Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Great - but....

The hotel itself does not maintain the same level of cleanliness as it did only a year ago. The beach is fantastic - no seaweed no rocks, just beautiful. The food - they closed the pizza snack bar and you are now having to eat with all others at the main snack bar. There were many flies in the buffet. The selection is OK - there should be more variety in the food. There is no parmesan cheese and no hot peppers or hot chillis. The pool was great - however the pool bar was murky and dirtly  [... read more]- first time I have seen this!!!!!!!!! BUT I still love the place and the people.

Playa Vista Azul: Better than I expected.

Here a couple of things I enjoyed about the resort: The staff was really friendly and helpful The room was well kept The food although was not that great (not enough flavour or not warm enough) The resort should have more activities for young adults.

Paradisus Varadero: Not Fabulous

We were told Paridisus was the best resort in Varedero. At first I was very disappointed, but than I just got over it because the beach was so amazing. We did The a family concierge. Rooms were very nice, flat screen tv, robes, comfortable beds. Service was pathetic. You couldn't call from your room 90% of the time. Nobody would answer. We got there and our concierge barely had a minute to tell us anything about the resort and said all the reservations were full for that night and to call [... read more] in the morning. In the morning, they said it was all booked again, for that night. We finally got in, the 3rd and 4th nights, and restaurants were not even full. You could not get a fresh towel. The whole resort was out of beach towels. I had to fight to get one for each of our family members, and we held onto them like gold, because they had no replacements the whole time. The food was pretty bad. We figured out what we could eat and stuck to that. Most people at the resort all felt the same way, but the beach made it worth it. Oh...the walk from the Family Concierge section to the beach was like 10 min. It was very hard to get a shuttle. I prob would not go back to this resort, but I did feel fortunate about how nice the rooms were, so maybe it is the best option in VAredero. Hard to say.

Hotel Bella Costa: Awful vacation

Hope reading this review will help others in selecting their next vacation. Airport transfer went well, $5 for 2 Beers. Check in at resort is at 3pm. This resort does not offer free wifi, wifi cards are sold $1.50 per 1 hour. This is a Cuban owned resort, A lot of locals visit this resort, with a higher percentage of locals visiting in July/August. Locals Cubans are rude, they do not stand in line, they bud to the front of line, they make themselves priority. Around the pool, in shaded areas, t [... read more]hey reserve entire tables and chairs although most of the day their families are in the pool. The pool is filled with chlorine to the point of you smelling the chlorine. The beach is wonderfull. The Hop on Hop Varadero beach tour bus off bus stop is about 30 minute walk from resort. Don't waste your hard earned money going here, go elsewhere!

Melia Marina Varadero: Very clean resort

All was good the resort was very clean. Most of the staff did not seem to know what was going on. We couldn't find one evening show which was disappointing. The food was horrible. Staff need to practice proper hand washing procedures. The flight home was delayed 9 hours with no explanation. Overall the trip was relaxing and it was good quality time with my daughter.

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Not a 5 star

Hotel not as advertised. Definetly not a 5 star. 3 max. Had 2 rooms. 1 room no working A/C , fridge broke but they fixed, Room 2. Fan not working, closet door broken, toilet broken but fixed No bathroom at the beach Bathroom at the pool out of toilet paper constantly Bathroom in lobby out of toilet paper constantly Rooms not cleaned very well or at all. often they took the towels and didn't replace them. Twice put in the tub to change them and they just hung them back up. Mea [... read more]ls were not very palatable. Everything was deep fried or extremely greasy. No healthy options Pools great Bar tenders, buffet staff great Beach beautiful Restaurants ok nothing special

Hotel Bella Costa: would not recommend this resort

my travel agent spoke highly of this resort, and we walked in with expectations: 1. the room looked old and needed serious renovation. the ceiling look like it was ready to crumble and fall. the light fixtures would occasionally function. the beds felt like stuffed hay. the blankets and pillow sheet were never replaced. I requested two towels because I had to attend dinner at a certain time, so we waited four hours til we received our towels. I had to call three times. very aggravating. 2. [... read more] the elevators were slow and need serious repairs on the air conditioning and ventilation. people were constantly complaining about how stuffy and hot it was inside the elevator 3. the main lobby and bar lounge was very uncomfortable because of no air condition. the weather outside was extremely hot during the day and evening. people again were complaining about the lack of air circulation and cool condition in the building. 4. the food was bland, no real flavour, and was basically the same meal in the morning and evening. the food service was slow and unorganized. 5. the beach, pool and bar area was the only exciting part of the resort and its outdoor activity, however, the area was mostly populated by families with kids, we were hoping a little peace and adult surrounding. we spent almost our whole trip outside the resort. overall, I would not recommend anyone this resort. scale 1-10, I give it a 4.5

Paradisus Varadero: Okay resort. Good staff.

