We have just got home from 2 weeks at the Playa Pesquero which was the best holiday we have ever been on. I have stayed in lots of hotels abroad but none compare to this one.

The rooms are huge as are the beds. Each room has a dressing area seperate to the bedroom and bathroom which is useful. The hairdryers and CD players mentioned in the brochure are in the rooms (I was worried about not having a hair dryer).

The complex is huge and it's almost like being in a little village. There are golf caddy things which are driven by the staff which you can get on a round the complex. These can be ordered from your room too.

The mini bar in your room is restocked everyday. If you don't drink everything it's an idea to give them to the gardeners on your way to breakfast as they work hard in the hot weather.

The food is brill. I especially likes the Pasta stations. You can ask for anything you want in the pasta and they make for you, fresh. The meat is also cooked in front of you so you can have it exactly as you like. The desserts are really good too - especially the chocolate cake.

Make sure you go to your welcome meeting as they let you know what is and isn't allowed in the hotel and Cuba (e.g cigars have to have certain stickers on to be able to take them home).

The reception area is massive and can't fail to impress. There is a salon near reception which also does manicures. The lady there is really nice and a manicure is only 5 pesos (about 3.50).
There is also a pedicure hut around the pool which was also a very relaxing experiance.

The pools are absolutly massive. The biggest and best I've ever seen. The swim up bar is really good too.
There is always lots of entertainment during the day if you are interested. If not there spaces around the other pool where you can't even hear it.

The beach is amazing. As we were walking down we didn't even realise that the white path had ended and the sand had started it was that white. The sea was electric blue especially when the sun was on it. You need to book the water sports but for things like pedelos you can just book them right before you want to go on them.

The towel idea is great - you hand you slip in and get towels in exchange, then you can swap them as many times as you like through out the hol. Then at the end just get your slip back for check out (if you don't have the slip when you check out you have to pay 15 pesos per towel).

You must go to swim with the dolphins. It isn't cruel as it is obvious from the height the dolphins can jump that if they want they can get over the boundries. After all they are much cleverer then we are.

We had a really good time here - we don't know where we can go next year to even nearly match this years holiday.

Much has been reported on this hotel and we would like to reiterate how wonderful this facility is.

The overall complex is massive and is maintained impeccably throughout, the pool is the largest we have ever set eyes on.

The hotel staff are all very friendly at all times, and very interesting people to get to know, lots of people write regarding giving the staff gifts and tips we even received a wonderful gift from one of the waiters that we got to know quite well.

The food at the buffet restaurant is very good and varied and you cannot fail some thing to please every taste!
The al la carte restaurants are some thing else, truly 5* star facilities with superb food wine and service, you can choose to dine in 4 each week of your stay and there are 6 to choose from we spent our time at the romantico, le gondola, yereal grill, and unfortunately missed our evening at the sea food establishment due to over indulgence at the swim - up bar that afternoon! However we managed to make up for this by charming our way in to extra visits to the Romantico restaurant our overall favourite.

The hotel entertainment was very well executed by a team of entertainers that were passionate towards their work. You could choose to do as much or as little as you wanted at the Playa Pesquero.

The hotel was fabulous! Lots to do for the children, plenty of restaurants day and night. Different bars to visit. Weaather mid to end July very hot, nights were very humid. Take plenty of insect repelant - mossies and sand fleas but this did not spoil our wonderful holiday. All the Cuban people are great and so to the group of people Emma and Beth met - they had the time of their lives!

Food very good - no tummy upsets. The restautants have to be booked and the food is very good in all of them - friendly service.

A place to visit!

This was our first visit to the Carribbean and it definitely won't be our last. The level of service, accommodation and friendliness of the staff ensure a great time is had by all.

The flight by First Choice was great although some of the cabin crew did seem to use the back of the seats to "propel" themselves down the aisles. This was a minor irritation in view of the additional space, decent food and great in flight entertainment. I changed some sterling at the airport while my husband waited for our cases on the carousel.

The transfer to the hotel was swift, informative (thanks to our excellent representative Jacky) and painless, as was check in at the hotel. We were issued with our voucher for beach towels and swipe cards for our room and sipped our complimentary cocktail while we waited for the buggy to take us to our room. The reception and lobby bar was impressive, spacious, clean and well maintained.

First impression of the room was great until I opened the patio door and discovered a tree directly outside our balcony. Being slightly concerned about what wildlife may have been lurking in the tree at night I paid a quick visit to reception the room was changed without question.

