Enjoyable

What I enjoyed the most about the resort was the layout. I enjoyed the main common area with restaurants, bars, pools and games. This was surrounded by palm trees and several smaller buildings which housed accomodations. Each building with rooms was three stories high and housed I am guessing twelve rooms each. It made for a nice quiet private relaxed setting which to me looked quite exotic. The food was on the plain side but good. There was plenty of variety, everything was fresh, th [... read more]ere were enought dishes that were flavourful that I was more than satisfied. The beach was nice, with soft sand and warm clear water. There was plenty of entertainment. While this is not a big thing for me it was good. Drinks were plentyful and generally good. My only complaint is I do like margaritias and thought I would be able to get a decent one in Cuba. Unfortunately this was not the case and the two that I did have were not great as there were no limes or margarita mix despite there being tequila.

Pleasant

It would have been a better stay if the rooms weren’t so out dated. We did not have drinking water in the room after the 3rd day to the last. Pillows did not smell right, we stopped receiving fresh towels on day 3 also. The water to the building shut off a few times including the morning were getting ready to leave. That was an inconvenience.

Never Going Back

The negative: They ran out of toilet paper frequently. The rooms are old/tired and not cleaned very well. We had to ask the maid to clean the sink, taps and mirror in the bathroom. Floors not swept or washed. Buffet was not air conditioned. They opened the doors. Food was repetitive. No margarine/butter, syrup, bacon, sausages etc. Lots of complaints from guests. Also there is no place to get food snacks in between meals. The snack bar is supposed to open at 11 am but they don’t open till aro [... read more]und 12 noon. My husband is diabetic and was very tough for him in between meals. The positive: beach is beautiful. Resort well laid out. Chairs comfortable, and the shows were great. We have been to Cuba a few times so we know what to expect. This resort was disappointing to say the least.

Amazing Staff and Great Resort

In our experience, the staff was extremely helpful, attentive, and friendly! The resort was clean, the room was comfortable, and there was always a place to eat and grab a drink. It was beyond our expectations! We plan to return.

Hola cuba!

Loved the tropical feel and very clean grounds. Staff is fantastic especially the beach staff and reception. Air transit staff at resort(Risci) was very helpful and friendly. Cuban people are fantastic. Very one should try Cuba!

Great time

This is a great resort for Cuba. Room o.k. Maid service great. Plenty of hot water. Water pressure was great. Had enough towels everyday . Air conditioner was working just fine. No lock on balcony but was very hard to open. No blackout curtains. No big deal there. Not a far walk to anything. Staff was wonderful. Lot's of entertainment on beach and pool. Disco was fun. Plenty to drink. Food was good. Never left hungry. Never used the gym but only opens at 9.00. Not a lot of lighting at  [... read more]night. Ocean was over the top beautiful. Beach is perfect. Around noon there were no more chairs. Also at the pool. This is Cuba you read the reviews and may be already been to Cuba. So you know what to expect. If you want luxury pay for it. I paid under $1100.00 and was very very pleased with my stay. Remember you get what you pay for. I had a blast and will be going back.

Some issues….

The grounds were well kept and the food is what you expect from Cuba however I do have a few concerns. The in room safe did not work, the rain shower head was a great idea however it leaked out the top and had damaged the plaster. The vent for the A/C was covered in mold (really bad). The fridge in the room was NEVER stocked and you had to beg for bottles of water. The draft taps hardly never worked and there was no option for canned beer in lieu. The cleaning staff didn’t sweep the floors, [... read more] they simply made the beds. The gym opened at 9 AM, a little late for my liking considering breakfast was served til 10 AM. Stores on site close way to early. The staff did do a great job keeping guests entertained. My GF and I made the best of it but in this current financial climate I can see people being upset with the cost of a vacation and the quality you receive in return.

Tired resort

Pros-beach and pool were great;most staff were friendly and helpful; the grounds were clean and well maintained Cons-buildings are tired looking and in need of upgrades; constantly running out of supplies (towels, water, butter, beer, liquor (other than rum), hot water, very little change to the offerings at the buffet Definitely not a 5 star any more!!

A lovely getaway

Nice pool, nice beach, surprisingly good food (fresh fish everyday!) While there were a lot of repetitions with regards to rice and egg dishes, the chef attempted to introduce variety, especially in presentation, from day to day. The rooms were spacious, but could have benefited from more storage areas, especially shelves in the bathroom. There were some minor maintenance issues: lights that didn't work out, sliding doors that didn't slide, but overall cleanliness was good. The staff were  [... read more]friendly and helpful. the resort was operating under reduced capacity due to covid precautions. This meant limited theatre and not all the al a carte restaurants were open, but that was fine with us. We did NOT enjoy the rowdy Ontario university students who were there for reading week, but that isn't the fault of the hotel.

