Royal Hideaway Ensenachos, Cayo Ensenachos, Cuba (Seven Days In Paradise)

We were looking for a new adventure for an escape from winter and we looked to Cuba. Our goal was to find a warm and sandy place to rest and relax away from the rest of the world. We were not disappointed with the resort Royal Hideaway Ensenachos.

If you would like more information here is a link to the Official Web site

And here is the link to the unofficial web site that made us decide to vacation here in paradise

We left Toronto late in the day and arrived in Cuba after dark. Going through customs was easy. There was bank open ready to exchange our Canadian dollars for Pesos. The people of Cuba were kind, considerate, helpful and happy to see us. An hour and a half later we arrived at our resort. Check in was very fast, we were given a map and our room keys and we were told to rest and relax and come back and see them in the morning to finish checking in. We found our luggage and driver who suggested we relax in the bar and when we were ready he would drive us to our bungalow. WHAT A GOOD IDEA!

Because the restaurants were closed by the time we arrived, there was a light lunch waiting for us in our room. That was a nice touch.

In the morning we could see for ourselves we had arrived in Paradise.

We walked down the boardwalk that was right outside our room to the beach.

We walked back and found the Lobby (main building) and enjoyed breakfast in the Ventana's , the resorts morning, noon and night buffet.

The ocean was calling us so when we finished checking in we returned to our bungalow to change.

This photo is the entrance to our bungalow - and the courtyard

In the courtyard of the bungalow our Concierge has an office and she saw to all our needs. We wanted to eat at the Italian restaurant that night so she got us reservations at the Palazzo.

We changed into bathing suits and spent most of the day on the beach and in the ocean. We ate lunch at the Beach Bohio (beach grill) and tried Cuban beer and mixed drinks at portable bar near our end of the beach.

This photo of the beach bar, grill and washrooms was taken another day at day break.

More ocean views

We spent the rest of the day by and in the pool nearest our bungalow.

This shows the pool bar - with seats on the dry side and the wet side.

Each pool had its own jacuzzi.

The next day we discovered the pool snack bar served breakfast and lunch and we ate there every breakfast and lunch until the last day.

This is what Breakfast looked like in the pool bar. You ordered off a menu

This pretty and peaceful place was inside the building below. It quickly became our favorite place to eat breakfast and lunch.

Our second day was rainy and cold. We called on our friends who drive the golf carts around all day and asked for rides. We checked out the resort.

We tried the different places to eat, visited the spa section and discovered everything that was available in the Lobby (main building)

There was a Cigar Bar in the Lobby building which we enjoyed when others were NOT smoking in it.

The marble floors glistened like water

There were many sitting areas in the Lobby building

The Lobby Bar was more formal and served fancy drinks along with the usual

The Lobby bar had seating outside for smokers and when there were no smokers, us too.

The staircase to the lower level was amazing. In the lower level there was a bank, a crafts store, a night club, two a la carte  restaurants, The Palazzo (Italian) and Azia (Asian), and a Library

That night we knew we were in trouble when we watched the Weather

We were looking for 30 degree Celsius temps not 12. Winter had set in on Cuba. There were record breaking temps (cold). It got down to 45 degrees Fahrenheit at night. The days were warm for us but not warm enough for the beach. The staff were wearing coats and hats and freezing. We spent the next three days still exploring the island, and spent any sunny time we had around the pools.

We checked out Ensenachos Beach (Bigger than the one next to us)

You can tell its cold - no one but us on the beach and we were wearing jeans and long sleeves.

We made friends with Marcos the bartender at Ensenachoes Beach. He was lonely.

When you see the map I will post last you will see why he was lonely. We got a ride to the beach and back.

We dined at the Asian Restaurant and at the Seafood  (La Punta Del Pirate)

I got out early a couple of mornings to catch the sunrise

We explored the Spa section and the spa. We found the gym but didn't use it.

The paths to both pools looked like this.

And we walked on the beach

Finally Saturday and Sunday the winds died down and the sun came out. It was still cool on the beach as you can see.

Notice the hat and jacket on our bartender.

But we worked on our tans and enjoyed ourselves.

We had a wonderful time even with cool weather. We did not get to go on the moonlight cruise, deep sea fishing or snorkeling off the catamaran.  The water trips were canceled because of the wind. We have been on the snorkle and deep sea fishing trips before, so we didn't miss that.

There were land excursions to Trinadad and some smaller cities and those that went loved the experience.

As you can see from the map, the resort is huge and the only one on this island so we ALWAYS felt safe and comfortable.

To get to the resort you must travel on a causeway that takes you for a 30 minute drive over the ocean. There are security gates on both ends and no one but tourists and those with work passes get on it. Tourism is Cuba's #1 industry and they protect it.

We stayed in the Hideaway section which is the middle section. For more money you can choose the Spa section (on the right) that comes with spa treatments and for even more money you can stay in the Suites section at the end of that long arm.

On the internet there are a lot of reviews of this resort. Most of the bad reviews came from those in the Suites section - I think because its too far away from what's happening.

While waiting for the bus to take us back to the airport I heard a few people complaining about their week and I wondered from what they were saying if they went to the same resort we did.

I think the complainers were those that would complain if the sun was shining or they might be those that think all inclusive means you don't have to tip the staff. We tipped liberally and had a blast. Would we go back? In a New York Minute!

Would I recommend it to my friends - YES!

This is a 5 star resort, no kids under 13 allowed and we never saw any teens either. We did see a bunch of 20-30-40 somethings having a great time. We saw one bride and groom. We're in our 60's and saw a lot of people our age and older.

I'm hoping our new president will open Cuba so you can go and see how beautiful it is too. February 1st - 8th, 2009

My Camera - Canon Powershot A720IS