Club Tropical: Great resort by the beach!

The staff is very friendly and always willing to help. The rooms are clean. The food is fine but there are annoying flies in the dining room. I have been there 3X and would go again. Great vacation. I can't wait to return!

Starfish Cuatro Palmas: "The Hidden Jewel Of Resorts!!!"

This a wonderful resort located in the heart of Varadero. All your amenities such as the lobby bar, pool area and the buffet restaurant with in walking steps. Beautiful rooms, especially ocean view or even the ones overlooking the pool. The staff make you feel like you are part of their family. A very very clean and well kept resort. This has been our 4th stay here, and have no desire to look for any other resort. And the beach area is just breath taking. Strongly recommend staying there if your [... read more] visiting Varadero, Cuba.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Finally!

A fair experience,inexpensive resort,good getaway after 2 years of pandemic.Things are still slow,just 1 restaurant open per night,scarce reservations,at 9:30 all seats were gone.As expected for someone who travels for the sun and the beach.

Melia Varadero: Wow, just 😲

We stay at the Melia Varadaro all inclusive resort from March 12-19, 2022. Wow. The staff were very welcoming, helpful and very accommodating. The resorts grounds were clean, floors shiney, and the food was superb all around. The pork was so tender you could cut it with a butter knife and the steak was thin yet tender. Oh did I say how good the sweet potato soup was and the chicken soup, reminded me of my mom's homemade chicken soup. Did I say how awesome the staff were? The staff that should  [... read more]receive a raise or at least the employees of the month award are The resort was perfectly located, not to far away from the airport, a short 2 minute walk to a shopping center with an open market out back. We did two excursions, the Jeep tour and the all day Havana trip. Wow! An amazing time was had. I would highly recommend this resort to anyone who is visiting and wants to experience Cuba. If I had to give this amazing resort some constructive criticism it would be the meat in the La'cart restaurant was a little bit salty but very tender and the buffets pasta was a bit strachy, all The other food was amazing.

