This is far from being an awful hotel which some reviewers may have suggested - The rooms are large and everything works, the breakfast is pretty good, there was never any wait for service at the reception, the pools (and surrounding areas) were above average and clean, the hotel bus ($5 per person per day) was late once but was still reliable. On the other hand, the design of the place is awful. For some reason there are three tiny lifts for about 400 rooms. These were frequently out of use. There is no staircase - I had to use the fire escape every morning to get to breakfast. When the room wasn't cleaned I was told that this was because the hotel was overbooked. My room overlooked a main road and a building site, so it may be safe to assume that in a few years time the residents on this side of the hotel will have a great view of...another hotel.
The location can be considered a plus or a minus. The cabs outside the hotel charge about $10 to take you the 11-12 km into the city, and can be relied on to not give you all your change in Convert. Currency. On the other hand, if you go through the many excellent places to eat that have been posted on this site, many are in (or close to) Miramar. The more central hotels in Havana also appeared to be very security minded and I'm not sure that I would want to pay twice as much to be inside a mini fortress. The other people who were staying in the hotel can be considered a plus or minus. I am English, and there were many English tourists booked during the period that we were there - including a party of Saga louts. Unfortunately I agree with the Australians who complain about "whinging Poms" and would prefer not to listen to listen to endless complaints from people who said that the hotel was dirty on the grounds that they had seen two insects and that, amazingly for a poor country, some people looked poor. Not once did I hear any of them say anything nice about the country that they were in, although I regularly had to dodge coughing from these coffin dodgers during their noisy oratations at breakfast.

This hotel is not worth its 4 star rating, the rooms were clean, but the service was terrible, very unfriendly. It is in Miramar not Havana, we had to pay 10cuc in and back again each day! The shuttle bus that ran from the hotel didnt turn up to pick us up and left us stranded in havana, other guests told us they were having the same problem. Items went missing from my from room during my stay, the hotel didint seem to be bothered by this. I wouldn't recommend this hotel, especially if you want see Havana and experience Cuban hospitality.

We arrived at the Panorama with no expectations as our stay was booked at the last minute by a Cuban Agent to give us extra time in Havana. The hotel was very business orientated without the service level one would expect - we stood at reception for a good 10-15 minutes each time we wanted something. On the whole the hotel was great - very good selection for breakfast, great pool & clean luxurious room. It's about $10 in a taxi into old Havana but away from the hustle & bustle of the City. Good choice for a few nights stay.

The external environment of the hotel is breathtaking being near the seaside with a commanding view of the ocean. The room is spacious and the room attendants are friendly and hardworking. I like the way they fold the blankets and towels, so creative! There is an Italian, German and a buffet restaurant. The Italian and German restaurants are nothing to shout about, but the buffet restaurant serves a good spread for breakfast. The food is delicious, look out for the sausage and the chopped beef patties.

Overall I had a good experience and would recommend it to anyone going to Cuba.