Overall it was a nice hotel. The beach was beautiful and the nightly entertainment shows were great.

To Whom It May Concern,



My family and I were finally able to book a family vacation and get all five of us together with all of our busy schedules. Our names and ages respectively are: Sam 48, Saverina 46, Daniel 19, Justin and Jessica 15. We also had another person joining us, Francesco 19. He booked on his own and booked his own room.



I contacted iTravel 2000 and reviewed with the agent what we were looking for and we also reviewed different locations. She was very helpful and also informed me that you cannot go wrong when booking a RUI hotel as they are all five star and up. We were told Cuba was a great place to go at this time of year and that the RUI is great. The agent convinced us so we booked it; we also upgraded the rooms to ocean view.



We pulled our 15 year olds out of school and the 19 year old just finished college, and my husband and I both scheduled a week off of work. We really needed this family time as we have had a couple of ups and downs this year and we all really needed a get away. We left May 3, 2012 and returned very early May 11, 2012.



We checked in on May 3, 2012 around 9:30 pm. The front lobby was okay; the check in staff was a bit rude. Our travel plans included two adjoining rooms. OMG!!! This hotel was NOT what we expected; we had 3 beds in one room and a king in other room. This hotel was not a 5 star hotel, it was not clean at all!! We were stuck there for one week.



Over the course of the next 7 days, it became more stressful and unpleasurable:



- the room was dirty and never cleaned

o floor was never washed, not even when we walked in for the first time, it was just swept

o Bathroom had only floor towels to dry your selfwith. We asked for towels and they said "sorry we don’t have any"

o towels were changed once in the 7 days (from one floor towel to another floor towel)

o my kids only had two towels for three people

o We had to use our beach towels when showering

o The beach towel had to be exchanged at the cabana but the cabana never had towels. We were only able to exchange the beach towels once in 7 days

o Toilet paper was very limited

o We received two 1.5l bottles of water in each room to use (brush teeth and drink). We drank both bottles in one day and was told we only receive two bottles every two days, so I asked if I can get it filled somewhere and they said the fountain in my room. (We were told on the bus to the resort not to drink the water). We had to buy a bottle of water from the store.

o The bathtub, sink and toilet where never washed

o We also paid extra for ocean view, and there was no ocean view, nor were we informed of this. There is a conservation area with trees that you have to walk through to get to the beach

o Sheets where never changed (one day my son and I waited for the cleaning lady to get his sheets changed and she said she could only change sheets on one bed because she only had one sheet, and not top and bottom sheet it was only the bottom sheet, he wanted them changed because he got sunscreen on his sheets).

o My kids air conditioner was not working and it took the workers 3 days to show up, thank God it was an adjoining room and they got some air from our room.



- Food

o OMG it was horrible

o We had black crows eating from the same buffet that we were to eat from

o Not all the stations where open all the time

o The 24 hrs snack bar would stop serving around 1 am. My son went there at 1am and asked for a burger and fries because that was the only thing they said they had, he waited one hour and then they had to go to front desk to ask why they didn’t get their food. After a 2hr wait they received their burgers and fries.

o One night at the snack bar we asked the waiter for a rum and cola and he said he had no more rum as he was holding a bottle of rum in his hands

o Main buffet was not very clean

o No fruit on the buffet

o We have never eaten so many dinner rolls with butter and plain white pasta with butter

o One good thing was the a-la-carte Chinese restaurant

o Ketchup was hard to find and there were no spices at all (the bartender in the main lobby had a bottle of Tabasco on the bar, I asked him if we could take the bottle he said wait – he wrapped the napkin around and new bottle of Tabasco and charged me 5 dollars that he put in his pocket)

o Napkins were very hard to get, when you asked for an napkin that was not on the table they would give you one for the whole table (we were NOT going to share one napkin between 6 people)

o Tissues are not on the resort at all – never saw one

o By the 4th day it was very hard to live on burgers, fries, plain buns and pasta. Someone told us about an Italian restaurant in the mall (American plaza) in Varadero that made okay pizza, so we packed our things and got on the bus and when to the mall. The food there was good, the pizza and chicken parm. was good. It was so good that we brought some back on the bus so we could eat it the next day. How funny is it that the food was better in the mall in Varadero then on a 5 Star Resort?

