Amazing March Break Vacation!

Do not believe the horrible reviews!!! Your vacation is what YOU make it. The Cubans are just there to assist and make it even better for you! Don't pick everything you've read apart - Go with an open mind and have a TON of fun! We just arrived back home from our visit at the Warwick March 10-17th and were definitely sad we had to leave! We arrived extremely late (2:00 a.m.) on Friday night and found ourselves in a room with 1 king bed for 3 people (myself, my husband and our 12 year o [... read more]ld daughter). Within about 15 minutes they had a cot (felt like sleeping on a concrete slab) but she got through it fine and first thing Saturday morning we were switched to a room with 2 double beds. Rooms: We were in Bungalow 10 Room 1029 - Ocean view - on the 2nd floor - I must say this is the BEST bungalow to be in - you're close to absolutely everything and it's quieter than bungalow #9 - which is close to the pool but would be very noisy. Yoel was our maid and he always answered our requests and we never had any issues. The only inconvenience was on the last day when there was no water in the morning, but we packed up, went to the pool and when we went back to shower before heading out it was back on. No complaints. Food: You will definitely not go hungry at this Resort. Although the food is repetitive there is nothing wrong with it and you can always find something. I strongly suggest the fresh pasta or fish station (the grilled beef & chicken tends to be overcooked). The line ups can be long - it just depends on when you go. The buffet closes at 10 a.m. for breakfast but you can always get breakfast foods at the 24 hour snack bar. The 24 hour Snack Bar is perfect for a bite when you're at the pool or you just so happen to miss the buffet because you overslept in the morning. They serve pizza, burgers, fries, and a few other items. The Crazy Lobster has a great lunch. The fried fish & fried chicken were very good. Some days you'll be at the beach and a guy will come and ask you if you'd like a sandwich - they were serving ham & cheese panini's at the middle beach bar one day...really tasty. We never got to try the beach bbq'd ribs and chicken - as both days we went looking it wasn't offered. There's also a little hidden gem of a bar just off the path to the beach between buildings 9 & 10 and in that little area is the most amazing fish fry. Cooked different every time you go and very very good! A La Cartes: We only ate at the Crazy Lobster & Le Med. Neither were for me, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. If I may suggest to management (hopefully you read your reviews), invest in steak knives for your a la cartes. Beach: You can't control mother nature and as other reviews state, the beaches have coral. the last few days of our vacation was very windy and where there's coral one day, there may not be the next. Just bring water shoes or flip flops in case you need to walk over it. the best part of the beach is on the right hand side, but you can also find good beach at any of the entrances, it just depends on the tide and what it does over night! A shout out to Armondo the bartender at the beach bar between 9 & 10 - he makes an amazing Cayo Sunrise (with Malibu) and always has a smile on his face. Entertainment: The entertainment crew were great. Always entertaining. The only thing I can say (again, management if you're reading your reviews) is that the "Comedy Show" is not appropriate for children...not even a little bit. I would say it's more 16+ for sure. All other nights the entertainment was very entertaining and enjoyable. Internet: $1.50 pesos for a 1 hour wifi card. The best time to get the wifi was in the morning around 9:30 and in the evening around 11 or so. Sometimes we would be able to get it in our room, at the pool or the Crazy Lobster restaurant in the afternoon, but it was hit or miss. If I didn't need to connect with the outside world while I was on vacation I would have disconnected altogether. The very limited access was a welcomed break for sure. All in all, we had a great vacation and will definitely go back to Santa Maria again. Would I recommend this resort - absolutely. Would we go back? Definitely, but because it was our first time in Santa Maria, we would like to experience other resorts as well. See you again some day Warwick Cayo Santa Maria!

A modern resort!

-Beautiful contemporary room! -Spacious lobby & well kept grounds, felt uncrowded even though we visited over March break. -Beach was beautiful with some areas of coral outcropping, as well as smooth sand further down. Water shoes recommended if you want to walk over the coral to get to snorkeling area. -Food was fine, but the variety could have been better, and buffet foods could have been hotter. -The à la cartes had speedy service and great selection (a nice change from the buffet!) -Th [... read more]ere were 3 pools, one of which was empty during our stay. -The overall atmosphere was quiet (may have just been the week we stayed...)

