There was 4 us traveling together and all agreed that we liked Havana and the Parque Central the best. We spent 3 nights there and had good service at the front desk, concierge, breakfast room, and housekeeping. Our rooms were large and beds were comfortable. Our room faced the noisy side street but the windows blocked out all of the noise. The other room was very quiet and faced the interior courtyard and the lobby. The rooftop pool and bar with its exceptional views was outstanding and a nice place to go at the end of a long busy day touring the historic sites nearby. We had a lovely steak dinner at the Paseo on our last night & would recommend it. Great atmosphere with white tablecloths and a piano player and friendly service. The total cost was only 43 CUC (about 47 Cdn) for 2 of us. We would definitely recommend this hotel and would return here.

This is a Great hotel for Cuba. Lots of kind personnel, spacious rooms and the lobby. Huge selection in the breakfast buffet. Food quality and taste only 6/7 out of 10. Rooms not clean (mould and pubes in shower). Not my idea of a 5-star hotel.

We came to Cuba in November 2010, staying in Varadero. Rather than go with the Travel Agency guide for a rushed day trip to Havana or an overnight stay which would have included a night out to the tourist trap that is Club Tropicana, we made our own way there on the Viazul bus - a fine journey, but it was full so make sure you book in advance if you're doing your own thing like us.

We booked this hotel with Thomas Cook before we left the UK. It is perfectly located overlooking the main Parque Central, and within easy walking distance of some of the main attractions. The open top tour bus departs from the park itself so this is a great base for getting around.

The hotel is certainly very pretty, and a welcome retreat from the craziness of Havana. What a great city by the way, take a breath when you can!!! Room was of a good size, clean and well laid out. The roof top pool is lovely, with some stunning views across the city. These are all good points.

Now for the not so good... the service. Terrible. We waited nearly an hour for a burger and drink. This was after waiting half an hour for someone to ask us what we wanted. The roof top pool, whilst lovely, has nowhere near enough sunbeds, or even seats, for the size of the hotel. Standing room only I'm afraid. Changing money in the hotel is a nightmare. Security is high and it's a strict one-at-a-time policy, but the wait is endless! Not good. And the drinks are very expensive indeed.

Finally, whilst visiting the loo in the bar lounge, I met a local lady who I could only describe as a lady of the night... She asked me my name to which I replied "My name?". She then insisted on calling me "My name" for the duration of our conversation - which was basically her begging me for $5 for food and asking me for my room number. Lovely.

In summary this is a colourful but expensive hotel, in a very good location, with poor service.
There are other hotels around the Parque Central area that are cheaper, which I'm sure would be at least as good...

We stayed 3 nights at the Parque Central. The location is excellent, near the Paseo, the Capitolio, the Malecon and the oldest part of old Havana. We were housed in the "new tower" which is next door - across a street - to the old colonial building. If you want to stay in the (much renovated, however) colonial building, be sure to specify that in your booking - we had not. While we were disappointed with that initially, the tower rooms turned out to be fine, if generic - quiet and comfortable. Breakfast downstairs was plentiful, with a chef making omelettes to order. We had dinner one night at the Paseo restaurant in the old building, where the specialty is steak - delicious, and service was good. The swimming pool deck on the roof of the new tower is small but nice, with a stunning view of the old city all around, but the pool is not heated and therefore quite cold in January. The disconcerting aspect of travel to Cuba is the inconsistent quality of service, and the Parque Central, while a notch or two above many places, still suffers from this. When we arrived, we had to truck our own suitcases from the old building to the new tower (not a trivial matter when your traveling companion is an elderly person) because no bellhop ever showed up to help. When we asked the concierge desk for the location of the Havana Tour Bus Stop on the square, it was almost comical to have the men on duty each point in an opposite direction at the same time, and then start arguing about where it was (we had to figure it out ourselves by asking the concierge at the Inglaterra hotel)... When, on the third day, I went down to change currency at the reception desk of the new tower, the receptionist insisted that it was not possible to change currency there and that I had to go to the old building; when I pointed out to her that I had changed currency at that very desk in the new tower the day before, she replied, with complete seriousness: "yes, you could yesterday, but it is closed today." Ah, Cuba.