Not amazing resort

Main building “Solymar” (not bungalow) The resort has problems with the supplied materials and this is not Cuban problem but the hotel chain management problem: remote control and coffee cups in the rooms were missing and were not provided after the formal communication with the room service. The explanation is that they do not have enough. The conditioners were malfunctioning. There were some drainage problems in the bathroom. No information about the resort during the check-in. No inform [... read more]ation in the room on where and how to call, including how to call the reception. The building (five stories not open like a patio) has no smoking policy and no smoking signs everywhere; however, people smoke everywhere: under the signs “no smoking”, in the elevators, in the lobby bar, on the floors. The fume and smell are everywhere in the building and in the rooms. Reception is overloaded and cannot service properly since they are understaffed. Additional three people and couple more computers could help to provide the proper service. Waiting forever with simple questions just to have an opportunity to ask is a normal thing. Cultural aspect of Spanish speaking visitors biased the service of the personnel (reception, bars …) towards the favor to those Spanish speaking guests. How those mentioned guests, or some groups of those guests behave in some numerous cases in various places is another topic to consider, if you care about the quality of your stay or vacation. Do not be naïve about nice Cubans. They will be nice for your dollars, otherwise be prepared for the cold reception, especially if you do not speak Spanish.

BARCELO SOLYMAR - VARADERO, June/2017

This is a very busy hotel, lots of youngsters and loud parties. Room service is OK, the quality of rooms is average (air conditioners did not work properly, clogged sink, a bit outdated, etc.). Food is fine (same as everywhere on Cuba, suggest to drink some alcohol to avoid sick stomach). The beach is stunning (long and wide white sand, and there are enough tents for everyone). Pools are clean, have special areas for children. In general, it was a good experience and a pleasant stay.

Amazing

check in was fast and front desk was pleasant, our rooms were amazing we booked the bungalow suite and it was perfect. the pool was clean and having access to the Arenas resort was a bonus. Ive been to cuba 15 times and I will honestly say the food was the best ive had in Varadero. location is great as I enjoy going to Calle 62 which is still in walking distance. I would book here again for sure, please keep in mind I went with ladies only it was a girls trip and I will say it is definitely a pa [... read more]rty resort I would not bring my girls. I even got a tattoo before I came home. only down side was the bars close at 11pm

Great time

The Barcelo Solymar was a great hotel, keep in mind you are in Cuba and you will be fine. The beach was spectacular and the hotel is walking distance to downtown Varadero which is amazing. This is definitely a fun hotel that caters to a younger crowd, I wouldn't go here with my children. If you are young and single and looking to have a good time this is definitely the hotel for you.

What a Beach!

We booked this last minute. We stayed May 10-15th at Solymar. From past experience we looked at the weather network and saw this looked very promising. The weather was bang on! The resort is just as most people describe it. It is Cuba and as such it doesn't have all the amenities that some other destinations have. But you don't pay nearly as much either. The only surprise was that the bar(s) were all closed by midnight. Overall, it is great value. If you can get one of the suites away from the m [... read more]ain building. Set your expectations right and you will have a great time. For the record, I burn easily. I bought Clarins 30 spray and applied it regularly. And I tried to stay under the little beach huts as much as I could. I ended up with great colour and no burn. Take sandals to the beach as the sand gets very hot in the middle of the day. I promise when you see that beach you'll understand what all the buzz is about. I've been to beaches in Canada, the States, Europe, Mexico and the Caribbean..... this is in a class by itself!

Party Resort!!

This was a great Resort for my friends and I, it was a huge party all week!! I would recommend this Resort to anyone young and looking for a good time! The wifi does not work and the customer service was not the best but it definitely did not determine the trip!

FANTASTIC RESORT!!

This is a great hotel for partying! I went with my two best friends who are both 19 and we had such a good time.The resort and rooms are nice and clean. Customer service and the food isn't that great but besides that I totally recommend that you stay here. Especially if you are young and like to party!

Party Resort till 11PM

We've been to several Cuban resorts, so were used to the small things like bathrooms not fully stocked, bars running out of booze. So we come prepared my wife always carries napkins and were not picky drinkers and will just try another. The thing about this place being so close to all the nightlife is they shut down all the bars after 11, the Disco is a joke with the DJ in an elevated inaccessible booth that u can't request him/her to play a half decent song other than the gangsta yo yo stuff pl [... read more]aying. And the resort practically forces u to go out if u wanna have fun. There is a cafe where u can grab a beer, if they don't run out. We went out several times and had fun, but we spent a lot more money than we wanted. The food was great, never understood the widespread misconception that Cuban food is bad. We had lobster and steak twice at the Spanish restaurant and always filled up my plate with a wide variety at the buffet. The pools, grounds were constantly being cleaned. This resort is very lively with a lot of younger guest whooping it up.

