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| Holiday-Truth Readers Reports |
Mrs Gill Smith from Selby travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Thomas Cook
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness |  | | Location |  | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: On arrival in our room (2827) the shower bracket fell off the wall. The toilet did not flush , called out the technicion who mended them the toilet so well that when we flushed it again it would not stop flushing.
Technicion called out 4 times in total to the toilet. Sheets not changed for a week, we slept with sand in the bed for nearly a week. When sheets were changed (because I put them on the floor) the sheets did not fit the bed and half of the mattress was showing and you could either have your feet or your chest covered!
Maid should replenish the water daily, we did not get it daily and one morning I had no water to take my essential tablets.
Diet drinks in resort bvery difficult to come by, problem for myself who is diabetic and likes to take care of my condition.
Dressing table very dusty and never cleaned.
As with many other people mosquito/sand flys were a big problem and I had the runs for all but the first day of the holiday. The birds eating the food was disgusting and made the already horrible food even worse.
I have travelled twice a year for many years and this is the worst food I have encountered. We had a bowl of soup for our tea most days and I have lost 10lbs in weight over the 2 weeks there.
On the middle of the 2 weeks I was woken by something trying to drink out of my glass of water on my bedside cabinet. I screamed and it scurried off rather fast. All the toiletries in the bathroom had been knocked over so it had had a good rummage round while we were asleep.
You can make your own conculusions as to what it was as I never actually saw it but I know what think it was!! We were moved to a suite for the rest of your holiday but I had great trouble sleeping even in the new room and it did ruin our holiday along with everything else.
We spent most evenings in the cigar bar although it did smell of cigars it was cool and we had a select group who met there and had some nice evenings with the help of the lovely bar lady called Patrica.
Hotel staff basically overworked and under paid but tried hard to please. If you want to tip anybody give a thought to the gardeners who work hard and keep the ground really nice.
Do not expect to go for a walk anywhere other than round the grounds as there is nowhere to go unless you get a taxi, when you come out of the hotel on a night it is dark and there is nothing there.
Would I return to this hotel - NO WAY -
Return journey to manchester - screens on our row not working so no entertainment for us!
Eventually got to Manchester and the walkway would not connect so waiting on the runway for nearly an hour!! This holiday was a disaster from start to finish and is the worst I have ever had.
I am looking at the lake district for our next holiday!!!!
Click here for more information on this hotel, resort and region
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D Burns from eastbourne travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
thomas cook
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness |  | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Just got back from a lovely holiday at the Playa Costa Verde. We flew with Thomas Cook Airlines on 5th May 2008 and arrived back 20th May. The hotel is lovely as already mentioned in previous reviews. The flight from Gatwick took 9 and a half hours plus the time we sat on the runway for 1 and a half hours waiting for flight plan! The flight was pleasant with the extra 3 inches of legroom that TC have now added, the flight entertainment helped make the journey pass more quickly although some passengers screens did not work and they were offere a complemaentary free drink and a pack of crisps, why they couldnt put the main film on the large screen above is beyond me.
Anyway arrived at Holguin airport very hot and humid and took about 45mins to get through passport control and collect bags. Nice coach to hotel airconditioned with toilet and this took about 1 hour to get to hotel. We got checked in fairly quickly, They have these golf buggy type vehicles to take you and your luggage to your allocated room.
We were in a room on the first floor near to the Cuban Restaurant and walkway to the beach, this had a large balcony two double beds (effective aircon thank god) a nice size bathroom which if i wanted to be picky could have done with a coat of paint but it was functional and always had hot water. Towels were changed daily (most days) and the maids made some creative shapes with them, my wife particularly liked the elephant.
We tried all three of the al a carte restaurants and like most people the Japanese was the most popular choice. My wife has never eaten chinese or Japanese food but was able to eat most of the main course apart from the fish. We were not too keen on the Italian restaurant as the pasta on the lasagne was thick and the cheese was not nice at all. The general ambience of the place was ok but avoid the lasagne. Loved the Cuban restaurant i had the Pork which was lean and tender and my wfe had the chicken this was a chicken leg but it was cooked nice. The drinks in all the restaurants were fine. The Buffet Restaurant i thought was very good compared to the All inclusive restaurants we have experienced several times in 5star hotels in Turkey. Try not to book your al a carte restaurants on a Thurday if you like Fish because you can have as much grilled lobster as you like i found it a bit tough but i am no expert.The waiters are freindly but can sometimes be stretched too thinly as there are not enough of them if there are a sudden surge of people so do try to be patient or if your relly thirsty go to the bar where they get the drinks and get your own its no big deal.
The pool is huge but there are a few damaged tiles and i did cut my fot on on occasion only slightly. The bar is nice and can be accessed in the pool and round the back. I would say the the Canadian contingent have got this worked out as most of them had thermos beakers but not to be outdone my wife bought 2 500ml plasic tumblers from Sainsburys which hols about 3 times the liquid they normally give you. They dont mind rinsing these out for you at the pool or the beach and it just saves you burning your feet on the hot sand or concrete when you need a refill.
The beach is great we went on the Hobie cats a few times see Roger or John ( Before i forget Roger can organise fishing from a hobie cat for 3 hrs for 80 pesos all in with fishing gear and live bait etc). If you want a sunbed ask the guys next to the beds to place them whre you want and they clean them down for you and say enjoy your day whether you tip them or not. Do take sand shoes i got mine from Sport and Ski for £4 and they were great for swimming and snorkling.
We did two trips first was the Jeep safari to visit fidel castro ancestral home it took 2 and half hours to get to this place in an aircon jeep (Hyundai) it was ok but very hot to walk around from here we went to visit a waterfall another 1 hour drive and then we stopped for lunch the to a place whre they grow coffee and a 91 years young lady grinds and makes an expresso coffee ( like treacle) then the long drive back. The round trip starts at 7.30am and gets back to the hotel at 6pm very ineresting the guide was fantastic but the roads are awful and i found it tiring.
