We stayed at the Breezes Feb. 11 to Feb 18.
Left from Ottawa and finally arrived an hour and a half late at Varadero Airport. We were delayed because of a problem with the luggage conveyer so were more than ready for some hot sun. Since we were delayed the resort had sent a small van to pick up ourselves and another couple. When we arrived at the Breezes didn't get the complimentary welcome drink but were simply registered and directed to our room. Who cares.. it was warm! Were very happy with our oceanview room in building 15 and though it was a bit overcast we unpacked and headed out to explore the grounds. How lovely and what a treat to see palm trees and gorgeous blooms. And that ocean...amazing! Grabbed a bite at the Beach bar...and a drink too and just relaxed on the beach and watched the waves. Very relaxing and such a beautiful place. We had researched many destinations online and the Breezes had such glowing reviews we decided that this would be the place to celebrate our thirtieth anniversary.
During our stay we rented the Scooters and went into Santa Cruz with Adrian..very interesting. We also arranged a private tour of Havana which was much cheaper and more to our liking. We heard that the bus tours to Havana can be very rushed and we wanted to explore on our own. Lots to see in Havana and the fifties cars are a real treat to see. My husband really enjoyed that and we found it quite do-able.
Loved the snorkeling although I did have a bit of an experience when I stepped on a sting ray and had to see the doctor for some stitches and antibiotics. It really got me good and I would advise anyone to be very careful even wading out as I was as those darn sting rays cover themselves with sand and are impossible to see. And here I was worried about the jelly fish!
We found the food much as others have posted as being very bland but found something at every meal so never went hungry. Loved the coffee and cappucinos...and I normally don't drink coffee.
The staff were great..our chambermaid Yamile did a wonderful job each day...no complaints there. We did leave little things for her each day and tipped throughout our stay..not everytime you get a drink or anything but enough to show our appreciation. One thing to note. Be very diligent re counting out your money at the front desk and even in the Bank in Havana...it seems to be a real common occurance to short change tourists. My husband was almost shorted 20 Canadian in Havana at a National Bank so be warned.
Our week was fabulous and reading and relaxing on the beach every day as well as sitting on the balcony in the morning watching the sunrise was just amazing. We would recommend the Breezes to anyone interested in a relaxing get away...and Not for those who wish to party as the age group tends to be in the late forties, fifties and beyond. We weren't interested in the nightly shows and the old "corny hits of the seventies and shmaltzy Engelburt Humperdink type music' made us chuckle. Terry Jacks Seasons in the Sun? Good grief.
Don't bother bringing along a curling iron as it won't work. I would advise the women to pack some silicone hair pomade for the humidity though as hair tends to get a bit out of control with all the blow drying etc.
And there is not a lot of reading matter so bring books and be prepared to spend a lot of time trying to log on for email etc. Excruciatingly slow...but you are in Cuba so ...
We hope to return to Cuba one day...hopefully before another thirty years.

Stayed here from 11th February to 23rd February 2007. We flew from London with Virgin Atlantic and have to say that they are not very good. We arrived late and didn't get to the resort until gone 7pm in the middle of it pouring it down. As others have said, the weather was not good with only a few days of sunshine (it was the coldest night on record and the daytime temperature was between 71 and 84). Now for the truth:

Food: Having stayed previously at what was the Maritim in Guardalavaca (now La Blau), the food is not so good. Every lunchtime the food is the same and, despite the choice, I dread to think how long that beef stir fry had stood there. Thursday Lobster nights are good but I was very surprised that no finger bowls were provided, nor were toothpicks (toothpicks are available at the bar). The main restaurant is supposed to close at 9.30pm. One night we arrived at 9.10pm and were told before we even sat down that if we wanted dessert, we would have to get it then as they were closing. Some staff were very polite and helpful (especially Daniel who serves on the outside section and Christina, the Restaurant Manageress) but others were downright rude. We actually ate better food on our day in Havana, which is saying something ... The Italian restaurant was a huge disappointment - whatever you do, don't have the seafood starter unless you are a fan of tomato sauce with salad drowned in vinegar. The Cuban restaurant, on the other hand, was exceptional.

Booze: Reasonable selection but the wine was yuck. Ask for champagne and you'll get cava or sparkling chardonnay which was good. Again, unlike in Le Blau, table service was practically non-existent and it was like being back at school queuing at the bar (imagine the queue for a cashpoint and you'll get my drift). The only real 'table service' was at the pool and even that was hit and miss (nice guy though). Both the piano bar (blimey - the pianist turned up only one night for 30 minutes) and the lobby bar (arrgh - both non-smoking) ran out of bananas for hubby's beloved chocolate monkey cocktail. Hubby ended up going into the kitchen (literally) himself, grabbed a large bunch and gave them to a very surprised barman. The biggest laugh has got to be running out of mint for the mojitas - please could someone from Breezes tell me their secret of stopping the stuff growing like wild fire as they have obviously got it down to a fine art. They also appear to have a shortage of ashtrays.

Nightly entertainment: Absolutely dire; let's not go there unless you are a fan of Opportunity Knocks and Butlins. Again, I have to reiterate that the animation team in Guardalavaca did a far better job and Le Blau brings in professional entertainers a couple of nights which Breezes don't. On a plus point (thought I'd better mention one), the music at the disco was superior and a good laugh when one had obviously consumed too much rum.

