Playa Caleta

We arrive to what we booked as ROC varadero to find out the name had changed. We had no representative from our company we booked to speak with. The hotel was empty 80 people total out of 500 plus rooms. The swim up pool had been closed for over a month. No hot water. No mattresses on the sun beds. No a la cartes open extremely small buffet. Entertainment gathered only 20 people. Cockroachs in the room. Felt very dirty in the rooms. Not a welcome experience. Demanded we be moved to another hotel along with another couple who had no water to shower in a week. As well as my father who was arriving on the 18th. We will never recommend this hotel to anyone. Elevators smelt like urine and very dirty...... falsely advertised in all aspects from all companies. Someone from different agencies should go look for themselves to see the state of this place. [Details]

Upgraded to Roc Plus and well worth it. Ocean view room on 7th floor. No waiting to sign up for international reservations. Walked right in. The food was delicious. Loved the Italian's lasagna. Room immaculate (thanks Omara). Pedro at the bar is terrific. Service staff fantastic. The grounds are stunning as is the ocean. The free bus into downtown goes 4 times a day except Sunday. Any issues were dealt with immediately. Met great people. Would return in a heart beat. Thank you Roc Varadero. I like being away from the downtown area. Peaceful and quiet. [Details]

Ok we have only been here 3 days so I may add to this review. Let me start off by saying that there is some construction going on but that is a good thing... it costs money to upgrade so they can't close down to do it!!
Our room.. yeah it's dated... yeah it's not huge, but we sleep in it.. Bed is comfortable and AC works well... 5 stars

The grounds.. Absolutely gorgeous extremely spacious lots of places to relax... hammocks, daybeds, swings, picnic tables. 5 stars

Things to do.. Mini golf, Botchy ball pit, shuffle board pad, volleyball, pool table, ping pong.. Giant outdoor chess set... Some say nothing to do... I say look again.
Grounds keepers constantly buzzing around keeping the grounds beautiful. 5 stars

The Beach... Absolutely Gorgeous.. the only thing I can say is that anyone with Mobility issues or the elderly will have some difficulty.. the beach has a small hill going into the water and the sand under the water has alot of drops and rises in it.. but still an absolutely gorgeous beach. 5 stars

The pools.. Disgusting one person said.. Not sure what resort you were at... beautiful clear water... lots of sitting spaces... a dried up leaf or two might float by... have you seen the amount of vegetation on this property... pick them up instead of complaining. We prefer the second pool it has a gradual walk in area, great for mobility and elderly... or little tykes. 5 stars

Bars
Bar on main floor
When you order your drink they will bring it to your table... that's personalized service in my book
Bar on second floor open 24 7
Bar on beach
Bar near mini golf
Bar at pool 1 with a swim up
Bar at pool 2
The Bar at pool 2 in particular.. the wife loves Pina Colodas.. they didn't have any... the bartender told us a few minutes... A fresh pineapple was cut down and a fresh coconut... my wife says it was the best Pina Coloda she ever had...
Now if that's not personalized service I don't know what is.
10 Stars!!!

Restaurants
Buffet
Casablanca
Italian
Snack bar.
Each have certain hours but when they close the snack bar opens so food is not much of an issue.
Now bear in mind that there is a food shortage in Cuba so it may not be like previous times but regardless the food is good and typically Cuba. [Details]

I have been travelling to this hotel for 16 years. I have seen many owners come and go and do nothing if anything that benefits the hotel and its guests. That has all changed under ROC. I cannot believe all the great changes that have been made and are currently underway. There is a new coffee bar, 2 new beach bars. Fabulous new a la carte restaurants. The buffet was fully stocked with really good food. I dare say I went to bed stuffed on more than a few evenings. There is also an upgrade program called ROC Plus. This gives you some incredible perks like: VIP area on the beach, no fixed check out time, access to all a la carte restaurants without reservation. and I am sure there is more I am forgetting. I will say without a doubt. In the 16 years I have been going to this hotel, this was the best trip ever. I haven't had so much fun in a looooong time. Oh, before I forget my room was left spotless each day and never short on hot water. If you are a returnee or new guest I can say you hear many negatives about this hotel online. Don't believe it. This hotel has undergone a huge change and it is nothing like the old days. I will likely go back in June it was so good I'd go twice a year. [Details]

