Mar Del Sur: You definitely get what you pay for....

I was at Mar Del Sur over Christmas and had a great time. Excellent staff, decent facilities, plenty of food options and excellent entertainment. Will definitely return. On the negative side, my room was tired looking and could use a renovation.

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Beautiful Resort, Good Food, Nice Rooms

Overall our stay here was very good. We were in the Royal Service section, and it is definitely worth the $$. The restaurants and pool were great. The resort is beautiful, our room was amazing (giant jacuzzi tub) and it was always clean. You often hear about the food not being great in Cuba - we really enjoyed the food here - lots of fresh fish and meat on the grill and breakfast made-to-order. The only complaint I had was about the service. Despite tons of staff, the service at the Lobby Bar  [... read more]in the Royal Service and all of the restaurants was lacking. We usually had to wait forever to get drink orders and unless we flagged them down we were rarely offered refills. At the Lobby bar we'd end up waiting 5 minutes when we were the only people at the bar. We tipped regularly, but that seemed to make no difference in the service. We also tried to order room service - the first time it just never showed up (we waited 2 hours then went out to eat). The second time it came promptly.

Oasis Islazul: Amazing resort

The whole family (2 kids, my wife and I) enjoyed a lot the experience of this resort and it was a very good deal regarding the price. The staff were warm and kind and to all those complaining guests: please do not forget how much you paid and it is a ** not a ***** after all!

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: Absolutely Amazing Resort

We had wonderful vacation at this beautiful resort. The food was enjoyable, as was the entertainment. The only drawback was that there was very limited wi-fi accessibility. The staff was pleasant and the resort was always neat and clean.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: Great resort, both for families and couples!

Beautiful, well-kept resort; clean rooms and public areas. Food better than I expected, lots to choose from. Great evening entertainment and lots of daytime activities. Could find quiet spots for reading also. Loved my vacation!

Resonance Blu Varadero: Wonderful

Sometimes frequent bathroom issues like poor flushing and wet floors and the odd long wait for a drink don't hurt the overall excellent service of this wonderful resort. Amazing time at Memories Varadero. Most of the time I was off-resort anyway experiencing Cuba! The beach was at a prime spot too.

Hotel Villa Cuba: Average hotel near Varadero.

Pretty happy with this hotel. Buffets and restaurant were average, but not disappointing. Reservation system is still lacking and you may be disappointed if you do not stand in line. Beaches and pool are awesome. No troubles with getting a lounge chair. Hotels rooms are falling behind in maintenance and are needing upgrading. Lots of ants. Staff are great and are helpful. Internet cards and availability is sketchy. Villa Cuba ran out of cards for four-six days (lost track) and eventually receive [... read more]d cards for internet access. Overall, Villa Cuba is an older hotel and starting to show, but the staff and the location were good for us. Weather, beach and food were all good.

Melia Marina Varadero: It didn't 'wow' us!

We traveled to this hotel during the Christmas holiday in 2014. The hotel was very clean, the staff was friendly and hospitable. Our housekeeper 'Elaine' was great and ensured we were comfortable at all time. The hotel itself is beautiful and the surroundings lovely. However; we felt the hotel overall was lacking. You were only allowed to attend to two a la carte restaurants during your stay, the main buffet offered the same selection almost everyday. Our Christmas eve dinner was exquisite - the [... read more] presentation was remarkable, there was an array of options and the food tasted great so we knew the hotel was aware of what great food, service and presentation should look like but they choose not to show it on the other 6 days. The entertainment was pitiful - there wasn't a designated area for the night entertainment show so when it rained, you were left with nothing and the actual performers were terrible. The daytime activities were also disengaging and poorly executed. We've been to other all inclusive resorts in Cuba - all 5 Stars and we feel this resort was the most disappointing. We had great expectations about this hotel and were sadly disappointed.

Melia Las Antillas: Not a luxury resort, but nice!

The beach was fantastic, we walked for about an hour along the coast (passing by a few other hotels) and noted that our stretch of sand was the best. Fresh fish in the restaurants - try it! Bring $ to tip for extras (fresh coconuts). Go to this resort if you plan on spending most days at the beach - we didn't even try the pools. Lobby bar is 24/7. Bring bugspray for the evenings (early January). Make reservations for a la carte restaurants as soon as you arrive - inconsistency between what the b [... read more]rochure says / the information that is posted / what the staff say. Then again, it's Cuba. Don't stress about the little things and you'll be fine. Quite a "couple-y" resort, but we made friends with the other travelers that were there in small groups as friends.

