Date 7th March 2008.
Very much a sort of up-market backpackers hotel. Had no choice but to stay here as all other hotels were full. Definitely a case of you get what you pay for. Had a room on the 19th floor which would have been nice if:
a) it did not smell of mold
b) the lifts worked properly (not unusual to wait 20 mins for lift when they were working)
c) did not have to share room with cockroaches
All rooms appear to have hot and cold running water but not it would appear at the same time, some days only cold water and some days only VERY HOT!! water.
Lobby pretty drab and typical of most state run hotels.
Lobby bar OK but would be better if they cleared out the ladies - the -night that tend to hang around there.
Breakfast buffet plentiful but nothing to write home about.
Reception staff pretty grumpy and unhelpful.
Bar, restaurant, cleaning and concierge staff all very pleasant and helpful.

I read the reviews here AFTER I booked three nights at the Habana Riviera. I then cancelled two nights and kept one - nothing else was available as communist party delegates were booking up everything for their convention to replace Castro.

I was somewhat pleasantly surprised; the hotel room was fine though the hallways were dark and did smell a bit of mold. Breakfast food was average for Cuba. Not the worst I've had and not the best.

I was back three days later when we extended our Havana stay and the other hotel - a great property (Parkview Hotel) - had no more nights available.

The second stay here was more in line with other reviews here: the hotel room was less pleasant - bathrom was iffy and the smell of mold was in the room - and for $150 CDN...you'd think...

So it's a crapshoot: you may get a decent room, you may not. Depends on the floor I guess.

One nice feature about the hotel is the pool so if you're willing to risk a so-so room, go fo for it. Probably not a hotel for families if you're concerned about any mold issues. More a hotel for young people who can put up with so-so accomodation and who want a pool. It's a good location to see some of the sights around Vedado - the Hotel Nacional, art deco museum, and some great classic though run-down homes and other architecture in the area. Some great restaurants in this area as wel.l

We were two, and an average rate is only - OK. But I am not going back
to this hotel - with in total five more hotels experience in Cuba, Riviera shares the 5th place.

On a plus side - very good breakfast buffet and a great view to the city, with good location for people like us. We do like walking, and hate being constantly offered cigars and taxi rides. The latter will bug you in the Old city of Havana much, much more. The pool was nice for an afternoon break.

On the negative: mold smell was terrible, the very moment we come out of the elevator I wished we were not there. We were tired after 10+ hours in the air, and we thought we might be too tired to judge the hotel already. But the smell stayed and we took it with us in our clothes when we left. Although the mattresses were new, the pillows were not and they did smell and feel moldy. I honestly don't understand why the hotel management did not ditch out the thick (and dirty) wall-to-wall carpets decades ago. Ground floor posh restaurant only looks exclusive, the food and especially the wines they offer is far behind. This may be though our mistake, after three days of Cuban food and rum in all possible combinations, we thought some European food and wine from the Menu is a good idea. But it was not, not there.
When paying the bill do check the change you got back. Also, if you decide to change some money at the reception, insist on a receipt, otherwise you will feel cheated with a way too easy response "the rates go up and down all the time". Yes, sure, but that much in two days?!

First of all, a caveat, I lived and worked in Cuba many years ago, when economic times were not as good as they are now. I have stayed in places with bed bugs, cockroaches, flooding toilets and those which turned out to play host to hookers who rent rooms by the hour, student residences with intermittant water and electricity supplies......and I would take any of these before I returned to the Riviera.

The rooms have been severely water damaged, but not renovated. There is mould and mildew everywhere, and you can smell it. My five year old daughter and I ended up with headaches after only a few hours in room 801. It took me two days to get the smell out of my head.

The smell of mould in the hallways knocks you out as soon as the elevator opens. If I had not already paid (only for one night, thank goodness), and had not arrived late in the evening, I would have left immediately.

The breakfast that was included with the room was in a dirty restaurant. The food (mostly hotdogs and cold hard boiled eggs) was not maintained in any safe manner (correct temperature, flies everywhere). I just had a cup of coffee and went to another hotel and paid for breakfast.

Don't go here. Any price you pay is a rip off.