A Cuban woman claimed to have experienced "the worst experience in Varadero" after staying at the Sol y Mar Hotel, an establishment that, she reported, offered poor food, inadequate cleanliness, and left its guests without electricity or water during power outages.
The complaint was posted in the Facebook group "Hotels in Varadero Cuba" by user Jitana Melanie, who claimed that her stay was far from what was promised.
"I do not recommend the Hotel Sol y Mar. It was, without a doubt, my worst experience in Varadero. I felt like I lost my money," he wrote.
According to their testimony, the quality of the services was poor from the very beginning.
"The food was very poor, the facilities were dirty, and they frequently ran out of beer," he noted.
However, he explained that the situation worsened when the power outages occurred in Varadero.
"The rooms were left without light and without water," she reported.
The Cuban woman concluded that she would not recommend the hotel.
"In my experience, this hotel leaves much to be desired and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone."
In the comments of the post, the user herself shared that after leaving that establishment, she was staying in another hotel, which she described as an even worse experience.
"They advertise it as a four-star hotel, but it doesn't even qualify for two. It wasn't cheap at all, and the rooms lack light and water. Guests, including children, are sleeping in the lobby and on the floor. For breakfast, there are no eggs; it's just processed ham and ground beef. There's not even any chicken," he asserted.
Her post generated numerous reactions from other travelers, several of whom reported having experienced similar situations.
A user reported that they visited Sol y Mar with a group of 42 people and found restrooms with leaks, store-bought bread, shredded chicken, and desserts without sugar due to a lack of the product.
Another summed up his experience with a strong remark: "I went yesterday and that hotel is terrible."
Criticism of the decline in tourism
Several participants in the debate argued that the problem is not limited to the Hotel Sol y Mar.
"All the hotels right now are the same: terrible food, drinks, and sodas; the beer runs out, and even if the power goes out, you’re left without water and electricity," commented a user.
Another person lamented the decline that, in their opinion, has affected the country's main tourist hub.
"The hotels in Varadero are nothing like what they once were, just as Cuba no longer resembles its former self."
A former employee of the establishment defended the hotel's quality, although other users responded that this reality would have changed years ago and described the place as "literally a campground."
Some commentators also claimed that employees of the hotel itself told them that, due to the significant drop in international tourism, Cuban clients residing on the island are currently receiving lower quality service. These claims have not been confirmed by the management of the establishment.
A sector hit by the crisis
Criticism has emerged amid the deep crisis affecting Cuban tourism.
On July 30, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz acknowledged that 73% of the country's hotel facilities remain closed and that approximately 25,000 workers are in a state of availability.
Between January and April 2026, Cuba received 328,608 international tourists, a 55.8% decrease compared to the same period the previous year, while the national hotel occupancy rate dropped to 21.5%.
The energy crisis has further exacerbated the situation. Since the beginning of the year, several hotels in Varadero and the keys have suspended operations due to a lack of fuel to power their generators.
In July, another Cuban tourist reported that the room for which she had paid $150 per night was left without electricity or water following a collapse of the National Electro-Energy System, as the hotel's generator failed to meet the demand.
Related videos:
Filed under: