Decent resort

Compared to another resort I stayed at in cuba, memories resort seemed more outdated. The rooms were old, and the bathtub/shower was awful whatever you do (unless you like noise) do not get a room near the theatre--that's where they have their "disco" until 2am every night. The food was okay, very plain, not a lot of variety, but always lots of fresh fruits & veggies available. The beaches however were simply a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Didn't have a problem getting chairs at the front because we got up very [... read more] early, but this seemed to be an issue for other people. The entertainment was not very good at all, and found the staff weren't to engaging. Overall, I had an amazing vacation because of the beaches that being said, I don't think I would stay at memories again.

Average.

Resort was beautiful but very large so be prepared to do lots of walking. Relatively close to the airport. Food was what is expected in Cuba. There was always a lot available but sometimes the lines are a little long. Lady who makes omelettes was the most friendly. Bring peanut butter, ketchup, hot sauce etc. Staff were friendly and usually helpful. They do expect to be tipped though. We tipped regularly and received great service. We travelled on March Break when there were a bunch of "S-tri [... read more]ps" going on which meant there were a lot of teenagers drinking on the resort. I'd recommend not travelling on March break.

Mixed Feelings...Spring Break!

Beach and pools were great. Rooms OK each had small issues. Food was so-so, always out of something. Resort is very big, look out for electric carts - hey will come close to hitting you! No evening adult bar - over run by drunk 14-17 year olds every where - March Break. Found no difference at any bar whether as an adult you tipped a bartender or whether you were an intoxicated 16 year old

Average to good value

First time to Cuba. I thought the hotel room was adequate. It was large, clean, the bed was comfortable & the AC worked flawlessly. A bit outdated- the faucet was too close to the edge of the sink, so water pressure had to be high to avoid sprinkling, and the bathtub was so high, we had to use a step stool to enter. Not really complaining though... I just thought it was quaint. Cleaning staff (Belkis) was simply amazing. The grounds were well manicured, but some golf cart drivers need customer s [... read more]ervice refresher courses. Beach was awesone, although Lady Sea grabbed by $600 prescription sunglasses on my final day. Food at the various bars, other than the buffet, was atrocious- no spices, under or overcooked, dry, and practically the same thing everyday. Good thing the resort is close to Varadero, where the food is great! Word of caution: don't let Sunwing con you into ugrading to Elite Plus for extra leg room on the flight...you pay to sit at the emergency exits, and they don't tell you it's one way; you have to pay twice!

It was ok

The resort was laid out well with well kept grounds. Check in was smooth. Rooms were dated and in need of repair(not just mine I was in a few and they were all in that state) food safety was horrible, great staff.

Odd glitches and great people...

This two-week vacation in March reminded me of Cuba vacations of about fifteen years ago-- all kinds of infrastructure issues coupled with great staff and hospitality. It's not surprising as this is a very old hotel, one of the first built on the peninsula, still in a state of transition since Memories took it over. It is a huge complex with many colonial-style small three-story buildings scattered over a huge property. The best thing about this vacation was the staff. They were universally plea [... read more]sant and helpful, except when circumstances beyond their control made that difficult, such as when the limited phone infrastructure often prevented us from calling home. Our room attendant, wait staff and the front desk staff were all great. Rooms vary in quality, not necessarily related to price. We travelled with another couple and, although we booked at the same time, paid the same, and both asked for a room with a king-sized bedI, one couple got what was asked for, while the other got two 3/4 beds and a cot, although we had no children with us. It was acceptable, although there was no plug for either the tub or sink (luckily I had brought my own) and the expanse of beds meant little space.. The public space washrooms were a huge problem with missing toilet seats, broken taps, etc, although immaculately clean most of the time. There are many options to choose from for dining and the quality of food was good.. The buffet was huge and noisy, but we had paid for Diamond Club and so had a small air-conditioned (sometimes) room off the main hall. The a la cartes served good stuff but selections were limited. (can you call it an a la carte when there is only one menu option?) The Japanese was out favorite and the Romano evening was fun. We had breakfast or lunch many times at the little snack bars at one or other of the pools. The beach is the usual Varadero perfection and Diamond Club meant we had a separate section with waiter service. The beach was miles from our rooms and the golf cart service was intermittent and unreliable. We liked the "Quiet Pool". No blaring music and close to our room. The other pool has aerobics, loud music, dance lessons, games and a water slide. Enough said. We had a good time.

Good resort

Resort was good. food was good. night shows good. Rooms not so good. Cleaning lady was awesome. All in all you get what you pay for. It was a great family vacation. But i'm not one to return to the same resorts. over all i would say 3 star value.

Memories Varadero :)

This is the second time my wife and I have traveled to Memories Varadero, (Feb.20 - 27, 2015) and all I can is that once again the resort delivers. Amazing staff, beautiful grounds and room. We were in building 34 this year with an ocean view room on the 3rd floor. We had a fantastic maid named Ashley who we just fell in love with. The rooms were very clean, ( we prefer always to book 2nd or 3rd floor ) and the beds are what they are low to the ground and firm but comfortable. Extra pillows are  [... read more]in the closet. The food, very many spots to choose from and they have something for everyone. The staff and groundskeepers are always working hard and do yourself a favor and smile and say hello or Hola to them, a smile goes along way. Thanks Tripcentral for a great vacation!!!

