Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Nice resort

Second time at this resort and again, had a good time. I travelled with my elderly mother and I felt it was a good choice as the hotel is quite comfortable for Cuban standards. The beach is beautiful and access to it is easy for people with mobility issues. Most of the staff were pleasant and helpful with only a few exceptions. The entertainment is good and I was lucky to have met some amazing fellow travellers from many different countries. I would go back and would recommend this hotel to oth [... read more]er travellers.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Meh

The people working at the resort were not friendly nor helpful at all. We paid for a pool view high floor room and were given an end unit room facing the jungle on the main floor. They didn’t care and said they were full despite it very clearly being not busy at all. The majority of the guests were locals and they were very obviously given preferential treatment. They claim to be a family oriented resort but often seemed very inconvenienced by having to serve kids (I took my three boys). We  [... read more]found a weave stuck In the sofa in our room and aside from coming and picking it up, they did nothing else. Beds had no cover blanket, only sheets. Despite multiple requests, it took three days and 15 calls to get blankets. We were also asked to leave the beachfront restaurant for wearing a cover up over our bathing suits - they stated that we needed to be clothed - it was lunch time and it’s on the beach. The pools, bars (aside from the lobby), and snack bars all close at 5pm which is extremely odd. Also the bathroom light in our room remained constantly on and flickering. Despite many complaints no one ever came to fix it. The beach was completely covered in seaweed and the water was unswimable. We made the best of it but I definitely wouldn’t recommend nor visit again. It is a nice looking resort, the shows were good, and there were options for activities and great food choices although they should be more clear with restrictions. A couple restaurants kids were not welcome at and many things, such as wine, are not included. Actually many liquors that normally are weren’t. It was rather surprising and disappointing considering this resort generally has such good reviews.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Great resort

This is the best resort I have stayed at yet in Cancun, Food is above average and thats coming from a picky eater, also the pools are awesome but beach is good too, The employees are also awesome and go out of their way to ensure you have a great time

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: Mixed review

Pros; The hotel is beautiful and immaculate. The staff are professional and prompt. The junior suite was huge and well stocked. The beach was steps away. The buffet hours are generous. There were smoothie bars and an ice cream parlour. The pool foam party was a hoot! No mosquitos. The spa was great. We went for two deep tissue massages that were amazing. The service started with a cool swim, then a hot tub sit, then a dry sauna, then a shower, then a steam room, another shower and then massage a [... read more]nd for a great price! Cons: check in was inefficient and tiring. The “premium” staff (aka timeshare sales staff) were on us immediately, while we were in line to check in and although not too pushy and friendly, were in our faces several times a day. The beach stunk like rotten fish to the extent that in my one attempt to go to it, I nearly vomited and never went back. No one hung out at the beach which made the pool and swim up bar extremely busy. The buffet was not maintained during meal hours so if you don’t go as soon as it opens you are dealing with low stock and really picked over food. The omelette grill was filthy and the eggs were covered in burnt grease bits. The omelette chef handled the food with gloves instead of utensils so as a vegetarian I was appalled when he grabbed a handful of ham for one omelette and used the same hand to grab cheese for mine. Alcohol is not served 24 hours. The snack bar food was really plain and gross. This place reminded me of a four star in Cuba. For the right price, that might be acceptable, but this is definitely not a five star resort. Overall, we enjoyed our stay but we are unlikely to return.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Not Impressed

Pros: Great Evening Entertainment Cons: Rooms adequate, not enough room towels for a family of six including 2 kids. First 2 days being there no beach towels. Complained 3 times, then Sunwing representative helped us. When we booked the 2 rooms was told that there would be in-room service, but the phones were not on. Food was not that good, seen bugs on the buffet counters! Horrible. Some of the staff were not friendly and some rude. We thought that this resort was 4 to 5 stars [... read more], but it's more like a 2 stars hotel. We've been to Cuba 8 times before and never was so dissatisfied. I wish that the Travel Agent didn't recommend this resort to us!

