The best of the hotel: the blue beach.


The facilities need maintenance and staff is not very friendly. Food ok, but not great.

I was at the Hotel Melia Varadero with my boyfriend for 6 days. We had a great time in Varadero! The hotel is very nice and comfortable. Our room was almost new and we had no problems at all. Everything fine, the bed was very big and comfortable, the TV brand new with channels from everywhere in every language, good variety of channels. Everything was clean and fresh. We could eat at almost every restaurant in the hotel. The buffet was good, also very varied. The steak house very nice. The beach and the drinks were the best, with the perfect amount of RON! :)
The entertainers rocked!! They were always making people participate and were very funny! Thanks Joel, Alex and Lia.. the cd of cuban music is the best!!
All I can say is Thank You, it was great!!

I am a little late in putting in this review. We returned to Melia Varadero for 2 weeks,from March 22nd to April 5th.
This was our 4th time,after skipping a year and trying Riu Varadero-( very disapointed) and we could not have been happier. The Hotel is back to it's old splendor, along with excellent customer service. All the Staff was excellent and always with a Smile. The Grounds are outstanding and very well kept.
The beach was not the greatest this time , but you can't fight Mother Nature. It was still a pleasure to lounge and appreciate sand & Surf. Pool was great , along with towel exchange service.

I will start with our arrival:
We arrived before Noon, Reception was very friendly & and fast- our room was ready within the hour- You can exchange money at reception at pretty much the same rate as the Bank.Thank you Vladimir, for the beautiful room, with spectacular view, The Rum & Chocolates were a special treat!
Room: was very clean and our maid did a great job.(Rose-4th floor)

Restaurants:
Habanas:
The Buffet was great- the food varied and service impeccable-The desserts , well what can I say- So many desserts, so little time! This is a 5 star service- no paper placemats & serviettes here, you get while linen tablecloth & napkin, and a well dressed table with every meal. Champagne breakfast is standard everyday.A special thank you to my favourite large pasta chef- your great sauces were excellent, along with your great smile & courtesy.Everyone gives a fantastic service with a smile- Thank you to all of you, Julia,Emilio, and too many to mention.

Trinidad:
This place became our favourite for Lunch- The fried Calamari with olive oil & lemon were to die for. Ask for Luis, he is a gentleman and will provide you with superior service & attention.
Thank you to Chef Abey, for your wonderful Cuban Soup- we are still talking about it.
Alas, the Trinidad in the evening, is another story- Our friend Carlos (AKA George Clooney) provided us with great service again, but the food for the night service needs to be improved-They need to learn how to cook lobster- we think they should serve the Noon menu at night- everything we tried at lunch was excellent.

Guantanamera:
This 24 hour Café has wonderful pizza, french fries, hot dogs, sandwiches- drinks, etc.., with food, service, and friendly Staff- a special thank you to Luisandro (AKA Ritchie) for your great Cappuchinos & Mohitos.
For great service, look for Yaneysis, Tahimarys & Ismarie.

Fuerte Venturas;
We only went to this one once- But Dress Up-
The lobster bisque is very nice- and so is the lobster.Our table had a variety of different dishes, and all were excellent. The service is impeccable and the atmosphere very high class. a small band of musicians provide Classical music. The only small complaint on this one is that the reception is very cold, with no smiles anywhere. I think this is the way it's supposed to be, with staff being very unobtrusive.

Las Brisa Steakhouse:
Great Food, great service- The Filet mignon is very good, and so is the Brochette Flambé. Very nice atmosphere with Cuban romantic music.

Beach Restaurant:
Very good food with catch of the day- food , hamburgers, hot dogs, fries etc...Good cold Beer.

La Paella:
This small outdoor spot close to the pool provides a very tasty Paella and a shophisticated Cafe ambiance. Great Sangria. Love it.
Mexicano:
The Paella becomes Mexican a la carte at night- we enjoyed it, and returned- Nice change and good service.

The Las Palmas Bar:
Everyone gathers at this spot in the evening for a cocktail and to listen to the entertainment-
again, great service,Yummy cocktails- you may come across Yoly, Lisandra and Yolaine- they are such nice courteous ladies, giving great service with a smile.
They had a nice variety of local musicians and also have nightly shows in the Outdoor theatre. Bring your repellent, as there are tiny little biters that get you around the ankles -

Ther is also a Disco, which we did not bother with, but they have Kareoke & dancing .

The gift shop in the Hotel has a variety of souvenirs, Rum, cigars and necessities- very expensive.

There is a nice Art Gallery , near Las Palmas Bar- and prices are very good.

The Plaza las Americas next door ( 5 minutes walk) provides a great many little shops, entertainment- grocery Store- ( All very well priced) and souvenir vendors at very reasonable prices. The Bank is also very convenient- there is a Cigar shop a few doors down on the left of the bank with very good prices on Cigars & Rum. They take credit cards with Canadian based Banks, such as BMO- Canadian Tire- as long as the bank that provides the credit card is a Canadian bank. There is also a specialty Cigar Store with pricier varieties.

All in all, we plan on returning the next time in Cuba- this place is far superior to a lot of 4 star resorts and well established with a proven record.
Way to Go Melia!

For our honeymoon we were looking for the perfect location and hotel. And I must say we have found it. Cuba is very beautiful, nice weather, the people seem very happy & are very friendly and Hotel Melia Varadero is very recommendable.

We got some extras for our honeymoon (Breakfast in bed, a coctail and reception with all newly married couples and a dinner).

The room was large with a kingsize bed, with a sea view and clean. The whole resort was very clean. The service from the staff was excellent. Always with a smile and very friendly. Our room was even equipped with European electrical outlets. There was a lot of animation in the hotel and every evening there was a wonderful show. There are also plenty of activities to do during the day such as beachvolly, boating, archery, etc. The pool was beautiful with beautiful green surroundings right on the beach. The beaches of Cuba are beautiful white as they are pictured in magazines. The beach at the hotel has a beachbar wich is very convenient.

Two downsides. First, the lack of free wifi in the hotel and a bad internet connection. Second downside is that we didn't found the food that good. This is obviously very subjective. There was a good variety + 3 à la carte restaurants, but the quality of the food isn't comparable with the food back home. The royal hamburger with cheese isn't that royal :-) But then again we found the fruit and pasta very tasty. The food in the restaurants is also from better quality. But when you are in Cuba at this great hotel with the friendly people and staff almost nothing can ruin your holiday.

We have done some trips and we noticed that the cubans are always dancing and singing. That always gives a great atmosphere and makes you even happier.

We had a great time! And we would highly recommend hotel Melia Varadero! It was are first time here but we fell in love with cuba and we will certainly come back to Cuba and Melia Varadero.