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Paradisus Rio De Oro 10/30/2003
Reviewers Rating:  Excellent
Paradisus Rio De Oro
October 19th to October 26th 2003
Jetsgo
Holasun
Okay, this is going to be a long reviewÖ so maybe before you begin; you might want to pop in your Buena Vista Club CD, make that Mojito, kick back and light up that Cohiba Siglo VI.
I will begin by apologizing for my English (French is my first language), I ran the spell checker through this review three (3) times, however I donít find the ìGrammarî checker to work so well!
PREVIOUS TRAVEL EXPERIENCE: Includes spending five (5) months backpacking across Europe after University. I spent one (1) year traveling throughout Scotland and Ireland before we were married. Spent our Honeymoon Island Hoping in Greece. More recently I did the Carnival Cruise thing, visiting Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Jamaica. My husband who is originally from the East Coast has traveled throughout Canada and the US on both business and pleasure and we both have to admit that this short visit to Cuba had far surpassed our expectations and have left us craving more!
FLIGHT: We traveled from Toronto to Holguin with Jetsgo (Not bad for a charter, people we spoke with have told us that we definitely had more leg room and better service with Jetsgo as opposed to Skyservice or Air Transit). The flight itself was fairly uneventful; we were served a meal (Fruit Salad for breakfast on the way down and a fairly tasty cold chicken breast with potato salad on the way back). We were also given a choice of beverage, which included coffee, tea or water (Other beverages such as juice, pop or alcohol mix were available for a charge). The flight duration was approximately three (3) hrs and twenty 20 minutes for the way to Holguin and slightly longer on the way back due to bad weather along the eastern seaboard.
TOUR COMPANY: Our Tour Company of choice for this trip was Hola Sun (The Cuba Specialist). We actually chose this company due to the great prices. We noticed Hola Sunís prices right out of the box were actually significantly less then other tour companies, however I also noticed that as the trip date became closer, the other tour companies started dropping rates by hundreds of dollars while Hola Sun stayed pretty consistent (Which made us pretty happy, we actually had booked our trip four (4) months in advance, and were slightly relieved to see that the prices did not actually come down too much).
We were a little concerned about using Hola Sun; as the travel agency we normally frequent did not recommend going with Hola Sun (CAA). When pressed further as to why we should not book our trip with Hola Sun, the agents could not give me a definitive reason as to why, except to say that Hola Sun was not on there ìPreferredî Supplier list.
After personally using Hola Sun, I would highly recommend this tour company. I found between the excellent and knowledgeable ìRepresentative Servicesî, truly instructive ìInformation sessionsî and indispensable ìTour Excursionî information, this company certainly deserves top marks and the title of ìCuba Specialistî. There was no question they couldnít answer or a need they couldnít fulfill. Unfortunately, we had met another Canadian couple that was not quite as lucky. They had booked their trip with one of our more conventional tour companies (Conquest) and had real problems with the representative, the ironic thing about that was, this was the tour company that our CAA travel agent had tried to book us with (Yikks)!
On a side note, we chose not to use CAA this time around and we wonít be using them for any upcoming vacations either. The service we originally received from CAA was awful and the agents were definitely trying to push certain hotels and tour companies, instead of listening to our needs, I simply think they were more interested in possible kickbacks. We went with the ìFlight Centerî instead and found that they were much more receptive to our requests and willing to assist us with our planning as opposed to planning our vacation for us!
HOLGUIN AIRPORT: The entire process was extremely organized and quite painless! I can think of a few Canadian airport personnel that could learn a thing or two from these people, however, we were the only plane at the airport so I really should expect no less.
A word of CautionÖ Ensure that you have some $1 bills lined up for tipping, The porters who move your luggage will expect a tip ($1 a bag), you will also need to tip the washroom attendant $1 if you expect to get toilet paper!
Please ensure that you also fill out your ìTourist Visasî properly on the plane before you land. You will only be holding up your fellow passengers in a hot, stuffy airport queue and I can assure you that you will not be the most popular person on that very long bus ride to the hotel!
HOTEL CHECK IN: I was a little disappointed! As reported on other reviews, we had no dancers greet us, no refreshing cocktail and no cool towel to help freshen us up. A very gracious porter did greet us, helped with our luggage and directed us to reception. I suppose being the only couple on our tour bus going to the Paradisus; the staff did not feel the need for such fanfare.
The staff member at reception politely informed us that our room was not quite ready (We did arrive at around noon)! We were told to go to the pool snack bar (La Laguna restaurant) and have something to eat and drink and our room would be ready shortly. Sure enough, about two hours and four mojitos later we re-checked with reception and our room was ready. The kind porter, who greeted us initially, loaded our suitcases into a trolley car and delivered us to our room. We were grateful for this service, as our room was probably the furthest building away from the lobby.
ROOMS: Absolutely magnificent. We had contacted the resort prior to vacation and requested a specific building and a specific room type. We actually received exactly what we requested. We wanted to be in building # 34 with a second story room facing the pool, and thatís exactly what we got! Our room number was 3418. This building was the closest you could get to the pool, however, even though we received a second story corner room with a double balcony, we still could not see the pool from our room, as the vegetation was so lush we could not see through the trees. Which suited us nicely as this added to the tropical feel of this resort.
The room was standard but did have a large living area complete with satellite TV. coffee maker & mini fridge that was stocked daily with water, two crystals & two cans of cola. The room was bright, cheerful and clean. Also included was a safe to store valuables, iron and ironing board, a great hair dryer, housecoats two (2) plush beach towels that you could exchange daily at the clubhouse and I canít forget to mention the Bidet. My husband is an Engineer and it was quite amusing watching him try and figure out exactly what a Bidet was supposed to do!
FOOD: I could go on and on about the food! Even though I would have to say that this resort probably caters mostly to the European palate, I canít imagine anybody going hungry here! My husband has to be the most pickiest eaters whom you will ever meet (I mean this guy will not eat something if it touches something else on his plate) and he managed to stuff himself at every meal. I would say that the buffet would probably be the best bet for the picky eaters as the variety was endless.
Every meal consisted of Deli meats and cheeses, soups, breads, made to order pasta stations, vegetables (Including Potatoes), rice, paella, shell fish, grill station consisting of Pork, Beef (Including Filet Mignon), Shrimp and fish. A carving station; which always had a roasted fish of the day (Snapper was the best, and some other form of roast (one night it was turkey, another was a hip of Beef, my favorite was sucking pig and so forth). I also have to mention the Pizza, I am not sure how Cubans became expect Pizza makers, however I have never in my life had such great Pizzaís. My favorite was the five (5) cheese pizza with garlic; I must have had four slices every time I visited the buffet. I noticed a good selection of desserts however, the only dessert I ever had at the buffet was the flamb饤 bananas and crepes (this is a must try).
I did not see any lobster on the buffet but I did have crab one night, however these crabs were really too tiny to get anything out of, so I simply stuck to my shrimps, oysters and grilled fish!
A quick overview of the other restaurants including the specialty restaurants:
La Laguna (Pool Snack bar/Restaurant) Open from 12: 30 pm to 11:30 pm, This restaurant serves an Italian buffet lunch daily from 12:30 pm to 3:30 pm. This was probably my husbandís favorite spot. This restaurant was an open-air buffet style restaurant situated right beside the pool. Specialties here would include: Pizza, Pastas, unique Salads (try the squid salad, it is actually quite good), amazing brochetta (sp), European style deli meats and specialty cheeses.
Santa Maria (Beach Restaurant) Open from 12:15 to 3:00 pm. This place also doubles for the beach bar. A very casual, barefoot dining experience, this place has AMAZING calamari! My husband enjoyed the hamburger. A very typical beach bar restaurant serving, hamburgers, hotdogs, French Fries, Salads, Grilled Fish of the Day. We had an amazing waiter here, who actually runs this restaurant. He LOVES Canadians and he loves to guess exactly where in Canada each guest comes from (just by our dialect), he was able to guess our location within 50 km!
Mediterranean Restaurant (Reservations, full dress required)
I actually celebrated my birthday at this restaurant, and they really went full out for me! They gave us a special secluded table, which was nicely decorated and the chef actually prepared a special birthday cake for me! The service here was top notch! The food itself was not very memorable (Not bad just not great). However this restaurant is a must if only for the ambience!
El Patio International (Reservations, full dress required)
Again the ambience and service of this restaurant is off the scale, however I am afraid the food was not! I had the half lobster with ìAmerican Sauceî. The lobster was amazing, however apparently ìAmerican Sauceî happens to be canned tomato soup (YUK, What a way to ruin a lobster). My husband had the Iberian Pork, and found it to be alright, nothing special. Now, remember my husband is the worldís pickiest eater. The shrimp cocktail I had at dinner was also rather interesting, as it consisted of a medley of shrimp, crab and lobster tossed in what I thought was 1000 island salad dressing. It tasted good enough, but the presentation was amazing (You will have to try it, to see what I mean). This restaurants dessert specialty was the Flamb饤 bananas, so you can imagine thatís we had (This is not actually on the menu, we asked our waitress what she recommended and she told us about this restaurants specialty). They actually come around with a carte and flamb頴he bananas right at your table. Now that was amazing!