Ocean Riviera Paradise: 10/10 resort

Really feels like your in paradise everyone is smiling and very welcoming. The staff on the resort are all amazing especially the guy making the creeps. So many Activities on the resort Makes it hard to leave

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: Quite Good-Excellent in some areas

Ok - Back from a one week stay here and time for my review. For some background to provide context: We are a family of 3 have been travelling to All Inclusive resorts for the past 13 years - at least once a year sometimes twice. We have been to Nuevo Vallarta, Manzanillo, The Mayan Riv, and Punta Cana in the DR. Only choosing to stay at 4 star properties and above. We are not fussy and do tend to have the ability to go with the flow. The check in process was fine and quick no problems. A [... read more]nd they were very good about taking no for an answer regarding attending the presentation for timeshare. There was no hard sell at all. The room was as we had asked - with the King bed instead of 2 doubles. The room was very clean and spacious. But the lack of total bathroom privacy is weird especially with our teenage son. For a couple on their own I suppose it would not be an issue. We made it work "wait! your mom is in the bath! look away!" what 15 year old boy needs an eyefull of his naked mom or dad for that matter! lol The AC worked great the dehumidifier was a g-dsend. Housekeeping did a great job cleaning each day. The Mini bar was restocked daily - But they will not give you any extra beers over and above the 2 cans of Sol a day - a huge deal? No not at all especially when a cold beer is just a short walk to the closest bar - but something we had never encountered before - usually u can leave a note with the tip money for the maid and they will make sure your fridge is stocked as you prefer. After making a call to ask could we have a couple more cans of beer I was told we are only allowed the 2 per day. OK...again not the end of the world - just a little odd to us. Breakfast buffet was a standard all inclusive breakfast array. Bacon was very scarce, you had to ask for it from the ladies who make the eggs on the cook tops - we found that a bit odd. The coffee is very very weak and watery the worst coffee we have every had at a resort to date...the work around for this is to ask for a latte, espresso or cappuccino. The brewed coffee is not great if you are expecting or prefer a full bodied cup. Lunch - we only ate the buffet for lunches - and again it was fair to good. Standard all inclusive resort buffer lunch. Bugers, pizza, pasta, salads, fruits. No reason not to be able to make yourself a plate of things you liked. Nothing knocked our socks off at lunch but by no means was it bad. Dinners: We enjoyed the outdoor Italian (out front of Blue Moon) the best - but the service was very very slow - the only have two of the cooking carts when they flambe and prepare the meals so there can be a long gap between the starters and main course if all the tables are full. The tenderloin there was excellent. The a la carte near the activity pool was hit and miss as we all three ordered the ribeye and our son's was excellent but my husband's and mine were tough and hard to cut and chew. So I am guessing that was just bad luck for us as we both tried our son's and it was fantastic - I am sure we could have asked them to do us 2 more steaks - but we didn't do that. The Japanese was very good. The standard cooking table show and the food was very good. The Mexican was very good. The indoor Italian was very good as well. Route 66 - was OK...nothing special. The fried pickles really greasy and kind of gross. My son called his burger OK and my husband said the ribs were good. Mike's coffee shop was a lovely spot in terms of a great cup of coffee and a little AC break. I wish t was open earlier and closed later. The ice cream shop is adorable. In general the AC is very very minimal in the restaurants - this is the hottest/most humid time of the year. So we (again personal opinion) found them to be a little on the uncomfortable side. Drinks - We tipped the first bartender who would serve us each morning at the pool bar with a $5....then again a dollar or two through the day. we said please and thanks, were friendly and smiled - were not pushy and waited our turn - even if others who came after were served before us and I will say in our opinion the barmen at the swim up bar were not very friendly, did not smile....and ALWAYS go to pour the local cheap brands even if you ask for a name brand alcohol.....once or twice ok maybe he did not hear me....but ebery time I would have to say "Stoli vodka soda please" and even then would have to say stoli as he would always reach for the cheap stuff first. I would then get the Stoli - but this was a mildly annoying exercise to go though each time. Not at all the end of the world - Just an observation. The lady who came around before the bar opened offering Bloody Marys, and Mimosas was lovely, chatty and smiley. Shame she does not work behind the bar. We hung out at the chill pool each day which confusingly is the liveliest pool with an activity/game happening each day at 3, and water aerobics mid morning. And loud DJ music in between, This pool has an upbeat fun atmosphere that some may not want little ones at as the music was not always radio edit versions so at times there were explicit lyrics. Our son is older so that didn't phase us. There were still plenty of unclaimed lounge chairs when we would arrive at 930AM ish each morning. However if you like to have the same spot each day you can go save your chairs in the morning -this is what we did. I would assume in high season in the winter there would not be any chairs left avail by 930AM....Those who have been in the winter would know better. The beach: Well first of all this does not affect my overall thoughts on the resort as it's nature and no one's fault. But it is unpleasant in terms of the smell and it is not swimable. We knew this when we booked so it did not phase us as we are not ocean swimmers anyways. But i did feel bad for those who had no idea this was the case going in. The shows - we attempted to watch the Lion King - but the indoor theatre was just packed too tight. Felt like we were sitting on top of one another. So we bailed. The outdoor stage was a much nicer experience. In conclusion - if we got the same deal we would go back and we would give this resort a 3.75 out of 5. This is of course just one family’s opinion....and others may have enjoyed it more or less than us. Just thought I would add ours here in case it helps anyone making a choice to book or not. BONUS- we met a lovely family from the UK. Making new friends on a trip is always nice! SECOND BONUS - a family from Michigan was there for a destination wedding and they were such a nice bunch and watching the wedding from the walkway was very nice!

