Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Just on the shore of the magnificent and famous Varadero Beach, the hotel consists of a 13 floor modern building, completely new. Ideal for those who want to enjoy the beauty and the atmosphere of the most well known beach of Cuba, with the best facilities and a wide list of activities.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Great View
Ocean View
Languages Spoken
English, French, Spanish, German and 1 more
Location
Crta. De Las Morlas, Km 15, Varadero 42200 Cuba
Blau Varadero
9,967 reviews
Getting there
Car recommended
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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The Blau Varadero is celebrated for its lively atmosphere, complete with engaging entertainment and lush indoor greenery, although the shows may become monotonous for some guests. While the hotel boasts a pristine beach and a myriad of activities, visitors have noted the shallow pool and an out-of-service jacuzzi.
The rooms are recognized for their cleanliness and space but are perceived as outdated by some. Despite the hotel's prime beachfront location and commendable staff, the value is questioned due to concerns regarding food quality and service inconsistencies.
Location
Beachfront
Atmosphere
Lively
Rooms
Spacious
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Immaculate
Service
Friendly
Amenities
Relaxing
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Myself and 3 friends stayed at the Blau Varadero as part of a Virgin Holiday package with 4 nights in Havana and 7 nights in Varadero. We had two twin rooms with queen size beds that were extremely comfortable. Our rooms were newly renovated and incredibly bright, colourful and clean. The maids did an excellent job everyday at refreshing the rooms and we loved coming back to find the curtains tied in a bow and the towels arranged as boats or birds. The buffet offered a good selection with freshly grilled fish, shrimp and meets on offer everyday day amongst other things. The two a-la-cart restaurants (Italian and International) made a nice change from the buffet although my friend who is gluten free struggled to find a main course she could eat at the Italian (she was fine everywhere else in the hotel). The pool at the Blau was a fantastic place to spend time, the animation team had activities going on including aqua Zumba (both in the pool and in the sea), water pollo, yoga, salsa, games but all were completed down one end of the resort and Never felt intrusive. Unlike other hotels I have stayed out there was no pressure to join in. The entertainment at the Blau is amongst the best I have seen. There is a nightly show either in the theatre room or by the pool. The music shows are completely live (no miming!) and definitely check out the circus and magic shows, we loved these. Music is very important in Cuba and the Blau embraces this. As well as the shows there is a piano bar, live music in the lobby bar, a string quartet in the International restaurant, and a live band at the lunch buffet. There is also a table magician walking around the bars whose tricks are well worth a tip. Everyone at the Blau works extremely hard and everyone we encountered was friendly, went out of their way to talk to and help us and there was a sense that the staff enjoy working at the hotel that was lovely to see. Top tips: You can use both American and European style plug adaptors at the hotel. Definitely check out the outside bar to the left of the swimming pool (facing away from the hotel), this is a lovely space for sitting out in the evening with comfortable chairs and table service. We were always looked after there by the lovely waitress. I would stay at the Blau again in a heartbeat.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Feb 24, 2020
It is a very rewarding experience to read that there were many positive aspects during your stay, including comfortable beds, renovated rooms and the fantastic pool.We are delighted that you enjoyed the entertainment programme organised by our team of professionals, as well as their friendliness and enthusiasm. Our team encourages all guests to join the daily activities so that they can have memorable moments with us. We will certainly share your congratulations with the whole team.We thank you once again for this great opinion. It has been a true pleasure for us to read it and we hope to be able to serve you again soon.
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My best friend and I travelled to Blau as our first ever trip to Cuba. We booked separate rooms with an ocean view but with a request to put the rooms closer together. We arrived at the hotel and we were two doors down from each other in our ocean view rooms on the 5th floor. I think the ocean view would have been better if you were higher up, if that's extremely important to you.
