Iberostar Origin Playa Pilar — Hotel in Morón

Disappointed, to say the least. Starting with the check in, the staff were rude and dismissive. I had asked to be in the same building or minimally, near them, as I was travelling solo and they were in two groups of three and two. My friend who checked in ahead of me was persuaded to pay extra money (cash only, by the way) for an "ocean view" room, and there's no doubt in my mind that the $80 cash went directly in his pocket and you won't find the "upgrade" change in their system. My other friend, who DIDN'T pay extra, ended up with a better view! I checked in after her, and was offered an upgrade as well, for the "Ocean view" and I told him if I wanted to see the ocean, I'd go to the beach so being a little put out by that, he put my in a building that was completely on the other side of the resort, away from all my friends, by myself. Needless to say, I was nervous about that, and also disappointed because I had requested a central room and a bottom floor room as I had been recovering from a foot injury and didn't want to have to walk long distances and up stairs if I didn't have to. I was nevertheless put in a second floor room with no elevators in the building. |On my first night, I was awakened by a huge fight in the room above me, and the couple were screaming and hollering and getting physical with each other, and even throwing and breaking glasses! I got up out of bed and looked around the room for a phone so I could call front desk and have security sent up. I had NO PHONE in my room! There was a phone jack and a screw in the wall where a phone had once been, but no phone! I was scared to leave my room to go get help. Their fight went on for hours. In the morning, I told the security guy outside my building, (who was well within earshot of the fight) about it, and he told me to go to reception. I did, and reported it there, and asked to be moved. They told me to come back at 4pm, even though they HAD other rooms available right then, as the 14 building resort with three floors in each building and about 20 rooms on each floor, was no where NEAR full, nor was it the whole week we were there! I went back later and they still refused to move me, and did NOTHING about the phone situation. The following day, the lady of that fighting couple climbed up the side of our building, climbing past my balcony to go get her cigarettes and lighter from their balcony! She could have just as easily climbed onto MY balcony, and come in my room because the door lock didn't work!! Worse yet, HE could have! I reported this to front desk and once again, was refused a move to a different building. At that point, I gave up on getting anything from the front desk staff. They were dismissive and rude. My safety and security was at risk and they didn't care whatsoever!|My room was "ok" but there could definitely be improvements. The safe didn't work, the door lock to the balcony obviously didn't work, there was no phone, there was warm water the first couple of days and then only cold, there were tiny bugs in the bathroom (maybe elsewhere too but because of the white porcelain sinks, they were quite easily seen in there), the pillows were paper thin, and worst of all, especially given my uneasiness about being alone, the door card key took MANY attempts before it was successful. One night, it took OVER 100 attempts to get in my room! I knew it would be useless to try to get front desk to give me a new one, as they had pretty much already written me off as a complainer, and besides that, it was a long walk back in the dark to try. |The beach and bar staff were really nice people, especially Beisel, who treated us like gold each morning when we showed up at the beach. The servers at the main buffet were mostly very nice as well, like Emily, Leo, Paul and Julianna. The food was a topic of conversation with a lot of the guests. The food that was in the "warmer" was nowhere near hot, let alone warm. It was obvious that some of the food left over from lunch time was reoffered at suppertime, after sitting out among bugs and also birds, that made their way into the dining area, not to mention, the food had been sitting out for hours. There was often a shortage of bread, or no bread at all, so guests were behaving like animals, actually confronting and arguing with others about portions. Some people were taking large ziploc storage bags with them and hoarding 10 or 12 slices for themselves for the meals to come later that day and the next, while others didn't get any at all. The ice cream area had guests help themselves with the same spoon, and the guest had to have half their arm in the container to get any out and had to hold with one hand and scoop with the other, allowing for a LOT of germs to be transferred into the ice cream and on the scoop itself. There was very little change in what was served each day, and as I said before, it was almost always a cold plate, whether the food was supposed to be cold or not. Because of the realization by guests that there were shortages of certain foods, and other foods weren't replaced quickly when consumed by the first few people to enter the buffet, there were huge line-ups at the buffet when they opened the doors at meal time, and people were ferocious with each other at times, specifically over bread, meat, butter and desserts.|As I mentioned before, the serving staff were exceptional at their job, quickly cleaning off tables and resetting them, and were quick to come to your table to offer drinks and refills. The chefs at the grill were very accommodating, as much as they could be with what they had to offer and having to deal with long lines of "hangry" people.