Villa Los Helechos Hotel, Sancti Spiritus Cuba. 3 stars.

Very good Clark

We were treated like long lost friends
We arrived home at 3:30 this morning from our 5th trip and another great week at the Blau Colonial in Cayo Coco. My wife's sister and her husband joined us again this time. We were treated like long lost friends, with hugs and kisses (where appropriate) from everyone. A cold front moved in on Monday which meant the winds and waves picked up for the week. It wasn't much different than last November according to the review I posted here on Debbie's. Of course everyone had a blast in the waves and if it was windy on the beach, there was always lots of chairs at the pool, where it was sunny and calm. There were only about 200 people at the resort so it wasn't very busy. I'm guessing it's the state of the global economy thanks to big oil. There is lots of painting and general maintenance taking place at the resort. It also looks like the west side will open in 2009 after extensive renovations during the past few years. A beautiful new beach bar, restaurant and aquatics centre has also opened at the west end of the beach property at the Blau. Hurricane Ike did considerable damage to Cuba and the resorts in Cayo Coco weren't spared. Workers were putting a new thatched roof on the beach restaurant next door at the Tryp and new cabanas were being built on the beach at the NH Crystal. I'm not sure if we'll get back to Cuba in March like we normally do, as Trixie is packing her medical bag and heading to Uganda to help out at an orphanage for three weeks in February. That trip will put a major dent in the wallet and like the rest of you, the markets are trashing our investments and cash flow too. However, imagine working in Cuba. I was speaking with one of the foremen supervising the crew of painters. He was being paid 20 pesos a week. It was the first time he had seen the ocean and he was extremely up beat and happy to be working! Safe travels and don't wait until you're too old to stroll the beach hand in hand or play in the waves.

Very good Sergio Gerardo

Nature is wonderful
In a part of the Topes de Collantes mountains chain, Los Helechos Hotel is located 800 meters above sea level on Guamuhaya, a massif mountain in Cuba's central nature region – an area known for its natural beauty.