Perfect beach

The resort layout and exterior appearance were very nice. . Rooms were very clean, but just needed a bit of updating. Especially the door locks, safes, and bathroom fixtures needed updating. Staff were friendly, but were very busy and it seemed like they needed a bit more training. The beach was the best part of being at this resort.

Good Resort

Arrived at the Varadero Airport, located our shuttle bus. After waiting on the bus for over 1hr and only 5 passengers on the bus at this time. I confirmed the number of passenger that we were waiting for, which was 49. I then asked " are we waiting for other planes to land to fill this bus ? The representative confirmed that this was correct. I told her that " I will take a cab and remove my luggage at this time. The other passengers standing outside also wanted to hitch a ride, however t [... read more]hey were not staying at the same location. Arriving at the resort was less than welcoming as they were not expecting us until 4pm, The guard did not want to allow the cab driver through the gate to the resort, they exchanged some words in Spanish and we were allowed entry. We arrived shortly after 12pm. The woman at the front test proceeded to explain that us ladies were trouble makers and we were extremely early and they were not expecting us at that time. She did however allow us use of the resort, we did not receive instruction where anything was located in the resort. This was not an issue as the resort is small and you can find everything you need on your own. The entertainment was great and the staff work really hard to show you a good time. We always found something to eat on the resort and we had no complaints, The woman that made our omelette every morning was fantastic, and the servers are very friendly. The beach was amazing. The Cleaning service was overall good, take face clothes because they do not provide. They always provided fresh towels and water everyday. Overall! We had a blast and would recommend this hotel, and would come back again.

Awesome stay

Just got back and it was a great time. Good was good, the rooms were redone and nice. The entertainment staff and all other stuff are super friendly they remember your name all week. The only bad stay was the flight.. won’t take swoop again.

Disappointing Accommodations and service

This hotel is definitely not Iberostar quality. From the moment we arrived at the hotel the experience was not what i expected. I would rate this place at 2.5 stars at the very most. My family and i have travelled to Cuba many times prior to Covid and have had awesome vacations but this was the worst experience ever and i wish we had not spent our vacation fund money for this. Not sure if i will go back to Cuba again. Also disappointed in Trip Central as the travel agent suggested this hote [... read more]l as one of the best in Varadero. First time booking with Trip Central and likely the last. ARRIVAL - there was no one there to welcome us to the resort nor was there anyone to help us with our luggage off the bus upon arrival. Should have been my first hint of the disappointing experience. ACCOMMODATIONS: Our rooms were dirty, run down, furniture was old and broken. The rooms were stinky and smelled very musty and moldy. We moved rooms on Day 2 and although the furniture was somewhat better the shower and sink did not drain very well so we had to turn the water on and off during showering. The hotel seemed very tired and run down. FOOD & DRINK: There were definite shortages of alcohol and food. There was only Rum and Beer on the menu which we drink neither. Often the resort would run out of mix. I am shocked since this is an all inclusive. The food was pretty much pork, inedible beef, and one type of fish. There was no variety and again the resort would run out of food on a daily basis. My daughter lived on cheese buns and cucumbers for the entire 10 days. We had to go out for dinner several nights to enjoy a nice meal. The "a la cart" dinners were the same thing as the buffet only presented a little nicer. Again disappointing. STAFS: The front desk staff appeared unhappy and not very friendly. We had to stalk them for bottled water and toilet paper on a daily basis. The other resort staff were ok but again not what i have experienced in the past. This was my daughters first vacation that she has paid for on her own after years of saving. She was very upset and the first half of our 10 day vacation was ruined by the disappointing experience. Definitely not going to this hotel chain in the future.

Really good, really bad

The food was the best of 8 resorts I've stayed at in Cuba. Nice modern shower. Nice layout of the grounds. There was no hot water. Little bugs in the hotel room. I would stay there again. I don't care for swoop. Had to pay$70 each way for luggage each person.

Great time at the Iberostar Alameda!