The second trip was the Catermaran and snorkling this carries upto a max of 40 persons and is a nice trip you get to see lots of fish and i bought a disposable underwater camera at Gatwick airport Dixons for £9.99 and took some pics. They give you a cheese roll for a snack on the boat if you dont want to eat it feed it in small pieces to the fish a little at a time whilst the boat is anchored at the second snorkling point the must like the cheese.You have luch at a restaurant near Guadalavaca and there is a choice of food. If you like lobster have it from here because it is far better and bigger than wahat is served at the hotel dont be afraid of buyiing extra Bucanero beer it will only cost around 1.5 Peso.
If you want to go into Guadalavaca then my advice is to get a taxi for 10 Peso it will get you there in comfort in 20 mins where the Dotto train will cost 5 peso each and will take 45 mins. When you get in Guadalavaca we hired the horse drawn buggy for 15 peso which takes you around a real cuban village and is a very pleasant ride out, ladies will come out of there houses and sell you bracelets and necklaces for 1 peso.
Now this is just my general overview of Cuba compared to recent holidays in Turkey and Europe.
We had great difficulty in coping with the high humidity and 35 degree temp for the first 4 days then gradually we got used to it unfortunately my wife suffered from around 20 nasty mosquito bites which caused her to have to see the doctor have courtisone and anti histamine injection and some tablets which cost 99 peso. This relived her symptoms after 24 hours and the holiday got better from this point. we found the cuban people to be warm and freindly apart from two waiters in the lobby bar Raphael and another who wore glasses. They were slow , dismissive and expected tips but were not grateful for them, maybe they have been doing the job for to long. The lobby bar area is open and exposed in the evening and i think this may have been an area where my wife got the bites even with extra strong Deet spray (Silver can from Boots). When they have fresh mint it is worth trying the mohito drink i got a taste for it but was only able to get this on the odd occasion as mint was not always available. In Turkey and europe the heat is dry but here it is like florida very hot and sticky once you get used to it you will love the place but i really think you need 2 weeks to adjust. The hotel is populated by apx 70% Canadian, 20% British a few German, french , Dutch and Cuban everone seemed to get on fine. If it was not for the fact that the Cuban people are so freindly then i would probably choose Turkey for my chill out vacation but i have warmed to the place and will probably visit again.
Main tips for a safe and enjoyable holiday.
1. Dont take anything less than factor 25 sun lotion even with cloud you will burn in an hour.
2. Take anti histamine tablets with you like Piriton to counteract the mossie bites.
3. Strong mossie spray for body and room if you can fit in your bag ( also a note here abaout the wall sockets some operate from the switches near the bed so make sure the one you are using for your mossie plug in is live i.e try a lamp in the socket!!!.
4. Buy some tight fitting white rash vests or T shirts for the kids when they ar in the pool and make sure they wear them.
5. Sand shoes for the beach.
6 Dont take your own towels on the beach use the ones supplied by the hotel and dont take them back to your room if poss as you could be bringing sand fleas back to your room and these bite as well.
7. Get large plastic beakers or thermos beakers to take with you for drinks cos the one supplied only hold about 150ml.
8. Keeep your clothes and shoes secure particularly if on the ground floor as they may disappear particularly trainers.
9. We did not get our meal served on the plane until 9pm cuban time and we had lunch at the hotel at 1pm so either take some food from the buffet or buy a sandwich at the airport.
10. We just tok sterling and used the safe in the room and changed the cash at the Cadega which was 1.73 CUC peso to the pound most days but ask for a receipt so you get the full amount not 50 cents less!
I hope i have not rambled on to much here but hello to the lovely people we met such as Terry and Chris and Cliff and Karen from the Playa Pasqureo and the german family at the pool and everbody else including the animation team and Pedro Ortero.
Have a great holiday at the Playa Costa Verde Best wishes Dave and Diane ( Eastbourne Sussex England)
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lynsey from glasgow travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
firstchoice
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 07 2007 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: hello stayed in this hotel with my boyfriend on our first holiday together and had a fantastic holiday. when i read previous reviews i was quite worried, but had a fantastic stay.
the hotel is not a 4*plus. however everything in cuba is government owned, so i think the star rating was set by the authorities-not first choice. our room was shabby and needed a paint. however it was spotless clean and thats all that mattered. towels and bed lined got changed daily. however there was 3 cushions on bed that looked like they hadnt been washed in 4 years. these got hidden in the wardrobe until departure!! a litre of water was left in room every day, if you tip the maid well she leaves you two!
the staff here are very friendly, though i found that other holiday makers who tipped more were favoured. you cannot get diet coke in this hotel, they only have local coke that is disgusting and is not diet. we found out that if you tipped the bar staff 40 pesos (20 pound), that you got diet coke. i dont really think this should be allowed. the cubans are definately not the friendliest bunch iv seen. been to other countried that are far more welcoming and friendly. shop staff were ignorant, and if they didnt understand what you say they just shake their head.
take mosquito spray and my boyfriend got bitten about 30 times, i didnt get bit once though, so i guess it depends on your luck!
entertainment at night was shockingly bad. thats all i have to say on that!
pool area was very clean, and pool is huge. plenty of sunloungers available.
beach is stunning and very clean, crystal clear water.
food at hotel was edible but poor. variety was rubbish. buffet consisted of rice, chicken. at lunch you could have a nice salad. pasta made to your specification was available, i survived on this for two weeks. i can eat anything, but hot dishes were cold and did not want to risk food poisoning. lunch time you could get pizzas etc, and breakfast was good.
