Iberostar Varadero Hotel

All the hype about Varadero for being the home of one of the top beaches in the Carribeans. What if i told you that I would easily categorize the latter in the "creme de la creme" department. Crystal clear water and white sand beach makes Varadero beach a top spot for tourist and domestic travelers.

Playa Azul is its nick name, which means Blue beach. Peaceful blue waters surrounding it and water is so warm, as if you are sitting in the biggest jaccuzzi ever. One minor setback, this so called jaccuzzi is very salty. So dont be an idiot like me and swallow salty water. Hint hint, i am not a good swimmer.

The hotel we stayed in was Iberostar Varadero. I had the time of my life and i would go back NOW ! This hotel chain has a great reputation throughout the Carribeans, but i still had doubts that my needs might not be fulfilled in the entertainment and food department. Boy o boy, was i ever wrong. I was totally, i mean totally off. Great shows every night, this truly was a 5 star hotel, and its setup was very charming and cozy. The buffet can be compared to north american buffets. Yup yup, i say north americans cause we sure like to pig out over here. Me being a big fan of gastronomie, Cuba is not known for that. End of story. But if you want to be greeted everyday by stunning cuban girls with bonita sonrisas (beautiful smiles), then we can agree that the latinos are very warm people. I was amazed how they knew montrealers. As soon as i would tell the animation staff, the bartenders, or the waitresses that i am from montreal canada, i would even receive a hug or a very warm welcome. No kidding, we are known for being very outgoing , crazy people (in the good sense of the word). Last but not least, we tip as if its our last day on earth.

By day two, i met so many people from different backgrounds, I thought i was in heaven. Scotish, english, Belgian, Deutch, Argentina was in the house, a couple of lovely ladies from Barcelona Spain had the spotlight on them, heaps of Canadians, a few italian boys with their fashionable shirts lurking in the lobby, Irish guy by the bar doing shots with me, A group of 10 from Chile, a Brazilian couple teaching me how to do the Samba. And lots of tourists from Portugal as well. You like variety, that was the place to be for 7 days. So much for my trip to havana. Maybe next time. This time around, I did not leave Varadero. During the day, i was interracting with the older, wiser crowd, sharing traveling stories, doing activities by the pool, making a fool out of myself.

By 9 pm, i was getting all pumped up for the show and loading my body with some booze and by 11, we were a big group of tourists, all ready to hit the night clubs....guess who shook his tooshy and put on a show ?

7 days went by so fast, now its time for goodbye. I was feeling emotional, will i ever see these belgian girls again ? We spent so much time together, we bonded big time. And what about the scotish couple who called me "son" and told me i should visit them one day and they would have a guest room for me.

The list goes on and on.....Back to Canada i go, memories are fresh, thank goodness for my digital camera and now its time to show off some pics.

One last thing i forgot, i became good buddies with Russian tourists, not sure if they understood the all inclusive concept. The were drinking their faces off.....24\7. Ouch ! But no fighting, no agression, just one funny moment after the other.



Thank you all for reading me and have a blessed day :)



Kevin K