A Hidden Gem

This resort is an absolute hidden gem in Varadero! The staff were fantastic and went out of their way to make our trip absolutely memorable! If you stay, I highly recommend the Royal Package as it is worth every penny. Our butler Joel was great and made our reservations for restaurants on the first day of our stay. All of the restaurants (other than the Italian) were amazing and in particular, the Cuban restaurant was our favourite. To the beach bar staff, Nacho and Lily, thank-you for your hosp [... read more]itality and ensuring we were always hydrated! Our room was fantastic and had a huge deck, though the hot-tub was not working, it had a separate living room and two bathrooms which is a huge plus! We have not found a resort in the Caribbean that we would want to go back to, and we have now found one! Thanks to all the staff for making our trip amazing!!

Paradisus Princess Del Mar

Great resort, enjoyed our honeymoon there, weather great, customer service #1, we would go back there in a heartbeat, very friendly staff, the grounds were very well maintained & clean.The 1 draw back was the slight smell of mildew in the room but we got past that by opening the patio doors for a while during the day.

NOT A 5 STAR ( 3.5 )

The bedding in the room was terrible. Sheets do not fit nor are they pressed. Most things in the resort require painting and general maintenance. Doors to room and bathroom need adjusting. Food is typical Cuban ( but that is to be expected ) Price of all inclusive was to much

Ok not much entertainment

Hotel was clean not much entertainment or choices for food need food on beach running out of food Not much fresh fruit food choices only one pool , Same food choice every other day Need more to do entertainment starts too late not more choice for drinks 🍹 in the dining area only pop or beer need a food place where you can help yourself to snacks like cookies all day not to have to be served

Needs some work

It was ok. Food was poor, even in the restaurants. Most staff were nice and friendly. Be careful they tried billing me 3 times for the same service. I kept asking for a receipt but they always had an excuse.

Princess Del Mar, Veradero

Overall a good trip, I would rate it a 3+ though, not a 5*. The rooms were older, shower was inconsistent, food was often cold. Great beach, grounds, entertainment I would recommend an updated heating system at buffet that keeps the food hot

Beautiful resort, awful food!

When you first arrive to this resort it is breathtaking,the view,beach,pool everything is really nice! People and staff are super welcoming and you can find help on every corner to assist with any of your needs. But as days passed it got worse food wise. They honestly dont have some basics in the buffet. Food is not consistent,one day you may have chicken other may not. Any form of patato dish is rare. Even tho it says they have hamburgers,chicken fingers,pizza..they dont! They have an amazing f [... read more]ish,but one can only eat so much of it. Buffet is missing edible meat and veggies. A la carte restaurant tend to have the same things as buffet just with litlle upgrades. Such a shame of this beautiful place to be this bad food wise!

Amazing resort

The resort : The hotel itself was amazing. I had an amazing ocean view room that was very clean and large enough for 2 persons. The resort is big and it has multiple restaurants, swimming pools and resting areas. They have entertainments during the day and every night. The night shows were amazing. The service was good enough and the staff were very polite and caring. 5 minutes’ walk to a beautiful Atlantic coast where you could find a bar and enough chairs. I never had a problem finding a c [... read more]hair or a place to rest and enjoy the sun. the buffet has the variety of choices. I can say that the breakfast was the best one. Different kind of eggs, potatoes, cheese, pastries, juice and fruits. The lunch and the dinner were less impressing but still I could find something to eat and enjoy. They have different cooking style that might not be appealing for everyone and every culture but do not forget that you are in a different country and don’t expect the same food quality that you have at home. The resort was really clean. The room service was great. I 100% recommend this resort. The airline : I booked my vacation with sunwing. It is unfortunate that they are very irresponsible towards their customers. The initial flight that I bought was 3h30 min from Montreal to Varadero. They changed the flight duration and added a stop so it became a 7h flight. I was going to Varadero for 5 nights so you understand how annoying it could be when you miss a whole day and you have to spend 12h in total in flight for a 5days trip. This change was done when the full invoice was paid and the only answer that I could get was, “cancel your trip if you don’t want this flight because we have no other flight available” !! I will never book any vacation with sunwing anymore. There are many other companies that are offering the same vacation packages and treat their customers with respect. The tripcentral : Terrible experience. Definitely not an agency that I recommend to anyone. After the flight change, I had to contact them to get some help. Their agents were very aggressive and almost yelling at me that I was told about the terms and conditions of the airline. Which is not the truth. I asked for the transcriptions of my conversation with my travel agent and they said they will send it to me. Never received it. The second surprise, When I booked my trip, I was offered an insurance that was supposed to allow me to cancel my trip without penalty or change it. Also, I was told that the insurance allows me to get refund for only one person in case the prices drop. That was my main reason to buy the insurance and I was checking the prices to make sure that I will use this option. When the price has dropped almost 400$, I contacted them to get the refund and they told me this option does not exist. That means the agent lied to me sell the product. Initially, I wasn’t expecting this option, I didn’t know even that it exists so I cannot make this up! I was told that I have this option and that’s why I started to check the prices. Again, when I complained to my agent, she couldn’t care less. Her name is Nepheline Arce and I do not recommend this agent. If you have to book your trip with her, make sure that you ask for written proofs of all her offers.

