Dhawa Cayo Santa Maria

Dhawa hotel was very nice, very clean, and very well staffed. However, with a low occupancy rate we missed out on amenities - the restaurants were closed, the buffet was not well stocked, hardly any entertainment. There was no white wine or sparkling wine to be found, but the drinks they did have were very good. There is a specialty bar which has a great selection and a good barman. The food was lacking - even with the food they had it was unimaginative. Example- they have fruit, yogurt, milk, but don't have a smoothie station for the morning like many hotels. They have meat and vegetables but often the selection being offered for the pizza station didn't contain many ingredients - even if those ingredients were available elsewhere. The pastry selection in the morning was amazing, but almost no selection of fruit except papaya. The snack bar that was open 24 hours had actually almost no food.
I know cuba has a food shortage but we thought they could do a lot more with the food they do have.
The beach could have been beautiful - however there was a lot of seaweed washing up. Instead of putting people to the task of cleaning it they put 1 old man with a rake who barely managed to make any progress while 6 guys watched him from the bar instead of helping. As a consequence, the beach was not really accessible for many days which was disappointing.
There were boats available for no extra charge which was nice.
Our room was spacious, always very clean, and well stocked (towels, toilet paper, water, etc). The cleaning staff was great.

The staff was extremely friendly and helpful in most ways. Overall I do recommend the hotel and I hate to complain but am only trying to give an honest review. [Details]

Dhawa is an amazing hotel with such a welcoming atmosphere. The staff go above and beyond to entertain, get to know you, keep things clean and make your time so much better! [Details]

Hotel is beautiful; clean, grounds were nice, size of rooms, lobby area, pool, beach... [Details]

Do not go to that hotel! Worst experience ever.

We went to Cuba 5 times and this hotel was terrible. We arrived at 12PM and got our room at 7PM. Staff was ok but not that great, they were just standing and smiling. Not helpful at all.

Food was horrible. Same morning, lunch and night. Dirty plates and this was when there was plates. We spent our vacation in line-ups for food waiting to eat cabbage in 5 different ways every meal.

Don't expect to eat better at the snack bar. It was not 24h. When they run out of food, they close the kitchen.

No wine, no beer half of the time, no water once in a while, the only few drinks you could have were Fanta or coke with rhum.

Not enough chairs by the pool. People were reserving them the night before so at 7AM, they were all taken.

We spent our vacation at different hotels and paying for our food. Leaving our hotel in the morning and coming back at night.

A shout out to Richard at the tennis court/gym. Very friendly! [Details]

We arrived at night and no toilet paper in the women's bathroom and that seems to be the theme of the week. No vodka on site. No bank to change our money from debit or credit cards. The food was just terrible we were a party of 4 and lived on white rice and bread. Most times at the buffets we didn't even get a glass of water from wait staff and tea wasn't available most mornings at breakfast. They ran out of disposable cups often. The only drink that I could stomach was the pina colada mix and it wasn't slushy. We had to search to the end of beach for a chair each day and no staff to run for our drinks for tips like other resorts we'd been at. And the same fight for chairs was found at the pool each day.
The staff was very nice and our rooms were clean. [Details]

This resort is quite large, the pool areas are very nice and the beach is lovely. The beach chairs could use an upgrade but serviceable. You can use canadian dollars instead of buying American dollars if you like. We didn't use any of the extra activities like the hobie cats on the beach or the restaurant reservations so I cannot comment about those. Staff is very friendly and helpful for sure [Details]

Great resort! Nothing fancy here, but it is a great place by Cuban standards.
We spent 11 days here just enjoying the great and healthy routine of walks on the beach, swimming in the ocean, enjoying sun, waves, coffee, and trips to the buffet, and chatting with Cubans and guests. And yes, smoking great habanos, the best in the world! Cigars are luxuries, but this is the place to enjoy them. [Details]

We paid 1600 each for our trip and it definitely was not worth that. The beach is in a bay (which made me sad) as I love to walk miles along the beach. There wasn't any fruits and vegetables and they played Christmas music in the lobby over and over. The music in the the lobby at night was the same over and over and it started to feel a little like ground hog day. [Details]

