Wonderful resort!

We stayed at the Sanctuary for a week on Jan 3rd and would book again. Grounds were well maintained. The beach was awesome and we could walk for miles. Couldn't ask more of the staff, they were outstanding from the maids to restaurant staff to butler! Food was okay; we've had worse.

Great value for money

The value for money of this resort is the shining star. We enjoyed our week away, relaxing on the beautiful beach and moving to the pool most afternoons. We visited from January 3-10 and while a small storm brought four windy days, it was still warm and enjoyable. Beach: The beach is stunning, powdery sand with luscious teal water and a long sand bar. We would reserve our chairs about 7 am with no issue but I would recommend doing so for shade and comfort. The bugs seemed to affect everyone di [... read more]fferently but it was very manageable by 1) using bug spray, 2) leaving the beach by 4-5 pm, 3) treating with after-bite or after-sun to soothe the itch, and 4) taking an anti-histamine to reduce swelling and itching if needed. Pool: clean, lots of chairs, solid amounts of variable shade. Swim up bar. Room: our room was clean, no issues with water pressure, air conditioning, or balcony, plus a great view from the 3rd floor of building 60. While I had no doubt in the cleanliness of the sheets and towels, they weren’t “bright white” clean. It was frequent to see stains despite fresh sheets and there was marks on the walls. It’s definitely no Mexico 4 star but it’s Cuba and I’m sure these are some of the best accommodations. Location: I wouldn’t visit Santa Maria again due to it’s distance from “real Cuba”. Employees live 45 minutes away on the main land and there’s no town closer. There is a mall next to the resort good for gifts, trinkets, and off-the-resort restaurants. Excursions: we attended the Rum, Sugar, & Cigar tour and do not recommend. It was expensive for essentially a visit to an old sugar factory facility and a demonstration on rolling cigars. This is not a drinking tour. Snorkelling: Due to the windy weather, we weren’t able to go, but apparently the snorkelling just 1 km away is fantastic. The boat hut on the beach offered to take us for 10 CUC a person for 45-60 minutes of snorkelling time but on a less windy day they said it would be better. I would recommend that if you have the gear. Food: For breakfast, the buffet was great with a lot of options and good service. For lunch, we tried the buffet but didn’t love it, so we mainly enjoyed the grills at the beach or pool. Option of chicken, fish, burgers, or hot dogs usually. All great options. Our week wasn’t super busy, so sometimes only one of two would be open, though they are only a one minute walk apart. For dinner, we tried the Grand Memories buffet. Typical buffet food, nothing more. There was a pasta, fried rice, and meat cooked to order stations. Didn’t try these as we went to the a la cartes the rest of our evenings. The a la carte in Sanctuary changes menu every night. Food was ok. It’s Cuba. Biggest issue was warmth of food, a lot of our meals would have been so much better if they were delivered hotter than lukewarm. Snack bar in Sanctuary is open 24/7 though you have to ask if you want anything more than pizza. Drinks: the pool and beach bars were great, the lobby bar frequently over poured. There was a drink menu but expect that one ingredient they won’t have that day. Try again the next day. Transfer: was about 1.5-2 hours depending on stop points (ours had to stop to use washroom), beer on board 2 for $5, enjoyable scenery and guide. Other details: on the west side of the lobby is a small building which emits a sewage stench. Avoid using the lobby bathroom in the northwest corner and you can avoid this stench almost entirely. Some dogs and cats can be found wandering the facility as is typical for these islands. All seemed friendly though. The adult only aspect was sometimes not enforced. I once saw a butler refuse a small child and parent entrance to the pool area because they inquired, but frequently saw children and parents taking a walkthrough the resort or beach area without consequence. Better signage would help with this. In summary, this was a very nice getaway. It’s not 5 stars but it is clean and comfortable. The price was unbeatable. The beach alone was worth the plane trip.

GREAT RESORT

THE HOTEL IS NICE POOL ARE GREAT AND THE BEACH IS THE BEST BUT THE FOOD NEEDS IMPROVEMENT STAFF IS VERY FRIENDLY ENTERTAINMENT WAS AWESOME.DON'T THINK I WOULD GO BACK BUT I DO LIKE CUBA WAS JUST WHAT I NEEDED I WEEK IN THE SUN.