The beach was very nice. The staff was friendly, but limited on the communications skills. Do not, Do not book the Mexican restaurant. The service was terrible and the food was marginal. I recommend the Japanese restaurant. As for food, the variety is limited based on local supply/resources. The management and staff do try their best in presenting the locally sourced food as best they can. As for excursions, we tried three. 1) {best} was the AirTransat agent arranged Jeep tour. [... read more] It was a good outing. They use new BAIC BJ40 SUV (Beijing Jeep B40). They are nice machines. They are 5 speed manuals. The one I drove was new, for the clutch was still a bit stiff, but it was responsive. The off-road trailing was basic. I expected as much given the general clientele. Definitely do the cave swim. A big thank you to our guides Pedro and Ramone. 2) {good} Personal organized taxi trip to Habana (Havana). Our guide, Yeni, tried her best to meet the expectations of all six of our party. Thank you! :) I do not recommend the "flea market" stop though. While there are many booths at the market, they are very repetitive. 3) {worst} Catamaran snorkel trip to Blanco Cayo. Waste of an expectation. We were allowed 30 minutes to snorkel (no flippers). You get 2 hours at the beach on Blanco Cayo. As it was a hot time of the year when we went, it was a waste. The lunch provided on Blanco Cayo was good. As we left port, I asked the captain of the catamaran if we would be motoring or sailing on the excursion. He told me once out of the channel, we would use the sails. Not true. Only head sail was deployed on the return trip and the motors were used on the full trip. :( I recommend more time for snorkeling and less time on the beach at Blanco Cayo. Air travel: I would not book AirTransat again. They do not keep their arranged schedule. Both our flight down and back were delayed. Also, on the flight down, insist that the flight crew give you a visa form for each of the persons in your party (family). If you do not, Cuban customs will charge you $$$ for each extra one needed. Do not take the excuse from the flight crew that they ran out. This happened to the family traveling with us. We were in the forward rowed seats on the plane and received ours; while they were further in back and were shorted. During our check in orientation with the AirTransat representative at the resort, we were told after check out (12 noon on last day, and the management was insistent) we would be able to have towels available and a place to clean up, so we may use the beach or pool during the afternoon. There were no towels or resources made available to us. We had to languish around in the heat of the resort lobby for many hours. Our airport shuttle was not originally arrange until 6:00PM for a 10:30PM flight. That changed and we ended up with a 2 1/2 hour delay. We did not leave the resort until 8:30PM. For me the trip was okay, and I might be inclined to return to Cuba during the winter months. My wife stated she does not want to go back at all. Did not care for the food or the general service.

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: 2 Star Downgrade

This was my third stay at this hotel. The first two times it was definitely a 5 star hotel. I raved about it to everybody that there is a good hotel in Cube with good food. Well, unfortunately, two years later that is not the case. Still not a bad hotel but far from 5 stars, I would say 3 stars. If you want a 5 star experience go somewhere else but if you are ok with 3 stars this is a viable option. Here is a list of problems: - Check in was slow process - Buffet food was below average,  [... read more]a la carte was average and sometimes a bit more than average - Property grounds not well maintained - Dead bird in front of my patio all week, never picked up - They ran out of fresh beach towels several times - At lunch pasta line with one person in front of me I waited 20 minutes! - At beach lunch restaurant only 2 girls serving, the poor ladies were running around trying to make everybody happy. We waited a long time but not their fault, management understaffs this restaurant - They took away the BBQ grill from the beach restaurant - Beach restaurant has a small menu to start with, the day I was there they had no hamburgers, no chicken and served me my hot dog on a hamburger bun!!!! - AC was very low - Had to call 3 times for bath towels - Had to wait for bath towels on 2 separate days out of 5 - I needed a late checkout, long story short we got 4 different prices from 4 different people at front desk. Price range was from free to $60CUC - The final disappointment was taking a taxi to the airport it cost me $25CUC to get to the hotel but the taxi that came to get me to bring me back wanted $50CUC!!! NOTE TO HOTEL MANAGEMENT DO NOT LET THESE DRIVERS ON HOTEL PROPERTY IF THEY ARE GOING TO RIP OFF YOUR GUESTS!!!! As the driver was leaving he passed the other driver (the drivers wait just outside the property line) and they shared a smile when he told his friend he got $50CUC out of me. Thank you Paradisus for letting these scammers onto your property. Thank you for not protecting your clients' best interest. Now the good! I do want to give a special shout out to the crew at the Piano Bar, Yaddi and Yusmilla. They are the piano player and the server just in case I am not spelling their names properly. These two are awesome and is one of the main reasons we returned to the hotel. Another shout out goes to the pool bar staff, they are 5 star quality. They are quick, friendly and remember your drinks. The three in particular are Barby, Diane and Mario! I hope this helps!

