Worst trip ever!

My husband and I stayed March 31-7. It was completely understaffed, and ran out of things the whole week!! I will never recommend this resort EVER! And of course, no beach towels or chairs at the pool and no chairs at the beach. We brought floaties so we could sit on something. It's the little things that make your vacation menerable, unfortunately , these little things are severely lacking. I went with an open mind as to the horrible reviews, but they are all true! Rebook if you are planning a  [... read more]trip there.

Beautiful Resort

It was a great place, very clean, friendly people. Room service wasn't the best, glad I had brought my own towels. The food was ok My trip was for the beautiful beaches and to relax at the pool. But overall I would go back.

Go for the beach; the resort needs work

I was in Cuba about 15 years ago and decided to stay away based on that experience. I recently reconsidered and thought it was time to give Cuba another chance. I booked the Valentin and tried to go in with an open mind. 15 years didn't change much and I left with the same impression. The beaches are fantastic, the Cuban people are nice, the entertainment is impressive. Sadly the food and cleanliness standards are simply not there. Most of the buffet was an inedible combination of peculiar foods [... read more] that were from canned sources and highly-salted. There wasn't a banana, orange, apple, bean dish or health food to be found the entire week. The food utensils were so dirty and sticky that everything felt unhygienic. None of the bathrooms around the restaurant were equipped with handsoap (the soap dispensers were actually removed from the walls). I quickly realized that germs on those utensils from unwashed hands were going to pose a problem. Sure enough, I came down with a wicked bug/influenza the day we headed home and I'm still suffering four days later. The resort needs to bring in a team from Valentin Mexico to spend a week sharing their knowledge. If you go to this resort bring some food of your own, seasonings and lots of hand-sanitizer.

Beautiful Resort, Amazing Beach but Mediocre Food

This is a beautiful new and modern resort with spacious rooms and an amazing shower. The beach was picture postcard perfect with sugar white sand and blue ocean. The beach was wide at low tide and you could walk for a while including the beach at the adjacent natural parklands. The staff service was prompt and friendly and often had our coffee and juice waiting for us every morning. The food at the restaurants were either amazing (Spanish & French/Gourmet) or very poor (Seafood/Italian). The buf [... read more]fet often had odd choices, considering the North American diet (ie. brussel sprouts/asparagus at breakfast) and also suffered from supply & demand issues (no eggs for 3 days). By the end of our trip, we had seen both lobster and crab offered in the buffet so it also had some excellent choices as well - it was a mixed food experience. All in all, we felt that we received wonderful value for what we paid and would return again in the future.

Lovely

First must commend the workers worked hard with little to work with. Lacking bartenders at pool. Not enough workers behind counters at Buffett always running out of food. If u have lots of time sure stand in lineup for omelet that many people waiting u will starve by the time u get an omelet. Rooms clean but 14 days and 3 clean towels this was not good. Sour rounding pool area ashtrays,tables never wiped off. A lacarte resturants Italian French Spanish good. Mexican very very very poor not havin [... read more]g what was on menu a chicken fajita is not a chicken leg dried up. Not organized workers Who goes to a resultant shut in passage way for 3 hours then go to Buffett because u are starving. Would we go back at this point not now needs to be brushed up a lot U can go to customer service yes they write things down but do they do anything about NO. The sunwing rep was always trying to be of assistance she did her best.

It was better than a NB Winter lol

Cuba is a beautifup place to visit and complaining when you're surrounded by incredible beaches and "free" booze is tough but if you want a real review from a privileged Canadian here goes...I stayed at The Valentin Perla Blanca and the service was awful... in an entire week we never got even water served at our buffet table, waited over an hour to get any meal at the snack bars and the food was...we'll Cuba food. Not only was the food and food service bad but as far as the drinks go there was n [... read more]o selection and only shot glass sized cups for any type of alcohol...the resort was alright but it just didn't seem ready. With all thst said....the beach was the best I've stayed at and never had a gigantic issue getting a shelter spot.

