Las Casitas Village, A Waldorf Astoria Resort, Fajardo

The site is simply amazing. I truly cannot figure out the bad or mediocre reviews of this hotel. The views, the architecture and ambiance of the hotel are reason enough to come to this place. It is, in our opinion, the best hotel in the Caribbean - we have gone to quite few. Everyone we talked to during our stay found it nothing less than amazing. The infiniti pool is breathtaking, you have a breathtaking view of the blue ocean and can see all the way to St. Thomas. We consider ourselves pretty demanding and the only complain we have is not being able to stay longer. The private island is a definite asset, although I would recommend going there during weekdays since it is quite popular during weekend when quite a few boats dock around. Nothing major, but the isolation factor of a private island is not present. This is a must-see place.

Pros: Location, Service, and Beach!! Cons: None! This place is amazing. The Beach is Beautiful, except for the time to get there. Service is great. Everything was wonderful 100% recommened.

My Family stayed in the brand new Casita's condo section during the busy 2004 Christmas holiday season. The Casita was brand new. We may have been the first to occupy the room. Mind you this is supposedly a 5 Star resort which promises a personal "butler" service to cater to your every need. We expected better and overall were disappointed. Read on. The condo unit was pristine but the balcony overlooked a parking lot with lots of heavy construction going on within eye and earshot. No TV remotes in the room, hot water was turned off, no hotel information directory and the telephone didn't work. The icemaker had a congealed lump of melted ice left in it. The butlers were pleasant but often slow to respond to calls and on three occasions totally non responsive. Most annoying was the maid service. On our first day the room was not "made up" when we returned from the rain forest hiking at 4:30 pm. This happened twice more during the week despite the fact that I complained to the manager about it. Nothing like spending the whole day at the beach returning at 5 pm and not being able to shower because there were no dry towels (humidity here) and the room still a mess. Unacceptable even at a budget resort! It takes 45 mins via golf cart, funicular, and then boat to get to the beach on Palamino Island, but getting there is half the fun. It's clean, uncrowded and very attractive but don't expect much surf. If you want to go there every day forget about time leftover for other activities. Didn't try the golf course but it looked interesting. The Spa is world class and priced accordingly but not my style. On the positive side, the new Casitas infinity pool is spectacular. Be sure to get a picture in it�..they come out great. Also, the Conquistador resort truly is very nice with lots to do but you need to call for a golf cart pickup to get there and back, or suffer a very long uphill walk. Not very convenient if you want to go there for a short while to the gym or for an ice cream, etc. FOOD..Like most Caribbean resorts the food is overpriced and mediocre. At Isabella's steak house I had to send my $45 sirlion (ordered medium) back twice because it was severely undercooked. (It's not just me...the other diner's steaks were fine and all agreed mine was nearly raw). It ruined New Year's Eve dinner and the Maitre'D took it off the bill. Oh well....at least the "a la carte" $10 mashed potatoes and $8 asparagus were excellent. I never ate the steak since the others at the table were on to dessert by that time and my appetite was ruined. Free dessert was offered as consolation and then amazingly they served the other 3 diners and forgot mine! I had to ask! I expect better at nearly $100 per person with wine or a few drinks each. AVOID...the $18 pizza at the outdoor Italian bistro unless it's the only thing your kids will eat! TIP! Rent a car and try the local places (esp. Passion in Fajardo 5 mins away for fine Puerto Rican dining that even my Pennsylvania bred teenage children enjoyed, and Lolita's on Rte 3 for Texmex with local flavor and very reasonable prices) recommended by the staff. You really get a nice taste of the local culture this way. You will want to visit the local supermarket to stock creature comforts. Eating in once or twice will pay for the rental car at the inflated meal prices on site. Also the round trip shuttle to San Juan airport is $60 per person. With a family of 4 it�s a wash and gives you the freedom to explore and dine off site. Driving in PR is no worse than any US city except for the poor road conditions and relative lack of road signs. Drive yourself to El Yunque rain forest and avoid the tour group trap baloney.