Tsuru (Reservations, full dress required)
This is a must doÖ Food was amazing; the chef (Pavel) was phenomenal, I really could not have asked for a better evening, five stars all the way, for this restaurant. Absolutely can rival any Japanese restaurant that I have tried in Toronto, and believe me I know my Japanese cuisine. Very authentic right down to the Miso soup (A very small bone of contention. No sake). They seat eight people to a table, you receive your very own chef, you choose between beef, chicken or seafood. This is a great way to meet people as well, so I recommend trying to get into the restaurant as soon as possible!
El Bohio (Creole Restaurant)
Unfortunately, we were unable to get reservations to this restaurant, as this is low season, not all the restaurants were open each night. Even though we tried to make all of our reservations as soon as we arrived, people who had arrived the week before and were staying for two weeks had already filled up the spots.
SuggestionÖ Make all of your reservations for the week as soon as you check-in, or you could miss out! We met a couple that waited two days after they arrived, and could not get reservations for any of the specialty restaurants!
STAFF: This is where the Paradisus name shines through, I challenge anybody to find me a more dedicated, professional, eager to please staff then the wonderful people I met at the Paradisus. Just recently the Paradisus Rio De Oro, received top honors and was named best resort for service by Thomas Cook Vacations, and I can certainly see why. A need was never left unfulfilled, and no request was too large, these people would move mountains if they could in order to serve your wishes. It did anger me a bit to see some people take advantage of this type of service however.
I would like to mention a special thank-you to three (3) members of the pool bar: Julio, Mabel and John as they went out of their way to make us feel comfortable.
We also met two (2) EXCELLENT porters, I wish I could remember their names, however, my husband and I nicknamed them Lenny and Squiggy, it you meet them you will understand why!
One more mention, again, I unfortunately cannot remember this gentlemanís name; he was quite young (Maybe early 20ís) light brown hair and wore glasses, he was the Maitreí D, for both the Mediterranean and the Japanese restaurant. Excellent service, and he arranged a wonderful surprise birthday for me; I couldnít have been more shocked had he flown my children down for the event!
FELLOW GUESTS: I will not mention
any one culture in particular, however I did notice some guests being quite rude and overly demanding. One evening at the buffet I witnessed a waiter being verbally abused by a couple whom insisted that he pick-up the food for them, these people simply refused to stand in a buffet queue. Instead of asking the couple to leave, the waiter kindly offered to pick up the food for them. To make matters worse, the wife did not like the waiterís choices and sent him back to the buffet; all the while people around could hear her laughing with her friend, bragging how she could make anybody at this resort jump is she so chooses!
Needless to say I avoided that couple for the rest of the week!
As Canadians I would have to say we were in the minority, and I have to admit we did go through Canadian withdrawal.
I believe on our flight we had three (3) other Canadian couples, however both of these couples went with a different tour company (Sunwing). We did develop a friendship with one of those couples (Hello Oakville), and we did enjoy the company of a couple from British Columbia (Petra and Terry)! However I found the majority of the relationships we developed were with either local Cubans or British.
I would say that there were probably less then 20 Canadians in total at this resort!
TIPPING: Tipping is not necessary at this resort to ensure great service, however I can ensure you that a few dollars here and there would be greatly appreciated. I know you have heard this before, but these people make so little yet they work so hard to ensure that you enjoy your stay. I canít imagine why you would not want to reward such service.
Tipping is a personal choice, however we tipped as follows:
Buffet meals always left $2.00.
Specialty Restaurants $5.00
Bar service $1.00 for every two drinks
Maid service $2.00 plus a daily gift package that we prepared for her back home. (I found out, halfway through my vacation quite by accident that one (1) of those dollars that I was leaving our maid was actually being taken by the people who re-stock our fridge). Apparently its customary to leave the water delivery staff $1.00 a day for a stocked fridge!
We also kept a few dollar bills handy, for other instances where somebody would go out of their way to assist us.
ENTERTAINMENT: Well, the shows that I had seen at this resort were put on by the animation staff, a lot of lip-syncing and badly choreographed dancing (With the exception of the fashion show). I was still entertained though. Again, I have to say, that the staff here at this resort puts in so much effort, that you would find yourself going to the shows just to support the effort, even if they were not very good.
ACTIVITIES: Due to time constraints we were unable to attend any of the planned activities, however I did hear that these classes were actually quite good! Again, the staff do work so hard, a person we met who did attend the dance classes told us that the staff member had to give instructions in three (3) different languages!
What we really missed trying was the dance class, the drink making class (really mad we missed that one), horseback riding and I really should have taken a few extra Spanish classes (Oh well, now I have another reason to return).