Daytime entertainment: The animation team were friendly enough and yes, the sun dance will stick in your mind ... with the left leg and then the other leg ... but I just cannot figure out why water aerobics was at the ungodly hour of 10.30am. When I mentioned this to the animations team, they too said that they have been trying to persuade management for ages to move it to the afternoon - most peeps go to the beach in the morning and to the pool in the afternoon.

The Beach: Despite what others may say, it is not the cleanest of beaches. Us Brits really don't need water shoes having become accustomed to the likes of Brighton and Blackpool beaches as there are not that many rocks at Breezes beach upon entering the sea. However, they are needed to avoid the rusty bits of pipe, glass and those pesky large jelly fish hidden in the sand. The snorkelling was good on the two days that I managed to get in the sea (bad weather).

Shops: Now the cigar shop is the best and the women who work in there are very helpful and friendly. Cigars (of course) and Havana Rum are sold in here. Rather stupidly though, the better rum (Santiago de Cuba) is found next door in the grocery/tuck shop, together with your ciggies. The souvenir shop is not so good.

Room: The room was nice (Room 1128), right on the beach. We survived half electrocuting ourselves when the coffee machine leaked water onto the wall socket (promptly fixed the next day). We also survived the invasion of the flies in the bathroom and, again, this was very promptly dealt with in an hour but I was not too chuffed with having to remove approximately 100 dead flies from the bath the next morning. Hubby managed to do a Uri Geller with the door key which took 2 days to be replaced. We tipped the maid each day (incidentally, we tipped most of the staff there with paracetamols, shaving cream, tampons, coloured pencils, pens, notepads, deodrant, small sewing kits - some staff were very grateful, others not so) but for some reason, our maid left the hair removing cream (other female staff were mega happy to receive it). Loads of coat hangers and safe worked okay. If you are a fan of Most Haunted, you'll love the tricks the side lights in the room do, even when turned off ...

Reception staff: Obviously have received lessons from the air stewardesses from Virgin Atlantic on rudeness. We booked a trip with Jorge (see Havana forum for email address) and he tried several times to phone us but they refused to put call through saying they would have to look in their directory. At the time we were due to meet (we got dates mixed up with Jorge but rescheduled) and were in Reception, he called and said we would be in Reception but they refused to make an announcement. Nuff said.

Trip via Jorge around Havana: Absolutely fantastic. Totally recommended.

Now did we have a good time - well, yes. Hello to everyone we met and apologies to those who got fed up with our laughing (blame it on too much rum).

Would we go back to Cuba? A definite yes.

Would we go back to Breezes Jibacoa? A definite no, overpriced and not the best resort in Cuba. We'll book Guardalavaca again.

Overall the hotel is properly rated as a 4 star. Our room in the garden area was more than adequate and quite comfortable. The food on the other hand was consistently overcooked and bland. I thought it a shame that they cooked the fish to the point of drying it out as was also the case with the beef. On the other hand chicken lends itself to being overcooked and was therefore fine. You could never accuse the staff of being rude and a few were actually quite pleasant, but the majority seemed indifferent to the guests. This indifference was also evident in Havana hospitality employees. Tours outside the hotel seemed to be 1st world prices in a 3rd world country. For example a return taxi to Havana was 90 CUC or $120 Cdn, and I can take a taxi from Burlington to Toronto airport for $125 return, which is about the same distance. By comparison the 3 hour Scooter Tours offered at 15 CUC for 2 people were excellent value for money. I highly recommend at least one day in old Havana, do it on your own if possible, as it's easy to see this was, at one time, a beautiful vibrant city and with the ongoing restoration can be again. Several guests at the hotel were concerned about their personal safety in Havana but in my opinion there is absolutely nothing to worry about at least in old Havana.

We just got back last night and are already planning to go back again. My husband and I had an awesome time. We met some great new friends, partied a lot and completely relaxed.
We went for a week but only got 4 days of real hot weather. It was a little chilly for a few days but on those days we drank so much we really didn't care about that. LOL

The view from our room was amazing. I would recommend a pool view to anyone. It's worth the little extra cash.
The food at the resort was great. We are really picky eaters but we always managed to find something to eat each night. The omelet guy in the morning was awesome. We gave him some gum for his twin girls and we didn't have to tell him what we wanted after that. When he saw us coming he would start to cook a ham and cheese omelet and an omelet with just cheese.
The outside market , at Havana, was awesome. You can find a lot of things there and I never paid full price for anything. Although all the people begging can be a little overwhelming.
The drinks are great all over the resort but the best are in the Piano Bar. Hector makes an awesome Chocolate Monkey and Strawberry Daiquiri but the beer is the bottled Buckanearo, which is not that great. For beer, Crystall, in the lobby bar, was the best.
We don't really have much to complain about at all. I would recommend this resort to anyone in a heartbeat. Sure there were a few not so nice things, such as the tour of Havana but the only real complaint about that was the meal that we had. That part about it was really disorganized and they didn't have enough food for everyone.

I was a little sad to leave all of our new friends and come back here to Newfoundland and the snow storm that we are currently having but I know that we will be going back as soon as possible.