Resonance Blu Varadero: Great staff for the most part, beautiful beach

I travelled from Toronto to Memories Varadero Beach with 3 friends in February for a week-long stay. Here’s the short of it: The pros: - WONDERFUL staff, for the most part - Beautiful beach - Fun atmosphere The cons: - Staff stealing from our room - Horrible buffet - Dirty bathrooms - Lack of night-time activities - Few choices for alcoholic beverages Overall we had a pretty nice time, mind you we are a group of 4 in our early 20s, ie. we weren’t expecting a 5-star exper [... read more]ience. The best part of our experience was by far the friends we made at the resort - we got lucky and met a group of young Canadian travellers like ourselves - and the staff. The worst part of our experience was by far the food and the fact that our maid stole from our rooms and then accused us of lying and refused to clean for the rest of our stay (details below). The staff - the good: The staff at this resort - for the most part - are amazing. Special shoutout to Laura Maria, the sweetest girl you’ll ever meet who works at the lobby bar, and Steve, the most charismatic guy on the resort who works in ‘animation’ at the main pool. Other amazing staff members were Yudy and Mairobys, two women who worked at the Italian a-la-carte who always showed us the best time, and Alex and Robert the two main bartenders at the pool bar. These people were unbelievably kind, fun, helpful and totally made our stay The staff - the bad: a few staff members at Memories were not so great. On the first full day of our stay we had multiple items stolen from BOTH of our rooms. A Ralph Loren t-shirt, a pair of earrings and two bottles of perfume. At first, we didn’t want to assume, so we did a thorough inspection of our things to make sure, and confirmed that they had been taken. Keep in mind since this was the first day we arrived, all of these items were still packed away in our bags, so whoever took them would have actually had to rummage through our things. Within 1 day of us notifying the front desk of the situation, we were approached by our maid and told that in an attempt to avoid any more “accusations” she would no longer be cleaning our room. So we spent the rest of the week with no water bottles, clean towels or clean sheets. The beach: the beach at this resort is beautiful and generally well-kept aside from a few broken beach chairs. We spent pretty much every morning here! The pool: the main pool is such a great time. They have activities there every day at 12pm and great music & vibes. They also have a slide which we frequented, haha. The pool bar was also really fun, it’s inside a little cave and the bartenders are the best (shoutout Alex and Robert) The bars: be prepared to drink rum and beer for your entire stay. The bars were lacklustre as the resort was pretty much out of EVERY type of alcohol besides rum. No vodka, gin, whisky, tequila. They also rarely had any red, white OR sparkling wine unless it was at one of the restaurants, only beer. As someone who pretty much only drinks vodka, this was a huge bummer. The rooms: the rooms were fine, bedding seemed clean when we got there, we had hot water, our A/C worked. They definitely aren’t beautiful but we weren’t expecting anything grand. One major disappointment was that the fridge was never stocked. We weren’t Diamond Club so we didn’t expect to be given anything fancy, but some water, pop and beer would have been nice. The buffet: I’ll be honest, the food at the buffet was absolutely horrible. I’ve been to Cuba 4 times and I usually expect it to be less than enjoyable, but this food was really bad. We pretty much ate beans and rice for the entirety of the trip. The selection at the buffet was really lacking so you really had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find something edible for each meal. I’m not sure if it was because of import issues due to Covid, but be prepared to come home hungry. The a-la-cartes: we went to the Italian and Japanese restaurants, each one twice. The Italian was our favourite. The Japanese one was also decent, but you mostly go to that one for the “show” since it’s hibachi-style. In short, both restaurants were good - I think partially because we were desperate, but hey, at least they had better selection than the buffet. The entertainment: other than the nightly shows (which were pretty good) the entertainment was lacking, no club, or night-time activities. Luckily Steve usually brings his speaker to the lobby and gets the party going which was a nice surprise, but other than that it’s pretty quiet at night. Overall, decent stay but we likely would not return - mostly because of the food and overall cleanliness. I’d probably be more likely to pay a little bit more for a 5 star elsewhere. But if you’re looking for something quick and dirty and to come back with a tan, Memories isn’t a bad choice. Special thanks again to Laura Maria, Steve, Mairobys, Yudy, Robert and Alex - they absolutely made our stay!!

Memories Jibacoa: Un tout inclu epoustouflant

Un emplacement de rêve pour les adeptes du snorkling. La barriere de corail est a distance de nage. L hotel est propre la nourriture est bonne, les jardins sont de toute beauté . le personnel est tres sympathique .

Starfish Varadero: Great resort, amazing staff!!!

We just got back from Starfish Varadero. What an amazing trip! Our room was upgraded to a bungalow and it was lovely. Close to the pool and a two minute walk to the beach. The beach itself was gorgeous. Absolutely pristine. We did three excursions, day in Havana with a personal guide (amazing), catamaran (amazing) and a keep safari (meh). The AC rep, Osvaldo, was great and helpful. My only complaint was the food. I didn’t care for anything. Super bland and zero taste. I suppose that [... read more]’s not the resorts fault and more a problem with access to food and spices in general. But the absolute highlight of our trip was the staff. From start to finish, they went above and beyond to help us and make our stay enjoyable. They’re the reason we’re going back in December.

Melia Internacional: A resort that has great potential

Physical aspects including buildings, rooms,grounds,and other facilities are both clean , well maintained and well designed. Rooms are spacious and comfortable Frontline staff in food areas,restaurants,bars,pool as well as cleaning staff were very pleasant and happy to please. However staff in customer relations were not helpful and abrupt . Some attention to food variety as well as preparation is recommended to qualify this place as a five star resort

Royalton Hicacos Resort and Spa: First time but not the last

We have been to Cuba many times but this hotel is definitely the best we have stayed at. Considering all of the shortages in Cuba, we found the food to be excellent. The pool and the grounds are beautiful as is the beach. We will return.

Club Kawama: They're trying...