A lA Carte restaurants - japanese fantastic. italian disgusting. cuban good, veggie restaurant are pre delivered on trays to the hotel daily.
i would recommend the two day trip to havana. around 400 for two people. we had a crap tour guide though and were delayed for 5hrs at havana airport. all in all very good value for money as you stay in 5* hotel. again, the food not great, but you have to remember you are in a third world country.
the stories about huge spiders being in rooms is rubbish. however giant crabs wander around hotel lobby and outside your room door. one couple we spoke to saw a giant trantula on their last night in hotel grounds, but this is only one.
we had a great holiday, but i wouldnt go back. purely because of the hotel star rating. it was more like a 3*, and for the money we paid, could have got better in another caribbean country.
we went to an air conditioned lounge every night after dinner, as it was too hot to sit in lobby!
as i said earlier, fantastic holiday, but dont go to this hotel expecting a 4*plus experience, as when we got shown to our room we were quite disheartened, and a lot of others who checked in same day complained.
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Jenny from London travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2007 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location |  | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Arrival/check-in/room - We arrived into Cuba with a major thunderstorm and torrential rain. Upon check-in (which was quick) we were told that our room had been changed to an upstairs one as the ground floor rooms were flooded! Were driven to room (4229) by golf buggy in pouring rain and then had to wade through ankle deep water to the room dragging our suitcases which got soaked through - no assistance offered by bell boy. The room was spacious, however in need of major updating. The bathroom towels were old, discoloured and stained and the pillow cases and bed covers were also stained, torn and frayed. Not what you would expect from a so-called 4 star plus! There was a fridge which was stocked with bottle of water and 2 cans of fizzy drink. Not replenished through 2 week stay. From the time of checking-in to arriving at our room we were already covered in mosquito bites. Mosquitos proved to be a major problem for the entire duration of holiday. Room also had a safe, hairdryer, tv, iron and ironing board.
Food - horrible! I have stayed at many all inclusive resorts in the carribean (including Cuba before) and the Playa Costa Verde, in my opinion, offered the worst food. Apart from the lack of variation (which I can live with), the food was never hot and was constantly attacked by flies and birds. The tables in the buffet restaurant and snack bar were covered in bird droppings and both restaurants were frequented by gangs of cats, the toms wandering around begging food and spraying over table/chair legs and anything else on their level! There are a la carte restaurants (Cuban, Italian, Japanese) each time we tried to make reservations we couldn't get in or were offered 9pm bookings which is way too late to eat with an 8 year old. I guess you need to try and make your reservations upon the first day at the resort, otherwise you could be out of luck.
Swimming pool/beach - The pool was large and clean and the sunbeds were aplenty. No problems there. The sunbeds were a little dirty but towards the end of our stay the dirty sunbeds had been taken away to be cleaned. Pool bar was very good. The beach was lovely.
Entertainment - Daytime activities a bit hit and miss but this could have been due to the weather. We only had 2 days free of rain during the 2 weeks. The evening entertainment was the usual dance shows etc.
Hotel grounds - Very nice. Lots of plants, shrubs, flowers. All gardens well tended and grounds kept very clean.
Hotel staff - On the whole very helpful and friendly and the ground staff constantly working very hard.
Pluses - staff and grounds
Minuses - weather, insects (not hotel's fault, of course), food and shabby rooms
I probably would not visit this hotel again as the food/hygiene was a huge problem for me. We also felt very uncomfortable with the stained bedlinen and towels. This is not a 4 star plus resort by any stretch of the imagination.
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Garin from Lancs UK travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
First Choice
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 04 2007 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness |  | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Garin and swmbo Playa Costa Verde April 2007
Flight First Choice Flight left the UK on time there was a 2 hour delay leaving Cuba, flight time out was just over 91/2 hours coming back was just under 81/2 hours. The extra legroom as standard and seat back TV is a vast improvement, it took about 2 hours to get through Holquin airport and transfer to the hotel.
On arrival at the hotel we were greeted with a welcome drink, check in was hassle free and we received a welcome pack with safe and room key, towel vouchers and resort information, our room was on the second floor near the beach area which we had requested in advance via e-mail, the rooms are are quite large and very clean and tidy an equipped with a TV, coffee maker, CD player, hairdryer and iron and ironing board. The hotel grounds are kept very clean and tidy and the blocks are we spaced out.
There was a good range of food available in the buffet, fresh grilled fish and meat as well as omelets and pizzas were available, the snack bar near the pool served burgers, hot dogs fried chicken and a range of sandwiches, the lobby bar also serves snacks in the afternoon and there is a burger bar at night next to the disco. The three Ala carte's are excellent the Japanese really kicks in when the cooking starts, the chef in the Italian knows how to cook steak rare, we enjoyed the turkey and pork at the Cuban.
The animation team are always on hand there are the usual activities through out the day volleyball water polo etc, there are nightly shows followed by live music in the disco for around a hour before the disco starts, one night a week there is a beach party weather permitting.
The standard of service in the bars and restaurants is excellent, the managers are always knocking about to make sure things run smoothly, we did have a problem with the safe key, a technician sorted this problem within 15 minuets.
Getting out and about we did our own thing we took a taxi to Gibara and Bannes, the only official trip we booked was the the overnight to Santiago through the First Choice (signature vacations) rep. This trip was excellent value for money it included lunch on both days with the first drink included and one night at the Sol Melia Santiago with evening meal and breakfast alcoholic drinks were not included. We visited several places of interest including Santiago castle and Saturday night was rounded off with a trip to the Tropicana show.