The rooms were clean and the air conditioners worked, mattresses and bedding were comfortable. My fridge was always stocked with water, beer and cola. Staff is amazing! Everyone was so friendly and they took the time to remember your favourite drink was and where you like to sit in the dining areas. Food was fine, there was more than enough variety to keep you full. Yes, there's quite a bit of repetition with some of the foods but I find that pretty typical of resorts. We tried out both the italian and international a la carte restaurants. The italian was probably our favourite. Swimming was amazing! We didn't set foot in the pool although it looked nice when we walked by it each day on the way to the ocean. The beach was clean, sand was white and soft. I am not a strong swimmer, but even on the windy days swimming in the ocean was safe during our visit. The water was stunning and luckily for us short girls, it was pretty shallow for quite a ways out.
There were plenty of chairs on the beach but we liked a particular area down at the end of the beach so one of us would secure a couple of chairs early in the am while we were sipping coffee on the beach. One morning i was happy to sit on my sarong in the sand when one of the staff who was cleaning the chairs, insisted I sit in a chair instead of on the ground in the sand.
There was always a show or some sort of entertainment going on at night in the resort. If you hit the sheets early you may want to ask for a room higher up. On the 5th floor we could easily hear the music until it was turned off at 11:00 pm.
We converted our money as we needed it and it was easy to do this at the front desk. We just forgot to convert it back before we checked in at the airport. Oops. Luckily we didn't have too many CUC's left.
We really enjoyed our experience and would come back again.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Â Higher up rooms may have a better ocean view and are away from the noise on the main floor
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Mar 10, 2020
Firstly, we would like to thank you for the positive comments that you have shared regarding your recent visit to our Blau Varadero hotel. We are delighted to know that we were able to fulfil your expectations during your stay in Cuba.We are very pleased to know that your stay was very pleasant, and that you enjoyed every detail of our experience, particularly the service provided by our team. It is always a pleasure to offer unforgettable holiday memories with our special unlimited luxury experiences.Once again we thank you for this great opinion, it has been a pleasure for us to read it and it will be a pleasure to welcome you again.
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Overall our stat at the Blau was good; though, we may try another resort next time.
This was our first stay in Cuba and we knew to manage expectations
We are a couple in our mid 30's
The facilities and beach are nice and layed out well. We had a Bay view room and it was fine. We liked being only a floor away from the wifi as sometimes we could use it from our room. Our view was nice, we could see the pool and a bit of the sea as well.
Our room was fine. It s quite a humid country so I agree with some of the previous remarks about mustiness and the bathrooms showing some wear. We talked to guests of other resorts and this was similar issue.
Food was as expected. I was always able to fill my plate with salads, rice, cheeses, fresh bread, fresh fruit, but my bf had some issues with the meats and seafood, while I would give the food 3.5/5 he would give it a 2. I dont think it's the Blau, I think it's just a general thing to be expected from Cuban cuisine and availability. But do try the guava ice cream!
I can't say enough about the beaches in varadero, simply the best I've ever been to. Large, and perfect. The walkway and beach bar are nice too
The DJ at the beach bar was really talented, one night some of his colleagues were dancing, they really got everyone into the dancing spirit.
Overall entertainment at the resort was our biggest disappointment. While we enjoyed the salsa lessons on the beach, the pool was dead. It seems this resort is trying to cater to a more senior much older demographic. We could have used a few more games and engaging activities around the pool. It's fun to have interactions with other guests. Not all the guests want to sleep all day or read a book. Even an hour or two of fun games would have been great.
The staff work hard and are great. It surprised us how many guests dont give gratuities. These people work hard for so many guests while you dont lift a finger on your vacation. If you show some appreciation to the staff it goes a long way.
We would try another place next time, only because we are looking for somewhere a bit more lively. We are not crazy partiers,but we did feel this resort is aiming to please much older patrons.
Thank you for an overall nice vacation.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 20, 2020
It is a very rewarding experience to read that there were many positive aspects during your stay, including the staff, the beach and the view of your room.We are sincerely sorry to read about your disappointment with our entertainment programme, above all because our team strives to offer our guests a varied range of activities through the day-time shows and live at night. However, we will make sure to discuss your observations with the entertainment manager.Once again we thank you for your kind opinion of our hotel and hope to be able to share another visit with you.
