Sol Cayo Guillermo Hotel

8 readers found this review helpful

just returned from our holiday and will say one of our best holidays ever, staff cannot do enough for you from the waiters Danny and Roberto and Ismani all excellent, entertainment team especially Pino were brilliant and the bar staff (Carlos) so friendly, all were amazing. Food was lovely with a lot of choice and the meats cooked in front of you. Rooms were basic but clean and pool area was lovely. Beach was beautiful, Trips we did were fantastic espaecially swimming with Dolphins and the speedboats. The rep (Hector) was brilliant. Went with our 2 sons aged 11 and 10 and they cant wait to go back. Would thoroughly reccomend ad would definetly go back.

4 readers found this review helpful

very good shows good food new friends great entertainment team karlos good company waiters good apartment maids good lots to do recommend to family and friends

15 readers found this review helpful

Having just returned from Sol Cayo in Sept 2010, I must admit we were alittle uncertain as to where we were heading after reading such bad reviews. However, having now been there we have seen for ourselves what a beautiful place this is. The beach was stunning as well as the pools & facilities being clean at all times. The 'buffet' style restaurant offered a wide range of food to suit all. The rooms themselves are spacious and were regulary cleaned. The staff are polite, helpful and always there when you needed them. Although some days were windy & cloudy, the temp was still high - so we still came home with a tan!. The excursions they offered was excellent considering the hotel is a distance away from the mainland and there is certainly something for everyone. The only thing I would suggest is to remember that this is a developing country so nothing will be 'perfect'. My husband and I are fans of this place and would certainly go again.

14 readers found this review helpful

I have just returned from a two week holiday with my family at sol cayo guillermo and had the time of my life.
The beach is bang next to the hotel (literally a 5 second walk) and is absolutely stunning, white sand, plenty of sun beds with shade if required, excellent water sports included and beautiful warm turquoise sea.
The hotel and the staff were fantastic. The room was cleaned every day and the sheets were changed every two days. The animation and entertainment staff were the best that me and my family have ever experienced with games throughout the day that the whole famiy could take part in and excellent entertainment at night with a variety of shows and discos. All of the staff that we came into contact with were very friendly and could not do enough to satisfy your every need.
The only downfall to the hotel is the lack of plates and cutlery in the restaurants but that was not an issue if you take into account the rest of the hotel.All of the food was covered in the restaurant and there was a wide variety of food to choose from to suit every taste.
overall it was a fantastic holiday and I can't wait to return next year :)

8 readers found this review helpful

I would like to start by saying that the following is a true, honest reflection of my stay at the Sol Cayo Guillermo.
The Thomas Cook brochure stated that the hotel had undergone a complete refurbishment in January 2009, and that it offered high standards, along with a friendly and homely atmosphere. All the above appealed to us, but nothing could be further away from the truth.
The problems started on just our first night after arriving at the hotel and did not end until we boarded the aeroplane again to come home a week later. In the week that we were there we were shunted from room to room, packing up our belongings and lugging them around the hotel in temperatures up to 40 degrees. This happened on 4 consecutive days at the Sol Cayo Guillermo. We were faced with dirty/ripped bed linen (blood on sheets) and towels, cockroaches, Sharp/broken tiles in shower rooms, broken air conditioning and external doors that didn’t lock securely. At one point my friend and i were even forced to sleep together in a king size bed, as the hotel told us that they couldn’t accommodate us with another room with twin beds until the following day, but the following day we were offered another room, again with a king size bed, which we declined as we had booked a twin room.
The facilities at the hotel were also very poor and food / hygiene standards even poorer. Cooked and uncooked foods were kept together, cross contaminating. Nothing was ever covered and was always crawling with flies, and food was never piping hot! Plates were chipped and dirty and only half the food was ever labelled or wrongly labelled, resulting in me as a vegetarian consuming meat! What would have happened if I had a food allergy?!! I had (like many other holiday guests there) an upset stomach during my stay, and I feel that these poor standards were one of the main contributing factors in this. Drinks were also NOT unlimited and were certainly NOT 24 hours as stated in the brochure. We returned back to the hotel one evening after a day trip to be told that they had run out of water and coffee, and the only drink that was available was beer! This happened on more than one occasion where we couldn’t obtain basics such as clean drinking water from anywhere within the hotel. The grounds of the hotel were shocking, bins overflowing and dead creatures on the walk ways, which remained there for the duration of our stay, stinking and rotting! What shocked me more though were the open and uncovered drains/ sewage pits, which were crawling with cockroaches and a clear health hazard/ danger to anyone who didn’t see them, especially children! This certainly was not paradise or a four star hotel I was expecting, as it was made out to be in the brochure! Even the entertainment seemed to be missing, there was nothing to do on the Friday night, not even a disco!
Book with caution!!