Enjoyed my vacation!

The hotel is getting a little run down, but overall I had a great time. Our rooms were clean, though a little musty from the weather. The food was decent since I had prepared myself for what people said about the food in Cuba! I always found something to eat and did find some enjoyable food. The Italian and Japanese a la carte restaurants were good. The beach wasn't the beautiful white sand beach that everyone has raved about, it was okay. The pool and swim up bar were awesome, lots of activitie [... read more]s at the pool. The entertainment was great day and night. I can't say enough about how friendly and helpful the staff are, both resort and Sunwing people.

Brutal all around

Lets start with the bad -food (one of us got food poisoning) -drinks (no slushy drinks because all the have is small slushy machines and never have a chance to make ice) -rooms (kinda rough shape, and beds suck) -15 min walk for everything -people (door slamed in face for not tipping the guy that brought bags to room ,we didnt exchange any money yet and only had 20's) -delayed 18hrs total with sunwing and with a 5 month old to boot, plus idiots put the luggage on the plane and we couldn't get fo [... read more]rmula for the baby, had to bum some off other people The good -nice beach

Mixed review

Pluses: buffet food better than expected, staff helpful and friendly, grounds well maintained; beach is beautiful Negatives: the rooms are run down and things are falling apart; shower is designed to leak everywhedre; it's a long way from the lobby to the beach; it was cold part of the time we were there and the outdoor jacuzzi is cold water; some of the a la carte restaurants are extremely stuffy and service slow, and food mediocre

Good Value - incredible beach

Large resort - Main buffet was in the lobby (at the entrance) and beach was at the other end, depending on where you stay, this can be quite a walk. We had a beachview suite, facing the ocean, very close to beach chairs, beach buffet & beach BBQ area, worked very well for us (only had to walk to lobby for supper buffet & any other requirements). Too large for us, but if you like a lot of activity & a laid back atitude it's great, or if you're bringing teenagers, or young adults, they will enjoy  [... read more]it. The grounds were clean & the effort was there, but it wasn't as attractive as other places we've stayed. There were a lot of things that were in a state of disrepair, but you could see they were trying to make do. Staff were friendly & helpful. The beach was the winning attribute for us, clean, water was amazing, lots of chairs & papala's. You could walk forever & never be approached by vendors. Food was adequate, large buffet was way too overwhelming for me, but this was in line with the price we paid-comparitive to other resorts. A la cart (Cuban) was pretty bad, the servers were lovely, the Japanese was the best food we ate all week. Liked the smaller buffet at the beach, wish they served supper there as well. Coffee BARS in lobby & beach buffet were great.

Just under 3 star at best

Grounds were run down, paint and upkeep required, service was poor at best, food was ok. A lot of uncooked food. Hotel was very busy(for some reason?) and it was clear they were overwhelmed. Staff was unfriendly, almost seemed like a sense of entitlement.

Good value for money

Definately recommend getting diamond service. Grounds well kept ,beach great lots of chairs although you had to reserve early to get one. Only went to the pool with the slide and found it it to lots of fun. Best restaurants : Mexican and Japanese .Rooms nice although the showers could be renovated. Overall fnd the resort to be too large for our liking. Staff here all friendly except in the main lobby store where we were totally ignored while waiting to pay. Diamond club concierge was the best. H [... read more]ave been to Cuba 7 time and found the food here not that great.

Average resort

The resort is big, great for walkers. Beach is average. Main buffet good, smaller beach buffet, ok. Rooms are clean, towels need to be replaced. Cleaners in rooms are very good with what they have to use.

Had a great time.

Great drinks, beautiful beach, lots to do. The food was not very good so that put a damper on the trip. The Japanese restaurant and mexican were the two good meals we had all week. We also were not that impressed by the shows but many others were.

Very nice 4 star resort

staff very polite and helpful, English speaking no problem, good variety of food, diamond club was a nice bonus, rooms very clean and in nice condition, toilets very slow flushing, drinks cold and plentiful, beach very nice

The resort was beautiful

The grounds were very nice , the public areas most of the fountains were not working and the paint was chipping off , the washrooms some did not work and not flush , the food was good , a lot of the light on the paths of the grounds not working burned out lights , the staff were very friendly and helpful .

Nice resort, nice beach, a lot of walking.

If you don't like walking don't stay here! The resort was nice, we stayed in a suite by the beach and it was nice. food was just ok.. Bring ketchup. Beautiful beach! Entertainment was great! Bank was really slow, some of the women's washrooms didn't have toilet seats or sometimes toilet paper. We did have a great time though!

Great hotel MINUS the Bathrooms throughout

The resort was great. The pools, beach, staff, food, rooms were all fantastic. The only issue with this hotel lies with the horrible care given to the restrooms. There was rarely soap, never paper towels. The urinals is many bathrooms were off the wall or broken. The toilets didn't flush. Some bathrooms didn't have toilet seats. Yet they had time to put flowers on the counters and decorate the counter tops with welcome messages in flowers petals. The worst bathrooms were the one at the big party [... read more] pool. Never clean and urinals out of order. The other disgusting bathrooms was the one closest to the beach in the Mediterranean restaurant. No urinals and very dirty. I would recommend the hotel but something must be done about the bathrooms throughout the resort.