We visited the buffet for dinner and were very impressed with the quantity and quality of food available. I am a fussy eater and managed to put on a stone in weight during my stay at the Playa Pesquero - need I say more. My husband thought he had died and gone to heaven and the children both managed to fill their plates. The following morning we were not disappointed at breakfast, with everything available from steak to cereal, omlettes to fruit smoothies. The staff in the buffet were excellent and always greeted you wth a smile and a few friendly words. We only visited one A la Carte (the Gondola) which was very good with impeccable service. I think anyone would be hard pressed not to find something to eat at the hotel - there is everying avialable. Pizzas, burgers, seafood, steak, vegetarian dishes, and four A la Carte restaurants. After dinner we always visited the lobby bar, where the children could feed and fish in the ponds and we could sit and relax with a delicious coffee and liquer. The bar servied a full range of spirits and cocktails and they were invariably served with a smile. Every evening, until around 8 30 pm, an excellent pianist plays the grand piano and this adds to the ambience

The hotel boasts an enormous swimming pool, of which much has been written. We found no problem finding sunbeds with parasols regardless of what time we went to the pool. We always stayed at the "quiet" side of the pool, close to the boulevard and ice cream parlour. Each day local artisans set up stalls close by and they had some lovely items for sale at very reasonable prices. We also spent time at the beautiful beach. Crystal clear water, white sand and plenty of water sports available - idyllic.

The entertainment does not seem to score well but I can honestly say that I thought it was very good. The bands who visited the restaurants were absolutely fantastic and the shows in the theatre were always performed with great enthusiasm. The children always popped in to see the dancers and this kept them both entertained, which is a real bonus for parents. To be fair, I don't think adults go on holiday to be wowed by the resort entertainment, but happy children make happy parents. Need I say more ...

Without exception all the staff we encountered from maids to gardeners, reception staff to security staff, were charming, polite and welcoming. They all seem genuinely interested in what you are doing and how you are enjoying your holiday. The rooms, grounds and public areas are always well kept. Given the size of the hotel I feel the staff do a very good job. It is amazing how some people can go on holiday and forget how to use a bin or feel that every surface is a good dropping off point for a glass!

If you enjoy an evening stroll the only obvious place is in the hotel grounds or on the beach (flying insects permitting). There are many good trips available if you want to go out of the hotel and there are always taxis available. We did the catamaran/dolphin trip and a day visit to Holguin which we all thoroughly enjoyed. It was nice to leave the "bubble" of the hotel, although without the children I would have probably stayed at the beach/pool for two weeks. I am glad we did the trips because it showed you a bit of the real Cuba, which makes you appreciate the staff even more.

With regard to tipping, we always left a peso or two after breakfast, lunch and dinner and at our first drink in the lobby bar. This was not expected by the staff and would have made no difference to the service we received. We also took toothpaste, tooth brushes, soap, paracetamol, etc and gave this out. We left a tip or gift for the maid each day and occasionally put a peso in the fridge for the guy who replenished the fridge. The fridge was filled with water, cola, orange, beer and fruit juice which we gave to the gardeners and security guards we saw on the way to the pool or beach each day. Clothes which we would not have worn next year were distributed to staff (not forgetting the gardeners!).

We had a great holiday and are looking forward to returning next year.

After reading some of the other reviews, we had to post up here to say what an amazing time we had at the Playa Pesquero - what a place!!!!

Where to start??? Well, the room we had was enormous, super-king bed, veranda at the back and wicked air con. The 'magic fridge' re-fills everyday with beer, water and coke. The water is particularly useful as dehydration can get you big style. The room was cleaned meticulously everyday and our maid would make lovely shapes with the towels on our bed. We did have an incident with a rather large cockroach that snuck in while we weren't looking but reception and a the back of my shoe dealt with that!!!

The complex itself is mostly just a roof (albeit a MASSIVE one) over the eating areas/bars with only La Gondola and the karaoke bar enclosed. This does mean that animals can get in, such as birds and the small family of cats they have living on site but the cats are friendly and you get used to the birds. There is a lot of water around and mossies are a BIG problem - Sarah needed an injection and cream as she had over 150 bites at one point! It cost us

We arrived after a good direct flight into Holguin. Cuban Customs just had to pick on one lad travelling with our tour operator and this delayed our departure from the airport to the hotel by nearly an hour.

That said once we arrived at the hotel we were immediately impressed by the sheer size of the place. Playa Pesquero is reportedly the largest hotel in the Carribean. That said the staff were all very helpful and we booked in with no problems when you consider there must have been well over a hundred people from our flight all booking into the same hotel. The welcome cocktail helped things along of course.

