Good time

The hotel, staff and food were all great. We had a minor issue with getting and additional bed as requested at booking but that was quickly rectified. The mosquitos were a bit of a challenge - bring bug spray and/or afterbite. Unfortunately, due to atypical weather, it rained 5/7 days. There is about an hour and a half bus ride from the airport which isn't the best but necessary.

Great times in Cuba

The hotel was so nice, the beach was incredible, the staff was extremely helpful and generous, and for our baby's first trip (he is 10 months old), it was the perfect spot for him to discover the magic of traveling!

A real nice place to kick back!

My husband and I have been to a few places in Mexico and Jamaica. This was my second trip back to this resort. We were both very pleased with the Melia Peninsula. The size of the resort is perfect.Very clean good food and excellent service. Great beach and hard working staff. We will be returning.

Great Family Trip!

We had a great trip! We stayed in Block 15 centrally located. We requested adjoining rooms at booking, but did not get it, I would have liked if they tried harder. Our family tried to participant in many of the activities. They did not have the advertised Archery. When participating in Beach Volleyball, many of the guests were standing in the hot sun waiting for their turn - the staff had their own team - seriously - you have that many guests that want to play and you make them wait! Not very go [... read more]od customer service.

I SURVIVED CUBA

The hotel rooms were above average and clean. The pool is well laid out, but too much music during the day. Good access to a fantastic beach - watch out for the Sand fleas. Friendly staff, that serve other Cubans first. Many smokers. Good Cappacino at the lobby bar, that makes up for the intolerable coffee. Who knew that you could not get fresh fruit in Cuba. Excellent place to go if you are looking to loose weight.

Had a great family vacation

We had a great vacation at the Melia Peninsula. Since we were travelling with a 11 month old, we chose this resort as it seemed very family friendly. There were alot of families and the staff were very nice with our daughter. Food was above our expectations ( it is Cuba after all) and the maintenance is lacking (again it's Cuba ) but the beach was great.

Great Resort

The resort was beautiful. Our room was clean and spacious with a great view. All amenities were close to walk to. The staff were very helpful and friendly and the service overall was very good. Lots of good food to choose from at the buffet in the dining room and at the beach as well as at the other four restaurants. The snack bar near the adult pool was open very late which was great as we arrived at the resort past midnight and were able to have a bite to eat. It felt very safe to walk around  [... read more]the resort. There was good entertainment and good music to listen to on the lovely outdoor patio overlooking the water. We met several people who had returned back to this resort for several years in a row and we would also stay here again as well.

Very good resort

Hotel was nice, clean rooms. Buffet restaurant needs netting on patio way to many flies. L'carte restaurants were very good. Beach was excellent, lots of loungers and umbrella. Night life could have been better, more bars open after 11pm.

Great first family vacation

the grounds were well maintained, restaurant staff can be trained a bit more to at least make it look authentic they know what they're doing, family activities including pool, table tennis, tennis and soccer court were great for the kids, excellent pool, great beach and enough variety for dining.

Good

Grounds are well kept, staff is good, medical staff doesn't speak and barely understands English ...the doctor was speaking Spanish to me....i do not understand Spanish........frustrating (keep in mind when traveling with a child) was very hard to understand and explain. Cleaning lady was awesome (name Lethicia). Overall the service is good, we where checked out the hotel the day before, so the reception people made a mistake.

Matur and lush resort

here are the things that we, as a couple think are important: the rooms were worn but clean and comfortable and stocked daily with beer, water and pop, the grounds were tropical, mature and well maintained, the food was above average for Cuba, 99% of staff that we dealt with were pleasant and helpful, lots to do on or off resort, no problem getting shade or chairs on the beach or at the pool regardless of time of day. The only thing we can say on the negative side was that even though the childr [... read more]en have an amazing play park and children's programme, and their own pool many parents choose to bring them to the adults only pool. If this were enforced by staff, this would be the perfect resort !!!!