Not a kid friendly resort, rocky beach, green water in the pool

Starting with the positive points, the resort is new, people are nice and work hard to make your stay enjoyable. Food is basic, no variety, however the grilled meat and omelettes were great, coffee and cappuccino were great as well. Good selection of drinks. AC unit worked well in the room. There is a flat screen with a few channels and a mini fridge filled daily. Safe is included at no fee. Now for the bad, the resort has no beach... a storm took the sand away last year and exposed corals ev [... read more]erywhere, we had to walk a good 20 minutes from the hotel to find a little spot where we could stay on the beach and go into the water. To get there we had to climb over cliffs of sharp corals and be careful not to fall (and carry the kids and beach towels and bags etc). By the time we got to the beach, kids needed a bathroom and so we had to begin the journey back, the nearest bathroom being 20 minutes away, over the dangerous cliffs or corals. The beach also has only a few palapas, not a lot of shade. Now for the pools, they are all located in the middle of the resort, about 4 of them, and by day three the water turned green and disgusting, we never saw any filtering or medusas cleaning the water, just a guys with a bucket of chemicals by day 4. One kid woke up with closed eyes and discharged in her eyes the next morning. Kids area is in-existential, with a little playground next to the pool, in the full sun, a couple of swings and a little slide, no water park or daycare or full playground. Amenities are basic, no spa, fancy gym or gardens.dated retro decor, even though it is a new resort. Uncomfortable beds and pillows, a toilet that leaked and smelled and not very clean overall. A 3 star at most.

Very good resort.

-The best thing I found is that it was new, very clean, everything worked. This was somewhat unusual based on my past experiences in Cuba although I always enjoyed Cuba and other resorts were also acceptable. -Big rooms, big washroom, big bed, good linen -No bugs, sand flees -I would rate facilities ***** -generally convenient distances to meals, beach, entertainment. -The swimming pools were excellent for young kids. However there was no pool for good swimmers, too shallow. -Good tennis f [... read more]acilities -Food rating: ****. Generally good and versatile. But the special a la carte evening formal dinners meal was tasteless and not good. Only tried one. To be fair we found the same thing at other similar resources. The beach was just OK because we ha to walk left or right of the hotel to find clear sandy beaches as the volcanic rocks in front were rather sharp. In summary I would go back to this hotel

Great Resort!

First off I would like to say I loved everything about Trip Central, the booking and the service afterwards was just awesome! 3rd time in Cuba. We don't really have nothing negative to say. Drive to the resort is close to 2 hours however just enjoy the scenery!! Check in was quick!! Exchanging $$ was quick!! The resort was clean including the lobby/pool washrooms. No complaints at all like other reviews say!! Our room was clean! The food was good! My family had no real complain [... read more]ts. Like other reviews say, it's Cuba, we don't cook the same way, therefore we may not like it as much... However we did not loose weight! :) Line ups at the buffet were not that long, maybe a 10mins wait and we went at different times in mornings and evenings. We found it long waits at the Snack Bar. One time we waited over 1 hour (for lunch). As for the towels, no problems at all, the guy cleaning our room/building, was always there, morning, afternoon, just remember to exchange them with him. The a la Cartes, we reserved 3 nights, the lady who reserved for us was friendly and quick. The food at all three a la Cartes was good and the service was good, everybody was nice and quick! The beach, yes like the reviews say, there are rocks, but just find a place with no rocks, it's perfecto and better than snow!! :) Bus goes to the resort every hour, great to use (adults $2 pesos each, kids free) to go visit the markets or even the Dolphin show which my family (two boys 8 and 10) absolutely loved!! $16 Pesos for a family of 4. Can't beat that for a 20mins show with dolphins! I could go on and on in my review. For sure there may be something not to satisfactory, each family is different, however I think when you go on a trip, you have to make the best out of it. If you spend your time finding what's wrong at a resort or be negative, you will be unhappy for the week.

Very nice resort!