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We spent New Year’s at Blau Varadero and were very touched by the staff’s hospitality, friendliness, and helpfulness. They were all very happy and giving and in high spirits. We were impressed that the hotel had activities and entertainment all day every day. The staff’s willingness to entertain us was fantastic.
The hotel is a bit outdated. They only have shampoo and no hair conditioner or body cream. Although the stores and bars say they are open until, say, midnight, they close 5-10 min before (so if you need to buy your midnight snack or get your last drink of the day, don’t go a few minutes before you think the bar or store is going to close!).
The beach was nice and clean and not too crowded. There’s a bar on the beach and a place that serves food. Note that you need to pay for and reserve the day beds in advance. There’s an on-site scuba diving shop.
There’s a few bars on the premises including an exclusive one that opens at 7pm. I liked that one.
The food was disappointing, and I think my stomach did not like the eggs that were served at breakfast. The dinner on New Year’s Eve was better.
WiFi is available but not across the entire premises. You can easily buy the WiFi cards at the front desk.
There’s nothing much to do in Varadero other than lay on the beach and, for a beach connoisseur, the beach wasn’t impressive, so I don’t think I’ll visit Varadero again.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 13, 2020
We greatly appreciate the time dedicated to sharing your opinion on your recent stay at our hotel in Varadero. At Blau Varadero we always strive to exceed the expectations of our guests. Your comment will help our team to achieve this objective.We do everything possible to ensure that our guests can enjoy an enriching gastronomic experience in an unparalleled environment and with an excellent service. Our restaurant team will continue to work to amaze guests with delicious local and international dishes on their next visit.We would like to apologise again for the points mentioned. They will be communicated to our teams to see where we can improve.It will be a pleasure to welcome you again!
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For clarification, this is a North American 2.5 star, but my rating is based on Cuban properties so you can compare. Stayed on the 7th floor in the west wing off the main atrium in a Select Oceanview Room that has been upgraded to the newer (purple) finishes. The room was clean and comfortable,with the exception of a missing bed leg, and hit or miss hot water in the shower. (Bed was propped up with a woven grass mat!) The air conditioning worked well. The staff were all kind; a few quite outstanding, and they were rewarded with tips for consistent good service at the end of our stay. The food was better than average for Cuba. The two a la carte restaurants were both tasty. The musical entertainment during meals at all venues was very good. Shoutout to the waiter we called "1:30" who sang a tune at lunch everyday at 1:30 pm - what a voice! In order of potency, flavour and presentation, the best beverages are at the Chill Out bar, which very few people attended, followed by the Piano Bar, then Beach Bar, then Orchidea Lobby Bar with the pool bar falling into last place. On windy days, mosquitoes are a non-issue, but check your rooms at night before you sleep as the doors are opened by cleaning staff. Good to have DEET for calm nights outdoors, including Italian Restaurant for dinner, and even the lobby bars as the Atrium is open air. Due to the open nature, the birds congregate in the lobby vines at night. It is pretty to hear all of them chirping at dusk, not so much at 6 am, but you get used to it. The beach is long, wide and sandy, with plenty of chairs and umbrellas, and life guards. The ocean is clear and shallow and a million shades of blue. You need only walk east past the Royalton to the Paradisus resort's rocky beach to appreciate the prime strand Blau has. To the west you can walk on sand all the way to Labranda Resort. The pool is large and cool in temperature. With the exception of the Circus show which was very popular, other late evening shows are mediocre. My serious concern, one that I reported to customer service while there, is that housekeeping washes marble floor stairways without putting up wet floor warning signs. The resort is adult only and tends to cater to the 50+ crowd...just the clientele you want falling. It's not right to come home more bruised than tanned!
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Date of stay: January 2020
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:Â Rooms at end of wings have less atrium/late night noise. WATCH OUT FOR WET FLOORS!
