Cuba. Mar, 2023

It's been quite a while since our last trip to Cuba. As one of the closest and most affordable Caribbean destinations for us, Cuba is famous for its stunning white-sand beaches and the calm, crystal-clear waters of the Caribbean Sea.

The truth is, on our previous visits, the service left a lot to be desired. However, after several years, we decided to give Cuba another chance — and we're so glad we did. It turned out to be a wonderful trip that reminded us why this beautiful island continues to attract travelers from around the world

The Resort

We stayed at the Gran Muthu Almirante, a modern all-inclusive resort that opened in the summer of 2021. As one of the newer resorts in the area, it offers contemporary design, well-maintained facilities, and all the amenities needed for a relaxing Caribbean getaway. The fresh, modern atmosphere was a pleasant surprise and one of the highlights of our stay

The resort belongs to the MGM Muthu Hotels hotel chain, which has expanded its presence in Cuba over the past several years with the construction of several new resorts across the island.

Our resort is located in the beautiful Guardalavaca beach area, in Cuba's Holguín Province, approximately one hour from the airport. Known for its stunning coastline, turquoise waters, and white-sand beaches, Guardalavaca is considered one of the most picturesque resort regions in Cuba

The resort has more than 500 rooms and also features a dedicated Adults Only section for guests seeking a quieter and more relaxed atmosphere.

One interesting detail we noticed was that all signs throughout the resort were displayed in three languages: English, Spanish, and Russian. Most of the guests were from Canada, so it wasn't surprising to see Canadian flags in the buffet area and even on the beach. It definitely gave the resort a familiar and welcoming feel for Canadian travelers

The Beach

Now I’ll move on to the most important part — the beach. White sand, almost complete absence of seaweed, and a clean, calm sea

Every morning we did Zumba in the sea or played volleybal 

There was also a bar right there, where Canada Day was celebrated. In fact, Canada Day is on July 1st, but in the resort it was celebrated once a week :)

The sunbeds in the shade, of course, had to be “reserved” early in the morning—let’s say by around 8 a.m. Although there were plenty of palm trees; I counted about 80

The Pools

Moving on to the pools. There were several of them. The main pool

The sports pool, a children’s pool, and a jacuzzi. There was also another adults-only pool in a separate area, as well as a pool in the spa 

Food

There is a common opinion that food in Cuba is not very good. Of course, it is important to keep in mind that the country is quite poor. There is not a huge variety of food, but all the basic products are available. At times, there were shortages of certain items—for example, bananas were not available for a few days. However, there were other delicious fruits and fresh juices

Also, for a few days there was no pineapple juice, and therefore no piña coladas either. But we could easily live with such shortages :)Cheese and cold cuts were always available

Fresh vegetables and salads 

For breakfast, as usual, there were all kinds of omelets, pancakes, and so on 

There were always two types of fish, as well as chicken and pork, plus pizza and various sweets 

In addition to the main buffet and the 24-hour restaurant, we could also choose three dinners in the à la carte restaurants. We tried lobster at the grill restaurant

We had dinner at the international cuisine restaurant, and also tried teppanyaki, where we watched a chef show at the Asian restaurant 

Since we’re talking about food, I’ll also show a bit of the drinks. There were no issues with alcohol, but as I already mentioned, some products were unavailable, so there weren’t many fancy, decorated cocktails. However, the bartenders really did their best

The girl is making my favorite Spanish coffee 

Service

This time we were pleasantly surprised by the level of service. Everything was at a very high standard. I think this is thanks to good management. For example, before each buffet opening, the staff were briefed and prepared. All employees were very friendly and provided excellent service, regardless of whether they received tips or not

Entertainment

There was always something going on around the pools — games, competitions, music, and dancing, as well as the most memorable part: the foam party

On the beach, as well as in the nearby restaurant, there were always various events taking place, such as roasting pigs on a spit, mojito parties, or demonstrations of how Cuban coffee is prepared 

Music

We were given palm leaf wreaths and treated to fresh coconut juice 

Indoors, our favorite place was the games room. There was also an Xbox gaming room, as well as a virtual reality gaming area 

I think we definitely deserve some kind of ranking in table tennis, considering how many hours we spent playing :) The resort also had a large kids’ club, but that was not for us 

Evening Shows

Every evening there were various shows. They were all of quite a good standard. The water show was especially beautiful

One day we left the resort area. In Cuba, this is generally safe. We could rent a bicycle and took a short ride around 

We walked to the nearest market and then took a horse carriage 

We rode through the surrounding area. Standard modest houses 

A villa and a local school 

The weather was wonderful all week. Only one night there was a light rain, and the next day it wasn’t the usual +30°C, but +25°C. The heat was very easy to handle thanks to the light sea breeze.

The vacation went great. We relaxed and recharged our energy