Fair Resort

The resort itself is really nice as it's new but they have a lot of kinks to iron out. Even though it's new, it's already starting to get old as some door handles are loose, toilet paper dispensers' covers were off and without toilet paper in them sometimes, wall splattered in dining area, some A la carte menu items not available when ordering.etc.... The pool on Paraiso side was perfect, really really nice. The beach is very very nice, one of the nicest I've ever been to but the path going down [... read more] to the beach in front of the lobby needs to be upgraded for better access to the beach. The staff are nice and do their best but I think they are under staffed. No beer for a whole day, some items not available day after day at the 24 hour snack bar, not enough chairs at the beach, Perla Blanca side pool water was gross & not clear are some of the draw backs.

Don't tip just bribe

You have to bribe for any service you would expect in your room example : new towels, new sheets, beer etcetera. It's too bad de cause it's a very nice resort and beach. There are also many items not available at the many different restaurants

Beautiful Resort, but needs work.

My wife and I were part of a 10 person group. We were on the Sunwing side of the resort. My wife and I had no issues with the workings of the room. It was very nice, clean and everything worked great. The maid was great. Our towels were only changed once, but we had brought extra towels in case we needed them so it was no big thing for us. The other couples that were with us did not have their towels changed at all through the week. The resort is very nice with a great front entrance. The bars w [... read more]ere all excellent. The pool bar and beech bar would run out of beer quite often, but usually within a few hours would have it again. There is really no excuse for this. It did not bother me as I am not a beer drinker. The buffets were fine for us for selection and quality. At breakfast we found they would run out of items, but within 5 minutes would be replenished.That is a supply issue and they should be watching it closer to make sure there is not empty trays sitting there. I did notice big lineups for Omelettes as they only had two stations open at anytime Our pool was great, but the the pool area on the other side of the resort apparently had issues. All of the staff from the gardeners right up were great. Everybody did everything they could to make our stay a great experience. It is too bad the the guest would take out the issues they had on the staff. It is not their fault. It is the management. We went to the Italian, Oh La La(french, but there is also a Parisian) and the Mexican Al La Carte restaurants. The Italian and Oh La La were both excellent, but the Mexican was a disaster. We waited 2 hours for food and it was all cold. They only had part of the menu that night anyway. We left and went to the Buffet to eat. We only went to one show at night, but it was excellent. Different people we talked to said the entertainment was always excellent. They would also have singers etc in the lobby in the evenings which was always great. Great coffee bars. The beach seemed to have lots of chairs, but it was very hard to get them. As much as I hate the idea of saving chairs ahead of time, that was the only way to get chairs on the beach. We went at 7am one morning and managed to save chairs for 10 of us. Another morning one of the guys in the group went at 5AM and could not get any chairs at the beach. Pool never seemed to be too much of an issue for getting chairs. Unfortunately we had one issue that never seems to vary from any other resort we have been to and it is disappointing to see happen. That was the Quebec people stealing chairs. We caught one guy throwing a friends sneakers and towel on the ground and attempting to take their chairs. He was confronted and got mad. Other people we talked to had the same issue. It always puzzles me as to why they have to do this. I think this resort will be a great spot in a year or so, but right now it still needs some fine tuning. A lot of the issues are not big things and they should be fixed already, but they seem to be very slow at doing so. Please not they do not except credit cards at the Hotel Bank. We had a great time and do not regret going there.

Horrible

Let's say that for breakfast there was no veggies for the omelets. There was only three kinds of fruits. Snack bar ran out of Fries Chicken fingers Pizza Needless to say not much left to choose from Then at supper.......no pasta bar except for already cooked and cold pasta Oh and pool on the entertainment side had an inch of green at the bottom as the pump was broken. And at the restaurant they served you uncleaned shrimps.....totally gross. Heads I can see but come on the poop really???? And th [... read more]ey don't change the towels at all :-( Finally don't try to get a bell boy to help with your luggage on your return because they hung up the phone 5 times without speaking first. I will never ever ever go back to that resort or that chain or resort

Needs improvement.

