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El Senador 11/18/2003
Reviewers Rating:  Fair
Our fall travel time was chosen to be the El Senador on Cayo Coco for the week of November 7th to 14th. After reading quite a few good reviews, and staying at S.C.B. Costa Verde, and Sol Club Cayo Largo, we felt this was a good choice. It looked like Sunquest had put a nice package together.
We had purchased the premier service for our flight, so check-in with Skyservice was a breeze. However, the Airbus 320 was a little different. I am only 5í 11î, but my knees were touching the seat in front of me, not very comfortable. The air in the plane was fairly warm as well, a little air conditioning would have been nice. The in-flight meal was something to be desired. ( I understand today youíre lucky if you get something ) There was a bun that was a little hard with either ham or turkey, and a bit of cheese, with a small carrot salad, a bag of Clod Hoppers, and a half cup of coffee. Soft drinks were $1.00, and alcohol related drinks were $5.00. Luckily with the premier service we had some coupons. This is a far cry from the champagne breakfast we had on the way to Cayo Largo with the same airline through Signature. Since there was something broken and no movie, the coupons for free headsets were useless.
Our flight was right on time, and Immigration etc. was quick and simple, out of the airport by 8:30 PM. We received our hotel package before we got on the bus so checking in was relatively simple at the El Emperador side of the resort. We got directions to our villa, which turned out to be on the Laguna Azul side, and the long way around at that, over all the boardwalks, which were lit on the Emperador side, but not the Laguna side. At least there was a full moon. Our villa was 2421, which when we entered had no power when we put the card in the receptacle. A walk back to the Emperador reception changed that. The head of housekeeping told us that villa was not ready yet, and to take 2416, she had looked after that villa herself. She also told us the number on our luggage had been changed to ensure it got to the right place. A walk back to the Laguna side found us at 2416. We entered the door, plugged in the card, and voila, lights. But no air conditioner, running water, or drinking water. A chat with our neighbors at 2419 and 2420 showed we were all in the same boat. So we all figured a walk to the Emperador reception would cure this situation. ( We had to go there because the Laguna reception was not open ) We were all told there was nothing that could be done, there were no villas to change with, and we would have to be patient and wait for things to be corrected. So we managed to get half a bit to eat before the buffet closed, a couple of Havana Specials, and a nice after dinner walk back to the Laguna side. At about midnight our luggage appeared, and I had to ask for drinking water. That arrived about 12:30. We opened all the windows and doors to try to cool the place down, and attempted to get some rest. ( This was a dilemma for me, as mosquitoes think Iím a smorgasbord ) Around 2 AM, the toilet started to run, which confirmed my thoughts, we finally had running water.
The next morning was a little walk up to the Los Portales buffet for breakfast, but it was not open. So back to the main buffet at the Emperador side. After breakfast, we stopped at reception, and reminded them we still have no air conditioning, which was finally fixed sometime that afternoon. While we were there, we picked up a lock for the in-room safe, luckily they found one that worked. Back to our villa, valuables locked away, weíre headed for the pool! Where are the towel tickets? Not in our hotel package. Back to the Emperador reception to get them.
We thought we had better get ourselves more organized as by this time my poor feet were feeling the extra walking. So we stopped at the tour desk to book some excursions. Unfortunately, the Jamaica day trip left that morning, so that was out of the question. But, we booked the Jungle Tour for that afternoon, a morning of deep-sea fishing for Sunday, the catamaran and snorkeling excursion on Cayo Media Luna for Tuesday, and the jeep Borqouron tour for Wednesday. Everything was a go but the jeep tour, there were not enough people yet, and we would be informed.
The Jungle Tour is everything everybody says it is! Having put both our boats to bed for the winter, it was nice to get back behind the wheel of something that floats. The trip through the mangroves is really something. The snorkeling was only ok, because of the clarity of the water with 30 people, but take a camera, I only got 2 good shots out of 25, but they were good enough for 8 X 10ís. The quantity and colour of fish is amazing. And donít forget your $10.00 for the picture.
Deep-sea fishing is always good, even if you get skunked. We went out into the Old Bahama Channel, and had 3 hits, the mate said maybe Sailfish, maybe Wahoo. We went in shallow and got a couple good sized Barracuda, then the Captain came down with mask and snorkel, and grabbed 3 lobsters, which the mate cooked us for lunch. Ten minutes in boiling sea water, fresh lime slices, and a bottle of Cuban hot sauce, a little slice of heaven.
Monday morning we rented a jeep to explore the cayo on our own. This is a favorite for us, as we are not rushed as on a tour, with lots of time for pictures. The jeep was new, with air conditioning, and cost $96.00 plus insurance and gas for 24 hours. This is more expensive than by the hour for the little Suzukiís, but the air was nice. Our first stop was Parador La Silla, a quaint little bar and lookout tower. And go figure, us from Stoney Creek, ran into people from Ancaster and Grimsby. Unfortunately the cerveza truck had not made their delivery, so after a series of photos we headed back to the resort for lunch. Next we were on the road to Cayo Paredon Grande. I found the view at the causeway between Cayo Coco and Cayo Romano perfect for pictures and some shore fishing, but take your bug repellant, they are relentless. There is a small fishing fleet there, and a fairly large ship that is afloat, but obviously has not gone to sea for a while. A new bridge was started, but there has been no work on it for a period of time. The old causeway is pretty amazing. It looks like it was ready to collapse, and about two feet of gravel was dumped on top to make it drivable. I would not take the jeep on it, but the occasional dump truck crossed. Other good fishing spots are on the main causeway, there are several small bridges where the water would be quite deep, and the causeway to Cayo Guillermo just before the Jungle Tour base.