Not bad

There are many positives to Sanctuary at Grand Memories. Adults only, beautiful beach, friendly service, beautiful grounds. Clean rooms, live music, great drinks! Some room for improvement. Public washrooms were dirty or out of soap and paper. Towel exchange not enough available. Supper buffet at Grand, very loud and the food was average. For the price I’d consider going back for the positives.

Outstanding Resort the only BAD thing is the BUGS

The Grounds are well-groomed and the pools are very clean. Our butlers Lestor & Dayana were Great and looked after us all week. Our room was excellent and everything ok except the TV and we are not TV watchers away. We had a Junior Suite with Balcony that you could not sit out on as you get eaten alive with BUGS no Spray works. I personally would not upgrade to the ocean view room as the only thing you can see the bush around the resort is 30 feet high. Beach is one of the better ones we hav [... read more]e ever seen as we traveled to Cuba several other resorts. Buffet is 2.5 the best very noisy. Ala carte was a bit better but again very noisy and score them 3.5

Fantastic vacation!

Sanctuary was great. Some small issues in rooms but nothing major. And they were always super helpful if you needed anything. Would definitely go back! Pool and beach was amazing and staff at pools and beach - excellent!

Had a great vacation!

Beach 5.0, Pool 5.0, Service 5.0, Food very good for cuba, Room no more then 3.5-4.0 stars. The service was unbelievable, the butlers were always there too book a la cartes and help. All together the best service i have had in Cuba. The most beautiful beach i have been to in Cuba, always enough room and definitely quieter then “family resorts”. This is the first time we have had an issue with SAND FLEAS that would bite our legs, but they seem to bite some people more then others. Bring bu [... read more]g spray of some sort. Our butlers booked us an a la carte everynight, and the food was satisfying - we never went to the buffet afterwards to fill up. It really just depends from person to person but there was a fair selection for lunch and breakfast as well. We stayed in bungalow 61 with a beautiful ocean view. The room needs to be UPDATED asap. Even a quick repaint would help so much. Mind you the room itself was clean, no bugs, some small marks on the sheet but nothing concerning. Its just outdated, some stains on walls, there was a hole in the shower from where some sort of hanger used to be etc. Overall we had a great couples vacation and would recommend if you dont mind an outdated room.

Quiet and relaxing

Rooms were comfortable, butler Isabel was fantastic! The food at Sanctuary was some of the best we have experienced in Cuba! The pool is well maintained, quiet and never had a hard time finding a lounger.

Exactly what we were looking for in a quick beach getaway !!

We loved our ocean view room, the gorgeous white beach, very impressed with the exceptional service from the sweet staff, breakfast buffet was small but had some great items & a la cartes were terrific,

Great vacation

We visited in November 2019 and had a great vacation. Service was excellent, beaches were beautiful, room was spacious and clean. The food was ok; the selection was the poorest we have seen in Cuba ever, but the chefs did a great job with what they had.

Sanctuary at Grand Memories

The resort was very nice!! Groundskeepers and cleaning staff were working hard every day keeping everything pristine. All the staff at the resort and the country of Cuba are very nice and friendly and will do anything to make your vacation the best experience you’ve ever had!! We had a wonderful time in Cuba and can’t wait to go again. The people of Cuba love Canadians to death and do whatever it takes for you to enjoy your stay in their country!! As for the food, I enjoyed it, some things  [... read more]were a little blah but I didn’t go to Cuba to eat myself silly!!

Good place to stay!

Nice place! Good food, clean room and common areas. Building is showing some age but as long as its clean I am happy. Air conditioner in room smells moldy though. Loved staying at the sanctuary section.

Excellent Resort

The rooms are very nice, the grounds and beach are truly beautiful. Stunning aqua blue water. People are very helpful, friendly and nice and the butler service is great. It was nice to have access to the other resorts as well.

