Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Amazing Trip (9 out of 10)

It was such an amazing trip! The beach, pools, bars, Catamaran trip, beach party, staff, everything was so perfect! Except for food! Food needs to be worked on!! Staff were extremely nice! Weather in February was GREAT! Just a perfect trip!

Roc Arenas Doradas: Awesome time

The resort is smaller and low key, which was a positive for me. The staff was friendly. Breakfast and lunch were amazing. There's a bbq by the beach that has great offerings. Dinner was ok. The free bus to Varadero was great, and of course the beach was amazing! Lots of chairs available--no need to go down super early and secure the chairs like in other resorts. We stayed in a renovated villa, so showers were hot and the room was big and clean. Swim up bar was nice, but I preferred the beach.  [... read more]It seemed like there were lots of activities for kids. My bf is gluten free, and didn't have any issues with the food at all.

Paradisus Varadero: NOT A FIVE STAR RESORT!

The grounds were clean, the staff friendly, however, the rooms were not renovated as indicated on the website--we changed rooms three times. The beach area was full of stones. The food was okay--not amazing. Not what we expected according to their website.

Melia Internacional: Good resort for cuba

The cigar and restaurant bartenders We’re the best, we left the beach just to get a drink from them, The lobby staff were not to friendly! Rooms were good. Not to far from town, could walk but taking a old car dab was the best!

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Nice resort

The resort was in great shape visually. The ala carts were great. The hilltop restaurant was very nice. The miramar was amazing. The service was just okay. The entertainment was just okay. Running out of food and wine is absolutely not acceptable. This is an all inclusive I should not have to buy wine. We should have been told. The owners do not care and think of as many excuses as possible.

Sol Palmeras: Great Resort!

This is a smaller, older resort but great overall. We picked this resort beacause of the great reviews and the repeat customers. We had a standard room which was perfectly fine but please ensure to ask for a renovated room. They still have old standard rooms which are not up to par. Lots of selection to food and restaurants, including a BBQ grill at lunch and a snack bar on the beach. There is no bartendar service around the pool or the beach and there is no swim up bar at the pool. Rat [... read more]her there is a bar in the middle of the pool that you access by a bridge. The al a carte restaurants were all great! We ate at the Latino, international, Italian, Chinese and the Tex Mex. Italian was our favourite but they were all good. Often people say the food in Cuba is bland, but we didn't experience this at this resort and this is our 4th time to Cuba. There were the odd times where they didn't have items as they ran out, but it was subsituted with something else if it was at the al a carte restaurants or if it was in the buffet, then usally the next day or two, they would have it. The beach at the resort is awesome....large and wide compared to other resorts next to us and there were no rocks. There are a lot of beach chairs and spacious palapas. Best of all no pedlars trying to sell you stuff on the beach. The hotel is in a great location, not to far from the town of Varadaro. We took a bus right outside the resort for 5 convertible Cuban pesos which is unlimited rides for the day as long as you keep the ticket. It was about a 15 minute ride to town. You can also walk to the Las Americas mall (5 minute walk) or take the free shuttle train from the resort. The resort also has bikes for free of charge but we didn't use them. The activities at this resort were standard and could have had more and better promoted. The evening consisted of singers or magicians, etc. in the lobby bar. We really enjoyed the open air roof top lounge off of the main lobby. They did have an outside stage for shows which we didn't attend. They have a very small gym with basic equipment but unfortunately wasn't air conditioned so it got very hot if you're doing cardio on the treadmill or elliptical machines. The staff at this resort were awesome...very friendly and always wanting to please. This made our stay very enjoyable. We would definitely recommend this resort.

Melia Las Antillas: wrong resort

can you change the resort on this questionnaire we stayed at Melia International ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Sirenis Tropical Varadero: The resort was very nice....beautiful resort......kept very clean inside and outside.....staff were great.....the food was so-so......pleasant experience

The beach with the waves was the best.....kept very clean......and no problem to get a beach chair and cabana.....there was never anyone trying to hassle you.....did run out of hot water a couple of days......would have liked to hear some local musicians playing the country's music......love Cuban music.....and would have liked to have had some dancing on the go

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Outstanding grounds

Paradisus Princess Del Mar has an outstanding grounds layout; everything is in located close by with many amenities. The pool is amazing and the beach incredible. A lot of beach chairs—not crowded together. Food is Cuban style; variety was good, prepared to your taste. Something for everyone. Staff is friendly who had to deal with customer complaints regarding NO WINE DURING MEALS (even at a la carte).! For a 5-star...not ideal considering the price paid. Hit and miss with restaurants [... read more] around resort so was it was management or an embargo(?). Yet wine was available for purchase. Mosquitos or small biting bugs everywhere...bug spray didn’t help in mid February. No French fries in this adult resort. Overall weather was awesome; great coffee; delightful week with our group of 8.

