Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: Worst Cuban experience for 8 years

It was my 10th visit to Cuba and worst one. Good sides: staff very friendly and tried their best, weather OK, beach good for leisure and snorkeling as well. Bad side: FRAUD! We were promised and paid for 4-1/2* service, got food around 2*. Main buffet (both floors) been closed just before our arrival and we were not informed about it. Cuban rep of AirTransat told us that they informed Canadian counterpart, nobody passed this information tom us. For 3 days stay locations for breakfast and lun [... read more]ch changed twice! About food offered: 1. No buffet at all. 2. No frying station - just plain omelet for breakfast with bad oily taste delivered from the kitchen. 3. A lot of flies on the vegetables - after our comment waiters move boxes to kitchen and delivered to tourists by request on the plates (just hid it from main dining room, ha-ha). 4. Even at diner restaurants provided over salted or hard/chewy meat. A lot of mosquitoes on site, we were told by hotel's employee that due to lower number of guests all services and headcount reduced by 1/3 (approximately). CONCLUSION: never ever going to this resort. Mexico all Jamaica/Dominican Republic looks less risky choice for off-season (second week of September).

Iberostar Waves Rose Hall Beach: Good resort

The hotel, location, food, and people are excellent, beach is good but not everyone will be able to tolerate very loud music on the beach. The level of noise definitely exceeded safe for hearing level. Based on the foregoing this resort can be recommended for young generation while family with kids should either consider less noisy locations or take ear plugs.

Iberostar Origin Playa Pilar: Very nice resort. Friendly people all around.

Plenty of food to pick from. The restaurants a la carta were also nice and clean. Rooms are clean and well maintained. Good place to spend your vacation. Grounds are nicely landscaped and managed. Would go back for sure

Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: Iberostar daiquiri

I hav been to the daiquiri 14 times enjoyedit each time.you get to know the staff and they become your family. It is a small resort easy access to every thing and beautiful beach.that you can enjoy a long walk to see the sun rise or later sun set.

Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: It's Cuba...and I love it everytime!!!

I have been to Iberostar Daiquiri 3 times. It is pleasant, beautiful and relaxing. The grounds are clean, precise and organized. The hospitality is amazing. Yanet at the lobby bar is attentive to your needs and diligent to ensure you are hydrated. The beach is beautiful. Miguel the lifeguard is so friendly and full of information regarding Cuba and all within the beautiful country. If you have a chance to take the bus to Pillar Beach; do it!!! The rooms are cleaned daily. Downfall; limite [... read more]d towels...bring your own. Bring ketchup, bug spray, extra large Bubba and a positive attitude. A rainy day cannot be controlled but a negative Nancy can stay home. Iberostar Daiquiri...I'll see you again.

Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: Great resort to visit!

The grounds were well kept. Staff were very friendly and hard working. No bugs were seen in my room. The mosquitos were a little bad at night but I brought bug spray with me. I did see them fogging the area at dusk and dawn. Beach was awesome and beautiful.... loved the pier and swimming/snorkeling with the fish. Food was not bad either. There was always fresh fish available. Bread was yummy and not as bothersome as our Canadian preservative filled bread! Overall wonderful experience and wo [... read more]uld go again in a heart beat!

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Worth less than what we paid

The resort looks average for a 5*. The rooms are kinda old. The activities are limited same as the availability of the towels at the pool.. The food is bad. The staff is not friendly you must tip first.

Iberostar Origin Bella Vista Varadero: Unfortunately, would not recommend this resort.