This was my first time to Cuba and I went with an open mind. This is what my family experienced during our stay from the 3-10 March 2017: Bus ride from the airport in Santa Clara to the Warwick Resort, Cayo Santa Maria, Cuba. The tour guide was extremely informative and the trip was very interesting. It does take approx. 2 hours to get to the resort from the airport but we definitely got to see a lot of Cuba and the scenery was beautiful. Make sure you use the facilities at the airport as [... read more] there aren't any on the bus and the driver does not stop. Check In at the Warwick: Very slow - it took approx. 1 1/2 hours to check in once we arrived at the hotel (only 2 hotel clerks were there to check-in the entire bus load of passengers). Something that was very noticeable was that fact that the public washrooms throughout the resort never seemed to have toilet paper in them. I learned quickly to take the spare roll that was in our room with us wherever we went. I did mention this several times to the staff. I wasn't the only one who noticed this....several guests were complaining about it. Our room was great (Building 17, Ground Floor). It was very clean except for the fact that the patio door would not lock (we had to brace the ironing board in the tracking of the patio door). The lady that cleaned our room did a fantastic job and we always had a fresh supply of towels, water, pop and beer). The beds only have one 'body pillow' per bed. I had read the reviews ahead of time and we took our pillows with us...no problem. The beach towels are plush and plentiful and may be exchanged every day! We found the resort to be very beautiful and well laid out. Most days there were hardly any people in the pools and there were plenty of lounge chairs to relax on. The beach is beautiful and the water is crystal clear to see to the bottom and the sand is almost white. The beach was not crowded at all. Service on the beach was fantastic as well! We were very impressed with our A la Carte meals with the exception of 'Crazy Lobster'. Service is fantastic at the A la Carte restaurants. The male servers at the Buffet Restaurant were far more attentive than the female servers and were always there to greet you and serve you your beverage choice. There was an issue with the bank located within the hotel. There was a day when it wasn't open at all. Then it reopened the following day however the teller at the bank stated that she would require our passports as well. If you go to the bank at the La Estrella Market you will need your passport at well. There are lots of souvenirs at the market and you can 'barter' on the price of goods. There was no pressure to purchase anything at the market. Everyone was very friendly and helpful. I personally really liked the Cuban culture, the people and the language. I did get food poisoning on the 9th (the day before we left). However, I was told ahead of time to expect this. Yes, I was up-to-date on all of my vaccinations. A lot of the other tourists that we met at the resort were complaining about the food, choices, etc. We found the food to be very good and always plenty of choices. It seemed as though some other tourists were expecting exactly what one would get in Canada. It is important to remember that you are not in Canada but that you are in Cuba and things will be different. The pork, fish and eggs were fantastic and very tasty! Here is how we tipped: We tipped the housekeeper every morning (approx. $3.00 CUC as well I left a small package of goodies for her every day (i.e. toothbrushes, make-up, nail polish, children's colouring books, crayons, toys). I also took gardening gloves and hard candy for the gardener and give him $2.00 CUC every few days). We also tipped the bartender every day as well as our servers (we even tipped the cook who prepared our food at the grill). Even though there was a lack of toilet paper in the public washrooms I still tipped the ladies that clean the bathrooms - it is a thankless job. They were most appreciative. The employees were always appreciative of whatever you gave them. We saw 3 of the nightly shows and they were fantastic! Overall I would rate this resort at a 7.5 out of 10. I will definitely be going back to Cayo Santa Maria.

Beautiful Resort

The Warwick Cayo Santa Maria is a beautiful resort. The staff did a wonderful job catering to our needs . The selction of food was good , had many options at all meals .The grounds and pools were well maintained . My only disappointment was with the beach, as we have been to Santa Maria in past at other resorts that had beautiful white sandy beaches . The Warwick has a large beach area , but it is very rocky and uneven, just disappointed it wasn't like the beaches we had been on before. Overal [... read more]l this resort was fabulous and would definitely come again.

Could of been better / would not go back

The flight (Air Canada) went well. The check-in was a bit long but we did not mind it as we knew from previous experience that check-ins are usually slow. The grounds are very nice and clean. The room was nice and clean as well. The pools were a little foggy and some areas had algae buildup. Now for the food..........very bland, very little selection and pasta was either undercooked or overcooked. The sauces (tomato or Alfredo) seemed watered down as there was very little taste, plus....the line [... read more]ups were very long (25-30 minute wait for pasta). On a positive note, the breads were very good. The desert choices were very minimal (basically birthday cake type pastries with different coloured icing.......every night). They had ice cream which was good. The breakfasts were ok with the usual eggs and beans plus breads and hot dog sausages..... We had lunches at the snack bar. The fries were ok and the pizza's were good. My wife had chicken with pieces of feathers still attached to the outer skin. She said it was good but we found it odd............ Overall, not enough positives to say that we would be back. We got a great price for the trip so that's why we decided to try the Warwick.