Sanctuary at Grand Memories Varadero: Beach beautiful

Hotel needs lots of work Showers are so bad water everywhere . Food in restaurants is not great so we end up eating at Grand Memories buffet.. Not worth the money at Sanctuary. Grand memories would of been ok. Next time different resort.

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: relaxing vacation

the resort was good, service was good most of the times. the only bad experience that I had was on the last day, we had a day trip and when we came back to the resort, the person at the front gave us a room to use to take a shower as we already checked out. however, they didn't realize the book was booked by another person. so it ended up that person keep knocking the door while we were taking a shower. the resort needs to be more organized on that and make sure the room is not double booked.

Roc Arenas Doradas: Really an amazing resort!

I had a wonderful time in Arenas Doradas. The beach is fantastic, the food was rich, organic and very tasty, there was entertainment every evening, the staff was friendly and helpful. The gardens and parks are well maintained and beautiful.

Paradisus Varadero: what a heart breaking waste of holiday time

FIRST RESORT IS BEAUTIFUL...THE ROOMS IS AMAZING....WORST FOOD EVER...LACK OF FOOD....UN SANITARY, UNSAFE FOOD CONDITIONS MILLIONS OF FLIES BIRDS POOPING O N BUFFETT...NO JUICE, NO BREAD, NO BACON, NO POP, NO SPOONS, NO ONE ASKS TO FILL YOUR DRINK...2 DAYS NO TOWELS....GOT SICK FOR 4 DAYS..HAD TO LEAVE RESORT TO EAT 3 NIGHTS...I AM WELL TRAVELLED THIS IS THE SORRIEST EXCUSE OF A 5 STAR EVER...PLEASE DO NOT PROMOTE I SPENT MOST MY VACATION UPSET AND HUNGRY...STAFF AGREED THE KITCHEN BUDGET WAS  [... read more]TOO THIN....EXAMPLE ...BREAKFAST....FRIED HOT DOGS, CARROTS. FRENCH FRIES, RUNNY EGGS, NO BREAD , NO JUICE ONLY ONE JUG OF WARM WATERMELON JUICE...I COULD GO ON AND ON...THIS RESORT WAS THE ONLY BAD EXPERIENCE I HAD IN CUBA OVER THE YEARS...FEEL TOTALLY RIPPED OFF AND LIED TOO.

Roc Barlovento: Great Value for Money, Lovely Resort.

There are many reviews around on other websites so I don't want to repeat too much but I would like to say first off that the staff and this resort in general really do everything they can to give you a good time, it is not the hotels fault or staff if you're not in the mood for whatever that day... They put in 110%. The staff work extremely hard and the resort is a credit to that. The buffet was plentiful and the food was good, sometimes it was even great. The coffee was fabulous. Rooms w [... read more]ere clean, air conditioning was great and the water pressure and temperature of the shower was much better than home. Beach was A*, pool area was wonderful. Seemed to be all new sun shades around the pool area, very nice quality. We went on some nice well priced trips organized initially by the lovely lady that sits in the lobby at the tour desk daily. Entertainment was beyond amazing, the Magic Show and the Aqua Ballet especially. But the 'in house' entertainment was also very good. Great position for the Market, Atm and bank in the other direction only a few minutes walk. This hotel was at the beginning of Varadero so therefore not in the thick of tourist central but felt very safe and lots to see and do.

Hotel Los Cactus: Great Beach

Beach was great! We were there in low season so lounge chairs were always available. Rooms were large. Only 1 pool but didn't really use it. Food was mediocre as expected. The resort grounds were beautiful with mature plants and flowers.

Melia Marina Varadero: Good resort

Staffs are very nice, rooms are comfortable. Nice beach and Swimming pool... Two things you may need to be considered. 1. Public washroom ( located on the mainfloor) need to be well maintained. 2. Food aren't as good as expected... most of the time same food for lunch and dinner.... not too many varieties.

