Sol Cayo Santa Maria: Apr 25 - May 09 2007 (14 days)

First thing I would stress is that this area appears to be mostly couples, very few, if any, singles and if that is your status, and you are hoping to meet other singles, I would not recommend Cayo Santa Maria to you. This is a long revue. Asides from that:

Trip was booked through Tours Mont-Royal. Flew with Air Cubana from Montreal to Santa Clara. Flight was on schedule going there and back. Seats are much larger than Air Transat and the baggage allowance was 30 kilos. (yes 30 kilos). Flight took 4 hours.

The Airport is small but is expanding as the Cayo Santa Maria resort area is growing rapidly, so they must be able to handle the future increase in clientele. Everything went smoothly. You can change dollars to Pesos at the airport while waiting for your luggage to appear. When you exit the building there is a small beer stand to the right that sells Buccanero beer for a peso. Welcome to Cuba!!

The bus ride to the resort area is an hour and a half and passes through Santa Clara, Camajuani, and Remedios. This at least gives you a chance to see some towns and how the Cuban people live. You also pass through the countryside which I consider beautiful.

The reception was done on the bus by the Tour Mont Royal rep. We were assigned our rooms, keys, map of the resort and other info.

Room was 2801, on the second floor and had a very nice ocean view, large picture window in the bathroom so you could shower and enjoy the view (as could the people passing by below). A small path outside led directly to the naturist's beach. Everyday brought forth some new type of towel creature by the maid. Room has a small bar fridge that has a bottle of water in it. Afterwards you must fill it up at the bar whenever it is empty.

The resort was the first one built on this island. It has a rustic charm that I think the other resorts lack. I visited the Melia next door. It is more elegant, newer, but I felt much more comfortable at Sol. Sol clients are able to visit the Melia and use their Bank, Gym and Spa. Melia clients can make use of all of the Sol's facilities. The landscaping at Sol is lush with lots of mature plants, ponds, sculpture, arbors, pottery, etc. Lots of attention to detail. Pretty interesting birds flying about the premises. Lots of cats. Staff are very friendly and hard working, and encourage people to participate in activities with out being annoying.

Clientele changed often throughout the two weeks, at first there were mostly British and some French Canadian, later on, there were more English Canadians, and a large contingent of Portuguese and some Italians.

Bars:
24 hour Patio bar near reception,
Piano Bar "El Manglar" 6:30 pm to 1:00 am
Pool Bar "La Jutia" 9:30 am to 6:30 pm
Club Cubain "Los Flamencos" 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (with a Jacuzzi) Discotheque
"Salsa Disco Café" 10:30 pm to 4:00 am

Restaurants:

Buffet "Los Taguascos" 7:00 am to 10:00 pm, 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm, and 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm Food was ok, nothing special but I'm not fussy. Ice cream was a very good treat with all types of flavorings that you could sprinkle on. Usually some large piece of fresh meat or fish every day at the carving table. Bread was very good as it usually is in Cuba. They seem to have a problem keeping food warm though in those bain-maries. (ate there breakfast and supper)

Restaurant Creole "Los Cocos" 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm (never ate there) Restaurant International "La Fontanella" 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm (never ate there) Beach bar and Grill "La Picua" bar 10:00am to 5:00 pm, food served from 12:30 pm to 4:00 pm. (Ate their every day for lunch)

On the resort there was a hair dresser, gift boutique (rum and cigars}, money exchange (Reception), gymnasium (so so, but free), artisan corner, tennis courts, bicycles (free), car and scooter rental (pay), ping pong, pool, etc.

Daytime activities: Spanish lessons, archery, stretching, aerobics, Tai chi, water polo, beach volleyball, darts, crazy games, dance lessons, sail boarding, catamarans, intro to diving in the pool, there is a small library near the activities counter (which is also the place to exchange towels.

Weekly activities: There is a beach party near the beach bar, a miss sexy women contest (near the pool), a sexy man contest (near the pool), There is quite a bit of live music here and there on the resort throughout the week.

Every night there is a show, sometimes with live music and lots of dancing. Sometimes audience participation.

Snorkeling: To those that are interested. There is an area to the west of the Sol resort, just past the naturists beach area, in front of where the last palapa is located (the police post). This is about a five minute walk from the beach restaurant.
Paralleling the shoreline in the water, varying from about 10 to 20 feet from shore is a series of very large rocks that run a couple of hundred feet along the shore. I am interested in identifying fish and over the two week period that I was there, I saw at least 45 to 50 species of fish species. (am still working on identifying a few of the similar looking ones). There is a very large barracuda that patrols the area most of the day. I got up close and personal with him on a daily basis. He is very curious and will approach you closely if your quiet but if you approach him he will slip back into the shadows. he is always in the vicinity. He scared the c--p out of many people who were not expecting to see something that big. Do not wear jewelry, rings or anything that will cause a reflection with the sun in the water. Barracudas mistake the flash of light for fish and may strike by mistake, otherwise they appear harmless.
I saw in large numbers, Palomitas, Chub, several types of Snappers, Jacks, Porgies, Grunts, Surgeonfish, etc. It was quite a surprise to see the diversity of species, as very little has been said about the snorkeling here on travel web sites. It was a big surprise to everyone who took the opportunity to snorkel here. People were quite amazed. Also saw Flounder, Sergeant Majors, Tomtates, Damselfish, Night Sergeants, Parrotfish and on and on. I spent several hours everyday at this location.
Further west of this area are many more areas with snorkeling opportunities. There is a sandy point that juts out from the beach where you can enter the water and also see several types of butterfly fish as well as barracudas and other types of fish. It is shallow to start and the ground is mostly comprised of volcanic rock, so it is very sharp on the feet. Not to mention the sea urchins with their spikes protruding out of every crack. Walk down to the end of the beach to the west are more opportunities, but much further out from shore. I wouldn't make this a destination based on the snorkeling alone, BUT, it was a very pleasant surprise considering that I didn't have high expectations for anything this close to shore. Very close!

Excursions:

Catamaran: leaves at 8:30 AM and returns 4:30 PM. Catamaran stops at two different locations for snorkeling. First location had quite a few nice species of corals, everything extremely healthy. There was a good selection of fish species, water was nice and clear. Second location was at the site of a sunken ship. There wasn't much left of the ship except for a lot of the cement ribs and some metal. Very good selection of fish species and in fair size numbers, Queen Angelfish, Parrotfish (all types), Barracuda, Damselfish, Butterfly fish, etc. After the two snorkeling spots, the catamaran goes to a small island surrounded by very shallow water where we ate lobster or chicken which was served on board the boat. We spent about an hour afterwards walking around the beach and wading offshore. There were two types of starfish, sea slugs, and different types of live mollusks (Tulip shells) to be found during that time. Later on we passed a cargo ship loaded with sugar that had gone aground several years ago. The history of the ship and the accident was explained to us. The ship is still full of sugar that has now turned into molasses and must be pumped out soon before it turns into an ecological disaster. Beer and Rum is served on the ship. Our ship's crew were extremely friendly and knowledgeable.

