Beautiful resort

We had an amazing stay at Paradisus. All the staff were super friendly. Food was good. The beaches and pools were amazing. Only down fall was their debit/visa machine was down so I would recommend bring extra cash so you don’t have to deal with that.

Sunshine and thunder.

The hotel was a 4 star not 5. The beach and pool were good. The staff was friendly. Rooms were clean but the bathroom needed a lot to be desired. Entertainment was the highlight of this hotel. The tour of Havana was expensive but good made even better as the tour guide was informative and funny. The grounds of the hotel were well kept.

Amazing Paradise!!

Just returned 2 days ago! Girls trip! Excellent food, in all restaurants! Japanese was fabulous! Amazing service. The staff really do go above and beyond. Everything went beyond my expectations! Cannot wait to go again.

Depends on what matters to you!

I need to start with my tripcentral rep - Amanda Garlough was awesome. I highly recommend her to everyone! Now - the beach is amazing - but the resort has nothing to do with that...God created that so Paradisus can't take credit for it! You must upgrade, the rooms are worth it in the family concierge, though its a long trek (800 steps) to the beach and there are never any shuttles to take you there. But the rooms are some of the nicest I have seen in Cuba for a decent price. The food is  [... read more]meh...but thats to be expected in Cuba. I don't go for the food, so i didn't expect much to begin with. In general, the service is horrendous. Though before I go there, there are a few gems - a couple of the waiters/waitresses in the buffet on the family concierge staff, the bartender in the family concierge lobby (Franky) and the bartenders on the beach and at the family concierge pool. All great. Aside from that its like you are invisible...waiters/waitresses just walk past you. We could not get clean beach towels from the family concierge place for 4 days!!! no matter who we talked to it didn't matter. they kept saying they would launder them for us, but never happened no matter how many times i asked. Don't leave anything in the safe - we had money stolen from it! first time ever and we've been to many countries and we have never had anything stolen from us. Shocked us that cubans would do this considering tourism is a main source of income. Overall - loved the beach, so even if we go back to cuba, it won't be the Paradisus Varadero.

Family Concierge: Good hotel, fantastic beach!

We stayed at the Paradisus Family Concierge. Paradisus has 3 hotels (Main, Family Concierge and Royal -adult only). Highly recommend that you upgrade to Family Concierge bc of the room conditions. Also, dont wait to upgrade when you get there bc itll be more expensive. They charged another couple (who were very unhappy w their room at the main -no AC, smelly, etc- about $800 and that would have been for only 4 days). We heard a lot of pple complaining about their room condition at the main. Al [... read more]though its not beach front, our hotel was newly built and the rooms were beautiful (clean, AC -self controlled), restaurants were air conditioned as well, so food was not sitting out. Each villa has its own swimup pool which all who live in it are welcome to use (so dont waste your money on the swim-up upgrade). Its a 3-4 min walk to the main hotel and beach. They have carts that can take you there (we preferred walking, its super close). The grounds at the main hotel are BEAUTIFUL (just like the photos) and in my opinion way better than the Family Concierge. Bc Family Concierge is newer, its lacking the mature palmtrees. We spent most of our time at the main hotel/beach (if you upgrade to Family concierge, you are allowed to use all their facilities and restaurants, they cant use yours). Food was good, lots of options (pasta bar, omelette bar, etc) our favorite was the grill on the beach (main hotel) which we didnt discover til a few days into our stay. A la carte restaurants were ok.. men dont have to wear pants and closed toe shoes. Dressy shorts, dressy sandals and golf shirt is fine. (May help when you pack). Its hot but not unbearable. I didnt have to use my sweater at night. Ladies, dresses are fine. Entertainment was great. They have stuff for kids and adults (dif shows every night) Bars were great. Lots of choices. We stuck to beer, mojitos, pina coladas, strawberry daiquiris....but they have a wide range. You have unlimited internet. They have 1 hr wifi cards that you grab from the lobby. Connection was fine from our room. Negatives for us: our concierge was non-existent (and we tipped him very well on the first day), he rarely followed through when we asked for things (and we didnt ask for much). For example, we asked him to ensure that we would get bfast delivered to our room for our departure day (we left at 6 am and restaurants dont open til 7 ish). The bfast never arrived. Very disappointing especially for our kids. We heard that some pple had fantastic concierge, unfortunately, we were just very unlucky. Room service is also non-existent (its either busy or they dont bring it to you) so make sure you eat and drink well outside your room. Also, drinks (you get choice of 4 bottles) dont arrive until the next day so dont expect to have alcohol in your room the first night. Dont expect to get checked in as soon as you get there. Good idea to bring your bathing suit and change and start your vacation b4 your check-in. There were couples who arrived at 2 and didnt get checked in til 7 ish. Expect to see some bugs (even cockroaches-its not that its dirty, they come from outside so make sure you put a towel at the main door to block). But overall, mosquitoes weren't bad on the resort (they have trucks that smoke/fume the perimeter of the resort). We didnt need to use our bug spray. Speaking of sprays, bring cream not spray for sunblock..itll work better. And bring sunblock!!! Its about 30-40 bucks to buy it there. Also, if you like chips, bring them. Again, very expensive to purchase there. We did two excursions: dolphins and safari/farm/horses. Both were great. May be cheaper if you pre purchase at home. Bring lots of tip money. Especially if you choose to do excursions. I also brought a full suitcase full of gifts (toiletries, toys for kids etc) for the maid. I would leave her things daily and she was extremely grateful. If you do the safari tour excursion, you will drive through town so make sure to bring little things for the locals (ie. bubble gum for the kids, flip flops, tshirts, toiletries, etc). Kids will be outside their homes waving at you. They dont have much, so anything you can leave they will be so happy. Overall, great vacation! If we go back to Varadero (for the beach) I would only stay at Paradisus (fam concierge or royal) or Iberostar Varadero. In my opinion and from what i heard and seen, best resorts in Varadero. If you're reading this, hope it helps :)

