Sol Cayo Coco ****

Anónimo, CA, 2007-06-20
Beautiful resort!
Superb beach!
Nice and well mantained hotel.
Nice personnel, except barmans who allwais speek with somebody when they are serving you. The tip does not change this attitude.
Great for families with small childrens.

Anónimo, CA, 2005-04-21
I know this is a little late to write a review but I felt I had to write it, considering the great service we received.

We went for 1 week for our honeymoon. The flight left from Montreal in the afternoon and got to Cayo Coco at around 7pm. Lineups at the airport were not too long and the transport to the hotel was quite fast. The Cayo Coco region is surrounded by a tropical jungle and beautiful gardens, and near the airport mosquitoes tend to come out at night. However, in the hotel and on the beach we didn't find this to be a problem. Just in case, bring some repellent for your arrival at the airport.

Check-in was quite fast. We had requested the honeymoon service so they gave us a beautiful room with a balcony facing the garden and the turquoise ocean. The room was fairly big, clean, included a safe (very important). The service was always great. We were surprised to find a basket of fresh fruit, a bottle of ice cold sparkling wine on our bed, as a honeymoon gift. The hotel also handed us 2 invitations for the great A la Carte restaurant (hard to make reservations apparently); and also an invitation for a traditional Afro-Cuban wedding ritual. This was very interesting and fun at the same time.

The service was always great. Cubans are great hard-working people. It's always good to know some Spanish too, that makes a slight advantage, we found; but don't worry, everyone speaks English too.

We can't complain about the food. I mean, this is Cuba and they offer good stuff considering the circumstances. There was a main buffet restaurant with a good combination everyday. The Cuban restaurant which offered good traditional food and the A La Carte restaurant, offering a very nice and posh environment. The "lobster grille" is by far the best lobster I've ever tried. Finally there's the pool snack-bar, offering traditional Cuban sandwiches (ham and cheese) as well as pizzas, burgers, fries, etc.

The pool was really nice too, clean and had a nice bridge which cut it into 2 different sections.

The beach is amazing. White fine sand and extremely clear / turquoise waters. Palm trees adorn the coast along the beach making it a paradise on earth. Chairs were available all the time and towels were free.

Entretainment: There was a show everynight which was good, with lots of dancing and music. We were also lucky to have the most popular club in our hotel complex. Tourists from all other hotels came into our hotel for the club at night. The music was a mix of Cuban salsa, Latin and Hip Hop.

Tips: Try to rent a scooter and drive around the Cayo. Go to La Cueva del Jabali, a local club/bar with an authentic Cuban flavour. Go to Playa Pilar (the most amazing beach) and to Cayo Guillermo, you can use the facilities at the Sol Club Cayo Guillermo.
Cayo Coco is a very nice beach to relax and enjoy the sun and the beach. We also did the snorkleing activity which was beautiful. If you're looking for a relaxing vacation away from the noisy resorts, Sol Cayo Coco is the place to go. We loved it and are planning on going back soon.

Anónimo, GB, 2005-04-14
We actually went to Sol Cayo Coco for our honeymoon and it was lovely.

We was told it was classed as a 4* Hotel but to be honest it is more like a 3*. But the rooms were kept really clean and you cannot fault the staff they were all friendly and willing to help etc.

You cannot complain about the food, believe me you would starve!! And a good variety of different dishes to pick from or have cooked for you.

The only thing to point out is to tip the bar staff etc at the beginning of your holiday, they will look after you throughout the day, we didnt learn this towards the end of our honeymoon and it is worth remembering.

Trips did seem a little expensive around £100+ each person but I believe they were good value.

But the location is fantastic the sea and beach are breathtaking the sea was clear as anything. It was so pieceful and relaxing, the beaches were never grounded and to be honest it was so quiet it felt as though we were the only ones on the beach. The weather in Feb for the whole 2 weeks were fantastic, only one day was bad but it was just cloudy.

Definately worth the money and would recommend it to anyone. Hopefully going back next year for our anniversary.

Anónimo, CA, 2005-04-11
My friends and I were at the Sol Cayo Coco from March 29-April 2. The weather could not have been better.

Getting from the airport to the hotel was quick. (On the return, you may want to consider taking a taxi to the airport, since we arrived and checked in and had to wait 2 hours before boarding.) We arrived at the hotel at 2:30pm. Unfortunately, my room was not ready until 4pm, but they repeatedly told me it would be ready in "15 minutes". Since I was travelling with friends, I put my luggage in their room and changed into my bathing suit there. Had I not been travelling with others, this situation would not have made me very happy.

My room was clean and quiet and well-equipped with a safe, mini-fridge, iron/board, and even an umbrella (but no alarm clock, and we were told from other guests that wake up calls were basically useless). The only issue was the shower - the knob that had to be pulled up to get the shower going was no longer properly attached, so it took some fooling with each day to get the shower going.

I was surprised by the quality of the food - I had been told by several people to expect bland food in Cuba. The wine was actually drinkable as well. I loved the pizzas and the cheeseburgers (the buns were so fresh) at the pool bar. I also ate the smoked salmon regularly. None of us had stomach problems. At the main buffet, there were a number of independent stations for cooking food to your liking. My only comment above all was that a lot of the cooked food tended to be greasy. We didn't bother with the a la carte restaurants.

The beach was lovely and so was the water. I didn't spend any time by the pool. On calms days there were schools of fish swimming everywhere, and on any day you could take a mask and snorkel and see fish no problem.

The staff were mostly friendly - of course some friendlier than others. Based on my experience at other resorts, I expected the entertainment staff to be much friendlier and more outgoing than they were. And based on what I had heard about Cuba and from some of the reviews I read on this site, I expected the resort staff to be friendlier on the whole. Tipping seemed to be expected. I would tip a few pesos per day and by the end, covered off most people who served me. My maid left me a welcome and a goodbye note, which I thought was nice.

The nightly shows were ok if you like to watch people dance. The disco wasn't bad. They had a lot of mainstream music, and as several people mentioned, Tuesday and Thursday were the busiest nights. I was a bit surprised at the children in the disco each night.

This is a great place to come to relax, but I would not recommend it for young and/or single people looking for an exciting vacation. It was mostly couples and families.

Anónimo, CA, 2005-04-07
My family and I returned from a week at the Sol Cayo Coco on March 29/05. It was one of the best vacations we have had. Cuba is very familiar to us since we go almost every March. This hotel has friendly staff, very clean rooms, excellent food and the most important aspect, a terrific beach. The ocean was calm and warm all week, and the beach had a lot of mature palm trees as well as palapas for ample shade. If I had to find a single complaint, it would be that the mini club for children was not as visible as in some other resorts, but my nine year old didn't seem to mind since all three of us are beach/ocean people.

We didn't make it to every evenings entertainment but the shows we did see were excellent and kept everyone ( young and old) happy.

In conclusion, I would easily recommend this resort to anyone considering it. We were there four years ago and now and will definately consider it again in the future. If you are looking for a smaller, family oriented resort in the Cayos, this is the place!