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Internacional de Varadero

Varadero, Cuba

4.7(13,198 reviews)

FamilyGran Caribe

Internacional de Varadero is the hotel that was Meliá Internacional Varadero until July 24, 2026. When Meliá dropped fifteen Cuban hotels in June it kept this one, and for seven weeks it was one of the last chain-run resorts on the island; then Meliá ended every contract it had in Cuba and the hotel passed to the state operator Gran Caribe, which sells it under the shorter name. It is a 946-room high-rise at the Varadero-town end of the peninsula, the largest hotel on the strip, and its reputation, top three in Varadero for years, was built under Meliá. The building, the beach, the Level floors with their 11th-floor infinity pool and the Yhi spa did not leave with the brand. The management and the supply chain did.

Things to Know

Formerly Melia Internacional Varadero - now under Cuban state management

Before you book in Cuba

73% of Cuba's hotels are closed, every international chain but one has pulled out, and no card from any country has worked there since June 2026.Read what actually changed →

Traveler Insights

Pros

+Right at the start of the Varadero peninsula, so Varadero town, its shops and its paladares are a walk away rather than a taxi ride, which almost no other resort on the strip can say
+The Level floors, including an adults-only one, carried over the handover: private check-in, their own pool and restaurant, and the infinity pool on the 11th floor with a view down the whole peninsula
+Guest reports from September 2026, after the handover, describe a clean hotel, an excellent buffet with plenty of choice and staff who went out of their way, which is more than most Cuban resorts could claim this year
+Sold with live rates by the Cuban-channel resellers through the whole 2026 crisis, which puts it in the minority of Varadero hotels that never stopped trading
+A 946-room high-rise, the largest hotel in Varadero, which in a year of half-empty resorts means the restaurants, pools and evening programme have stayed open rather than consolidated
+Varadero's beach, with no sargassum, is the reason to come, and the hotel's stretch of it drew the word 'divine' from a September 2026 guest

Cons

−Meliá ran this hotel until July 24, 2026, when it ended every contract it had in Cuba; the state chain Gran Caribe runs it now, and the reputation the hotel carries, top three in Varadero for years, was earned under Meliá's supply chain and standards
−Cash only: no Visa or Mastercard issued anywhere has worked in Cuba since June 6, 2026, so you carry enough for the whole stay, tips included
−Cuba's power grid collapsed nationwide eight times in 2026, most recently on September 18 for about 32 hours; a July 2026 guest here reported rooms without electricity or water, and the hotel answered that it was beyond its control
−No Canadian airline flies to Cuba until further notice, which removes the packages and the market this hotel was built around; getting here now means Europe, Mexico or Panama
−The a la carte restaurants closed around 9 pm and there was no late-night food even under Meliá, and nothing in the 2026 reports suggests that changed
−The drinks selection was a step below a comparable Mexican resort even with Meliá's purchasing behind it, and the island-wide shortages hit spirits and juice first
−Priced as one of Varadero's premium hotels, which is money that buys a noticeably better-run resort in Mexico or the Dominican Republic

The practical picture since the handover is better than you might expect. Guests writing in September 2026 called the hotel spectacular and extremely clean, praised an excellent buffet with plenty of choice and staff who were kind and attentive, and described a beach with no seaweed on it. Read those against the island: Cuba's grid collapsed nationwide eight times in 2026, no card from any country has worked since June, and a guest here in July, the month of the handover, reported rooms with no electricity or water. The a la carte restaurants closed early and the drinks list trailed Mexico even under Meliá, and nothing suggests the new operator improved either. The Level is still the way to do this hotel: its own pool, restaurant and check-in, and an adults-only floor.

This is a resort for travelers who want Cuba specifically and can get there, which in late 2026 means through Europe, Mexico or Panama, since every Canadian airline has suspended Cuba until further notice. For them it remains one of the two or three most sensible beds in Varadero: it never stopped trading, it is walkable to the only real town on the strip, and the post-handover reports are the most positive we have read for any Cuban resort this year. It costs like a premium Cuban hotel, and that money buys a better-run resort in Mexico or the Dominican Republic, but nothing there puts you a ten-minute walk from Varadero town on this beach.

Common Questions

Is Internacional de Varadero still a Meliá hotel?

No. Meliá ran it as Meliá Internacional Varadero until July 24, 2026, when it ended all of its management contracts in Cuba. The state chain Gran Caribe runs it now and resellers list it as Internacional de Varadero, often with 'formerly Meliá Internacional' beside the name. The building, rooms, Level floors and spa are the same; the management, purchasing and standards are Cuban state ones now.

Is The Level still worth paying for?

The Level floors are still sold, including the adults-only one, with private check-in, their own pool and restaurant and the 11th-floor infinity pool. In a Cuban hotel the upgrade has always been about access to the better food and the quieter spaces more than the room itself, and that logic holds under the new operator. Treat the extra as the price of a predictable stay rather than a luxury.