Let me start by saying I truly believe the staff at the Kawama are trying their very best. Covid seems to have kicked the heck out of them. Truly brutal food...just nothing available, but I don't go on vacation for the food so I got by. My room was nice and maid was great. Weather was great. And that's about it. The Cuban people are suffering and it was glaringly apparent this time around. There is an underlying feeling of resentment from the locals which taints the experience. Let's revie [... read more]w the highlights of this trip: 1) Original booking was put back due to Covid...everyone was very helpful in re-booking 2) I was bumped from my original seat in 5F at the last moment. Ended up in 15F so I survived. 3) Flight good and check in at hotel no problem. 4) I had relatives go the week before me so they asked me to bring Becel, cheese and some snacks. Also salad dressings and some spices. Anything to make the food palatable. 5) The resort was absolutely packed with local tourists who clearly despised us. Not fun. 6) Worse than that where my fellow Canadian regulars. The resort caters so much to these self entitled repeaters that it gets frustrating for everyone else. There is only one a-la-carte restaurant left and they are in it every single night! One of these delightful brethren of mine got vocally offended because we were given HIS table by the window. 7) Some of the local taxi drivers are now openly hostile to us. One of our party speaks spanish and she was greeted by lectures at every turn. She does not want to go back. Now I realize this is out of your control. 8) We had an absolutely terrifying two hour stop on the bus at the airport. No one would give us an explanation as to why we were being detained. Of course your mind starts playing out the worst possible scenarios. Never did get a satisfying explanation other than they had to wait for the guy who takes temperatures. Again, out of your control. 9) Airport boarding....I can't begin to describe. But I got home and the flight was good. 10) I have only touched on the highlights. This was only my second trip to Cuba, both to the Kawama. It felt completely different. And not for the better. I will not be going back. But I can't say it was from a lack of trying on the part of the staff. Sunwing and Tripcentral tried their best as well.

Sol Palmeras: Great place for family vacation

We loved everything in this hotel. It’s clean, friendly staff, beautiful ocean. We spend amazing 7 days and we definitely will be back one day. The beach is amazing . Territory is beautiful. We lived in bungalow and absolutely loved it.

Melia Las Americas: Excellent resort

The hotel is old but very well kept with nice groomed grounds and the beach is best in class. The food was excellent for Cuba standard at all the a la carte restaurants and at the buffet. Not as many selections like in the past years but considering Covid times we were very pleased and we always found something good to eat. The food at the BBQ restaurant by the pool was up our alley! People were very nice and worked hard to please us. Thank you! The room was cleaned daily The only thing I d [... read more]id not like was that at the lobby bar there were certain drinks that were displayed but not served except if you were part of the Level. I did not see this anywhere else. Usually The Level or Diamond Club, etc at other resorts have separate bars with more expensive drinks. One special thank you for Julio the entertainer who worked tirelessly to make sure people had fun around the lobby bar and outside patio. When Julio had a day off was a boring night! Thank you!

Iberostar Origin Playa Alameda: Loved this hotel

More then expected from a Cuba adults only resort in just post pandemic. Food really basic but you’ll not starve 😀 For drinks I stick for all stay with Tequila and beer. There no vodka on the resort. Cappuccino is perfect as usual. Bar personnel is fast and very friendly. All staff actually was friendly and quite helpful. Every night there is a dance by the theatro till 1 AM. Beach is wonderful. Good condition tennis courts. Valleyball net on the beach. No shortage of pool or beach chairs a [... read more]t all. Reception is quick and resourceful. Wi-Fi is ok and free. If you need to recharge, no problem at the reception or from your room by calling the reception. We had a lot of fun with new friends we made there! Strongly recommend this hotel for people who love to have fun.