Paid 785 each for room flight and food! Trust me we got what we paid for lets say 500 each for flight (which was late both ways but did its job not weather related at all) leaving 285 for room and the all inclusive! I had no expectations knowing i paid that little to sleep and eat but expected some sort of food safty training or lets just say food respect between humans!! But lets get the room out of the way they were out dated old spring mattress and air conditioning wasnt the best but i was only in there to sleep so good enough for the price! (no phone no cups maid was very nice). All inclusive is available while supplies last! Which wasnt long! Mold on ceilings, wall and worse on the chairs (not washed for awhile id say) and table cloths! Tables had white cloths covered i mean covered with mold and green cloth placed on top. Balcony furniture was a table, no chairs. 80 percent of the food wasnt fully cooked pork and chicken so i went with the beef and fish for the week wasnt going to risk it.Puddles of water left on floor main lobby for the whole week. One pool with bar the water was green like they didnt want anyone to actually drink there! Other pool was beautiful. Elevators broke regularly which made the 7th floor beautiful ocean view a pain in the you know! Bottom line we got what we paid for i suggest you pay for something. [Details]

Our vacation rep told us this was the worst resort in Cuba AFTER we got there. Please save yourself the disappointment and don't book. We managed to make the best of our vacation because hey we were out of the snow but it was far from what we had imagined. There are no drink options never has the ingredients to make pina coladas margaritas daquaeies mojitos etc. So Your choices are beer or rum punch. No milk for coffee or toliet paper in rooms. Not to mention our room had dirty cutlery and butter packets in it when we arrived and clearly had not been cleaned. Rooms also had cockroaches and doors did not lock properly due to broken locks and we were told the whole week someone would come repair is but never did. As I said we were trying to make the best of it so on the 3rd day we made the decision to no longer ask for things because that only annoyed us and brought our mood down. Our beds only had a sheet on it so we asked for a blanket - no luck out of blankets. We asked for help with the tv one afternoon- told that the tv doesn't work. We received the complimentary bottle of water that was advertised to be left in our room daily 2 of 7 days and when we asked the front desk we were told the water shipment didn't come. No clean towels the entire 7 day's. The majority of washrooms in the public areas don't have doors that lock so get used to walking in on and being walked in on. I much preferred to use the washroom in my room but with a never working elevator and 7 floors that wasn't possible. It seemed like no one respected the place and we found ourselves picking up others trash on the beach/pool. Besides a few exceptions staff where horrible, rude and dismissive but honestly can't blame them when they have to tell people no all day. I also witnessed a male staff videotaping girls in swimsuits on his cell phone but the real piece de resistance was when a member of our group was sexually assaulted by the cook at the snack bar. The cook asked to kiss her ass but was told no and she offered a hug instead to which he forcefully bent her down and her bit her ass. None of our complaints where taken seriously and we got a lot of “this is cuba” THIS IS NOT CUBA! If you want to experience true Cuban hospitality keep looking! [Details]

I was very upset about my vacation at this place.
The personal is unattentive and rude sometimes. I don't want to bother and write a lot of examples of that, but I can if you will ask me.
Very limited choice of drinks and food. Food is not the best, to say the least. The elevator is not working. The make COLD coffee at the coffee bar!!! I also noticed the bartenders sell coffee to Russian tourists from the bar!!!
I also had leaking water at my bathroom. Even after a few complaints, nothing was fixed.
No beach beds are available at the beach. The pool is dirty. One of then is closed. Beach Clubhouse was almost always closed.
The rooms are terrible. Leaking water, not working air-conditioner, cockroaches, etc...
The beach is great, of course, but there are no beach beds available.
I was in Cuba many, many times. Sometimes at simple hotels. But I was OK with that. This one is the worst I've ever been. And, by the way, I paid top dollar because of the New Year time.
I really hope my review will be published and other tourists can find this info helpful. [Details]