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 29, 2020
It is a very rewarding experience to read that there were many positive aspects during your stay, including clean rooms, friendly staff and good food. We will consider your concern and review with the cleaning service the correct use of the warning signs, as your safety is our priority.Once again we thank you for your kind opinion of our hotel and hope to be able to share another visit with you.
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Decided on a quick vaca to Cuba to cut the winter off. The Blau seemed intriguing and it was. The whole environment was very nice, the rooms were spacious and comfortable, the staff was extremely polite and caring specially the wait staff in the various dining facilities.The beach, well, it was the Varadero, Cuba beach. Unsurpassable: Wonderful, beautiful, long, fine sand , lots of room, etc., etc., etc. So what was wrong. A few things: The room staff did not do a very good job in cleaning the rooms, specially the bathroom and did not replace soap or facecloths or shampoo without having to nearly beg the front office stasff or catch the maintenance people on the floor you stayed in. Proves to be a pain. Hotels in Cuba should make it a point to teach the staff how to clean rooms. It is more important to sweep the floor than to do pretty designs with the blankets on the bed. This is not rocket science and clients pay good money to return to cklean rooms that have replenished amenities. Other than that, the Blau is a very good hotel, good evening shows, relatively good drinks but wonderful people such as Yani in the restaurants
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Mar 10, 2020
It is a very rewarding experience to read that there were many positive aspects during your stay, including the pleasant atmosphere, the spacious rooms and the polite and attentive staff.We regret to read about your dissatisfaction with the cleanliness of your room. At Blau we strive to provide maximum efficiency in this area. We are fully aware that hygiene and cleanliness are aspects of great importance so that our guests feel 100% comfortable. Thank you very much for your observation, the team will act quickly to correct any situation that does not meet our standards.It will be a pleasure to welcome you again.
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We stayed at the Blau Varadero from 21st to 29th Dec and I would not hesitate to recommend this hotel to anyone. The hotel, grounds and beach are beautiful and kept extremely clean. The food is great, the service excellent and the staff are happy in their work and happy to chat with the guests. Even though this is a large hotel all staff will always recognise and greet you, the waiters, the staff working on the bars and the animación team. Even though the weather was poor during the first part of our stay, there was always plenty to do and the animacion team work hard. There were Cuban bands playing at lunch and dinner and various musical entertainment in the evenings. The Christmas Eve Gala Dinner was amazing and the atmosphere wonderful. The hotel was set up beautifully with a champagne reception, the buffet dinner had amazing food sculptures and there was lots of dancing afterwards. We stayed in a superior sea view double room which was very spacious, bright and clean, with a powerful shower and lovely pool and ocean views. Varadero town is a taxi ride away but there isn't really anything there that you cannot find at the hotel. All inclusive at the hotel can be found 24 hours. I would not fault this hotel. I had a lovely holiday and I would love to return there again one day.
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Date of stay: December 2019
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Â Pool & sea view was lovely I wouldn't be happy with the view from the rooms at the front...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 4, 2020
Firstly, we would like to thank you for choosing our Blau Varadero hotel for your visit to Cuba and for recommending us to the Tripadvisor travel community. This is certainly the greatest reward for all of us.We are also grateful that you have indicated the effort of our assistants in keeping our installations and accommodation impeccable at all times. This guarantees the fulfilment of our highest standards related with hygiene and cleaning, which are very important aspects for Blau.We are delighted that you have enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for choosing us on your trip to Cuba. We hope to welcome you again very soon.
