpful.

Carisol los Corales: Nice Hotel, Nice People

If you don't eat pork or meat in general, it will be tough because there will be a lot of meat. The service is great, people are very friendly and will do anything to help out. They have pizza and lasagna freshly cooked almost every day at 12pm at Carisol. The problem with the beach: seaweed. Though it may not be such a problem in itself, but where there is seaweed, there is a sea urchin, therefore there are specific areas for swimming. Free coconuts, drinks and food right at the beach. Amazing  [... read more]pool bar with amazing service. The hotel is split in two parts: Carisol and Los Corales. Both have their own buffet, their own pool and their own activities. You can go to either, but I preffered Carisol for its people, its pool and its food. Don't forget suntan lotion because it is HOT and the sun is brutal, whether in December or in July, hot hot hot.

Hotel Caracol: Stay away

This is the first resort that I have had things stolen from my room. I brought 23 kG with me to give to the locals apparently that wasnt enough approximately 100.00 worth of my personal stuff was liberated from my room and gas was stolen from my scooter. The first scooter that I rented pulled hard to the right and stalled and wont restart after stalling. One of the locals helped me and I returned the scooter after i paid 6 CUC to fill the tank. I was then taken to another resort to exchange the  [... read more]scooter. After wasting half the day refueling the new scooter and doing the paperwork I was on my way. I retuned the scooter 3 hours late after a 5 day rental and was charged extra money. What a joke. This is my third trip this year to Cuba every time I booked with tripcentral, every trip i have requested a ground floor as I have problems with stairs all three trips I have been placed on the top floor. I guess its time to try a different travel agent.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Excellent trip! 4th time going....

This was our 4th trip to this hotel and as usual we had a great time! Loved seeing all the staff who remembered us from previous stays... Beach was great as usual and had good weather. Room as usual was clean as well as the pool and pool area. Bonus going beginning of December as there are a lot less people since we usually go in February...

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Slice of Heaven

A beautiful location with scenery to spare. From beaches to mountains it's a breath taking view from any spot on the resort. The staff are amazing, courteous and always helpful. The rooms are spacious and clean and no matter where your room is, there is a great view. Great selection of food, (just remember that you're not travelling for the cuisine). It's edible and quite delicious at times.

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Good spot, been 4 times

Been about 4 times now, love the people, service is good, great beach, 24 hr. bar, just if you need a nice room, don't get standard lol, but it was great for me was barely in it. Recommend going in January, February :)

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: great vacation, will be back a fourth time!

Great beach and scenery, clean rooms, nice people, great stay, will be back! Weather was not great, but that is not something one can blame on the resort... Food OK, not great, but you won't starve, good hamburgers, pizza, omlets, fruits, yogurt, juice..

Club Amigo Atlantico Guardalavaca: Great hotel

Weather, food, staff, entertainment, amenities were all A1. Great market place next door for souvenirs. Take a buggy ride and see the surrounding area and meet the friendly locals. Looking forward to our next vist here.

Hotel Caracol: Santa Policia

Caracol very good; management trying their best esp. public Relations Ladies Outside, which used to be the charm of Santa Lucia, now reduced to Policia being a corrupt and harassing force killing any sympathy any Canadian could have for the Cuban way of life . A disgrace to see "Adolf" pick up and arrest Cubans all over. The tourist beach party used to be called "White Party" now called Blue Party (more Police then tourist). Caracol Hotel still the better of the two Amigo resorts but the Food an [... read more]d Beverage policy should be reviewed

Carisol los Corales: Amazing trip!!

Second year at this hotel and as expected the service was great. Friendly people, always ready to help. A great addition this year is the attendant with the long chairs, Ernesto, who is always at your service. We'll go back next year for sure!!!

Starfish Varadero: GREAT Staff

2 nd time here had a great 50th birthday staff had cake and party by pool room was good same as before food was average but I knew it would be price was good not hot enough in November January is the best