Melia Peninsula Varadero: Will definitely be returning

Just returned from an amazing week at Melissa Peninsula Varadero. Upon arrival we were greeted by very friendly staff who were very fast and efficient. The resort is beautiful. Meticulously landscaped, and very clean. The buffet while not the biggest selection, was always good and service was great. We did the Italian and Japanese ala carte’s both were outstanding. The beach is second to none, just outstanding with lots of chairs. The pool area could use more shade areas, but has lots of seat [... read more]ing. The lobby bar although busy at times was always staffed by very friendly hardworking bartenders and waitresses. The nightly entertainment was okay but would have liked a bit more variety. Our housekeeper Alicia(room 1431) was just outstanding, keeping our room spotless and always surprising us with her towel creations. Thank you so much Alicia it was a real pleasure talking with you. I would definitely recommend this resort. Thanks to all the staff and management for making our stay so memorable. We will definitely be returning. Special thanks to our travel agent Kevin Dupuis (Trip Central) for recommending this resort.

Grand Memories Varadero: Great service

What amenities that may be lacking at Grand Memories Varadero....the staff make up for with their service! Rooms are a little dated but clean. Beach is fantastic! Pools are clean. Could always find something we liked to eat at the buffets.

Starfish Varadero: Nicer than I expected

I was a bit unsure about this resort due to some negative reviews I had read online, but I was pleasantly surprised. The beach is an incredible tropical paradise with stunning white sand and clear turquoise waters that are perfect for swimming. The resort offers palapas for shade and plentiful loungers. The lobby space is nice with 3 floors to relax, including wifi access, a couple of bars and a sports bar/restaurant. Two levels had nice and newly decorated public bathrooms that were clea [... read more]n. The service was good at the bars. I drank a ton of cappucinos and have to say that the coffee was amazing at this resort. As a non-smoker, I did need to sit strategically in the bars and common spaces of the resort as there were a lot of smokers. Thankfully, the buffet was a non-smoking space. The food was ok, although I never really got my taste buds adjusted to Cuban food. The buffet should keep its doors closed so there are fewer flies. A few more serving spoons and tongs would be good, at least one for every dish. I noticed a few guests use their fingers to pick up breads or french toast rather than search for tongs. I spent most of my time at the beach, the lobby bar area and the quiet pool (there are 2 separate pool areas, one with entertainment near the buffet and the other on the same level as the lobby bar, walk past the tourist rep desks and you will eventually find it). Both pools and pool areas are very nice and well maintained. There was good singers, musicians or other entertainment on the terrrace starting at 7pm everynight but I never stayed long as I was bitten by mosquitos here. They seem to only come out at night. I never got bitten during the day. I was happy with my room. It was clean, no feared cockroachs showed up as per some prior reviews stated. The bed was comfortable and the room was cleaned every day. The air conditioning worked great as did the minibar fridge. The maid left a 1.5L bottle of water everyday. My room had beach towels as well as bath towels, however no face cloths. Bring your own if this is important to you. I brought my international power plug adaptor and had to use it to charge my phone as the plugs are 220v. The resort is a Cuban 3star, so there are small things that might bother you if you are a details person with high expectations. My room had paint splatters on the window. There was mostly hot water in the evenings (best time to shower anyways). The hallways and grounds had some chipped paint & tiles, carpets had some stains. Only one of the 2 elevators was working. The satellite TV was out of service for a day, but it got fixed the next day. Overall, I was happy with my room and the resort. The grounds were well kept. I would certainly consider a repeat visit if I book another trip to Varadero.

Muthu Playa Varadero: Great resort

The resort was clean, well maintained. Everything was close by; beach, bar, lobby, buffet, pool which we found was great.Our room was spacious and clean. The bed wasn’t the most comfortable but other than that we were very happy with our room was cleaned everyday, and had a good view of the pool. We had one issue with a bartender who worked at the bar by the pool evening time, he was rude, never smiled, would serve everyone before us even people who came after us. We had made a complaint to th [... read more]e manager and everything was taken care of after that. All other staff that were there were amazing always smiling and very welcoming. We weren’t expecting the food to be great as we all know we do not go there for the food but it’s wasn’t that bad the bread was rlly good. All to say we really enjoyed our stay and we were happy with our choice of resort.

Melia Marina Varadero: Great Stay!