This was our first family vacation with the grandkids and parents.
There were pros and cons. Start with the pros
PROS.....Nice clean resort. Rooms were nice and big. Lots of water pressure and hot water in the shower. Sink had less pressure. Air conditioning worked fine. Had to turn up a few times as it was too cold.
The staff are very friendly, and work hard. Sometimes I think some of the staff slept there. They were always working, morning and night.
Beach was awesome. Its not a long beach, but still beautiful.
When we were there it was very windy, and water was cold and choppy. But we still enjoyed it. Not sure if its the month or what.
We did not spend time at pool, but grandkids were going to, but returned to beach, because they said pool was too loud and water was too shallow for them.
WiFi is free. Hubby and I didn't use it, but grandkids did.
We only watched one show, The Aqua show. It was very good. We all enjoyed it.
We ate at 3 A La Cartes. The Italian and Cuban were awesome. They even let grandson and son in law have seconds. The meals were delicious. The other was the French, will discuss that in cons.
Christmas Eve Buffet was a nice spread. Lobster, lobster and more lobster. Delicious.
Snack bar by the pool had sandwiches. Loved there ham and cheese. One day had burgers. Delicious. Fries were hit and miss.
Snack bar on the beach opened after the 3rd day. Served sandwiches. Ham and cheese, chicken, or just cheese. Ran out of chicken second day.

Cons
I know Cuba is not known for there food, but you always find something to eat. The fresh stations were the best, but there was always long lines at them. I made do. Lots of times they ran out of things. Fries one day, none for next two. No buns one day. No chicken.
Drinks were plentiful, but beer mostly served in paper cups, which does not hold up for long. Some mixes ran out, or other drinks. I just drink beer, so was fine. No pina coladas. Machine was down.
The French A La Carte was a disappointment. We ordered the sea food dish. It was shrimp, which I think was old because it has a strange taste. There was pieces of another fish but yuck. It was all very salty and tasted terrible. That was the only time I was disappointed in the food.
Also, in one of the A La Cartes, some of the other patrons were very loud. I'm sorry, but when you go to a restaurant, its not a party place. I ended up leaving before dessert.

All in all we did have a good time. Would we return. Maybe at a cheaper price. And I know prices are higher at Christmas. To me the price was not worth what we paid.
Before leaving we heard horror stories about the airports. Have to say, this was the easiest we ever had in the airports at both sides, coming and going.
If you go, bring your own toilet paper, napkins, hand towel for bathroom, and any condiments you use. [Details]

Our second visit, and not our last! A great little resort. Easy to get around. We love the pool, and the beach is exquisite. We also enjoy the bartending staff - whether at the pool bar, beach bar, lobby bar, or lounge - with special mention to Yoandry, Omar, Jordan and Henny! Highly recommended. [Details]

I have been to this resort 3 times (Solo Traveler), and was treated with love, friendly staff, a great room with beautiful views. I love swimming the beach there. Food is good and some ala-cart (gourmet) menu items are delicious. I always enjoy my visit and it is a true stress free vacation for me. I know everyone has expectations, of which some are met and some not. I have always received great service and surpass my expectations every time. I highly recommend this resort. [Details]

I was very surprised as to how clean everything was and how nice our stay was. This is definitely one of the best places I've stayed at. Beach, food and the staff were all excellent. They accommodated all of our needs effortlessly and worked to make sure we were comfortable. Even the actual physical size of the resort was perfect. Also, FREE 2 hours of wifi per day that you can save-up for following days. [Details]

Very nice hotel, great smiling employees happy to help you. Superb beach, very clean everywhere on the site. The vegetation is luxurious. Food is good, fresh delicious fish, everyone can find for their taste. Animation: great musicians in the lobby, nice shows at the theater.
For those who doesn't like the 1 hre 30 ride from airport, choose an early flight, the Reps on the bus are generally very interesting. [Details]

