We stayed here February 2012 & we'll go back to this resort again: The food was great; entertainment was fantastic throughout every day, evening and night; at least one bar is open around the clock where they serve mostly domestic beer and rum; the beach and pool areas are among the best we saw; the staff were very good in every area except at the front desk where one representative there had a bad attitude (there's always one in every crowd, isn't there); they offer a wide variety of extra's like kayaking & sailboating which are included. We felt very safe in Cuba both in and out of the resort - the Cuban people are wonderful! The standard of the rooms and beds are not nearly up to Canadian standards and we had to do a double take at this. Once we got over that, it was all great!

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.

Booked in early January for a week in early Feb., chose this resort because it seems to be the only one in Varadero where kids are free until they turn 15, as opposed to 13 everywhere else. The result was our 13 year old son had lots of playmates to socialize with while on the resort....a bonus!

The resort itself was fine, just what I expected and better than many reviews. I did get a lot of bug bites, but they are NOT bedbugs. Its location towards the end of the peninsula means more vegetation, and right beside the beach, so it is sandflies that are biting. Beach bar, entertainment, and pool bar great facilities and generally happily staffed. Outdoor chess set fun, and games available ( chess, backgammon, cribbage, cards ) always available at the club house. We did have some cloud and rain so they came in handy.

Food on the resort was also fine, always something if your not too picky, but......the resort is large, over 380 rooms, so the dining room buffet restaurant can quickly become a zoo as they run out of crockery, cutlery, glassware during service. Only thing that really bothered me was the use of unwashed hands with raw chicken on the buffet........and with only one lobby bar serving coffee to up to 600 guests it was hard to get a decent cup sometimes, and the coffee is a good reason for going to Cuba.

Experienced the best and worst of Cuba in one incident, tho. Lost my glasses in the ocean ( foolishly playing in rough seas ) on the first night. Went to the opticians at calle 42 in Varadero, had an exam for $5, old equipment but very well done with no English, and got the scipt perfect...but could not make the glasses in Varadero. We had planned a day trip to Havana to eat at the San Cristobal paladar, so brought it forward to the next day to get my glasses made at the one hour lab in Obispo street in Havana. Got my glasses made, waited an hour, and paid $85.00 for them! Nothing but the highest praise for all the technicians that helped me...they saved my holiday!

Getting to Havana was another story. Once we knew we had to go I went out front of the playa de Oro to hire a taxi for the trip. We have been to Cuba before and know what a fair price is, so I offered a driver $100.00 to take us and bring us back, leaving at 9 am and returning at 9pm. The price was agreed, hands were shook, and we went out at 9 the next morning. The driver was there, said he couldn't take us, but introduced us to another driver in the rank, named Luis, who would take us under the same conditions. Luis drives a red and white Chevvie, round mirrors on the front, kids toys hanging from the mirror......DO NOT GET IN THIS TAXI! On arrival in Havana he refused to wait until 9 pm, left us stranded in Parque central, and charged us $70.00 for the single trip. Got very aggressive and would not negotiate. I speak good enough Spanish to have made sure the terms of the deal were very clear. Fortunately the San Cristobal arranged a driver to take us back for $50.00 ( thanks Carlos, Ranier, Enrique and co.), who explained that the other driver was probably illegal and did not want to go through the government control points at night. We gave him a $10.00 tip and some gifts for his brother.

Cuba has opened up self employment opportunities, and created a "duty of care " document stating the rights and responsibilities of both vendors and customers, which must be posted in all private businesses.....except for taxis. It really rubbed me the wrong way to get such helpful service from educated professionals who earn about $20.00 a month and get abused by a taxi driver over a $100.00 day trip! We explained the issue to both Sunwing and the Hotel security and were very happy with the response. They both agreed that the unregulated behavior of the taxi driver reflects badly on their businesses and country and did report it to authorities and action was taken. It could happen anywhere but there are usually regulating bodies that you can complain to if you get ripped off.......hopefully they will get rogue drivers under control, because we learned from the driver who brought us back that stealing taxis and operating illegally is a growing problem because if the profits involved. Will add a picture of the rogue taxi soon, once again....do not get in a red and white chevvie with mirrors on the front fender.

Hotel had a good mix of nationalities and all guests were good natured, we made lots of friends and would return, just not by taxi!

Firstly, I would like to explain that my husband and I are not demanding individuals and only ask for common respect which is what we always provide to people. There are good and bad issues that I would like to touch on.

Hotel room;
Make sure that you stay in the new building not the old building as the old building alot of things in the rooms do not work such as, shower, airconditioning, phone and it smells like dirty feet. The staff do keep your rooms clean to the best of their ability.

Staff:
We found the majority of the staff to be pleasant however, the front desk is especially rude and are not willing to help you with any problems that you may have. Such as morning wake up calls to make your excursions that you pay for. When you approach them to correct the problem they simple shrug their shoulders and walk away. When I asked about the shower the response was I don't know why it is not functioning and that was the end of that. Unfortunately it appears that alot of staff are only gracious and willing to serve based on tips. You will need to be patient when being served as they do tend to socialize alot.

Food:
I work for an organization that enforces the legislation around food and all I can say is that the food is neither hot or cold (room tempertature). Both the couple we went with and I managed to get sick and let me tell you that it was not fun.

Beds in old hotel wing:
Very much like sleeping on the boxspring only.

Excursions:
The people that provide the excursions are incredible helpful and they were wonderful all I can say is that you must try the catameran (all day boat). It was the highlight of the trip. If going to Havana get your own way there and enjoy what is available. The tours are to ridgid and you don't get a chance to really enjoy Havana if you can stay over night.

Canadian People:
Please be kind and not so obnoxious as it is very disappointing to see entire families fighting drunk while the children are watching. Men stop using prostitutes it is disgusting to see 70 year old men with girls that look about 12 years doesn't speak highly of us.

I would say not to stay at this resort, spend a little bit more and stay somewhere better.