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Garin from Lancs UK travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
First Choice
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 04 2007 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Garin and swmbo Playa Costa Verde April 2007
Flight First Choice Flight left the UK on time there was a 2 hour delay leaving Cuba, flight time out was just over 91/2 hours coming back was just under 81/2 hours.The extra legroom as standard and seat back TV is a vast improvement, it took about 2 hours to get through Holquin airport and transfer to the hotel.
On arrival at the hotel we were greeted with a welcome drink, check in was hassle free and we received a welcome pack with safe and room key, towel vouchers and resort information, our room was on the second floor near the beach area which we had requested in advance via e-mail, the rooms are are quite large and very clean and tidy an equipped with a TV, coffee maker, CD player, hairdryer and iron and ironing board. The hotel grounds are kept very clean and tidy and the blocks are we spaced out.
There was a good range of food available in the buffet, fresh grilled fish and meat as well as omelets and pizzas were available, the snack bar near the pool served burgers, hot dogs fried chicken and a range of sandwiches, the lobby bar also serves snacks in the afternoon and there is a burger bar at night next to the disco.The three Ala carte's are excellent the Japanese really kicks in when the cooking starts, the chef in the Italian knows how to cook steak rare, we enjoyed the turkey and pork at the Cuban.
The animation team are always on hand there are the usual activities through out the day volleyball water polo etc, there are nightly shows followed by live music in the disco for around a hour before the disco starts, one night a week there is a beach party weather permitting.
The standard of service in the bars and restaurants is excellent, the managers are always knocking about to make sure things run smoothly, we did have a problem with the safe key, a technician sorted this problem within 15 minuets.
Getting out and about we did our own thing we took a taxi to Gibara and Bannes, the only official trip we booked was the the overnight to Santiago through the First Choice (siganurture vacations) rep. This trip was excellent value for money it included lunch on both days with the first drink included and one night at the Sol Melia Santiago with evening meal and breakfast alcoholic drinks were not included. We visited several places of interest including Santiago castle and Saturday night was rounded off with a trip to the Tropicana show.
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Frank from Wakefield travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Eclipse
on a couples holiday.
There were 6 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 11 2006 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: First impressions of the hotel
Very good, beautiful well kept grounds, large reception area and lobby bar with waiter service. Massive outdoor freeform pool with swim up bar. We arrived at 4pm just in time for the more susceptible members of our party of 6 to be bitten by the mosquitos which are rife.
Rooms
Our room was quite the largest we've had on holiday with lovely balcony and good garden views. Wehad two large beds pushed together to form a massive sleeping area. The beds were a bit hard though. We had lots of drawers and wardrobe space provided, there was also a free card operated security safe (whichever 'door key' card you use to lock it is the only one which will open it). We had welcome drinks in the fridge, Just leaving a note and the occasional tip for the maid ensured lots of 'towel sculptures' and regular bottled water daily. The air conditioning was adequate without being too chilled, and I found it quiet and unobtrusive overnight, but others did turn it off only to to be disturbed by the occasional noise of the fridge starting up.
The bathroom was very nice with bidet and multi mirrored vanity unit, hairdryer and both European220v and american 110v sockets. The shower/bath was also very good, but we experienced a few days of cool water when a water heater for the site went down. This wouldn't normally matter much, but the first week was the coldest in Cuba for 10 years, being colder than London on one of the days.
How we longed to warm up in a hot bath! We had our own resident baby lizard who lived in the bathroom, he was lovely but very timid, running and hiding often in the toilet roll holder..
The Tv had mainly Spanish channels on it and the only English speaking news channel was CNN which concentrated on The Iraq war constantly, rarely mentioning any European news.
Hotel facilities
The weather inevitably affected the enjoyment of our holiday, 4 days continuous rain in the first week, plus cancelled excursions meant few of the outdoor facilities could be taken advantage of. A further 3 days of cool dull weather ensured that when the sun finally did come out, the pool was chilly, only getting warm in the last days of our holiday. In the 2 weeks we were there the red flag flew on most days, and there were only one or two days when the sailing facilities were available.
AS seems to be the norm in these resorts, you are not allowed much peace and quiet around the pool, and have to endure periods of loud music, lots of it rap whilst supposedly relaxing. in the late afternoon the music was replaced by Bingo.
During the rainy days the Lobby bar was full of people playing cards, trivial persuit etc - not much to do but eat and drink. The Animation team did their best, but playing Bingo isn't my idea of a good time.
The staff were wonderful, dedicated, efficient, friendly people and ensured you never had an empty glass!
Restaurants
Buffet -evening
In the first week, we preferred to dine late, say 8-30 pm and we found the "hot'" food lukewarm, the soups cool with grease films on the top, the meats tough and some of the vegetables which would complement the meal missing, awaiting replacement. We found that a lot of foraging had to be done to locate and put together something that both looked and tasted good. I could be done though, don't get me wrong, its just that the components of a balanced meal never seemed to be available at the same time.
You could ALWAYS get delicious salads, especially the tuna and sardines. Watch out for the stones inside some of the olives. Pasta cooked while you wait was always available too, with a variety of ingredients & flavourings. In the second week we dined earlier and found the food fresher,vegetables still available, meat more tender and Hot! So a good tip is to dine early in the buffet!
Buffet -breakfast
All the usual things available, plenty to choose from, but if you like English bacon you will be disappointed. Omelettes and fried eggs cooked to your specifications while you wait. At all times the service was excellent, for beer, coffee etc served at your table.
Japanese Restaurant
Far and away the best place to eat in the resort, lashings of delicious beef, prawns, swordfish (and rice) freshly cooked at your table with panache and showmanship, make sure you book early in the week to avoid disappointment. Sushi is available but not compulsory.
italian restaurant
Very nice but nothing special, and we had an early sitting in the first week, The service was rushed, they obviously couldn't wait to get rid of us to vacate the table for a later sitting. Much better in week 2 on a late sitting.
