Melia Cohiba

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ My stay at Meliá Cohiba was absolutely outstanding. From the moment I arrived, I was impressed by the hotel’s elegance and the warm welcome from the staff. The location in Vedado is perfect — close to the Malecón and just a short ride away from Old Havana, making it easy to explore the city.

  31.08.25 MELIA COHIBA HAVANA (How A Few Bad Apples Can Ruin An Otherwise Great Experience!) For my final week in Cuba I stayed at the Melia, Cohiba, Havana.      Entering The Hotel Security is fantastic, highly professional and very well-trained. I say the above, having tested hotel front entrance security to almost a point of exasperation(!!!) (I might have misread, but it appears the current CEO of MELIA studied at Wharton Business School.) I booked THE LEVEL Executive floor. What I did not do was carefully read there is “the LEVEL” rooms/suites/ without Clubroom access, and “the LEVEL”, with executive clubroom access-located on the 19-21st floors. Because of new US travel restrictions on visiting Cuba, you might not be able to pay online.  I called and emailed just to reassure the Concierge I was on my way and would pay on arrival. They thanked me for confirming and said they were aware of the issues of paying online. First the positive:check-in is on the 20th Floor. Check-in staff, Estella and Alejandro, were fantastic. Thanks to friendliness of Alejandro and Estella, and the wonderful Mango cocktail arrival greeting drink provided by cheerful Julio, I was now very relaxed after having a very stressful morning prior to arrival. The junior suite on the 19th floor was also of a high standard, with a jacuzzi – and superb seaview – overlooking the the Malecon. The Breakfast Buffet on the 1st floor (or in tbe executive Clubroom if you prefer) was equally of a very high quality and near all staff worked vey well as a team.(I’ll return to this later!) All of the above experience was ruined by one team working in the Executive Clubroom who did not like criticism of their unprofessional service and went out of the way to ensure I was aware of being treated differently - because I had complained. My complaint was at their unprofessional behaviour (and laughing (at myself-just within ears reach) when I complained about absence of items in my suite;then about hard bread rolls,absence of flute glasses,mundane Canapés selection. The attitude coming across from one team was“take it or leave it", we don't care(!) I thought it was a language issue but the member I complained about understood English. I mentioned this to management and said that the Executive Clubroom staff did not appreciate tbat they were Melia’s ambassadors for all guests, not just for those they personally “cherry-picked” to be nice and attentive to.  To add insult to injury, they (“tbe bad apples”) greeted each guest at arrival and physically approached guests to assist them with Canapés selection from tbe trays while not doing similar for me – neither on arrival into the Clubroom nor at the canapés counter - just to emphasize the point that I was an “unwanted guest”(for having complained) about the Executive Clubroom at Melia Cohiba. A further example:I came at a time on Sunday evening (yesterday) when the Executive  Clubroom was near empty.  This particular Clubroom team had a lot of time to chat amongst themselves and a visiting colleague but no time for anyone who voiced a complaint about their lack of attention to service. I was one of only 4 clients in the Clubroom so they were by no means overwhelmed.                            When I raised the matter (as an informal complaint) management was very understanding and sympathetic. I emphasized that this was an issue of staff training (or absence of it! ) My experience is that sometimes a team needs to either be re-trained (or, if they do not make the grade, ..........?)  As I said,management was very understanding and that gave me some confidence the matter will be taken forward as a training issue for the future so that Melia can strive to some day be a global competitor with my 2 prime choices wherever in the world available,(for over 30 years + now) Hyatt and Sheraton Hotel Groups. Well, that’s all for now. EPILOG I did not realise it but one bad apple (wrongly) expected trouble at payment time yesterday evening when I ordered a $18 "Hamburger" - filled with more ham and other processed meats than with a quality beefburger - and I had left it half uneaten - that was how disgusting it was, so had called security to the Executive Clubroom - I presume in case I had refused to pay or again complained. (It was an item not included as complimentary with Canapés.) I have never not paid for an item bought - but neither have I shrunk away from complaining if the service or quality was bad anywhere I traveled. As I went to sign the bill for this non-included (priced) item - out my immediate thoughts, I scrawled across that bill: “TERRIBLE FOOD! ” &“TIP NOT EARNED!” I did, of course, say "thank you" after signing the bill, and left the Clubroom with no incident as clearly was anticipated.          

I had a wonderful stay at this hotel. From the moment I arrived, the staff was welcoming, attentive, and always willing to help with a smile. The room was clean, comfortable, and well-maintained, offering everything I needed for a relaxing stay. I especially appreciated the attention to detail, from the neatly arranged amenities to the prompt housekeeping service. The location is also excellent, with easy access to local attractions and dining options. Overall, the hospitality and quality of service exceeded my expectations, and I would gladly stay here again.

We spent a night here after a flight from Havana airport was cancelled. Arriving there around 2:30am, we were warmly welcomed and the beautiful lobby gave us peace of mind knowing that we were staying somewhere that would be comfortable. All the staff were friendly and attentive, nothing was too much trouble. Our room was immaculately clean and beautifully furnished. We had everything in the room we needed and after the stress of having a flight cancelled, the bed was exceptionally comfortable! We were provided with a buffet breakfast and lunch and the food selection was immense and the quality was superb. Clearly there are problems with electricity as it impacted on the air conditioning in the bedroom but this is about Cuba rather than the hotel specifically. Thank you to everyone who made a challenging evening, a little more bearable.

Good hotel good service n food n rooms Had good experience with family n would come back again and recommend to other people 👍👍