Standard rooms are in blocks of 24 per 2 storey "Bungalow" with 2 entrances each having 12 rooms 6 up and 6 down. The size of these standard rooms is impressive and each had 2 good sized archairs assorted cusions and a chaise lounge along with the 2 large single beds joined to make the bigest double you can imagine.

Our room was clean and very well presented. It was up to us if we wanted sheets and towels changed each day and the fridge was restocked with water local coke and beer each day. This is the only Bottle of water you get free daily but you can obtain glasses of water from any bar or restaurant at any time. The only issue about the accommodation is that as 12 rooms run off the same entrance (6 up 6 down) it can be a bit noisey sometimes in the wee small hours.

The pool is ideal for everyone in our opinion. It is a massive free form shape and at its deepest point it is still under 5ft. The pool is cleaned daily but obviously its size means it has to be plit into sections for this to be done.

Other reporters on this site have warned to stay away from pre prepared food during mealtimes. I will be honest and say we did this to start with but there were so many interesting dishes that we were missing out on that after a few days we dug into whatever we fancied in the Latino buffet. We are both here to tell the tale. I agree that sometimes certain foods look a bit sorry for themselves when left on a hotplate but others were, like all the food we ate during our stay, delicious. If you can't find something that you like with the massive choice available you will never be satisfied. You can book 4 alla carte resturants for each week you stay and we heartily recommend the Romantico, La Gondola and the Seafood restaurants. Service can be a ltiile slow at peak times but not to any real detriment to the evening.

Being located on the beach the hotel has a wide range of water activities available. There are plenty of Pedaloes, Hobbie Cats and canoes along with windsurfing and snorkelling. You need to book these activities but that is easy to do on the morning you want.

Towels are provided for using around the pool or on the beach and you can change these anytime between 8.30am and 5pm daily for fresh ones. The towels provided are large and thick and good quality.

We found the hotel staff to be very friendly, polite and helpful. Tipping is now legal in Cuba but the staff do not appear to expect it and are genuinely appreciative when you do tip them.

Entertainment, as with all entertainment, is subject to individual taste. We found some shows we liked and others that were not our cup of tea. That said we have seen far worse shows put on at some of the UKs "premier" holiday camps. The performers put a lot of effort into what they do and the costumes are bright and colourful. All in all well worth a look and you will find shows that you like during your stay.

We had fun picking a cocktail to drink each night. We simply asked for anything with rum and coconut and waited to see what came. Next it was anything with rum that was red and so on. This makes for interesting evenings and we found as long as you didn't mix them (they don't use measures so the amount of rum or vodka in a cocktail can be quite suprising) the next day saw us with clearish heads.

We would have absolutely no problem in recommending the Playa Pesquero to anyone be it relative work mate or stranger. This is a resort in it's own right and you can do as much or as little as you want. With the selection of activities going on during the day and venues for lunch or evening meals means you should not get bored or have problems varying your diet.

You need to remember the pace of life in Cuba is the same as most Carribean countries and a lot slower than in the UK. You will get everything you ask for but is may take a little longer. That said lay back and enjoy we certainly did.

Accomodation is clean, modern and provides all mod cons. The air conditioning is free to use and can be put on at any time for any amount of time. The Tv had plenty of programmes which was useful when trying to entertain children in the early morning or evening before dinner.

The food was excellent, and I would recommend using the resteraunts if you get chance. The romantica was really nice. How anybody could complain about food is beyond me, even if you are fed up with the buffetts you can eat at one of the 24 hour places where they pretty much try to accomodate any taste. There is fresh fruit and fish in abundance, and they even make fruit smoothies to order. The ice cream was a big hit with the children.

The drinks are served all day every day with lots of special local bottled beers to try, fantastic cuban rum and even top shelf international brands. The coffee bar is fabulous.

The beach is really nice with free use of ALL equiptment. The sand does get hot and there are sand midges but this is the same as all parts of the Caribbean.

Our children who are 6 & 8 had the holiday of a lifetime. They were never without somebody to play with and something to do. The kids club was run by beautiful caring staff, Diane and Janet deserve a big mention. They prepared and performed a disney show one evening with all the children as a different character...... my children really though they were in the west end!

I guess you can sense how much we all enjoyed our holiday. The Cuban culture is fabulous and you must speak to people and try to understand their way of life.

Please please take some cash to spend on tips. They do not want much, 1 cuban peso is about 68p and it lights up their day. We paid the maid 2 peso per day but left a different gift with it too. We usually pay the golf carts 1 peso and bar staff 1 peso. We would leave 5 peso in a resteraunt if it was good. TIPPING is expected, and the tretament you receive so deserves it.