Melia Internacional: The Honest Truth... Amazing Stay

Everyone's expectations of a vacation is very different, not to mention what there experience has been. You must first have to understand that a 5 Star in Cuba is not the same as a 5 Star in Toronto, nor a 5 Star in New York not to mention a 5 Star in Honk Kong. If that was the case, NY and Toronto would rate a 1 or less to Hong Kong. That being said, the Hotel is situated in a great location. Walking distance to Varadero for shopping, restaurants, bars and night clubs. The beach was fantas [... read more]tic, very large and tons of space to relax and enjoy the sun. The water was crystal clear, soft sand and shallow for a good 40 - 50 feet in. Large Pools with entertainment, swim up bar and ample seating. I will say that probably due to Covid restrictions and the Hotel being at 50% capacity is why there was availability of chairs at the pool and beach. Red bar was great to sit out and enjoy coffee and drinks and smoke a cigar and closed around 1am. Blue bar on the other side of the lobby was open 24hrs. There were also the rooftop or 10th floor patio bars that were open but quiet due to the hotels guest limits, and there was a enclosed bar between the 2 bars on the 10th floor too. There is a gym and other amenities, but I didn't go there for those. Now to the what everyone is always wanting to hear...FOOD. I personally was too busy having fun in Varadero and around the pools with other guests to book a time at the restaurants. I never knew where we would be at any given time, to book a time slot at the restaurants. Though I did hear from other guests that there meals in the a-la carte restaurants were very good. Maybe not to our standards in Toronto, but never the less enjoyable. Having gone to the buffet for the entire 7 day stay and gain 5 LBs coming home. They had great BBQ/Grilled chicken that was amazing, think I went twice for that. Fish is always an abundance and good. The grill meat selection was pork chops, chicken breast, sausages, pork strips and beef burgers. Pasta is pasta, no alfredo sauce but still good. Bread was fresh and somedays lacking butter. Salad, not that guy, so passed on that. Ice cream and deserts were the same. Never went wrong with breakfast, took care of my guy and he took care of me. 5 egg whites with cheese and bacon, or anything else you wanted to put in your omelet or eggs. They had breads, pastries, donuts, pancakes or more like thicker crapes, but none the less enough to get you going for the morning. There's other stuff that is pre-prepared that you can get but I stayed away from that, like my food fresh of the grill. Lunch, well I ,missed most of it as I was at the beach or pool so I made use of the 24hr restaurant which was burgers, ham and cheese, hot dogs and pulled pork somedays. Wish they had fries there, would of been great at 5am in the morning. Keep in mind that 2 of the restaurants were closed due to limits on the resorts occupancy and Covid distancing. Buffet there were no restrictions to seating just had to wait to be served by someone to put the food on your plate which took sometime. Probably would have had huge lineups if there were more people on the resort too. The staff, everywhere on the resort were fantastic. Always accommodating and willing to help. You will find the odd few that speak very good English and make you feel at home and are pleasant to talk to in English. Overall, we had a great time, no one got sick and looking forward to come back there again and make more use of the beach. LOL

Melia Las Americas: Good resort

Overall I was pleased with this resort, at this time time there were a lot of shortages mostly due because of covid. However the staff did the best . The only complaint I would have is with the baroque area by the swimming pool, the first try I had to wait 2.5 hours to eat a meal the second try and they served me raw pork and the wait staff were very upset when I sent it back so avoid this restaurant and your time at this hotel will very good.

Playa Vista Azul: Terrific Resort

The resort was clean and well kept, the best thing about the whole trip was the staff, so friendly and helpful, probably the best staff i have seen in all my trips to Cuba, would definitely go there again...Food was good, drinks were good other than there was no vodka but we didnt see any vodka in all of varadero..Their could have been a bit more night life as once the show was over the resort pretty much shut down...Beach was beautiful and the lobby with the infinity pool was amazing...

