Awesome Vacation and Resort

We had a great awesome time at Villa Iguana! Hola Sun and Trip Central made it worry free! We met great people from staff to vacationers! Made great friends. Food was great..no complaints..very clean rooms..resort very well lit and safe!..We would definitely go back to great beaches, people, and sites.

Nice resort at a great price!

Villa Iguana upgraded our room to a bungalow (no extra charge). A pleasant surprise. Resort is somewhat spread out, so required a fair amount of walking to reach some of the facilities. Food is typical Cuban - mediocre at best. Lettuce salads don't exist, fruit pretty scant, coffee ho-hum. Pizza, burgers and fries at the bar were good. Cold beer, free-pour drinks. Beach at resort is pretty much non-existent, but the Eden Resort next door allowed us to use theirs-a beautiful small stretch o [... lire plus]f beach. Free shuttle service to the marina allowed us to travel by boat to the incredible beaches of Sirena and Paradis. There are two lovely salt water pools at the Iguana. The staff are so friendly and always helpful. All in all, a great holiday with perfect weather. We had the pleasure of booking with Jennifer M.at Tripcentral. She covered all bases flawlessly and offered great advice. A real pro and highly recommended. Thanks to Tripcentral and Jennifer. Would gladly use Tripcentral and Jennifer for any future travel plan.

A bit disappointing

Our stay at Iguana was a bit disappointing. We have been to Cuba many times and although the fòod is never great, we have always managed to eat fairly well. This time the selection was very poor and got worse as time went on. This is the first time we were there when the beach was gone for the whole two weeks but we realized that was a risk when we booked and there were always options to go to other beaches. We were caught up in the whole airport runway closure ordeal and very disappointed by t [... lire plus]he lack of communication from Hola Sun about their plans to get us home. As usual, the staff is always friendly and do their best to keep us happy and that means a lot.

VERY PEACEFUL RESORT

Clean rooms, friendly service, good value, great coffee and the beach is back. Very close to airport so no wasted shuttle time. Food was okay, limited supply of some items but you will not go hungry. A new pool is available with easy beach access.

Villa Iguana Review

This was our 2nd visit to this resort. Last year we had a great time, even without a beach. This year was still good, but the food variety and preparation was lacking. I know you don't go to Cuba for the food, but to run out of eggs was not good. Dinners were good if you like pasta. On a scale of 10, I would rate the hotel as a 6. The restaurant staff were definitely a 10, the rooms were clean and our housekeeper was a 10.We would consider returning,as the price is right.

Sadly disappointed

This was our fourth time to Cayo Largo, and the third to this resort. Although the staff that were usually going above and beyond still are (kudos to William and Ernestad) the resort itself is going downhill fast. There was never any hot (or even luke warm) water in the mornings, and on day 3 they ran out of eggs which lasted until at least our day 7. The buffet had very few things in the morning, two days it didn't even have bread, and the evening was worse. When you look forward to atleast hav [... lire plus]ing an egg or two and you can't find anything else other than greasy sausage, it's hard to take. You could still get pizza from either of the pool sites (thank God) but they even ran out of diet coke and some other mixes for the booze. There were a lot of annoyed people and I must say, I was one of them. I didn't run into one repeat customer that wasn't disappointed. I doubt we will be back.

Clothing Optional Resort?

The hotel itself was decent. The rooms were clean and air conditioning and hot water worked great. The food is not so good, but it is Cuba. Pizza's and fries (when they had them) at the snack bar were good. The rum and beer were good. Don't expect anything special when it comes to drinks. If you are looking for pina coladas, daquiries, etc., this isn't the place for you. I knew going in, and after reading reviews on trip advisor, that the beach at this resort was clothing optional. What  [... lire plus]I didn't expect to see was nudity around the buildings (sunbathing outside of the rooms on the patios) and at the pool by the beach. Other than that, the scenery was amazing. With this resort you get what you pay for, and hopefully you don't pay too much. This is just my opinion. Others seemed to love it and there were lots of repeat customers. I just won't be one of them.

