TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

Get ready for a few shocking details from my trip…***Warning …Long read*** I travelled to Vik Arena Blanca from March 31st to April 9th for my 50th birthday with my mother and it was not a “great” trip to say the least. Now before I start to get into our experience there, I should point out that between the travels that my mother and I have had in our lifetime, we know what to expect and what NOT to expect from an All-inclusive resort. This resort was very outdated (busted wooden stairs by towel hut, way too many broken beach/pool lounge chairs, ect...) and needs a lot of TLC but I can say that our room was clean all the time and for the most part so was the rest of the resort....Food was also decent. I have never written a review before, but many told me I should so here we go… We arrived at the Resort at 10pm on Sunday March 31st, and we were given a room on the ground floor with an ocean view. Never had that before so that was definitely a nice surprise (only really nice thing about this place) Obviously, since we arrived later in the evening, I wasn’t expecting anything in regard to info about the resort till the next day when we are “supposed” to meet with the tour rep from Nexus Tours. (read on for Nexus Tours issues). 1. It would have been nice for the front desk to let us know, or even ask, if we required the use of the safe, because as it turns out, they have to give you the lock to use it and it costs an additional $2 a day to use…ok fine, we may have missed the “$” sign for the use of the safe on the website…but still would have been nice if they asked instead of the walk back to get it at 11pm at night. 2. From the moment we got to the resort it felt like the staff was not happy to be there at all. Very miserable and unpleasant…it got a bit better throughout the 9 days we were there, but you could feel they weren’t happy. 3. On our first full day there, Monday April 1st we woke up to a beautiful sunrise, had breakfast and decided to look for our Nexus tour rep to get information about the A la Cartes, excursions etc.… Only to find out that our Nexus Tour rep NEVER comes to this resort…. this info was directly from the front desk AND the Air transit rep, who was happy to help us…. more to come on Nexus Tours. 4, Only 1 building for the A La Cartes was open but 3 different menu nights that rotate throughout the week, and you don’t need reservations so you can go as often as you like…sounds good right? It is…till you find out that a few items on the menus have an additional cost! Yup…an All-Inclusive Resort charging for additional items on their menus…bottles of wine like a blush wine AND food like lobster on seafood night…I’ve never seen that before but ok… 5. No swim up bar…but that’s on my travel agent since that was a pre-requisite when we booked. 6. This is a BIG one…. Not allowed to have Beer or Pop stocked in our Mini fridge…WHAT??? When we arrived there were 2 big bottles of water which is great, and after a couple of days, still no Beer or Pop, so I asked our maid, (also giving her a nice tip) if we could please have some beer and Pop in our room…. she said NO????? I asked her why and she explained “management say not allowed”. WOW…. ok so when I was at the beach or Pool bar, I asked the bartender the same thing…if I could have a bottle of Pepsi to bring to our room (they are small bottles that they use to fill your bubba or drink order anyway so why not right?)….he also said NO! He also said “management say no”. Since he could tell I was a bit annoyed with that, and since I had a beach bag with me, he snuck a bottle of Pepsi in my bag and said “manager no looky looky” Isn’t that the most ridiculous thing you have ever heard? I paid so much money to be told NO I can’t have beer or Pop in my fridge because management said NO? WTH?!? Moving on.. 7. Buffet opens late for lunch 12:30pm and dinner 6:30pm. I feel bad for those with young ones as the dinner is so late. 8. Entertainment: Kids disco starts at 8:30pm and adult show at 9:30pm…needless to say we didn’t see any shows 9. Most places have a Lobby bar that has specialty coffees, right? Well, this place does have a lobby bar however, for specialty coffees…IT’S A MACHINE. Don’t get me wrong, it was pretty good but the issue here is that you can’t have one before 8:30am because it’s closed!?!?! It’s a machine! Why close the machine? Strange. And save the best for last…. Nexus Tours. Clearly there was no one there the whole time of our trip so when it came time to find out what time we needed to be in the lobby for our transportation to the airport I needed to get a hold of someone. On Saturday April 6th I went to the lobby around 9am and asked the Front desk where I could reach our Nexus Tour rep. He told me that she never comes to this resort, so he called her cell. He passed me the phone, and this is how our conversation went: Her: Ola Me: Hi, I’m at the Vik Arena Hotel and I am looking to find out what time I need to be in the lobby the day of my departure for transportation to the Airport? Her: I’ve been there every day this week, I am off today. Me: well, I’m sorry but we haven’t seen you and the front desk and Air Transat rep said you haven’t been here at all this week. Her: well, I am off today. Me: ok, if you are off today, then when are you here tomorrow? Her: Click….. Did she just hang up on me??? What just happened? Clearly, she was lying about being there all week but why hang up on a tourist when they are trying to get information? Trying not too loose it, I went to the beach for a couple of hours to calm down then decided to go back to the lobby to reach Nexus Tours from our travel documents…this is how THAT went. I call the Nexus Tour number on my travel papers and told them what happened, to which they really didn’t say anything about the fact that this woman, who represents them, hung up on me… Since it was Saturday and we didn’t leave till Tuesday, I was told to call 48 hrs before we leave so Sunday after 5pm. Ok great. Sunday April 7th, I called Nexus Tours at 6pm (give them an extra hour) to get my transportation time, to which they told to call 24 hrs before we leave so Monday after 12pm…getting ridiculous at this point cause now more time away from my holiday to contact someone when I should have had this information from day 1! So I called at 1pm on Sunday. Get this….my flight was at 2pm… was told that our pickup time is at 9:45am…Airport is 30 minutes away. Why 4hrs before our flight? Hell no! My mother and I decided to take a cab and get to the airport for 12pm…plenty of time! So, there you have it folks. Moral of the story, definitely don’t take pictures on Resort websites for their word (doesn’t look like that at all) and don’t travel with Nexus Tours. Last piece of advice for the single ladies…. don’t ever tell a local you are single…you will get about 5 phone numbers along with marriage proposals…. great ego boost but not fun when they push.

