Cuba - Lonely Planet [190]
Hotel Los Delfines (Islazul; Map; 66-77-20; cnr Av de la Playa & Calle 38; s/d CUC$55/88; ) Islazul goes (almost) all-inclusive in this friendlier, cozier copy of the big resorts further northeast. The 100 rooms come packed with additional extras such as satellite TV, minibar and safe deposit box, and there’s a lovely scoop of wide protected beach.
TOP END
Rates in these resorts are all-inclusive, and discounted if you take a package.
Hotel Barlovento (Gran Caribe; Map; 66-71-40; Av 1 btwn Calles 10 & 12; s/d CUC$64/88, ocean view CUC$133/190; ) The first hotel you encounter when driving into Varadero is an attractive enough place with a lovely palm-fringed pool, integrated colonial-style architecture, and a choice stretch of beach. Popular with Canadians in the winter, the food here is purportedly good though points get deducted for the nighttime entertainment – water ballet and magic shows – which are not a patch on the standard Cuban knees-up.
Hotel Sunbeach (Hotetur; Map; 61-34-46; Calle 17 btwn Avs 1 & 3; s/d CUCS$70/140; ) Formerly known as Hotel Bellamar (locals still call it that), this place is one block from the beach. The 282 no-frills rooms are serviceable, but with its worn aquamarine sofas and ugly ’60s-style architecture this hotel has delusions of grandeur.
Hotel Cuatro Palmas (Gran Caribe; Map; 66-70-40; Av 1 btwn Calles 60 & 62; r CUC$75/170; ) This large resort right on the beach now run by the French Accor chain was once a personal residence of dictator Fulgencio Batista. Jammed together across the street are a series of shared two-story villas with another 122 rooms with fridges and toilet only (shower is shared). This is the first of the real ‘posher’ all-inclusives as you head east, though it’s still close enough to town for getting around on foot.
Hotel Kawama (Gran Caribe; Map; 61-44-16; Av 1 & Calle 1; s/d CUC$89/129; ) A venerable old hacienda-style building from the 1930s, the Kawama is, by definition, a piece of Varadero history. It was the first of the 50-plus hotels to inhabit this once-deserted peninsula more than 70 years ago and, as far as character and architectural ingenuity go, it’s still one of the best. Even by today’s standards the property is huge, with some 235 colorful rooms blended artfully into the thin sliver of beach that makes up Varadero’s western extremity. All-inclusive prices include everything from tennis to aqua-bike usage.
Club Amigo Tropical (Cubanacán; Map; 61-39-15; Av 1 btwn Calles 22 & 23; s/d CUC$90/129; ) Right on a great piece of beach, this activities-oriented hotel attracts youthful package tourists and a few married Cubans. It’s well located right in the center but, at 40 years of age, the slightly tatty rooms don’t merit the asking price.
Club Amigo Aguas Azules (Cubanacán; Map; 66-82-43; Av Las Morlas Km 1.5; s/d CUC$100/160; ) Formerly the Gran Hotel, Club Amigo’s lurid pinks, yellows and greens suggest Disneyland, Vegas or worse; but the place has perked up since its Aguas Azules reincarnation at the turn of 2008–09. Clean rooms and an excellent slice of beach enhance the three-star rating.
Hotel Tuxpán (Cubanacán; Map; 66-75-60; Av Las Américas; s/d CUC$102/150; ) The ’60s concrete-block architecture make this all-inclusive one of Varadero’s ugliest tourist shrines, but the Tuxpán is famous for other reasons, such as its disco, La Bamba, purportedly one of the resort’s hottest. For those not enamored with Soviet architectonics, the beautiful beach is never far away.
Hotel Varadero Internacional (Gran Caribe; Map; 66-70-38; Av Las Américas; s/d CUC$110/157; ) Opened in December 1950 as a sister hotel to Miami’s Fontainebleau, the four-story Internacional is Varadero’s most famous and fabulously retro resort. While