Hotel Bella Costa: Amazing Experience at the Beach

We just got back from our vacation in Varadero at Hotel Bella Costa. There were 2 adults and 2 children- 17 and 7 years old. If you are not too picky with the hotel and you like the beach, then Hotel Bella Costa is for you. It's our second time in Varadero so we knew what to expect there. The hotel is in need of a complete renovation. There were lots of ants in the room. Then a major problem occurred, on our third day at the hotel, the ceiling in the bathroom started to leak immensely. We phoned [... read more] right away and Magaly (I think she is the reception manager) moved us to another room but on the opposite side of the hall. So from room 516 to room 509. It had a better garden view and a bit of the ocean view! The food was better than the previous hotel that we went to last year. We were actually surprised! We loved to eat lunch at El Mirador because of the amazing view, food and staff- especially Angelo who did an excellent service and made lunch time something to look forward to! We had breakfast at Jimmy's, it was ok. Be early because if not, you have to wait in line for at least 10 minutes for the omellette or if you want to toast your bread. If you want mango juice, you also have to be there early. Dinner at Jimmy's was good because of the pasta guy, we did not get his name, but he makes really good pasta! The Ala carte/restaurants was ok. We enjoyed the Cuban (El Mirador) dinner the most! The Japanese (Munasan) and Italian (Martino's) were ok. Alicia's snack bar makes amazing pizza! For our last day, we had to check out at 12 noon but we asked if we could extend our stay since we were going to get picked up at the hotel at 6pm because our flight was at 9pm. They did not agree but gave us a complimentary room, at no extra cost, so that we can still swim and do whatever we want at the hotel until we leave. That was a plus! We did not use the kids club because my 7-year-old just wanted to stay with us at the beach. But we saw it was open. We did not stay at the poolside because it was so busy and loud! We would like to thank Angelo (El Mirador), Magaly, Hanoi, Ruben and Alberto (lobby bar), Javier the guard and Pablo (the bell boy) for making our stay at Hotel Bella Costa memorable.

Roc Barlovento: Lovely people, great customer service but average resort

The hotel was average, needs a lot of work in places. Food was good for Cuban standards! Beautiful beach and great staff who were always happy to help! The third pool was supposed to be open when we got to the resort but wasn't which was a little disappointing.

Resonance Blu Varadero: 5th time here, last time as well..

Hotel has gone downhill. Apparently there is a 10 year contract and they are almost done the contract, therefore they seem to have stopped caring.. I got married at Memories Varadero in October 2015 and it was beautiful. My spouse and I loved it. They have stopped maintaining it and it's clearly showing. Grounds are not kept as clean as they were. Rooms are outdated and full of mould.. Pools are pretty bad and the excuse was they were out of chlorine. Therefore the pools were neon  [... read more]green, kids swimming and coughing up Band-Aids. It was quite disappointing. Alcohol was always out. Food was still good but the flies and birds were a little too much. They don't take any measures to ensure the flies and birds stop. Overall it was ok but will not likely return..

Muthu Playa Varadero: Amazing resort.

This trip was my birthday gift from my husband and the trip was to go to Varadero so we can go to see the Tropicana Show. We bought the Tropicana Special Trip, which included the Day tour of Havana. A must see show. Very colorful and all the dancers wore a smile on their faces all the time and showed their gratefulness to the audience with so much passion even while performing. Our trip to Havana started at 8:00 am. The tour guide was very help full. She explained very clearly and her Englis [... read more]h was excellent. No problem with the bus driver. Bought freshly made pina colada on the way to Havana. Lunch and dinner was included in the price of the trip. The show started at 10:00 pm, finished at 12:00 midnight, reached at the hotel a little after 2:00 am. And no, no one was drunk coming home on the bus from this trip. Very respectable people of different culture and race on this trip. The beach was very clean. We spent a lot of time at the beach, pool was beautiful. Had no problem with any worker concerned with this resort very humble and polite people at this resort. They did what ever they could to make us very comfortable. However a little problem with the washroom door, but was solved around 15 minutes. We didn't have a problem with food. Lots of variety to choose, so we made do with what there was for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Our trip, my husband and myself would definitely go back and we have family members and friends who want to go and visit Hotel Playa De Oro, Varadero where we stayed. We had a fantastic and very enjoyable holiday also I must say a most heartfelt THANKS to my wonderful husband of 43 yrs of Happily Married Life together for also making this Trip a life time of memories for me.