Barlovento

Iberostar Barlovento

by OceanAngel about Iberostar Barlovento

Sorry but I can't remember at the moment 5 minutes walk from the beach, good, friendly staff, many who have been there for years and remember you from year to year

Miss You Barlovento!

by TripAdvisor Member joli

Just got back from barlovento yesterday, spent 2 weeks there from January 5th till the 19th. If you are looking for clean, friendly and inexpensive resort this is the place. Great animation staff, grat maids great everything. Yes the food does get a bit repetitive but there is always something. Hope you like seafood they serve it every day. If your looking for 5 star amenities then go somewhere else, but if you want clean friendly service, then say hola to baarlovento.

The Best of the Best!

by A TripAdvisor Member

My lady and I stayed at the Barlovento and absolutely loved it. The atmosphere in the restaurants, bars and lobby area was always one that we felt comfortable and welcome. The people all work very hard and show no edge toward tourists. They are a fine bunch and made our vacation even better.
On the downside, at peak busy times at the lobby bar, you'd have to wait sometimes too long for your drink.
Drinks and coffee were always made well.
The Gran Caribe Barlovento is situated in the center of Varadero which was great for walks, buggy rides and moped riding.
I went off the beaten path to get 'Real Pics' of the local culture with no feeling of threat to my safety.
We loved it and would stay there again.

absolutely fabulous

by A TripAdvisor Member

We stayed at the barlovento for a week and it was absolute heaven! We saw ONE cat with her kittens and no dogs hanging around the buffet area as one trip advisor stated.

The rooms were basic but spotlessly clean, as were the dining areas, the bar, the pool - need I go on

The staff were 100% committed to making sure we enjoyed our holiday. The evening entertainment was on occassion a bit grim but the entertainment staff did there best - remember this is a communist country and they don't have access to everything that we do!!!

All in all this was a fabulous holiday that I would have no problem recommending to anyone.

Good but not Great

by A TripAdvisor Member

The Barlovento Hotel is huge! The food is great (probably as good as it gets in Cuba) and the staff is all really friendly and makes you feel welcome weather you tip them or not. The only thing I recomend it bug spray because the mosquito bites are killer in Cuba!! The rooms are very clean and the maids always leave you cute little notes and chocolates in your room. Make sure to tip them because they work hard all day long! (FYI - there is no hot water in the rooms so prepare yourself for cold showers)

One thing I didn't like is that the hotel is so big that it is hard to mingle and meet the other guests who are staying there. The pools are huge but you wont want to spend any time there because the beach is out of this world!!!! Plus the hotel offers a snack bar by the beach so you don't have to change out of your bathing suit for lunch. Make sure to wake up early if you want a good spot on the beach and a towel because they go pretty quick.

The nightly entertainment is really funny and the drinks are strong - they are not cheap on the rum!

Overall it is a good hotel - close to the market and night clubs and only about 20 minutes from the airport, the only thing is that hotel is really far away from all the other hotels in Varadero, it is right at the begining of the "strip".

Warning Do Not Stay Here!!!!!!

by A TripAdvisor Member

My boyfriend and i stopped at this hotel as part of a twin holiday with Havana over the new year. Havana was great but unfortunately the Barlovento was not as was described to us at the travel agent. We were advised that the food would be 24 hours with it being all inclusive and there would be an abundance of it, there would be a choice of three restaurants, a bar literally at the pool side and a widespread choice of watersports. Upon our arrival we were extremely disappointed to find out that in fact this was not so. In fact the food was extremely bland lacking imagination and it was repetitive, so repetitive that it was the same cold tired food practically every day- chips, pork, rice, beans etc (which i might add were covered with flies) on rare occassions you were lucky to get shrimp; the 'three restaurants' were actually really one with a week long waiting list to eat either Cuban or Mexican food, which in fact was only cooked towards the end of the week in rotation, and if you were the generous type and liked to tip you could eat that food as often as you liked. However Mexican wasn't exactly Mexican it was the same hashed up dribble that was served in the repettitive buffet restaurant. Considering we were in Cuba- the Caribbean we did not even once sample any Cuban cusine instead we were forced to live off chips, pizza and rice for 11 nights! There was not even a fruit table, hardly any fish or lobster. The food wasn't 24 hours as was advised instead you had to wait like sheep for feeding time which was within specified hours. If you were hungrey outside that window you would have to starve or go out to buy snacks. Now i know we may sound like moaners but i assure you we aren't we were just sold a holiday that cost an awfully lot of money that did not measure up to what we expected; we want to pre warn any other potential victims. On our return to the UK today we spoke to several other holiday makers about their stay and we were green with envy to hear that they had had the time of their lives and their hotels had exceeded all of their expectations. They were served with excellent cusine and lots of it with fresh fish, prawns, fresh fruit, vegetables etc with optional room service and 24 hour snacks. On the plus side our maid Clarissa was lovely and the room a good side and clean, oh and the beach was beautiful. We however feel as if our holiday was ruined, my boyfriend and i have both travelled to numerous countries such as Bali, Thailand, Las Vegas, Orlando, New York etc and have never had cause to complain, in fact we had the time of our lives. I know that Cuba is communist but if the hotel down the road can offer the service and food standard we expect why can't the Barlovento? You have been warned!!!

We didn't want to leave!

by A TripAdvisor Member

Myself and 4 other close friends just returned from staying at Barlovento in Varadero, Cuba. The hotel, the grounds and the beach are breathtaking! The nightly entertainment was different every night and the staff really made an effort to please everyone. It was fun to watch! The rooms are really nice, but make note that there are no ocean view rooms. There were 2 girls in one room, and every time they used the blow dryer, half of their electricity would turn off - but who spends time in their room? The food was pretty repetitive! And we were all surprised at the lack of fresh fruit provided. The staff is very friendly! Book your tours and al a carte dinners the night you arrive, or you will NOT be able to book all three dinners, as mentioned in the hotel information. Take big mugs to the resort - all the drinks are in small plastic cups and during peak hours, it could take awhile to get your drinks. We noticed that tipping increased the speed of service - but there are different bartenders nightly, so tip a little at the beginning of each night vs. a lump sump on your first night only! The maids and entertainment staff really appreciate any clothes and bath/lotion/shave gel stuff you can give up (at the end of your stay). I highly recommend this resort to anyone looking at a very convenient and breathtaking resort! We would most definitely return. If you are into seeing the nightlife - locate the entertainent staff after the evening show and you will be taken to different clubs (one is inside of a cave - really cool!!). Enjoy - it's a great 3 1/2 - 4 star resort!!

Varadero

by cuckoo

We drove over this bridge on the way from the airport at Havana to Varadero. It is one of the first things that I remember about Cuba. We spent 3 days at Varadero, just lying by the pool and swimming in the beautiful sea. I used to get up at 6am to go and swim in the sea, the best time of the day!

My sister and her husband found this cafe in Moscow when they were living there. It is called Varadero!

We stayed in a hotel called the Barlovento. It was very close to the beach. I took this picture from the gateway of the hotel looking toward the beach.

I was lying on the beach one day and saw this plane flying just above the water. It looked so great that I had to get a picture. A friend of mine is a pilot and he just loved this one!