Cuban Restaurant
Located next to the Mosquito swamp and in the open air, those prone to being bitten did get bitten despite lashings of Deet. Very nice local musicians at your table, but not everyone liked the food. We did not enjoy the lobster and my wife was taken ill in the night after that meal, may have been coincidence..
Snack bar
located near the swimming pool, was a pleasant location, with entertaining mynah type birds nesting in the roof, perched on the rafters and the tables. The food was delicious, hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chips and chilled beer on demand, again with excellent service. There was however, a hygiene issue here, as the birds pooped on the empty tables and the serviette wrapped cutlery. You had to look up to ensure your plate wasn't in a drop zone.
Beach
Access to the beach was across a long bridge above the swamp, and again mosquitos were a problem on those journey to those susceptible to being bitten. The beach itself wasn't the best caribbean beach I've seen but was still very nice, with lots of natural shade from the trees and plenty of umbrellas, which came in handy on the many times that it rained. There were submerged shingly barnacled rocks often invisible beneath the water, so water shoes or crocs are highly recommended if you don't want problems wading out through the shallows.
The Beach drinks bar was only staffed by one person, always cheery and friendly and chatty, so occasionally long queues formed whilst you waited for this person to mix cocktails etc which is a shame when you only want a beer.
If you decide to walk westwards along the beach, eventually the beach tapers away so you have to negotiate a rocky outcrop. Beyond here seems to be a natural collecting point for flotsam and jetsam. Here all kinds of rubbish were accumulated, including medical waste and hypodermic needles! Hence another reason for wearing crocs.
Beer Corner
Is an Open air bar which unfortunately was closed most of the time due to inclement weather. It was a pleasant start to the evening when it was open.
Cigar Lounge
Little used but most comfortable bar, obviously for smokers and not surprisingly reeking of cigars, had almost personal service due to its lack of clientele.
Excursions,
Many were cancelled due to unprecedented bad weather but we did manage to sail on the Catamaran in the sunshine to swim with the dolphins which was ace. As we arrived it rained, so we emerged to sodden towels, put on sodden wet clothes so we could sit wet through in the dining room and eat a delicious lunch.
General
Out of our party of 6, 5 came down at various times with attacks of the squits. Immodium became a scarce resource as our supplies ran out by the end of the first week. You cannot buy anything like it in the hotel shop. We were not the only people affected; there was ample evidence that we were not alone. There are hygiene issues here, and further to the comments of Jandiaman (who was one of our party) I would suggest that flies in the Buffet Restaurant were also contributory factor. No attempt was made to cover up bread rolls or some salad stuffs, some of the jams and preserves were in open dishes. Packet varieties are available . They were crawling with flies. The sun beds around the pool can be contaminated with bird droppings, so check them before use. So if you were thinking of bringing one packet of Immodium, think again. Bring 3 packets.
Summarising, what might have been otherwise a lovely holiday was spoiled by bad weather and most of our party of 6 succumbing to attacks of the squits.
Tips :-
1.Eat in the buffet early evening
2.Take a variety of Mosquito repellants, not just Deet. Mozzie-guard worked well for one of us.
3.Check your cutlery in the snack bar and buffet, and check your sun bed for bird droppings.
4.Take alcohol based antiseptic gel to sterilise your hands regulary.
5.Don't forget the immodium
6.tip the staff regularly as you go, they remember you and look after you.
7.take some form of water shoes.
8.Pray for good weather
9.If you want to buy cigars, there is a better selection and they are cheaper at the airport. than the hotel.
10.If you need to catch up on the news, use the Internet room.
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nick from Halifax travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Eclipse
on a friends holiday.
There were 6 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 11 2006 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: THE FLIGHT
The flight from Manchester with First Choice was an improvement on our previous trip a couple of years ago with Thomas Cook, the extra legroom on the first choice planes makes a big difference on long haul.
As usual he customs check in was a bit of a pain as you are all scrutinised individually in the little booth before the door opens and you are in Cuba. If you are one of the first through it is a good idea to change some currency at the bureau de change before boarding your coach to the resort.
FIRST IMPRESIONS
First of all I have to say there were 3 big factors that influenced my view of this holiday:
1 THE WEATHER
We travelled the late November early December 06. The first week was terrible after half a day of sun on the first day it rained continually for 3 days and not just rain it was torrential causing flooding of parts of the hotel facilities and there were a number of ground floor rooms flooded resulting in guest s having to be moved, some more than once. There was also a dramatic temperature drop and on one night we were told it was colder in Havana than it was in London.
Apparently this was the worst weather they had had for 10 years (lets hope it is not another sign of global warming changing the climate) After the rain it was overcast for another 4 days. The second week things did improve and we did get some sun.
2 THE SQUITS
We were in a party of 6 and the majority suffered stomach upsets my wife in particular suffered badly and was affected for most of the holiday and for a week on our return. As we didn’t contact the doctor either there or on our return we are unable to identify the cause, but the symptoms certainly point to a food poisoning type of infection or similar parasitic infection. We were unable to pinpoint any source but the suspects were: Buffet food at wrong temperatures, contamination by birds (The birds were in the buffet and the Caribbean snack bar it was like eating in an aviary although pleasant to see it was a food hygiene nightmare) It may also be possible contamination of he pools either by the flooding or cross contamination from other suffers as I know we were by no means the only ones
3 MOSQUITOS
Although I never got bitten myself most members of our party were severely bitten one had 20 bites between leaving the check in at reception and walking to the room. It seems strange at the PCV that the mosies seem particularly active late afternoon around 4pm. The hotel do fog the place most evenings but the problem persists. Don’t worry about Deet I think it attracts them here.
