Beau hotel, service terrible.

I had a wonderful trip! All the staff made you feel welcome! Food was good and room was clean everyday! Beach was amazing! Jeep safari excursion was so much fun and was worth the money! I would definitely go back to cuba again and would stay at this resort also!

We had a positive experience at the Barcelo Marina Palace. The staff was very helpful always ready and willing to help.
Plenty of food and choices! Not sure why people complain so much about the food. My husband is a picky eater and he had no problem finding something to his liking.

Resort is not very big but that is the way we like it!

I can't say enough good things about the serving staff!!
Starting from Adrian who not only makes amazing omlettes but is also entertaining!! Erike with his gentle manner a charisma made delicious pizza!!

And the ladies and gentlemen who waited on us making sure our glasses were always full:)Thank you Sandra, Mebis, Maylet, Alfredo, Uylisis, Yohanis and so many others, your smiles and willingness to make us comfortable made our day!!!

The evening shows were phenominal, really talented people absolutely top notch!!

We enjoyed our stay very much
We were there to relax and unwind and that's what we got! Remember a vacation is what you make of it, go with an open mind and just be nice, a smile and an hola go a long way!!!

The only complaint I have is how the exchange of the beach towels is handled. We always had to go searching for a maid to get clean ones. Only to be told they didn't have any more :(

From the moment we arrived, everything was fabulous. Yes our A/C wasn't working properly but once staff were made aware, it was fixed. I have read other reviews where people complained about not having fresh towels daily, when at home or at a hotel in a major North American city (they ask that you kindly re-use )do you change your bath towel daily? The whole trip I kept in perspective that they have a WHOLE other way of life. All staff were amazing, the resort itself was beautiful and had all amenities, the food was plenty and I cant wait to go back.

did not have a good holiday at this resort.spent more time at the front desk with things that were not right,bad communication amongst co-workers.....soooo frustrating!

As expected for a 4-1/2 star hotel in Cuba.

On arrival we were treated as 'leftovers' and stuck in what appeared to be a changing room on the ground floor (horrible). After complaining they gave us a great room on the second floor facing the pool but by the time we could move in (4pm) we had lost an entire sunshiny day (not good). One male at front desk and checkin must have thought that he was the hotel manager with his 'I will say and do what I want and not what you want' attitude but other than hime the rest of the front desk were very helpful, especially the ladies. Our regular maid was excellent but on her day off they forgot to clean our room. After complaining they sent someone at 9pm and I had to wait around to be present when they came (dealing with the same male as on arrival at the desk. Our meal at the Italian restaurant was memorable except for the wrong reasons, we were being rushed through like cattle and the meal was overcooked and rock hard (so much for a la carte). The experience at the Spanish restaurant was completely the opposite as the meal and wine was served in the atmosphere of the evening with dinner music and our waitress (lady again) was just excellent. The caffeteria staff were pleasant and profession at all times. I marked the 'beach' lower as the debris was not cleaned up daily as it was a Playa d Oro. That is all.

Très satisfaite du tous, mais pas la propreté de la chambre, probablement une femme de chambre paresseuse car la plupart de nos amies était satisfaits.

This resort was as expected for a Cuban 4 star hotel. Having spent many vacations in Cuba and for what it cost, this was probably one of the better ones. Some mosquitos, however, a little bug spray and a couple of windy days took care of that. Beach was amazing, long and wide, with clear water and lots of huts for shade, perfect for those who like to walk. Lots of shade (and sun) around the pools.

To Start..
service was TERRIBLE,
A.Sheets were changed 1 time in 7 days, even though we asked for it everyday.
B. Towels were NEVER changed
C. Wake up calls NEVER happened
D. Food was slightly better than what i would feed my cat
E. Over serving MINORS liquor till the point that they puked in the pool
F. Pool was never cleaned, cups, puke, towels,floating in it daily.
G. any of the snack bars, and restaurants took way over an hour to get what you ordered, and it was usually wrong.
H. Mini fridge in room was only stocked 1 time in 7 days. Bottled water was almost IMPOSSIBLE to get!!

This is my second visit to Barcelo and like the first the staff and the service offered was excellent. I travelled with my sons this trip and they both had a wonderful time. We felt safe.It was also nice to know that some of the staff remembered us from our last visit.The room and the bath room was very clean, we had clean towels daily. We also enjoyed the nightly entertainments.

Had a very nice vacation at Barcelo Marina Palace. This was my fourth time here.

The hotel was great. Big clean rooms right by the ocean and pools in each section. We had a great time there.

J'ai aimé l'endroit pour la propretée,la végétation,le service..pour ce qui est de la bouffe c'est (Cuba)....ils aurais intérets a faire de la rénovation pour rafraichir
c'est un très belle hôtel.
Nous avons apprécier en général
Dan

this place was excellent. very large great for the walkers. beatiful to look at. friendly staff. the only thing not good the food at the buffae was cold. but very tasty.

