Grand Memories Varadero

Dont purchase Cuba expecting Mexico. I expected bland food but at least some variety but food shortages left me eating the same foods for a whole week. unripe fruit, hard bread, weak coffee. chicken and pork. and things that just tasted off. we found ourselves moving from pool to beach to other pool to get away from the same overbearing loud music (same set list) daily. we paid for the diamond club and id do that again just for better room and flat screen tv and private beach area....but thats really all we got. safe didnt work (asked to get fixed multable times... just gave up), hot water (showering) was hit or miss, no changing of towels or bedding (7 days!), mini bar was never restocked, stray dogs 5-6 on the property. It looks nice in the pictures but its dirty and in a state of disrepair, but in a better state of what the locals live in. All I can say is, Ive tried Cuba and will NOT be returning. [Details]

My boy friend and I went from January 6th-13th and we definitely will not be returning. I have been to Cuba before and truly enjoyed it regardless of the food situation. The beach is great however the resort itself is very run down.

Rooms:
When we arrived they made a mistake in the rooms and gave my boy friend and I two bed instead of one (which is totally fine), but when we actually got to our room we noticed that there was black mould EVERYWHERE. All over the walls, bathroom, etc.. The toilet was cracked right down the middle with brown stuff all over. I'm not a very picky person but mould is where I draw the line. We went back to the reception desk where they right away gave us a new room which was slightly better (no mould) but still very run down. Lots of water damage in the bathroom, but we dealt with it for the week as we're only in the room to sleep anyways.

Food:
The food was surprisingly better than we expected but it did get repetitive. There was no eggs all week but it is what is it. Many of the bartenders would say they did not have cola, and then pour a glass for someone with a “Sanctuary” bracelet. We noticed that unless u paid for the sanctuary the staff would not treat u the same, some were actually very rude which shocked us both as Cubans are normally the nicest people. Instead of saying that the “nicer” things are reserved for sanctuary they would lie or simply say “not for you” without further explanation which definitely threw us off guard.

Beach:
No complaints, it was lovely.

Pool:
The bar at the pool also had a lot of mould. Just looks very run down. Does not look like the pictures at all unfortunately. However we made the most of it.

In general if you go to this resort, pay for the upgrade at the sanctuary, you'll at least get better service and room, as the rest of us received mediocre/poor service (and trust me we've tipped over 150$ CAN during this trip). [Details]

Disaster place disaster service
They still my sunglasses I'll never ever go back to that resort anymore [Details]

The resort was nice, lots of food, not much to drink(except alcohol) there is not much to do for teens at this resort.

Rooms…we had a superior diamond club room and the only good thing was the air conditioner [Details]

The hotel was great but the food seems lacking. they did their best with what they had. Except for the guide, I am very satisfied. [Details]

Overall satisfactory [Details]

Resort was very dated for a 4.5 star resort. Rooms needs major upgrades- Safe, front doors & patio doors does not lock-leaving peoples personal belonging at risk. Most Front desk staff only speak Spanish, therefore not helpful in help result there guest issues.
Food was plentiful, but was the same every day for the 7 day stay. Plenty of hot dog, but no condiment to add.
Beverages- two choices beer or Rum. Slushie Bar was the best bar, but only during daytime hours...bartender was amazing. Night staff indicated blender was broken and there was no beer available. Everything work and was available during the day.
Entertainment- Night show- ok. Daily activities boring and starts way to late in the afternoon- closer to most guest supper hour. [Details]

For the most part the trip was good. Our room was clean but very outdated. The resort do need alot of updated and repairs. There was lots of food but alot of the same dishes. [Details]

Enjoyed our stay, hotel needs upgrades but the service is very good. We enjoyed our stay. [Details]

The week at Grand memories was OK , however i believe lots of improvements can take place , people that attend a vacation want a stress free environment ,i found that lots of the negative reviews i read before nothing was done to resolve them
some comments :

food , is really horrible , i spent the week eating bread and cheese (when available) and spending 15 minute to toast a bread , wasn't able to eat fried eggs the whole week due to lineups , it would help to have multiple stations , a la carte is actually buffet food

service was hit and miss , some where friendly and others where very rude and abrupt
towels in room was an issue , couldn't get any even after tipping and asking [Details]

This was our first experience with an all inclusive, and we were NOT impressed!!! The resort looks like it was a nice place way back in the day and people are just letting it rot away, it could be an amazing place if people actually cared about it.
The very first day we get to our room the door does not lock, the phone does not work so we couldn't even call the front desk to let them know our door did not lock, eventually it does get fixed like at the end of the day. The bed sheets smell, the tub is dirty, well the whole room felt dirty, we had half a roll of toilet paper when we got there and were only given 1 small roll the whole week (luckily I packed some), there was a pair of dirty socks left in the drawer from the guest before us, and the showers although had great pressure weren't very warm.
The food...I knew going into this vacation the food was not going to be the greatest but I thought it would at be hot or at the very least warm, but it was not :( and not great but my wife is a picky eater and found some things she would eat, desserts were good. There were 2 buffet places but only 1 was opened we never knew why the other one never opened as it was all the tables were set.
The front desk staff and guest services weren't overly friendly and looked rather annoyed when we would ask questions or request our door be fixed so that was disheartening BUT the buffet staff and bar staff were very nice.
We went to 3 shows which were okay expect the microphone was turned up too loud and you couldn't make out what anyone was saying, it was muffled.
Many water features not working, and although we seen people working on the yards everything looked like it was dying.
Our favorite thing besides the beach was being able to leave the resort and go downtown Varadero via the hop on hop off bus that is only $5 USD [Details]