This is a small, very quiet, budget friendly resort. If you’re looking for all the bells and whistles, you won’t find it here. If you’re looking for somewhere clean and affordable, this is it. The staff are absolutely phenomenal here. From check-in to check-out, they created an incredible guest experience. For that alone, I would return. The rooms are basic and a bit dated. Your shower will be warm at best, but after a day in the sun it’s actually quite refreshing. My biggest disappointment was the poor air conditioning in the room. With the AC on full blast, the room was still constantly sticky and hot. I would be interested to spend a few more bucks if I were to return and upgrade to the Cayena side of the resort to see if the rooms are a step up. I read a lot of negative comments regarding the beach prior to staying here. Sure, the beach is starting to erode in some areas, but it is nothing like what people were complaining about and I’ve seen much, much worse. The beach is beautiful, lined with palm trees, plenty of loungers, and the water is warm. The main pool was just reopened after being renovated. It’s a saltwater pool and the water temp is great. The food is basic, but we were always able to find something to eat - we never went without. One thing I really liked about this place is that you have access to some sort of food and beverage almost 24 hours a day, whether it be late night soup and sandwiches at Calypso, or mod-afternoon pizza at the snack bar. The drinks are good, and the bartenders are wonderful. If you see Ricardo at the lobby bar, be sure to ask him for his “special drink”. He does not disappoint!

5th time here - have always enjoyed the smaller hotel experience however, this will be our last time here. No hot water for 2 days, no air conditioning all week and today as we leave, we met a couple who had bed bugs in their room - she had such a bad allergic reaction to the bites that she needed to be hospitalized. The staff are always very pleasant and work very hard to make you comfortable but it seems that the new management are not pleasant to their employees. Treat your staff well and they are the best people who will keep your guests happy. The buildings are old and tired - the whole complex needs lots of TLC and now even the food is starting to resemble the slim pickings of Cuba. As the owner resides/spends their time in Spain, perhaps they should reinvest some of the kk why they make in getting this place back to what it was… Can no longer recommend this hotel

My boyfriend and I stayed at the hotel for 7 nights and had a great time. The hotel was built in 2000 and it doesn't seem to have had any renovation since but it's clean! The hotel just needs to be refreshed but on the other hand, there is a little vintage side. The food was excellent. The employees were very welcoming, helpful and smiling. If you are looking for tranquility, the hotel is perfect for you. There isn't much entertainment unfortunately. The beach is beautiful! The sand is fine and clean. There are waves but the sea is perfect! But from 9:00 p.m. there is a superb entertainment team at the theater. Unlimited alcohol from morning to night! I would like to thank Celeste the maid, Jesus the guide for the excursion, Jesus at the front desk, Gregory the Transat representative, the restaurant waiters, the entertainers, the cooks and the bartenders for making our vacation memorable.

the hotel need renovation. the party environment is poor. the bathrooms water comes out slow. the hotel card deactivates after you ger it and you have to go back to the front desk. the food Medicor. the pools jacuzzi was cold. they dont smile.