After hearing about my experience you might wonder how I can give this hotel an excellent rating. Remember, "Disappointments come from unfulfilled expectations". This means if you are going to compare the service, the food or the experience to any other travel experience, forget it and don't go to Cuba.
When we arrived we were also told that they didn't have our reservation but soon found it after a couple of minutes, then we were told they only had us down for one night instead of two. Then we checked into a room with a broken window and had to move to another room. Then the elevator lift got stuck and we had to use the stairs for one day. The food in the hotel is bad and half of what they listed on the menu they didn't have and the breakfast cake had ants crawling in it. So?? whats so good? The hotel is amazing, filled with culture, beauty and heritage. You feel like you stepped back in time. The rooms are wonderful and clean. The terrace garden overlooking Old Havana is fantastic. Raphael the security guard is so nice and will do anything to help you. Anita at the front desk is the best receptionist I have ever met, helpful, friendly like most Cubans and warm. The staff overall were absolutely great. Remember people there are making the same as our 20 bucks a month and life is difficult. A pack of gum, toothbrush and toothpaste or soaps will get you the best service in Havana. I took with me all of these things which are difficult to get there and people were grateful and appreciative and reciprocated with their warmth and generosity. Restaurant Dominicana (Italian) is close and very good. You are in the most amazing part of Havana and inspite of how the area looks (run down) its extremely safe and people will not harm you. The cooks in the Hotel can only cook what they have for ingredients and ingredients are hard to come by. I highly recommend this hotel as and experience of a lifetime. Also, make sure you pay attention to the art work and stainglass in the hotel for its stunning.

stayed at Raquel on 4 separate occasions. its in old havana and so if you dont mind the dog fouling, stray dogs and being hassled on the streets, its an ok 4 star hotel. ask to stay on the 3rd floor. the rooms are a little dark but the roof top terrace is a very nice place to spend time. the hotel is centrally located and so a great place to explore old havana.to change currency there are two Casas de Cambio (CADECA) very close by. the staff are very helpful. airconditiong is not very efficent. the gym is very basic (there is no pool). there are plenty of restaurants close by which serve good food - if you get achance eat at La Bodeguita del Medio near Plaza de la Cathedral. the breakfast in the hotel is not very exciting. dont expect the standards as in europe.

we arrived in HAVANA on the 28th Oct. late afternoon...On arrival at the hotel we were told to sit in the lobby and wait for the receptionist by the door man, after 25 mins I approached the receptionist to enquire about our reservation, since the staff kept overlooking us. We were then told that there was no reservation ( Hotelopia.co.uk) After considerable conversation and our accommodation voucher produced, we were then told by the receptionist that she had spoken to her manager who had told her that our resevation had been cancelled the day prior to our arrival. After expressing our concern about the lack of professionalism we were told to contact hotelopia at our expense. When we requested to speak to the manager on duty, we were told that " the manager was off duty and would not be back until Monday morning" We were then told to purchase another night accommodation ( cash transactions only) which we felt obliged to do since this process lasted over 1 hour. After being told that we has purchased a nights accommodation at Hotel Raquel, we were then later told that the night would be spent elsewhere.
The next morning after using our personal mobile to call hotelopia, to find that our booking was valid, we returned to the substitite hotel to receive a phone call from Hotel Raquel informing us that they had found our booking and that we could return.
On returning to the hotel we recieved no apology or explanations for our nightmare experience.

Despite the negative first impression we recieved we found the rest of our stay satisfactory and enjoyable.
Finally just be wary of your final bill on checkout. We found minibar charges and phone calls that we had not consumed or made.
CONS:
If thinking about visiting the Jesus statue, beware of the man passing himself off as security and staff. He insists that he must take the photos, although he's entertaining, he's misleading ( staff printed on the back of his shirt) he is actually a con artist demanding very large tips from everyone in your party, he becomes aggressive if he does not receive the tip that he wants, ( CUC 20 per person)

I spend five nights at the Raquel. It was a nice, clean hotel right in the heart of Old Havana. It´s a great place to stay if you plan to walk and get to know how cubans live. The hotel has good service, and it has a lovely view from the top. Brekfast was ok; they offer two kind of juices, some fruit, bread, eggs, jam or bacon, hot cakes...

It was not perfect, though. The first night the air conditioner was broken down, so next morning I was moved to another room. When I came back on the afternoon my bathroom was wet as there was a leak on the roof. I asked them to clean and solve it, but when I came back at midnight they told me it wasn´t solved and ask to move me yet again. I was terribly tired so I asked not to be moved, but allowed to use the bathroom of another room. They refused (saying it was impossible "because of the system"), so I had to deal with all the dripping in the bathroom. Next day it was fixed by noon, and they gave me a free dinner as a compensation.

The final negative experience was on my checkout (in which they tried to charge me a drink I didn´t had). I forgot the key and come back to the room, and I heard the maid cursing me because she thought I hadn´t leave any money nor presents (they were "hidden" in the closet).