Great Beach!

We were happy with a number of things about this resort, but still shocked with Cuban standards at times. The grounds were nice and the beach was so beautiful with white soft sand. There were lots of chairs at the beach and the pool and it was not overcrowded. We had cold showers the first few days we were there and they kept saying they would fix it, but until we bumped into a mechanic there ourselves this was never fixed. Also, I couldn't use my curling irons there since all the plugs were [... read more] 240 so it is helpful to bring a converter. The locks in the rooms weren't working and the mechanic also had to fix the screws and door since the hurricane had shifted that awhile ago. There wasn't even a coffee machine in the room, but there was great coffee in the lobby at the bar. I guess we were expecting more since we had gone to lots of all inclusive resorts in Dominican and also in Mexico, but Cuban standards are different. I guess it is true what they say that a 5 star in Cuba is probably a 3 star in our standards. There were never any clean beach towels and everyday we checked and they said come back the next day, but they never got any. They did have a few good shows and parties in the lobby though. so there were some ups and downs like every place I guess. If you want a great beach and quiet atmosphere than this is the resort to go to. The food was fairly good, and the pools were nice too. The main pool was quite deep though and too deep to walk up to the bar with a drink. If you want a really happening resort with lots of night life then this isn't the place to go to. There were lots of things to do for kids at the family side of this hotel. They did upgrade us to a junior suite with an ocean view when we asked for a nice room, but we did find the room dated. When we complained about the service and cold showers and other difficulties in the end they tried to make it up to us by giving us a free lobster dinner so that was nice. We also enjoyed the tour to Havana and going on the double deck bus to Varadero. We listened to the Beatles band there and enjoyed the markets and walking around. It is a really safe place to go to and nice green trees and lots of flowers. The grounds are very beautiful at this resort. I would recommend this resort to people who like a nice beach and fairly good food with lots of activities for young kids. I guess the family concierge is worth paying for. They even give out free internet cards there too.

Excellent Resort

Great place to stay at. The buffet is truly fantastic. The a la carte restaurant is good too, just be prepared to wait for your meal. The beach is very nice to look at but the pool is even better. I spent most of my swim time in the pool. Great with the night entertainment.

Disappointed

As usual the Cuban people are wonderful. Attentive, happy, friendly. The hotel grounds and landscaping are superb. The beach without peer. And then the problems begin and they are numerous. The rooms. We had two. The furnishings were old. That's ok it's Cuba. Several lights were out and reading was difficult. In the first few days very little hot water was available. One shower didn't work. One toilet didn't flush. Later neither toilet flushed but wastebaskets full of water served us well.  [... read more]The ceiling in a bathroom leaked. The bed in one of the rooms was two beds pushed together with a person eating crack in the middle. The food. We are used to Cuban food and know of its limitations. Of our six trips to Cuba this was the worst experience. The same choices at the buffet every meal. Uninspired. We made one reservation at the tex Mex. On arrival needed a rest room. Sent next door. One rest room out of order the other without toilet paper. A napkin offered instead. Laundry. No towels or replacement sheets. Bars. Often out of alcohol except rum and beer. Entertainment. Excellent. Had newly made friends with young children in the next building. Found bugs believed to be cockroaches. Requested a room change. Unable to do. No reason given. Considerable confidence in their reporting. Al in all not the experience we hoped for. Of the six visits to Cuba we have made this is the worst. This resort has great potential. Please whoever is responsible don't let it's decline continue

Great Spot!

I really enjoyed everything about this resort. Love the way everything is located Oceanside! The room was clean and roomy. Deck was a lovely size and grounds were well kept. Great food too! I would definitely go back!

Amazing Beach

Food not as good as it was last year.Staff is absolutely wonderful from maid to servers and beach staff.Entertainment was a lot of fun.Check in went much smoother than it did a year ago.Reception staff were very friendly and helpful.

