Starfish Cayo Guillermo — Hotel in Morón

I will separate into two parts. The staff and the resort as each couldn't be more different.||||The staff- We were blown away by the staff at the resort to say the least. Our experience with the staff was nothing but exceptional. The smiles, the caring, the sharing and doing so much for us with so little was very humbling. I could go on and on but the main point is that we both come form the resort business and we were well taken care of by all of the staff we came into contact with during our stay. ||||-Bell hop and shuttle driver FREDDIE- I can't thank you enough for all your help getting to our room, getting to the a la carte dinners and always quickly answering our questions.||- ENRIQUE the concierge- My friend we can't say in words how we feel about you. From the moment we met on day 1 until our last day you were such an ambassador for the resort and treated us like royalty. We are proud to say that we are now friends for life. I owe a special thank you to Enrique as he made something special happen for my wife's birthday that above and beyond my expectations. Her birthday was on march 30th so I had inquired a few days earlier about getting a small cake made for her and it was not something that was readily available at the resort so to my surprise on Friday the 28th, Enrique called me to his office and to my surprise his wife was at a small bakery in their town about 1.5 hours away and had sent pictures of a couple cakes that were for sale. I asked her to purchase the chocolate one for me and asked Enrique if he could bring it on Monday as his day off was Sunday the day of her birthday. He happily agreed. As we were going to breakfast on Sunday morning I get a call from Enrique asking me to come and see him in his office. To my surprise he had come to work on his day off leaving home at 5:30 in the morning and riding the bus carrying the cake for me just so my wife could have it on her birthday. I almost cried at this gesture of kindness. My wife was so excited and overwhelmed with all of it. So at lunch time we took the cake to bar beside the pool and asked the staff for plates and a knife. We cut the cake into several pieces and gave it to the staff. Then we took the other half of the cake to the restaurant area which wasn't open yet and gave it to the all the staff that were setting up for lunch. Enrique you are a true professional and friend and we will never forget your gesture.||- Erik bartender- My friend you know how we fell about you and all you did for us. I truly appreciate all the long conversations we had about sports, family and life in general. We wish you continued success with all your goals and family. ||- Julie the server- Julie you know how we fell about you as we told you many times during our talks and shared many hugs during our stay. I can honestly say that you are a professional server with skills that most only wish they had. I would hire 10 people like you without any doubt. ||- Daniela- hopefully I have that right- she works as a cook and server at the buffet as well as at the snack bar poolside during the day. You were a shining star each day for us, always greeting us with big smile and thank you. Good luck with your kite surfing which I know you are passionate for. ||||To Aida our housekeeper, Ariel our bartender, George our bartender, Norje our cook and Carlos one of the managers we are very grateful for all you did to make our stay enjoyable. Without all of you our experience would have been much different. You guys are the reason that the resort is able to survive.||||Now the Resort- First I will say we were very hesitant to book a Starfish resort as we have had a terrible experience at another Starfish resort in Antigua and also a terrible experience with Sunwing itself. Considering of course that the Sunwing group owns Starfish. But after many discussions we decided to try it again as the days we could go were limited and Sunwing offered the dates we needed. On the advertising for the resort it showed these beautiful wooden bungalows on the more private side of the resort so I thought why not upgrade to the most expensive room as it was my wife's birthday. I upgraded to one of the bungalows which cost much more money. Shortly after booking I received my confirmation and noticed in small print that the a la carte restaurants were closed due to business levels and that the menu would be served in the large buffet area instead. This would of been nice to know before you took my money. Next I was reading some of the recent reviews on the resort and found out that the VIP section of the resort where our room was to be was actually closed as well due to low occupancy. Again why were not informed about this before you allowed me to upgrade and spend the money. Absolutely no excuse for this, especially as Sunwing owns Starfish so saying you didn't know would be a lie. But I decided to just let it go and see what happened when we arrived at the resort. The flight from Toronto was actually perfect with Sunwing. We decided to take a taxi from the airport instead of the shuttle so we could get there quicker. We got to the front desk around 12 and were informed that our room was not quite ready which we expected and Surprise we were told that the room we booked was not available as that part of the resort was closed and that they had chosen a room for us on the main side of the resort. The desk held our bags and we went for a beverage at the lobby bar. It was only a short time later that we were informed our room was ready and we were taken by Freddie to our room. In fairness the room we were given was also a bungalow with living room, 2 bathrooms and separate bedroom and best of all was only 50 yards to the ocean and we had ocean view from the large windows and patio. So although initially dissapointed, the room change was not terrible by any means. ||||The resort itself including the rooms are in need of a complete makeover and really are not good.||- our room had broken windows, toilet that didn't work, patio door that could hardly open, shower that leaked onto the floor. Bed was comfortable, sheets didn't fit the bed. AC worked well, always had hot water.||- all the paint at the resort was missing or in terrible condition, The pool deck was all peeled and rough, water features around the property were out of order and dirty and obviously had been for quite some time.||- pool chairs and equipment were in bad repair, dirty. The resort is full of seagulls that make a terrible mess every day and are a huge nuisance. For some reason the Cuban guests are always feeding them which explains why there are so many. Really not sanitary or peaceful for your vacation.||- the chairs at the buffet restaurant were filthy, and really made us wonder if we should be sitting on them. Look like they had not been cleaned in years. ||- main pool side bar and snack shack had burned down a few months ago and was never repaired, just left covered in a tarp. After speaking with the staff I know that it was a big concern for them as it was a place that they could make tips. I can't understand for any reason why they would not have prioritized the fixing of it. ||- at the buffet restaurant they have an expensive pizza oven that was not being used at all and based on the condition of it I assume it too was broken. Such a perfect idea for a resort but again not used.||- the food overall was good, good selection, only one day with no eggs. Always had fish, chicken, pasta, vegetables, potato, fruit etc. Never went hungry.||- We had 4 meals at the a la carte restaurant which although we were told was closed, did open some nights. It was just ok, our server Julie was incredible. It was just nice to sit in a quieter area and have a glass of wine with dinner. ||THE BEACH- BE AWARE- it is a beautiful beach that you can walk for at least an hour but you must be aware that swimming in the ocean at the resort is almost impossible as the water is extremely shallow and experiences a large tidal movement. In the mornings when the tide is in you can walk out over a hundred yards and still only be knee deep. In the afternoon when the tide is out you can walk out a hundred yards just to get to the water. Beautiful for sure, but not good for swimming. Many people we spoke with were quite disappointed about it. Quite a ways down the beach at some of the other resorts the water was much deeper. Most people either used the pools or went down to Pilar beach for the day. The water itself was beautiful, white sand etc. It is also a huge destination for kite surfing and there were many there just for that. ||||In closing I would say we had a good time and thanks to the staff were always looked after. The condition of the property is very bad and needs to be addressed. The resort needs to do a much better job of providing information about the closures, the beach swimming etc. My wife and I are very easy going and had adjusted our expectations for Cuba as we are aware of the struggles but I do think many people would be disappointed based on...