More good than bad

Grounds were amazing. A very pretty well laid out resort. Lots of choices at the buffet. Some better than others but for Cuba above average and you will not go hungry. Nightly entertainment in the lobby absolutely wonderful. Never went to the theatre entertainment. Beaches better downtown. Resort very clean. Any issues were not due to the frequency of cleaning but by tourists with no consideration for others or common sense manners. Biggest issue was the sheer number of rude, ignorant visitors f [... read more]rom Quebec. Had two altercations with French as a 1st language individuals from Quebec. That would be the one issue that might keep me from returning. They are renovating as the rooms are getting a bit tired and the exterior of the buildings need some TLC. Would recommend with beware of rude Quebec visitors. No issues with visitors from France, Germany, Scotland, Vancouver or New Brunswick; just Quebec.

It was an okay resort

Pros: Very nice landsape and foliage Evening entertainment was really good The beach was nice 24 hour snack bar was convenient The staff are polite and friendly Cons: The beds are terribly uncomfortable The food was okay but we did get sick the last three days with the runs. They don't play anything but spanish music

Awesome resort

We stayed at the Melia Pensulia. We had a wonderful time. It was a first family trip. We took our son for the first time. He so enjoyed every minute of his trip. The resort was very family friendly. The staff was so accommodating and friendly. Customer service was really great. We really love cuba. we also enjoyed all the activities that they offered and that was a lot of fun! We would go back for sure!

Lovely, Warm and Just What the Doctor Ordered

My husband and I chose the Melia Peninsula Varadero for our holiday in Cuba last week, March 20-27 because we wanted to be close enough to take a day trip into Havana. I almost booked another property but as I perused this one, I found I liked the architecture and landscaping a lot better. It's actually very important to me, that I always enjoy the view no matter where I am on the resort. Unsurprisingly, this Melia was originally a Tryp: I had travelled to the Tryp Cayo Coco twice a number of ye [... read more]ars ago, and enjoyed it very much both times. Our room at Peninsula was comfortable and clean, the tub and shower and walk-in closet were in good order and most welcome. The bed was not the softest, but it is Cuba and the beds are quite standard:no sagging springs, but you won't get memory foam and pocket coils. The TV, fridge and coffee maker worked fine, but it was lucky I brought a plug converter to fit the North American plug shape to the Caribbean outlet, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to make coffee in the room! (would have had to resort to the outlet on the hair dryer in the bathroom). Décor was pleasant, nice to have the fridge restocked mostly daily with water/beer (had to remind them about the water a few times), and the welcome bottle of rum for our Junior suite was very much enjoyed. The food was good quality, lots of variety in the buffet and the fresh grills for eggs, fish, and meat were all wonderful ( big shout out to Hicel (?) , The Omelette God. Personable, fast, and an egg whisperer if there ever was one.) The A la cartes we dined in were enjoyed both for the service and the fare - the Japanese was a Benihana style show and most entertaining. Overall, the staff were lovely and helpful: our toilet was fixed very promptly when we found the water low, our sink plug fixed also in very short order when it got stuck, and when lost coming in at night my husband got help to find his way back to our room. I advised the lady booking the a la cartes for us, I was gluten intolerant, and no problem, all the a la carte servers knew I was coming and assisted me with my food orders. The pool was very nice, swim up bar and bar service were attentive and the setting most relaxing. The beach was just gorgeous, white sand with always a lounger available, and the water was very comfortable after getting used to it. We did not use the recreational facilities, save the gym - good, basic, and air conditioned - and we did not attend any shows - we were always too tired after dinner! Generally it was a little bar time and then to bed. The day trip to Havana was very educational and great value, but bring water, it is very expensive to buy at the rest stop on the way. What I enjoyed the most about our time here was at almost every turn, a staff member was being helpful and warm. Alex the gardener, Felipe at the poolside snack bar, Jade our housekeeping maid, all the main lobby bar staff, were great. A big shout out especially to Philippe, our Air Transat rep, who was the best, very helpful and an encyclopedia of info and tips. We are looking forward to coming back soon!

Sadly disappointed.