I must mention my massage by a lady in the Gym, it was the best I have ever had and it lasted about an hour. It cost

We stayed for 2 fantastic weeks. This hotel has everything you could ask for.

The food was brill.

The beach was amazing and pool areas were enormous we have booked to go back next year.

While we were there we swam with dolphins which is a must we did the speed boat safari and jeep safari which I would recommend we didn't get bit by any mozzies (take spray they are around but if you use spray they stay away)

Go book this hotel you will have a fab time

We flew from Manchester with First Choice, and upgraded to Star Class Premier, which is a must for such a long flight, and if you can afford it.

Benefits of the upgrade include priority check-in and boarding, an increased luggage allowance of 30 kg per person, priority luggage collection at your destination airport, much more comfy seats with bigger pitch and more legroom, complimentary bar and pamper packs out and return. Worth every penny...

On arrival at the hotel, staff hand out champagne cocktails, check in is quick & easy, with plenty of staff waiting to take you & your luggage to your room on a motorised golf buggy.

Unusually, we had the standard room, which was more like a junior suite! It had a kingsize bed and dressing table, with a further table and two huge comfy chairs in front of the tv.

Huge complex but as I said above, plenty of carts and buggies to get you from one point to another. A small tip will probably be expected, but please bear in mind the staff in Cuba are paid a pittance, you shouldn't grudge this at all.

Pool area is fantastic, area around the swin-up bar and the small, square activity pool is where everyone seems to congregate so you'll probably find it nicer at the other side... getting sunbeds is never ever a problem, and if you can't be bothered walking to one of the pool bars, a waiter with drinks trolley usually wanders round.

The beach is not as fantastic as some of the other beaches in Cuba, particulary Cayo Coco, but still nice.

If anything lets this hotel down, then it has to be the food.

I'd advise guests to avoid the main buffet restaurant at all costs, unless visiting as soon as it opens. The smaller of the 2 buffets is much better, but whichever one you choose you really need to get food cooked to order.

The Grill a la carte, Yareyal, isn't worth a visit at night but it's pretty good for burgers etc through the day.

La Gondola is the best, totally fantastic food, wine and service. If you're lucky enough to get an outside table, mossie repellent will be required in abundance.

Romantico is gorgeous as well, although families should note the name and realise that noisy children so not add to the ambience. If you must take your kids there, do it early ie 6.30.

Down by the boulevard, the second Italian and the chicken restaurant are good for lunch. The beer garden and ice cream parlour are perfect but snacks in-between meal times.

Didn't try the seafood place as I have an allergy but heard the lobster was fab!

I am going to keep it short,had to change our holiday arrangements at last minute due to hurricane Wilma in Mexico,glad we did as it was the best yet in the caribbean.

The staff here are lovely, they are the most obliging helpful people I have ever come across,nothing is a bother.

The room was huge and spotless,maid service was exellent,couldn't fault her,a real gem. Even the beach staff were excellent.

The restaurants served fabulous food, even the little beach bar that did barbie type food excelled. The ice cream parlour well!!!! It was to die for, mango paw paw, coconut, almond, rum an raisin all fresh made I am saying no more.

All top shelf brand drinks, champagne, really lovely wines, I loved the spanish ones best.

Someone mentioned it was a bit far from their room to the beach,there are dozens of little golf type buggies at your command day and night you dont need to walk anywhere thanks to the wonderful staff.

There are two 24hr bars open and well frequented by people enjoying a fab holiday. We didn't see any drunks or anyone making a fool of themselves.

There were hundreds of sunbeds by the pool you could have had as many as you wanted. There was a quiet side of the pools layouts and a more energetic side for the younger generation enjoying the different entertainment put on by a very good bunch of annimation staff.

The free beach activities are amazing,most hotels charge wherever I have been.I would go back to-morrow if I had the chance.

The food was in abundance and you had umpteen chef's cooking any fresh meat or fish at your asking all round the restaurants.

I do envy anyone who is going soon as you will have a super time,enjoy yourselves as everything in this hotel is positive, no negatives at all as some may say.Take a good insect repellent with you,boot's jungle formula should see off the little blighters, they might be little but they leave huge scars for a while, ha ha.

We booked two sightseeing trips through our fabulous rep Jacky to Holguin and Santiago it was not worth it,dont waste your money.

I said this was to be short so I will finish now and go and dream about my returning to the white beach and saphire blue sea.