We had a great time at grand memories! The workers at the hotel try very hard to make your stay amazing, fun and delicious! It's very clean. [Details]

We were there for the sun and beaches and we were served. Otherwise, very basic. Resort and accommodations have seen better days. [Details]

We had no major concerns. The hotel was nice and exactly what we expected for Cuba. There was plenty of food but fairly repetitive and wished there was more fish. [Details]

Great Beach, great pools BUT, the rest is NOT as advertised. Even after I switched to a "better" room, it was exactly the same layout with same dated furniture, curtains and an old tube TV that did not work well at all. It took 2 days to finally come and open the safe for me. They did not always have mojitos, did not always have red wine, no tequila, no pina Coladas, no vodka, short staffed. Long lines for breakfast. The food was just ok.

If I booked a 3* hotel, then I would not be complaining but this was advertised as a 4.5* and in my opinion, it is barely 3*. [Details]

My husband and I went to this hotel just to relax, unwind and soak up the sun. We didn't want to cook or clean or worry about anything. It provided that plus fun and entertainment. The resort seemed to have mostly Canadian guests and I have to say a majority of them ruined it for me by being sloppy pigs with over drinking, being rude and throwing food/beverages on the ground and leaving trash everywhere. As a Canadian I found it disheartening and disrespectful to the culture and didn't really want to be associated. The staff were friendly though and they did their best to clean up after everyone. The pools were kept clean considering the amount of people in them. [Details]

GrandMemmories is a large resort, so very hard to staff properly, rooms not kept up and not stocked properly. There was plentiful supply of food, but you have to do your own homework and make sure it wouldn't give you good poisoning. A low supply of the different amounts of drinks. Only those pertaining to rum. Weather was good, beach was great, but room for much improvements [Details]

We stayed at the Sanctuary at Grand Memories
The hotel, food,staff were excellent.
We had one very good Butler Adrian he was amazing, the other not so much [Details]

We paid for Diamond Club, and it was not worth it. No special check in, no concierge to help with a la carte bookings. The blue beach chairs in the Diamond Club section get taken by everyone and you either get no chair or a plastic white one. The drinks were sub par and there were no frozen cocktails and lots of time no ice. Who wants a lukewarm rum and coke on the beach? The rooms are dated and need repair. We were lucky to be in Building 10 which was supposedly better than the others.
I have been to Cuba twice before and this was not a good resort experience at all. The beaches are beautiful and the Cuban people are hard working and sweet.
I took Dukoral before I left and still got sick. Make sure you bring your own toilet paper and carry some in your beach bag. Some stalls have no door locks and no toilet paper, some didn't even have the toilet paper dispenser. [Details]

Another awesome vacation at my home away from home. The staff and entertainment are always welcoming and so much fun. Food and drinks are absolutely delicious. They always make me feel like I am an important part of their family. I am already planning my next trip to this amazing hotel. Special thanks to Yamaysi, Hilda, George, Reniers, Mario and so many more for always spoiling me. Thank you for everything ❤️ [Details]

I spent a week at Grand Memories Varadero with one of my friends and we had a really good time. We went during the hurricane season right after Ian passed through so the hotel ran on the generator for a day and a half while we were there because of the lack of electricity and the way the staff dealt with the situation was amazing. The hotel staff was so great and positive and made the whole trip so special. I have never experienced hospitality of a high level like this in my life. We truly felt like we were leaving our little Cuban family behind when we got on the bus to leave.

The animation team was so fun. They had activities planned out every day, from bingo to dancing to thematic parties at night. Those guys are sunshines, always up for some good times and laughs. Special mention to El Chino, Madelay and Anais. There was not a boring day that week.
Julio the showman was also very funny, always dressing up in crazy costumes, walking around making people smile.

Lisandra at the beach bar was so lovable, friendly and warm. Always walking around, talking to the guests, making delicious cocktails. We were always happy to see her.

Talia, our room attendant, was also great and thoughtful. She would always make sure we had enough water, towels, etc. I swear guys, those people were the nicest ever.