Guanayara National Park: 7:30 am to 6:30pm. Leave by bus for a three hour drive south through the country side and several towns and cities climbing up into the mountains to Guanayara national park. You are not far from the southern coast of Cuba at this point. Upon arrival small snack and drink is served, there is an incredible view of a valley and the mountains from this spot. Afterwards, you hop onto a "Russian taxi", which is an old Russian military truck with some seats and a canopy welded onto the back. Taxi drives another 30 to 45 minutes along a bumpy dirt road even higher into the upper portions of the mountain. Beautiful vistas await you at every turn. Taxi arrives at destination, we meet up with the local biologist and start a three hour hike through forest and hills. The area is extremely lush and tropical. The biologist points out many species of trees, shrubs and flowers and gives a bit of background on each one (medicinal purposes, edible or not, economic use, etc.). The trail is described as moderately difficult. There many times when you need two hands to negotiate going up and down the hillsides. We saw quite a variety of lizards, birds, and butterflies. At one point the trail splits into two and joins up later on. There is a magnificent waterfalls at the beginning of the two trails. One path is wet and the other is dry. On the wet trail, you will walk in a mountain stream and occasionally will be submerged. You need shoes to do the wet trail, Rocks are very slippery. The dry trail has lots of ups and downs. If you intend to take the wet trail you will need someone to carry whatever you brought with you as whatever you have will get soaked. If you don't have someone to carry your stuff, leave it in the bus. I've been to rain forests in Costa Rica and this area looks and feels identical. Eventually, around 2:30, you end up at an outdoor restaurant to eat and drink cervezas, which are really appreciated at this point. The meal and one drink are included in price Restaurant is surrounded by horses, chickens, goats, and other animals and of course, another beautiful view. On the drive back to the hotel, you will witness the Cuban rush hour, where people hop onto every type of vehicle imaginable in order to get home from work. Did I like this excursion? Yes!! This trip is well worth every peso. If you only do one excursion while at the resort, consider this one. You will get a real taste of what Cuba looks like aside from the beautiful beaches.

Cuban Noche: Leave the resort at 6:30 pm to drive ( 45 minutes) for a lobster dinner at Remedios. Afterwards, the bus takes you to a Cuban nightclub. The night club doesn't have a roof and the outer walls have metal grills on the windows. There is show presented to the tourists with a lot of dancing and singing. After the show the audience gets up and dances with the entertainers. While the show was entertaining, I had mixed feelings about the whole evening. The only people in the audience were the people from the resort. There were a couple of Cubans in the audience but really, not many. All the residents of the town were gathered outside the bar and watched the show through the barred windows. I felt really weird about this. I would have rather gone to a place that is frequented by the Cuban people themselves and not exclusively by tourists. If they wanted to give us a taste of a real Cuban cabaret, perhaps it should be with one where normal people can also enter.

We just came back from Sol Cayo Santa Maria we were there for 2 weeks March 9th to 23th 2007.

The trip by bus dosen't seem that long because you are able to se the site on your way..you could see the little village on you way so it seems shorter than it is. And the buses are very confortable.

Very nice hotel the service is excellent. The site is very well kept, alot of vegetation. Our air conditionner broke and was repaired, we called the reception at 11 at night and at 11:10 PM they where already at our room. They gave us another room for the night and the next day they changed our air conditionner and was able to go back to our room. The rooms are very big with a bath tub with a big window so it's like you are taking a shower in the forest...

The food is very good, we where afraid of 2 weeks of buffet but during the day we always ate lunch in the other restaurants so we went to the buffet only at night. We ate 3 times in the others restaurants at night and it was very good (even excellent)....

There is always place at the beach or at the pool..we always asked ourself where is everybody because there was always chairs available...

We stayded on the nudist beach...very nice and respectful. The beach looks a lot like Cayo Largo...you could walk for a long time before seeing some other person.

I would like to start by stating that our baby (21 months), my wife and I spent two wonderful weeks in this resort.

Since most of the reviews show all the positive aspects of the resort (and I totally agree with those reviews), the small “negative” aspects in my review were not important to us. I am sharing them so people can be aware of these small things.

The 1st week was windy and we spent most of it around the swimming pool. The second week was perfect and the sunny days made us completely forget about the cool winds of the 1st week.

- This resort is located on an isolated island which is far (more than 40 km) from Cuban villages, i.e. only tourists are in the area. If people expect to meet Cubans (other than the hotel staff) on the beach, this is not the place to go.

- This hotel is great for kids. There is a child care and a small show at 8.30 p.m. especially for kids. Kids love it. Kids dance and follow the suggested choreography. After one night 3 year old kids and above know it all. The 3rd and last song (veo veo) is the most loved.

- The buffet (and probably the other restaurants as well) has purified water which is drinkable. At our arrival we got a bottle of natural water (it is put in the room’s fridge) and we were asked to use it to fill it up with purified water in the buffet. We drunk it during the whole two weeks and everything was fine. The bottled water is not part of the package and is not available on demand at the bars but it is always possible to get some from the room maids, waiters and bar personnel.

- The rooms are allocated before arrival and guests get the keys of their room at the airport. We much appreciated this because we don’t like to wait in a line up at the reception to get the keys to our room. The safe key is also included and it is free of charge. This was unexpected because most hotels offer it for extra charges.

- The food is good and it is noticeable that the management tries hard to satisfy their customers. Tuesday is the Cuban night and dinner is great and lots of special things are offered such as whole roasted pigs and a big cake in a form of Cuba. Wednesday is the sea food night. They have shrimps, crabs, salmon and other stuff. The crab legs are pre-broken because there are no tools that can be used to break them. But it can happen that they forget to break the crab legs before they serve them. In which case one just needs to ask the waiter to get some tool… (On Tuesday of our 1st week they were not pre-broken but they where on Tuesday of our 2nd week). The other a la carte restaurants are fine but the best one is the Italian restaurant. I personally advise to not book the a la carte restaurants for Tuesday and Wednesday nights because of the above comment about the buffet.

- The orange juice for breakfast is great. The machine makes fresh orange juice before your eyes.

- The fruit bar is great. Papaya, bananas, guava, pineapple, oranges, grapefruit, melon and water melon are available. This selection is not offered at once, but the most regular fruits during our stay were: papaya, bananas, guavas, pineapples, oranges and grapefruits.

