Royalton Hicacos Resort & Spa

I recently returned from a trip of a lifetime from this hotel for all the wrong reasons. We arrived to this hotel after doing round trip of Cuba. We were told by several people that out next hotel is one of the best in Varadero and we were in for a treat. When we arrived at around 1:30/2:00 local time we were greeted with Champagne and advised to sit to one side. We then filled out the required paperwork and waited to be seen to,after this we were informed the room wasn't ready and won't be till around 4:00. This wasn't an issue at the time as we were shown around the resort and then chilled by the pool bar. This was our first chance to get a rough idea of what to expect from the hotel,we could see that some work was being carried out around the hotel but the general condition was showing signs of wear and tear. Walk way timbers are lifting,bridge supports wobbling and not secured properly. The swinging seat bottom on one of the seats was worn to the point my wife almost fell out of the bottom. After relaxing at the pool bar for a few hours enjoying the company of the two ladies behind the pool bar we returned to reception. This was well after 4:00 and the room was just about ready. Upon arrival to the room 1006 it was noted the room was very tired but due to being hot,tired and sweaty we sent the butlers away to freshen up and relax before dinner. This is when we noticed the bathroom was very dirty with mold around the bath surround and corrosion all over the taps and shower head. The loo was found to rock like the Jolly Rodger when you needed to use it and the general state of the floor was flithy leaving my grey socks black. Before we went to dinner we noticed we didn't have any water in to room so on our way past reception we were going to ask for some and discuss the room, as it was busy at the time we left this till after dinner. This is when we were greeted by one of the very lovely smells around the hotel,coming from the Caribbean I know that the smell of salt and fresh water mixing and drying out can cause a certain aroma...This was not the case as we noticed a man with a full face chemical mask trying to clean the water ways. This made eatting dinner rather difficult but to be fair the food wasn't great in general, so we sat in the Jazz bar which does the best drinks in the resort after the pool bar. After a while we returned to reception......... Still busy I spoke to a butler and asked where can we could get water from for the room. He took my room number and said it will be looked into. After around 20mins waiting in the room I returned to reception to speak to one of the ladies behind the desk to once again ask for water. She seemed very confused at the fact I required water as we had none in the room from the moment we arrived in the room, she then once again took my room number and said she would look into it and get some sent up.............hour after asking I returned to speak to another lady. By this time in my frustration I asked what do I need to do to get a bottle of water around here which lead to a swift reply of "Go to the 24hour bar". The bar also had no water and could only offer a glass. I returned to reception to inform the lady they don't have any either and by this point I was too tired so gave up. While walking past I voiced my frustration and was once again told that we will have water shortly or some will be left by the door for the morning. In the morning no water was delivered to the room.......as this point I was at boiling point so as we walked to reception my wife asked the same lady for some water as it hasn't been sent to the room. To my shock the lady replied in a very rude manner saying, "Yes 1006 no water, we are looking it". I then approached to say this is what we were told last night and to my surprise she raised her voice saying when we get back to the room that it will be sorted. After this we spoke to our Virgin rep and asked for a new room, by this point the wife was in tears and I was to the point of trying to get a return flight. I decided that once we get to our room that i would reset my current exprience and start again.... So once we checked out of the old room we were told that once again our room wouldn't be available till 4:00! The room wasn't ready until well after 5:00, the reason for this was due to a romantic bath they ran and due to that fact that they had just finished painting the room. A nice touch as the smell of the emulsion was welcomed every time I went into the room as the area near the Caribbean restaurant smelt like sewage. Overall service was very poor, we waited up to 20 minutes at the ocean bar for breakfast before some horrid pastries were thrown at us. After a further 15 minute wait we left. The Buffet food was always cold and had no taste or flavour so I ended up getting a burger on regular basis from the 24hour snack bar until I saw several cockroaches running around.  After this I moved onto the Cuban sandwich from the counter near the 24hour mix bar.........great until my wife found bird poo in her salad. The Texmex A LA Carte had once again cockroaches running up the walls which resulted in my wife breaking down in the restaurant, the answer from the waitress was,  "They are more scared of you than you are of them, would you like to move to the centre of the room". This resulted in us leaving and not eatting till the following day. The one saving grace was the Bbq on the beach which was the ONLY hot meal we had all week. Our lock was changed without us knowing, we only found out as we returned to the room to find the maintenance man attacking our door handle. He advised us to go to reception for new keys as the old ones will no longer work......After returning from reception with another set of keys they didn't work so back to reception to get another of keys this time the correct style for the new lock system. This all took well over an hour as according to reception the computer system wasn't working  even though the issue was due to bad communication between reception the maintenance man. On our last after having a bath we heard a bang and was greeted to the sight of bubbles foaming out from under the sink. The lights then started flicking so we ending up with only one light on in a room which is very dark. This is only some of the things wrong with this hotel but overall the hotel is not a 4 1/2 Star if anything this is a 2 Star Butlins and by not means a luxury resort. The fact that 13 other people on our flight home also had complaints confirms that this is not to standard. Don't believe the hype on most of the other reviews left as this is not worth your hard earned money. Read less