On May 10, 2012, the day we were leaving the resort, my son was looking for food, so we went to the main buffet – well I could not believe the service! The bosses must have been there because we did see a couple of men walking around and the servers were pleasant, all the food stations were open, and there were napkins on the tables. Still not a 5 star but better.



The exit room that they gave us to shower in before our flight was the dirtiest thing you can imagine. The floor in the room was flooded, no towels (my kids dried themselves with a blow-dryer how sad is that). We had garbage from the many people who used it before us, and there were dirty beach towels on the ground. The exit room was an experience in itself.



I could go on and on but I will stop. I have to say that was not a 5 star resort. iTravel 2000, Signature and RUI has lost credibility in my eyes and in my kid’s eyes (I’m sure everyone else's too that thought they were going to a 5 start resort).



Every Canadian that we talked to were starving and saying the same thing that it was not a 5 star resort and were very disappointed, and it is a very stressful vacation when a mother is concerned about the dirtiness in the rooms and her kids not getting food. This was not a vacation, it was very stressful and expensive. My family is very stressed over this vacation; it was not fun at all. We would say that this resort is 2 stars, no more than that.



We had locals trying to sell us cocaine on the resort.



I have attached some pictures of the towels, floor of our bathroom to show you how dirty it was and also the birds in our buffet.



Francesco had to sleep one night in the lobby and 2 nights in my kid’s room because his room was infested with bugs. He paid the maid 20 dollars to get rid of the bugs and it never happened. He had frogs, lizard’s, very large spiders, and God know's what else was in there.



I have names and numbers of other people that we met at the resort that say the same thing; never again.



At this point we are requesting a full refund for selling us something that was not.

i don't think i'll go back again!!

J'y retournerais n'importe quand! 7 jours était trop court. J'ai été dans un 4,5 à Cancun et cet hôtel n'a rien à envier celui du Mexique croyez-moi! Les plages sont sublimes et les piscines du resort sont exceptionnelles! Je le recommande à n'importe qui qui désire s'amuser comme un fou ou bien prendre le temps de relaxer. Vous trouverez sur place une panoplie d'excursions à réaliser absolument! Merci Sunwing :)

The hotel itself was modern and gorgeous. I was expecting a lot of couples and families, but I was shocked to see that the crowd resembled a frat party. A bunch of young, ignorant college kids running around at all hours of the night was more than a little annoying. This is saying something considering I just graduated from university myself. The frat most likely had something to do with the time of year though. The service of employees was disappointing - I've had much better experiences with staff @ 4 star hotels in Cuba. In fact, no one really went out of their way to make you feel at home. I read reviews about this hotel and didn't believe what people were saying about the towel situation. We arrived Tues and DID NOT get proper sized bath towels until SUNDAY. All they had were little hand towels and every other tourist in the hotel that we met said the same thing. Same with the beach towels. No availability. This is a basic necessity! Trust me when I say BRING YOUR OWN TOWEL just in case! Food was pretty decent considering it's Cuba. You definitely won't go hungry. The excursions that were available are worth your money, esp the catamaran and the Havana trip with the Tropicana show at night. The beach was ram packed everyday but we never had a problem finding chairs. If you like the shade, get there early otherwise there is ZERO space under the shelters. The people who sell things on the beach are pretty respectful and don't hound you. 24 hr snack bar was pretty terrible. Almost every night they ran out of most items on the menu and a few times ran out of drinks (even non-alcoholic)! I've never written a negative review about a resort, but this hotel needs some work in the management/service depts. OH, and they don't carry phone cards (charge you but the minute instead). To call Canada for a 2 minute conversation it cost me over $6. Also, forget getting access to the internet. They didn't restock their internet cards ONCE during the entire week I was there. The hotel was beautiful @ surface level but there are a lot of shortcomings. I enjoyed my trip, don't get me wrong, but I would NEVER set foot in that resort again. There are a lot of 4 stars that far surpass the overall experience I encountered @ the Riu.

big resort, lots of walking, lobby bar always packed at night and hard to find a seat and get a drink, ran out of clean towels almost everyday so had to use beach towels for showering, ran out of beach towels at pools, ran out of hot water in shower on some days, ran out of french fries a couple days, no ketchup, ran out of menu items at a la cartes, food selection poor especially at snack bars

This was our second trip to Riu Varadero! I was very happy with our stay at the Riu last year, and I am impressed with how their food, entertainment and service has improved. I found the staff very helpful and friendly. The buffets offer great selection with consistent quality. The a la cart restaruants have all improved their presentation and quality. The staff is much more comfortable with their roles and do their job extremely well. They are quick to offer a smile and a welcome. Please remember to pass on a few pesos to reflect great service; it is appreciated by the recipient.

