Resort is in an area Hemingway loved
IAN STALKER
Upscale Swiss hotel company Kempinski is preparing to once again buck a Cuban trend and in doing so rekindle memories of an earlier visitor to Cuba whose time on the island is fondly remembered by locals.
The company decided to reopen its Cayo Guillermo Resort Kempinski on the island of Cayo Guillermo in early January, once again enabling tourists to have a non-all-inclusive resort vacation in the Jardines del Rey archipelago, known for its many all-inclusive options.
The property was temporarily closed because of Covid.
Roberto Diaz of Cuba specialist Hola Sun — who visited the property in early December during an Hola Sun fam — said after a site inspection that he’s confident that there’s a “segment (of the travelling public) that would prefer to stay in a (non-all-inclusive) place like this.”
“I think there are different products for different types of clients,” adds the resort’s Madoyolys Sierra
The resort has on-land guest units and what Kempinski labels “small palaces on water,” above-water guest units linked to the shore by a wooden walkway.
The property is also near Playa Pilar, which many label label the most beautiful beach in all of Cuba. Pilar was the name of the boat novelist Ernest Hemingway — a longtime resident of Havana and a frequent visitor to Jardines del Rey — used for fishing.
Hemingway continues to be revered by Cubans long after his death.
Nieves Ricardo of the Cuba Tourism Board’s Toronto office — who was on the Hola Sun fam — said she fully expects that those who stay at Kempinski will be impressed.
“Kempinski is a good name and I have no doubt they will deliver excellence,” she stated.
Meanwhile, Sierra says those who appreciate Hemingway’s novels and are intrigued by his life will be in their element in the Kempinski, which has a Hemingway Cigar Bar & Lounge and pictures of Hemingway in each guest unit.
“If they like Ernest Hemingway, they should come here,” she states.
Would Papa Hemingway be in his element here?
Bar found on a beach the novelist visited
Lester Rabelo says it’s something of a shame Ernest Hemingway is no longer around, unable to stop by and quaff a cold one at the Coco Loco.
Rabelo works at the beach bar on the Cuban island of Cayo Guillermo, with the above-ground, open-air, thatched roof watering hole serving Cuban beer, drinks and pina coladas, the latter of which come in hollowed-out pineapples.
The bar — the name of which translates as the Crazy Coconut — itself is found on Playa Pilar, which many say is the prettiest beach in Cuba and which was named after a boat used by Hemingway, who often visited the area.
“We have beautiful beaches in Cuba but this one is amazing,” Madoyolus Sierra of the nearby Cayo Guillermo Resort Kempinski adds of Playa Pilar.
The white-sand beach is known for its dunes and boat trips are available to a nearby island that offers snorkeling.
Rabelo notes Hemingway was known for his appreciation of Cuban drinks and Cuban bars, and he’s sure the author would have enjoyed a drink or two at the Playa Pilar bar.
“If Hemingway was still alive he would like the Coco Loco,” Rabelo confidently states.