THE HOTEL GROUNDS AND POOLS
I thought the hotel was very pleasant and well maintained. The grounds were immaculate and colourful
The facilities were as expected for what we had paid and I would say it was reasonable value for money. The pool despite what I have written above did appear clean and had plenty of sun beds to relax on. The concrete surround to the pool could be better but that’s just a picky criticism. Again the external theatre area was starting to look a bit worse for wear but again we did not spend too much time there due to the weather. There are a number of little kiosk type places around the grounds open at various times, the ice-cream kiosk, the beer corner, and even a chiropodist. There is also a gym and tennis/football courts for the more energetic. There are also a couple of Jacuzzis that seemed popular..
THE ROOM
The room we were allocated 4826 it was a second floor room and being on a corner had the advantage of a large L shaped balcony unfortunately due to the weather and mosquitoes we were unable to make much use of the balcony. The room was clean and airy, and had a bit of an unusual arrangement of the bathroom being entered via a small area containing the wash hand basin and wardrobe which enabled someone to wash/ shave if the other was using the bath room. The furniture was basic but adequate and the bed huge. The air con was not good but just about worked. The bathroom was good but the hot water was a bit hit and miss and we did not have hot water for about 5 days. The room was cleaned to a decent standard daily I didn’t know there were so many different ways to make a bed not to mention the things you can do with a towel nice touches. The only y criticism would be the bed spreads which do not appear to be changed for each occupancy
Another disappointment NO UMBRELLA unlike most Cuban hotels there are no courtesy umbrellas in the room Boy were they missed this trip.
FOOD
The food was what I expected I think most people would find something to their liking the only problems being either the temperature that it is served at or trying to get the right combination of protein and veg there were often times you were searching in vain for the right veg only to find it appearing when you were later seeking a desert.
I enjoyed the breakfasts but don’t expect a full English, the orange juice was freshly squeezed and really good. With regards to Special Restaurants the food with the exception of the Japanese was basically the same as you could get in the buffet but tended to be warmer and better presented.
The Japanese is probably the best as entertainment value as well. The Cuban gets a lot of criticism re mosquitoes but there didn’t seem to be more of a problem there as far as I could see most of my friends were bitten in other locations.
Coffee was generally good apart from in the rooms.
BARS
We tended to spend most evenings in the Lobby bar the waiter service was usually good tipping a little and often probably helps. We would have made more use of the Beer Corner. if the weather had been better The swim up bar was ok but I although I like to see one I don’t think they ever quite live up to your expectations. Probably the most comfortable and under used is the Guantanamerra cigar lounge it is air conditioned but the cigar smell and restricted choice of drinks may put some people off .The beach bar was a big disappointment as it is basically a kiosk with one person serving and you can be waiting for half an hour in a queue if you get your timing wrong. There are also no toilets so it’s a bit of a hike back up to the hotel if you need to go.
STAFF
Without a doubt the biggest asset at this hotel are the staff, from the reception to the gardeners everybody seems to have a smile on their faces and are helpful and you get the impression its not just for the tips.
ENTERTAINMENT
The animation team are enthusiastic and try hard if you want to indulge but you can only take so much of the” love you” “love you more“ bingo. The evening shows were basically just young girls dressing up, the resident band are ok and there are other artists who appear at various points around the hotel.
THE BEACH
It is a pleasant but not spectacular beach shared by the 3 hotels the PCV has probably the best section of the beach but you still need to take care and watch out for the numerous rocky outcrops underwater these are usually visible if the sea is calm but are more difficult to spot if the water is choppy the movement of sand also means that what appeared to be a clear section one day may be rocky the next or visa versa (A pair of Crocs are a good investment) One surprising find was that we took a walk one day to the West and just past the Playa Pescaro came across a disgusting little inlet were there was loads of rubbish some of which appeared to be medical waste including used syringes.
The water sports were restricted due to weather conditions for most of our stay so we couldn’t take advantage we did manage one trip on a hobbie cat
TRIPS
We went on:
The speedboats a good half-day out, white knuckle driving your own speedboat in the mangroves. And lagoon but also due to weather conditions we were unable to venture further out to sea as normal
The full day Catamaran and trip to the Dolphinarium was an excellent day out but would have been twice as good on a hot sunny day. Swimming with dolphins has never been on my must do list but it was enjoyable and those in our party that really wanted to do it said it had been one of those experiences they will never forget. The dolphins did seem well treated in what is probably one of the most eco friendly Dolphinariums in the world. Well worth the visit, the meal in the restaurant was also very good.
I took a half-day trip to Holguin nothing spectacular but it filled a dull afternoon. The cigar factory we visited was not in full production so a bit disappointing. We were taken into some of the local Peso shops where a Liverpudlian Vicky Pollard look-alike in our party was probably correct but un- diplomatic when she described the goods on display as a “load of shite”
We were going to go on the evening sunset cruise but after returning to our rooms early on what was probably the hottest day of our stay we were informed the trip was cancelled due to weather conditions??
CONCLUSION
On balance for the reasons mentioned earlier and for some other reasons this was not our best ever holiday and although I would return to Cuba it is unlikely that I would return to the Holguin area I would never say never and I am sure most people will have fond memories of the place.
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Margie Binns from Brighouse travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
First Choice
on a friends holiday.
There were 6 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 11 2006 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We arrived to 5 days of very heavy rain and an overnight low in Havana of 8 degrees not what we were expecting from our Caribbean holiday. The second week was better but not good and even though the rainy season was only just officially over we felt gutted at the weather.
The hotel was large and very clean. the staff were faultless the nicest, kindest, friendliest people on earth, they couldn't do enough for you. Drinks were plentiful and your glass should never be empty if it's anything to do with the staff.
