Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul

For my husband and me, our first trip to Cuba, this was one of our best trips ever. We enjoyed staying at Iberostar Laguna Azul in Varadero. The rooms were spacious, tidy, and clean, with very comfortable beds. Food and drinks came in generous portions and were good. Staff were welcoming, friendly, and humble. We also saw amazing shows every day, thanks to entertainment head Antonio, the professional dancers, and the rest of the team, including Joshua, Daniel, and Cleopatra. Thank you for all your effort.

I was pleasantly surprised by the food after reading online reviews saying it wasn't good in Cuba. It was quite good, and we made friends among the nice guests. The employees were kind and gave helpful advice throughout the amazing trip. Guest service even arranged an affordable taxi to and from the airport so we could get our lost luggage.

It felt like home away from home, and we had a wonderful time. Thanks to Iberostar and to 🇨🇺. Mury in housekeeping, Amanda at the lobby bar, Laurenis from Argenta, Jadira, who organized activities for kids and adults, and the gentleman who cuts fresh coconuts every afternoon are just some of the staff who went out of their way to make us comfortable. They were always smiling. Thank you for such wonderful service. See you again.

The vacation package with Air Transat was poorly organized, and on the last day most guests were left sitting in the lobby from noon until 6:30 p.m. because of checkout rules. It was uncomfortable and badly managed. Management doesn't seem to make changes or take action, and the hotel appears more focused on keeping guest numbers high than providing quality service. Guests complain constantly. I love Cuban people, and many employees were kind, but bar servers often seemed to expect tips. One directly asked me for “change,” specifically 10 CAD, saying it was because she was serving me. I thought this was all-inclusive and tips were optional. If tipping is mandatory or strongly expected, the advertising should say so. The lobby customer service was consistently poor, with staff often giving us attitude. We tried to overlook problems to enjoy our vacation, but there were cockroaches in rooms, hallways, and around restaurant food stations. We reported them several times and nobody seemed to care or act. We couldn't get a beach towel in seven days because staff said they were out and didn't know when more would arrive, despite being told we'd have to pay XX USD if one went missing. After our long trip, we arrived around 1 a.m. wanting to rest, but the room toilet kept running and didn't work. I went to the lobby twice for help, with no result. They finally moved us after I complained and asked for basic assistance, but staff were rude and didn't explain where the new room was. I'm not sure how this hotel gets so many five-star reviews. My experience was awful, and I wouldn't recommend it.