We stayed for one night as part of our overnight trip from Varadero for the Tropicana show. Although being in need of a make over and the air conditioning in need of a service, it was not bad.

Nothing actually wrong with the hotel itself as I believe this is what used to be the Hilton.

THE GOOD
Clean
Large rooms nice bathrooms
Breakfast was superb

THE BAD
Working girls in lobby
No working air conditioning

Appreciate here if you are used to VERY hot conditions you'd not have a problem, but Europeans and I dare say most Canadians could'n't sleep in 80 degree heat and that was at 2am.

If they can fix the aircon this would immediately be a 5 star, there were 23 rooms taken for our tour and over 10 asked for a room change to find that the replacement was the same. Two couples ended up paying 90 CUC for a taxi back home as they couldn't take the heat/humidity :O(

Regards

Mark

I have been to Havana 5 times but have never stayed at the HL until this time. I wanted to stay mainly because of the history of the place and some pleasant memories I have of hanging out near La Rampa with its many coffee shops and people watching opportunities.

The Havana Libre is an old, famous but neglected hotel in a less desirable part of Havana. The views from the upper floors are the best in Havana, the rooftop restuarant is terrific and the rooms tend to be big. We had a nice time hanging out by the hotel pool which has sporadic drink service

On the negative side the hotel is rundown and neglected. The elevators are slow and unpredictable. The AC went off one night and made sleeping impossible. The neighborhood has gone downhill in recent years and is definitely not the best place to be in Havana.

Make sure you avoid the dreaded "12th floor" where a horrible stench makes staying impossible (we demanded to be moved after being assigned a room on this floor).

The Hotel Nacionale is a quick 10 minute walk away and is nice to have drinks and relax on the terrace if you get bored with the bars in the HL.

On balance, there are many nicer places to stay in Havana (ie the Florida hotel or the Hotel Nacionale). The HL is an aquired taste and it helps if you understand the history of the hotel and the neighborhood. If it is your first trip to Cuba or Havana I would probably avoid the HL unless you have a specific reason to stay there.

Every is saying that this is one of the worst hotels ever, and I find this hard to believe. Our room WAS clean, the food at the breakfast buffet was suprisingly good for the food found throughout Havana. Service at the front desk was given without a smile, but who cares. The check in went fast and smooth.
This is no 5 star hotel for sure, but I've been to Cuba many times and this is on hotel I will come back to without reservation.
I'm 35, and have been to many 3rd world countries before, and perhaps I'm not used to real 5 star hotels, but this one deserves much better reviews than it's recieved.
Perhaps the average reviewer's age is 60 - 70 and are used to real world hotels, staying at places like the W , so, yes, maybe they are horribly dissapointed.
I've stayed at the Woldorf Astoria in NY and, aside from the front desk smiles it was no better.
Hope this helps
P. S. Remember, your on holiday, hotels should be for sleeping in only, go out and see the country your in. It's why your there after all.