What have guests said since the handover?

Reports from September 2026 are strongly positive: an excellent buffet with real variety, very clean rooms and public areas, kind staff and a seaweed-free beach. The one bad report we found is from July, the handover month, and describes rooms without electricity or water during a blackout. Cuba's grid collapsed nationwide eight times in 2026, so plan on at least one outage during a week's stay anywhere on the island.

Can you walk to Varadero town from the hotel?

Yes. The hotel sits at the town end of the peninsula, and the shops, bars and private restaurants along Avenida Primera are a short walk. It is the main thing that separates this resort from the ones further out along the strip, where leaving the property means a taxi.

How do I pay, and how do I get there?

Bring cash for everything. No Visa or Mastercard from any country has worked in Cuba since June 6, 2026, so budget for the whole trip, tips included, before you leave. Every Canadian airline has suspended flights to Cuba until further notice, so the usual packages do not exist; travelers are arriving through Madrid, Mexico City, Cancún or Panama and booking the hotel through Cuban-channel resellers, which quote nightly all-inclusive rates in dollars.

How does it compare to Royal Hicacos and Hotel Varadero?

All three were chain-run until 2026 and all three are state-run now, so the old chain-versus-chain comparison no longer applies. Royal Hicacos is adults-only with swim-out rooms and the most consistent post-handover reports; Hotel Varadero, the former Iberostar, has the water park and the family pitch. Internacional has the Level floors, the high-rise views and the only walkable location of the three, and it never closed during the crisis.

What's nearby

Varadero Beach
7 min drive · 3.7 mi
Matanzas
45 min drive · 26 mi
Cárdenas
25 min drive · 13 mi
Mansión Xanadú
5 min drive · 2.3 mi
Cueva de Ambrosio
12 min drive · 7.0 mi
Cueva de Saturno
25 min drive · 16 mi

More things to do (23)

Catamaran trip to Cayo Blanco · excursion9 min drive · 4.8 mi
Museo de Varadero · museum3 min drive · 1.0 mi
Parque Josone · nature4 min drive · 1.3 mi
Marina Chapelín · marina9 min drive · 4.8 mi
Marina Dársena de Varadero · marina9 min drive · 4.5 mi
Varadero Golf Club · golf10 min drive · 2.7 mi
Varahicacos Ecological Reserve · nature11 min drive · 6.4 mi
Varadero Skydiving Centre · adventure park11 min drive · 5.1 mi
Varadero West Beach · beach13 min drive · 5.8 mi
Marina Gaviota Varadero · marina15 min drive · 8.6 mi
Museo Oscar María de Rojas, Cárdenas · museum25 min drive · 13 mi
Museo Batalla de Ideas, Cárdenas · museum25 min drive · 13 mi
Playa Coral · beach30 min drive · 15 mi
Museo Central Azucarero José Smith Comas · museum35 min drive · 20 mi
Museo Memorial El Morrillo · historic site35 min drive · 21 mi
Teatro Sauto · historic site45 min drive · 26 mi
Museo Farmacéutico, Matanzas · museum45 min drive · 26 mi
Cuevas de Bellamar · nature45 min drive · 24 mi
Ermita de Monserrate · viewpoint50 min drive · 27 mi
Yumurí Valley viewpoint · viewpoint50 min drive · 27 mi
Castillo de San Severino (Slave Route Museum) · historic site50 min drive · 28 mi
Yumurí Valley viewpoint · viewpoint55 min drive · 30 mi
Bacunayagua Bridge viewpoint · viewpoint60 min drive · 38 mi

Amenities

Babysitting

Tennis

Kids Club

Swim-Up Bar

Snorkeling

Nightly Entertainment

Buffet Dining

Spa

Show 2 more amenities

Gym

Beach

Style & Rooms

Atmosphere

TrendyModern

Room upgrades

Adults-Only Rooms

Seaweed & sargassum

Varadero gets sargassum, typically worst May through August, in heavy bloom years.See the month-by-month guide →

Every all-inclusive in Varadero →

Google Reviews★ 4.7 · 13,198 reviews

Derek B.

a week ago

“Starting from the moment we arrived at the resort to the moment we left, everything was incredible! My wife and I booked the adults only section for our honeymoon, so once we arrived we were immediately redirected to a shuttle that took us to the adu...”

Sebastian S.

2 weeks ago

“Best resort in varadero, and perhaps in all of Cuba! Facility is new and staff are very on top of making sure everything is clean. The staff are definitely the highlight, they are all super sweet and will always greet you with a warm smile. The hospi...”

Anna

a month ago

“My honest review, I wasn’t asked to write this. I loooooved our stay at this hotel!! The beach is right there, clean, beautiful water. The staff super attentive and kind. Food is okay, definitely not true that there’s nothing to eat. We stayed at adu...”