Our amazing paradise that we look forward to visit.

We love everything about it . The security, the lack of vendors in the beach. The people trying to do their best for our comfort, their friendliness and caring is unbelievable! They make you feel among friends.

Below expectation

I am a regular traveller and rather easy going but I must say the Barceló Solymar in Varadero was a disappointment. It is extremely rundown and unkept. We arrived only to find out that the bungalow we booked was not available till the following day. When we got our bungalow is was rather scary looking, six huge patch holes in the tub and no shower curtain, huge crack in the wall a couple of inches away from the patio door, so large that you could see outside. Railings to the stairway to sec [... read more]ond floor of bungalows were loose and made it difficult for the elderly travelers with us to support themselves coming up the stairs as the railings literally shifted as you touched them and screws were not sticking out of deteriorated concrete. You had to look down when walking as there were many potholes from crumbling walkways everywhere on the resort. One of our travel companions' foot went through the grid of the pool and she fell through and injured her leg. The hotel lobby washroom was out of order for 1.5 week that we were there. Food was below standard and most of the 6 travel companions were sick throughout the trip as a result of the food, often only ate buns or rice, as you were afraid of having anything else. Staff tended to give service to latin speaking clients and serve them first regardless of the order you arrived at the front desk or the bar. Beach was nice but water was rough. Temperature was good while we were there. I was told it was a lively resort but found the entertainment boring. The one advantage is you are a five minute walk from local bars and the area seemed very safe and secure when you ventured off. Overall, very disappointing, I will not recommend Cuba to anyone, nor will I ever return.

Great Location/Good Resort

This was a solid 4 star resort. The beach is wonderful and the beach area is great with lots of seats and cabana. The beach has too great locations one for Solymor with all the entertainment and beach bar. Areanas Blanches beach area also had cabanas and had the snack restaurant and bar. 3 nice pools; 2 of which had a pool bar. Lots of chairs available at all 3 pools. None of the pool had umbrellas' but there were shady areas. Many options for eating with 2 buffets and 2 snack bars (on [... read more]e at the beach the other beside the main buffet at Solymor) and many a la cart restaurants. The food is typical resort food. Lobby's at both resorts are quite nice.. Enjoyed the spiral staircase and the greenery at the Solymor which you could enjoy while sitting at the Daquila bar. There was several bars and you could easily get served. The location of the resort is awesome. Steps away from 1st Ave of Varadero where you can enjoy all the shops/bars/restaurants. Rooms were clean and spacious. We were upgraded to a bungalow suite. The bed was a king sized and comfortable. This is an older resort so it does show it's age in some areas but all in all it is well maintained. Service- You are EXPECTED to tip to get good service.. However, I am of the belief you should tip good service. Plus the bank/exchange at the resort is very reluctant to give small bills so that you can tip. It was very much a catch 22. Overall we did enjoy our vacation and would probably come back especially knowing a few thing about how the system works...

Awsome vacation

I was a bit skeptical as I was travelling a girl alone A beautiful resort close to town allot of beautiful palms and awesome beach the overall hotel very clean I stayed in a bungalow and did not regret my choice , the food was reasonable for Cuba , the Mexican a la cart mmmm good, the staff were mostly helpful front desk not so much but many of staff were memorable 💞 And sweet

Enjoyable Stay! 4 Stars experience :)

This is our first time to Cuba. We enjoyed the weather, the beach and the overall environment of Solymar. Of course there are good and bad things about Solymar. The priviledge of accessing both Solymar and Arenas Blancas allowed us to try different restaurants and bars, and we got to walk around the nicely maintained gardens and grounds. On average, the food is ok, and we enjoyed the night shows (dancers are great!) However, the rooms are less than desirable which could be cleaned better. Al [... read more]so, we found that the servers at the buffets and other restaurants are not careful enough when cleaning up the tables and they dropped and broke glasses all the time... that is quite unacceptable as it is dangerous... (both servers and customers could be injured by broken glass pieces). It is highly recommended the servers be trained again so that they don't drop things easily... (It is quite unprofessional for a server to break or drop things when serving customers as it is part of their job to clean up the tables properly..) Also, it's kind of hard to connect to the Internet as Wifi is not very stable. Please improve this technology issue... Apart from the negative things mentioned above, we truly enjoyed our stay in Cuba. Nothing can beat the warm weather and the gorgeous beach. (Beach could be cleaned better though). We also joined two days of tour. One is to Havana and the other one is a seatour with seafood/lobster lunch. Both are great trips! I will be back and I hope to see some improvements next time I come back.