Yoan, our morning and lunch waiter was super polite and cute. He seemed a little shy, we liked him [Details]

Ok when we arrived trolleys around hotel did not like cubin money was really rude when we gave it to him when leaving put my luggage back room and was missing flip flops 7 packages cigs also 60 dollars worth cigars someone else we knew where missing diapers also kids clothes out of there room food no flavour all tasted same watch people use same tongs to cook food and touch raw food seen birds land on tables seen girl clean table leaving un used cups and silverware on tables
When trying to get some booze you get a glass want another and they say they ran out pool was very cloudy not clear lots of waitress where really nice I did fine rooms smelt musty I fine in my bathroom small bugs crawling around [Details]

I would never come there again, the washrooms don't even have toilet paper during the day at the resort. The pool washroom smeels so bad and ants are crawling all over the toilets. My son lost one of the towels which was left at the pool and they charges us $50 Canadian dollars for a towel. Their WiFi is so annoying you have to get a WiFi card every 4 hours to use it. So each time you have to keep entering new credential every 4 hours and going to the lobby to get a slip. Preety annoying. The snack bar does not have certain items that they offer only 2 or 3 items. The buffee food is usually cold and food is so blend no flavor. I could not wait to leave that property. Also the pool water smells like oil no chlorine in it at all. Watch our for Yolanda there the cleaning ladie she was Preety rude at the begging we asked for a towel and she was like I don't any now and no time. The shower have a wall which is Preety high to get into and older person will have a hard time to get over it. The lights are very dim. You will also have moisture that turned our clothes black. Also the beach has to Manny people selling stuff it's like these volchures keep annoying you when you just came to have a relaxed time with your family. The beach should have been blocked of for outside access. [Details]

Great experience, the beach was beautiful and the pool was clean. There was always fun activities animated by the staff that kept us entertained. A special thank you to el choco who always had a great energy and was very welcoming. Every night he was at the club and made everyone dance with his awesome choreographies. We had a lot of fun and we will definitely visit this hotel again. [Details]

I stayed at the Sanctuary from Jun 24 to July 1st. This is exclusive for adults.
The room is nice, except a few small pieces like the stand shower door is loose, the lavabo drain is broken, the toilet room has no fan, so it may have smells.
Aside from that the place is just 20 meters from the beach, the excellent bar, and the pool. The staff was very friendly and helpful anywhere. I especially had personal preferences for 2 butlters: Norvi and Jose Mario, and the bellman Alfredso. These 3 helped me with everything I wanted, including money exchanges.
Everynight, at 8:30, there was always very good music play in the bar, aside from the show at 9:30 in the public grand Memories theater.
The food is not good. But that's Cuba that we already know before booking.

Internet is not very good. We got a piece of paper with username/password for 4 hours. After that we have to go get another one and so on. It is OK, but inconvenient as we have to reconnect often.

I would come back just to find my friends Norvi, Mario and Alfredso.
Loc [Details]

Sanctuary stay
Staff 5 Stars!!!! They made this visit absolutely amazing
The beach, absolutely beautiful!!!
Visit the beach bar , Say hi to Amaury and Natali they are two of the best. They take very good care of you even when they ran out of beer(twice) (not the fault of the staff)
See Maryls @ The Navita beach BBQ was very good. Ribs, burgers, hotdogs (tasty)
The Bites snack bar and pool bar . Very amazing staff and try the calamari , as someone who doesn't eat seafood once I tried them I was hooked. Delicious!!
You will be greeted most days by Ana , she is the absolutely amazing. See Sammi, Marle and Ailed (who is also at the Flavors restaurant)and take good care of them. They were all so attentive and make you feels like family.
Flavors is the restaurant and the food is great. We had eggs and bacon almost every morning. They ran out of hashbrowns but again not the fault of the staff.
The lounge next door Rumba Bar , it a great place to have a drink and relax .
The entertainment team El Chino, Marcos, Yelisa, Dayana made our visits to the pool super enjoyable. Always something to. Very good at what they do.
Now there are issues but if you want to go somewhere were you are made to feel like you are wanted this is the place. Every staff member we saw was always smiling.
Now our Concierge, we had two
Thank you to Abel & Adrian
Everyday you started our day with a smile. We never wanted for anything. Took care to make sure had our dinners booked everyday. Anything you need they will do there very best to help.
We attended the Grand Memories section of the resort and it was very disappointing. First breakfast we did have a shining light but unfortunately I didn't get his name.
But the second and third time we didn't even get water or were asked by any staff members if we needed anything. ( we made eye contact with several of them) Huge disconnect between Sanctuary and Grand Memories Smile people !!! It's free!!! [Details]

Our vacation here was very enjoyable because of the beautiful beach and the kind people. Yamaysis, Liliana, Eliecer, Dwayne and the rest of the staff made our visit a memorable and fun one. It's awesome to be surrounded by kind and helpful people like them. It's like a home away from home. [Details]

I had a great experience at this hotel. We were in the adults only part of it and it was great. The activities were nice, the food was good and the staff was amazing. The staff member who especially stood out to me is Adrian. He was very friendly and helpful for everything we needed. If there's any way you can choose him as your butler I highly recommend it. [Details]

Very nice resort and amazing beach. [Details]

We arrived at the resort and were welcomed by the reception staff, specifically Yovani who ensured that the service was quick and organized getting us to our comfortable, clean room. He was incredibly professional and friendly ready to lend a helping hand with our bags, and attend to any questions or needs we had. The food was good with plenty of options. The grounds are expansive and well kept. Perfect for going a walk after a delicious meal. Finally, my favourite part, the beach. The water is beautiful with clean, white sand. There is lots of space and plenty of umbrella's available for some shade. [Details]