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: nice but need love

i have to say the hotel is nice but miss maintenance. The pool was green all week damage with weed they didn't do nothing. The path to the beach everyday was one more damage plank at the end of week was dangerous. Service by leidy at the buffet and rachel lobby make our vacation more plesant thank to them. Beach amazing and pleny of palapas so was convenient.I will not go back i still enjoy the week and will not refer my costumers or friends to go there

Ocean El Faro: aesthetically pleasing up and coming resort

We made an effort to read the reviews in order to have a clear understanding of what to expect throughout our stay. The first thing you notice when you arrive at Ocean El Faro, is the well designed lobby. After checking in and beginning shown where our room was on a map and having said no to the H10 people instantly on approach. We had quickly realized that more then a hand full of intricacies had been left out of our introduction to the hotel such as; the restaurants we could attend, hours of o [... read more]peration for the pool attached to our swim up suite, bowling hours, showtime hours and days of Operation, where to hand in our towel cards to get towels and so on. The room was nicely designed expect for the showers that flood and the faulty air condition unit that was changed 3 times throughout the week. cleaning service was a hit or miss depending on the day, in my opinion could have been the hotel is fairly new and theirs an adjusting period. regardless make sure specific with what you want them to do because they don't always change the sheets. They usually got to building 12 around 3pm so if you want to take a nap please try and plan around that. The water temperature in the pool portion of the swim up suit was perfect and if you find the right bartenders they come up to you and deliver your drinks so you get the best of both worlds there. There is a variety of food most of it bland at the buffet, if you go to the margarita or the Sakura food quality depends on the cook. The ocean was great, just be careful because of the coral on the ground in some spots. All in all we made a lot a great memories there. Some of the staff is amazing and I can see this hotel eventually becoming hard to bet in the future.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Nice hotel

At first, our trip was frustrating. We kept getting locked out of the room, missed our AirTransat rep meeting because we were told to go at 9:30, but at that time it was in French so we were told to go the next day. We didnt know until day 3 that you have to book a la carte restaurants between 9-10am only. We werent enjoying ourselves until Osiris the manager stepped in and turned things around to make our stay much better. He wanted to make sure we were happy at all times. He surprised us with  [... read more]a nice bottle of wine sent to our room. When we were having our anniversary dinner he came personally to say Happy Anniversary to us. After our dinner we went to our room and found that he had arranged for them to decorate our room with rose petals, ran us a romantic bubble bath, left some gifts and flowers and desserts for us as well. That was so nice. The wait staff was very wonderful. Hector, Leo and Hilda go above and beyond. Wonderful people. The beach was the best beach Ive ever been too. So beautiful, clear and such warm water. The down side for me was the food wasnt very different day to day, but breakfast was my favorite meal. Get the lobster dinner! For $20, they will charge it to your room. Its delicious.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Our 9th anniversary