We just returned from our trip to Varadero and this hotel. We did a lot of research before booking at this hotel and wish we had done more. I will not return to this resort, ever! First, the positive parts: beaches are beautiful, entertainment is great and very professional, a-la-carte restaurants are very good, one of the best cappucino I have had and the majority of staff are wonderful. Unfortunately, these positive parts did not override the negative parts of the vacation and this resort. We  [... read more]had issues with both our rooms: shower head in one room did not stay on the wall (reported this 4 times to front desk), safe did not work in one room and patio door in the other room was so difficult to open (again, reported this 4 times to the front desk). None of these issues were resolved by the end of our stay. I also left a note with the person at reception when we checked out in the hopes that we can make someone else's vacation a little less stressful. On a few occasions, we came back from a long day at the beach to find no bath or hand towels in our roon - time to chase down a maid.One room smelled musty and not sure why. The A/C stopped working in this same room and after hours of waiting for someone to come up, it seems that the issue was the patio door wasn't closed all the way, so the A/C turns off. Why the person at reception couldn't have troubleshooted this is beyond me. I am shocked that this hotel is supposed to be newer (some reviews say 2 years old!) as it definitely looks worn: stains on the cushions of the lobby, broken tiles in lobby and hallway of our floor. One of the pools (and there are only two adult pools) was closed for 5 of the 7 days we were there. Half of the cabanas on the side where the out of service pool was were out of service or under construction. At least 4 of the showers coming off the beach were out of service the entire time we were there. Many broken beach chairs on the beach. All umbrellas look very worn and some were broken or ripped. We weren't able to replace beach towels on 3 of our 7 days there as they were out of clean towels. Buffet: reasonable assortment of food both prepared and in stations and made to order although the made to order lines (for pasta, grilled meat and omelettes) were long. For example, the cooks at these stations would only do one pasta at a time even though they had 3 or 4 areas to prepare.....please, speed up this process so people don't get frustrated waiting for their food. Same issue with the omelette station at breakfast. Although they tried to vary the assortment, the food all seemed the same to me. Breakfast included french toast, sunny side up eggs, made to order omelettes, scrambled eggs etc. There was lots of fresh fruits and desserts each day. You won't go hungry but you will get tired of the huge dining hall with loads of people. Unfortuntely, 3 out of 4 of us had stomach issues while we were there. Although we tried to drink only the bottled water that they provide, it is almost impossible to avoid drinking water that is not bottled. I also witnessed on many occasions, the cooks using the same utensils for raw and cooked food and for different types of meat - can you say cross contamination? Drinks: I suspect the alcohol is watered down and I don't know if this is so the resort limits their liability or to reduce costs. Beach towels must be replaced first thing in the morning - ie at 9am when they open. We went later in the day 3 times and there were no more clean towels. I would think they would just keep washing these towels all day but when they are out, they're out. My one recommendation for the person responsible for reading this review and addressing it is to have more maintenance people working at the resort. With a hotel this big and with so many people using the facilities, I don't doubt that things will break or wear down but a good part of the annual operating budget should go towards maintenance: fixing things, replacing things etc. It really dampers a vacation when you have to deal with issues that you shouldn't have to deal with; and when no one addresses your issues when you bring it/them to their attention - it's like they either don't care or really don't have enough people to deal with things. In reading other reviews, it seems this is a common theme.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Very good resort. This resort value 4 - 4.5 stars

I came back from this resort 3 days ago (02 Sept 2019), I spent 8 days and 7 nights at this resort. I won't give 5 stars for this resort but I will give 4-4.5 stars for this resort. All staffs are nice and friendly. Food are very good. I eat at least 18 meals in the buffet in my trip but I never see any cockroach in the buffet area. Staff keeps wiping the buffet area. Honestly, there are a lot of flies and some birds flying in buffet area but this is an open area and also a lot of tree outside [... read more], I completely understand this is nature. Buffet food are out of our expectation, all food tastes good especially dessert area. Drink are free. Alcohol drink taste good. The only disadvantage is no alcohol drink menu, we don't know the name to order the drink. They better provide the drink menu to travelers. Room are clean and A/C is working all day. We are in the middle of the building, unfortunately, Varadero have thunderstorm and raining heavily 3 days (keep raining heavily more than 6 hrs after 7pm). Some of the ceiling are dripping water and my floor corridor are flooding but the resort cannot control heavily rain, this is also out of their expectation. Cause of the heavy rain, our room are out of electricity a few hours but finally they fix it. Some of the paint in my room is peeling off but this is not a big deal for us. Bed is very big, mattress is too soft, need to replace. Towel is not changing every day except you requested. The room keeper will provide a new towel when you requested for it. I don't know how long they change the pool towels in the room but we keep using the same pool towels in 7 days. This resort provide a swimming towel beside the swimming pool area but a lot of time out of towel. Toilet is clean and working well. The room keeper provide us toilet paper but no tissue in the room. You need to bring tissue by yourself. In the resort some public toilet locks are not working. I really don't know why some of the travelers never flush in the public toilet after use. Room refrigerator always keeps 1 large bottle of water, 2 cola and 1 beer. Only 1 day, they forget to refill the drink but I report to front desk, they refill the drink when I go back the room. Snack bar is 24 hrs, burger tastes good but never have hot dogs. Pizza and French fries are average. Beach is beautiful. Sand is soft, sea water is warm. I hate some travelers smoke in the beach and through the cigarette everywhere. Beach equipment is free, everyone can use 30 mins. Offer free life jacket when you use the beach equipment. Swimming Pool is clean. The deepest is 1.04m, it is good for family with kids but small kids still need to be careful. I just saw an infant without life jacket playing aside the pool and fell into the water. Fortunately, her aunt just help him out of the water immediately, his father is watching his phone, his mother is taking a photo. The pool is not clean because a lot of travelers did not clean their body and feet after going to the beach and then jump into the swimming pool. That's why some of the sand under the water and aside pool area. A lot of travelers drink inside the swimming pool, some of them leave their plastic cup inside the swimming pool, sometimes wind blows the empty plastic cup into the swimming pool, too. Tennis, table tennis, basketball, shooting game, pool game, you need to check the working hour and make the reservation except you bring your own equipment. Basketball not enough air, table tennis is weird the ball is not bouncing normally. They have pool table but no ball and cues, need to go somewhere to pick up the balls and cues. Gym is in 5th floor. Very good condition. Went to gym a few times because noon - 3:00pm is not suitable to swim (easy to get sunburn). We spent a few days in the gym between noon - 3:00pm. The Jacuzzi is next to the gym room, this is warm water open view Jacuzzi. Very good to relax and good view but not for people under 18. I need to ask my son go to gym, me and my wife can go to Jacuzzi for 15 mins. Check out is easy, just returned the room key and that's it. No any hard time. Check the shuttle bus to airport by yourself 1 day before check out. The receptionist does not know anything about airport shuttle bus. Wifi is 1 CUC per hour. Only in specific area can use wifi. Try not to use wifi in your vacation, better spend more time with your family than your devices.

