5 star? Not 5 star

Overall this resort while beautiful, was dissapointing. Sort of felt like a movie set where its a just a facade. From the service to the food and the functionality of the rooms, they just missed the mark.

Great time

We had a great time at this hotel. We liked that everything was close by and that the staff were very helpful. I would recommend that you pay the extra and stay on the level. It is well worth the money. Very clean hotel. Buffet food was okay but the a la cartes were very good.

Awesome place!

The Melia Marina was an awesome place to stay! Loved every second of it except for the food. The buffet is quite limited with very similar options for lunch and dinner! Great beach, Modern and clean rooms!

Great Resort

The Melia Marina Resort provided a great vacation hotel with a beautiful view of the marina. The lobby was very clean and provided an opportunity to have drinks and enjoy local entertainment. The ability to have the buffet close by was also an asset.

Terrible resort

Melia Marina Varadero NEVER AGAIN! CUBA.....MAYBE IN FEW YEARS! ....PROBABLY 5...... Service VERY poor! Very dirty...in the room and outside! Hygiene=0 Very expencive!!! VERY LOW QUALITY! Disappointed!

Trip got canceled

Unfortunately the airline canceled our trip and we could not re book as dates did not suit us. Very sad and we did not know that airlines could do that to people as we have traveled a lot and it never happened before. We were 4 families so no other seats in next 24 hours.

Better than anticipated

I traveled with my husband, 9 month old daughter and group of friends to this resort and based on reviews we had read about the resort and visiting Cuba in general we went with the lowest of expectations. Need I say that I was pleasantly surprised. Upon arriving first thing I noticed were that the grounds were beautiful. Being next to the marina provided for a great view. The rooms were clean and very spacious but for a new hotel the finishings looked quite dated. The food was not nearly as bad [... read more] as we had heard, provided that there was very little variety and got quite redundant after a short while, we never went hungry. One thing we did notice meal after meal was that the food was never hot, luke warm at best and often cold, excluding the made to order pasta, fish, omlettes, and pancakes. The service, however, was top notch, provided they were left with a bit of a tip. The entertainment at the resort was virtually non existent...compared with the shows we have seen at other resorts their nightly shows weren't good enough to capture anyone's attention for longer than 10 minutes and of the 5 nights we were there they only actually had something for one night. Activities by beach/pool also did not follow a schedule so make sure to bring something to pass through time. They do advertise a baby/kids club but maybe considering the time of the year we travelled it would be wrong of me to expect much of anything from this department. There is a small park however that can be used at any time. The beach was beautuful and only a short walk (

Amazing resort with excellent Staff!

I have been to Cuba before and I have to say this is one of the nicest resorts for a resort that has many amenities. Being on the marina makes for a beautiful view as well it feels like you are in another place other than a hotel. The grounds are in excellent condition with more than enough chairs around the pool and the beach area. The walk from the hotel to the beach area would be the same distance as staying at a larger resort and walking from you're room to the resort. It maybe took 5 minute [... read more]s at most and the beach area is very large with a bar and a excellent restaurant. The food at this resort was excellent with tons of variety all with excellent taste. The nightlife is great as there is a 24 hour lobby bar with live music every night and the shows outside are very well done. We stayed here over New years and even though it was very busy on New years eve at the resort, the staff did an excellent job on keeping up with service at all restaurants and bars. This is now one of my favorite resorts and I would highly recommend this resort to someone. Lastly the rooms are very clean and very modern which makes it feel more at home. I would recommend the Marina view as the view is beautiful but be aware that it is noisy till around 10:30 as the shows are on the Marina side and end at 10:30pm. I hope this helps anyone going to this resort as this resort is a 5/5 in my opinion

At best a 3 1/2 star hotel

I was expecting a much better experience with what we were told. A guest we spoke to while we were there said that 2 years ago when it opened it was amazing, great service, great food etc...however it's not like that at all. The resort looks really nice but it's starting to wear as things are not being maintained. Staff is not always happy but that I can deal with. What I can't deal with is the worry of no towels for my room or for the beach. It taking days to get extra pillows. These are things [... read more] you don't want to deal with on a vacation. I also found that the hotel commen areas were not cleaned or maintained. Our entry area to the pool had a garbage that leaked and it was gross and smelly and it took 3 days before it got cleaned up.