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Great hotel, great people and very good attention. Quite place, good entertainment, great beach nice pool, what can I said I will go back for sure. We had a vacation after 2 years of work that clear out all our work dust. The Hotel was very nice and refresh environment, they get you there and before you get ready to check in you have a glass of champan in your hands, so scary to action. We spend 4 days in a very beautiful room in the floor 14 room 1426, what a view of the caribbean sea!!!! we love to go to bed and leave our balcony doors open so we can hear the ocean ruff at night and weak up with the smell of fresh clean air. Buffet love it all you need to eat was there and the attention of the waitress was great very kind people and attention was fast. The other restaurants we did not went as we liked to go at night to the town to enjoy the cuban people and friends. Safe place to visit, with great citizens and lovely life. So it was really a perfect combination Hotel city that we would love to try again.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Â Rom with view to the Caribbean sea
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 13, 2020
Firstly, we would like to thank you for your positive comment on our recent visit to our Blau Varadero hotel and are delighted to know that we were able to fulfil your expectations."We are flattered to learn the excellent impressions you have taken with you. Knowing that our installations, from the beautiful beach to the culinary options you experienced, were to your liking is our greatest merit and achievement.""Once again we thank you for this great opinion, it has been a pleasure for us to read it and it will be a pleasure to welcome you again! Sincerely,"
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Please do not think I am one of these people that complain for no reason, I am not. I am used to high end as well as budget holidays. The price we paid for this hotel did not reflect the quality and I am both surprised and appalled at Virgin for recommending it. The cleanliness in the rooms was appalling. The bedding was stained and the coffee cups still bore the lipstick of the previous occupant. The superior garden view we were signed up For was a view overlooking the motorway. The food was always cold, and flies crawled over the salad stuff which was left uncovered. Breakfast was the only hot food we had as we had freshly prepared omelette which were a Saviour. The fruit juices tasted like watered down squash and the coffee like mud. The local drinks were also Disappointing. The wine was not palatable tasting like vinegar. Cocktails tasted like they contained no alcohol at all. Is this why our drinks were bought to the table so We could not see how little if any alcohol was used? Reception staff were rude with lots of eye rolling. We were very polite so did not deserve that response. Cuba is a lovely place but this experience has marred my impression . Most of all I am disgusted at Virgin for selling this as a five star accommodation and recommending it and charging five star prices. I could go on but I will leave it there. Sadly I would not recommend this hotel if you want a cleanliness, palatable food and a decent drink.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Feb 26, 2020
Dear Client: First of all, thank you very much for your comments on your recent stay at our Hotel. We regret that there was no possibility of offering you a higher floor as compensation for the inconvenience, but due to the high occupancy of our hotel, in some periods of the season this it is not possible.Thanks again for your review, your comments help our team to act in the areas of improvement.
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We stayed for 2 weeks including Christmas 2019 and New Year. The Hotel put on superb food and top class entertainment for both these special dates. New Year's eve entertainment, dinner and party by the pool was the best New Year we have ever spent! The staff are amazing, cheerful, hard working and have the sole aim of making you feel welcome. Our room was comfortable and clean with a great view but the bathroom is showing its age. This and the great excess of salt used in much of the food prevents a 5 star rating from us. There is huge choice of food so you can avoid the over salted items or ask the chef at the grill not to add salt if you are having a fresh grilled item. Otherwise the chef will throw a huge amount of salt on everything. Presentation is always good with a great desert counter, but some of the buffet items cool quickly (same in most hotels, not unique to Blau) I can't emphasize enough how hard the staff work and how good the entertainment is. You really don't need to go anywhere else except the beautiful beach and perhaps a day trip to Havana Would recommend to others especially Christmas/New Year.
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Date of stay: December 2019
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Â Upper floors have best views. Music noise can be an issue till 1.00am but goes if you close the...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Companion11520799518, Asistente de Ventas at Blau Varadero
Responded Jan 6, 2020
We thank you for choosing our Blau Varadero hotel for this occasion, as well as your kind recommendation to the Tripadvisor travel community. Such positive opinions are a motivation to continuously improve the quality of the services that we offer. We are also very grateful that you indicated the quality of the entertainment programme during your stay and mentioned the friendliness of our team. We await your return! Thank you again for this rewarding review of your stay with us, we await your next visit.
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There are more places to choose from in the Varadero area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
blau hotel varadero, blau varadero cuba, blau varadero hotel cuba
LOCATION
CaribbeanCubaMatanzas ProvinceVaradero
NUMBER OF ROOMS
395
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