I visited this hotel 4 years ago and it was a horrible experience. We were told it was a 4 star hotel and we had amenities such as a swim up bar. When we arrived the ceiling was literally falling down and leaking. The amenities they had told us were available were under construction, we had no hot water for showers, our fridge in the room did not work and the girl I was sharing a room with got food poisoning from the buffet. It was the first night and I have never seen anyone that sick. Had to go down to the main bar and have the late night bartender give me attitude for asking for water(can't drink from taps and when I called front desk the bar was the only option they gave me) I carried four small glasses up after chugging four myself because who knows when I'd get more and again super rude service. Don't get me wrong I understand customer service, I'm a server myself. So when we tipped well and still got awful service regardless it was super frustrating. On top of that we were harassed by staff for our personal items. “Can we have your music speaker?” Well we're using it so maybe when we're done our trip.... I gave almost 10$ to DJ to play a song I wanted to hear and he took my money said ya and never played the song. I get that having song requests are annoying that's why I tipped generously. Just felt ripped off entire trip. I had a friend say they were planning on visiting veradero and just had to say something. If you're 20 and live in Ontario and want to go on a cheap spring break vacation, do it! $650 to get black out wasted for 7 days! Go for it! For me personally, not worth it. [Details]

First off, the photos that are used online to promote this hotel need to be updated as they are downright deceptive about the reality of the resort. Don't believe the hype!

As per previous visits, I found the hotel staff to be generally affable, courteous and friendly - doing their best with the little that they have to work with. They can't be faulted for the daily monotonous meals that were available. Even on visits to restaurants in town the un-appetising aspects of food options were apparent. At the resort, making reservations at one of the restaurants should not be seen as an 'upgrade' in meal choices. it's merely table service of the food available at the buffet. The Italian restaurant at least had pasta.

I've had Chinese food in Rome that was un-appetising but still appeared to be chinese inspired 'cuisine'. Now, imagine a Chinese restaurant without any 'chinese-like' food or a Jamaican restaurant that has no Jamaican-style meals. That's what it was like at the Playa Caleta chinese restaurant.

Oh! I'd have paid a king's ransom for a cup of Tim Horton's or MacCafe coffee if they had been available during the week I was at the resort.

On this trip the weather wasn't conducive to an enjoyable Varadero beach experience - it was rainy, stormy or overcast most of the week making the beach off-limit to swimmers and sunworshipers. Clearly circumstances beyond the control of the resort management and clearly nit-picking gripes.

For me the hotel room was passable, if only in a functional manner. The lack of supplies and maintenance were unsurprising but yet remarkably glaring when compared to previous visits.

For the first time in my life I found myself stuck in an elevator when the power went out. Imagine being in a totally black box all alone, no emergency lighting and no way of summoning help.

Observations from around the resort:
- If you're into water sports (like para-sailing, jet-skiing, etc) there's was no evidence that any such thing were available
- The resort amenities like the Tuck-shop suffer from severe limited choices
- Gawd! The drunk, cheap, rude, loud and apparently entitled Russians were everywhere during the week. Some of the hotel staff even commented to me about their behaviour at the resort.

Finally, my biggest beef is that, for the first time during my visits to Cuba, I was blatantly ripped off by a taxi driver. The amount is not the issue. He soured my view of Cubans as I have always been a generous traveller to the island.