Great staff and clean resort

facility very nice, beach very nice, very bad food, cold and under cooked at low heat. bed very hard and poor quality,towels were very hard to get and mini bar was not looked after well at all. I will not go back to this resort at any price, too bad!!!!

The property is great, pool areas and beach were exceptional even though towels were scares(although to be expected from a communist 3rd world country). Rooms were ok, expected a lot more from Riu. Also expected more in food from a 5 star resort. Overall we had a great time here.

Over all it was good. Front desk staff needs some work.

Was a pretty nice hotel, food was good , beach was narrow but very nice , staff was ok could have done a bit more for their clients, we asked for ketchup it was NO just plain NO when they could have said well let me check to see if i can get you some.! They ran out of pizza at the snack bar for 3 days and it was great at the snack bar not so hot in the buffet.. Entertainment was great they do a great job.!!!!! Overall great trip... would go back to Cuba in a couple of years....

Hotel was nice, staff was great. Food was very bland and boring and sometimes downright bad. As well we were promised a "honeymoon bonus" and received nothing.

Good, but not sure it was a 5 star restort. If you have a late flight, check out time should be at least 4pm. not noon. Sunwing Rep. not at airport during depart. Airport never posted 3hr. flight delay.

BELLE TEMPERATURE HOTEL PROPE MAIS DECU DU SERVICE ET PAS UN 5*

The grounds of the hotel is quite extensive. The fact that it's not a highrise is a plus.

Bad reviews? Depends on what you expect. The buffet food is not great but recommend to upgrade to Royal Section. Private restaurant and pool make a huge difference. Private check in and check out is great. Not "that" large of a hotel unless you are staying in the farthest building close to entrance. Exercise is good. Beach is narrow so get there early and reserve a chair.

We arrived there late,The reception was not accommodating to have my friends close to our room,or in the same building. We're on opposite sides of the pool. The next day when I asked for room change they said no, no rooms available mean while checked a people in within the hour even though I explained there was many people smoking in front of the room, and we have kids.
The bathroom has this big window that looks into the room, not functional, how can you shower,we have to pull the shower curtain and use the stand up shower that constantly over flows.
The toilet doesn't flush properly even after 5 flush.
Staff don't say Hi, keep talking among themselves. They generally don't look very happy.
Food was the same everyday,Not many options.Al La cartes keep getting time changed, who eats at 8:30 with a 2 year old.
The restaurants have only 1 high chair. No one askes if you need a drink. You practically sit anywhere. Plates and glasses were dirty.
Beach towels, what ever you have thats what you have to stick with all week, they have the hut for towel exchange open, but no towels available, I walked by in the morning, they say noon, checked by noon, nothing, checked back by 4 nothing, whats the point of having someone sit there then. Did not see anyone clean the pool the whole week.
The beach was narrow, no one cleaned the seaweeds.
-Dead coconut leaves not cleaned up.
Seriously no point of upgrading to ROYAL package makes no difference. Rip off of $. This is not a 5 star hotel, total just ruined our vacation, never a RIU again.
And the last day, we fly out at 11, why do we have to be on the bus by 6:45, dinner is at 6:30, we should be able to eat before heading to the airport, the kids were so hungry. I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.