Basic Resort-No; Royal Service-Yes

Main resort--Busy, loud, full of kids Royal Service--worth the price Main Resort--service, room quality (furniture/style, cleanliness)-dated and not 5 star Beach--beautiful; long walks a must Night-life--none

Not as expected for 1900$ for 5 days

There was a very negative vibe on this property. Most of the people I talked to on this resort said they would never be back. The old area was no more than 3 star. That is where i was out. I was single and paid the single supplement and was very disappointed. The property was depressing as everyhing was brown The curtain in my room was half on and half off the rod on which they were hanging. The bed was clean and comfortable and the maid was lovely. The food was ok at times. The alchohol was [... read more] not international it was all Cuban and for a five star I should have been able to have a drink of better more domestic brands. They said they did not have crown royal or other popular brands. The beach was beautiful but not exactly groomed or clean as it could have been I’m so disappointed and rather depressed after this holiday. I have stayed in several places but I’m very sorry to report I will never go there again. A better choice would have been the other Paradisus (adults only). It was not worth the 1900 I paid maybe 1000 tops. I should be given compensation for this experience. Some Chairs were in very rough shape. Thank u for listening

Exceptional view of the beach

This was our 5th resort in Cuba and by far the best views of the beach from the resort . No dunes or brush just palm trees. Grounds crew were visible everyday neatening up the resort and the cleaning,wait and bar staff were very friendly although in my opinion a little understaffed . The food was ok but you’ll always find something you like an as they say “ you don’t go to cube for the food “ We will definitely look at going back to the resort.

Not a 5 stars anymore...

Bad service at the lobby, particularly from this employee: Dayana Food mediocre at the buffet and restaurants. Beach wonderful Coffee only drinkable at the lobby bar It took over a week to get our room with a king size bed. Tennis courts surface has to be redone. 50% of the employees provide good service. The other half is not trained and doesn't have a clue about customer service.

Will definitely return!

Family Concierge section was terrific. The grounds were well-kept, there was plenty of delicious food choices at the buffet, room was well-stocked, comfortable, and clean, and the people were friendly and conscientious. The staff appeciated and were thankful for all the gifts we gave out. We enjoyed the gorgeous beach everyday.

Beautiful Family Resort

We liked this resort especially the butler service; he was tremendously helpful in arranging our dinners with daily reminders of the time, attending to little needs around the resort including staking out a cabana at the poolside, as well as breakfasts in our room when we had an early excursion to Havana and very early departure time including a golf cart waiting for us outside our front door to take us to the bus in the main part of the resort. Very relaxing holiday.

The Paradisus Varadero regular junior room is NOT 5 ***** hotel

The Paradisus Varadero regular junior room is NOT 5 ***** hotel / accommodation,( maybe was 25 years ego) totally misleading advertising is only 3+***, the ROYAL section from same hotel might be okay, but the normal section was terrible. There was very poor service or a lack of staff, some older waiter / man in main lobby with big attitude, not friendly…., dinner reservations booking was a nightmare, unless you complained to the manager you were unable to get any decent reservations, no water  [... read more]in the ponds around buildings, garbage all over the place not picked up. Some restaurants were closed while guests wanted reservations. Over roll the food was ok, but somes I get it dirty serving plate and have to change. Entertainment area was a disaster. Couldn't get fresh towels as they were either closed with no staff or they didn't have any towels,( show me 5 star hotel which have no beach towels for exchange). I could go on and on. Do yourself a favor and read all the reviews from those that didn't stay at the ROYAL area, if you can afford but this upgrade cost over $60/70 a day per person. It was terrible, accept location of the beach, good weather and air condition in working condition. I DID NOT GET IT WAS I PAY FOR IT 5*****. They won’t you purchase vacation in this place, but if you not happy, they will sell you upgrade to 5 STAR accommodation, totally scam. Stay in this place in March 2018 for four days.

Family orientated peaceful relaxing resort

First of all, I want to send a big thank you to Deborah O at trip central.ca square one location. She was very helpful with my last minute getaway. My daughter had a blast with the activities available for the kiddies. Sadly the food was a bit of a letdown, but the grill at the beach was the spot for me. They did book a la carte each night we were there but the sun burnt my kid out that we couldn't make the time of reservation. Friendly staff they felt like family.

Excellent resort

We upgraded to Family Concierge and best decision we ever made. Nice facility with modern room .Well maintained facility. Our Butler, Pavel was amazing . Great shows and great food. We will come back for sure

Very nice resort

Our whole March Break holiday at this resort was a very, very good experience. The beach was superb. There was always a warm and polite greeting from all the staff. One exceptional person who deserves the highest praise was our housekeeper "Claudia", she went out of her way to make sure we had everything we needed. Overall the food was good in the buffet and the a la carte's with only the Cuban a la carte restaurant being a dismal failure, we did not finish our meal opting to go to the buffet i [... read more]nstead. I was served very undercooked Cod and my partner was served hard as a rock pork chop. I would go back to this resort again.