At first, our trip was frustrating. We kept getting locked out of the room, missed our AirTransat rep meeting because we were told to go at 9:30, but at that time it was in French so we were told to go the next day. We didnt know until day 3 that you have to book a la carte restaurants between 9-10am only. We werent enjoying ourselves until Osiris the manager stepped in and turned things around to make our stay much better. He wanted to make sure we were happy at all times. He surprised us with  [... read more]a nice bottle of wine sent to our room. When we were having our anniversary dinner he came personally to say Happy Anniversary to us. After our dinner we went to our room and found that he had arranged for them to decorate our room with rose petals, ran us a romantic bubble bath, left some gifts and flowers and desserts for us as well. That was so nice. The wait staff was very wonderful. Hector, Leo and Hilda go above and beyond. Wonderful people. The beach was the best beach Ive ever been too. So beautiful, clear and such warm water. The down side for me was the food wasnt very different day to day, but breakfast was my favorite meal. Get the lobster dinner! For $20, they will charge it to your room. Its delicious.

Playa Vista Azul: Beautiful Resort

Hello there, my family and I really enjoyed Ocean Vista. We stayed in number 5 bungalow and the stay where clean and I like the swan that on my bed. The entertainment was wonderful and food. I would definitely recommend this hotel to my friends and family.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Hope you’re not hungry!!

Though obviously I can’t complain about the weather (45) I can certainly say that this trip was a 75% bust. No issues with flights or delays at all, they all ran smoothly. When we got to the resort though they checked us into the wrong room. We didn’t get in until 10pm so we just went to our room because we have younger kids. The next day they did apologize and put us into our actual room. The refused us pillows because it was Sunday? Don’t ask me what that means. So when I went to the fro [... read more]nt desk and talked to them they said someone would come by and give us pillows and sheets. The “new” sheets had blood on them. The beds had hair all over it and there were so many stains that we wouldn’t let our kids sit down on the chair. We then paid $200 US dollars to get a room upgrade. The servers were put out when we ordered and I was surprised that about 98% of the staff didn’t speak any English so things didn’t always come across as hoped. If you’re looking for a weight loss program this is your stop. The food was AWFUL!! If you like cappuccino then this is your place. All and all I would look elsewhere.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Satisfactory

The hotel was in decent shape with a very nice beach area, lots of energy from the event staff. Was not so impressed with the wait staff in the Buffett and very slow service in the snack bar and lower restaurant. Alacarts where fantastic with great food and great staff. Housekeeping was atrocious and our towels were not changed in 6 days even after multiple conversations with maids. I would not go there again in my opinion.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Great time at Ocean Riviera Paradise!!!

We stayed from August 11-18 2019. Weather was perfect, the beach did have seaweed and water quality depended on the day. Beach entry is not easy as there are several meters of large sharp rocks so water shoes or “swimming” entry is recommended. We flew with Air Transat who had no line and no wait to leave Toronto However we had to wait over 45 mins for the shuttle provided to Transat to come. Drive was an easy 40 mins. Check in was easy and fast. The lobby of the hotel was very nice  [... read more]with a cool funky vibe. We had a swimout room in the Eden building. It was FANTASTIC. Very nice interior with a really cool funky style. Some finishes could have been upgraded more but it was very nice and spotless clean. Absolutely no bugs at all seen anywhere during the trip. There are cicadas that visit the patios but they are harmless. Service was ok. Not great. Drinks were also just ok. Food was good with lots of options for dining and room service. We ate at most of the al la cartes they were all good. Also the beach la Paz restaurant and “villa marina” also both offer buffet selections. Villa for breakfast and lunch (then becomes the Mexican restaurant at night) and le Paz for lunch. Food was great and lots of options and all very fresh. The best service we had was from Luis at the villa marina breakfast. He was fantastic. The swimout was the best and was a highlight. Unfortunately the main pool at eden and the beach were very cloudy for some reason and also very warm. We didn’t use the other two pools. Also depending on restaurant certain drinks and cuts or meats they charge extra for. Overall I would say this is a 4 star property. I have stayed at the royalton riveria as well which is a superior hotel property with superior food and drink all inclusive however this is also reflected in the price difference. I would recommend the ocean riviera we had a great time.