Terrible food

If you look in details dosnt look like new at all,or is abused by rude,cheap,all inclusive addicts. Boring,unappetizing over or undercooked food. Desserts where a joke. Cleanning stuff should get more training and they need to use more soap or bleach to wash their towels and linnens,because it was gross to use them .

Absolutely Wonderful!

This hotel had very well looked after grounds with groundskeepers working everyday. The public areas were clean and the staff were extremely friendly, courteous and went beyond what was expected in their treatment of myself and friend. The rooms had all amenities that we needed and the view was outstanding. There was a variety of food selection and plenty of it, from the buffet to the five restaurants to eat in. It would depend on how fussy a person is when it comes to food. The only crit [... read more]icism is that they have to learn how to cut and cook beef. Lobster is always overcooked and a bit rubbery with no clarified butter served with it. The nightly entertainment at the theater was great!!! The performers are in great shape and to see an Aquatic performance was a first for me. The DJ selection of music was right on. He could have left out the dubbing of a fog horn and some kind of laugh track - this took away from the music. Having a 24 hour snack bar was a bonus. I would not recommend this resort to someone with a disability such as wheelchair - wanting to go into the ocean. Access would not be easy. Overall - this is a great place. A Holiday is what one makes it!!!!!

Excellent Holiday!

My family traveled to the Warkwick in February 2017. We were extremely pleased with the resort. The beach was beautiful. Long stretches of sandy beach on one side, with interesting rocks to explore on the other. There was something for everyone at the beach. The water was warm, and you could see clear through to the bottom, even if you were in the water to your chest. The food was pretty good - better than any other resort in Cuba we have tried. The pool was clean and clear. The staff w [... read more]ere excellent. When we were there, the staff were always cleaning the washrooms. We didn't see any plumbing issues. We really don't understand what all the complaints are about.

Amazing Beach and Beautiful Suite

We spent 10 days at the Warwick Feb/March 2017. We are frequent travelers, with our last trip to Cuba being over 5 years ago. Most recently, we have stayed at 5 stars in the Mayan/Dominican, so we were not sure what to expect after recent reviews. We were thrilled with the one bedroom Suite. Our room was always spotless when we returned at the end of the day, with extra touches and towel animals/flowers. The staff throughout the resort were all wonderful and helpful. The groundskeep [... read more]ers clearly work very hard. The grounds are beautiful and well kept. The food was much better than we expected - my son actually ate! [When we traveled to Cuba previously, the food was not great, so we had similar expectations.] The 24 hour snack bar always has a standard option if you can't find something you like at the buffet. [Fries and hot dogs were always available.] The beach and pool exceeded expectations. While one side of the beach was rocky (due to recent storms), the other side was beautiful, with long stretches of soft sand. The pool was cleaned frequently while we were there, and the water was always clear. The one potential downside: The afternoon party at the pool was a bit too noisy for us. However, others clearly enjoyed it. So, if you are looking for a quieter area, you will need to spend afternoons at the beach instead of the pool. [Not really a hardship!!] All in all, we had a wonderful holiday at the Warwick.

Good getaway fort the price

Overall we had a good vacation. The grounds are beautiful and the pool and beach are very nice. The day time entertainment is not great but the nightly shows are better than average. The food is typical for Cuba.. we don't go for the food. We always found something to eat, however we came home with tummies a little upset - just a little. The staff was very nice for the most part except at the snack bar - it was hit or miss. The rooms were nice and clean, great shower. The beds were doubles and v [... read more]ery firm - too firm for my liking. The cot was absolutely terrible - my 8 year old wouldn't even sleep on it. We got a good price on this resort for our family vacation. Remember it's Cuba and you get what you pay for. Relax and enjoy the beach and sunshine.

Great resort

The Warwick hotel was a great experience. I would highly recommend visiting this hotel. The staff was fantastic. They were happy polite fun and entertaining. For the first time in Cuba I couldn't have asked for a better time. The maids kept our room fully stocked and clean. The resort provided entertainment all day and night. The bartenders and serving staff were the best.

