looking for imfo. on cayo largo cuba [Archive]

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07-21-2003, 05:32 PM

A TRIP REPORT POSTED TO CAYOLARGO.NET

For some time now I have been meaning to send a report of our trip to CL in January. We were there during the second week and had a great time. It was our first trip and this discussion forum helped us to decide to go. So here is a summary.

Day 1 – off to an early morning start with only a 1 ? hour flight delay. Cleared Cuban immigration quickly, even before bags were delivered off of checked luggage. Met Signature Tours representative and off to Sol Melia we go. Navette driver was great, played his guitar enroute. After a quick check in, we went to room, put on swimwear and sunscreen that was in our carry on luggage (that way one can get to the beach faster!) we went off to collect beach towels and then headed off to beach. We were not disappointed. Beautiful white sand, sparkling Caribbean ocean and gentle rolling waves lapping at the beach edge. Paradise found! Time for Mojito #1 of many. Dinner at the buffet and back to room around 9 pm to wind down after a long day. Our three room requests were respected (king sized bed – yes, upper level room – yes, ocean view (sort of – if you strained your neck on balcony) oh well, 2 out of 3 isn’t bad). When we asked about changing to oceanview room, we learned that the Cuban response at the front desk of I will see what I can do probably really means, “no”.

Day 2 – I am up early about 7:30 pm and wife wants to sleep somemore. I get up and decide to go for a walk. I head east past all of the Gran Caribe resorts. The quality of Sol Melia really shows although the adventurer side of me thinks I might like to stay at Lindamar or Capricho in a hut sometime. It is early and on the outbound trip there are not really many others on the beach other than walkers. I proceed maybe 20 minutes beyond Capricho. Return trip, as I arrive at Capricho, there were 4 nudist on beach. I had read in Lily’s website about Capricho being frequented by naturists, but was sceptical. Now I knew for sure this was a possibility on this trip. And as I continued back to Sol Melia, more and more travellers were down on the beach. And I can report that at other Gran Caribe resorts that week there appeared to be many Europeans who of course expected to sun topless – all ages from 18 to 88. Back at Sol Melia about 9:30 for breakfast, off to beach, read a book, chat to others. Wife decides to be topless (she has done it before but wanted to make sure it was accepted on beach, maybe ? of those on beach were topless, and others walked by topless too). I raise the idea of naturism and she will think about it. Lunch at Ranchon, great grilled fish. Also went to Signature Tours orientation meeting (about one hour) – a good idea for first timers to orient oneself to island and opportunities (e.g. resort facilities, island facilities, trip opportunities, car rentals, special occasions, water quality, possibility to book in other resorts for meals, shuttle bus schedule, tractor schedule, island history, etc). Also made reservations for the Italian restaurant for Day 3 and International restaurant for Day 5. Glad we did this on Day 2 since most times were filled up when we made our reservations. Tried to change towels, no clean ones. Come back later is the response – we can wait until tomorrow.Late in day, hear “burr” noise outside – yes, the insect foggers – a good time to be inside. We threw towels down at door entrance so odor did not seep in the room…and they say the chemicals are safe??

Day 3 – Trip to Havana, fascinating to see the old Spanish part of the village being reconstructed by UNESCO. Had a nice lunch and then 3 hours of freedom to walk around, shop in the market and see the backstreets. We could see the wealth that used to exist in Havana and no doubt, one day, when the ineffective US embargo is lifted, the grandeur of Havana will return. Back to Sol Melia about 6:30 pm, go to beach for a walk for an hour and then to the Italian restaurant for dinner. Great veal carpacio, pizza and pasta. It was chilly by the pool, the only night I needed a jacket, but glad I had one.

Day 4 – In room most of the morning. Hey we were away from kids. Off to the beach at lunch, a sail, and then take navette up to Capricho. I did not wear swimwear but just unlined sports shorts. Yep, off they came as I got to the east end of Capricho as we headed east towards the radio tower. Wife is trying to get comfortable with naturism and decides to roll down the top of her one piece suit. This is really the first time for her to walk along a beach topless, before she really just sunned topless. The warmth of the sun feels good and no one seems to mind, comment, leer or make her feel uncomfortable as we pass them. She keeps top down and I remain nude until we get to Capricho and get to west end of stairs to go back up to get navette. Dinner in buffet and we take in the night show. It is ok but it seems to us that people go to relax on beach and not party at night.