Each night after the show, we would find ourselves at the ìCongoî dance club. Most nights I found the club pretty dead, but some nights the place could really get hopping. It all depended on the people who showed up! The DJ played mostly top 40 with a bit of Spanish music. Not a bad mix, the DJ will take requests. All ages go, which I think is great, I saw a few couples from France who must have been in their mid 60ís ìgrindingî each other on the dance floor! They put my husband and I to shame!
HOTEL: The grounds are absolutely breathtaking! I donít believe that we have enough words in the English language to describe the complete serenity and beauty of this resort. I canít imagine another resort in all of Cuba that could match the complete tropical paradise feel! The grounds keepers must be the hardest working people at this resort. Every nook and cranny of the resort is filled with picturesque settings, from the secret romantic gardens, statues, hide-way gazebos. Every couple of feet you will find a hammock or a bench. Not to mention the incredible pool, with the ever-popular swim-up pool bar! (Our favorite staff members worked here). A special salutation goes out to Julio, John and Mabel (She starts at the Playa Pesquero at the end of this month). If you get to this resort, and find yourself at the pool bar, ask Julio for his ìspecialî (Paradisus on Ice). A couple of those puppies and you will forget all your stresses (You may forget your room # as well)
BEACHES: As my husband and I are not beach connoisseurs, and find Grand Bend (For people who know Ontario beaches) quite suitable for our needs, I donít feel comfortable leaving my opinion on this matter. I will say, the beach was clean, the sand almost white and quite small. The beach is shared with the Sol Luna Mares resort, which is a good thing as the beach in front of the Paradisus was full of coral (Great snorkeling). My husband and I found that if we walked across the beach to the Sol Luna Mares section, you could walk right into the water with no problems. So for snorkeling you would hang around the Paradisus side, for swimming and playing in the sand, it would be smarter to hang around the Sol Luna Mares section.
I would also like to addÖ The Paradisus side of the beach did have beautiful washrooms located right on the beach, as well as a beach restaurant/bar, which we found quite handy! The Paradisus also had three small private beaches as well, however there are no facilities and it would have been a very long walk to the nearest bar or washroom.
EXCURSIONS: Well what can I say, how anybody could go to Cuba and not explore off the resort is beyond me! My husband and I chose a different excursion each day. I would highly recommend the ‡ day trip to Holguin and the ìChallengeî tour (Jeep Safari). Both of these tours take you into the countryside where you will have the opportunity to visit a ìFarmî, ìMedical Clinicî and a ìschoolî. My husband and I brought supplies with us for both the medical clinic and school. For the medical clinic we brought the following:
1) Band-aids
2) Rubbing alcohol
3) Tensor Bandages
4) Calamine Lotion
5) Cotton Swaps
6) Tylenol (Four Family Size bottles)
7) Gauze Pads
8) Hydrocortisone cream
9) Benedryl (Four bottles)
For the school we brought:
1) Pencils
2) Pencil Crayons
3) Pencil Sharpeners
4) Crayons
5) Erasers
6) Paint and Paint brushes
7) Pens
8) Calculators (Donated by my employer 14 solar calculators)
Due to the hideous embargo imposed on Cuba, many of these basic items are quite difficult to come by! If you are heading to Cuba please think about creating a gift package. Many of these items you can pick up at your local dollar store and they would be greatly appreciated!
The best item however that I was fortunate enough to bring with me was my Polaroid Camera. Many of these children have never had a picture taken before, the look of shock and glee from the faces of these children as they peered into the picture you just handed them, was worth every cent we paid to go to Cuba if not more.
If visiting Cuba to buy cigars, I cannot reiterate this enough!!! DO NOT BUY CIGARS FROM BLACK MARKET PROFITEERS. THEY WILL BE CONFISCATED AT THE AIRPORT.
In Holguin, we were approached (in the cigar store no less), by two hustlers! These men were trying to hustle my husband into buying his cigars through them. They were offering up to half the dollar value the store was charging. My husband repeatedly told them he was not interested, and they became quite aggressive. It was not until I took the hustlers outside the store, and began to raise my voice loud enough for passerbyís to hear, that they got the message and cleared off! The cashier in the cigar store was quite young and you could tell she was terrified of these thugs!
At no point did I feel threatened. I know that the punishment for what these guys were doing could be quite harsh, and I knew by taking them out into the street and causing a scene, these guys would blow off! They donít want to end up in prison! I just couldnít believe how hard they were working my husband! They had one guy on the left and one guy on the right, they wouldnít even let him near the humidors to look at the cigars!