Bottom line: Don't be fooled by the advertised prices and the curated online photos for this resort. [Details]

Over all was ok for a 2- 3 star hotel. Majority of guests are from Russia and are very rude to non Russians. The staff are helpful. We have been to Cuba 5 times in the last 2 years and will not stay at this resort again. If you have mobility Issues this is not the place to go to. Do not recommend this place for small children. [Details]

Front desk staff were rude and refused to speak English most of the time. Three elevators for 7 floors, only one working most of the time. Long waits to get to and from our floor. Food was awful. Overcooked, or raw meat, buffet was same every day. So many flies on the food, it was disgusting. Russian guests were the majority by far. They were drunken, loud and argumentative with other guests and staff, and were loud in hallways, all hours of the night, keeping us awake into the wee hours of the morning. This resort should not have a star review. Building is old, built very cheaply, dated, & not well cared for. Lights in room were hanging out of sockets and didn't work all the time & room smelled musty & moldy. Beach was good, though garbage receptacles were not changed every day, and when they were, bags were left on the beach for days, which were then torn apart by animals/birds. Found out they only picked up on beach once a week. Cleaning staff were the best workers. Most cafeteria staff were very accommodating and would go above to keep you happy. Those were the only positive points about my stay. Will NEVER return to Varardero area again. Those who give good reviews must expect very little for their hard earned dollars. [Details]

This resort has a lot of potential but has a lot of unused areas. Full of Russians who feel entitled and do not understand first come first served. I would not stay here again. [Details]

Cuba is a beautiful place. Unfortunately Playa Caleta and probably many other hotels provide poor customer service and the food is not great. The hotel is not professionally maintained and the rooms are very uncomfortable. I actually lost weight on this trip. Most staff did not speak English. They state it is a 4 star hotel but truly hovers between 1.5 - 2 stars max. I'll not go back nor recommend. [Details]

This hotel was the worst place I been to in Cuba there was no beach towels no hot water room sliding doors leak an wind blew through when we had a bad rain storm water everywhere I would never advise people to go to that resort the people was rude and the food suck [Details]

The hotel is ok, the kind of visitors not as it is full of Russians guests not polite, drunk, shouting to staff, fighting, cheap in their manners... Anyway, this is one of the oldest hotels in town built with assistance of the URSS, so that explains the amount of Russians coming there, that you might not have somewhere else in Varadero, so some facilities are old or old-fashioned. Be aware that smoking is allowed inside the lobbies, so if you want a smoke free environment, this is not the place to be. However, the room is comfortable, nice toilet (hot water in the peak hours is lacking) good room service and friendly staff really helping you out at any moment. Beach and pools are really nice. Food is correct, but the menu is always the same in the buffet, so try to get the restaurants a-la-carte as much as you can (being in advance to make sure you get a reservation as there are not many places everyday). Expect to use the staircase a lot as only one of the 3 elevators is working, so at the peak hours you can be waiting for 5-10 minutes to get inside... one tip for other travellers, if you are trying to make the queue is not working, as Russians don't, so behave as them. The best is if you tip the waiters at the beginning of your stay they will recognize you while you are working and they will come to you faster than to Russians (who don't tip ever) [Details]

I am not a picky person but this hotels the worst. The hotel had a cockroach in the lobby and in the hallwaybto our room. There was a very stink onion aroma throughout the entire hotel. The room was not clean the bathroom was not clean and my door wasn't locking from the inside. There were 3 elevators and only one worked. The staff was very rude especially when they found out we had switched hotels. [Details]

I don't recommend this resort to no one!! Very unsastified with this , very poor and unprofessional staff, they even speak English , almost no selection in foods, and no snacks during the day, this resort should be revisited bye professional trainers !! I will classified this resort one of the worst in varadero !! Rooms they are clean and comfy , but all the rest doesn't worth the money I pay for!! Even the chef was a rude man , who try make me eat food I don't like , just because I ask him if he can fill up the beef stew tray,(it's what I eat for 7 days!!)and he real answear in Spanish in rude way thinking I don't know how to speak Spanish !!! [Details]

