We just returned from a week in Cuba staying at Club Atlantico..We found the staff to be very nice and caring people ,the food ..well there was always something good ..you sure would never go hungry ..The beach was fabulous ..sure there was the Italian pop music and djs some of the day..but if it really bothered you that much ..you can always just go down the beach a bit, we always tipped a peso whenever we had drinks or had a meal .and a gift with a peso for our room maid every day..and I tell it really goes far as to the extra attention you get ..Most of the Italians never tipped.. We loved old Havana and the free bus shuttles were aways right on time and ran every day....Keep in mind that the working people in Cuba make very little some only 10 peso a month ($10.00) so be generous when you can ..I think we put out about $50.00 in tips at the hotel for the week and it was well worth it. they are a warm and proud and hard working people ..theres a great little bar in old Havana called El Escabeche on Obispo and Villigas cheap drinks great music (all day)both locals and tourist ..go check it out .Talk to the locals!...they love Canadians...and buy a few drinks for the band as they work just for tips ..We had a great time and would go back again...no problems what so ever ..

My wife and I recently spent two weeks at the Atlantico.
For a hotel built in the early '50s it's not in bad shape. The large block of rooms to the right have been renovated and are qite comfortable, although they could have sprung for new bathroom mirrors. I think they are original and the silvering is coming off. The bathroom venting system is a little archaic and sometimes you get to share odours with other rooms.
The section behind the reception area awaits renos and seems to be where the non Italian guests are lodged. Our room lacked the fridge and hairdryer we were told would be there and the shower above us leaked into our bath. We mentioned this to our tour rep from Caribe Sol and a room in the "Italian section" was given to us.
The three bars were well stocked and served fantisc coffee. Mohitos and pina coladas were non existant, but my wife gave thumbs up to the Atlantico cocktail. An oddity was the canned beer poured into tall skinny glasses and holding about half a can and you didn't get the rest of the can until the first was finished. Thank god for BUBBA even with the plastic lining. It holds almost two cans.
The food was good, lots of fruits, breads and cheeses at breaky with the omelet station. Lunch was usually chicken or pork for meats and great tomatos and cukes on the salad bar and lots of fruit. The pasta station was open both lunch and dinner. Dinner wasn't served until 1745, but sandwiches could be had at the pool bar in the afternoon and munchies were set up late afternoon in the balcony bar.
The beach was nice, but I think a cleanup could be organized. We were forever on the watch for broken glass and picked up a pile of it. We walked down the road to Guanabo one day and cut through the dunes to the beach. Perhaps dumpsters would be a good idea here. There was trash littered all over behind the beach.
Our main reason for this resort was the bus to Havana and we were not let down. We were in the city every other day. We arranged a tour with one of Jorge's guides and it was fascinating. We spent about 4 hours walking around old Havana. Beer drinkers take note. The only micro brewery in Cuba is located in a corner of the old square.
Our tour rep arranged a trip to a baseball game with us and about 30 people from Tropicoco. The game was great, about 40,000 people and tied 8-8 into the eleventh inning when it was called at 0100 and restarted the next day at 1700. We missed it 'cause we took a tour to Vinales. Was originally going to do this on our own, but torrential rains were forcast and rather than get stuck out in the open, we decided on the organized tour. it wasn't bad, with stops at the cigar factory and areas with nice views. Vinales is a pretty town and seems to be a backpackers destination.
To sum up, the resort was what we expected, but we didn't expect the "Sopranos" to be there. There was about half a dozen Italian men without spouses and everywhere they went seemed to be en masse. It was like watching the Godfather or Sopranos live.
I think a week would have been enough with another week on another beach resort in Cienfuegos or maybe Varadero although it doesn't appeal to us.

Best thing about this hotel is it's location on one of the closest and nicest beaches to Havana. A free shuttle bus makes the 25 minute trip to Old Havana 3 times a day (although one day the bus got cancelled without explanation.) If the schedule doesn't fit then it's a 15 peso trip by taxi. We explored Havana every day of the week we spent at this hotel. Havana is a fascinating must-see and like no other place I've seen. But it's very polluted by the old cars and buses and it was great to spend a few hours there at a time and then return to the fresh breezes and great beach for the rest of the day, As the other reviews indicate, the vast majority of guests there are Italian and the activities, music, etc are geared to them. There were only about a dozen English speaking guests the week we were there, but that wasn't a problem. The nightly "entertainment" is pretty lame with the exception of a fanatastic Cuban dance troupe that was brought in on a Monday night. Rooms are clean but dated, maid service was terrific. Probably because of the Italian influence, food was pretty good. Limited selection, but lots of fruit, salads and custom made pastas and great coffee from the bar.

I just got back from this resort, and I honestly don't know what to make of it. I have travelled a great deal but have never encountered the problems that I did at this resort. I should note that this was the first time I stayed at a 3-star hotel, so maybe these problems are normal for hotels of that class.

THE GOOD:
-Closeness to Havana. I really went to Cuba to see Havana, and to enjoy some beach time on the side if time permitted. The proximity of to Havana was a big plus for me. It's about a 25 minute ride on the shuttle and you get dropped off at a really convenient spot that is accessible to a lot of attractions.
-Very nice beach. Some jellyfish, but beautiful sand/water. No shortage of beds on the beach or by the pool.
-Food was really really good. Believe it.
-Tight security on the beach.
-The best coffee I've ever had in my life.
-Great drinks. Not watered down at all. They are generous with the amount of alcohol they put in them.
-24 hour lobby bar came in handy!

THE BAD:
-Staff was rude rude rude. I tried to avoid interacting with them at all costs.
-At one point we were told by the front desk that we could not get on the shuttle to Havana because the bus was full. We asked to see the binder with the list of passengers. We added them up and it added up to 24. The bus fits 30 people. When we confronted her about this she came up with some other random reason why we couldn't get on (something about seats being reserved for guests from another hotel...which we found out was not true as the shuttle does not stop at another hotel at all). Then she began complaining about the fact that we had not booked our spots the day before as we had been 'instructed'. We explained that this shouldn't make a difference because there is still room on the bus!!! Anyhow, we got on the bus to be sure, but we had to fight for it and get over several really pointless hurdles. This was pretty typical of our interactions with the reception.
-They are very...'frugal'...with their resources. If you run out of toilet paper, shampoo, soap, etc. then tough luck. You have to get through the day until the maid replenishes your supplies the next day. And the bathrooms in the lobby never have toilet paper in them.
-We were told that the shuttle was broken and would not be running on one of the days. We were told by other guests that there were 2 or 3 days during the previous week when the shuttle was not available.
-Very very LOUD entertainment team (who almost exclusively speaks Italian). I'm young, I go clubbing and I like loud music generally, but this became unbearable sometimes.
-My bed sheets smelled like B.O. the first 3 nights. 'Nuff said.
-If you don't speak Italian, you will feel largely left out of the events at this hotel. This wasn't a big deal to me.

Well, here it is. Decide for yourself. I hope this helps somebody to make the right decision for them.