Transfer from airport to hotel uneventful. Staff made themselves known to passengers and directed to appropriate busses. Hotel lobby clean and very esthetically appealing. We requested a honeymoon package but staff were unaware of this request. Once in hotel room a nice letter and bottle of champagne welcomed us. Too bad the letter was not intended for us. It was addressed to another couple in another part of the resort. We took the letter and the champagne to the front desk. Front desk thanked us for bringing this to their attention and asked if we would like a bottle of the same delivered to our room. We accepted but never did receive it. On our first day requested extra pillows;never received them. No clock in rooms so bring a travel clock if you would like to know what time it is or need to set an alarm. Our phone did not work the entire stay (7 nights). After three requests to fix the phone we were finally told all the phones in the complex we were in were out. So, no ability for even a wake up call. Rooms were made up daily. If you do decide to bring goodies (such as toiletries or gifts) for the staff keep them out of sight. I left the bag of Canadian gifts on the dresser along with my other personal stuff. The bag of Canadian gifts was gone the first day. I was hoping to gift these items to several staff and not just one. So I learned these should be kept out of sight until I was ready to gift them out. I must say though my personal items were safe and did not go missing. Customer service is extremely slow, especially at the bar. Food was not replenished quickly if at all in the buffet restaurant. Cubans work on Cuban time was a common saying. The a la carte restaurants were booked up by the second day. However, we did snag a reservation at the Cuban, and Italian restaurants. We arrived five minutes early for our 6:30pm reservation at the Cuban restaurant and were told to come back because they were not opened yet. Service was quick for us here. The Italian restaurant we arrived on time for our 7:30 reservation. We were seated promptly. We left after 25 minutes as our orders were not yet taken. Beach was kept clean. Internet was available for 10 pesos for one hour. We were told that it was very slow. So we remained internet free for the week. All guests received a complimentary bottle (700ml) of rum the second day. Check out was quick and uneventful.

Hard to get towels. Etc beach towels
Room was not very clean
Service was good. Great staff. Very friendly

All in all we had a great vacation. Weather was beautiful, beaches were nice and the pools as well. The food was terrible, the room was adequate, although the washrooms were very good in the room. Washrooms throughout the resort were terrible. No toilet paper, locks didn't work and in the main lobby one stall didn't even have a door. At the lighthouse bar they never had ice, beer or orange juice, and no straws half the time. There is no way this is a 4.5 star resort, I would rate it a 3.5. We found the staff at the hotel unfriendly, although our maid was very good and tried to help us get more towels etc. as there was none in the room when we arrived. All in all I would not return to this hotel or Cuba itself actually.

poor room service verry humide last time I go there

Quand on achète un voyage, on achète pas l'hôtel, mais bien les services de l'hôtel. Et bien en général, il n'y avait pas de services à cet hôtel. Par contre nous avons passé quand même une belle semaine puisque la température était de notre bord. Les chambres sont assez grandes et confortables. UNE serviette de plage par personne qu'on a pas pu changer de la semaine, c'est inadmissible. Ça fait 10 fois que nous allons à Cuba, c'est la première fois que ça nous arrive et qu'on est aussi déçu. Ils manquent un peu de tout. Je ne blâme pas le personnel, ils font avec ce qu'ils ont. Je crois plutôt que c'est dû à une mauvaise gestion des dirigeants. Je ne retournerai pas à cet endroit, et je ne le recommaderai pas non plus. Pourtant, je considère qu'on est pas si exigeants puisque nos draps et serviettes de bain n'ont pas été changés de la semaine et on trouve ça bien normal (environnement oblige) puisque je ne change pas les draps et serviettes à tous les jours à la maison non-plus. Je crois que le prochain voyage ne sera pas à Cuba car il semble y avoir pénurie dans tout, et quand on est en vacances ce n'est pas pour se stresser et toujours avoir à quémander pour obtenir les services qui sont soit-disant inclus, au contraire, ils devraient nous faciliter la tâche. Franchement, on s'attendait à mieux, une chance qu'on avait pas payé trop cher.

This resort is beautiful, they are very anxious to look after their guests. You just have to remember you are in their country and have to live with their culture...relax you are on vacation. My husband and I and six other friends were there last week and we had a fantastic time. Rooms were clean, buffet was good, we didn't do any of the a la carte restaraunts, our own decision.

Clean facilities and rooms. Staff friendly if you tip first (don't need to tip lots. Maybe a dollar). Food is about 80% in edible. So go into this with open eyes.

Btw you need to hit the clubs in varadero. Casa
de musica is friggin awesome.

And of course everything is very negotiable in Cuba from cab fare to shopping to your room selection at the resort. Be easy going and youll have a wonderful time

The hotel is a bit dated- service subpar - could be because they are understaffed or no one to oversee them. Had a wonderful time though thanks to fellow Canadian travellers and an amazing complimentary trip to Havanna by the hotel. I do understand that there are embargos on but just the lack of imagination - you don't have to have many ingredients to make food taste good
Won't recommend this resort. The rooms were clean - beach towels were in short supply - no problem ever getting chairs on the beach or under a palpas. I would go to Cuba again. Mopeds are in poor shape my husband rented one - they don't put gas in them - so have to get own gas once you find where the station is - then it broke down an hour out of Varedero - thank goodness for the generosity of some local Cubans that took him in and gave him water and shade.