Ok by Cuban standards

The resort has nicely kept grounds, and rooms were clean and comfortable. I wasn't aware that Cuba is experiencing a food shortage, so many items on the menu at the a la carte restaurants were unavailable and the buffets had limited selection (lots of cabbage, artichokes, other veggies were hard to come by). Until the food issue is solved, I wouldn't recommend Cuba at all. As a non-smoker, smoking is permitted in most areas which was unwelcome. This is one of the last resorts for the airp [... read more]ort shuttle, so be prepared for a lengthy ride to get to the hotel.

Paradises princess del mar

Resort is run down and should not be classified as a 5 star (even for Cuba). We enjoyed the pool bar, the beach and the staff. Everyone was friendly and helpful. The food was awful however we weren’t expecting much so it wasn’t a huge surprise. I must say though, it was probably worse than I expected. I was sick from the pasta and tomato sauce and the specialty restaurants were difficult to get into. The room was large, clean and comfortable.The resort is fairly small which meant that ou [... read more]r room was close to everything. The lobby bar was the hub of the resort and had good coffee and cocktails round the clock. Overall it was a decent trip for the price. I would not want to be stuck there if there was bad weather but we lucked out in that department.

Not recommended

The service was ok, mostly nice staff. I got at the hotel around 1pm, they made me wait till 4pm to give me a room cause they said our check in time is 4 while no one told me before pick a time for the flight.The room had big brown cockroaches and not so clean. I asked them at first night to change my room, they gave me another room the day after, at 3pm, after made me wait by the reception for an hour. The second room was better. On my last day they said I have to check out at 12 pm,so I didn't [... read more] have a room for 6 more hours and they gave me a room to take a shower for 30 minutes, the room was extremely dirty. Regardless that I payed for 4 days, I only had room for 3 days and I think Tripcentral should have charge me for 3days or let me know about that. (Please let me know if you like to see the room’s pictures.)

Not a Five Star

This hotel is very picturesque and the grounds are well kept and clean I am giving this hotel a 3 star rating. The beds were comfortable and clean however when we arrived in our room the floors were by no means clean. There was sand on them and washrooms still had hair from previous owners . I asked the cleaner if she would wash them for us and the next day they were done well. We had no hot water one night but we managed. Our bathtub faucets worked but only in certain positions and the w [... read more]ater pressure was low. Wi Fi was non existent even in the main lobby after purchasing three cards for it. We did not invest in the Royal Service but we spoke to guests that did and they told us it was not worth it and even tho they had free Wi Fi they still could not connect to the internet. Food was alright and we didn’t go hungry but selection was repetitive. Long waits in line ups to get food and the food was not kept hot enough. The a la carte restaurants were not good except for the Japanese which was very good ! Still we had a great time and the staff was very nice and attentive to our needs. If you don’t mind minor inconveniences then I would recommend this hotel. The beach was amazing at this resort !