Amazing Resort

This is a very nice resort. All staff was very friendly. We were close to everything. There was enough areas to sit where you didn't have to look for seats. You didn't have to wait long for drinks as there were many bars you could go to get a drink. The beach was the only disappointing thing about the hotel. Lots of seaweed and rocks. There was just a small area where it was nice but then not much shade there. But there were 3 bars on the beach and waiters came to serve so that was good. Also a [... read more]ll bars had grills where you can get food.

Great Resort

This is the third resort i have been in Santa Maria and the Warwick is one of the best. The staff were very helpful and friendly. The other resorts we felt like we were bothering them if we asked for something. The food wasn't bad either considering it's Cuba. They didn't run out of things like most resorts do. They had mojitos for the whole 11 nights were were there lol The only downside is the beach. The beach is very rocky and only a small spot where the sand is smooth to go into the ocean bu [... read more]t then the palapas were broken so not too much shade. But there were three bars at the beach and all of them made food on a grill so that was a plus. I would say that for sure we will be going to this resort again.

"Warwick DISAPPOINTING”

My wife and I travelled to the Warwick in cayo Santa Maria Feb 12 - 26 2017 I had read the reviews and thought may be some people were exaggerating but no I can tell you now that they were probably holding back I will tell you from beginning to end We left early Sunday morning on a SunWing flight it left on time everyone was excited the flight was quick arrived at the Santa Clara Airport passed through Customs and we were on our way to the Warwick by bus for our 2 hour + ride the bus had no to [... read more]ilets on board so we had to make a stop along the way no problem we are not in a hurry we got to our hotel after dropping off other passengers, proceeded to our lobby reception for our check in fairly quick procedure we got a nice room on the 3 floor partial seaview which we had not paid for I said thanks and tipped her a ten she quickly called on the "maletero" bell boy to bring our luggage to our rooms we are now on our way to Bungalow # 1 room 143 average room tipped the bellboy off he went we looked at the map of the resort and started to venture we went to visit the beach which is one of the main reasons for coming to Cuba and the hospitality of the people, the first surprise was the ROCKS!!! rocks everywhere, very difficult to walk along the beach we did finally find a patch of sand about 40 yards with 6 umbrellas. Went for dinner at the buffet everything fine so far get up the next day go for breakfast and we found attitude which was strange I hadn't experienced it till now but I asked the staff member if everything was alright they nodded fine and they went to get coffee for us and orange juice "tang" no worries add the bubbly and make a mimosa and keep going, we finished our "omelettes" breakfast which was always good and walked around got more familiar with surroundings went for lunch at the 24 snack bar and again more attitude from servers actually "the worst" of all of the restaurants was this one it looked like we were disturbing them no worries I said let's move on still tipped (did I mention I'm in the hospitality industry for over 30 years so I tip regardless) moving along we went to the lobby to await for our relatives coming in from Havana and Varadero we greeted them and arranged for a room next door to us which was a plus we got them settled in and we treated them to a lobster dinner 100 CUC in total for 4 of us at an "all inclusive" resort no problem great experience the 25 CUC per person is standard in all of Cuba I charged it to the room and off we went 9:30 pm the night is young we were heading towards the lobby and that's when disaster happened it was quite dark very difficult to see my wife missed step between the walkway and the grass and felled down twisting her foot.Next day we went to the international clinic and found out that she had a hairline fracture on her right foot they put a cast on her foot "Thank you" International clinic we tried to arrange a wheelchair and crutches but none were available at the time. We payed 101 CUC for the visit and went back to the resort another 10 CUC by taxi, we went to reception to try and resolve our problem with the wheelchair they gave us one but with a broken wheel that's when I lost it and said to them that this was unacceptable that a 4+ star resort did not have an adequate wheelchair and her response was they did have one but it was in use you see someone else had fallen not in the same spot mind you but nevertheless fallen, uneven walkways, rocky beaches and very poorly lit resort are all common denominators she told me to talk to my sunwing rep (ANOTHER BEAUTY) they said that they didn't have one and asked me why I didn't rent one from the clinic I was visibly upset and asked to speak to her supervisor and was told that she was not available at the time but that she would be informed, I also went back to the front desk and asked to speak to a manager they were also not available recap this place runs with no one at the helm, next day Sunwing rep informed us that we were in luck and a wheelchair and crutches were found and would be at our disposal for the remainder of our trip "how thoughtful" 7 days of misery with no access to the beach because of poor, uneven and broken down walkways went by now, with no one from the hotel approaching us to see how we were doing, (Nobody Cares!!) we finally tracked down a supervisor Michel and asked if this was normal no to have a manager respond to a request from one of their guests and he of course said no and asked what the issue was I pointed to my wife who was in a wheelchair told him the story above and he seemed genuinely sad about our ordeal and proceeded to call on his radio for his superior she came and listened to our story and asked the big question what would make us happy "read" (shut us up) I told her in my 30+ years of hospitality I have never witnessed such disdain towards people and made sure that upon my return I would write my review on the Warwick. Well I'll tell you, PEOPLE if you are thinking of booking here save your time spend your hard earned money elsewhere they don't care about your loyalty to their brand they just want your money. This resort has a lot of potential It's not that they have to spend millions to fix these problems how much would some pole lighting to have better illumination at night cost, and add some dirt or sand to even out the sidewalks and fix broken pieces of wood that impede a safe passage to the beach and also do a board walk on the beach so people can admire its beauty really it's not that much As for the attitude of the staff it all starts with proper leadership and this hotel has none BOOK AT YOUR OWN RISK some hotels look at the reviews and respond I will be waiting to hear from the Warwick Atentamente George Stella