We visited Dhawa Cayo Santo Maria in Feb 2020. I was sceptical about returning to Cuba again this year after 2 other visits in the past , both with their share of problems. However after listening to many people rave about their wonderful visits to Cayo Coco and Cayo Santa Maria, I thought ok we will give cuba a try again. The bus ride from the airport to the resort was 1.5 hrs long but seemed to go by quite quickly actually and it was interesting to pass through a few of the towns on our way and travel over the causeway. Upon arrival our check in was reasonably quick and a tropical beverage was offered. The Bell hops promptly took us by golf cart to our designated building and on our way stopped to explain some of the facilities that were available, the location of the pool, buffet, snack bar and beach. We were accompanied to our rooms only to discover the room had 2 -3/4 beds and not the king size we had requested when booking. Also the AC was not working properly and although staff tried to remedy the problem we were unable to control the temperature so as a result the AC was shut off and only the ceiling fan could be used. Rooms were otherwise clean but lacked a clock radio, a coffee maker, or a telephone but came equipped with a bathroom scale . The safe was easy to access and large enough to hold multiple electronics, passports, camera, phones and wallets. The in room fridge was stocked with only one large bottle of water, I can of pop and I can of beer on any given day. We still question why a room with 2 people only received one can of each. Our maid service was very good and she was very creative with her daily towel art. Unfortunately we never did know her name . The pool was beautiful and clean and enjoyed by our large party of 11. The pool restaurant offered a menu for breakfast and lunch but was limited in the selections offered.Service was hit or miss here and they often forgot orders, as well wait staff tried bargaining to sell you their tequila , rum etc. The beach was beautiful , gorgeous sand and lots of chairs and some areas for shade . Staff at the beach were helpful in finding us chairs to relax on . Beach service itself was disappointing, I asked one of the servers for a drink and he muttered something in Spanish and just left. I never did receive my drink . The 2 fellows that worked the beach bar were great, always friendly and made great drinks. The only downfall to the beach was lack of bathroom facilities. It was quite a walk to the restrooms and oneof our group actually got locked in her stall . Hobicats, paddle boats and kayaks were readily available for use which was certainly nice . Nightly entertainment in the theatre was above average but the theatre became extremely hot with lack of fans or AC. Know on to the food ! Omelettes were great and made to order and skillfully by Yuni in the mornings, and Rene did a great job grilling fresh fish at supper. However food in general was mediocre at best, often cold and certainly lacking of choice. The fresh fruit selection was next to nil and most days only wedges of unripened oranges and guava were available. Watermelon appeared to to be the next thing to rotten, papaya was only available 2 out of 7 days, no melon, no pineapple, no bananas. Canned fruit was available on a couple of occasions. The buffet area as a whole was disgusting!! Placemats, glasses, coffee mugs were often found to be dirty and flies were everywhere,you couldn't sit down to a meal that flies weren't on the table, in your drinks or on your person . Seat cushions in the buffet and in the lobby were stained , dirty and showed signs of mold. It was certainly questionable if a person really want to sit down on them . Staff were lacking in table service skills and often appeared overworked. Place settings were never complete and one was always asking for a fork , a spoon etc.Wait times for beverages in both the Buffett and lobby area was poor, waiting on average 15-25 mins for a drink no pina coladas for our first 2 days, no mint for mojitos , ran out of red wine. Pepper and ketchup were basically non existant and only surfaced when other guests had left what that brought .The juice selection was extremely poor and actually the worst I have ever seen . On most days it was unidentifiable. Or was watered down Tang or water with colouring and other days it was brown In colour that settled into sediment in the bottom of your glass. No mimosas were served, coffee was on a good day lukewarm and seldom refilled. No yogurt in cups or smoothies. Such a huge disappointment . The topper was on Valentines Day when the resort allows locals to come and spend the evening and the following day at the resort . Locals invaded the dining room, emptied out the buffet, wasted huge amounts of food and then took over the hotel in general . No places to sit in the lobby to listen to the entertainment which was ear deafening at best . It was told that 650-800 locals were at the hotel that day . So disappointing for the rest of the guests . Wait staff in the lobby were beyond exasperated trying to keep up to demands . Sorry this is such a long review but have been putting off writing it . I've tried to give Cuba a third chance but unfortunately this was a forgettable vacation for me . Sadly Never again will I visit this country . I will spend a little extra and have a vacation that I can truly say I loved . [Details]