L'Hôtel est censé être un 5 étoiles et c'est loin d'être le cas. Nous avons été décus de la nourriture, le buffet était toujours le même, aucune surprise. Le site est très grand, trop même et le service n'est pas du tout personnalisé. Le personnel se soucie peu du client, trop de gens à cet hôtel, cela fait en sorte qu'on ne cherche pas à satisfaire LE client. Dès notre arrivée, nous avons dû faire la file pour le check-in. Le personnel ne se souciait guère de nous rendre le séjour agréable. Au départ, nous avions demandé un wake-up call et il n'a jamais eu lieu (à 6h am) et personne pour venir chercher nos bagages à notre chambre. De plus, nous étions situé à environ une dizaine de minutes de marche de la mer...Nous allions à Cuba pour celle-ci et n'y avons été qu'une journée et en avant-midi seulement à cause du temps pour s'y rendre et trop loin pour avoir accès aux toilettes et bar, notamment. Il a été difficile d'avoir accès à des bouteilles d'eau dans la chambre. À nore arrivée, 2 bouteilles, et par la suite, il fallait pratiquement faire des demandes et le dernier soir, la réception de l'hôtel m'a dit qu'ils n'en avaient plus !!!! Nous doutons de cela et n'avons pas voulu faire de discussion. L'hôtel commence déjà à être défraichi, Il n'y a pas de ventilateur dans la salle de bain alors l'humidité demeure. La chambre était très ordinaire (pour un 5 étoiles . Je ne recommande pas cet hôtel et je vais éviter Cuba pour un long moment. Un groupe de voyageur présent sur le site a monopolisé le site et a été très bruyant (chambres, piscine et plage), avoir su cela, nous aurions évité cet hôtel, bien sûr. Nous nous sommes peu senties en sécurité sur ce site, dû à pa présence très élevée de voyageur et du personnel peu soucieux de notre bien-être. Pourquoi dire qu'il ya 5 restos à la carte et avoir accès à 2 seulement ? Et de plus, encore là, il fallait faire la file pour s'y inscrire...

I am a frequent traveller and this was the worst experience. This hotel is not even close to a three star let alone a five like I was told.

Serviettes de plage dures a échanger, serviettes de bain sont parfois des tapis de bain ou des serviette à mains. Nous n'avons jamais eu de vraies serviette de bain de plus elles sont parfois reprise par terre et accrocher sur les supports. Mini bar est approvisionné aux deux jours selon les confidences d'une femme de chambre et on manque jamais d'orangeade mais les bières 2-3 au deux jours. Le café et les jus dilués et meilleurs dans plusieurs 3.5*. Très beau site, très grand. Buffets sont biensure répétitifs mais goutent bon. Resto italien (soupe tomate est tres bonne) ordinaire. Ça prend deux jours a instaurer une système ''D'' si l'ordi pour les réservations des resto à la carte plante. Les spectacles sont longs et ordinaires.

tres jolie,et le buffet est bon mais repetitif.le personnel est acceuillant.le seule point negatif sait les serviettes de chambre pas souvent changer et etais tres petites manques sur sa et sur le bar de la chambre qui devait etre rempli chaque jour et ne l etais rarement.pour le reste piscine plage endroit de reve jy retournerais sans hesitation .

The staff were great, the hotel very clean and overall it was a great stay. A couple of things that need to be improved is the sinage, information, and the food. There was no sinage to identify bathrooms or towel service,booking of restaurants, no information that if we lost our "beach" towel we would be charged $15 for replacements and the food was pretty bad. Thank goodness for staples like bread, pasta, and cheese. I say stay out of the buffets and upscale restaurants and eat whenever possible at the snack shops.

Large but very nice resort most of Cubans are very kind. The food for this kind of resort was o.k. but a lot of times it was not always hot enough. The beach is their main attraction it was beautiful and the weather was great.

trop gros, pas assez de personnels. nous avons pu changer notre serviette de plage qu'une seul fois pendant le durée de notre voyage, il en avait jamais de disponible lorsqu'on se présentait pour la changer. Les repas, c'est certain qu'on ne va pas a Cuba pour manger mais quand on va dans le sud, on s'attend à avoir des bons fruits frais mais nous avons eu des fruits en canne!!!! Le plus gros désavantage, l'heure du retour (5h am le 3 avril et le check out à midi le 2 avril) nous avons dû payer 80$ supplémentaires pour pouvoir avoir une chambre jusqu'à 20h et prendre une douche pour aller souper et nous avons dû dormir sur les divans du lobby en attendant l'autobus pour l'aéroport (départ 2h am le 3 avril) assez ordinaire.

My 4th trip to Cuba, 3rd to Varadero. Resort was nice. No bath towels in our room first night and no clean towels until our last night. At some point someone else's towel appeared in our room... I have stayed at 3 different hotels in Varadero and I would pick the Palma Real as my favorite so far for friendliness etc. Staff not overly friendly at Riu but not bad. Good selection of food. Too far from town though and the bus was always packed. Beach very narrow at this resort.

Great resort. When I first arrived I thought it would be far too big. But after being there for a day, realized that everything is easily accessed and a little walking isn't too bad. The 20's buildings are the best location in my opinion.