10 readers found this review helpful

We went there in Mat 2010. The food was out of this world. Food is cooked fresh in front of you. Or if you prefer the precooked food that you scoop yourself that is there also. Whilst our stay all the furniture was replace and very stylish. All rooms had been painted. The rooms are adequate but dont think 4* like England hotels. Dont get me wrong thre is nothing wrong with them we were very happy. Big beds running hot water at all times. And the aircon was a blessing. The staff are lovely but they want tipping all the time so get a lot of pesco when you get there. The hotel was lovely. Pools clean and the beach was out of this world. My only complaint was the drinks. They kept on running out of wine. I suggest when u go for your meal take a drink in with u coz it can take along time for them to get u one if it is anything but beer. The trips are very expensive. £125 each for dophins. The best trip by far is the Havana trip well worth every penny. Dont bother with the show go into town of a night time and experience real Cuba. We got lost down the backstreets but it is a very safe place to go. If you dont have much money and get bored of sitting around a pool all day then it wont be for you. There is nowhere in walking distance unless you visit near by hotels on the beach. The beach is a little narrow but it is very calm and very warm. The second week did nothing but rain, didnt realise it was the rainy season. I felt so sorry for the wedding people. Plus if you are getting married and want to feel special, they are ten apenny happening everyday so i would not recommend this. By the end of te second week couldnt even be bothered looking. The mini bar is just one bottle of water but if you keep your bottles they let you fill them up with beer pop etc.
Cant believe some of the moaning on here its a lovely place and well worth the money. ENJOY!!!!

8 readers found this review helpful

Definately not a 4* how did it get that rating?We stayed in a bungalow near beach very basic,musty,rock pillows,smelly drains in bathroom,mini bar was fridge with one bottle of water replaced daily....no tea coffee making facilities so as we were quite a way from the bar we kept fairly fit walking to obtain refreshments!!Fridge kept us awake a couple of nights turned it off in the end sounded like a speedboat!No hot water on3occasions repair man said nothing wrong...Beach bar only had beer-even that ran out twice and one bottle of rum or coke to choose from tho the BBQ lunches were good-meant we only had to eat in the transport cafe(restaurant)twice a day!!It was dire food awful-not heated properly unripened fruit same choice every nite and that was limited-tablecloths once in a week-deep shock on that occasion!Limited seating in what was a huge waste of space reception. No quite area to sit in the evening...They need to provide a warm area somewhere when weather is cold and windy too. Staff were lovely but depending on how much you tipped them depended on the service you were given.Not enough sun loungers or room to put them around pool as was far to windy to lay on beach-and the hotel was no where near full.Very disappointed as not a cheap option-lovely white beach very narrow when tide in turquoise water but icy cold and very rough waves ,not hotels fault-just be warned!All trips are expensive-read the small print-and are miles away -Room was to be vacated by 12 midday and at 11 we had our swipe card which accessed safe and front door cancelled so had to go to reception as couldnt get into safe or main door-no apology given!!Oh and when you hand beach towels back make sure you get a receipt as you will need one!Dont usually comment like this but not been this disappointed in a holiday for years and the last time it happened was a 2*!

5 readers found this review helpful

18th birthday disaster
over the course of our holiday things had gone missing from our room, money, clothing,and to make matter worst on the night we were packing our suitcases, knowing that it was snowing in london,i was going to put my new pair of boots which i have worn on my way to cuba, in my hand luggage but to my dissapointment had gone missing from the wardrobe.we reported it to the reception .... big mistake!!! because we were set up' we were accused by the hotel managemdent and the security staff of wrecking and vandalising our hotel room.we were subjected to extortion and false imrpisonment, we were not allowed to leave the hotel unless we pay one thousand and fifty five pesos. the police were called, but they did not talk to us, for all we know they could have been anyone wearing a blue uniform, just to intimidate us.they have wrecked the drawers which can eassily be put back, they took the legs of the bed. i am size tiny 8 and my friend is size 6, we are physically unable to do what they accused us.i know they are really poor and i feel sorry for them but i can categoricalloy state with absolute certainty that the allegations lavelled against us are a complete fabrication false and untrue. what they done to us is totally immoral. i will never go back to cuba' shame the country is very beautiful, but the people that did to us ruined what could have been my perfect 18th birthday celebration.