- The coffee is great at the patio bar. They offer very good cappuccino and espresso. The coffee in the restaurants and other bars is average.

- Milk and dairy products are the only real bad things in this resort. We quickly realized that something was wrong with the milk taste. We asked the waiter to bring us the milk package and we found out that it was not milk but coffee whitening Italian product.

- There are ants in the rooms and if reported an employee is sent to spray pesticide and the problem is solved for 3 days and you need to call the reception again. The ants can be found in both 1st and 2nd floors. At the beginning we were allocated a 1st floor room (5502) where we have seen few ants. We requested a room change for a 2nd floor room hoping it would be better and to our surprise it was worse (6103). We have realized this few hours after our move and we called right away to go back to the initial room which was a one storey cottage and it was already allocated.

- The reception is very sensitive to the complaints and requests and they react fast and this was much appreciated.

- The restaurant hours for lunch are quite short. For example the earliest time that a restaurant opens is at 12 p.m. and sometimes the food is not ready at that time. The buffet, which is the main restaurant, opens at 1 p.m. I believe these hours suit most guests who don’t wake up early but for people like us who take breakfast at 7.30 a.m. we would have preferred an 11.30 a.m. opening. After few days this didn’t bother us at all as we adjusted ourselves to the resort hours.

- The night shows are great and every night a new performance is offered. All of them are must-see shows.

- All activities are great and the non motorized boats that are available (there are 4 types) are very good quality ones. The catamaran is definitely the most interesting one.

- Most tourists are from Montreal and Toronto, but there are also groups from Italy.

- Beach towel theft seemed a problem in this resort. I guess that this is the case because the resort strictly charges $10 CUC for every unreturned beach towel. Some guests prefer to take an unattended beach towel instead of paying for their missing towel. And the snow ball reaction continues… When I reported my missing towel, I was unaware of this (I didn’t read all the resort rules) and I expected to get a replacement or at least somebody would return an extra towel because I initially thought somebody else took my towel by mistake. The answer was that the towel was under my responsibility! I went to all the families that were sitting close to me at the swimming pool to ask them whether they took my towel by mistake and realized that they were having the same problem as well.

I would like to thank all the resort staff for their hard work and generosity.

Getting there:
We booked our trip with Sunquest out of Toronto and we arrived airport about 4am on Jan 26 to find a long line at the Skyservice check in but it went surprisingly quick. I must say the service reps were very friendly and helpful unlike some national carriers we have used in the past. Our Skyservice flight from was almost an hour late leaving due to luggage loading delays and getting the plane de-iced. This meant extra time had to be endured sitting in cramped quarters! This A320 contained 30 rows of 6 seats for a capacity of 180 which is the max capacity for this model of aircraft. It was definitely cramped for a 5’11” guy like myself.

The flight landed about a half hour late in Santa Clara and after the usual delays at immigration in the rather small airport we were getting our first of many Cristal beers from the cantina outside the airport. Before we loaded the bus for the Sol we were given our check-in and registration package which was a great idea so there was no waiting at check-in at the resort. The bus was very comfortable with good A/C. There was a tour guide who would give a history of the towns as we drove though them and pointed out points of interest along the way. The 1 ½ hour trip passed quickly. All of our luggage was tagged with our room number when we loaded the bus at the airport and was delivered to our room after our arrival… although it took 2 hours.

Room:
Our information pack included a “passport” with the resort map and our room location. We had requested and received what I considered one of if not the best room in the resort; room 2201 which is a one story cottage at the west end near the “au natural” beach. Only steps from both the beach and the beach bar.

It had a king bed with a gorgeous view of the ocean and a private balcony. All rooms have a small bar fridge and a safe. The safe has a key lock which is a bit of a pain carrying around.

Upon arrival, we found a plate of fresh fruit awaiting us in our room which was a nice touch. Also a spare room key was in the power switch so we had AC on while we were out. Coming back to a cool room is very refreshing!

The room was clean and well appointed and everything worked. The housekeeping was very good and the maid left us a nice towel sculpture daily and occasionally fresh flowers.

Briefing:
We attended the Sunquest rep’s briefing at the piano bar at 4:30pm and it was worth it. Jose Carlos was a great rep giving us the usual talk about the resort and other lesser known tips and suggestions. Jose was a great rep… always at his desk at the posted hours and very willing to help and answer questions.

Food:
The food at Los Taguascos buffet was generally very good. Breakfast was just fine with the standard omelet, waffle & pancake stations. Lots of fresh fruits, breads, sweets and juices were available. Supper was as good as or better than what I found at other Cuban resorts. Always a good variety and every night a special treat. One night was roast pork; another was roast turkey and one night shrimp. All of which were excellent. The only complaint is the milk. I am use to 1% milk and what was served was more like 4%... too thick for me. Maybe it was goat’s milk?

Since we were on the beach all day, we got take out at the Los Flamencos near the au natural beach. They had a daily selection of hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza and fries. The Dogs were long and tasty as were the “ham”burgers. I am sure they were not beef and tasted more like real ham. Pizza’s were tasty as were the fries.

We ate at three specialty restaurants. The Italian restaurant La Fontanella is not really “Italian” as it serves standard fair. The food and atmosphere was nice but the portions are very small. The Cuban Club Los Flamencos opened for the evening serving specialty pizzas. They were bigger than the lunch ones and a wider variety of toppings. The Los Cocos served a good selection of more traditional Cuban fare. Make sure you try the roast potatoes… they are great.

Bars:
We spent most of our evening bar time at the Lobby Bar which seemed to be the cross roads and meeting place in the resort. During the day, we frequented Los Flamencos beach bar for food and drinks. Tried the Piano Bar but left quickly as it was too smoky. Went to the Disco twice and both times were packed. One of those nights, I believe it was Tuesday night, the Disco relocated to the Ranchon … dancing on the sand was fun.

Drinks were fine with a good selection. Beer was mostly Cristal which a light beer that I grew to like. Buccanero was the other option which is more like a “red” beer. The Lobby Bar served drinks in full-size glasses as opposed to the 4 oz plastic ones everywhere else.

Beach:
We spent our week at the western end of the beach enjoying the “au natural” area. It was far from the busy main beach where the “activities” took place daily. It was not crowded and quiet. We also met some of the nicest people there.

The first two days were red flag days and windy off the water. We were just moved to the backside of the beach along the sand road behind the beach. We were at the last cabana on the west end so when on the back side sunning we were protected by the shrubbery from the wind. The rest of the week was no-flag and warm calm water. Temperature was in the mid 80’s and mostly clear skies… perfect for tanning.

We scored a couple of the blue chair pads from the Melia that someone had drug down to the Sol and left. Used them all week and since we were only a few steps from the beach, I took them back to our room daily and left them on our balcony. They were perfect for a late day siesta!

