splurging in Havana?

Damn, cyrrus, I don't think you could intelligently or physically spend that much money in Havana in three nights with a cialis IV drip and the constant attention of an host of jiniteros/as.

If that were my fantasy and my budget, I would create a , cena, a fiesta that fed dozens of hungry mouths and put food on their tables for days to come. No clubs for me and no nightlife. A quiet dip in the ocean with my love, letting the rhythms of the sea empower us both.

You will not spend anything like 650 Cdn $$, but I just spent 3 days at the Sevilla Hotel and I liked it. Nice pool, nice location. Pleasant room. There are definitely nicer and more expensive hotels around (the Telegrapho and the Saratoga, for example) but the Sevilla is nice and a really good value. Check the prices at www.vacacionartravel.com, they seemed to be the best rates I found.

A few suggestions - last time i looked Melia Cohiba had rates between around $140- $190 depending on time of year for room/suite
Nacional - $90 - $1090 for room up to suite up to Presidental Suite.
Park Central $100 or so up to $380.
So yes Pelo it is possible.

High Five, CT

lol, #6!

Anyhow, people have been known to spend money on the following: swimming with dolphins in Varadero (from Havana the excursion will cost you a good 110CUC per pax approximately), spending a night at the Tropicana (calculate around 100CUC), getting a ride with one of those old cars around the city for an hour and dining at the Guarida (80CUC altogether for two people incling transfer to/from your hotel), buying some black coral jewelery, spending a day at the Club Havana, going to the see the national ballet and then dining at one of the fancy hotels around the Gran Teatro (again, about 80CUC for two persons) etc.

What I am trying to say is that you can spend money on splurge, but without spending it on the rooms, which I find a waste of money. You might as well stay at Hotel Presidente, which has a lot of charm and not as pretentious as hotels like El Saratoga. Or, you could stay in one of the casa particulares with the sauna or if you are up to it, try one of the luxurious villas in Miramar and Siboney (I believe there is a post about that somewhere, make a keyword search, it actually works fine nowadays)

In any case, the very best things in Havana are very cheap. There is almost no cost for going to the cinema (or if you speak Spanish, the theatre), dancing at a low-end club, having some good street pizzas with friends, grabbing an ice-cream, getting the bus to the beach, strolling on the Malecon and having some wine or rum while looking at passerbys or end your night at one of the stand-up comedy shows I so much like.

The Saratoga, Melia Cohiba and Telegrapho would be my choices in that order. The first two also have fine restaurants - don't know that much about the Telegrapho as I have only been in the lobby and bar areas. All three are located in a different part of town, so you might want to take that into consideration - location wise.

The Telegrapho is almost opposite the Saratoga, not really in a different part of the town. In my opinion, the Cohiba is better than the Saratoga in terms of rooms, service, space, entertainment and style. I have never eaten in the Saratoga to have an opinion on that, but I have heard excellent views on its food. Saratoga and Telegrapho are better located,but you would need to be a little careful around Parque Central at night. The Cohiba offers a free shuttle to the Old Town and there are lots of things to do around it at night, for many, the very fact that it is on the Malecon is a reason to stay there. All rooms have ocean views.

(Yorgos: I've just noticed your signature and almost fell off my chair lol! Sorry folks, nothing to do with the thread but just couldn't help it...)

It's been there for years, Caney...
Ha estado...ahi nama por mucho tiempo.