|The staff at each of the bars were friendly for the most part, but language is definitely a barrier. At the snack bar near the beach, where the menu is very limited, our table had ordered "a hamburger.... with cheese actually, so a cheeseburger"... and two others said I'll have the same. They all ended up with a ham and cheese sandwich. There were no condiments available, like ketchup, mayo, etc. so bring your own if you want anything like that, including salt, pepper, peanut butter, jam, etc.|The "a la carte" restaurants served pretty much the exact same food that was available in the buffet, and were unimpressive with the exception of the Sukiyaki which was very entertaining and fun, and the main course meal was good. The "gourmet" restaurant was WAY too cold inside, so much that guests were covering themselves with a portion of the tablecloth to try to keep warm enough to stay for supper.|Just outside the Sukiyaki restaurant, and just down from building four, there was a sewage leak that streamed down the walkway for several meters, and needless to say, that's the last thing you want to smell on a 30 degree day before you go for supper!|The grounds seemed well kept in terms of cleanliness and trimming, and the workers were very friendly. The pool seemed to be well looked after as well, although we only spent one day there because we preferred the beach. The staff at the swim-up bar were less than friendly, perhaps because the people in the pool didn't have as much cash on them as the guests going to the main bar for drinks. Tips make the mood in that resort, as with most I would guess, understandably, but staff should treat everyone the same, with a smile and without being rude or dismissive.|The cigar bar and sports bar were unique. They were both closed in and separate from everything else and it was cozy. Very nicely decorated. |The "Shop" near the reception area was very tiny, and offered bare essentials, and was rarely opened on time or for the amount of hours it was advertised to be open. There are no local stores or restaurants for miles, so taking a taxi to get what you need would be very costly.|The beach was our preference, and we spent most days there but it wasn't necessarily what we expected from a beach. There was a boardwalk all the way across the beachfront, and at each end, a set of stairs leading into the water. Some of the boards had nail heads sticking up so it could be painful for those going in their bare feet. The same situation applied at the beach bar, and I pointed it out to one of the workers and it was three days before they fixed it, and when it did get "fixed", the man used a heavy glass ashtray to pound the nails in! I had to laugh at the absurdness of it, but it did the trick. I don't know why they would want to take the risk of having people slice their feet, but it didn't seem to be important when I first showed them. The maintenance crew decided to paint the front of the bar and the steps while we were there as well, and no "wet paint" signs were put up, so there were a lot of us going around with rusty brown arms because of it! |There were shows each night in the theater area and some of them were very interesting. The magic show was very good, and some of the dancers were as well. I really enjoyed the colorful outfits. I did find however, that despite the fact that many small children were present, the dancing was very sexualized, as is maybe the case for this part of the world, but parents should perhaps know this before bringing their children there.|I can say with pretty much 100% certainty that I won't be back to this resort. For what we paid, I expected much better quality. Thank God the weather was beautiful the whole week, as I spent most of my time snorkeling. (THAT part was...

I have so many good things to say about this resort. We booked our trip knowing of the potential shortages and the ‘maybes’ that came with going to Cuba. My husband and I are so easy going, and not picky at all. We did not pack condiments or snacks or extra food and figured that would enjoy Cuba for all it had to offer! And we were not disappointed.||If you can go with the flow and not have any firm expectations, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Youre setting yourself up for a bad vacation if you’re going to Cuba and HAVE to have a specific item, or food. Take it if you need it. Search Finding Fish on YouTube. They provide a very realistic, honest review, of Cuba. We researched it quite a bit and found the reviews helpful.||||Rooms||Were comfortable. Bed were very stiff||Ac worked great||Safe worked great and we had no problems with locking our door||Water pressure was great||We were in building 9 and found the location perfect. Just a few minutes to the beach and close enough to the lobby for coffee, but not too close to be bothered by the entertainment at night.||||Food||Get to the Buffett early and there will be plenty of options. Eggs, omelettes, fresh fish, veg, fruit, bacon, we only went one day without bread. Be careful of the cheese. Lots of options but the only true tasting cheese was the Swiss. Always lots of pasta and potatoes.||The fresh sea bass was really good.||Ice cream for the kids||It’s your own fault if you’re going hungry!||A couple days we got to the Buffett late and it was very picked over, so we supplemented with pina coladas until lunch. :D||||A la cartes- Japanese was our favourite, gourmet was good, didn’t care for the Mediterranean.||||Just a note on drinks. It seemed like the bars (and buffet for that matter) didn’t talk to one another. We were told that they were out of wine, yet we went to another bar and found it. This happened a few times. Don’t necessarily chalk it up a shortage, just go look for it.||||Beach||We picked this resort for the naturalized beach. There is a boardwalk that runs along the front of the resort as there is coral and rock that comes right now. At both ends there are piers that extend out. If you want an extensive white lush, no rock, beach, this isn’t for you. Pilar beach is close but not on your doorstep. For the outdoor enthusiasts and ones that can’t sit still like us, there’s plenty of things to do here and explore so you don’t get bored.