1. Sunwing| RIU FAM to Varadero Cuba
19-22 SEPT 2014
Hosted by:
Valerie Ward,RIUBusinessDevelopmentManager
Toronto& WestCanada 416-302-1287
vward@riuontario.ca
In destination:
Gorica Petkoska,DirectoraComercial
ClubHotel RiuVaradero/RiuPlayaTurquesa
SalesOffice Varadero/ ++53 45 66 79 66
director.comercial@riuvaradero.co.cu
Cuba| Currency Tips:
- Recommendclientschange currencyupon arrival atthe airport,as the rate will likelybe betterthanat the hotel.
I exchangedfora rate of 1.1415 so $100 CAD= 87.60 CUC
- For tipping:USDis so expensivetoexchange there soithelpsthe staff if youcantip inCUC; if the airportdoesn’t
give yousmall enoughdenominationsthenyoucanhave the exchange atthe hotel make smallerbillsforyou.
CUC comesas lowas 5/3/1 notesand coinsincluding1CUC
- Keepsmallercoinsonyouforvisitingtoiletsoff the resort(notmandatorytopaybut usuallyisa ladythere
takingcoinsinexchange fortoiletpaper) –on that note justbringyour owntoiletpaper/kleenex asit’spretty
terrible everywhere,eventhe 5star hotels
2. Itinerary:
DAY 1: RIU site inspection,welcome dinner@ItalianRestaurant,Michael Jacksonshow –awesome!
DAY 2: Site inspections(7),poolsidedinnerwithAquaShow indeluxesection –not so awesome
DAY 3: Havana daytour, dinner@GourmetRestaurant
DAY 4: RIU specialisttraining,afternoonatleisure (Igota massage at the spa & swamat the beach),farewell dinner&
eveningdeparturetoVRA airport
3. DAY 1: RIU Varadero:
Situatedbetweenthe MemoriesVaraderoandthe IberostarLagunaAzul,the RIU wasour host hotel forthe three
nights. Note:atthisendof the peninsulathere isasmall mangrove (vegetationarea) thatseparatesthe resortsfromthe
beach.Onlytakesa couple minutestowalktobeachbut no ’beachfrontaccess‘foranyroom categories. Uponarrival
we were takento the Adults-Only‘deluxe section‘exclusive lobbyforcheckinand showntoour rooms (deluxe suites –
bedroom,livingroom+ 2 bathrooms!).Thissection‘sroomsare situatedinacircle of 3-level villassurroundingthe adult
pool.There isalsothe exclusive restaurant locatedpoolside +a snack/bararea. Thissectionisclosesttothe beach.
Duringthe lowseason,the standardroom sectionof the resort(locatedfarthestfrombeach) isclosed.Soanyone
bookingintostandardat thistime of yearwouldbe upgradedintosuperior,andthe few gueststhatIspoke to inthe
Deluxe-sectionpool hadbeenupgradedintoadults-onlyfromsuperior.
Overall,the hotel isratedas5 stars butI foundthe differencebetweenother 5star propertiessuchas the Paradisus
PrincesaandRoyal Hicacos to be great. I wouldconsiderthe Riuaverysolid4 star or perhaps4.5. Itdoeslooklike a
ClassicRIU, withnice grounds,decorandcommonareas,fantasticstaff/serviceandentertainment.
Note:Sunwing/Signature guestsrecieve1hr/dayfree wifi
access (all roomcategories).Otherguestshave topayfor
wifi.Onlyaccessible fromlobbiesandthe cigarlounge.
4. - Adultonlysectioncomeswithextended2pmcheckout,can requestpillow topmattresscover
- ShampoolookedandsmelledlikedishsoapsoIcan’t recommendthe amenities
- Roomwas spaciousbutmusty,smell of cigarette smoke fromotherroomoroutside wascominginthroughmy
AC (butthe AC workedwell &fanoverthe bedwas verynice)
- Overall cleanliness butneededadeepcleaningwhenlookingclosely,espsmall bathroomatentrance toroom
- NO clocksinthe rooms or on anyTV channel – thisis a RIU-wide conceptbutIdont like it,Iwant to knowwhat
time itis!Hair dryer outletinroomhad adapterbuilt insoyou can plugindevices
- Resortis walkable buttheyhave cartscirculatingtoo:staff veryfriendlyeverywhere
- I triedthe snack bar & the lobbybar (that’swhere Ifoundthe bestcappucino) andhad promptservice during
busytimes – theywere workingreallyfast
- I was treatedtoa spamassage whichitself wasnice butthere wasnoaccompanying‘spaexperience‘ –itwas
justin andout of the massage room,spa seemedprettyemptyingeneral
5. DAY 2: Site Inspections
I’ll just make a few points about each property that youmay not alreadyknow.