The rooms are large and very clean, the maids leave towel sculptures for you and even bottled water if you leave a note asking for water.
The food in the main restaurant is what you would expect from an average, large all inclusive self service dining room. Plenty of variety.
The fish and seafood, rice and chickpeas are the best choice however if you have fussy eaters, and we did, they may experience some difficulties because the beef etc is very very tough, just forget it and go Cuban if you can you will do better.
The a la carte restaurants are much better, by far in my opinion is the Japanese, watch out for" Paul Burrell " one of the chef's here looks just like him. The Italian is good too, a bit more formal. The Cuban is Cuban, live singers to serenade you, lobster and Mosquito's.
The Cuban restaurant is situated towards the bottom end of the resort by the wooden bridge across the lagoon that takes you to the beach, this is where the mozzies will get you, when you sit outside for a meal, a drink or on your way to and from the beach.
Please take bucket loads of repellent with you and calamine for after they get you!
We were situated in room 4821 and experienced noise from the nearby hotel Blau disco which started at 11pm and went on till 2am, it was really loud, a base boom that felt as though the walls were vibrating, it was very difficult to sleep in our room during these hours.
The hotel operates a policy of not allowing children to occupy upstairs room because of the heavy rains whilst we were there many ground floor rooms were flooded and some guests were moved 4 times the first week, mostly those with children who were not allowed to occupy upstairs rooms.
Trips not to miss , the day trip by catamaran to the dolphins and the speedboat adventure trip.
The beach was a disappointment to me. I may be spoiled but I expected more of the Caribbean. At the very far end of the beach past the Hotel pesquaro we came across syringes and medical waste washed up on the beach, it all seemed so out of place.
All in all I had an OK holiday, a few members of out party got very bad tummy upsets, the weather was poor, the hotel was average but the staff were brilliant and the hotel was very clean with food what you would expect from a mass catering hotel.
I will not be retuning, there is much to commend it for but a lot to be desired in my opinion.
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Juliet from Braintree travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Kuoni
on a family holiday.
There were 3 adults and 4 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2006 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Flew with Cubana - would not again. Just after ban on hand luggage so nothing to occupy 4 children aged 7 and under.
PCV is a lovely hotel. Large spacious reception area with comfy chairs. Table football for the children and a bar serving lovely Daiquiris! What more could you want?
Food is lovely. Buffet had loads of choice and when you think the population of Cuba are on food rations it should make you more grateful. The seafood restaurant had excellent lobster as did the buffet. The japanese restaurant was also excellent. The children enjoyed watching the food being prepared in front of us by the friendly chef.
The rooms were nice and spacious and clean.
The beach is lovely with trees and nice shallow water for the children.
All in all a lovely holiday
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Dave Edwards from Cardiff travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Eclipse Direct
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 04 2006 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We flew from Gatwick(UK) with First Choice in their standard Star class. Paid extra for extra leg room seats which was well worth the money as although I am nearly 6' 4" I couldn't reach the seat in front!!
Flight was only slightly behind schedule, we arrived in a tropical downpour but we were the only flight in Holguin at that time so queues were effectively non-existent for immigration etc.
Transfer to PCV was quick (as it was the only stop) although we had to wait a while in the coach whilst some missing luggage was located.
Check in was quick at PCV, although we had to wait for an hour as our room was not yet ready. This wasn't a hardship as we sat in the large airy reception area and downed a couple of glasses of very welcome beer and champagne!
When we finally were taken to our room we were delighted to see that we had been allocated a second floor corner room with a large wrap around balcony (I had emailed the resort in advance with a request in Spanish - I don't know whether this was the reason). The room was large, comfortable and was kept very clean during our two weeks. There was nearly always hot water although it was only warm at 7:00pm after everyone had showered. We tipped our maid every other day and asked her to supply us with bottled water as the fridge is only stocked on day one with water and two small cans of pop. The air con was very effective and we had no problems with insects at all.
Site
The grounds are beautifully landscaped - the grass was somewhat brown when we arrived but a deluge one evening soon greened everything up. There are a large variety of shrubs and trees, many in flower whilst we were there. It's not a huge site so it's possible to walk everywhere on the clearly signposted paths.
Beach
The beach is very pleasant with easy access to the sea - there are a few rocky bits but it's perfectly possible to get in and out without any problems; the water is refreshing, without being cold and was never too rough even when the wind got up after a few days. The snorkeling is very good particularly to the right of the PCV in front of the Blau. Vast numbers of brightly coloured fish and if you are prepared to swim out ~ 100 metres you can find some larger fish which will feed on banana or bread. The only downside of the beach is that it is relatively small. As our second week coincided with Easter it got pretty crowded by 11:00am. The weekend was even more crowded due to the presence of several bus loads of locals who used the beach between Pesquero and PCV. In the second week we had the usual European problem with sunshades being "reserved" before breakfast, although there was no shortage of sunbeds.
The walk from the hotel to the beach is via a causeway over the "Eco areas" - was a bit dried out when we arrived but the sharp rain showers we had late afternoon and overnight soon freshened the area up. A large variety of wading birds to be seen.
Pool
The swimming pool was quite large - always room to have a brief swim to cool down altho I found it to be a bit too warm!! Plenty of sun beds around the pool altho in our second week parasols were hard to find by late morning. There are two separate sections of the pool for the younger kids plus a totally separate babies pool by the kids club.
Restaurants
*Buffet*- always plenty of choice; Tuesdays(fillet of Beef) and Thursdays(Lobster and assorted seafood) are outstanding nights - also some good stir fries and pasta dishes - Only downside was occasional shortage of choice of vegetables (other than salads).Very good selection of fruits,cheeses and sweets for afters. Service was always very good at all three meals.