Peaceful resort

We paid for the Royal Service, and were happy that we did so. This provided us with a butler who arranged everything for us, from specialty dinners to tours. Any questions or problems were promptly addressed by her. The Royal Service also gave us access to an exclusive dining room for all meals, and to a pool that is 1/4 km in length, great for swimming lengths. Out suite was spacious and had two bathrooms and a separate sitting room. The grounds are nicely landscaped and the beach is readily  [... read more]accessible and beautiful. The food is mediocre, but fine dining is difficult to find in Cuba. Certainly it was more than adequate. It was a lovely holiday.

Quite good

My stay at the Paradisus Princesa Del Mar was overall quite good. The staff could not have been friendlier and more helpful and the beach was magnificent. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the pool. It was relatively small compared to the loads of other Cuban resorts I've stayed at and it was always crowded, packed and loud. Not at all the relaxing environment I had hoped for. So I spent most of my time at the beach and eventually paid for a couple of nights of royal service just to be [... read more] able to use the quieter, lovely, larger pool on that side of the resort. The other thing that I was disappointed about was the food. Now, again, I've been to Cuba dozens of times so I'm only comparing to other Cuban resorts with similar star ratings. There was not nearly as much variety and the food was not as plentiful as it is at other hotels. And unfortunately I developed a severe stomach "tourista" issue while there that lasted a week back home. I have never once in all my time in Cuba over 20 years gotten ill like that. So overall a mixed experience. And not a 4.5/5 star in my opinion. But again, the staff were delightful and the beach stunning.

Varadero Wonderland

The name says it all – it’s real Paradisus. Wide beach with the white clean sand. Beautiful Ocean. Pelicans are swimming along with you. The place is green, flowered, and clean. Mosquitos are sprayed on a regular basis. Wi-Fi everywhere in the main area. Dyson hand dryers in the washrooms. No matter where you’re located everything is close to you. If not bell boy will be at your location in 5 min. The best possible service you can expect. And special Thank You to the beach bar team: Richa [... read more]rd (Ricardo), Marlon, and Mandiya. Knowledgeable staff, speaks your language (literally), and always with the smile.

Happy with the resort!!

I had the royal service although I did not have a royal room. The room service was not what it was supposed to be (didn’t have almost anything on the menu and it would sometimes arrive 2 hours later) but overall I was quite happy with the resort all together. The beaches were stunning as well as the water.

Good, but not a 5 star

The beaches and pools were fantastic, and the resort was generally quite quiet. The grounds were well maintained, and everything was clean. The food service was a bit of a problem. The main buffet had odd and inconsistent hours, and the spot that offered 24 hour food options was very, very limited with what it could provide and when. The rooms are advertised as 'all suites', but they are really just standard rooms with struggling plumbing and electrical.

Not a 5 star.

Overall, it’s a decent place, one of the best beaches we had seen,.... the grounds are good. However, when it comes to food and selection, we will rate it as 3.5. Overall,... it’s a 4 star, definitely not a 5.

Royal Service

Amazing grounds, as good as, if not better than Secrets properties visited; especially considering the equipment, supplies and Cuban logistic challenges. Food, there is always something missing, oddly: onions and garlic limited availability; but you'll never go hungry. We had beef on 4 separate occasions and it was very good. Rooms, although the older area located atop of the rock face overlooking the resort are desirable, they are dated and in need of a redo, a/c so so. Resort is clean, and w [... read more]ell maintained, beach is excellent, the resort actually has life guards that are awake and onsite. nightly entertainment is well done for those who choose to wind their night down watching and enjoying the performers. This resort is a good size and the use of provided transport is wise. Restaurants, Italian replaced by Cuban: all including the buffet were above average. Looking forward to our return.

Amazing Resort especially Royal side

While the regular side of the resort was nice, clean, well kept and the food was good we chose to upgrade to Royal Service. We had our own Butler “Jaz” who was absolutely wonderful and very accommodating and helpful. The pool was second to none. Loved my pool view at night with the changing lights. Special romantic dinner on the beach just made our stay. The hilltop restaurant was absolutely beautiful. Our plan is to make a trip next year to the same location.