With the calm water came an opportunity to do some snorkeling and it was excellent! The western end of the beach was home to a number of smaller rocky outcrops a few feet off shore where we saw all types of tropical fish, shell fish and other sea life. There were also a number of small barracuda spotted but they didn’t prove to be a problem. Further down the beach to the west at the point was a larger reef that could be explored.

At the time we were there, jelly fish were not a problem on the section of beach we were. We did see a few and they are hard to see as they are clear. I swam into them a few times with no ill effects.

The beach is long and quite different to the east of the Melia where you will find much finer sand… more like a fine powder as compared to the sand at the western end. For walkers, there are miles of beach to walk in each direction.

Shopping:
There is a small shop on the resort that sells a small selection of souvenirs like clothes, jewelry, etc. They also sold snacks, cans of foreign beer and soft drinks. Also available was a limited selection of rums, vodka’s, liquors, etc. The selection of cigars was limited and when I asked about Monte Cristo #4’s they said I had to go to the Melia for them. So it appears that the Melia carries either a larger or different selection of cigars.

Don’t expect to find a better selection of booze or cigars as you won’t. The airport has a much smaller shop. Prices are about the same at the airport as they are at the Sol.

Staff:
As I have found in the other Cuban resorts I have visited, the staff was all very friendly and helpful. The staff at the Los Flamencos was especially nice and provided the most exceptions service.

Off Resort Excursions:
There are a number of off resort excursions available but we did not try any… with just a week off, we just wanted to relax on the beach.

Getting Home:
We left on Feb 2 and that was an early start. The bus left at 7:30am so you needed to be at the buffet at 7am for breakfast. The busses were loaded and we were on our way before 8am arriving at the airport about 9:30am. Our departure time was 12:05 so it was a long wait in a very small departure lounge. I understand why we arrived so early because it takes a long time to check in and get through immigration because of the small size of the airport.

There was one new resort opened in the last month and another one to open later this year. As a result, the Santa Clara airport has begun an expansion to handle the added traffic.

The Skyservice flight home was uneventful… seating was still as cramped as the trip down. They served an adequate meal and the in-flight service was good. The flight arrived in Toronto on time but minus one of our pieces of luggage (beach umbrella’s in a mailing tube) which I have yet to receive.

In summary:
Would I return to Sol Cayo Santa Maria? Yes I would. We enjoyed the resort and the au natural area of the beach. Is it better than Sol Cayo Largo? I don’t think one is really better than the other… they are different. I liked the rooms better at Sol Cayo Santa Maria and the beach (before the hurricane damage) at Cayo Largo better. The food was about equal at both places. We didn’t experience any problems with mosquitoes; as matter of fact, I don’t remember seeing any.

It is unfortunate that Sunquest has dropped this destination for the rest of the year. The only other options to get there that I know of is TMR out of Montreal or Air Transit but they only go to the Sol. Hopefully next season the Sol will be picked up by another operator out of Toronto.

Tips:
Sit near the front or back of the plane, not in the middle for two reasons. First it is easier to access the washrooms. Secondly they deplane from the front and back so you are off faster and near the head of the line for immigration.

There is no washroom on the bus… it is an hour and a half so go before you leave the airport or resort on the return trip.

If possible, email the resort prior to your arrival with your room request. We got what we wanted and I am not sure if the email helped but I am sure it didn’t hurt. Trying to switch rooms after you arrive can be a pain and cuts into your vacation time.

Don’t forget your thermal mugs. I had the Buba Keg 52 that saved trips to the bar. If you can. Leave your mug with your favourite bar tender… we did. It is something they just can’t buy off the shelf in Cuba and are very much appreciated.

At the La Fontanella, the portions are small so you might want to order two entrées.

Went again in October with group of 14 - 12 of us stayed at the Sol and 2 were at the Melia as the Sol was sold out. This is the first time we have returned to a resort more than once and we travel 3 or 4 times a year.

This is a fabulous resort with wonderful staff. Absolute paradise. We loved it so much the first time we talked the group into going 5 months after we were first there.

Special staff include Yusimi and Carlos at the pool bar. Nail and Galy at the beach bar. The food was absolutely incredible - even better than in May and it was great then.

The 2 that stayed at the Melia didn't like it that much. Staff were not friendly and their food was not good. They preferred the Sol. All staff are friendly at the Sol and make you feel special. Can't wait to go back to see our special friends.

Did the all day catamaran snorkelling trip again and it was great. Also, rented a jeep and toured around different towns.

visited Sol Cayo Santa Maria for the first time from Dec. 29/05 - Jan. 5/06. This was our 10th time to Cuba, although we usually stay at the El Senador in Cayo Coco. However, with the change in ownership of El Senador, and the corresponding decrease in quality, we decided to attempt something new.

The airport in Santa Clara is absolutely horrible. It is so very small with very few customs "slots" that the wait was forever. The baggage claim consists of a conveyor belt about 8 feet wide, ending in a pit, with two cubans slaving away pulling people's luggage off of the belt and putting it around the room. The baggage claim room is about 20 feet by 40 feet. You can imagine the chaos when 180 or so people are all standing there looking for their baggage.

The ride to the hotel is about 1.5 hours, but it went rather quickly. We were given our orientation right on the bus, so that saved us some time. You also travel though a couple of towns, so there is stuff to look at.

Check in was a breeze. You got your keys on the bus, so you just made sure your luggage got off the bus, your room number was put on it, and off you went. The luggage would arrive at your room later.

Rooms were nice enough. It smelled a bit when we first entered, but once you turned the air on, and got the air circulating, the small went away. Lots of bugs, ants, cockroaches (including those 2-3 inch ones with wings that everyone loves.) We only sleep in our room, so aren't very concerned with it. it was clean, the bed was pretty comfy...

Food at this hotel was average, for Cuba. I have read other reviews and do not consider the food at this resort to be above par for Cuba. I say "for Cuba" because north Americans generally do not like Cuban/creole food. I actually like Cuban food and still found the food at this hotel to be average, even by cuban standards. I have certainly had much better meals in Cuba, although I have had worse as well. If you aren't picky, you will have no problem eating... but you aren't likely to find anything excellent.

Coffee at the bars was excellent. Coffee in the buffet was horrible. Fresh squeezed orange juice all day every day, but beware of body parts. On our last day there, up at 6 to check out at 7, I went into the buffet to get an orange juice. Well everyone else was up early that day too, so the line at the orange juicer was quite long and I guess the guy operating it was in a hurry. When I was about three people away, a pitcher of juice came out that had blood in it. I understand conversational Spanish and heard the waitress two people in front of me (there to fill up glasses for people in her section) ask if the operator had cut himself because there was a few drops of blood in the pitcher of orange juice. He said no. she poored the juice into glasses and walked off. (I did not see the glasses being served, however I can only assume that she served them, otherwise, why pour the pitcher's contents into glasses). once the waitress walked away, the juicer operator put his finger in his mouth, much as one does when cut. I immediately made a U-turn, thought of all of the juice I had consumed during my week and felt sick to my stomach.

