Best Resort in Varadero
 

Can anyone recommend a nice hotel with good food (I know, it's Cuba but still) and on a nice strip of the beach? We're going in October and don't know where to stay. We want to be close enough to the main strip but it just seems like all the nice hotels are further away. Any suggestions?

We Just got back from Varadero. We stayed at Club Kawama. A very nice place with great staff and good food. The beach is fantastic. The walking distance to the town itself is about 10 min.<BR>Enjoy

I have to disagree with Castro and say that Club Kawama is a dump!!! My recommendation would be Breezes Varadero, Melia Las Americas, or Beaches and Paradisus. The latter two are further down the strip though but transportation to and fro are no prob.

If you want a nice resort I would steer clear of Varadero. It is a horrible place where most Cubans are not even allowed to go. You will only meeta few of the elite wealthy Cubans at Varadero as well as many, frequently underage, prostitutes. Varadero attracts a lot of tourists who are in Cuba solely to take advantage of the mass of cheap prostitutes. In addition the increasing popularity of all inclusive resorts in Varadero is helping line the pockets of Fidel but this does not mean your tourist dollars are going to help the average Cuban who remains very poor indeed.<BR><BR>If you want to support the Cuban regime and don't care for the welfare of young girls forced into prostitution then go to Varadero. But, if I were you I would travel independently and stay in Casas so as to ensure you support the average Cuban on the street rather then Fidel and his cronies.

I would not go to Kawama if my life depended on it. We saw a number of roaches in the rooms when we did our site inspection...really gross.<BR><BR>My favorite resort was the Tryp Penninsula. It was awsome..the food was great, it was clean, and just plain old beautiful. I hear Paradisus is the best though, but we didn't get to see it.<BR><BR><BR>And to John, Where did you get your info???? I did not see any prostitutes. <BR>

The Tryp looks really nice but a travel agent told me that the beach on that northern part of the peninsula wasn't as nice as the beach around Breezes Varadero. Is that True?

How ironic. I resort in Cuba with "Americas" in the name.

Contrary to popular belief, not all Cubans hate Americans. The staff in the hotels are the friendliest I've met and I've been to several Caribbean islands.

To get technical everyone in the western hemisphere lives in the Americas. Everyone right from Alert in extreme northern Canada right down to Cape Horn. I believe that the Spanish named us and in the Canary Islands belonging to Spain, there is a Las Americas beach

Johh,<BR><BR>Lisa was simply asking for a nice resort in Varadero and you come up with all this BS about prostitutes...I've been to Varadero 3 times and have NEVER, and i repeat NEVER, seen prostitutes...maybe they're only in the areas you hang around. <BR><BR>Lisa, Breezes Varadero is really nice, also, I'm thinking of checking out either the Barcelo Solymar or the Coralia around Xmas...look into those, see what you think.

abcdef,<BR><BR>Perhaps you were with your partner? If so, quite obviously, a prostitute is not that likely to approach you. If you are by yourself or in the company of other males obviously you will be more of a target.<BR><BR>Or perhaps you are female? If so, this will also substantially reduce the number of girls offering their services!<BR><BR>Otherwise perhaps you are tremendously naive andf can not see the prostitution going on right in front of you?<BR><BR>I did not stay in Varadero for long as I found it such a horrific place and I did not enjoy being approached by these prostitutes.<BR><BR>It is true that in many other parts of Cuba (and to a large extent in Havana) you will also get approached by prostitutes but from what I saw (and I did go to quite a lot of the island) Varadero is certainly the hub of prostitution and is a hub where a lot of tourists go for what is essentially a sex holiday.<BR><BR>If you were able to go there and not see any prostitution at all you either certainly found a much nicer bit of Varadero or as I said must be very naive.

abcdef,<BR><BR>In addition to my last message I suggest you read some of the other posts about Cuba. Quite a few mention the prostitution problem and several specifically highlight Varadero as an area where prostitution is rife.<BR><BR>I have therefore come to the conclusion that you are either female (like Melissa who asked where I got my info from) or you are truly naive.

Finally abcdef,<BR><BR>It may not bother you but I would prefer my kids to not be subjected to questions such as "do you want a bit of sucky sucky?" when a child is only 12 years old. This bothers me anbd so I fail to see why you call my comments "BS" when others have agreed that Varadero is rife with prostitution.

John,<BR><BR>Wow, three responses from you in the span of just over an hour! I can tell your interest in this topic is legit. <BR><BR>FYI I am female. <BR><BR>I have to give you credit and I can admit when I'm wrong...perhaps you're right, I didn't experience what you did and that was probably because I am a female. And of course, I would not want anyone to ask a 12 year old child if they want 'sucky sucky' that is highly inappropriate.<BR><BR>The reason I called your previous post BS was for 2 reasons, I did not like the picture you painted of Varadero, and, I did not experience or even see anything pertaining to prostitution. I thought it was a fabulous place each time I went and as I stated before, am planning to go again around Xmas. <BR><BR>So, let's agree to disagree...I love Varadero for my reasons, you don't for yours, and that is purely what this discussion board is about...to each his own and I hope you didn't take anything I posted personally.

I may have been a bit harsh on Varadero. I am sure some hotels are better than others. In some, if there is any prostitution going on at all, I am sure it is very discrete.<BR><BR>All parts of Cuba have a wealth of prostitutes who will pester lone males or groups of males. However, as Varadero is the tourist mecca of Cuba it draws more than its fair share I think it is safe to say.<BR><BR>I am sure there are many reasons to love Varadero as you say, however, I would not recommend Varadero to lone males or groups of males unless prostitutes are the draw for them.

Lisa,<BR><BR>I found the beach at the Tryp extremely wonderful I am not sure where that travel agent was staying but my guess is that they haven't stayed at the Tryp or Paradisso. Anyway, I loved the beach at the Tryp because there were no strong currents and you could actually walk out a bit before it got deep. The beach at the Tryp was also good because they have organized sports and beach activities on the beach (something you don't see at most of the other resorts)

xxx,<BR><BR>Thanks for the info, when did you stay at the Tryp? Any more info? Glad to hear the water doesn't have any strong current, not the best swimmer but enjoy the watersports. Is there a swim up bar at the Tryp?

I am thinking about a trip to Cuba with my husband this winter. Where is the best Scuba diving? Which resort should we stay at that has a reputable dive outfit? Thanks in advance.

TRYP is the place to stay, swim up bar and all. Feel free to e-mail for any questions you may have. I just got back yesterday and would be glad to help.

I think John has a bit of a sexual hangup and a prostitute fetish. I dread to think of what other destinations he has been to ....and what he's been shopping for when he was there ! Eughhh