Caribbean Jewel!

I have been going to Cayo Largo for over 10 years. I love Villa Iguanna because of its size, quietness and the Cuban people. I just returned on January 19, 2020 from 2 weeks of this little slice of heaven. It's very clean and the staff can't do enough for you. The hotel is old but serves my purpose. The beach is hit and miss, as the whole island struggles with the sea taking away and giving back. I go twice a year and I am preparing to go again February 23 for another 2 weeks. Needless to say, I [... lire plus] love it!

A Relaxing Time

The negative: We were at Villa Iguana in Jan 2019 & thought the variety & quality of the food was excellent so when we returned this January we were quite disappointed. There were shortages of many foods & all the cooked dishes were heavily salted,Even the cappuchinos tasted very salty . We didn't go hungry but it left a lot to be desired. The Positive: The staff are warm & friendly.The rooms are clean & comfortable & it's a short distance from the rooms to the restaurant & lobby bar & a [... lire plus]t the lobby bar they make good pizzas and sandwiches .

Quiet resort

The hotel is now run by the Cuban army and has a lot of infrastructure issues happening. More than half of the hotel section isn’t working and the bungalows and half functioning as well. The food is differently been effected by the embargo the the Cuba nation is under now Was there for two weeks and around 60 people each week. Last year there was over 200 people at this resort

Lovely place!

Everything is designed for you to relax and enjoy the beauty of the beach: upon our arrival we were welcomed with a drink and by musicians playing Cuban songs. The hotel is clean and spacious and is right ON the beach! The personnel is friendly and helpful. I would go back in the blink of an eye!!!

Good for the Price I paid.

This resort was good for the price I paid but not great. Most of the rooms near the pool need to be renovated so they upgraded us to a Bungalow. I did not want a Bungalow as they are a long walk for a 70 year old. The Bungalow had been updated with a new washroom, A/C, good bed, new floor and was quite comfortable. I had no hair dryer and usable phone and reported it a couple of times but with no results. The staff they had were very good but they were few so more cleanliness was visible everyw [... lire plus]here. Food was very limited, same thing every day, very little fresh veggies and fruit. The best food was at the snack bar, the two boys there were great and made good pizza, hamburgers, fries, ham & cheese sandwiches. I had too much sun the first day and had to be taken back to my room. This was handled very well and Julia (HR) came to check on me the next morning. Pool was great (not as clean as it could be), weather was great and we met a lot of friendly people (middle age & older) from Canada who have returned there up to 20 times. If you want a plain Jane holiday, low cost and close to Airport this is the place to go.