Drinks: drink selection and quality were poor. Rums, Vodka's, Gin's... were all cheap no name brands. Not even the normal Ron Varadero, or Ron Mulata... much of the time Aguathente was substituted for rum, which, if you aren't aware, is the cheapest form of alcohol one can derive from Rum producing plants. Beer was often flat. very few blender drinks were available.

Staff: I have heard that this place, along with many others in Cuba, is run by a company which is run by the Cuban Military. If you know anything about Cuban History, or Cuban Politics, you are aware of how frowned upon it is to have citizens, especially representatives of the government, socially interacting with tourists. God forbid they might learn something about the world outside Cuba. The staff were all very pleasant but it was painfully clear that they limited their conversation to a sentence or two. Some were a little more daring, however the covertness of the attempts made the conversation uncomfortable.

Activities at this resort are either non existent, or not very well orgainized/advertised. After spending a week there, I know that 4 p.m. is the daily tournament time. what happens up to that point is still a mystery. This is coming from a person who is not a sun person and generally seeks out things to do all day. New years celebrations were a bust. There was no notice as to what was going on... there was a cheesy show/celebration. Had you gone to the washroom between 11:58 and 12:01, you would have never known it was new years eve.

Beach: beautiful to look at. But it doesn't compare to Cayo Coco's. It got deep pretty quickly and had a pretty strong undertow. We were lucky in that the ocean was pretty calm, but with that came jellyfish in the hundreds. You could venture in, at certain times of the day when the jellyfish were less, but never non-existent, but you could never really relax and let go for fear of a jelly fish sting. Despite the calmness of the ocean, there was still an undertow. As well the water becomes rather deep, pretty quickly, so I would not recommend this resort for poor swimmers, the elderly, or children. The ocean is simply too dangerous. We met an elderly lady who complained that she couldn't even get into the ocean because of the steep slope of the beach. That was on a calm day.

All in all, this resort was an average resort in Cuba. It was not bad, but it was not great either. obviously quality control of juice being served requires some attention. I would not go back, but will continue the search for something more on the good/excellent side.

We visited this resort in the first week of November ... my wife, and two children aged 8 and 15. We've been to other island destinations, but this was our first Cuba trip. Our departure was from Toronto. Overall Opinion of Resort:
The resort is a tropical paradise, located at the end of a 50klm long causeway. The vegetation was very lush, the views were unspoiled, and the water is a gorgeous turquoise blue. Absolutely stunning and virgin landscapes.

Would We Return?:
In a word, yes. As soon as we returned, we longed for the scenery and the beautiful people of Cuba.

Rooms:
The resort is set up as a village of small townhomes, either as individual cottages, or two story high rowhouses. Each room is large with a balcony or patio, we enjoyed a king size bed, and a very large bathroom with bidet and oversize tub. The housekeeping was spotless, they give you a small fridge, and the bathroom outlet has a 120v outlet. You are provided with one large bottle of water in your room ... save it, and any eatery or bar will fill it up for free.

Arrival:
We were met by a small band and handed cocktails or soft drinks. You are always appreciated and treated with respect and enthusiasm.

Food:
I agree with others in that the food is fresh, plentiful, but basic. In the buffet restaurant, there are several serving stations. They are designated for breads, pasta bar, juice station, desserts, fruits, coldcuts, or hot foods. Our favourites were the fresh fruits, salads, basic pastas, and fresh ice cream and yogurts. Watch for the homemade sugar donuts ... I only saw them one day, and they are excellent. Also good was the roast pig. I made a point of tipping at every meal. Our waiter spoke fluent english, and from our first meal, he always reserved us our table and greeted us by name. Besides the waiters, we tried to tip people like the omelette chef ... she kept my girls fed, and is usually overlooked by the tourists.

Grounds:
I would compare the quality of landscaping and cleanliness to DisneyWorld's Polynesian Village, at a fraction of the cost! All paths are cobblestone and illuminated, and the vegetation is quite diverse. For the first few days, I noticed an older gardner toiling hard under the Cuban sun. He would always smile and greet us. I made a point of thanking him for the clean grounds, and tipping him as well. A few pesos could amount to a week's wages, and it shows an appreciation for their hard work. All the paths have signs directing you to the beach, the lobby, the bars, or your room location.

Currency:
Cuba now operates on the convertible peso. It is pegged at around 1 peso to .73cdn cents. Canadian money is almost useless to them, and US currency gets a 10% tax. The lobby or airport changes your currency. Don't forget to bring 25 pesos for every person as a departure tax. Things like credit card advances do not exist at the resort, and a trip to the bank in Santa Clara will cost you about 50 pesos by taxi.

Restaurants:
I agree with everyone in that the Italian restaurant is by far the best. The veal I enjoyed was one of the finest meals I've had in years. It seems like you have 3 servers at any given time, and your glass is never empty.The small combo band was very good, and for our trip, they turned the beach restaurant into the Italian eatery ... very memorable.
The Cajun eatery was alright ... the rice pudding was great, but the entree portions were small, and nothing that would interest a child.
The buffet eatery is described above, and the best place for a quick snack is the pizza and burger patio eatery at the far end of the resort.
The beach eatery offers fish, pork, or burgers, plus a small pasta buffet.
Tip well, and your servers offer up advice. Although you are only supposed to reserve 1 Cajun and 1 Italian meal, our waiter wanted us back, and convinced us that reserving more than once was acceptable. So, we enjoyed two wonderful, 5 star meals at the Italian restauraunt.

Beaches:
There are 3 beaches, basically one long beach with three walkways. The sand is white, water is turquoise and warm, beach chairs are plentiful, and the sand dunes are plentiful. Try and book a small catamaran. For a 5 peso tip, our guide took my daughter and myself on a 45 minute ride up and down the beach. During our time at the beach, the jellyfish prevented us from swimming the first two days. I ventured into the water, and received a few stings. Nothing too painful, but not very enjoyable. Apparently, the shifting tides make them a hit or miss affair. Once the winds picked up, no jellyfish, but red flags meant no swimming. Basically, we played in the crashing waves, and swam for just two days in the ocean.

Pools:
There are two pools, one of which is enormous with a bar in the middle ( non swim-up ). The water is saltwater, the depth is fairly shallow, and we felt safe leaving our children in the water alone. The pools are cleaned each morning, and are very clean.