We (Husband, toddler and myself) had a great time at Barcelo Marina Palace. This vacation was definately a you get what you pay for deal. We wanted a cheap getaway with a beautiful beach and lots of sunshine. We went on this vacation with very low expectations as our first experience in Cuba was not a pleasant one and needless to say, aside from some minor things we enojyed our vacation. People are always worried about the food when one mentions Cuba. This resort had a good variety of food, the best being the pizza and pasta. Everything else was edible but very bland. The fresh croissants served at breakfast are amazing!!! And the Crepes made by the chef at breakfast are worth waiting in line for! We brought our 2 yr old with us and he ate the pizza and pasta everyday, he seemed content with it. The staff were so pleasant and extremly accomodating and loved to entertain our son. There were daily towel shortages (that was my biggest complaint since we liked to return to our room around 4pm to shower for dinner, but it could have been worse) and anytime I called customer service for towels it arrived at our room w/in 20 mins followed by a follow-up call from front desk asking us if everything was OK. My second complaint was the long waits at the buffet, if you want the good, fresh food from the grill/chefs be prepared to wait 30 mins at a time. The hotel is definately showing its wear and tear, would definately benefit from some renos and we found that the pools were not cleaned daily. Entertainment staff was great, beach was breath taking, bed and pillows were comfy.

When we first pulled up to Barcelo Marina we are amazed at how beautiful the outside of the resort was! The main lobby is very open allowing the breeze to come through the hotel as well as gives you the ability to always have a view of the ocean. The staff initially and throughout the duration of the stay were very friendly and polite, always willing to help you out if needed. The resort is right on the ocean which makes accessing the beach quick and easy. The beach is filled with many shaded cabanas and lounge chairs for your comfort. There was always lots to do during the day and at night depending on what you enjoyed. They even held water aerobics in the ocean and pool and dance classes on the beach. There were shows every night of the week and they were incredible! Some of the best shows I have ever seen...very comparable to Las Vegas! Some suggestions for anyone wanting to stay here: bring a drinking mug as the cups they provide are quite tiny. The food was not as good as I was hoping. We suggest you bring snacks from home and any condiments you may use at home as the food is very blan. Even ketchup was hard to come by. There was not a lot of selection at the buffet or Canadian cuisine choices. If you are a picky eater you may have a hard time with this. We did however enjoy breakfast as well as we had very good meals at the a la carte restaurants on site and the snack bar that is open 24 hours cooked us hamburgers and hotdogs or whatever else we wanted which made up for the lack of choices at the buffet. This is a very large hotel and it was at maximum capacity while we were staying there. We found it very crowded at times, hard to find a seat in the lobby and we often had to wait quite awhile for a drink at the bar. We were a 30 minute bus ride from Veradero or a 15-20 minute taxi ride which was nice and easy for us to head into town. The towns people are very friendly and even at night we had no problem walking around by ourselves. It is a very safe environment. We very much enjoyed our stay here and would definitely go back!

There is alot of construction going on by this hotel and if you are in the rooms that face it there is alot of noise from 0700am. There seems to be an issue with GI Upsets from mild to severe
The food certainly has room for improvement as well, this is my 8th trip to Cuba so I knew what to expect and this hotel has greater potential than being delivered at this time. The beach is great the service good on most parts, appears to be average at best not a 4 1/2 star.

the whole experience of cuba was great the barcelo marina palace was near the end of the peninsula the room service was excellent, right on the beach, close to all the ammenities offered at the resort will definately returning next year!

This was our second time in Varadero in two years. Last visit was to a different hotel. This hotel is very nice and is very large, we requested ocean view and had an awesome room in building # 16 on the 3rd floor. Only 3 couples were dropped off with us so check in wasn't to bad but we did see other drop offs and only one person behind the counter to help large numbers of people check in. The large beach with areas to swim and snorkel are wonderful , beach staff members are friendly, funny, and very helpfull. Getting out for the day is easy with the double decker bus stopping every 1/2 hour almost right in front of the hotel. Taxi's of all kinds are also always available and you can also book a car and driver for a day very easily. We mostly went to sit on the beach, wade in the ocean and have a drink or two and we were not disappointed. The shows put on by the hotel usually started at 9:30 which seemed to be a little late for us so we cannot comment on that. As for the food, in the morning the omelet and waffle chef were fantastic. For lunch and supper the pasta and pizza chef's were also very good. The rest of the choices were different from what we are used to and although we did try most of them they weren't that appealing. We didn't starve and found that if you look around and try different things you will find things you like. Get to know some of the staff and you will have as good a time as we did.

Les chambres sont propres, le lit est confortable. La nourriture mérite d'être améliorée (fil d'attente au buffet.

We had booked an oceanview room,which we did not get,ice machine broke down in our area.No beer all week at our swim up bar,restaurant in our area not open,long walk to main lobby & beach.we arrived at 10:30 a.m.did not get room until 5:30 at night.