Iberostar Selection Ensenachos: No so amazing resort!

Hotel grounds: Dull and outdated, need an improvements. Room: Bad. My son killed 10 cm cockroach inside the room. The maid killed a spider size of tarantula, little less. So if you have fear of insects- staying there WILL be problematic. Territory: wild jungle! I like premises like that, but if you like more civil surrounding do not go there. Also, they have problems with lights- the walkways are dark, we had to use Phone's flashlight to see where we were going. Scary! Beach: priceless [... read more], this is why I can forgive all other faults. Food: yak! Seriously- very bad. Cockroaches crawl on the cakes there. My little son had a fly in his pasta. Juice is dissolved with water to the point it is water, colored water. Service- DO you like to be serviced??? DO NOT go there. They all just ignorant. I looked at them and I understand why the country is so poor. They are lazy, ignorant, they only speak Spanish. In the other words- there was no communicado with workers at any level of service in this place. Sunwing shall drop this hotel. Very very very disappointing experience.

Iberostar Origin Daiquiri: Very disappointed 😡

We just got back from our vacation at Iberostar Daiquiri our experience there was terrible. I put a request for joint room's and I did not get that, the food was not at all at the standards of a 4 1/2 star hotell we had to wait in lines to get the food we got our room even not side-by-side but just cross the hallway with each other the first room that we got was two twin beds with sofa bed for three people and the other room was exactly the same we went to the bathroom we flush a toilet and  [... read more] the flash did not work we did not have hot water so I went downstairs I complain they changed the room they give me a king bed with sofa bed still not just beside each other just cross each now me and my husband we had to separate to sleep with the kids because we couldn't leave two kids sleep in one room by themself without an adult supervision. We went to take the beach towels the first day they told us they did not have towels so either we take the towels that they have there which they were very old and ripped at the sides or we stay with no towels for that day so we need to wait until next day . Next day they still had no towels they told me come in about 2 hours after 2 hours I got finally the towels, two of them war ripped and very bad stained we're talking about a condition like they might be used for 20 years that's how bad the towels were. If we wanted to change the towels we had to make sure that they were towels there otherwise we had to carry our towels everywhere we go with us. The beach was okay I was expecting much better. The show at night was very poor not at all excitement there were no activities at all at the beach or anywhere ,if you don't know how to speak Spanish you would be served the last one . On Friday Saturday and Sundays they were locals they were coming to the resort and they will get better service than you that you paid more than them I've nothing against anybody but at least everybody need to be treated equally. Because you don't speak their language you don't need to be miss treat it , for me this was a very disappointed trip. Mosquitoes at night they would kill you they did not spray at all so they wouldn't have mosquitoes around the resort when I got to speak with somebody that they were on a different resort close to us they had better service they had a more activities to do they had better service in the rooms the food is kind of the same everywhere you go make sure you guys get pills for diarrhea because from the food and cups that they weren't clean at all my husband got diarrhea and we had to pay a 100 pesos to get medication. They said that they had the kids club I never saw the kids club open. Based on my experience this resort wouldn't even get 2 Star. I recommend everybody get insurance because you never know what will happen there. It was a very nice Beach called a Pilar Beach there you would get the bus which it will cost you five pesos per personwill and 2 pesos for a chair , it takes you about 20 minutes to get there but then you had to pay everything from your pocket was nothing included . The beach there was amazing so if you think to go to Cuba Cayo Coco I recommend you go to Pilar resort the food might be the same but the beach and the service will be better than Iberostar