Started off rocky

Just returned from Sanctuary Grand Memories. The flight over and the bus connection to the resort ran smoothly. Once at the resort, about 3pm,we were taken to the Sanctuary lobby for check in and brought to our room in building #57. Room was not ready so we went to the beach area looking for snacks and had the last 2 hamburgers at the snack bar. No other food was available. Returned to the room to find everyone gone. Room is tired, no toilet paper, loose toilet seat, shower faucet came apart tha [... read more]t I managed to repair, etc.. We went to the lobby to speak to a representative and he noted our concerns. Nothing was done. Called main lobby 3 times to get toilet paper. No one came. I had to get some from the main lobby bathroom. No butler for 2 days. Finally on day 3 a butler did show up and some of our concerns were finally resolved. Service throughout the resort is quite poor. Main buffet at Grand memories is a zoo at dinner time, TOO many people. The insect bites were abundant. The staff smogged the premises twice at 6 pm when people were going out for drinks and dinner. Bad timing. Now the good: Beaches were perfect. perfect swimming. You have to get up early to find palapas. Weather was perfect. Pool at the Sanctuary had lots of loungers, clean, good bartenders, not overly busy, and near towel exchange, ping pong, pool table, etc.. Food is OK. Entertainment at the main lobby was quite good. .

Awesome resort!

My boyfriend and I really enjoyed our relaxing vacation at the Sanctuary. We had a big beautiful room with a king size comfortable bed, spend some days drinking, swimming and tanning by the pool, spent the others hanging out at the beautiful beach with clear waters, non-stop drinks and burger grill right there. I have no idea why people have negative things to say about Cuban food; this was not our experience. The lunch and breakfast buffets exceeded our expectations! We ate a never ending amoun [... read more]t of meats and cheeses with both meals. Lunch buffet gave you the option of like 8 different land and sea meats they would freshly grill for you. We also really enjoyed our romantic dinners. We never left hungry or food on our plates. After a few drinks we also had the option of late night pizza and fries to bring to our rooms. I would highly recommend this resort if you're looking for a nice peaceful, relaxing vacation. Not exactly the best place for single people looking to hook-up though. Also, never beats the Cuban staff; so friendly, helpful, funny. After going here I would never go back to Mexico again.

5 day trip

Save the money rooms are nicer in the family side. All adults buffet was awful, family side was great. Our room didn’t have blankets and when we asked we got an extra sheet. We didn’t have toilet paper in either room (we had two rooms) for the first 24 hours, had to go get some from the lobby. Staff are amazing except for the sunwing reps. Save the $150 and say on the family sode

Great staff

The resort is getting dated. Unfortunately the beach has badly deteriorated. We use to really enjoy this resort but beach is a main part of our vacation. But the staff are amazing. Always willing to do everything they can to make your stay as pleasant as they can !!!

Enjoyable time

My wife and I went here for our anniversary trip this year. The resort was clean and the beach was beautiful. We enjoyed our morning beach walks and spent most of our time near the pool lounging. Staff was friendly and helpful. Having unlimited Al carts was a nice added feature which we used nightly. Buffet for dinner seemed crowded while we were there as it is only open at the Grand memories resort. The Theatre put on a good show nightly. Market is a short walk which was a fun place to visit. W [... read more]e went to the spa and had a great couples massage. Overall it was a good time and would recommend it.

Nice resort.

The people are the greatest at the resort. the water and the beaches are great. I and several others were sick for 3 days from the ice, food? Others on the previous tour before us were sick as well. The food is not the greatest. My biggest complaint is the two plus hours standing in line to check our bags at the Sunwing lines at the airport when leaving. No air conditioning and poor service there.

Sanctuary at Grand Memories

Very pleased with my recent stay at the Sanctuary. The check in and out process was the fastest I have ever experienced. The staff and service we excellent for the most part. The food was good, but being Cuba, there were times when some things were just not available. Our Butlers, Mercedez and Diyan were most attentive and provided us with everything we needed during our stay. Pedro from the lobby bar at Grand Memories was fantastic. All in all, it was a pretty good value for the price.  [... read more]I would recommend the upgrade to butler service and unlimited a la cart dinners though as the buffet can become a bit monotonous after a few days of breakfast, lunch and dinner.