Varadaro my worst vacation ever

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I just got back from Varadero Monday Jan 26 and have to spead the word to anyone that will listen!!!! I have always heard good things about Cuba and I love the Caribbean so figured I would try it out this year. BIG MISTAKE!!!
I travel as often as I can to anywhere I can so I have learned not to have too many expectations unless I have already been there and know what to expect. I love learning about other cultures and am pretty openminded. That being said I would like to share this completely disappointing exprience with you in hopes others may be better prepared than me if they decide to take the chance to travel to Barcelo's Marina Palace in Varadero, Cuba. Here i'll list a few things that we found completely unacceptable for a resort that is supposedly rated 4.5-5* depending on where you look.
I have already sent formal complaints to Barcelo Head Office (no replies yet), my tour operator and my travel agent. Transat Vacations have replied to me advising they are investigating the conditions and will reply with the outcome.
If you or anyone you know have been completely disgusted by Barcelo's standards (not the 4.5-5* experience I was expecting) please let me know. Also if anyone you know will be going to Varadero this year please update them with the possible issues 😊

Deficiencies we found.....
-if you have a food allergy be very careful, even with my spanish travel card (which worked fine in Spain btw) I had nothing but trouble.... be prepared to have issues getting help. Go straight to the PR person for the hotel and make them take care of the arrangements, bug them till they get it right!! I wanted to scream more than a few times trying to deal with this and a food allergy is pretty serious stuff.

-broken sewage pipes that stunk up the resort.

-cockroaches in rooms, not mine thank gawd but I think the lady this happened to could be tied with me for worst vacation experience ever cuz she had nothing but prob's too!

-some guests went without power or water for at least a day in their rooms

-the worst drinks I've ever had anywhere!!! They are too cheap to add enough ice to make a slushy drink for pina colada's & daquiri's

-terrible food (I know the Caribbean isn't the best but this was TERRIBLE> soggy veggie's, watery mashed potatoes, cooked cold vegetables, crunchy pasta, dried out hard rice to name a few)

-staff working bars and restaurants/buffet have no hygiene>saw a bar tender coughing and sneezing directly into her hand then she grabbed mint for mojito's right after with the same hand. I watched for ~10min's and she did this numerous times without EVER washing her hands! Disgusting and I wonder how I got that mysterious cold when I was there???

-inadequate lighting on pathways to the point it was almost completely dark and there were no hand railings when there's a couple foot drop off the edge. Below which is a sewage smelling pool of water I know anyone would just love to fall into...

-obviously you can't drink the tap water in Cuba so the resort is supposed to have bottled water to drink but it's not at every bar. The main place to get the bottled water was out of it 75% of the time and the bartenders wouldn't go get more until it was time to stock the bar again. It was a mad rush to the bar once someone found out they had water, then they were out again within a few minutes.

-the insects there were the worst I have seen in the Caribbean. It's almost like they have never heard of pesticide. We were told this before we left so we brought Off but I still got eaten alive. My legs were covered with swollen bites that actually bruised (that's a first for me). After almost 1.5 weeks they finally look like mosquito bites now so hopefully will go away in a month! I am sure they will eave scars so not sure it was only mosquitoes???

****Now here's a good example of the food standards I was speaking of earlier, this actually made some of us laugh the cook actually let this outta the kitchen.....in the lighthouse snack place my party ordered a hot dog and hamburger. The hot dog was served cut in half lengthwise (only half of it was in the bun) and the hamberger was on bread pieces!!! the table next to us told us they had a hot dog that was quartered!!!!! what kinda place does that?? Absolutely no standards at all.

The beach could have been cleaned up better, especially closer to the resort where they don't have the tide to deal with.

this is just what I remember at this moment but it was a full week of being disgusted and completely disappointed I actually paid for this and they can get away with it. It will be interesting what the head office for Barcelo says about this. They better be giving me and my travel party another vacation!!!!

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