Iberostar Selection Hacienda Dominicus: Amazing resort amazing staff

It was clean, lots of entertainment for people of all ages. I went to celebrate my daughter's first birthday and oh they made it special. I have enjoyed a few of the all inclusive resort and this one was by far the best. The staff was amazing and super friendly. Food was good too. I felt safe and.enjoyed my time at iberostar!

Iberostar Selection Rose Hall Suites: Amazing time

We had a great time,stayed there for a week met amazing people,staff are outstanding I honestly can’t say a single bad thing about the Jamaican people unreal attitude and hospitality,the resort is super clean,food is amazing,drinks are great in the restaurants,lobby & at the pool/beach,they have a good size water park for kids under 8 years old my son loved it (5 years old). I honestly recommend this resort and I will definitely be back there.If you would twist my arm to come up with a negati [... read more]ve thing I would pick the local merchants that swim up the beach to sell their local crafts or what’s hidden under the crafts,they really don’t bother anyone but I had to explain to my 5 year old what weed is cause he kept hearing them. I’ve been to nice resorts in Cuba,Dominican,Mexico & Jamaica & I would put this resort on top of the list.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Terrible Service

I have never experienced such a terrible service. Air conditioning at the Buffet or bar not working, or the managers don't put them on to save electricity. Rooms are run down and dirty. Cleaning lady terrible attitude. Do yourselves a favour and don't go to this hotel. Pay the extra difference and go to Melia International. At least it's clean. Towels dirty, food acceptable, but ugly presentation. Very lazy staff. A la carte restaurants terrible food. Beach bar was very good. The only place wher [... read more]e service was nice. Snack bar terrible. Pizzas and hamburgers worst of the worst. Iberostar should be ashamed that this hotel holds their name. Did I say that service was terrible? Peor de los peores.

Iberostar Origin Bella Vista Varadero: Good Clean Modern Resort

Overall my wife and I had a great relaxing vacation. Food was good, room was clean and the hotel beach and pool area was great. The only issue we had was that we were on the 7th floor and only 2 out of 6 elevators worked. Therefore I would not recommend this resort to people with any mobility issues

Iberostar Selection Paraiso Lindo: Great resort

This was a spectacular resort. Very large. The pools were fantastic. Always enough umbrellas. We love spending time at the beach and ocean but we really couldn’t here because the ocean was to volatile to swim in. The beach is also amazing- along with the snack bar. What was disappointing was the food. The breakfasts were sparse, food like eggs and omelettes were pre cooked and cold. Food would run out and it would take 10-25 mins for it to be replenished. Also the pasta was horrendous. Eith [... read more]er the pre made ones or if you were lucky enough to get pasta made to order it was not tasty.

Iberostar Selection Paraiso Lindo: Amazing resort

This hotel is fantastic. It’s very large and has 2 huge pools and a ton of umbrellas and recliners for all. The beach although large and beautiful was full of seaweed. They cleaned the beach on an ongoing basis all day long. The ocean was too rough to swim in. The buffets were very good - especially the main buffet in the main lobby. The only downfall for the food was the pasta. It was awful. Always. That was truly disappointing. The Star Coffee club was AMAZING. We went daily and it was a h [... read more]uge hit.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: From South Africans in Cuba via Canada