Hello fellow traveler (Room 149) Quick Review Amazing experience but come prepared

In-depth Review So my wife and i went to Starfish cayo guillermo for 10 days and it was a roller-coaster ride. Getting into cuba and to the resort was pretty smooth and once arrived we got our room 2 hours early. Other people had to wait hours after check in to get theirs. The beach and pool is incredible and the entertainment team is the heart of this resort. The food here is definitely hovering around a 1 star but theres a few meals i would enjoy daily. Buffet Eggs in the morning, snack bar fries and sandwichs throughout the day and then buffet chicken with feta for dinner. Make sure you combine the fries and sandwichs for heaven on earth (Huge Shoutout to Terry!). This schedule kept me full and not sick as a picky eater. Prepare to sit on the toilet if you do plan to explore their different options. After talking with other guests we heard the restaurants food was the exact same as buffet so we avoided. There are a few incredible staff members here that i easily remember and others i do not. Shoutout to all of the entertainment team and abdiel in the buffet and the guys at bar near pooland lobby. Other workers didnt have nearly the same motivation/awareness as them. Staff on site are usually everywhere so its not hard to find someone if you seek help. Typically they will find you to either ask for a coin exchange for your cash or they will ask for you to fetch them a beer as they're not allowed, obviously. Working in those conditions these guys deserve a beer once and awhile. They also will try and push different things onto you like coconuts almost forcing a tip out of you. We met some pretty wild characters at the resort so prepare for interesting times if you have children, theres also an adult area with pool. Unfortunately the pool had a ton of garbage in the water overflow which was sad to see so hopfully they clean it eventually. Our room was a battle on its own dealing with 5 different bugs and insects daily. Lizards might make their way in also but they will help eat bugs and wont harm you. We had a broken piece of glass in our backdoor which allowed anything small enough to just walts in behind the curtain. The front door also had gaps in the top and bottom for anything to crawl under, and they did. (Put a towel on floor) Our mini fridge was caked in mould so we avoided using all together and behind the bed is disgusting so pull away from wall. We also had huge toilet issues and so did others so prepare for that hassle. You usually need to lift the back and force the cup closed to fill the tank but you might meet some new critters doing so. I met a massive slug which proceeded to crawl up our wall the next night. (all pictures attached) At night around 9:15 is the shows so make sure you check those out to get an interactive experience. Prepare for the bugs and watch out for things like crabs or snakes at night while walking. The paths are very worn down and some areas are hard to see. Colored pathways for designated areas would be best and get workers to fix the broken lanturns asap and not 1 week later. We made sure to leave behind lots of belongings and gifts for the cleaning ladys and workers and you'll usually get small perks like extra water bottles or extra towels. Overall it was a fantastic experience and i could see myself coming back more prepared. The starfish resort is 4 stars i believe but 1.5 stars is what i think it should be maybe 2 at max. And thats because of the entertainment team. It was discussed by travelers who come often that the managers in the resort are the downfall and dont take appropriate action when needed. Im doubtful that'll change as the resort is also partially owned by government, which seems to be financially corrupt. The resort is safe from dangerous people but you need to use the safe in your room as some cleaning ladys have stolen goods from travelers before. I hope this review gives a better understanding for starfish MOTEL before you spend your hard earned...

