Have just returned home after an extended holiday in Cuba (Extended by 24 hours due to hurricane Wilma). Stayed at the Parque Central for 7 nights and then onto the Tryp Peninsula at Veradero. We found the Parque Central to be an excellent hotel, our room was very comfortable and the housekeeping was good. The staff were very friendly and made huge efforts to speak to us in English. The food was a little tedious, but we hadn't expected high cuisine, and so were not disappointed.

I stayed at the Parque Central in May 2005 for six nights with my boyfriend.

Positives:
- Great location (adjacent to the old town)
- Heated swimming pool on the rooftop with great views
- Friendly housekeeping
- Stunning building
- Large bedrooms

Negatives:
- Service is slow in the hotel bar (you are better off going up to the bar to order your drink rather than wait for table service)
- The food is poor quality (but bear in mind that the food in Cuba is generally bad).

Overall, we had a fantastic stay in the Parque Central. I would suggest it is a 4* hotel though (possibly 3.5). I have stayed in many 5* hotels around the world and the Parque Central is definitely not top tier. However, by Cuban standards it is great. Given time, I think the hotel will eventually get there.

Having spent a week in the Sandal Princessa Del Mar in Varadero, at the end of August, we were excited if not a bit sad to be leaving for Havana.

We found the Parque Central to be a clean nice centrally located hotel with lovely breakfast and snacks on the Roof Pool Bar (with fabulous views of the city). We didn't try either of the restaurants in the evenings as we preferred to wander about and find our own restaurants in Havana.

We did however eat in the Lobby Bar on a couple of occassions and although the food was by and large of a reasonable quality the service was quite bad especially from the female waiting staff. This was a big shock after Varadero and the 5 star service we received there. There was rudeness here that we had not encountered in Cuba previously.

Having stayed in many 5 star hotels throuhout the world I would give this hotel an overall rating of 4 or 4.5 stars.

Parque Central Hotel -Very clean, excellent service. fabulous room, we were given a SUITE with lounge and TWO sinks in the bathroom, swimming pool on the roof which was more than welcome considering the heat and humidity. We booked a two centre holiday with 3 days in Havana and 11 days in Varadero at Breezes Varadero, another excellent hotel and facilities.

Dont take US dollars!! Exchange rate is extortionate at hotels 10/12% everytime you changed them and paying by credit card is also a disadvantage as you will be charged extra 1 or 2% on top of your cost.

We took two trips whilst in Havana, a city tour of both old and new which included cigar factory tour and the best was a trip to Vinales Valley-definitely worth while, breathtaking views and you get to see a lot of countryside and villages.

We couldn't wait to get to Varadero and we were not disappointed with the location or the hotel. All inclusive absolutely recommended. White sandy beaches, safe and warm swimming-although we did spot a jellyfish a couple of days. We booked two trips - one to see the dolphin show and then swim with them-fantastic and the other trip to the swamp in the South
which included a boat trip across their largest lake to see the crocodiles.

Flew with Virgin paid extra for Super Economy definitely worth the money
but the flight coming back to Gatwick was exhausting thro the night arriving back in Gatwick at 6.30am-so you gain going out 5hrs but lose coming back-so be warned-take an extra day off to recuperate from the journey.

If you want to know more in details email me at admin@fly360.com
Regards Mandyx