*Italian* - the nearest to what I would accept as a la carte- good choice on the menu with excellent service in quiet, air conditioned surroundings. We had two good meals altho the fillet of beef was not so good on the second occasion.
*Japanese* - we were a bit disappointed on our visit to the Japanese restaurant - altho the food was perfectly OK everything seemed a bit mechanical as they seem to go thru the same routine day in day out which made us feel a bit like we were on a conveyor belt - there is a standard menu, all you can do is leave things out. Our waitress took our "order" then we were all served everything anyway.We also didn't get offered extra drinks or coffee at the end of the meal. To be fair though a lot of people we talked to during our two weeks, raved about the Japanese; so you pays your money and takes your choice!!!!!
*Caribbean - *our lowest rated; It doubles as an a la carte snack bar during the day which was perfectly fine - comfortable to sit in out of the midday heat and have a beer and a pizza (which were excellent) - in the evening it serves up a very limited menu with little or no atmosphere due partly to the large empty spaces between tables. The night we went the food was mediocre, with an overcooked piece of fish and a very tough piece of fillet(???) of beef; also the service very poor, we had to go to get another glass of wine ourselves. However, this was the low point of the whole holiday!!
*Creole - *We liked the Creole (Cuban) restaurant a lot; the nights we went there was plenty of atmosphere, the food was good and our waitress(es) very attentive; The Cuban peasant soup was a meal in itself, and the pork steak in rum/ fruit sauce very tasty. Again however there was some negative feedback from other groups who weren't very impressed and preferred the Caribbean!!
Bars
*Main bar - *generally good service all day - somewhat slower in the evenings especially the second week; Waiter service to the lobby area and the tables broke down a bit later in the evening altho very good earlier on.Lots of kids running around in the evening which made it a bit too noisy for us!!
Great choice of drinks altho very frustrating if you were just waiting for a cold beer whilst the person in front had ordered 3 or 4 cocktails!!
*Cigar(Piano) bar* - always quiet(empty) in the evenings - perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle-chill out with a coffee and a (very large) Scotch or Brandy whilst listening to some undemanding music. Pedro the barman always seemed to have the glass topped up b4 you realised it was anywhere near empty! Also air conditioned which made a pleasant change from the main lobby.
*Beach Bar* - Eduardo did a sterling job all week, keeping everyone on the beach supplied with beers, soft drinks and rum punches; the insulated mugs we took were worth their weight in gold as it meant only a couple of trips to the bar per session. Those without had to make do with very small plastic cups - one mouthful of beer and they were gone.
*Pool (swim up) bar - *only used it once or twice; seemed to have a fine selection of drinks - our second week a group of Canadians had taken up residence on the stools in the pool and seemed determined to drink the bar dry!!
*Beer corner* - very pleasant outdoor area to sit, drink beer(assorted Cuban and imported beers available) and watch the world walk by. Entertainment supplied by a folk singing guitarist who plays the fig leaf like a kazoo!!
Entertainment_
Generally low key - supplied in part by the Italian resident staff who tried very hard in the day to get people round the pool and on the beach involved in team games like volleyball or water polo, as well as "silly" games and bingo.
The best part of the evenings was the resident band who were very professional but not on for very long most evenings. There appeared to be "participation" most evenings on the stage - a lot of the younger kids/parents got involved. The shows were mostly amateurish - not to our tastes, but they tried very hard!
The journey home via Holguin airport was again painless as we were the first flight due out in the afternoon. The flight was almost on time so we were boarding before the majority of passengers for the next flight had cleared security.
We would would definitely go back to the PCV - possibly next Spring but we will avoid Easter or the Spring Break periods.
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poppy from hull travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Thomas cook
on a singles holiday.
There were more than 6 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 11 2004 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: The hotel was in a beautiful position on the beach but surrounded by a national park, where storks and plenty of other birds sat in the trees and river in between the beach and the hotel.
We went for a week in November - weather was great. Food was a little bland in the main restaurant, but the japanese a la carte was fantastic. The rooms all had cd players.
This hotel used to be called Breezes costa verde and part of the superclubs group, but it is now just called Playa Costa Verde.
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Karen from stoke on trent travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
thomas cook
on a family holiday.
There were 3 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2004 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Myself and my family have just returned from cuba staying at playa costa verde formally super club breezes. A fantastic time was had by all.I have two bots aged 17 and 13 who both found the water sports fantastic. myself and my husband went scuba diving and watersking which were both included in the all inclusive deal. The restaruants were wonderfull especially the japanese and italian good food in both. The cuban had good food however being next to the nature reserve you got few insects flying by but still worth a visit. Staff at the hotel were very helpfull and friendly. being a pure country if you visit this place a few gifts of old football shirts or t shirts would be greatly apprieciated We will definately be going back.
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Dawn from Tyne & Wear travelled to Playa Costa Verde Hotel with
Airtours
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 07 2002 | rated the Playa Costa Verde Hotel as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We stayed here on an all inclusive basis abd could ot fault the food. We particularly liked the Japanese restaurant. The food was always fresh and even in the buffett restaurant the main meals were cooked as you waited, eg pasta. We never left the hotel for the two week duration of our holiday, by choice not because of its location, about 10-15 minutes from Guadalavaca. A lot of the other guests did the day trips to the dolphins, cigar factory etc and enjoyed them. Most of the staff were very good. The music around the main pool was limited and when you asked them to change it it was rearly done. The entertainment was very good if you wanted to take part you could, if you didn't they left you alone. It has an onsite air-conditioned disco which was good. It played live music as well as disco and local music.
Overall this is an enjoyable holiday. The hotel was not half full, but all of the restaurants and bars were open.
I would recommend this hotel for either couples or people with children over 4 years old (they had a kid's club).
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