The resort was big and modern however, ran out of food and beer. Not enough staff, not enough chairs. This is an adults only resort and I have never witnessed this many adults fighting over chairs and service staff, who was first and who saved what. Maybe in a few years when this place is more established and realizes how much food and beer and chairs they need to run the place smoothly it will be better. By Unfortunately, I will never go back to see if that will ever happen or not. Definitely n [... read more]ot worth the price and I booked the vip package.

Loved our Stay at Valentin!

We had a great time. Food was good, resort was beautiful although a little bigger than we anticipated, but that was the least of our worries, the beach was simply amazing!! We went to the Disco twice and had a ball!! The shows were really good, great dancers you have there! You must go see the Michael Jackson show on the Sunday night! Staff is really friendly and make an effort for your to enjoy your stay. Bring a few extra towels with you, they are a little short, and also bring toilet paper, i [... read more]f you go off the resort, you might be stuck with no toilet paper. And book your A La Carte as soon as you can, they fill up quickly so you might not get the time you preferred. Everyday, a bus comes along every half hour and bring you to the near markets, which is only 15 min away. Cute little place! would recommend this resort : )

IT HAS POTENTIAL BUT NOT THERE YET

The service is really not a great experience. We had reservation a La Carte (Seafood) at 8:30 and we got there around 8:15 and we never got served. We had to flag down the waiter to get drinks and they he never came back to your table. We waited for 1hour and 15 minute and we never even seen the menu. So at 9:30 we decided to leave because we knew the buffet was closing at 10:00 so if we wanted to eat we needed to leave. As we were leaving the Host and the waiter ran to us and said it was not th [... read more]e waiter fault but the cook fault. We didn't say a word to them we just left. Even at the bar the worker would talk amongs them while you waited to be served....I never exeprience such awefull service. But on the other hand the beach are BEAUTIFUL!!! So I guess that compensated a little bit of what the resort was lacking of.

New resort needs help

Resort and beach are beautiful, food poor, staff skills need work by management, paid for privilege but there really is no such thing other than massage, beach area for privilege is small, rocky and not on the beach. Sunwing Rep Armando only strong reprieve.

The good and the bad

This hotel is new and very lovely amenities but has a few major bugs to work out in my opinion. Beach chairs were impossible I get since there was no security and I think they were being held the night before. Your towels and sheets are not changed at all for a week long trip (a big deal since I got sick on the plane ride down). Bottled water is rationed and you only get one bottle in your room a day for two people, I tried asking at all areas of the resort for another but they were not allowed  [... read more]to give extra. The pools are not cleaned properly and by the end of he day are lined with a film of scum. I would caution anyone from going to this resort if they are used to true 5 star amenities and service.

Not bad

It is a new resort so in time it will work out ,Always running out of things beer Different drinks foods towels ext The pool was good and clean in sunwing side other pool not so good it is green. Staff should be more nice to travelers PS food was always cold

Cuban surprise!

This hotel is very nice but still has a few bugs to iron out before I would rate it a 5 star. They have gone very cheap on things like cutlery and table napkins. No tissues in the room until the 4th day of our 7 day holiday. There were a few plumbing issues, but they were resolved very quickly. Beaches were beautiful but not enough lounge chairs and huts for shade. Over all with time they should be able to work out these small kinks