Dhawa is one of the nicest, most beautiful resorts we have ever visited in Cuba!
The grounds were spectacular with gardeners constantly watering and looking after the upkeep.
We can not comment on the pool area as we are beach people.
The beach was awesome - deep with a sandy bottom - great for swimming.
Grill house/ Bar right on the beach which was wonderful.
Public washrooms always had toilet paper and soap as well were very clean.
The staff very pleasant and helpful.
Food for most part, best we've had in Cuba ( as long as you take into consideration the constant shortage of supplies.
Except for the day our usual maid was off, our room cleaned nicely daily ( her day off nothing was cleaned)
My biggest complaint was the lack of mix ( especially coke ) and the shortage of wine in the LOBBY BAR which was the main bar on the resort - we have NEVER experienced this before in any resort
They had absolutely no White Wine / Rose Wine for most of our 2 week stay and the last 4 days no Red Wine either
All that being said, we heard later that ANYTHING was available for a fee or large tip if you approached the “right” person - that did NOT go over well!! [Details]

Resort is a good size quiet et yet fun resort.very cleaned and well kept [Details]

Great layout , friendly staff , delicious breads beautifully landscaped, comfortable beds beach was stunning overall A [Details]

Staff and other Cubans were friendly and helpful. Cuba is a safe environment. Very relaxing. [Details]

hotel room was clean and well maintained.
area was beautiful
signage could be better e.g. more languages then Cuban
hours for meals at buffet should be posted
staff was great [Details]

Very nice place. Very friendly staff. A feeling of being very safe, relatively clean all the time, All common areas are well cared for.The food was excellent for us being Pescatarian (Vegetarians who eat fish). There were good changes in the food the whole fourteen days we were there. [Details]

This was truly a wonderful experience; from our flight, food (great variety and very delicious) to staff (who are friendly and helpful), and amazing entertainment everything was amazing. This was our first visit and we will certainly return and would highly recommend it to everyone who is looking for a wonderful getaway. [Details]

First of all I have my rate
Beach 5 star
Service 3.5-4 star
Food 3.5-3.7 star
We were arguing with wife about tipping In resorts, I'm ok with giving tips to have better service, especially it's only 2-3 pesos daylong. My wife said , if you spent all your money to go on vacation , and you don't have much money ,why you have to tip to have good service. Well don't know who is right. We have not so great look towels when we moved in , next day I gave 1 peso to guy who change towels and he changed ( but not supposed to). Then we have started gave tips and see how all changes ( all smiles, asking you if you need anything else. Don't want to say without tip won't happen all that. ). Unfortunately even in 5 star hotel you need to tip ( industry's request or something).
So tip her ( 7 days around 30-40 $ Canadian) and feel great. Again about food , I had what to eat , my wife had what to eat and even child had what to eat. I'm not disappointed. [Details]

Over all was pleasant we were very happy with hotel services in general our room was well cleaned daily and was comfortable the services all over the hotel were great.
The pool area we were unable to enjoy because of lack of chairs
Bar services were good people were friendly
Beach was also beautiful were able to enjoy [Details]

Let me start by saying that I love Cuba and have been going there for the past 15 years, sometimes 2x a year. Overall this resort is beautiful and well kept with some very friendly staff for the most part. Where it lacks is in the food department. I know this is a common issue in Cuba at many resorts ( we did know going in that food was an issue here, but we hear that all the time). However, I haven't seen it this bad since we first starting coming back in 2004.

We arrived mid day on the 30th and grabbed lunch at the buffet which seemed to have a nice variety of fresh fruit/veg, hot and cold food and a few cooking stations. Lunch was lunch and the breakfast buffet was the standard as far as Cuba goes. In enters dinner and over the next 4 days the food selection at the buffet changed drastically. Did you know you can prepare hot dogs 50 different ways? That was the comment from some guests at the hotel. During this time there were no meat grilling stations at dinner, no fresh fish, very few fresh vegetables and what meat was there was over cooked. If it wasn't for the yummy bread, the cheese and deli meat I would have likely said I starved and had we been in a different area of Cuba would have likely sought out local off resort restaurants for our dinners. Things changed again the last 2 days of our trip, large fresh bouquets of flowers started to appear in the lobby and it seemed like we hit the gold mine in the food department. The amount of FRESH produce went through the roof, meats appeared at the grilling station and suddenly EVERYTHING got better. Then we found out a local Cuban Celeb was making rounds which would lead one to believe this was the reason for the influx of good food and was likely the case. So having said that the buffet wasn't the only place with food issues. The snack bar (24 hours) is known for its pizza and chicken nuggets, however they are only good during peak hours. Word of warning if you go after the lunch rush for either of these items your will be sorely disappointed. They will either be out of pizza or the chicken nuggets you get will have been left overs from lunch, dried out and cold. The little beach snack hut does have some great chicken breast sandwiches though as well as hot dogs (no surprise) and hamburgers. I can't tell if those were good though I only had the chicken. The other restaurants on the resort that you book were average and in one case (Italian) was not good at all including the service there.