Just returned from a 10-day stay at the Iberostar Alameda with a friend and we both travelled using the Solo Air Transat package, having our own rooms. Overall it was a great resort and we had a wonderful time. Accommodations: Nice rooms, we were on the 2nd and 3rd floor which they graciously assigned in #19 which was close to the beach, terrace and restaurants - thank you Wendy! The rooms are spacious, the bed comfortable, working safe and the bathroom was wonderful. Ladies, don't bother [... read more] bringing special hair dryers or flat/curling irons as there is only one plug in the washroom attached to their dryer which will only accommodate an electric shaver. The bedroom does not have any mirrors close to electrical outlets. My lights were out one night and the technicians came by instantly to fix the issue - this was amazing. The rooms need a thorough cleaning but all in all, the room was great. Beach: Beautiful beach and no issue getting chairs underneath a hut umbrella. There are some rocks further in the ocean but not harmful or sharp. Entertainment: Fantastic. Every evening on the terrace there is a band and a show or disco following. This was excellent! Entertainment at the pool during the day as well however, we are beach people. There were activities on the beach as well if you wish to participate. Food: No complaints - the food was great and plentiful. Breakfast had a wide variety, with eggs, omelets, pancakes, yogurt, cereal, fruit, cheese/cold cuts and the pastries were very good. Lunch equally as good and included veggies, salad, rice (of course) fish, porchetta and hamburgers. Dinner at the restaurants served good food, particularly the Italian. Staff: This is the best part - the staff are absolutely fantastic. Everyone made an effort to accommodate us in every way. From bartenders, to entertainment staff, the hotel reception, maids and waitresses who made our stay extra special. Grounds: The grounds are beautiful and the gardeners do a great job of keeping it well maintained. The buildings on the most part look okay however, the stairs in our building were loose and not stable or secured properly to the floor, and the outdoor stairwell walls could use a paint job. This resort has lots of potential and hopefully, it can be restored. Overall: I would return and recommend this hotel and will give it a 4 star because of cleanliness in the rooms and maintenance required. A great trip overall. Thank you to everyone at the Iberostar Alameda!

Decent Resort With Flaws

I stayed at Playa Alameda at the end of January, 2023. It is the fifth resort I have stayed at in Cuba and I will rate it against the other similar 4-5 star resorts. Pros: -well maintained landscape, grounds and freshly painted exteriors of buildings -pool well maintained -great staff -better than average entertainment -cigar bar Cons: -no swim-up bar(s) -NO RYE WHISKEY! -rooms are tired and need upgrading; my mattress was worn out -hit & miss hot water in room -poor response time  [... read more]by staff to issues in room (e.g. locked out of safe) -1/2 of the pool area was approximately 18" deep -no VIP bars or sports bar Overall, I had an enjoyable visit. The gym is important to me. All hotel gyms in Cuba seem to have problems maintaining their cardio equipment and this one was no exception but I was able to get in good workouts there. What was very concerning was that there was not an adequate means to clean off the equipment after use. No anti bacterial spray or liquid provided. No paper towels. On occasion, you would be provided a cloth towel. The food was ok for Cuba. No bacon, orange juice or maple syrup for breakfast. For one week of my two week stay, there was no diet cola for mix. The lack of adequate usable pool area, swim up bar and rye whiskey would prevent me from returning to this hotel regardless of price. When your clientele is 70%+ Canadian, you do what you have to do to get rye whiskey! I WOULD RATE THIS HOTEL A 3 STAR OUT OF FIVE

Pretty

The hotel is pretty just needs some upgrades. The hotel staff were so lovely and accommodating from the buffet to the beach staff, always willing to assist however the front desk staff not so pleasant. Toliet paper was always missing everywhere on the resort

Great Resort

We were very impressed with this resort. The grounds were very clean. The rooms were not too bad. The beach was very clean and had many available umbrella spots. The beach was beautiful as ever. Cuba is known for these beautiful beaches. The food was good. We found the food tastier and there seemed to be an abundant amount and quality of food. There was entertainment around 8:30 pm every evening on the front patio area followed by entertainment at the grand Theatre area around 9:30 pm. Most of a [... read more]ll, the staff was very nice and always willing to help in any way they can. We were very happy with this vacation. People always need to come to Cuba and enjoy the beauty of the beaches and the people. They should not be thinking that they are going to find what they have at home. They need to come with an open mind. Enjoy your vacation and recommend this resort.

Below expectations

I found most aspects of this resort to be below standard or at least below expectations. From the start, the hotel reception staff seemed indifferent and often bothered that we had arrived. Simple requests, like requesting a bottle of water, having wifi activated in the room, etc, were returned with furrowed brows and no response. No one took the time, to show the resort but pointed to the map drawing (illegible) propped on a dirty display on lobby counter. Was given a key and had to figu [... read more]re out where the building and room were. We had to wait 24hrs for the next scheduled Sunwing rep appt session in order to get some perspective on the resort. At which time he really only offered ppl info on what to do if you’re traveling outside the resort. Rooms were dated and dirty. Maintenance staff were inconsistent, walk through rooms in dirty outside shoes, didn’t always change sheets/towels and spent a lot of time yelling at each other across rooms and buildings. The resort was very noisy all day with constant 90’s dance music playing at all times. Food was mediocre and service and service same. The lady who booked dinner reservations was unhelpful, didn’t speak English and petitioned me to buy Canadian coins, twice. All went from average to worse, following the delayed flights at the end of vacay.

Nice place to spend a week or. more.

Beautiful grounds, well maintained, clean. the beach is perfect. The staff is polite and friendly. Rooms are comfortable but need some maintenance. The food is variable and well presented, always fresh. The service is well organized.