This had been our first time in Cuba and unfortunately based on this hotel We would not return or recommend it to anyone else.
Where to begin, this hotel is supposed to be a 3.5 star resort, this rating even in Cuba does not represent this hotel.
We had the poorest selection of food choises, I have even seen, no fruit other then pineapple, the food had been cold during every buffet. Drink selection during buffet, water, and a poor selection of juice.. that's if there were glasses to be found.
All drinks were given in plastic cups, even coffee.
Snack Bar- the only food selection had been hamburgers, until the last 2 days and at this time french fries but only a hand full and if asked for more the cook would disregard you.
All - Inclusive Alcohol - the only drink that they offered was rum punch,rum & coke and beer. When asked to have another kind of drink, we were told no unless we wanted to buy the bottle.
We received only 1 bottle of fresh water for the entire week for our room and could not refill it.
Staff - very unfriendly with the exception of a few and they all expected a tip even with the unfriendly service.
Bathrooms in all areas - some had toilet seats, however no toilet paper.
Wi-Fi - our kids brought WiFi cards however could never get on it.

We have been at many resorts down south and not the type of people to complain.We usually go for 3 to 4 star resorts, not looking for anything fancy as long as the resort is clean, friendly staff and overall good food. This resort did not provide the basic resources to have a relaxing vacation.We also realize this time of the year is off season however was not expecting this. We spoke to many other people staying in other resorts near by and they did not receive this type of service.

Very Disappointed,
Kim [Details]

Not expecting much as Cuba is under an embargo but this hotel didn't even meet that. Food was horrible. Service almost non existent unless you were Russian. Even downtown had poor service but you could eat the food. Shopping was as fun as going to a flea market with new products. Construction outside the window only at night [Details]

I took a friend of my there for her first experience in Cuba and let's just say it was very disappointing. Staff friendly and very helpful but resort a dump. If millions were put into it it would be beautiful. But lack of this left it too shambles. Windows all cracked, missing and dirty. Watched a window panel fall from the lobby and almost hit 3 people, smashing to the floor. Floors never being washed, food cold, very little and nothing to choose from. All you can smell is fish. Drinks all including coffee in plastic glasses, and only able to get coffee at the coffee bar only at times it's open. When getting a table to eat never having a fork having to look or ask. And staff never serving drinks at meals. Paying for Wi-Fi and never able to use it, Oh and no hot water. Pool had green slim in it ever went in and the kiddies pool no water at all. I have been to Cuba before and it was great but this time only wanting to be back home by day 3 sadly. There's more I could say but don't have the time. [Details]

Absolutely terrible. Staff had no ambition to try and help make up for the poor shape and quality of the hotel. The people could've helped make the difference but they were going through the motion and on some occasional purposely rude or just plain lazy. Top marks for Steven the lobby bartender and “Boss” at the buffet along with the disco bartender that helped restore some of the amphosphere and fun. [Details]

Good staff friendly [Details]

it was a relaxing vacation. there are many Russian people there and they love disco.the hotel was booked solid.the cafeteria was dirty so we went to the Caleta to eat. we would spent our eating and drinking coffee time at the Caleta hotel facilities ...it is the twin hotel that is also included in the package.Great place for 20-40 year old crowd [Details]

Gran Caribe Playa Caleta.
We will not come back just because of the cigarette and cigar smoking, way way to much, no respect watsoever for nonsmokers.
The only place I did not smell smoke was in my room and in the bus.
Paradise for smoking people. [Details]

I was not impressed by the services at the hotel. It seems that hotel has no management. No towels, nothing in the fridge, they offer only one water bottle for all the stay, no paper toilette. The food was terrible, always same dishes. I won't suggest going there. It`s falling a part [Details]

Hotel was clean and the staff were first rate I recommend the Cayo blanco tour it was fun and our guide was fantastic The shuttle to town was hit and miss take a cab it s cheap bring snacks as there is not much available [Details]

The Hotel was ok. [Details]

Below expectations [Details]

great hotel nice location but needs some repair food is low on variety but good and fresh new variety every day been there 4 times will be going back there people very friendly thank you punterena [Details]

The hotel has excellent service and the most friendly stuff ever.. The shows were amazing and very enjoyable the cast do a great job and alot of work goes into them.. The bars were excellent will forsure be going back ☺ [Details]