Tuesday morning we hopped on a bus for Cayo Guillermo. Three stops at other resorts, and an hour and a half later, all of us were told the water to Media Luna was to rough, and therefore the tour was put off until tomorrow or the next day. So a ride back to all the resorts, and a morning was wasted. As we found out that morning there were enough people for the Jeep Tour on Wednesday, we had to get a refund on this trip, which was really a shame. We were so looking forward to getting some shipwreck pics on the walls at home.
Four of us and our tour guide from the El Senador got Two Suzuki jeeps Wednesday morning. We stopped at Tryp to pick up four more people. This caused a major problem, as nine people and two little jeeps was just not a happening thing. Nobody wanted to be the third person in the back of a jeep, for comfort and safety reasons. The tour guide said that this was the best he could do, there were no other jeeps available. One couple from Tryp actually cancelled, and the tour guide said that was it, the whole excursion would be cancelled. Well, that was it. We told him that if this tour was cancelled, there would be a lot of discussion with the person or persons he answers to, as to the organization of these tours. We had not got to do a lot of what we wanted so far this week, and this was just not acceptable. A couple of quick phone calls, and he got permission that we could go on our way. Let me say that after the confusion had lifted, this was an amazing day. It is approximately a two-hour drive from the resorts through Moron and onto Florencia. The horseback ride through the mountains is breathtaking. Even if you are not an experienced rider, there are no problems. The horse guide really knows his stuff. It would be advisable though to take an extra leather belt just for insurance, as some of the saddles are, well, youíll see. A camera is a must.
Thursday we are deep-sea fishing again. After an hour and a half out deep again with only one strike, we went back shallow. We thought, well, if we canít catch fish, we might as well have a cerveza. Pop the top and BANG! Double-header, two Barracuda. We ended up with four that afternoon, and some very good pictures. Thatís the name of the game, having a good time.
The Laguna side of the resort was pretty well fully open by Sunday. Los Portales buffet was open for breakfast, but that was all. Lotus oriental buffet was not open at all, just for overflow at breakfast. The quality of food at the buffet was quite good, although some of the beef was tough, understandably. There was lamb one night, which we thought was fantastic, and we are not big lamb fans. Scallop potatoes another night, a very good selection of things we did not expect to see. La Piazza we thought was over-rated, I had Lemon Chicken, and Shirley had Fettuccini Alfredo, but others thought what they had ordered was quite good, such as Lasagna and the pizza. The VIP restaurant is very nice, a large assortment to choose from, and the prices not bad.
We had a late checkout on Friday, so there was only two and one half hours to wait for the bus to the airport. It is worth the $20.00 to get the VIP lounge, as you are well looked after. Drinks, sandwiches, soft chairs, and the last to board. Very nice. To bad the Airbus 320 was in the same shape as when we arrived, too warm, not enough leg room, no movie, and a bun. Back in Canada, Customs was a breeze, and we were out of the airport in no time.
Those are the events of our trip. These are our opinions.
We did not get our moneyís worth with Skyservice Premier Service, an easy check-in in Toronto, but it is extra in Cayo Coco. No movie, so no free headphones. No leg room in the seating arrangements, and you cannot pre-arrange the front row seats. And we wonít mention the food.
The Sunquest Representatives tried to go out of their way to help with the problems at the resort. And there were many, not just from us, but also from approximately ten other couples on flight 524. They did manage to get us a complimentary meal in the VIP restaurant, and late checkout but the damage had been already done.
Although the food in the buffets was quite good, the service was something to be desired. There were a lot of unchanged tablecloths. Normally if you have to ask for cutlery, one would assume you would get wine and water glasses. But this was not the case. We had to ask for everything if we were not in the first sitting. The Management of El Senador did a very poor job of organizing their workforce, or calling the workforce back from low season. They were just plain understaffed. You could see the service deteriorate as the day wore on.
The tour guides are very knowledgeable, and work very hard. But the organization and communication to make the tours run smooth is hit and miss. This needs a lot of work. The tours we took at other resorts ran very smooth compared to these.
Would we fly Skyservice again? I doubt it.
Would we book with Sunquest again? I would be very careful next time, and only if they were the only operator going to where we want to go.
Would we go to the El Senador again? No. An aircraft from the Mediterranean dropped two busloads of people at the resort, and management seamed to fall all over them. We felt pushed aside as the main buffet was closed one night to everyone but this group, especially when the new white tablecloths came out.
An opinion is only an opinion, everyone is entitled to one.
That is ours. But Iím sure our next trip will be much better.
Barracuba 2000 and Shirley.
Barracuba2000
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