A Fine Resort

We stayed at Villa Iguana from March 17 > March 31, 2019. Overall, my impressions were quite positive. The excursion was booked through Trip Central [more than satisfactory, per usual], and the airline was Air Transat, with Hola Sun as the host. I certainly prefer Air Transat to Sunwing, as their aircraft generally have more leg room, and the airline is far more reliable. No complaints regarding Hola Sun: I've never had any issues with them. We paid $1368 each, for 14 days. Some packages wer [... lire plus]e less. We stayed in a fairly new bungalow, on the upper floor, with an ocean view. It was reasonably spacious, and offered a pleasant view. The bed was very comfortable, and the pillows were adequate. There was a bathtub and shower, with plenty of water pressure and hot water. Each building [4 units per bungalow] was serviced by a solar water heater, and the water could get exceedingly hot = caution is required. Each unit had a separate AC unit, which worked very well. The room had a flat screen TV, although there was no service for the first five days. Apparently the bungalows across the road had more issues with mosquitoes, as they were situated on lower ground, and surrounded by vegetation. I would recommend the ocean view bungalows. Supposedly the regular rooms were slightly larger, but only featured a shower. The building beside the older pool and bar would have been quite noisy. That bar was open 24 hours, and featured the usual drinks. The older pool was smaller, but kept quite clean. A new pool, with a bar and snack bar, opened two days before we arrived. It was located at the east end of the property, behind the last bungalow. A very large and nice pool, tastefully decorated. The pizza from the snack bar there was quite good, and hamburgers and sandwiches were also available. A good selection of beverages was available. Breakfast and supper were served in the large buffet, with lunch in the outdoor restaurant, amid the bungalows. This also served as the only a la cart facility. Generally speaking, the food was pretty good, although there was a shortage of fresh fruit at times. Supper often featured baked chicken, salmon, roast turkey, or roast pork. The bread and the white cheeses were always enjoyable. There was an issue with flies at both the buffet and the outdoor lunch room. They didn't bite, but were quite annoying, and got on the food. This problem could be greatly eliminated with the judicious use of fly swatters and fly paper. I can't honestly say that I have ever seen a fly swatter in Cuba, however!! The beach would 'come and go' with the tides, ocean currents and winds. On a rough, windy day, there was virtually no beach. On a calm day there could be quite a wide beach, which was enjoyable for walking. There was about an equal number of calm and rough days. Be advised that there were many nudists on the beach. The odd one showed up at the new pool, which was located above the best stretch of beach. Such was inconsiderate and distasteful, in my opinion. There was nightly entertainment, but it was not overly impressive. Tuesday nights featured karaoke, which seemed to be the most popular by far. There is no gymnasium at the resort, and [understandably] no water sports. There was no real lobby: just a small reception room for checking in and out, and reporting issues or exchanging currency. By the way, you only got about 13 CUC's for $20 Canadian. A trip to Sirenis Beach was certainly worth it. A free bus runs three times in the morning, and returns three times in the afternoon. The bus takes you to a marina, where you get a free boat ride to the beach. Water sports are available at that beach, but you have to pay for lounge chairs, beer, food, etc. The water is generally calmer there, and it's much better for swimming. The resort workers were generally courteous, friendly and helpful. With only a 10 minute bus ride from the airport, you are at the resort shortly after landing. There is a small Duty Free store at the airport, plus a restaurant and bar. I certainly enjoyed my stay at Villa Iguana, and am happy to recommend it. Harley Whitlock, Brantford, Ontario

Holidays

Average food, friendly people, amazing beach at Sirena, didn't like the nudism at the hotel beach, no information about that. Like the rooms, clean and every day with new present made with towels. Enjoyed my holidays

Nudist Beach - should be advised

Weather was good all week with some wind that picked up the last few days and it was cooler in the mornings. Stayed in a standard room in a bungalow, and we found the staff to be quite friendly and helpful. The maids did a wonderful job in keeping the rooms clean and comfortable. The food is okay, we always found something good to eat. The Ranchon was a nice restaurant to enjoy lunch (the only lunch option during our stay) or dinner a la cart. You can eat there every night if you want, just nee [... lire plus]d to make reservations earlier in the day. The Villa Iguana beach is for nudists, the reason is for adults only, something we did not know when booked this vacation and we were disappointed because we are not into nudism beaches. We decided to travel to Playa Serena everyday as the transfers to and from the resort were free. We had to pay 2CUB for each beach chair, drinks and food on Playa Serena. Would not return to this resort.

Villa iguana

Very good staff, food not so good, entertainment good, bars & pools very nice, a la carte restaurant good, beach none, cleaness good, rooms comfortable but b awere of rain you may swim in your room, I would give it a 3 stars you pay for what you get for sure.

Exceeded all of my expectations!

