Last month Fodors member SimonT and I took an elevator ride up to the Skybar of Havana’s newest tallest building.

**excuse the window glare in the fotos.


The malecon and National hotel in the background and the Habana Libre hotel in the foreground.

Looking westward

Plaza de Revolucion in background

Westward close-up

Around UoH

Looking southeast

The hotel is…

Iberostar Selection La Habana

An old thread about this building…

New Havana hotel

Spectaular views of Havana from up there and nice pics CW. I'm currently on the 18th floor at the Capri. Chillin' by the pool with rum in hand.

Hopefully we will get back to Havana and visit this hotel. Did you find out if they had day passes for the pool?

Wess, I don't know if CW asked about the pool pass at the Iberostar Selection. Most Havana hotels typically offer this. Usually like $20 or so with a portion of that going towards food and drinks.

Yes, I can second that, Simon, although my experiences with using the pools at tourist hotels on day-passes have been strictly within the city of Camaguey. And a lot cheaper there than it seems in La Habana too. The price has been typically $5.00 per person... with again, a portion of that going towards food and drink too. We've gone as a group together of perhaps 10 individuals within my posse - where there's also been a kiddie pool on the side for the Cuban youngsters as well. Good times! Terry

I have swam many a pool in Cuba over the years. In; Santiago, Holguin, Guardalavaca, Trinidad, Varadero, Camaguey, Bayamo, Manzanillo, Jibacoa, Havana and a couple in the eastern beaches.

I must be pool crazy and Cuba crazy too.

😀 🤪

Wessislander, according to hotel website, there are 2 pools there. I only saw only one pool and that was on the 32nd floor. It looks very nice but not very big. I reckon the other one to be on the ground floor? I forgot to ask how much a day pass would be.

Here is a foto from the 32nd floor where the pool was. My previous fotos in this thread were from the 41st floor, I believe.

Nice view from up there at the pool, CW! Nice views in all of your fotos actually. I've always been amazed any time a large swimming pool is engineered within a high-rise building with all of that weight of the water that has to be carried. Especially in Cuba?? jaja

Here's a couple of fotos from back in the day when the Cuban kids were still young with all of us visiting the Gran Hotel in downtown Camaguey city to use both of their pools on day-passes - both the main pool, and the kiddie pool which is only a few feet away from the main. I remember now that the day-pass price did increase to $7.00 per person for adults - $5.00 for each kid. That price also provided for a plate of papas fritas, una hamburguesa, y un refresco, which was great for the kids, but for us adults, our cans of beer were extra. Terry



The kiddie pool at the Gran Hotel in Cam. Great fun for the kids!

The main pool at the Gran Hotel. Great for a game of water polo for us adults once the beers gave us enough liquid courage to get in there. That's my leg in foreground of the foto - my wife Yudith took the foto. Those pools certainly helped to keep everyone cool during those hot months in Cuba. Great fun!

Terry, the piscina that I swam in in Camagüey was the Gran hotel - year 2014. It looks familiar from your foto but that is not me sitting in the background.

If you press on the link in post #2, there is another link to hotel photos that shows 2 different pools. One in the open and one under a roof.

CubanWaters @ 11 - that's not you sitting at the far end of the Gran Hotel pool near the cantina?? I think that's actually a woman! jaja So I believe you!! jiji But hey! Glad to know that you've also had the pleasure of swimming in that pool as well all those years ago. In the kiddie pool foto of mine, those were all of my friends sitting over on the other side of that kid's pool too while our Cuban youngsters were splashing about. We've also done the much larger pool over at Hotel Camaguey as well. Strangely, it always seemed to be only the Cubans enjoying themselves in those hotel swimming pools. If there were indeed any tourists staying there at those hotels, it seemed they were never around - perhaps afraid of getting wet. Unlike you and me. Those were the days, man!! Now all of those kids are grown and having kids of their own. Terry

Great photos of Havana! Gracias. We have been to the National hotel before for a drink walked plenty on the malecon

Obviously a casa would be a much cheaper option but it is a good day out to try a hotel pool in the city. I don’t see a day pass price listed anywhere. It is possible that they do not even offer day passes. Hopefully we will get back to Havana and I will email them about a day pass.