Day 5 – Up early to go get a dune buggy. Get to the rental office. They are all gone. What do you mean? Well they are reserved. I thought you could not reserve? Surprise and welcome to Cuba! Can we reserve for tomorrow? Yes. Ok, we will be back on day 6. So back to Sol Melia we go after stopping to get post cards to send them off to relatives. Down to the beach we go and decide to head west from Sol Melia towards Paradiso. Had a beautiful walk on beach, Cayo Largo is unbelievable for beaches that must be 20 miles long, continuous. Not a care in the world. There seems to have been a charter in from Germany – more nudists to west of Sol Melia than we have seen all week. Dinner at the International Restaurant was good but servings are quite small. We had been forewarned and therefore had opted for a late lunch. We were up late until about midnight, wow…that is a change from our routine.

Day 6 – Rent the dune buggy, back to Sol Melia for lunch and then head off to explore the island. While we cannot say we got lost, we did lose the up island route a bit trying to find our way around the RIU construction site. Keep driving up island as far as we can go and then climb dune ridge on to beach. We are almost alone. One couple on the beach sunning and then one in front of us maybe 250 yards. We eventually pass them and keep walking. After about an hour we are alone. No one to be seen. Just the sun, sand and sea. And us. The perfect opportunity for wife to try naturism and not worry, which is what happened. Three hours under the sun, in and out of the water. I had along some snorkel equipment so I could check out the reef. Up we get and walk nude down the beach to Capricho and then put swimwear on to take bus back to Sol Melia. Drinks and dinner with some friends we met in Havana. This freedom and simple life should be what the world is about. Not the hustle and bustle of daily life, rushing here and there.

Day 7 – late breakfast and out to enjoy last day of CL. We walk east along beach, past all of the Gran Caribe resorts, wife in her now usual topless attire and then at Capricho we work on the all over tan. Dinner in the buffet. Say good bye to waiters. We are in vacation mode. No more 20 minute meals. We can stretch them out over 3 hours. Pure relaxation.

Day 8 – sad day. Pack up. The trip is over. Purchase rum, cigars, coffee to take home. Good thing the mojito recipe is on the bottle. Fortunately flights are on time. No problems getting back.

Overall :

Great weather, temperatures were I would guess about 75 F during the day and maybe 68F at night. We had no need for air-conditioning in room, slept with the sliding door open to hear the ocean. Only one rainy period, maybe one hour.

Waves and wind were variable. Never stopped us from swimming. Some of the waves did roll in with a force at the beach edge and since there really is not much tide, there was a drop off of the beach into water. This took some care to get by it when entering the water when there were waves, but once in the waves did not cause any problems.

The Havana trip was a nice break during the week. As much as I like beaches and water, it was nice to have a day to sight see and discover Cuba.

The beach sand did not get hot. Amazing for walking.

Sol Melia is a great resort. I worry that Pelicano needs a facelift since it too is 4 stars.

RIU should not spoil CL. Let’s hope the announced planned development by the Cuban authorities is respected, leaving nature relatively unspoiled.

Snorkelling off beach to reefs is possible and great.

Electricity interruptions did occur twice, not more than 5 to 10 minutes – who cares about that when on vacation.

For a new resort, Sol Melia operates well, very few problems, and food is much better than we expected. The buffet does get repetitive but hey, one is there for one week. Also, the Ranchon is a great alternative.

Not sure that this is a great destination for kids or teens (this may depend on your kids or teens) – We thought it may be a bit quiet and there are limited activities beyond kayaking, sailing, beaching and swimming. It seems much better suited to adults.

We found the Signature Tours representative responsive. It is a hard job down there so if she is a bit slow to respond, be patient. She has a lot of people to take care of each week spread over a number of resorts.

As you can tell from our report, nudism and toplessness are well accepted. But, those who don’t want to be nude or topless will also feel very welcomed. When walking on beach you may encounter nudity or toplessness but presumably as adults you can accept it. Everyone is free there to make their own choice.

The discussion forum includes a discussion about beach umbrellas. We did not have one yet one would have been handy. It is hot and sunny on beach all day and this would be one way to ensure shade. Although, with lots of sunscreen I did not burn, and I am fair.

Take reading material to relax with.

Remember the Cubans – many of them would appreciate gifts beyond money – toiletries, food, and items for their children (clothes, pencils, pens, paper, books, etc.)

We will go back for sure.