||We didn’t use the loungers or chairs at all this week but there were plenty in excess around for use.||||Fishing||The reason we picked this area of Cuba was to shore fish. We took our own gear down and hired a local fisherman to take us out. If this appeals to you, look up Big Shaun’s YouTube channel about his experience. Cant link it due to post restrictions but just you’ve Cuba fishing big Shaun, you’ll find him. ||Yordan is the gentleman that owns the outfitter and he was amazing. We didn’t realize how booked he would be and contacted him once we were in Cuba and we made sure to get us out as many times as he could. Book him in advance if you’re going! Also, he is only able to get fishing gear from tourists so if you’re planing to go, please reach out to him and inquire as to what he needs. Just our two cents, don’t waste your money on Deep sea fishing if you want an authentic experience. It’s not for the faint of heart though. You’re not going fishing in a 40 foot cruiser here, you’re on a skiff in the middle of the ocean. We caught plenty of different species of snapper, barracuda, some names I don’t remember, but no cubera unfortunately. Highly recommend this.||Also, I highly recommend going to the marina for fish and chips. After one of our fishing days, Yordan had the chef at the marina cook us one of the snappers that we caught and my mouth is still drooling over it. This is a must if you love fish. We just wish we would have gone here more often for it.||Shore fishing- we fished a lot from the far pier as well as when the tide was down, we walked the water and casted out. Caught plenty of species right from the pier and water. So much fun!||||Gardens and landscaping||So beautiful. It’s incredible that given the climate here and lack of rain that the gardens could look so fantastic but they do. The staff have, and still to do a wonderful job. If you go here, please give the gardeners thanks. This would be such a hot job!||||Staff||Overall very friendly. There were a lot of staff running the resort, some looked a little less than pleased once or twice but were all human and maybe the 2.5 hour bus ride to and from their 12 shift was getting to them.||Special mention to Mary, Frank and the woman he routinely worked with (A?) and the very pleasant gentleman and young woman working in the buffet, and snack bar, respectively. And our maid! I didn’t catch her name but she was great.||||Coffee was awesome every time we had it and were both fanatics.||||Tips and tricks||If you arrive prior to being able to check in and they advise you to put your belongings in the secure room at the front of the resort, ensure they are going to lock the room, or ensure that your luggage is locked. We arrived early and weren’t able to check in for about 5 hours so we had to put our bags in a room, and we found out the next day that bags had been gone through and items were stolen. Ours were not, as our luggage was locked, but just something to be mindful of.||||Power- All rooms have 220V outlets except for one 110V on the blow dryer in the bathroom. We didn’t risk plugging into the 220s but many people in the lobby did. Take a converter if want a 110 beside your bed.||||Tips- don’t convert money to local currency. We tipped in US 1s and CAD 5s and that’s what preferred.||||Take a couple rolls of toilet paper. There were a few days that our maid didn’t restock ours so we were happy to have our own.||||Ball caps and sunscreen are appreciated by the gardeners and fisherman.||||Take hard bottomed water shoes if you plan to explore around the beach or do any fishing||||Be kind. It takes nothing. We witnessed a woman take a strip off of the poor girl taking a la carte reservations because she couldn’t get a Japanese reservation the day she wanted.||||The language barrier is more difficult with some of the staff. Many are OK with English, but there are a few that it’s very apparent that they don’t speak much.||||Take refillable drink containers!! For drinks during the day yes, but on top of this, we bought 2 big bottles of water at the airport before leaving and once at the resort, we would have them refilled at the coffee bar and take back to our room.||||The sports bar is the best kept secret here. If you can’t find a certain drink, they are likely to have it here as they have limited ‘open’ hours. The two gentlemen that served us in here were awesome!||||A couple things to improve||Toilets were temperamental. The one in our room worked sometimes, and then not||||The beds were very very stiff.||||We wish we would have taken a box of granola bars to tide us over when we missed the buffet. The couple times this happened we went to the snack bar, and they were out of food too. No biggie, just lesson learned.||||Sewage- right in front of the a la carte for the Japanese restaurant is a pathway that connects to the buildings on that side. Every time we walked over that way, there was septuagenarian across the path. People clearly didn’t know that’s what it was as they were walking right through it. Not sure how as it smelt like a septic system.||||Snack bar. Although we didn’t frequent it much, the times there were not great. They always seemed to be out of bread and cheese, always had pasta, and we went there one of the days and ordered hotdogs with cheese and the hotdogs were not cooked at all, and the cheese was so moldy that it was inedible. Personal opinion is that this was due to the chefs lack of care, but that was just our feeling.||||All in all it was an amazing trip and we intend to go back once our kids aren’t so picky with food!||If you’re looking for fun, sun, cold drinks, the most beautiful beach, you will find it here! We will...