We ended a trip to Cuba in the Royalton Hicacos and after a lot of traveling and sightseeing our stay here was a really welcome rest. We were well and truly spoiled while there- the staff and service is what makes this hotel stand out. The suite was very spacious, very clean, beers, water and soft drinks replenished daily and air con excellent. Lots of variety re dining- with the exception of the Italian restaurant (where the food was quite bland), we enjoyed eating there. Favorite meal was in the Seafood restaurant sitting outside facing the sea. Cuba Day festivities were brilliant- great music, barbecues and dancing! The hotel is situated on the far end of the beach and wasn’t as busy as a result which was great. Huts, cabanas and loungers available and somebody there to find one for you where you wanted it when you arrived on the beach. Sea was just beautiful. A really relaxing and enjoyable stay! Read less

Don't worry about the upgrade money, you should choose the diamond club option. The hotel has a magnificent beach and loverly garden and environment. Very friendly staff (Tips are very welcome). The quality of the food is very good but not as we use to have in Europe in a 4/5-star hotel. But it's okay, don't worry about that ... everybody is doing their best with the possibilities they're having... Read less

From the time we arrived to when we left, we had the best time, the staff are truly all lovely, friendly and very efficient. Absolutely hated the way some people spoke down to them though. Please and thank you doesn't cost much does it! The resort is well kept, the beach stunning. The food was mainly very good, and although somethings were not to our liking, you have to remember they are catering for many different nationalities and tastes. There was lots of choice. The themed restaurants were also very good. The entertainment was a very good standard and varied. Loved the Martin bar, and the Jazz bar. Would definitely return Glad we didn't waste money on the diamond club, there is no need unless you like red towels over blue. Read less

We flew out of Toronto International Airport via Sunwing at 06:15 am on October 15th and arrived and at the resort around noon. Upon our arrival we were greeted to a glass of champagne by the friendly management staff. They proudly announced that our rooms were ready for all of us (normally check-in is 4pm). So by 2pm we were relaxing on the beautiful beach. This was our third visit to the Royalton Hicacos and we are already planning our next one. It is simply our exotic home away from home. The following will summarize the reasons why we keep going back. Cuba (Varadero) provides a safe environment for all tourists. The beach along the resort is breathtaking and very well maintained. The resort complex is beautiful, clean, the gardens well manicured, easy to get around and has a tropical vibe about it. The food in all a la carte and buffet restaurants is very good. The musical entertainment in the restaurants, buffet, lobby bar and main stage is of professional quality. Our room (1504) was clean, decently appointed, very good AC. The beverages (coffee, alcoholic or none) were always very good, especially at the lobby bar. The employee service is always friendly, polite, sincere and effective. The following excellent employees made our vacation a memorable one; Butlers Roberto and Osmany Buffet servers; Barbara, Leesandra, Sendie, Tania and Hermes Beach server Duniel Room maid Vannia Lobby bar servers Fernando and Sandy Things to improve on; Replace the old shower curtains in the rooms. Most of them have missing or broken hooks. You need to come up with a better rod system. The cleaning staff assigned to the lobby bar should clean the chairs more often as most of them were dirty by bird droppings. Thank you again for a wonderful vacation and we are looking forward to our next visit. L&M London, Ontario Read less