Memories Varadero:
SalesManager YudeisysMaury
I had preconceivedthisproperty(formerlySirenisLaSalinas) tobe a little run-downbutitseemsrecentlyfreshened-up.
Nothingextraordinarypoppedout atme but itseemsa solid4 star familypropertywithabright,airyentrance and
buffetareawithdiamondclubsubsection.
The large grounds& walkwaysare verywell maintainedandthe propertyislaidoutlike afigure ‘8‘witha pool inthe
centerof each half (one quieter,one more forfamilywithwaterslide).There isamainsquare inthe centerwiththeatre
and a la cartes.
DinnerreservationsforSunwingguestscanbe made forthe whole weekatthe Sunwingdesk(open9-5pm).
ParadisusPrincesa del Mar:
SalesManager Falcon| jefe.ventas.ppm@meliacuba.com
Paradisusisthe top tierof the Meliabrand, andthis18+ resortis surelya5 star property.Itis quiet,withnodaytime
animationteambutsome greateveningentertainmentanddailyactivitiessuchaswine tastings.There isalsoacentral
‘square‘withthe airconditionedmainbuffet,shops,cigarbaretc. There isan outside eatingareaavailabletoreserve
for private functionsaswell.
Our ‘guide‘of the property –Falcon – was so funny.He would‘ohhhandahhh‘as he enteredeachroomor say ‘wow‘!
whenshowingthe restaurantsetc.All but150 roomshave Kingsize beds(twinavail.uponrequest).
Note:guestswithaccessibilityneeds canbe cateredto here – mostlyflatgroundswitha liftforthe onlysectionof stairs
enteringthe lobbyarea.Roomshave eitherashower-onlyORashower/bathcombinationandcanbe requestedfor
eitherpreference.
CertifiedPADIdiversget1dive/dayincluded.
6. I was impressedwiththe Royal Service section,theyhave
concierge service, swim-uprooms,beautifulpool,exclusive
poolside bar/snackareaand Miramar Restaurant(buffet
breakfast/lunchwithmini-portionsthenitrotatesdifferent
themesfora la carte dinners)...youwouldneverhave toleave
thissection.Private airporttransfersandWifi isincludedforRoyal
service guestsandtheyhave the true premiumbrandsof liquor
(chivas,royale,etc).The HilltopRestaurantalsoavailable to Royal
Service guestsandspecial guestssuchashoneymooners,
returningguests,anniversariesetc.
7. Mercure CuatroPalmas:
- Was nearlyat full occupancyat thistime of year
- 3 stars,but great beachfrontlocation,3levels(stairsonly)
- Youngeroverall guestaverage age:lotsappearedintheir20s/30s
- Lobbybar is 24 hours
- 160 standardrooms,120 inthe Las Palmassectionacrossthe street(def notrecommended)
- Pool & seaviewisnice butthe roomsthemselvesare small,basicandstuffy –inmidstof refurbishment,can
accommodate forsome withphysical disability(groundfloorrooms)
8. Mercure Playade Oro:
- I’mgoingto go aheadand justtell younot to bookthisresort.JustNo.
- Restaurant/theatre facilitywassmellyandBAD
- Buffet’El Dorado‘was okaybut notmuch better
- There ispizza& snacksby pool andthe Cuban’Ranchon‘beachgrill
- The whole place needscleaningandpainting...astale waterlagoonkindof smell outsideaswell
- Propertyseemednearlydeserted –all guestswere hidingonthe beach
- 5 levelswithelevator,4accessible rooms
- The savinggrace was that the roomsare all renovatedandthe inside of the roomwasactuallyprettynice
consideringthe restof the resort
MeliaLas Antillas:
- Exclusive toSunwing
- At full occupancy,I was impressedwiththe lookof thisresort,the photosdon’tdoit justice
- Walkingintothispropertyafterthe Mercure,the cleanlinesswasnoticeable (couldevensmellthe bleach),
indoor/outdoorbuffetareawasnice,theyholdalobsternight1/weekfor all guests
- 44 connectingroomscan be requested
- ItalianRestaurant,discotil 2am,nightlyshowsalternate ona2-weekscheduleforlongerstayguests, 24hr
lobbybar
- Theyconcentrate all the activitiesatthe beachinthe morningand at the pool in the afternoon,whichIthinkisa
great ideasoguestshave the optiontoenjoyeachat quiettimestoo
- Nice pool/entertainmentstage/pool barandgrill areaas well
Royal Hicacos:
SalesManager Berta MartinCabañas |ventas@royalhicacos.cu
The former‘Sandals‘Royal Hicacosiscurrentlyunderthe ‘Blue Diamond‘brandandinthe processof convertingtoa
Royalton(will be calledRoyaltonHicacosVaraderothiswinter).Eventhoughthereare,inmyopinion,no updates
neccessary,theyare makingupgrade changestoimprove evenmore.Overall Iwasveryimpressedwiththisproperty,
mostlybecause the photosinthe brochure & online don’tdoitjustice.