A week in paradise

I can't say enough good things about my experience at Warwick. The grounds were absolutely beautiful, they were tended to all day long by very friendly staff. Colourful flowers along the walkways and planters throughout every building. (Late night walks from the room to the hotel bar are a must! The number of stars is breathtaking) Every building at this resort was designed to really showcase the gorgeous landscape. Seeing the ocean from the lobby as we first arrived was absolutely thrilling. [... read more] My girlfriend and I knew right away that this was the perfect resort for us. (Three bars in the main hotel with the snack bar and pool bar practically a minute away let us change up the scenery a lot and every sitting area was wonderfully furnished) The pool! Really should be called pools, multiple huge swimming pools with varying depths with most connected for easy access to deeper water. There's also a valley ball and basket ball net, but we mostly stayed to the chairs around and in the pool. (The pools are so refreshing after just a few minutes in the sun and the swim up bar was a favourite spot of ours.) The beach and ocean view really are incredible. Gorgeous blue waters and the warm white sand make for an amazing sun bathing spot. There's also lots of shade for laying in and multiple beach bars with great fresh sandwiches that they'll bring right to You! (We spent our time by the middle section of the beach and it was very quiet. It's the rockey portion so flip flops or shoes are recommended but the staff still come over to ask if you want drinks or sandwiches, have I mentioned the sandwiches? Seriously the ham and cheese was a life saver after a night of indulging) Now the food was an interesting experience. We'd heard all the warnings about it being bland or just plain bad so I went in with very low expectations. Now I totally disagree after experiencing the cuisine for myself but I can see where some people might get that idea. The alacarte restaurants were incredible and totally blew me away so I can only imagine the complaints are from the buffet. The buffet food is definitely filled with a few very odd things but like with any buffet you just have the look for the diamonds in the rough. Lots of great meats and cheeses but where the food really shines are the stations! Pasta, rice, seafood and meat for dinner with omelets for breakfast. (The wait can be a little long for the seafood but they give you a mountain of food. Every night was something difference but the mussels, lobster and tilapia were our absolute favourites.) I could rave about this resort for hours but I'll leave it there. Thank you Warwick cayo Santa Maria for an incredible week and a lifetime of memories.

Inconsistent, yet relaxing

Good beach, great staff and good facilities. Bed sheets were not washed throughout the stay and there appeared to be a white liquid residue on the comforter from the previous "couple". The staff were fantastic and the food was better than expected.

Great resort

the rooms were beautiful, the maid service was great always there when u needed anything. the food was ok u can always find something to eat, the al la cartes were good the beef was tough but stick to the chicken and pork they were great. every morning fresh crepes donuts, eggs etc. just be early to get food. the beach was the nicest ive seen but take the trail on the right by bungelow 14. grounds were always being kept up. over all great resort..... only complaint the men washrooms where al [... read more]ways broken,tolit seats missing etc.bus ride was long .