I will begin my review by noting the positives I managed think up.
Majority of the staff were hard workers and more than a couple staff member went out of thier way to be extra friendly. The reservation manager whom I emailed prior to departing for our trip kindly introduced himself to my son & I and even recalled my name from the email I sent requesting a renovated room on a higher floor. He did indeed grant us what I asked for and I was pleased with my room and floor. The voltage seemed to all be 220V, all my appliances had dual voltage and charged quickly which was nice. The outlets were dual in our room so either european round pins or American flat pins fit, so no plug adaptors were required. Room # 1224
The maid service was very friendly and she did a great job everyday leaving fresh towels and toliet paper, neither was an issue.
Adam the bartender/server in the buffet rest. which my son & I ate at every meal, everyday made us feel very welcome and greeted us every night.
On the very few good weather days we had the beach was very nice and water was calm on only one day, allowing for us to see how beautiful the ocean was. This was only for 1 of our 7 days. I luck out weather wise when it comes to Cuba, bad weather this time and 4 yrs ago I went in mid April and still the weather that week was horrible.
Riding the open air double decker buses was fun, we did this 2 days in a row. Dont throw ur reciept out when getting off the bus, the lady who sells them to you when you get on will try to get you to, I just ignored her and kept walking.
The catamaran trip was lovely with some exceptions, which I will note in the negative reviews below. I booked the excursion through our Sunwing rep for my son & I. It cost 101.00 and they made an exception for my son who is 8 yrs old and was free.
Enjoyed the music in the lobby after dinner every night.
The Coffee you had to serve yourself in the buffet was good, instant coffee from a machine but I enjoyed, better when the machine didn't break down, also a nightly occurance.
The coffee in the main bar in the lobby was very strong and freshly brewed, but a very busy place and had to wait.
The weather unfortunetly was horrible, windy, rough sea, torrential down pours on some days which lasted all day and very overcast cloudy skies on days without rain. For the full first 4 days this is the weather we endured. The ocean was very rough and although my son loved the waves it made me nervous. It was like this everyday, even sunny days except for 1 day, so we took a Kayak out, which was nice.
The Hotels appearance, well let just say it was run down, and thats being polite, it has mold, stains all over the walls, broken glass windows, anything that may have functioned at one time, like water fountains, hot tub did not anymore. The entire hotel is a eyesore, must have been the ugliest on the strip of hotels.
Drinks were only slush early in the day, then they turn into just gross drinks tasting like cool aid. Pina colodas are not frozen and gross, just pure sugar yuck drinks.
For 5 days our hallway was pitch black, the light bulbs seemed to have burned out and no one came to replace them. It was very scary being a solo female with a young child, trying to find our room and hoping no creeps were waiting in the hallways. It was so black you could'nt even see your room number, we had to countdown the number to make sure we were trying to get into the right room, thats if you could see where to get your key in!
In our room our balcony door had no lock on it. This wasn't really an issue as I was on the 3rd floor but if I had been any lower, being a solo female with child I'd have a serious problem with this.
I found the staff to be very overwhelmed with the amount of guests, long waits for service. I never felt relaxed on this trip. You had to make sure you were ready at the start of all meals times to run in & get a table or else! The buffet would only have scraps left, or no silverware or cups etcs left. This was a problem every meal, everyday. I found myself getting my own coffee, wine and drinks some days/nights and even going into thier drawers to get my own cutlery. I'd basically have to set my own table.
I found the staff at the bar in the lobby overwhelmed, it took very long to be noticed, most times staff were too busy in conversations with other guests or other staff member to notice you standing there,often they took orders from other people who had not been there before you. I found if you said "excuse me" the staff would only ignore you more, and would see them telling people to relax & wait. It was 50/50 when it came to the attitude of the staff. Staff
I waited for a staff member in thier store to purchase some cigars, only to be ignored, they were busy talking amongst each other, and when I would catch ones eye, they quickly look away! I repeatedly said excuse me and then walked out as no one seemed to care and my bus was leaving so I couldn't stand there waiting for them to finish thier conversations.
Tried the massage, paid $20 for either 45 or an hr. lost track of time. It was just ok. Not professional like I was use to...The man stood there and watched me strip down into my bra & undies and I had to ask for a towel to cover up, was wierd, not a fan of a man giving me massages . I really could'nt relax.
We ate at 2 restaurants fowntown Varadero which were great! It was a nice change from the slop at the hotel.
Kiki's club was over rated and no one came to serve us, we walked out after waiting over 20 mins for a menu when there was only 2 other tables and found a great rest. with great service. The menus were cheaper the futher down the downtown strip you went.
Anyhow I will review those restaurants on thier pages.
Anyhow this was my second trip to Cuba I know they have lower standards then most island. To me Cuba is the Walmart of island, its just a cheap place to get away to for people on a budget and you get what you pay for, thats for sure! Its just not my cup of tea.
I would'nt recommend Cuba or this hotel unless you are someone on a severe budget and can't really afford to travel, I''d rather spend $$$ on the better islands without the obnoxious young college drunks.
During the Catamaran excursion, the dolphin pen out in the water looked pretty gross my 8 y.o even took notice of this and refused to get in with them. I would'nt recommend anything dolphin related, I think it's a sad practice. From the hotel you could walk to the dolpharium and it too looked pretty sad.
Oh I also had my sunglasses stolen right off my head on the beach while trying on one of those fish net like swimsuit cover ups! I'm just glad it was on my last day there.
To end this on a better note. I loved the music (live band) in the lobby after dinner every night. The songs may have been the same, but I loved it:)
DON"T GO HERE! ...unless adam the server is you waiter for the week, he was the best.
- Coralia Club Playa De Oro
- Playa De Oro
- Playa De Oro Varadero
- Coralia Playa De Oro