Barcelo Solymar: beautiful venue

Grounds were stunning. staff was amazing, hotel could use a paint job and a little updating. The best part of the resort is its location! it is so nice to be able to walk Verodaro beach either way you want!

Resonance Blu Varadero: great time!

Let me just start off by saying the resort is beautiful. Very family friendly. I just wish the employees spoke and understood English a bit more. When I checked in at 10:00pm the room phone and A/C were not functional. By morning both were fixed. I stayed here at the end of last may and again this year Jan 1 to the 8th. The food durrastically improved. My kids didn't have any sickness or complaints. Of course I only allowed them to eat what we were accustomed to back home. Entertainment was grea [... read more]t. Pool beach buffet and restaurant staff were excellent. Minus the language barrier. The only things that were annoying is those little ants crawling all over our bathroom sink and the beach towels were never available when we needed them. I had terrific time with my kids and I will be visiting again! Thank you so much for your hospitality!

Melia Marina Varadero: Awesome Place to Stay

My wife, two young children (3 and 5 years old), and I stayed at Melia Marina Varadero for 1 week around Christmas and it was just what the doctor ordered. We got a room facing the pool and it was clean, quite, and well kept. The beds were comfortable (we had 1 king and a sofa bed) and the four of us did just fine. We were surprised by the TV! We got Disney Junior, a couple Chinese channels, as well as CTV (a Canadian channel). Even though the TV was pretty good, we were too busy outside of the  [... read more]room to watch a lot. I will note: it would have been nice to have more in the mini fridge. We only had 2 pop and 2 beer, but it is understandable as the bar in the lobby was always available and we could get anything we wanted there. The cleaning staff was very attentive and even made some "figures" out of our towels. The room was great for what we needed. The beach was beautiful! Not too deep, the kids went in and had a great time. The beach was clean and well kept. The bar next to the beach kept us cool. Our son spend about 4 hours digging a hole! My wife did some beach side exercises and yoga. It was a great idea! She liked it and took part when we were there. We even had coconuts opened for us near the beach. We really had a relaxing time at the beach. Just FYI the trip to the beach, either cart or by foot, is not too long and is not taxing. Although our kids didn't stay alone in the kids area, we did visit it at different times, and were welcome. The kids enjoyed the sand, playground, and the people there for the kids were kind and pleasant. They cared for the children in their care and always had activities lined up. Our son and daughter were happy and played with others when they were there. For food, we tried the pool side snack bar, buffet, the oriental and latino restaurants. The snack bar was the only one that wasn't very good. The food was bland and so-so. The staff was nice, but the food could be better. The buffet was great. There was variety everyday. The fruit was always fresh, by the end my family was eating guava everyday! With 2 kids, the buffet was a staple and we were happy with it. The oriental restaurant was pretty good. The food tasted good and the servers were pleasant, but the food was a bit slow for a family with small kids. The latino restaurant was really good. They kept up with the kids better and my wife and I enjoyed a good meal (even though the server mixed up my order) the food was really good !! Oh yeah, since we were there for Christmas, the resort did a great dinner in the buffet room on Christmas Eve. The resort and staff went all out. It was really good and there was a lot of fresh seafood, meats, pasta, and even chocolate figures. We were told to bring ketchup, mustard, and relish since these aren't always easy to get in Cuba, but we did fine with these. There was only a couple times I couldn't get ketchup, but that didn't affect our meals. Having said that there were a couple downers. Our bathtub was broken, and although the staff said they would fix it; it was still broken when we left. The shower worked well, but it is hard to shower two little ones. Also, one time when we requested toilet paper it took 3 hours to get it. We had to call to the front desk twice, but we eventually got it. Just something to keep in mind. Regarding our tour company, Canjet, their representative was hard to get in touch with during our stay. We set up a trip to Havana with the tour agent in the lobby, because our Canjet tour agent was only around for 2 or 3 hours in the afternoon. I mention this because our Canjet agent told us to work through her to set these things up. In addition, it would have been nice to have a better book store as well: I wanted a copy of a local English paper (really just for something to read), but all I could find were papers that were 2 or 3 months old. I know there were books available, but when you have 2 young kids a newspaper is better. Overall, we had a great time at Melia Marina Varadero. We needed a family vacation to relax and unwind, and yes even with kids we were able to do it. Even with a week there were a couple activities we didn't get around to, so yes we are already planning and looking forward to another trip to Cuba at the end of 2015. And yes we are going to go back to Melia Marina Varadero. It is a great place for families with young children. The staff was pleasant. The food was good as well. Thanks Melia Marina, you did a great job.

