Barceló Solymar

My husband and I decided to book a last minute vacation to Varadero to get away from the cold weather at home. We had originally booked at the Occidental Arenas Blancas but when we arrived there at midnight were told they were full so we were being sent to the Barcelo Solymar. We were excited as we had heard this resort was a much better place to stay. When we finally checked into our room at 1:00am. When we looked around the room we found 2 double beds and our view was all construction. We had no blankets and squished into a double bed because the other double bed sounded so loud when you would try to get comfortable. In the morning, we were woken up by the loud construction that was outside our patio. Through the course of the week, I asked for a room change THREE TIMES but was always told they couldn’t accommodate us. It was terribly annoying being woken up very early by the sound of saws and construction vehicles. Whenever I showered, I only had freezing cold water to shower with. It was so cold that I couldn’t breathe when the water touched my skin but I needed to shower so I felt like I had no choice but to push through the frigid cold water. The bars closed early and the latest one was only open till 11pm. The buffet had weird hours and it only opened for supper at 6:30. The snack shack turned into an a la carte in the evening so you couldn’t eat there unless you had a reservation after 6:00. The food was okay but I was sick a few times throughout the week. When it came time to check out, we only had one pool towel as our other one got stolen from our lounger at the pool (with all the towels looking the same it’s an easy mistake to make). The maid and 3 other staff came to speak to us as they wanted us to pay 25 cuc for the towel or our maid had to pay out of her pocket. When we told them we had no money left since we tipped all week, they threatened to keep us in the country so we could not return home to our 2 small children. Their exact words were “if you cannot pay we will keep you in the country and that I can promise you.” They were not very nice about it and I didn’t appreciate the threat AT ALL. Thankfully, 2 men from Ottawa overheard what was happening and got involved. They paid the 25 cuc for us so we could go home to our kids. If they’re reading this, thanks again for saving our butts! We were disappointed in our stay at this resort and won’t be returning. The only good thing about this place was the beach and the proximity to town. Not only did we get treated like crap at the resort, when we got home we discovered my husband’s suitcase had been searched and his expensive adidas runners had been stolen at the airport by one of the staff. We’ve unfortunately been left with a bitter taste in our mouth and feel like we wasted over $2000 going to this resort.

The beach is fantastic and is the best asset for the hotel...The place is seriously ready for renovation as it's run down. Being a hotel on Cuba we had set our expectation low but it was overpriced for 2 rooms for 5 people. Upon arrival one bathroom wasn't cleaned and it toke 5 hours before is was done and the AC fan speed could not be adjusted. The staff is friendly and nice but it's not value for the money.

The hotel physically is ok, the food is average, but what made this place great for us was the animation team, Bruno, Rolly, Claudia and the others do a great job of keeping you entertained the whole trip. I have been to this resort twice, the main reason I came back the second time was because of their hospitality. I like to see the real cities I travel to and not just stay in the hotel. They went out of their way to to help explain everything we needed to see and even showed us around the city on their off time. really good people, cant wait to go back.

This, like all the hotels in Cuba, are all going downhill. It is so unfortunate the Cuban government does nothing for the tourism in Cuba and just lets all their hotels deteriorate like this one. This hotel was beautiful in 2009 when we were there last and we had a fantastic time. The reviews were awesome which is why we went back then. Now, forget it. It must have been fairly new at the time. Now 10 years later, cockroaches, musty smells, gross vomit smell in the lobby and musty and old towels. It's very, very sad. Someone in Cuba needs to wake up. No one will want to go to Cuba anymore and the money will stop coming into this beautiful country with the absolute best beaches anywhere - we've been to many Caribbean beaches and this one in Varadero is one of the best. We have been to Cuba a total of 5 times and this will be the last time we go because we are seeing a sad state of couldn't care less if you come here or not. They don't care, the people don't care and that's just the way it is. Very sad.

Stayed in this hotel in Jan 2019 and had to change 4 rooms in three days. One of the rooms was infested with massive cockroaches. The hotel looks more like a 2-star hotel and doesn't deserve its four stars: it's all completely run down and should have been renovated years ago. The food in the restaurant is inedible.