I read all of the reviews on-line about this resort, so there was not much that surprised me. I knew there was not much of a beach (but that is a problem with Mother Nature, and not the resort itself), as well as it being an adult only resort. The part I did not see was the average age was 60+. For me, this was not a problem, as it made for a quiet and relaxing vacation! But, if you are thinking this is a party resort, it really is not! The staff are extremely friendly! The entertainment s [... lire plus]taff try to engage with the guests as much as possible. I stayed in one of the bungalows, and the room had everything I needed! The only problem I had with the room was there was no safe. I talked to a couple of other people who were staying in bungalows, and it appears this was just isolated to my room. For me, not a big deal: I just left everything locked up in my luggage. The food was very good, and I never went hungry! They had a hot sauce there that I found had a bit of a bite, which surprised me. Normally I do not find a hot sauce in Cuba that surprises me like that! The bus to the marina is extremely easy to find. A couple of minutes, and you find yourself in the marina. The boat ride to Playa Sirenis was quick. Make sure you take a day and check out that beach - you will not be disappointed! My main goal for this vacation was to scuba dive. The dive shop is very friendly and knowledgeable. However, if you are a bigger person, and are looking to rent gear that is not considered to be part of average sizing, bring your own BCD and wet suit. The Hola Sun rep (Alicia) was very pleasant to deal with! Any time I saw her during the week, she always remembered my name. If you are ever looking for a trip that is budget friendly, then look this place up!

Disappointed

First of all I ended up with an upstairs room. I'm 71 and didn't appreciate that along with a non working air conditioner. It rained one night and the roof leaked on my dresser, floor and bed. Apparantly they didn't have the parts for fix the a/c. I have to say the weather was GREAT! Thing is I've been at this resort many times and had no problem. It looks like things are going down hill!

Amazing resort!

I couldn't have been more pleased . from the proximity of the resort from the airport, to the oceanview bungalows, to the friendliness of all staff. i couldn't have been happier. i will defintiely be returning and frequently. There wasn't a sandy beach at the hotel but we visited right next door and had the whole sandy beach to ourselves! if you're looking for a perfect R& R vacation...this is your place !