Hotel Los Cactus: Great trip but everything is "Okay"

I've have been to one other resort in Punta Cana which was also a 4 star so I'm basing my review in comparison to that. First, I had a great time the weather was great and my travel companions made everything we did from waiting in the airport to waiting for a table at the buffet a blast. However, when I reflect on my experience at Ocean Blue everything at Breezes Varadero was just not as good. Not that it was bad, just not as good. The positives: - Entertainment staff were excellent, they did  [... read more]a great job trying to get people out of their chairs and have some fun. - There didn't seem to be much of a line to order drinks - Room was very clean, good air conditioning, quite comfortable - Beach is amazing, beautiful white sand, very clean - Could always find a lounge chair on the beach - Burgers at the Beach bar (but where are the nachos, popcorn, chips, or something else to snack on? I would have loved some plantain chips) The negatives: - Compared to Punta Cana the food just wasn't great. The A La Cartes were pretty good but still nothing like I had in Punta Cana. I'm not very picky at all and I really like to eat but I never felt inclined to go for seconds. - Everything is a bit weathered - Gym was missing a lot of equipment, some didn't work - No swim-up bar - Some friends in a different block clearly had some issues with mold/musty smell in their room The could go either ways: - Not a lot of people at the resort (could be a + for some) - Definitely not a party resort Depending on the experience you want to have and what you are willing to spend I would recommend this resort to someone who doesn't care much about food and just wants to relax all day on the beach.

Hotel Bella Costa: Staff is excellent!

We had a large group all family members ranging from 4-65 yrs. the hotel was comfortable in a great area and the staff was extremely accommodating. The beach was in close proximity and was gorgeous. The kids enjoyed the water sports and really loved the crew that ran the boats etc. Our maid was wonderful everyone loved her and the staff for dinner upstairs at Jimmy Buffets was excellent and entertaining . The shows were fun and the food good for Cuba. The only complaint we would have would be th [... read more]e lunch was very busy downstairs at the buffet the lines sometimes too long and the beAch area could use more removal of cigarette butts. As a non smokers we really appreciate a cleaner beach.

Paradisus Princesa Del Mar: Five Asterisk Resort

The resort is gorgeous, and the beach is the best. The staff are friendly, and we enjoyed our time there. However, I really don't like flies on my food, and they were ALL OVER THE FOOD all the time, and the sand fleas ate me alive. So, overall, it was good, but not great.

Valentin El Patriarca Varadero: beautiful resort

Our first time in Cuba, the resort was well appointed, the staff is very friendly and accomodating, any issues were dealt with quickly!Beautiful beach! Very much enjoyed visiting Varadero and Havana! Would have enjoyed breakfast at the beach buffet though.

Brisas Del Caribe: Amazing Resort and Staff

This was our first trip anywhere and we were blown away! This resort is beautiful, well kept grounds and pools, the food was good, always a variety to choose from. The beach is amazing, beautiful white sand and crystal clear water, so warm too! The staff treated us like gold, Richard, Omar, Alfredo, Margarita, Giselle, Martha and so many more! If you want a great holiday, go here, lots of souvenir shops, restaurants and bars!! They are upgrading the resort constantly to make it better, but we ha [... read more]d no complaints at all. Our room was clean and our view was amazing!!

Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul: family fun

All was excellent. Lovely staff with good amenities. Some in disrepair but rectified upon notifying staff. Food was above average...recommend booking a la carte restaurant reservations immediately upon arrival so not to be disappointed. Tip well and you will receive five star service...otherwise...

Resonance Blu Varadero: Never stay in this resort again

The whole family were there for Xmas, we had four rooms 2 in on building close to lobby and 2 rooms were very far, close to the beach, very inconvenience. We asked to switch the rooms, they did not. No hot water for last 2 days.problem with rooms including TV,balcony door, shower, Food quality was extremely low and dishes was unwashed and food was still stick to it, Infact 3 of us got sick plus many more people in the resort. It does not even deserve one star.

Punta Peninsula Varadero: Amazing resort

Beautiful, well accommodated and organize very friendly staff .. We travel with a group of 17 people and at dinner time alway find a place for us to sit together.The entertainment was beautiful my favorite was Michael Jackson night and Magic night..