We had a one week Sunday to Sunday trip booked in Feb at the Melia Marina Varadero hotel. We also decided to travel and stay in Havana Tuesday to Thursday. Upon arriving at the hotel, check in was easy, although our room was not ready for another hour since we were early for check in. We stored our bags and were able to grab a sandwich from the snack bar by the pool. The hotel is large and clean. Everyone was courteous and attentive. It is at the very end of the peninsula so you will be the las [... read more]t ones to get dropped off, and first ones to get picked up on any shuttles. Our room was large and although somewhat dated, was maintained clean. The bed and pillows were really not comfortable but you get used to it. Our toilet ran, which meant you had to flush it twice (I only mention this because others complained about it...) Between Sunday to Tuesday we felt that the hotel was actually quite empty, with an older Canadian crowd. When we came back from Havana, the hotel was full of Cuban families and couples and the vibe was much more lively. Turns out they had a promotion for Valentine’s day. Because of this, there were some lines to eat at the buffet, which we were able to skip by making reservations for the Hotel restaurants. The food at the buffet had enough variety to keep us happy. Our favourite was the snack bar by the beach for lunch as they had great vegetable options and a charcoal BBQ. The Hotel restaurants were okay, the service was great, but I think I prefer the options at the buffet. The process to book the restaurants was easy, and could be done in advance – I booked on Tuesday for Thursday, and on the same day for Valentine’s day. The pools are huge, and even when the hotel was full, were never crowded. There are aquafit classes and Zumba classes throughout the day, that after a few drinks are quite fun to participate in. The bars can get crowded but all the bartenders do a great job at multi-tasking. The drinks are generous pours and delicious. White wine sometimes ran out but you could always get more for $2 CUC at the tapas bar under the main staircase. The beach is a short walk away, as the hotel is on the marina side, with a convenient shuttle that takes you back and forth if you need it. We never struggled to find chairs on the beach (although many were broken). There is some seaweed, but really the beach is quite magical. The only con I really had was with fellow Canadians who were not on their best behaviour, and I am not talking about kids on spring break. We heard complaints about food not being made fast enough (it is literally being bbq'd in front of you), about not all staff being fluent in English (you would never expect the same if someone travelled to Canada), and just an overall level of arrogance and impatience that was really embarrassing! Yes, you are on vacation! In someone else's home country! Take a chill pill and relax,have a mojito and enjoy the beach. I would stay again and recommend it to my friends and family

Playa Vista Azul: Ocean Vista Azul

We enjoyed everything about the resort except for the beer. We are all beer drinkers and none of us liked the beer which tastes skunky. The beach was beautiful and the food was great!! We truly enjoyed our relaxing week.

Hotel Los Cactus: Resort looks ok

this is a very big resort....grounds are well maintained ....rooms are kinda old...needs lot of improvements for sure a painting job...great coffee bar,too bad is opening at 3 pm....food it s always the same and waiters are very friendly....most beautiful thing is the beach ,fine sand and clear water....will be back

Melia Las Americas: Excellent Resort!

I found this resort very clean and the staff were very friendly and professional. I had a standard room and it was much larger than anticipated. The beach was the highlight, it was clean and there was never a problem getting a lounge chair. The only negative things would be I had trouble getting a reservation in a few of the restaurants at the earlier time I was looking for. I ate at the buffet most the time, and there was always something for someone and a good variety. The desserts could  [... read more]have been changed out a bit more, for example, have pies or cakes. Overall, if you are looking for a high-end resort and a relaxing time, this would be the perfect place. The majority of the guests were on the older side, which could be because it is an 'Adults Only' resort and geared to golfers.

Paradisus Varadero: Beautiful Resort BUT lots of issues

We went for the week of February 10-17.... We got there and loved the resort! It was beautiful! Not busy at all even. Found out that they were not even at 50% capacity. Unfortunately, it was nothing but issues after that. The beach was dirty and rocky, not cleaned. Lots of bugs (I was eaten alive even with bug spray). They ran out of beer, certain booze and even pop by the 19th! That was no beer for the rooms. Booze ran out at the bar along with some mixes and certain pops! Coke and Fanta were o [... read more]ut by the 15th. The fridge in our room didn't cool. Other than that, no real issues with our room. Running out of certain meats as well. We went to an a la carte on the 14th and it took 1hr and 28mins for food to come. Our friend's steak ordered well done and it was still mooing, sent it back and nothing for 10mins. We ended up getting up and leaving and going to eat at the snack bar which is where the food was actually decent but they were even running out of items. Many other people complaining to management, but they were not helpful. Very slow service in the lobby for drinks at the beginning of the week when they had a stock. Just went downhill from there. We were pretty disappointed since this cost almost $3000 for 2 people. Would not recommend unfortunately

Melia Peninsula Varadero: Below average

The resort itself was okay, food was Cuba typical. Our beach towels were stolen from the pool area and staff didn't do anything about it. We ended up having to pay for towels which most like report staff took.

Royalton Hicacos Resort and Spa: Fantastic beach

One of the nicest beach we have been to. The grounds, room and beach were well maintained and clean. Very good food at the A la Carte restos. The buffet was a hit and miss a few times. The shows were average. We upgraded to Diamond Club and it was well worth it. Staff really warms up fast to you when you ask their names and start to talk to them. The diamond club staff were the best as they really went out of their way to make sure you were happy and quickly responded to all of our quest [... read more]ions or requests. The bar at Diamond club section is much better then small beach bar for the rest of the resort. We had no issue with Wifi (1 cuc/hour) and it was at an acceptable speed. Do not exchange too many CUCs near end of trip as Cuba does not allow travellers to bring them outside of the country but they can be exchanged at airport. Rhum prices are better in Varadero then at the airport. Our beach was the best maintained beach on that stretch.