I can see how people who are naive to this type of situation, could end up getting suckered in! I was rather annoyed with our tour rep for not stepping in and letting things get as far as they did! You know what they say; it takes a woman to get things done.
Needless to say we either bought the rest of our cigars at our resort and the airport!
TRAVEL TIPS:
… Book all of your Specialty Restaurants as soon as you arrive
… Book massages as soon as you arrive, my husband and I arrived Sunday at noon and the first available appointment was the following weekend.
… Leave the resort and explore Cuba! Itís a safe, beautiful county with warm and friendly people; your trip will be greatly enhanced!
… Please try and bring school or medical supplies if possible! A few dollars for us means so much more for them!
… Try and get to know the staff, these are the people who could make or break your vacation. My husband and I became friends with a few members of the staff here. A little respect goes a long way; remember you are VISITORS in THEIR County.
… Speaking to the staff we quickly figured out that people personify excellent service, whatever we needed somebody knew someone who could arrange something for us. We even had special excursions off the resort tailored just for us. This extra service we received was not because we tipped well, but because we were friendly and respectful towards the staff and took the time to get to know them, and they took the time to get to know us.
… Take a few Spanish lessons before you go, after all you are going to a Spanish-speaking county, and donít you think it may be a good idea to learn a little before you go!
A FEW QUIRKS:
… Lizards and Crabs have full reign of the place, every night we were greeted by the resident Lizard (Fondly nicknamed stinky). One night we even had a large ìCrabî waiting on the bottom step. My husband chased him away with a branch he found nearby. Apparently thatís what you get when you request a room so close to the pool.
… This resort has many hideaway gazebos, if for some reason you and your significant other choose to visit one of these romantic getaways, please be sure to approach the gazebo slowly and make lots of noise. On more then one occasion, we accidentally walked in on couples that arrived first and wellÖ Lets just say, it made for a few awkward moments
… ìOpen airî restaurants do have birds and other outdoor animals (Including cats) frequent them. This is not unique to Cuba, this happens in Mexico, Jamaica, Dominican and so forth. The difference I found here was the staff try and keep the animals out! I found for the most part the food to be well covered, and hey lets face it, If you have ever camped I am sure you have eaten with a lot more animals then a few odd cats and birds.
… Which leads me to everybodyís favorite subject BUGS!!! Call me lucky or call me blind, but I went to Cuba expecting to see all sorts of bugs, however, with the exception of a small spider or two, this trip was pretty bugless. Certainly NO Cockroaches. Being that Cuba is essentially in the Caribbean I was shocked, and believe me I checked. In Jamaica I stayed at a Sandalís resort and let me tell you, they know bugs. The Cockroaches I saw at the Sandals resort were as big as my foot! That being said, remember it is the Caribbean and you should expect to see some forms of insects. If you do end up as unfortunate as my fellow travelers (With the cockroach issue), please inform reception, they need to know. This hotel is comprised of several buildings, if they are having a problem with a particular building; they can fumigate. However people need to inform the staff about the problem if you expect to have anything to be done about it!
… Communication: As this hotel caters to many different nationalities, most of the staff can speak many different languages, which I found amazing, however I did find most of the staff only had a basic understanding of French and English. Which led to a lot of hand signals, drawings, incorrect directions, and misunderstood instructions. Events and activities were not very well posted and or communicated to people. I found that you had to know what you wanted and it became an adventure to try and find somebody who could help you. I still have no idea where the horseback riding was, and I only came across the tennis courts by accident! I also found a lake on the property with a long bridge that ran across it, that connected the Paradisus with the Sol Luna Mares resort. I personally didnít mind the stumbling and bumbling about, as I looked at the situation as part of the adventure. However if you are a shy, introvert you may find that you miss a lot of the special qualities of this resort!
FINALLY: All in all, I had an amazing experience, and I definitely plan to return as soon as possible, and I strongly urge others to do the same before Cuba is changed forever, even the Cubans we spoke with are worried and concerned about what will happen to Cuba once Fidel is gone. Many are afraid of Americans and want nothing to do with their way of life! They look at their Dominican neighbors and see themselves in 10 years, and I think it is those images that keep the average Cuban supporting the current r駩me. I was shocked at the amount of propaganda we are fed about Cuba and how very little we truly understand these people of contrast. As I said earlier, I am returning, however, next time I will return with our children, as I couldnít help but feel that Cuba is on the brink of something new and exciting, and I am afraid that if we donít go again soon our children will miss out on an opportunity to experience a lifestyle/culture that could only help to enrich their lives.
I would also like to post a link to our vacation photos if you are interested:
www.community.webshots.com/user/stevenbev
Hasta la Victoria siempre!
Beverley Budgell
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