Just What We Expected

My wife and I enjoyed a quiet and relaxing holiday at the Villa Iguana in Cayo Largo from February 24 – March 3rd 2019. The resort was just as we expected since we wanted a relaxing, quiet and affordable vacation. We did our research before booking this resort and so there was nothing that surprised us. For those of you who are expecting a 4 or 5 star experience and have done no research ahead of time you could be disappointed. If you are judging this resort based upon Canadian standards you  [... lire plus]may also be disappointed. For us we think the staff and management did the best they could under the circumstances. Overall we thought it was a nice and enjoyable 3 star vacation. 1. Grounds After a short 10 minute drive from the airport we arrived at the resort. Check in was quick and we enjoyed a nice cocktail while waiting. We received a room that we asked for and after unpacking we walked around the resort to see what it was like. At the main activity area there is a nice salt water pool next to the one and only bar, snack bar, outdoor patio and buffet restaurant. There are 4 blocks of rooms consisting of standard rooms that are terrace level and oceanview rooms that have a balcony. All of the rooms are very close to the ocean and all have an oceanview, however the 2nd floor rooms have a better oceanview and more privacy. All of the rooms are close to the main activity area. Not much of a walk. There are also new 2 story bungalows that are further away from the main area of the resort and require more walking to get there. There are standard and oceanview bungalows all of them are further back from the ocean than the rooms. The view of the oceanview bungalows are all partially obscured by trees etc. If we go back we would book a room again rather than a bungalow. There is an alacarte restaurant about half way down the row of bungalows. At the far end of the resort is a new pool and snack bar as well as a pool bar which is supposed open soon. That will make it better for those in bungalows that are closer to that end. The grounds are well maintained and kept clean. There is a gift shop across the street where you can buy souvenirs, toiletries as well as beer and alcohol. Right beside the gift shop is a place you can rent a scooter or ATV. 2. Beach/Pool There is no beach in front in front of the resort. You can walk about 1 to 2 minutes to a small beach area to the west of the resort where there are palapas and lounge chairs. It’s close enough to walk to the bar and get a drink. There is also a pathway through the resorts that will take you to a nice long beach in front of the Hotel Pelicano. It’s about a 30 minute walk or you can take a bus or taxi for a couple of CUC’s. We had lunch and some drinks at the Pelicano beach bar which was nice. You can also take a free shuttle to Serena Beach. The resort will pack you a lunch if you’d like. The shuttle will take you to the marina and then a boat will take you to Serena Beach which is very beautiful. The trip to the beach takes an hour. You can also rent an ATV to explore the deserted beaches on the eastern part of the island. We did that and enjoyed it thoroughly. The ATV cost 30 CUC’s for 6 hours. The water colour of the Caribbean Sea is a stunning turquoise. There is one salt water pool at the resort which is nice and refreshing with ample lounge chairs and umbrellas. You also have a nice view of the ocean from the pool as well. A second pool will be opening soon at the other end of the resort. There is a small clothing optional beach here as well with lounge chairs and palapas. 3. Food There is one buffet restaurant serving breakfast and dinner. Food choices are very limited but the food is cooked well and is quite good. Every morning and evening the choices were the same. They ran out of eggs and pancake mix for two days and so we ended up having bacon or ham and fruit and bread for two mornings. I love fresh tropical juices but the juices here were so full of sugar I couldn’t drink any. Coffee is more cappuccino than the coffee I’m used to at home. Fruit consists of some fresh and canned fruit cocktail. Vegetables were usually canned beans or peas and sometimes boiled cabbage. I liked the homemade soup best of all particularly zuppa and black bean soup. Meats consisted of either carved turkey, pork, fish of beef. One night they served rabbit. Desserts choices are very limited. We also discovered that if you plan on eating later they may run out of some food choices. There were no salad dressings, only oil and vinegar. Seasoning was not a problem. Ketchup, mustard as well as salt and pepper are available. Food was seasoned well even without the need for extra seasoning. You are entitled to one alacarte meal at the alacarte restaurant. We really enjoyed our meal there, better than the buffet as far as I am concerned. I had chicken in a black bean sauce with rice and vegetable and it was very good. You can have lunch at the alacarte but we never had lunch there so I can’t comment on the food quality or choices there. There is a snack bar beside the pool bar and you can get pizza, burgers, fries and sandwiches there also for lunch. 4. Service Service at this resort was average. Some staff stood out more than others for friendliness. Front desk staff were ok but sometimes appeared a little indifferent. Bar staff were quick and efficient. They use small plastic cups which I didn’t really like. I’m glad we took our travel mugs. Beer was not very cold. For 2 days there were no Pina Colada’s available. Sometimes the bar staff were distracted by other Cuban staff that congregated at the one end of the bar talking to them constantly. The bar is busiest at dinner time and in the evening. Right beside the bar is a Snack Bar that serves pizza, burgers, fries and sandwiches. Service in the buffet restaurant was somewhat lacking I feel. We would sit for a long time at our table until someone would come and ask what we would like to drink and very seldom came back to see if we wanted refills. The service in the alacarte restaurant was quick and efficient though. Maid service was average. A couple of times during our stay the maids didn’t leave any water for us and we had to ask at the front desk for some. We were told there was no water available and that they would be getting some more in later in the day. We did finally get some though. 5. Rooms All rooms are ocean view but the upper balcony has a better view of the ocean. Rooms are basic with 2 double beds. There is a shower but no tub. I ran out of water once during a shower but it came back quickly. There is a mini fridge. Ours was not cold. Maids kept the rooms clean. You are supposed to have a bottle of water in your fridge but there were a couple of days where we weren’t given water. Balcony is small but ok for 2 people to sit out and enjoy the ocean view. The air conditioning worked great and was quiet. 6. Value If your looking for an affordable holiday and are willing to enjoy a 3 star vacation this is a good place. Would we go back? Probably if the price was right but we have many other islands and resorts to explore in the future first.