Advice:
Bring a large thermos type cup, as the bars dispense silly, tiny cups that are hardly worth the trip. I completely agree with the reviewer who complained about rowdy children. Please, please don't allow your kids to treat the resort, other guests, and staff shabbily. Every night, around 8pm, these little hooligans would run up and down the concert stage, screaming as loud as they could, while their parents drank the night away. It seems to me that the staff were afraid to reprimand these children, so by the end of the week, they were so out of control as to spoil the experience for the rest of us.

Room For Improvement:
Not much. Definite area for improvement would be in enforcing protocol for children's behaviour. We also missed the opportunity to dance. The piano bar played wonderful music, but no dance floor. The disco was jammed with young people ( yes, even 5 yr olds lying on the dance floor at midnight ). The disco catered to a twentysomething and younger crowd. That's really my only criticism ... everthing is really well thought out.

Overall Opinion of Resort:
A beautiful resort with fantastic friendly people and staff, but could use some upgrades and improvements. Not a place to go if you do not want to have children around. This resort is very environmentally conscience, which was really neat to see. Hot water supplied by tank which is heated through solar panels, all bulbs are fluorescent, etc….

Would we return?:
We were there with another couple for a week and had lots of fun. It was our first time to Cuba, and for the steal we got our trip for, it was a good vacation. We probably won’t go back to this resort, but may check out the different “adults-only” destinations within Cuba.

Airport:
TINY TINY TINY! Grab a seat while you can when you are on your way home – they became few and scarce in a hurry. Men with rifles guard the entrance to the airport when you arrive…don’t be alarmed, they won’t bother you. Be prepared to wait for a while when you do arrive, they check out everything about you, and you will be asked questions. Just answer honestly and don’t try to be a comedian.

Rooms:
Very nice. The bed was comfortable, but the pillows were very soft – bring your own if you like a firm pillow. The cleaning lady always left our room spotless and made different animals and shapes for us with our bath towels everyday on our bed. It was fun to guess what she was going to make for us. There is satellite TV in the rooms with many channels to watch. We were on the top portion of the section of our bungalow and never had a problem with ants..but we had many “visitors” which was really neat – tree frogs and geckos and little lizards….

Pools/Grounds:
The pools are beautiful. Always enough chairs for everyone and plenty of shaded areas if you wanted to stay out of the sun. The landscaping and scenery are second to none, it really is a paradise. The palm tress, the different varieties of plants and flowers really are breathtaking. Tons of activities to keep you busy around the pool area, as well as a pool table and ping pong tables and water activities (volleyball, basketball, etc…)

Food/Restaurants:
Food was good for the most part. I found that the menu and many of the dishes to be made they way the Cuban people thought they should be made – for example, the lasagna made there would not be the lasagna you’re used to here. If you are a picky eater, you probably won’t like the buffet or the Creole restaurant, if you can handle being creative in what you want to eat, you’ll be fine. The Italian menu and food was fantastic! Highly recommended. The lobster dinner ( at $20 a person), it was good, but really nothing to special to be honest . The lobster was tasty, but all the appetizers and such were seafood based, which if you just came for the lobster, you’d leave hungry. Watch out for the people who decide to manhandle all of the breads to find the freshest buns – we saw A LOT of people who would touch the food and then move on without so much as a second thought – which I thought was really rude.

Drinks:
A little disappointing to be honest. There was really only 5+ drinks/cocktails to choose from on the menu which the bartenders knew how to make, so unless you bring a drink recipe book with you, expect to choose from either a daiquiri, pina colada, rum and “coke”, a white lady, Ron Collins…BUT BEWARE: for some reason the drinks were never made the same way twice – so find a bartender you like that made you your drink the way you like and stick with him! J Tequila, and other international drinks cost about $4 a shot, which I thought all of that was included, but according to their menu it isn’t, so come prepared. We didn’t go there to drink and become drunk everyday, but this is one area that could use a little improvement as far as I’m concerned – you may feel different.

Entertainment:
Evening shows begin at 10 pm – and we never really made it through the entire show every night – we were too tired from the day J The costumes and effort put into the entertainment by the staff is really impressive. They do a great job and are always full of smiles. One drawback for us: the stage area is open for the kids to play on from about 8 pm to just before the show starts – but the parents we ran into let there kids do anything they want – which also meant throwing balls and running around like crazed circus monkeys - which made it hard to just sit and relax and wait for the show to start.

Kids/Children
: Okay, this is something that really upset me and is a note to all of you reading this - for the PARENTS: This is not a place where you can come and drop your children off and expect everyone else to watch them, it’s rude and inconsiderate to say the least. These wonderful people who make up the staff at the resort are not your babysitters. Not every child was misbehaving, because that’s not true, but this is just to let everyone know what they may encounter. We saw that the children who were at the resort were bored and then they become restless…so be aware, if you want an adult only resort, this unfortunately is not it.

Salon:
Fantastic and cheap! I got a one hour pedicure for $7!!! Odaray the lady at the salon is so nice and polite and professional; highly recommend going and getting a pedicure! All the prices within the salon are very reasonable.

Gift Shop and Craft Bazaar:
Rum is about $3 a bottle, and cigars are expensive. TIP! – wait until the end of your trip and by your cigars at the airport – TRUST ME. $90 for a box of cigars at the resort, and the same cigars at the airport were $30…. The craft bazaar comes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday…great deals and super low prices for the same items from the gift shop…highly recommend checking it out. Got all of our souvenirs from the craft vendors.

Tips for People Going:
1) Bring little things to leave the cleaning lady – we brought toothpaste, brushes, shampoos, etc… these items are very expensive for them to buy themselves and are HIGHLY appreciated…

2) Bring bug repellant – the mosquitoes weren’t bad, but I didn’t come home with a few bites.

3) Don’t be afraid to tip – this is not a rich country, and you should tip for good service the same as you would here…it’s just nice and common sense.

4) Bring playing cards – you will get restless, and it’s a great way to spend time especially in the piano bar at the resort… J

5) The bus to the resort is comfy and makes the ride not too bad at all – it’s an hour and a half drive to get to the resort from the airport.

6) Enjoy yourself – take advantage of the pools and the beach and walk around the resort and really look around and appreciate your surroundings, their beautiful!

General comment: This was a wonderful trip ! Simply incredible, the hotel and the beach was marvellous. We were there for two weeks.

Reception at hotel : Keys we're given to us in our way to the hotel which was a plus ! Everytime we had to deal with the reception, had great service, Alexis even found a taxi for us at 5 AM on the 1st of May so we could get to Santa Clara to take a bus to La Havana to see a Fidel speach ! :)

Rooms: We had the most beautiful room of all, view of the ocean, very clean, very spacious, on the second floor of a bungalow. We could watch the ocean while taking a bath ! Yes, there is some ants, come on you're in Cuba !! Bring some ant traps and you'll have no problem !!