Awesome resort

I found the grounds of the resort nice but the plants are still growing. It is going to be gorgeous once the plants start to grow and bloom. As for the accomodations are room was lovely, we had clean towels most of the time, but my sheets were not changed. The last day I had to spray them, because of the sweat. Are pool was clean and we didn't have any trouble getting loungers for the day. The food I found great!! I read reviews before I went that the food was bland, I'm not sure what resort the [... read more]se people were at because i found the food had lots of flavour. We had a waiter in the buffet named Juillean, I can not say enough about him, he knew what I needed before I did and always greeted us with the kindess smile. I believe this resort has a real gem in this young man, compared to alot of the servers. He deserves a higher paying job,he is definitely an asset to this resort. Another young man that works so hard to make everyone happy is Emanuall (icecream man) He makes everyones day he works also at the beach barbecue. One thing I was disgusted with was Emanuall not having the proper tools to cook with, like a long knife instead of a paring knife and maybe a good set of long tongs. So if your going please think of bringing a good set of tongs for Emanuall. It would be very much appreciated. The beach is the most gorgeous beach I have ever been too. You will not be dissappointed. I had a wonderful vacation the resort was wonderful just needs to work on a view bumps. The only thing I didn't like was some very ignorant French people, with no manners and butting in front of people like pack of segels and complaining about every little thing.

Beautiful Resort; hard working staff

We upgraded to privilege and were happy we did. Massage was amazing, fast check in, no line up to book a la cartes. Beach is amazing and staff is working so hard. The food was okay... Always found something to eat. Cons were towels were not changed daily, ran out of food at lunch or dinners but again you will always find something to eat.

Fabulous Resort!!! Highly Recommended!!!

This brand new adults only resort is absolutely incredible!!!! We just returned on the 19th of March. We have travelled to other 5 star resorts in Dominican and Mexico and consider this resort to be very comparable. At the airport, the process to find and board your bus was flawless. The bus ride in a coach with air conditioning and ice cold beer was were our fun started. The tour guide was very informative and educated us about the history. Check-in was very smooth. Even though we had requested [... read more] that the two other couples who were travelling with us, be close by our rooms, upon check in were not, they quickly accommodated and we ended up side by each. We changed our money at the airport. It was very fast. We would highly recommend this as there is only one wicket at the resort lobby and it is always lined up. The food was good on the buffet, always finding many items that were tasty. The pasta/shrimp/fish/omelette fresh cooked stations were scrumptious!! There was a bit of a wait, but it was well worth it. The Italian and seafood a la crates were delicious!!! The bbq on the beach had the most delicious pork sandwiches and the ice cream delivered poolside complete with a little show by Emmanuel, hit the spot!! The beach was more beautiful than that of other resorts that we have been to. The water is crystal clear and the sand was so white!! We loved the natural element of it. We had to go early and save chairs, but so did we at the other resorts we have been to. In the room, the rain shower is nice. We always had hot water. The rooms are bright and modern. Our fridge was always stocked. Tips go along way!! Sure, the sheets were only changed once as well as the towels, but that was not an issue for us. If this is a big deal for you, bring your own beach towels. We did and really didn't even need them. Our room was cleaned daily and we had nice towel/sheet sculptures every day as well as fresh flowers. Gifts and tips for the maids go along way too!!!! The pool on the Sunwing side was beautiful, plenty of shade and chairs. You were even brought cushions if you wanted them. The drinks were good at the swim up bar and other bar. They did on occasion run out of beer, but consider this an opportunity to try new drinks. The entertainment both in the lobby and theatre were awesome ! We highly recommend the Michael Jackson show. The staff is always smiling. They work hard and treat you like family. It is a two way street, treat them kindly, and you will get it back. Shout outs to Julien in the buffet, Emmanuel in the bbq and ice cream, Lester at the lobster dinner, Adrian at the bbq, Yennlys at the seafood restaurant and many others, too many to mention. Our only complaint is something that the resort cannot control and it is the ignorant guests. There are some people who are never satisfied, who think that they are the only ones there. People hoard at the buffet, taking 6 of an item and leaving the pan empty for the next person. People reserve chairs poolside and at the beach, only to use one or the other and steal people's reserved chairs. We saw many people not leaving tips. We would definitely go back and recommend to friends. Cheers to the Valentin staff!!!!!