9. All juniorsuites,with2stepsdownfromthe sittingroom intothe bedarea.There will nolongerbe a ‘concierge‘
categoryas ALL rooms will have abutlerservice (that’swhattheyare callingitbutI’msure it’smore of a concierge than
a butler).Thisresortisverysimilarinamentities,pricing,andvalue tothe ParadisusPrincesa,howeverthe differenceis
that there’smore activitygoingonatthe Hicacos(alsomaybe a youngeroverall average guestage).
I reallylike the ModernColonialPlantationstyleof thisresort;the commonareasare connectedby a raisedboardwalk
and the ‘Calle del Medio‘boulevardislovely,featuringshops,the coolestcigarlounge,beautyparlour,Frenchcreperie
& Le Bonheur24-hour snackbar withchamingpatio.We were treatedtoa white-glove service lunchatCaribe
Restaurant,whichalsofeaturesa‘wine cellar‘roomwhere theyserve VIPdinnersforspecial honeymoon/anniversary
clients. Everyone waspleasedwiththe qualityof foodandservice.
The spa still holdsthe Sandalsstandard‘RedLane‘service/productsandthe spahasa sauna/steambathavailableforall
gueststo use forfree.There isalsosquashfacilitieshere whichIbelievetobe the onlyavailable inCuba.
The updatesfor the Royaltonchangeoverinclude agymfacilityrenovationandsoftcosmeticupdates inthe rooms;ie.
paintingfromcolourful Caribbeaninteriortoa crispwhite/blue theme,additionof the Royalton‘dreambeds‘whichare
producedhere inVaughanON and shippedover.
10. Note: The Candlelight VIP Dinner in the Wine Cellar has a cost of
150 CUC; the menu is as follows: Choose 1 appetizer, 1 soup, 1
salad, 1 entrée, 1 dessert
APPETIZERS:
Medallion of lobster with mango saffron dressing / Jumbo shrimp
with cocktail sauce / Tuna slices
SOUPS:
Cherry tomato soup with Pesto / Crab bisque with aged Cuba rum
Black bean soup with cumin / Rock fish soup with herbs
SALADS:
Palm heart salad with smoked salmon / Mixed salad with
balsamic cream
ENTRÉES:
Grilled Beef tenderloin topped with Duck liver / Chicken breast
stuffed with cheese
Grilled Seafood medley (lobster, salmon, tiger prawn, mahi mahi)
Spinach burrito with veggies and tomato sauce (Vegetarian)
DESSERTS:
Tiramisu / Chocolate delight / Cheesecake
11. Iberostar Tainos:
- Appropriate forall ages/families
- Main hotel housesthe standard roomsandall of the 2-storyvillasare the ‘bungalow’categorywhichdoesn’t
make sense tome because there isnothingaboutthemthatmakesthema bungalow inmyopinion –rooms
aren’tgreat overall,alittle bitjail-cell-ish
- Safe available for2CUC/day
- Minibaris restockedevery2days
- Overall the commonareaswere impressive,beach,pool area,lobbybar,restaurantsall lookfine
DAY 3: HavanaDay Tour
I immenselyenjoyedthe full daytourof Havana. I’drecommenditto anyone;it’sworththe 2 hr drive. We had a local
tour guide,Libby,whowasextremelyknowledgeableandI’mjustso happywe got to doit.
We came back to the resort andate at the Gourmet Restaurant.Althoughthe décor,the serviceandthe presentationof
the foodin the a la carte restaurantsisgreat,the fooditself wasunfortunatelyjustnotverygood.Ifoundthe redmeat
to be consistentlyovercookedbutchickenandfishwasa bitbetter.
Skyline of Havana