Beach: We had 2 weeks, so we had the chance to see 4-5 days of green flags, and then we could do some snorkeling (this is great, walk on the west side, and you'll have wonderful snorkeling sites), pedalo and the water was just amazing. Other days, we had yellow or red flags, and it was really cool to get some big waves !

Pool: A bit slippery, but amazing, big and a lot of fun ! A lot of chairs and shadow.

Restaurants and bars: The buffet was excellent and the staff was just amazing. Restaurants we're ok (we could go twice at each three restaurants, but the second week, we just took the Italian), but we did prefer the variety at the buffet, where you could always choose different sea foods and meat which was fresh and cooked in front of you just the way you asked. Breakfast was great. Bars are all very nice, service always friendly.

Shows and animation: Very good. They really seem to like what they do.

Excursions: Did the dolphins in Cienfuegos and the Forest Adventure. Simply fantastic, both of them, and we learned a lot about Cuban culture with our guide (Josef) who spoke French as if he was born in Quebec ! We also did an excursion by ourself which I would recommend to anywone who thinks of going in may: 1st of may is Labor day, and Fidel is giving a speach in Habana... we took a taxi, and then the bus with Viazul to get there and spent a night in Havana. It was great to be by ourselfs rather than with a group, we could choose what we wanted to do ! And even if you don't approve with Castro, seeing him for real is a one life time experience !

This was to be our (W&P) honeymoon trip. We went with two of our friends, one of whom was the best woman in our wedding. They planned the trip. We have nice friends :-)

We originally intended to go to the Melia, but there was a major screw up with the travel agent and to make a long story short we had to rebook a new trip the night before we left. Amazingly, we were able to get said trips booked on that short of notice, leaving on a Saturday afternoon. The only difference was we were to go to the Sol. I did not care. I am a very laid back person. None of us cared actually.

Our flight from Montreal took off two hours late. This was not a huge deal to us either as hey, we were leaving, and it could have been worse. The problem was when we landed the people waiting to take our plane back to Montreal had been taken back to the hotel as you cannot land at Trudeau airport after 1am (city ordinance). So there were no busses and we had to wait. This was annoying but tolerable as I am one of those people who is not going to whine and complain about something about which nothing can be done. We would have taken a taxi but there were none at the airport. Our check in customs baggage line wait was not unreasonable at all. The part that was awful was waiting *two more hours* once through with this for busses to arrive (the ones we were supposed to take took back the displaced travellers). But again, what were we going to do? So we shutup and had some beers and played cards (bring a deck of cards). I did however feel *very* sorry for the many families travelling with very young children, and would recommend people book early flights if you are travelling with children.

Once our busses arrived and we were on our way (at 1:30am), we were happy as they were modern, comfortable, and air conditioned. I was worried based on other reviews they would play music and have the televisions on, but thank goodness they did not and it was peaceful. However, this only made our arrival (at 3am) all the more jarring as there was loud welcoming music and clapping staff. I found it jarring but got over it, however, again, I felt very sorry for people with young children. I mean they were going to wake up upon arrival but there was no chance in hades of putting them back to sleep after that blast of a welcome.

Once we arrived we had some rum punch and snacks, and went to our room to drop off baggage. My husband had it in his head he was visiting the ocean *now* and I wanted to go get a drink so we split up. He arrived at the bar a few minutes later and convinced me to come with him as it was so wonderful. He was right and we had a very romantic evening on the beach and in the ocean, indeed. The water was stunningly warm. Oh and FYI never saw a hint of jellyfish the whole time we were there.

The rooms were clean, comfortable, well serviced. We were in 2901 and had a great view, and found it most quiet. The mini bar was never serviced but I have no idea if it was supposed to be. I just didn't care enough to complain. I mean I could get drinks anytime a mere quick walk away, and the water was edible, so I didn't mind. We left tips and had incredibly creative maid service! They fashioned all kinds of art out of our sheets and towels. Most fun!

I recommend people bring travel mugs. The bartenders will use these if you have them. I recommend this because the drinks are so small, so if you want to do something other than hang out at the bar, it's a bit a pain to walk back all the time for more drinks.

We hung out at either the beach or pool each day and had no problems finding chairs and shade in either locale. And we're not early risers.

I scoped the place out for kid-friendliness as well, since I do have two children (6 & 8) and their father is planning a Cuba trip with them in the winter. While there was a mini-club, I never saw kids in it except the occasional baby parents would drop off to have a moment to themselves. Mostly, kids hung out by the pool or beach with their parents, and made friends together. The pools come in varying levels of depth and are very kids of all ages friendly. The children I noticed spoke several different languages, there were British, Italian, French Canadian, and English Canadian children about. They all seemed to find ways to get on as most of them spoke a second language enough to get by, and there's something international about being a child and sharing a ball, no? I was very, incredibly pleased to see how the staff behaved with the few special needs children I saw there as well. One young man, maybe 10 or 11, was autistic (which I only recognized as my own 8 yr old is afflicted with this as well) and staff were quite patient and relaxed with regards to his idiosyncracies. As well, a similarly aged child with down's syndrome was treated fabulously. I would absolutely take my water obsessed autistic 8 year old here.

I would like to recommend parents teach their children the jacuzzi is not for children to play in all hours of all days and there are pools for water sports. It was very hard to find jacuzzi time as the children monopolized it and there was no way to turn it on if the Cuban Club was not open. As it closed around 5 each day, this was disappointing.

I'd also suggest people do a bit of resort etiquette contemplation. The dress code on the buffet says at least t-shirt and bermudas. (literally, it says this). This does not mean a g-string bikini with a see through wrap. I mean this buffet has waiters, they bring you drinks, there's wine served and more than one fork and the plates are china, is it too much to figure out to put some clothes on? Really now. Also, please, lines are developing for a reason. Wait your turn, like everyone else.

The food I found just fine. We ate at the italian restaurant as well as the creole one. I enjoyed the red snapper at the creole immensely. I found the duck fine at the Italian. However, we all agreed we preferred the buffet. More choices. And were we to go back we wouldn't bother with the restaurants. As for the buffet, I recommend sticking to things they make right on the spot in front of you. Crepes and omlettes and donut holes at breakfast, chicken, fish, hamburgers, pork chops at lunch and supper. The risotto, I cannot say enough about! I must say I am quite picky with regard to my chicken and Oh My Goodness the fresh fried chicken (done in front of me) was spectacular. Also, the nights with rum bananas were fantastic. The first night I was there a kid about 8 or so was in front of me, and the cook asked if he wanted the rum. He looked around as if trying to be sure no grownups were looking. I laughed and said go ahead kid, it all burns off, it's ok trust me. So he nods happily. I put his plate down in the right place, then told him "now back up" so they could light it. It went off and I swear he jumped about four feet in the air and yelped "holy ****!" Everyone in the place busted up laughing. Was fun.

