TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

I’ll keep this simple. I’m an American, avid world traveler, Marriott Lifetime Status member, self-regulated germophobe, been to almost all the Royalton Adult Only locations and foodie. Cuba has been a dream location since I was a teenager. With that said, consider my review through the above lens: NEGATIVE: I’ve been to SEVERAL Royalton Adults only locations. This facility did not live up to what I’m used to. First impression of the facility shows acute wear and tear and dates to the 90s. Not in the nostalgic way. It was the, “ewww, I don’t want to touch any of the surfaces” type of dated. This place needs a solid investor to bring it current QUICKLY (or at least the 2000s). Even though I mentally level set for Cuba, the facility was still disappointing. The pool (just OK, swim up bar isn’t easily accessible w/o getting out or the water (kinda the point). The restaurants- I don’t have words. I barely ate on this resort. The menus were not inviting and the facilities —ALL THE RESTAURANTS need a complete overhaul., the food was bland and boring catering to Europeans/Slavics. I grew up on Cuban food in a big American city and this didn’t hit the mark at all. Lastly, the mosquitos. THE MOSQUITOS required everything I wanted to do after dark on the property to be done before 6p. There was nowhere to hide from them, especially the Mix bar. I came out one night just for dinner and a drink and didn’t even last 10m. I sprinted back to my room and enjoyed water and snacks I brought from home. I considered room service, but they only offered tuna and chicken sandwiches. ?? POSITIVE: THE PEOPLE AND LA PLAYA. these two things were top tier and the only reasons I would return, mindful to pack a suitcase full of food, hot plate and seasonings. La Playa was one of the best I’ve EVER seen. Well maintained…mind-glowingly pristine!!! Calm, clear waters, not too many vendors. I spent the last two days completely on the beach and didn’t leave until late in the day. Lastly, the people. The staff here is amazing. I arrived hours early and Luis and Thais at the front desk were incredible to get me situated and at lunch until I could check in. Marcel offered me a welcome sangria and reminded me of my uncles I adored. My “butler”, Ailyn was an angel. She warned me about the mosquitos and times to avoid, walked me through the entire property and the additional benefit of Diamond Club (not enough compared to other Royaltons, don’t upgrade here). My first room didn’t have working A/C, she not only arranged for a technician to try to fix it, she got me upgraded to a renovated superior room (which was more modern). The first room was closer to everything, but it was old. Both rooms were spacious but I appreciated the renovated room! Ailyn went out of her way to make sure I was comfortable and informed about what was available to me and made sure I had access to her and the entire staff on her days off. If you get her in Diamond Club, you’re in for a treat! RECOMMENDATION: Go…with appropriate expectations and the following caveats: bring tons of your favorite mosquito repellent. Americans or people who actually like food, pack non-perishable snacks, drinks & food. Spend your time on the beach,” (the beach grill has the best food on the property, btw), and enjoy the it as much as you can. I would return but only when they have updated the facilities top to bottom or the above caveats.

The whole experience at the resort was great. From the lobby, buffet, restaurants, bars and cleaning ladies, by far was the best Staff that we met in Cuba! Cannot thank them enough for their kindness, attentive and friendly attitude and smile. Everything was exceptional. The absolute gem was the beach! We will be back!

We stayed a week in September, wonderful food, impeccable cleanliness, the new rooms very comfortable.. but what impressed me the most was our butlers, Elaine and Daniel, a service of great attention and care! Solving small problems and always attentive to making our vacation comfortable, fun and unforgettable! Thank you Daniel and Elaine for your affection and dedication. I'll definitely see you soon

This was our first time in Cuba. The resort appeared appealing, divided in various different zones, interwined with paths, pools and parks that we even enjoyed to just walk through, as opposed to big concrete constructions. Upon arrival by taxi at around 1am we were nicely greeted by the staff, and after a short moment taken by a resort cart to our room. The room was cool, fairly big and clean, except for a surprize in the restroom, as the toilet was not cleaned after previous guests. We had to make 2 calls and make a visit to the lobby to have someone sent to clean it up at 2am. The rest of the week though we had our room well cleaned and the cleaning staff were very nice and caring. In the first morning we got to know the butler responsible for our side of resort. During our stay Bryan helped us solve various questions and was always available, kept all his promises and was unbelievably attentive to follow up on each case. He was always reachable and kind, but never overwhelming, and just made things happen. Again great thanks for that! Hope Bryan builds a career in tourism and hospitality, as you can feel he is a pro! The rest of the resort staff were always kind, helpful, hard working, but it seemed the management could do a better job, as the staff was not well guided and coordinated in their efforts, especially in the big open buffet. In general we were very surprised of the big variety of food offered, as we were made aware of the lack of basic resources in the country. It was unpleasant though to discover that the plates and cutlery were oftentimes dirty. I would doubt it came from the assigned emplyees, as most seemed to be very involved and hard working. Most probably, some work processes need to be improved on the management level with QA in its place and adequate resource availability. Cocktail bars were a great place to have a rest during the day or evening. As these are all free drinks, they were more of a distant impovosation of those you can find in specialized cocktail bars, coffee was ok though. The absolute gem was the beach - 2 minutes walk from the room. Clean, fine, almost white sand and the transparent turquise blue-green water. If it were not around 40C° during the day, we would have spent all our time on there. Best time was right after sunrise or a couple of hours before sunset. Loved it!

We just returned from Cuba and had an overall nice stay in this hotel. The beach was perfect! The service was okay, the food was good enough for Cuba. Our batler Bryan was very helpful, professional and kind to us, we really were impressed! Just several times I noticed dirty dishes in restaurants, especially in the Italian restaurant, it was an unpleasant experience. But I think I would go to this hotel again.