Barceló Solymar

So this was my 25th time to Arenas Blancas /Barceló Solymar, but my first trip during summer months. The Hotel was good I stayed in room 1462 which was a suite on the top floor beautiful view. Problem was only 1 of the three elevators was working all week and it was quite the wait, most of the time you were way better off walking up on down the 4 flights. Staff was amazing so friendly again and again from Gabi at public relation to all the entertainment crew , Bartenders and cleaning staff. The week started out great I arrived on Wednesday June 13 the Hotel looked about 25% full but enough people around to have some fun. Then Friday (Fathers day weekend) hit OMG around 800 Cuban people between the two resorts the pool went from beautiful Blue to green in 3 hours, on Sunday it was so crazy there was garbage and cups everywhere the place looked like it was in the aftermath of a hurricane. Finally around 4:30pm someone from management showed up and shut down the animation team, said no more games. You could also smell the urine that was in the pool it was the most Disgusting thing you could possibly imagine..That was the end of me for the pool for the rest of the week and I am not a big ocean person so it was bad. The buffet at Lunch on Sunday (fathers Day) it opened at 12:30pm I got in line at 1:15pm and waited until 1:50pm to get in..when I finally got in there was no food left maybe some rice , Pasta and some veggies I didn't recognize. obviously I didn't eat I went to the snack bar instead, I asked for a Pizza they had no Pizza and asked for a Burger they had no buns, so I asked what can I get they replied a Burger with no bun. It was crazy. After Sunday it quieted down but was still too frightened to go back into that pool. I really don't think they want tourist in the summer, as I am pretty sure they open it up the local people very cheap on weekends to fill the resort. I would assume that the Hotel is the same for all Holiday's such as Mothers day, Christmas , New years. so my advise would be stay away in the summer and let them fill it with locals.. This was my worst trip to Solymar in 25 trips and this experience totally wrecked a vacation I was so looking forward to. Mangement needs to step up on move on this was unacceptable

If you are looking to party and have fun, this is the place for you. :) I went on a girls trip and we had a blast, met so many people and had a blast with everyone day and night. FOOD - The grilled cheese at the pool bar was pretty good, but that's pretty much the only thing i enjoyed. food is not the greatest but you can make the best of it and try to find a thing or two you enjoy. ROOMS- the bed was so hard and small but i made the best out of it since we pretty much never left the beach. BEACH- Ahhhhhh THE BEST BEST BEST i have ever seen. This resort didn't seem so bad once i got to the beach, Never left, we were there all day, cool music, Fun people and lots of cold cold beer. The beach is a 10 STAR.

This was my second time at the Solymar. I travelled alone. The first was about fifteen years ago. First off this hotel is now old and in need of repairs. I like the Solymar because of its location to the town and the excellent beach. My room (superior room in the main building) had a few issues including faucet leak, faulty thermostat. But I must say the assistant manager, Jesus Perez, was very prompt in ensuring that the issues were immediately corrected and they were. Doniesta, the room cleaning maid was wonderful and ensured my room was clean. For the most part, the hotel staff were friendly but you have to be insistent if you have any issues. The food was average. It had everything I wanted though some food items were not warm. They have to do something about the flies. And yes, you should tip the staff for satisfactory service. You do it in Canada and you should do it wherever you travel. But its the beach in this section of Varadero that is worth coming back to. It is beautiful and just as nice as Cayo Guillermo which I visited last year. So, I must say my second visit to this hotel was overall good and I would recommend it. The customer service overall was good and that of its manager Hiram was excellent. The hotel is old but so are many of the hotels on the peninsula. Be prepared for some building issues. The food needs to be improved. I was happy with my stay at this hotel. Jameson/Toronto Canada

I enjoyed my stay due to several reasons. The place is better than the next door hotel. The buffet is great if you go there at opening. I uploaded photos one hour after opening... it is pathetic... It is great that they give access to Havana Club and that includes free drinks there also. The night entertainment is great, the dancers are exceptionally talented and committed. (Still in the theatre room the water is permanently leaking from the ceiling in 3 places... it is crazy... On the beach there is no bar - really not OK... Otherwise it is a nice place and some staff are nice too. I will return. Thanks.

Let me first say I’ve been to Varadero before so this review does not apply to Varadero or Cuba as a whole. The positives: beach and ocean is gorgeous! A “few” staff were great (read the not so great for more). Best food so far is Cuba! The NOT so positives: the hotel is run down, smells like urine in spots, public area washrooms were deplorable, mould on reception ceiling and it was visibly leaking! Our first room had a leaky ceiling with a huge puddle on floor...went to reception to move rooms and got the “eye roll” from reception staff (not warm or friendly). Moved rooms to one that was ok but we had hundreds of bugs (sand ants) everywhere (yes in our beds as well)! We came home with bites all over us. We had to call 4-5 times for a blanket (didn’t want our son sleeping on it after seeing hundreds of bugs on it. You have to call repeatedly to get any kind of service!!! Lastly... this is advertised as a family resort. Beware!!! This is a party place!!! Excessive drinking and ppl throwing up and passing out in pool area ... one person had a blow up s** doll in the pool. Not cool at all since we had our 12 yr old son with us.