Overall the experience with the Hotel has been great. I will highlight some good and not so good experiences from the Hotel. The transfer to the Hotel is a mad dash to catch a bus. Its worth it spending a couple of CUC and have a porter help you with you bags to the bus - we were 3 adults , 1 toddler and 1 infant so we had a lot to lug around. The bus ride was great and the tour guides make it interesting as they provide some delightful insight into Cuba and the tour options. There were even  [... read more]a couple of Cristal beers offered to all guest on the bus. Arrival at the hotel you just realize what is meant with humidity. The reception is a nice welcome. The ladies a the check in desk was able to assist in getting adjacent rooms after a lot of conversation exchanges. We did however request for a baby crib through the travel agent and again on check in, I was informed that it will come through to our room but are yet to see the baby crib even after our departure. The rooms are acceptable and by that I mean the amenities are there but the rooms are in need of some upgrades or repairs (TLC). The bed lamps didn't have bulbs in and the TV remote didn't work at all. Even trying to use the button on the TV did not work as it kept on displaying an error message. We eventually ended up swapping TV remote from between room 15211 and 15215. As we have a toddler tv was a must at night otherwise we would not have cared. The lady servicing our room was great and friendly and she really trued her best to dress it with flowers daily. The fridge was stocked almost daily with 1,5l water , 2 local beers and 2 local soda's -free of charge. Buffet B-fast/Lunch/Dinner The food selection was good and be open minded to local cuisine options. They have employee preparing fresh meals if you are prepared to wait in a line a couple of minutes (its worth it). There is a good selection of fruits and desserts and if you are quick you can get ice-cream and by quick I mean before it melts. The only negative about the buffet's for us was the fact that there is no cooling which makes for unpleasant dinning experience. We had a pool view room and it was great. There is a lot of entertainment during the day poolside and at night. If you have specialty dinning options book these on arrival as the night book out quickly. I wish I could write more but I am limited to the number of characters. So to conclude - Overall it was a great experience. The rooms just needs some updating.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Good Resort

The hotel grounds was well kept , we upgraded our room which was a good choice, also we got the 5th floor which has the best view, the air condition did not work in the Buffet, the staff was friendly and helpful, the beach amazing , and pool area, the shows all in Spanish language, but ok their were some inefficiencies overall, but minor and repairable. the Wi fi $1.00 CUC only limited to the lobby area. Overall not a 5* maybe 4*.,food was okay lost of choices. Everyone's expectation is at d [... read more]ifferent level, so it depends what are looking for on your vacation and want to accomplished.

Iberostar Selection Holguin: Not quite what we expected...

... from a hotel that is still in its first year from opening. We had been in Holguin three times before, and were wanting to try the new Iberostar thinking the management would be going all out not only to display the brand new fresh property, but also to offer service that would help build up a clientele. We were right in some, but wrong in many ways: The goods: - The facilities are new, rooms spacious and A/C works wonderfully without noise at night, resulting in an extremely comfortable  [... read more]sleep - The beach portion at Pesquero is nice, and very necessary as the portion next to hotel (facing the bay) is very nice when the water is clear, but almost unusuable when the water is dirty/murky which happens a lot at low tide. The bads: - Staff is definitely in need of a lot more training, both from a pleasant service aspect AND an efficiency aspect. A few restricted staff were extremely pleasant, and talking to them you soon realized they were the few experienced ones (i.e. bartender from beach bar)... to highlight the lack of efficacy, on 2 separate days, it took more than 1 hour to get our snacks at the beach snackbar (and I was alone with my wife !). In addition, people were getting aggressive around the main lobby bar after dinner as it could take 15 min to get served. - Although nice, the site is way too big for its content (a lot of free, unused free space), and for some strange reason, all usable spaces such as the pool, the outdoor patio are all cramped up and were designed too small for the size of resort (the place was 75% occupied and readily space was tight). - Disclosure: I am diabetic; another unpleasant surprise was that no diet sodas were available on the premises even if diet sodas were available in surrounding resorts (not a supply issue, which sometimes happen in Cuba with salads and fruits). After speaking to management, I was told I would receive 2 cans/day for the reminder of the weeks (5 days), and ended up only getting 2 cans/day for 3 days... very disappointing as I made sure they understood this was not a "taste preference" but a must for a health condition. (I am definitely not dead, but could not enjoy as many Cuba Libre as I would have wanted on a vacation ;-P ) Notice for snorkeling lovers: Holguin was great as the catamarans would usually bring you to a Coral barrier just on the other side of the bay (10 min away). Apparently the new management for the catamaran crew across resorts has decided to shut this down... not any resort's fault, but another let down All in all, not a horrendous experience, but definitely left a bitter impression... Would not recommend this hotel, and would stick to older venues around with a more organized and lively setting (i.e. Playa Pesquero). Sebastien