Awesome Time!

The Barcelo Solymar was awesome! It was well maintained and staff was excellent! The location was fantastic! Only a 5 minute walk into town. A great place to party! All the bars dowtown are lots of fun. This was a great resort for people who want to have fun, but also enjoy some relaxation on a beautiful beach.

Solid resort

Great beach - not a rock in sight Good weather Good service Slow reception - they need to handle incoming guests more efficiently Average food - hit Andrew miss a la cartes - the Spanish one was excellent Limited entertainment

Great Spot

I really enjoyed this place. They gave me a wonderful room almost on the beachfront, with a gorgeous ocean view and even a Jacuzzi (I booked the Bungalow package). The maid service was great, the bartenders friendly and quick and pouring them strong, and the place clean and well kept. The beach was amazing, the pools clean and the restaurants not too bad (given the overall quality of food in Cuba generally being so-so, it seems) and there was always something fun going on, with the staff lea [... read more]ding it enthusiastic and friendly. It is also a 5 minute walk away from Varadero, and 10 minutes from the Beatles Bar there: a great spot if you like classic rock and a good party. Will definitely visit here again. Thanks for a great stay. It was just what I needed.

Wonderful Resort

This was our first trip to Cuba, It took me quite awhile before I had decided on a resort to stay in, The Barceló Solymar was everything the pictures said it was. The resort is a little dated, but the staff more than makes up for it. We met some amazing people while we were there. Everything was clean and well kept. The staff from the gardener to the front desk were great. cant wait to go back and see some of the people that we met.

Great beach

The hotel was nice. It was clean, the maids came in everyday left clean towels. There was a day we had no running water, but it was fixed by 8 o'clock in the evening. Never run short of hot water which was nice. Beds were a bit hard, could have been a bit softer for the body. Changing money at the hotel was a complete ripoff. Was very inconsistent, they just charge whatever they feel like, no rhyme or reason as to what the exchange is. Go to the bank to exchange money. Pool was beautiful, we [... read more]ather was great, beach water was beautiful, part of the sand beach did have some garbage on it, sharp cans, straws, plastic glasses etc. but overall it was nice. Entertainment was good, bars were loud, fun and happening, lots of fun activities to do. My family had a good time.

Amazing staff ..

Older.. Need repair. The staff dose the best they can.. Cuban people are amazing .. It hard to cook for so many people , food is lacking favor..the beach is beauthfull and very clean. The resort is very clean. As well the staff cleaning all the time. They go out of their way to help you. The resort Solymar. Is a great location ..you can easy work to town..that's why we like it ..we have stayed here before..

Not for individuals with tase

The hotel, 15 years ago, was not even finished but what was finished was beautiful. The service was excellent and the food quality and variety were great. This was our 1st trip to Cuba. !5 years later we went back to a total disaster. There were ceiling water leaks all over the place. Main one in front of the entrance to the main buffet restaurant. It was there when we got there and 11 days later. Ceiling leaking in the buffet restaurant itself and many other places including customer rooms. T [... read more]he black mold was plentiful. Food was only available at the buffet restaurants, the bars which used to have grills were all shut down or served as bars only. The a la carte restaurants, 4 only between the 2 hotels, had such a limited menu, 1 appetizer choice of 4 noodles or pastas and 1 dessert. The washroom facilities in Solymar lobby were closed so if one needed to use them, either the outside bars or go to the room. The stairs were very dangerous to use with broken railings or loose hand rails.I fell down a flight of stairs, luckily no broken bones but bruises all over my body.. The pools are chipped and rusting on the bottoms. The food was the worst quality we ever experienced in Cuba and this was our 8th trip there.I'm not sure we will return to Cuba after this trip.The guests were mainly younger party type and many Russian customers. Barcelo is a brand we are going to avoid in the future. Front lobby personnel need training in customer service. The service personnel were excellent and hard working.