Food
It's Cuba. Not a lot of variety, bland etc. BUT you will not go hungry. I am the pickiest eater in the world and I managed to eat everyday! Breakfast is great, lunch decent and dinner was okay. I personally enjoyed the Italian restaurant the most.

Beach
It's a little bit more narrow than I would have liked, but it is very beautiful and quite clean! You can get a chair no matter the time of day. I went on March break and never had a problem. You might have to search a little, but they are there!

Entertainment
Lots of fun! Animation staff are very involved with the guests! Stretching, water work-outs, volleyball, zumba and bocce ball at the beach! Lots of fun activities at the pool, always something to do. The shows were fantastic! Especially Michael Jackson!

Cleanliness
Not 5 star standards, but def 4! For the most part the resort if well kept. Sometimes a spill would take a little too long to clean. The room was well kept and we never had a problem with towels in the room. The biggest problem was beach towels. They NEED to buy more towels. They can't keep up with the laundry. I brought my own towel to help with this problem!

Internet
It sucks. But you can use it. It just takes awhile...

Overall, great place! It's new and beautiful! Wonderful people! I love CUBA!

I love the Riu chain of resorts. This is our second trip back, the resort is now completed and there have been some definite improvements, they could still use a few more. It is a large resort with space to walk or run, it is very clean and for the most part the staff is friendly and try hard to please. We only ran into a problem on our final day when checking out the young woman at the reception was rude. We were able to book for acourtesy room to use before we left at 6 p.m., there were no clean towels and the room itself had not been cleaned. When you told her this she shrugged us off rudely. Other than this incident everyone else was wonderful. The food was an improvement from last year, however it could still use some more improvement. Overall I can not wait to go back again, it was a wonderful 12 days.

First time in Cuba & this resort clinched the deal. Excellent customer service. Clean, modern & beautiful facility. Friendly, helpful staff. Food was excellent, lots of choices, limited line ups. Beach was a less than 10 minute walk from our room. More upscale rooms closer to beach, never saw them but ours was beyond expectations. The website for Riu Varadero really reflects the resort. Will travel to Varadero again & will stay here. Only complaint was three computers for 1000 rooms and slow almost like dial up but it kept me on the beach or by one of the two pools or the bar!

We just got back from the Riu. We enjoyed the friendly people of Cuba. Some good and some not so good. The gardens are weedy and not well laid out or tended. This was especially evident at the entrance. The food was typical bulk buffet. Too many poor egg options at breakfast.. the best was to have them fry up an omlette for you. Not enough wheat free alternatives (which I need) for breakfast, i.e. potatoes or rice. Loved all the veggies. Cut up fruit looked slimy. Pineapple and bananas great. Chicken great. Some food looked recycled and dry. Our room was clean & building lay out typical. Bathroom paint job and colour looks seedy. Bed spreads tacky colour. Nice big pillows. A la Carte restaurants: food good, decor minimal, lighting too bright, no bar at entrance while waiting? Fitness room good.. need to have something available to wipe down equipment. Locker rooms with showers useful to us on day we had to book out early and wait for evening bus. Pools very nice... not enough umbrellas or shade options. Not enough chair covers. Beach crowded and too busy, not nicely situated. Too far away through scrub so there is no view of ocean from pool. Lobby decor is nice except wicker egg in middle is not classy enough. Tile floors are dull and grout looks dirty. The Hall area and bar adjacent is fun at night with the music and people dancing. Love the energy there. Bar chairs uncomfortable to sit on, with metal bar digging into mid back. Trip to Havana with taxi arranged through concierge (not Sunwing $250) only $140 CUC's. Loved seeing Havana. Great meal in the city. Towels are clearly a struggle for the resort. We were given clean towels with an apology for the hole and stains... as they were out of other towels. We brought our own and used them often. This is my 2nd trip to Cuba. Been to Mayan Riviera 10x (love the Barcelo Tropical), Bahamas, St Lucia, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Cozumel, Costa Rica, Hilton Head, Florida.... Cuba is now my least favorite AI destination mostly because of what they have not got. I wonder if the communism is effecting their ability to offer great tourism. I've been to the Riu in Playa Del Carmen and it was very good. More sparkle. I have to admit I love my surroundings to be pretty and sparkly... and the Riu in Varadero is not those things. It's not horrible, but is has a dingy feeling to it. If all you want is a great pool and friendly staff... which is why I booked this trip, then it will meet your needs.