Better than the pictures !

Pool was amazing - swim up bar. Loved the beach. Food was good. More of a couples/ family resort. Not much night life. Great service. We loved the mimosas every morning at breakfast. Wouldn't waste your time with the a la carte.

Excellent Resort

Nicely laid out. We stayed in one of the buildings furthest away from the main hotel, and that was merely a 3 to 4 minute walk to get to the lobby of the main hotel. All walking was done inside the compound - you didn't have to walk on the road. Security guards were posted at strategic points of the compound, so all buildings were secured and no outsiders could get in. Our room overlooked the marina, and the view was breathtaking, very similar to the view you see on the hotel's ad. The main lob [... read more]by was huge and nicely laid out, and so was the pool. From there, maybe a 4 minute walk to the beach. But if you wanted, there was a shuttle golf cart coming by every 2 minutes to take you there. And again, this very short ride is within the compound. At the beach, you can walk for miles and miles in either direction, swim, etc. Not sure about the other hotels, but the Melia provided both a restaurant and a bar right there. No locals trying to hustle you into buying something, etc. Great food at the buffet. Lots, too much to mention. And when the buffet was closed, there was a snack bar at the pool that offered burgers, hot dogs, fries, etc. So there you go, food, 24 hours round the clock. The people were nice and every night there was some sort/form of entertainment. Also, because this is a recently renovated resort, or brand new - I am not sure which one, the condition of our room reflected just that: no cracks in the tiles/floor, no mould/odor, ac working good, endless hot water, beautiful balcony, excellent water pressure in the shower, no cockroaches/family, depending who you are. So all in all, I would have to say that Fred Pongracic, you were right. For the money, this hotel was the best choice. Though I have not visited any of the other hotels/resorts, they would have to be that much better to justify me paying upwards of 100 dollars, and I feel that Melia was that good.

Beautiful Resort

Such a beautiful resort, the staff were amazing .. especially Daniel and the food was much better than I imagined. The overall trip exceeded our expectations by far! we will definitely be back again and would highly recommend this resort.

Great resort

We enjoyed all aspects of this resort. We chose Cuba for the beaches and were not disappointed. They are beautiful. We could walk for a very long ways. The food was very good at the Buffet and the a la carte restaurant's were special.

I'd go back!

9th trip to Cuba, 2nd trip to Varadero. Overall I would recommend this resort more for families/couples than single people. Originally had booked the apartment all inclusive. Upgraded with ease to "The Level" 6 days @ 265 CUC extra. Made the room closer to all the amenities, access to the 24hr snack bar and restaurant on the 7th floor, unlimited a la cartes (I only made it to the Cuban = was good) and unlimited Internet.  I say unlimited Internet but you just didn't have to pay for the Interne [... read more]t cards that allow you 1hr of use... logging on was still a pain. No fault of the resort as it's all that's permitted in Cuba. People asked if it was worth the upgrade? It really depends on the person... there were no lineups at the level restaurant that was kinda nice... so pros and cons. Overall maintenance of the resort was good... there are constant upgrades being done. The room I had was facing the pool so was kinda nice to see what was going on before heading down. I found the bed was good there were 2 beds in my room so one was used as a staging area. There was no lack of hot water once you figure out what side is hot.... not all the labeling is correct but not a big deal either. The drinks were good & always cold... never watered down like other countries.... never heard anyone ask for a double! I did head down to the beach to take a couple pics but was myself so never went in the water. The beach itself was a course sand not like the white powdery sand I have experienced in other beaches of Cuba. There wasn't a night club or disco on the resort so if you live for that you may be disappointed but can take a short trip to Varadero for the nightclub experience. There's an on site bank to exchange money.... don't take US funds as you will get a very poor exchange rate. Take a travel mug for cold drinks as the pool/beach bars only give you little plastic cups that are about 300ml. So you're constantly asking for another and they don't keep cool. I found that, if you can, take a Bluetooth rechargeable speaker to give away.... I only took a good one, so I didn't want to give it away but will take a cheaper one to give away next time. I was asked by 3 resort workers if i wanted to sell it. USB thumbdrives make good tips too. I found the resort staff to be friendly and very helpful with any issues or concerns. The other guests can really make or break a trip I found. We are all there on vacation, unless you're lucky and we're there work related? I heard lots of complaints from other people comparing Cuba to other countries not effected by the trade embargo. In all honesty, I like Cuba for that fact.... no greasy fast food joints on every corner. I have a lot of respect for these people & how hard they work for few rewards. In the end value for money paid is very good.... I would advise this resort to anyone who needs a break and wants some sun!