3 readers found this review helpful

We stayed at the Sol Cayo Guillermo in March 2009. Although I had a gold bracelet stolen whilst I was there which was upsetting as it was an anniversary gift, I could not fault the place. It was beautiful. Our room was fine, cleaned regularly and the staff were so pleasant. We are looking to go again as we enjoyed it so much. We have never been on a holiday were you are not accosted by the locals trying to sell you things. My husband and I walked along the beautiful beach every day and the only locals that came over to us came to give us gifts they had made they did not want money. Lovely people and the gardeners worked tirelessly for a pittance so don't forget to tip them. The entertainment at night was star quality. Absolutely loved it.

9 readers found this review helpful

On our arrival at the Sol Cayo Guillermo we were allocated a room, which according to the Thomas Cook brochure had been recently renovated, but can be described as follows:
Smelly, Damp and Musty
Fixture and fittings dirty and rusty
Toilet leaky and dirty, flush not working and no sink plugs.
The walls looked as though they had been recently painted but there were dark patches beneath the paint.
Air conditioner dirty.
Coat hanger broken
Main door hinge bolts hanging out and rusty.
Fridge rusty and dirty and badly in need of a defrost
Glass tops on the furniture were not fixed and one was broken, very dangerous.
I refused to shower as the shower room had a rusty and dirty shower.
Upon complaining that the room was not fit for a dog to live in we were allocated another room that was like the first room but with the added bonus of the curtains hanging off the rails and exposed electrical wires on one of the light switches. Again we told them what we thought of that accommodation and had to spend our first night in the first room until an acceptable room became available.
Having now wasted the first day unpacking and packing then unpacking again the third room was better but we still had to stuff toilet paper in the overflow openings of the Bidet and sink, push in the plugs and cover the shower drain to stop the smell from the drains. Once we had wiped all the ablution room walls and facilities, Obviously not been cleaned in a while, with disinfectant wipes and cleaned the mirrors the accommodation was just about passable. I drew the line at lubricating the patio door (very difficult to open) and cleaning the widows (which were filthy). During the first week the shower fell off the wall it was reported and promptly fixed back to the wall but fell off again in the second week. Other reported problems were not repaired and maintenance was very poor.
The maid service was poor and amounted to making the beds and brushing the floor, after 6 days we enquired as to how often the bed sheets were changed. We were told they should have been changed after 3 days, the sheets were then changed but we still had to continually request the bed sheets to be changed. Eventually we clicked on the idea to strip the beds after 3 days and throw the sheets on to the floor with the towels, which reminded the maid, the sheets needed changing.
On occupying this room I wrote in the dust on the TV “Please clean me”, it is sad to say it was still there when we left 3 weeks later.
The main restaurant was particularly bad and resembled a transport café rather than a restaurant as follows:
Dirty cold plates so by the time you collected your food and got back to your table it was cold.
Shortage of cups, saucers, teaspoons, napkins and even ran out of tea!
Sometimes only plastic cups available for tea, which I refused to drink from.
Only one day in three weeks was there a tablecloth on the table in the evening.
On one evening in the second week a barbecue was forced on to us with no other food available. The waiters ran around like headless chickens, after 45 Min of waiting to be served I eventually had to go to the bar and take a bottle of wine, what a shambles!
When the food was eventually ready we had to queue for 20 Min before I got a piece beef you could have soled a shoe with and a slice of pork fat. This garbage I instantly dumped and had a cheese roll instead.
The Thomas Cook brochure say's the hotel had been renovated the rooms we saw had been painted (but not very well) they had definitely not been renovated and to suggest otherwise in my opinion is misleading.
The description in the brochure say's each room has a mini-bar with water replaced daily again this is misleading, as all you have is an empty fridge and the water is not replaced daily, we had to go to the bar on several occasions to fill up our plastic water bottle.
Having stayed in this hotel twice in the last 10 years this 3rd visit has shown how standards have fallen and there is no way on this earth this hotel is 4 stars. I have stayed in Goa India in 2 star accommodation that has been cleaner, better maintained with better food quality and restaraunt presentation.
If you are willing to put up with the above conditions the hotel is situated on a beutiful beach, cleared of seaweed daily.Two reasonable Al a carte restaraunts and a good gym. Entertainment is also reasonable but do expect shortages sometimes, beer, tea etc.