All in all our group of 8 had a great time and felt that the resort was beautiful with great staff but are in agreement that the food issues at this resort drops it to a LOW Cuban 3 Star resort and will not be on our list of return visits.

Hope this helps anyone looking at staying here. [Details]

Best vacation yet! This resort is so clean,rooms are clean and very comfortable. Lots of hot water and pressure was great. Staff is very very friendly. Nice shows every evening! If you need to go somewhere you ask the front desk and someone will take you . If you have a problem there always there to help. At the end of our trip we discovered that at the pool if theres no more chairs you ask the staff and they will gladly go get some for you. Now that is exceptional service! Nice having a bank right there on the resort. I give it 5 stars plus. I would definitely return to this resort [Details]

The hotel itself was not bad though our room was partial ocean view and all we could see was a wall of the next building- don't waste your money for upgrades. We were in building 4 - not the best either - too close to the entrance and lobby.
The room was big and cleaned regularly- beds are comfortable and hot water always in the showered expected- not much variety but tasty.
The food was pretty much as we expected- not much variety but good quality. Ala cart restaurants very better then expected- tasty food, good presentation. Beach is not very long but wide and beautiful with crystal clean water. There is a shallow water beach just across the road in Sercotel.
The bar service at night was a big disappointment as well as coffee served for breakfast. We could not drink that coffee and had to wait in a very long line in the lobby bar to get our morning java!!! [Details]

Over all was a pleasant stay. Only beefs are the resort is run down, in dire need of repairs and paint. And toilet paper in bathrooms in rooms and lobby, we had to buy our own and that was hard to find. [Details]

This is a very nice place to go!
The beach is very beautiful with crystal clear water and white sandy beach.
Very helpful and friendly staff always ready to help.
Food was actually not bad for Cuba. The only thing was missing is an afternoon snack including fruit and sweet around the swimming pool.
The entertainment group is incredibly professional. All 7 nights of our stay they had different shows each one better than others.

A very relaxing environment and fun at the same. There were two kids in our group and they enjoyed as much as others.

Customer service was very helpful when we wanted to change our room and stay at the same building that our friends were staying they helped us and even gave us an upgraded room without any extra charge because of availability.
All in all, a great experience and lots of fun [Details]

Resort grounds were beautiful and well maintained. Friendly staff, everyone greets you all day. Beach is was excellent and clean. Some good snorkeling out front but we also walked down to the next resort and there was even better snorkling there, where the pole sticks out of the water. Lots of great food at the buffet and 3 cook as you wait stations so you could get made to order dishes. Book your resturant dinners early so you get a good time. I found the portion sizes too small for me but you can always hit the buffet after if necessary. Pool area was great but we spent most of our time at the beach. Bring some Muskol for the early evening at the beach, around 4:30 the no seeums come out to bite. We tried peppermint oil but it didn't work. Room was nice but bathroom was not very clean. Best drinks at the lobby bar, need to try the spanish coffee! Great selection of cigars for sale as well. It is also the 2nd drop off spot coming from the airport so the ride back and forth is much shorter than having to stop at all the other resorts to pick up. If you want more peace and quiet, get a room that doesn't face to pool. Get your towels early as well, they run out quickly. [Details]

First of all, the downsides. Cayo Santa Maria is 90 to 100 minutes from the airport, which is not a fun ride before or after a flight. Second, food in Cuba is underwhelming. That's it.
On to the positives. This resort is beautiful and very well maintained. Staff are ridiculously nice and friendly, whether it is the waiters, housekeeping, bell boy, reception and even the groundskeepers. The beach always has ample seating and the complimentary catamaran and paddle boat rides are tons of fun. Rooms are also well maintained and entertainment is good. Biggest tip: the lobby bar has the best non-alcoholic pina colada in the world. [Details]