Ok

The guide in the bus was impolite, saying to one client, if she wants to do her job, because she was commenting about the water. She tells that we should go to the information session, because the session guy is taking his time and it will disrespectfull, not to show up! And to tip the driver, because he stays late to drive us. The room smells humid. Food was good, beach and pool great, Be Carefull ! Rape drug???? Make sure you bring back the beach towel, they will charge you 32$.

Good resort

Rooms needed some work. The sheets were dirty, the pillowcases were dirty, and the room would make loud banging noise whenever you ran the water in the shower or used the toilet. We got the level room so I expected something a little better. The front desk check in girl was not very friendly upon our arrival. Our key cards also did not work when we came back from dinner and we had to go back to the front desk 3 times. What made up for the initial disappointment was how amazing the service staff  [... read more]at the resort was. We arrived after dinner service was done but since it was our first night, they accommodated us and the chef cooked us an amazing lobster dinner. The excursions that the sunwing rep booked for us was amazing. We did the jeep safari and the catamaran tour. Each tour ran on time and the tour guides we had were fun and knowledgeable and really knew how to show us a good time. The bar staff made delicious drinks and there was never a long wait. The pool was nice and not crowded at all. Plenty of chairs to lie down in. The food at the main buffet was good and the levels restaurant has a really nice view. Wasn't impressed with the other a la carte restaurants. The food at the buffet was way better. On our last day, I also paid for a later check out since our excursion ended after our original check out time. When we came back, our key cards didn't work again. So we had to go back to the front desk to get it fixed. Overall I still had an amazing time, and I would come back. Just hope they improve the quality of the rooms and the front desk staff.

Beautiful resort

The hotel was beautiful,everything was clean. The staff was very helpful and happy to help you in all your needs.Our maid Yaimi was very good and our room was always clean.The waitress,Mariuska, in the lobby bar was always there when you needed a refill. and Leonordo our bell boy got us where we wanted to go on the resort. I was a great trip and a wonderful experiance.

Top notch resort

Rooms are very clean with plenty of water pressure. Food was always good to excellent. Staff were very friendly and helpful. Our entertainment was cancelled due to the passing of Fidel, so the resort was a little quiet. The marina is very clean with many nice shops would definitely go again

Wonderful stay

The resort was very nice. The rooms were clean and more than adequate for our needs. The food was repetitious at the buffet and the hot dishes usually warmish at best. The presentation was good though. The three specialty restaurants were good and we especially enjoyed the oriental one. We went on the Havanna day tour and had an informative day. We also took the hop on and off bus to Veredaro for 5 cucs. Fun. The nightly entertainment was excellent, especially the singers and musicians in  [... read more]the lobby.

Melia Marina Varadero

This hotel is very nice. Great view of the marina, nice rooms and lobby, great nightly entertainment in the lobby. Good drinks and service. Buffet food very repetitious and not hot enough. Rooms were very clean and maid service was prompt.