1. understaffed- from reception staff to serving staff 2. had to complain the first day regarding unwashed, smelly, and stained towels and bed linens. 3. shortage of beach towels, and towels that were provided were worn and had holes. 4. exchange rate on C$ started at 25%, and was 30% by midweek!! I thought Canadians were their bread and butter? 5. rooms were dirty (dustballs along baseboards and under the bed and furniture), shower stalls were badly installed, leaking onto floor, pooling aroung [... read more] the toilet. 6. toilet flush valve broke twice- saving grace was that the service person was very efficient 7. plumbing fixtures and faucets were worn and dated, shower heads came off in my hand, and fixture drains backed up at all times- didn't bother calling this in to the receptionist 8. ceramic tiles, hand railings needed repairs 9. buffet facilities dishes were badly chipped, tables were not cleaned properly 10. supplies for bar drinks were often out of stock, bottles of water were not available, as they suggested that you bring the empty bottle to the bar staff for refilling. 11. stairwell lighting to our room did not work, and remained like that, although we relayed this to the staff. The extras that were included with the Elegance option were not available when we arrived, they made it up to us by treating us to a lobster with the bbq dinner. This was our 4th trip to Cuba, with our previous trips being a very positive experience, but this will probably be our last trip. 12. I noticed more garbage on the beach at this resort than the previous resorts that we stayed at. The positives; the weather, beach, and ocean waters.

Great all-inclusive

This was my first all-inclusive and I was so thankful it was a good choice. Food was excellent- lots of choice at every meal. Sometimes an issue to fins seating during peak meals times. More choice/time availability for A La Carte Restaurants would have been nice as not all guests were able to reserve the number they paid for. Room was ok- our location wasn't ideal (by the kid pool), but we were comfortable. Resort is beautiful- buildings, gardens etc. they are under-going some renovations (patc [... read more]hes of dirt and some outdoor lagoons that are empty) but this wasn't an issue or inconvenience for our stay at all. Service was ok; we found tipping didn't make a difference in the speed or quality of service which was disappointing, but everyone was helpful and friendly. The beach is beautiful-lots of chairs available- definitely the best part.

4 1/2 star...I don't think so Tim.

Patio Door had no locks Bathroom door would not shut No chairs in our room to sit on in room AC was noisy, couldn't sleep Food...meh. Should be rated 3 star, different expectations Luckily, we got to move when they were oversold

A little bit of heaven :))

Emerald green water ...,sapphire sky.....crashing waves .....22 km long white sand beach !!! We just got back from Melia Peninsula after a Feb in Canada with temps of 25 to 49 below zero. Every day was beautiful and sunny with temps around 26 ....the ocean was warm too. The resort was in every way amazing. Check in went smoothly and we were driven to our immaculate room #29 since we had asked to be near the beach. It was a short walk through a sandy path to hundreds of chairs and natural umbrel [... read more]las so you never had to worry about getting a shady comfy spot. We went on one excursion ....the catamaran to Cayo Blanco .....wonderful day but one reminder ....don't bother snorkelling in Cuba .....they just don't have the reefs nor the fish. The staff were extremely friendly and we tipped often .....in our room ....at the restaurants and on the beach. The food selection is incredible so even though Cuba is not known for its food ....here you couldn't help but find something you liked from tasty omelettes in the morning ....barbeques by the beach at lunch ...and don't miss the Japanese restaurant ! You can tell from picture that the grounds and pool are gorgeous.....they are refacing/updating each building but you are never bothered by noise. All in all our vacation was memorable thanks to Melia Peninsula :))

A Little Disappointed

The resort needs a little work. Crumbling balconys, broken bathroom fixtures,balcony railing not attached to the wall, stained bedding,broken TV,and doors that do not lock. The way it was advertised to us was deceiving. I guess the travel agent did her job at our expense. We felt left out because we did not speak French. Even the map of the resort was given to us in French. I must say though the resort employees are hard working and it shows. The gardeners, maids, bartenders,check in ,bell boys  [... read more]and waiters were all very friendly and made the experience very pleasant. Upon our arrival at the resort our Air Transat rep was to busy . We were shoved into a dark room and given forms to fill out real guickly . Not greeted at the door with a cocktail and cold towel and then left to find our room with a French map dragging suitcases behind us in the heat. We did many day excursions which made our trip more enjoyable. We were away from the resort enough to help overlook all the negative things. I know you can't please everyone but this was the first time ever travelling outside Canada and doing an all inclusive and if our time spent at the resort was what was pictured in the brochures and as the travel agent told us we would have been happy.