Sanctuary at Grand Memories Varadero: Great people, wonderful resort

We returned home yesterday and wish we were still at Sanctuary!! We travelled with another couple. All our travels thru Canadian and Cuban airports went very smoothly! Upon our arrival at Grand Memories a shuttle was right there to take us to a quick check in at Sanctuary! Mario and Rene, what fantastic young men, our concierges, met us and looked after everything for us. A wealth of information and non-stop work. The overall hotel at Sanctuary is dated, yes, but extremely clean. Our room  [... read more]was great, clean and everything we needed. Yes, our shower leaked under the door. We used towels to stop this and they were replaced daily. Lots of clean towels, water and a few beer each day in our room. Thanks to our great cleaners, sorry not sure of their names. The food was the best food we have enjoyed at a resort in Cuba. We have travelled to Cuba at least 10 times. At Sanctuary there is a restaurant, lobby/cigar bar and the outdoor snack bar. We ate only at the Sanctuary because it was so good we didn’t want to chance anything else. Again thank you Mario for changing our reservations numerous times. Cappuccinos every morning at the snack bar along with well cooked omelettes, bacon and hash browns! We ate this outside by the pool. Service delivery right to our table. You can also go inside to grab croissants, cookies and some fruits ( and a mimosa to go)! Lunch was mostly hotdogs, hamburgers and fries. Calamari a few days with chicken Sandwiches. Most days we had ketchup and mustard. We also brought our own and some jams just in case. Suppers all in the main Sanctuary restaurant! We had other bookings and cancelled them because the meals and service at Sanctuary supper were so good. The food got better everyday. You have a choice of appetizers, then soup and any of 3 courses for supper. No complaints at all. None of us lost weight. The real story and the reason why we will return to Sanctuary is because of the AMAZING service we got and all the amazing people working so hard to make our vacation memorable. I am sorry if I miss someone but here it is. Roxana at the snack bar. My husband now calls her his back up… it’s an inside joke. But she was amazing. Supper meals Noe and Talia and Sendry and then they worked the snack bar. Amazing lovely ladies and gentlemen! They all work so many hours and smile thru long shifts. The chef Enzo and his amazing crew created us lovely meals each and every day! One special Italian meal. Made our stay. Thank you! Freddy the manager of the area seemed to work 24 hours a day. He was always there and ready to hold a door, freshen our wine or just make sure all was well! The beach! It was amazing but made more memorable by the special personality of Natalie ! And her amazing Mojitos which we enjoyed every day!! Love you Natalie!! Also Alex and Amoury (loco) the beach service was top notch. We miss you all already! And we hope nothing but great things for you all! Sorry for the long speech but so many to thank. Again we usually try different resorts but we are sure we will return to Sanctuary for the people and the relaxing vacation we had.

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Cuba Reopening

Excellent service, friendly staff, lovely pools and beach and food selection adequate with wonderful pastries. Showers were cool but gradually got warmer, also. Last resort on the strip so first for pick up to airport and any excursions and last to be dropped off. You could see everything improving each day. Doing well with shortages throughout Cuba.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Amazing friendly staff

Upgrade is totally worth it- privilege section- beach section, restaurant and pool and bar tender! Roberto- was awesome- very professional but friendly and made us feel at home the very first day there! He made the stay at the pool very enjoyable!!!! Makes a "mean" kiwi daiquiri and sangria!!! Walk to the lobby was further than I thought- but it made for a good workout each day! A la Carte restaurant was OK.... Italian night very disappointing- the service was not their usual and the foo [... read more]d was a long wait and each table was not offered the same thing- some received pizza other tables were not offered. Lobster dinner was AMAZING in the Privilege restaurant!!!! Friday night was very upsetting- many newcomers into the hotel and not made to wear masks around the buffet or in the lobby- All other days- felt very safe with people wearing masks and following protocol! The staff was super- very friendly, helpful and very accommodating. If you needed a ride to somewhere in the resort- they were there almost immediately to pick you up! Service with a smile daily!!!!! definitely will recommend this resort to friends and will definitely return in the near future!!!!

Club Kawama: Chill vibes

This is one of the cheapest resorts you can book in Varadero. You get what you pay for and then some here! Chill vibes, beds are comfortable, pool is clean, there’s always entertainment on the go every night. The staff is friendly and helpful.