Ocean El Faro: Great trip overall

Great clean facility with a lot to do on the resort. shout out to Jose at Mikes coffee, Carlos and Ana entertainment team members, Franklin at the pool bar, and Richard at margaritas restaurant. Blue moon, buffet and margarita the best. Tips: Go early for dinner so you can get faster service. We will come again

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Cheap and cheerful

The hotel is absolutely beautiful just as you see on the website very modern resort. I just wish the food was better. I know Cuba is not know for the food but I have to say this resort was the worst for food. The selection was horrible. As for rooms it was very clean! Do not stay in the privilege section and the don’t have showers ONLY tubs. You can only bath and not shower. Beach was beautiful!! Pool needed to be cleaned which they were not doing.

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Very nice looking resort

Traveled Jun 12 -23 via Sunwing. This a fairly new resort rooms and all hotel area are nice. Beach area is great lots white sand and crystal blue water with bar service near. The only problem with beach was 15-20 min walk to nearest washroom and no food service near beach.Restaurants ok not much selection.Buffet was good at breakfast but was daily repeat for lunch and dinner.No pork very limited seafood what they had was gone first 5 min of open They had a beef grill that serve steak like  [... read more]shoe leather. We ended up eating a lot of pasta. Near the end of our 10 day stay we asked if they had pig roast like many other resorts in Cuba. We got a chuckle from what seemed to be management staff. Main bar was managed by Yetzy her and staff fantastic getting to know customers needs keep up the good work Yetzy. Our biggest problem was with Sunwing rescheduling our return flight lost a full day and thanks to some other passengers who notified us of changes 10: 30 pm departure next day turned into a 6:15 am departure plus a stop over in cayo coco.

Playa Vista Azul: Won’t go again.

First let me start by saying I’ve never done a review before and usually don’t bother but I felt I needed to make others aware of our experience so that they could be forewarned. Ocean Vista Azul was our recommended hotel. It was our first trip to Cuba and we knew going in based on what friends had said that the food probably wouldn’t be very good. The plane arrived late so we got to the hotel after 1 AM and the only available food was hamburgers, hotdogs, pizza or fries. Normally that  [... read more]would be fine except that the hamburgers had an odd taste to them. The room we stayed in was clean but the hallway to it was poorly lit due to burnt out bulbs (all over the resort) so finding our room number took a bit of effort. We managed to eat à la cart for most dinners and the food was decent. The breakfast and lunch buffets had very little to choose from that we considered good. If you go, I would suggest getting something freshly cooked. There was an outdoor barbeque near the beach where they had chicken and seafood but the lobster was tainted and my wife got food poisoning. Throughout our stay, the resort constantly ran out of items. They had no buns for burgers or hotdogs on a couple of days, no fruit for smoothies, no clean beach towels so we were using dirty ones from days before. They ran out of cups at the bar next to the pool more than once so they had no drinks unless you used a cup you had from earlier. They also ran out of mixer for some of the drinks. I’ve been to many all-inclusive resorts and never seen anything like it. Maybe it was Cuba, maybe it was the hotel chain, maybe it was the management of this particular hotel. I don’t know but there’s no way I would recommend this hotel to anyone. On our last day the checkout time was noon but our flight didn’t leave until late that evening. We asked for a courtesy room to clean up and were given one for 30 minutes which I was happy to get except for the fact that when we got there, there were no towels to dry ourselves with and when we went back to the front desk and requested them, the maid came a few minutes later with small towels that smelled like stinky socks. You might think I’m exaggerating but I’m truly not. We have decided that Cuba and the hotel chain that is associated with Ocean Vista Azul are off our list for future travel. I hope this experience helps someone to make a smart decision before booking. Good luck!

Hotel Roc Casa del Mar: Amazing

Hotel resort only customers service not to good only two people working to serve 50 peoples not to quick for service always to busy but my card for my room did not work for 5 time I phone in for help couldn't help me add to go in front my self to fixed it 5 times