We went for 10 days in March 2024. This was our 6th time in Cuba, each time in a different place/hotel. Starfish Hotel is the worst hotel we've stayed in Cuba. We paid for a Suite (a wooden house with a separate bedroom). House (303) had multiple holes/slits, in some I could easily put a finger. And mosquitoes come every night. Hordes of mosquitoes. We tried to patch up all the holes, found many filled by previous tourists but still, you can't find all, so every night we had to use tons of anti-mosquito spray on us/our beds and still got bitten many times. My wife counted 63 new bites after one night. We talked to other people, and all the wooden houses are like this; concrete rooms are better. Also, the second day the toilet started to leak, and the sink got clogged. We reported it, they said they gonna fix it, nobody showed up. Last night we found a hole in the roof and the rain made one of the beds totally wet and it started to smell bad. So the last night was a nightmare - in a stinky, wet room, getting bit by hordes of mosquitoes. I do not recommend it. Guy at reception reacted with, "OK, I will make a note." The cleaning crew was nice, but they only changed our towels 3 times, sheets 2 times, because there were no clean ones.

The main restaurant staff was nice, but hotel has no cash (one of the staff members we befriended told us) and it struggles with a lack of essentials - no flour, no chicken, no coffee, etc. So we had coffee only a few times, buns and bread for 5 days, and then nothing for 5 days. The same with cola, soda, and beer at the main bar.

On the positive side, the entertainment staff is great, every evening there was some kind of show, some really good, there were pool activities and other fun games (schedule attached). We left our daughter in the kids' club a few times, Tamara was awesome, engaged and fun, while the other lady, Judy, was great with adults, but kids were bored with her. Also, the hotel has a great beach, it's close to the marina where you can hop on a catamaran cruise and has a few water bikes and kayaks, free for guests. The kitesurfers have a paradise there, and you can watch them every day from the beach, just make sure don't swim where they surf to not get hit.

Pro-tip 1: The next hotel "Iberostar Daiquiri" has a place where you can rent a bike, scooter, or a car. Pro-tip 2: Near the kitesurfers' building on the beach, there is a smaller wooden bungalow, where a guy who watches kayaks and water bikes sits. If you talk to him, he can get one of the Hobie Cats (small catamarans, up to 6 people) and for $25 per person will take you to a nice snorkeling spot, with tons of colorful fish. He can also hook you up with fresh lobster, just talk to him. Pro-tip 3: Cayo Guillermo has an amazing beach at the west/north end, called Playa Pilar. It is spectacular, has a great snorkeling spot (catamaran to an old sunken wreck), and decent restaurant/washroom. There is a bus coming in and out a few times a day (schedule attached).

In summary, we had a good time, the weather was great, the beach was awesome, people nice and friendly, we had lots of fun trips (on catamaran, to snorkeling places, to Playa Pilar) and activities, drank good rum with nasty cola, and enjoyed ourselves. But we will not go back to this particular hotel, as it was awful, management is really bad, and decent staff cannot make up for all the lacks, even though they try a lot.

PS. Cuba is struggling economically now. If you can, take some extra bottles of Advil and other over-the-counter popular drugs, take some shoes and clothes you can give away, as well as shampoos, soaps, women's hygiene products, and things for kids: crayons, coloring books, small stuffed animals, kids' shoes. We have left 50% of the stuff we came with, and people were grateful, tourists are one of the main sources of these things now. There is an underground market based on WhatsApp groups, where people announce what they have and what they need and travel to barter. Buy a few extra items and give...