HAVANA, Cuba. – Cuba is an island with 1,553 miles of coastline and numerous and excellent beaches which are the main tourist attraction in the country. In that context, Varadero is the destination per excellence of international tourism. However, the majority of Cubans who visit that tourism pole do so in order to eat better, not to enjoy the beach, the sun or the ocean.
Recently, a friend of mine and her boyfriend –a Mexican national who resides in Switzerland- made a reservation from abroad for a four-day stay at the Meliá Península Varadero Hotel, a five-star hotel facility that once belonged to the Spanish Tryp hotel chain.
Contrary to their expectations, their stay in Varadero was far from pleasant; first, because the services at the hotel left a lot to be desire, and secondly, because the Mexican gentleman, after seeing how Cuban nationals with reservations conducted themselves, was totally disappointed with the alleged hospitality Cubans were purported to offer.
The first problem was the actual check-in at the hotel’s registration desk. Cuban nationals on the waiting line did not abide by the order of arrival, they would cut into the line or get their friends ahead of everyone else, all in a great racket.
The two were able to reach the counter thanks to a husband-and-wife couple who were engineers they befriended and who let them get in line ahead of them. This means they went through procedures as if they were Cuban nationals, which made it possible to get a good bungalow near the beach.
The second problem my young friends had was in going into the buffet restaurant. There, they had to get on another line –a mob scene- in order to get in. Cuban nationals, screaming and flapping their hands, took all the tickets in order to get the best main course on the menu.
My friends wanted to eat beef or pork, but when it was their turn, there was none left. They had to eat fish.
In the meantime, in the hotel’s bars, one had to go up to the bartender to order a drink. There weren’t enough waiters to take care of clients.
According to my friends, specialty hotels had no waiting lines and there was no racket. They assume it was because they either were very expensive or no Cuban nationals were allowed in them. But the reason is that in those hotel restaurants they did not serve beef or roast pork.
Several of the amenities advertised in the hotel, like the Jacuzzi and the nightclub, were closed for various reasons. Neither were they offered any excursions, which meant tourists had to remain in the hotel or go strolling around the area on their own.
According to my friends, all the difficulties and problems ceased the moment the Cuban nationals left the hotel, upon expiration of their reservations.
It’s worth noting that reservations for Cuban nationals are not inexpensive. They learnt from the Cuban couple –the engineers they befriended- that a two-day stay costs 13,300 Cuban pesos, the average three-month salary of a Cuban worker.
For Cubans who can afford these prices to go to Varadero, what interests them the most is not to rest, or to swim in the crystal-clear waters, or to sun bathe or walk along the shore on the fine Varadero sand, but to eat better than they do at home. Specially to consume beef.
As the old Aragón Orchestra song used to say: “This only happens in Cuba”.
ARTÍCULO DE OPINIÓN
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