The shows were entertaining but we're not big fans of shows so, I can't help much there. Honestly our goal was just to veg, and we did that Very Well.

We did take a jeep and drive to Santa Clara one day. I'd rather do the excursion. It was not simple finding our way, but it was a fun adventure!

So some tips:
Bring travel mugs
Bring separate sun screen for each party member so you don't split up and end up with one of you lobster coloured like we did!
Bring money to convert to convertible pesos, tip often, and tip well. I was appalled how little tipping I saw. A simple peso a day for your maid and bartender means a LOT to them.
If you're coming for your wedding, contemplate you may end up with half your wedding party ill from travel bugs. I was wistully wishing I had done my wedding there, until I saw a wedding party with half the group taken out by travel bug. If you're going to wander off with someone you meet, please let someone in your party know so the resort doesn't spend all night looking for you only to discover you were having intimate time with someone from another group in his room while we were all terrified we had another Natalee Holloway on our hands.

Stayed at Sol Cayo Santa Maria May 21-28. Exceeded our expectations. Resort was absolutely gorgeous and probably the best beach we've ever seen. Weather was hot, hot, hot - sun everyday. Airport in Santa Clara wasn't that bad. Ride is interesting and check in is done on the bus which is great.

The food was fabulous. Italian restaurant was wonderful - had beef tenderloin. Creole restaurant was also great as was the seafood. Buffet for breakfast was great with lots to choose from. Lunches at beach were great and there was also another lunch place we didn't find til the last day where you could get individual pizzas, hamburgers and hotdogs, fries.

Staff were very friendly. Rooms were very, very nice. You could also hop on a club car that would take you anywhere you wanted to go. Went to Melia but liked the Sol much better. It is much more lush at the Sol. A whole bus of people that were supposed to stay at the Sol were bumped to the Melia and they hung out at the Sol from morning til late at night as they liked it better also. If I had the choice, I would not pick the Melia over the Sol.

Rented a jeep one day and went to 3 different towns - it was great. Went on all day snorkelling catamaran trip which was well worth the money. 2 different snorkelling spots, secluded island and lobster tail lunch. I will have pictures on the web shortly. Any questions, feel free to email me. Took lots of gifts for staff and people and kids in town. Don't forget about the gardeners.

You will not be disapointed. I wouldn't listen to any bad complaints at all. Some people want home moved elsewhere. Nothing to complain about here - lots of places to drink and eat. Probably some of the best food we have ever had.

The 1 storey and 2 storey bungalows are very pretty and make the resort quite different from most resorts.

We just got back from 2 glorious weeks at the Sol last Friday. This was our first visit to this club but not our first visit to Cuba. We had been to the Tryp Cayo Coco and the Melia Cayo Guillermo in past years. I don't know how words can describe the great time we had but here goes.

Flight
We flew via AirTransat. It was what would be expected from a charter airline. I would suggest apying the extra few bucks to reserve my seats ahead of time. Also, bring a snack or two with you as the food in flight is not all that good.

Transfer
We cleared customs pretty quickly and were soon on our bus. Please use the porters you'll find exiting the airport. They'll get you to the bus ASAP, handle your baggage, ensure it's on the bus all for a little tip. The bus ride went quickly. The poverty you will see in the towns you pass through will make you appreciate home.

Arrival
As we were checked into the hotel on the bus we headed straight to our room as soon as we arrived and within minutes were changed into our bathing suits and were soon exploring the grounds (with a rum punch of course). Our bags arrived at our room soon after.

Room
The room was great. Large, bright with a great bathroom and lots of storage space. Our room was almost directly between the pool and the beach so everything was pretty close.

What we did............

We were on vacation for 2 weeks so we were not in a rush. Each day was made up of hard decisions...beach or pool, shade or sun, rum or beer? On calm days we usually opted for the beach. If you think you'll need a little shade during the day you will have to be down to the beach by 7:00AM in the morning to reserve a palapa. By 7:30 you will be out of luck. Bring a couple of old towels from home with you so you don't have to worry about losing the hotel's. We like to take long walks on the beach so this place was ideal. Walking east, however, was a little tougher than west as the sand was much deeper and harder to walk on. On days when we went to the pool we always took chairs directly in front of the buffet restaurant. The water in the pool at this spot starts off at only and inch deep and gradually gets deeper as you walk in. As such, we placed our chairs in the water. We were never to far form one of the bars so the rum punches and beer were always at hand. Bring along a large thermal container as the plastic glasses they give you are pretty small (6 oz.). Another idea I saw was people getting the barman to fill up their water bottles with beer.

During the second week we took the all day catamaran tour. It was great! we went to 3 different spots for snorkling, had lunch on the boat (choice of lobster or chicken), sailed around an old shipwreck and came back to port late in the afternoon under sail. We also met some great folks on the boat, not to mention a couple from our home town (Hi Doug & Isabelle). I would highly recommend this tour to anyone.

Food
The food overall was great. I did not care though for the Italian restaurant at night. The food was not all that great and the portions were pretty small. Lunches at the beach bar were great.

Overall it was hard to come back. I've never had a more relaxing vacation than this one (and I've been all over the Caribbean). We were never pressured over anything. The staff at the hotel are all super people and went out of their way to make sure our stay was a great one.

My husband and I (we are a middle aged gay couple) visited Cuba for the first time. Most of the reviews already posted are spot on but I wanted to add two more pieces of information.

Firstly, even though we enjoyed this resort immensely, we do not recommend it if you are a beach person. All 7 days we were at the resort were “red flag” days, meaning that swimming was not allowed due to dangerous waters. The problem, in my opinion, is that the resort and beach are not protected by an inlet. The winds are constant, which is why they planted so many bushes/plants between the resort and the beach – to slow down the wind within the resort.

Everything else about the resort is great. Wonderful staff, great food, beautiful rooms, large pools, well kept grounds, etc. If you are not a beach bunny, you will probably love it.

Secondly, for gay/lesbian/trans/bi people: Cuba is not an “out” place. I don’t know how trans people are treated at the immigration at the Santa Maria airport, but as far as gay couples go, they seem to follow a don’t ask / don’t tell philosophy. Everyone, including straight couples, are asked to individually answer questions and individually go through the line. We were not given any hassles and were treated with the same respect as everyone else, by both immigration and the staff at the hotel.