My husband and I stayed here from Jan 28/08 for 4 nights as part of a 14 day Havana/Varadero package. We both loved the hotel, especially the grounds and the lovely veranda with bar (great espresso, daquiris and Carona!. While a little tired, our room was large and comfortable. The breakfast buffet was included in our package along with attendance for 2 to the Parisien Cabaret Show (which was excellent). We had dinner in the main dining room that was expensive ($75.00 with wine) and not that good, but the maitre'd made up for it all. Outside of the hotel and just down entrance way we went to the Monsigneur Restaurant and had a great meal for $35.00 including drinks, then ate 2 nights later at "Palador Nerei" which is only a few blocks away at Calle 19 & L - and had a fantastic meal for $35.00. We also splurged and ate at the top of the Hotel Libre at the Sierra Maestra which had a decent wine list, decent food and great views - spent $100.00. The hotel has a great location right on the Malecon and is close to Old Havana. It's also close to "La Zorra y El Cuervo" which is an awesome jazz night club and well worth the cover charge of $10.00. We hired a guide in advance based on trip advisor reviews thru the internet (---) for a full day in Old Havana. Our guide was Dania and she was very good and very knowledgeable with excellent English.We loved the hotel and the whole Havana experience - we could have used a couple of more days to see it all. PS - if you have time, check out the Colon Cemetary and be patient with the Cuban's - their idea of service is quite a bit lower than ours. They don't have phones in their own homes, so at work they take great advantage of the opportunity to talk to friends, relatives etc.

Stayed at the Nacional for three nights. You're immediately hit by the size and grandeur of the place when you arrive. It has a real sense of history which is almost worth staying there for alone. As for the accommodation, the rooms are large and well kept, the food fair, and the staff a little on the inattentive side. Despite not being located in the old town, the location is just fine giving you a nice chance to walk along Malecon into town. The hotel also hosts various shows including the excellent Buena Vista Social Club.

My sister and I (both single females; early 30's) were a bit worried about choosing to stay at the Hotel Nacional because it is not located in the heart of Old Havana so we thought we might be missing out, but we were not dissapointed at all. The rooms were well appointed (ask for the side facing the ocean), the staff was very helpful and overall a beautiful historic hotel with wonderful grounds for strolling around and a great outdoor patio overlooking the sea where one can sip a Cuba Libre in style as musicians play. The hotel has several restaurants so there is a good variety. I particularly enjoyed the outdoor restaurant for dinner and in the mornings the breakfast buffet has good offerings. The hotel property also has an underground cave with interesting history on the Cuba Missile Crisis; do visit! The pool area is also very nice and though we don't have kids the kids that were there seemed to be enjoying themselves as well. We enjoyed walking to Old Havana from the hotel along the picturesque boardwalk Malecon - a 30 - 40 minute leisurely stroll. MUST SEE venues like Casa de la Musica, La Zorro y el Cuervo, La Guarida, and El Canonazo de las Nueve are no more than a $5 cab ride away. Seeing the sights and visiting Old Havana was great, but it was nice to come home to Hotel Nacional. All in all Hotel Nacional was a perfect respite from the hustle and bustle of Old Havana. If you have refined tastes, enjoy classic elegance, and have an appreciation for Cuba's history while still wanting access to all Havana has offer, then this is the hotel for you. If you are looking for a party hotel, look elsewhere. TIP: a little bit of Spanish goes a long way, even if you are not fluent, the effort is appreciated. NOTE TO SINGLE WOMEN: we walked around alot in the city and never felt unsafe or harassed. Use your common sense of course but overall there is a good sense of security and the police have very visible presence.

Like other people have mentioned the gardens are nice, the vestibule is nice, breakfast is fine. Rooms are fairly spacious.
Cokctails are lovely. The swimming pool is alright.

Service was patchy. Where people have an incentive to get tips, it tends to be good, where there are no tips to be had, it can be lousy. All barmen are really good are preparing cocktails. By British Standards cocktails are cheap, about two pounds for a Cuban cocktail.

Rooms: Most days one type of towel was missing from the room after cleaning. There should have been two of everything but whatever reason they run out of them. Although they do provide shampoo, dental gel, shower gel and body lotion; it took about a week before they started to put two of everything. This was after complaining that windows haven't been cleaned for week. There was no trouser press in the room. It did have a safe though.

Hallways have a damp smell, I guess is becuase the hotel was built at a time when ventilation wasn't brilliant.

Television reception: On three occasions we lost the tv reception.

Bathroom: water pressure was good and the toilet flush was really powerful.

Checking in and out: checking in is a slow process and so is checking out. Look out for errors on the hotel bill, staff can add things one hasn't taken from the minibar.

Gym: hotel guests have to pay for the gym. It costs 5 CUC (cuban convertible peso). It is about 2.50 sterling.

Changing money: Keep an eye on the change you get. Hotel staff can take off 20 cents of your money, hoping that one wouldn't notice it. I didn't say anything even though I noticed it, it is probably how the young woman behind the counter makes her leaving by stealing a little bit from all customers. One can get a better rate in banks and banks certainly give one the exact amount of money.

The hairdresser is good: it only costs 10 CUC (about 5 sterling) for a hair cut, blow and dry. Customer care is good.