Ok here's an honest review. We are taking about Cuba. We have all heard the horror stories. With that being said here's my review pros and cons. ||Check in....I am a woman traveling alone with 2 young kids (2&4). I had a stroller and lots of luggage. There is no bell boy but there is a cart driver (who happened to be on his lunch break) they gave me the furthest building from the lobby (even though I had previously requested the closest via email) and they gave me a room on the 2nd floor. This really pissed me off because everytme I left my room I had to carry a stroller down 2 flights...very convenient. The lady told me she gave me this room because it had a king bed in it so I could sleep with my children. I get there and there are 2 single beds....go figure. I was annoyed. There was barely any toilet paper on the roll in my room and no spares. The room seemed clean. Two phones in the room, neither of them worked. I asked around, nobodies phone worked. ||The kids club...I went several times during the hours that it specifies that it was open and the door was locked and no one to be found. My kids did go a few times when the lady happened to be there and they enjoyed face painting, she was kind to them. My children loved the mini disco which was supposed to happen every night but only happened maybe 5 out of 7 nights. The other nights they played music and put a light on the stage and kids just got up and freestyle danced. A better music playlist would be good. They played romantic Spanish songs during that time, maybe more dance music would have been appropriate like some pop hits. ||The boat house they have with all the paddle boats, kayaks, canoes etc was closed everyday we were there so we were unable to take them out. I went to the spa at 10am one day to book an appt. (They open at 9am) No one was there, I sat in the spa lobby shouting hello and making noise for 30 mins, no one came out. I went to the main lobby to say that no one was in the spa for me to book with. The lobby lady called the spa and they immediately picked up, she told them I was on my way back to book an appointment and to meet me in the lobby. I walked back right away and waited shouting hello for another 30 mins and then left. No one there again. I went back the next day and after waiting 5 mins was greeted by 2 very sleepy looking employees. I booked a service with low expectations and it was pretty decent and very relaxing, I did not regret it. For $88usd I got a back massage, facial, scrub and foot massage. ||The food....let's just say there is edible food. You will definitely not starve. There was fresh bread and pastries everyday, a selection of fresh meats and fish to be grilled, egg station 6 out of 7 days, a decent salad bar, fruit juices, and a nice soup everyday. You can happily survive on this. There were lots of canned fruits, and lots of fresh guava and pineapple everyday. The last two days there were bananas as well. There was usually ice cream but sometimes they ran out. There was yogurt on one day. Coffee at the buffet was weak but they always had great cappuccinos at the lobby bar so I brought mine with me, also good iced coffees and lots of bottled water available there. A couple days they ran out of sugar but had sweetener or honey. |The a la carte's were basically buffet food served to you without much selection. The Japanese was my favorite, chefs were very comical and food was nice and fresh. The 24 hour snack bar had several offerings daily except for one day they only had tuna sandwiches. Some days they ran out of wine and they didn't have mojitos available throughout the whole stay even though they have a bar exclusively for Cuban drinks. ||The ocean water was amazing, great for snorkeling, we brought our own gear and had a great time. The pools are nice and clean, we enjoyed all of them. The entertainment team was great, very personable and they approached us several times daily to promote activities they were having in or around the pool and on stage later in the evenings (dance lessons) Luis was great and another guy, I can't remember his name. The towel guy was my favorite, very sweet and great with the kids. There is a small beach area located at the boat house where my kids could walk into the ocean and play in the sand. Also a nice private beach area a few yards down you could get to if you brought your beach shoes. ||The playa pillar beach was definitely the highlight for me. It was so freaking beautiful. Crystal clear teal water for miles and powdery white sand. It was a $5 roundtrip ride per person in a pink 57 convertible Chevy. The ride was about 3 mins. Or you could walk 20 mins. Beach chairs with shade are $5 each. There is a glass bottom boat tour excursion (ask for Tony) that they sell at the beach for $40, it includes a double Decker glass bottom boat with trampolines on it, a lobster lunch, snorkeling and an island exploration and is about 4-5 hours long in total. Kids 2 and under are free and 4 year old was half price. Definitely worth doing. I went on a mini catermaran ride at the beach for $10 per person (30 mins) this included beach chairs. | |For this trip I paid $775 for myself, $775 for my 4 year old and $665 for my 2 year old. This included airfare, accomodations and unlimited food and drinks. I can count the cons all I want but I definitely got my value for money here. The accomodations were good and cleaned everyday, there was food to eat and pools to play in and the most amazing ocean. I would actually return with tempered expectations. I thought of it like an elevated cottage experience. My children loved it and had zero complaints. They actually said they liked it better than Jamaica where we went just a couple of months ago and...