![]() Hotel Presidente from the Avenida de los Presidentes
|
![]() Hotel Presidente | ![]() Swimming Pool | ![]() Twin Room |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The Hotel Presidente towers over the Avenida de los Presidentes in a slightly forbidding fashion, but don’t let that put you off. It is a delightful oasis whose proximity to the Malecon is another big plus, if you enjoy blowy blue afternoons sitting on the sun-warmed wall, gazing out over the waves with a cold beer in one hand and a warm friend in the other.
It is also close to another of our favourite Havana eccentricities – ‘the monument to the shoes’. This consists of a massive classical plinth upon which reclines a well-endowed lady in robes – and on top of the plinth there’s nothing but a diminutive pair of bronze shoes. These belonged to the first president of the Republic of Cuba, Tomas Estrada Palma, whose keenness for Cuba to be annexed by the United States resulted in his being unceremoniously removed, leaving only his footwear behind. A monument to shoes could not be more appropriate in Havana, a city where just about everybody has an extraordinary passion for purchasing footwear and there are more shoe shops per square kilometer than anywhere else we know. But we digress. Inside, the Hotel Presidente is impressive, with a large, marble-panelled lobby full of antiques and madly grand chandeliers. It’s usually thronged with people, coming and going, drinking coffee or cocktails and meeting or working at little tables. There’s a baby grand piano, Louis XV style furniture, elaborately draped curtains and a beautiful pair of nineteenth century Japanese vases over a metre high standing on carved pedestals inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Parents be warned: this is not an environment for small children. We shudder to think of the expensive havoc that might be wrought in the lobby by over-excited under-fives. Further sophisticated attractions at the Presidente include a smart restaurant with a promising menu, another large, light buffet restaurant and an elegant swimming pool which looks particularly pretty when floodlit at night. The tenth floor of the hotel is reserved for privileged clients – if you need peace, quiet and kid-glove treatment, request a room or book into one of the wonderful suites on that level. At the time of writing hurricanes and salt-water floods have played havoc with the trees, shrubs and lawns in the area of the Presidente and everything is looking less than lush, but a good hot, humid Cuban summer ought to put matters to rights. © 2013 Nigel Hunt
|
![]() 24 hour reception
![]() Air conditioning
![]() Cafe / snack bar
![]() Disabled facilities
![]() Elevators / lifts
![]() Evening entertainment - cabarets
![]() Gallery
![]() International cuisine
![]() Internet on hotel's PCs
![]() Laundry & Ironing Service
![]() Lobby bar
![]() Malecon max 5min walk
![]() Massage
![]() Mastercard & Visa (not USA bank issued) accepted
![]() Medical services
![]() Minibar / Fridge (un-stocked)
![]() Money exchange
![]() Nightclub nearby
![]() Nightclub, disco or dance hall
![]() Old building restored
![]() Parking
![]() Poolside snack bar
![]() Reception staff speak Spanish, English, French, German, Italian
![]() Restaurant
![]() Safety - uniformed security personnel 24hrs
![]() Shop(s) with basic supplies, souvenirs & gifts
![]() Shops max 2min walk
![]() Swimming pool
![]() Telephone - national & international calls
![]() TV room/bar (international channels & videos)
![]() Voltage 220/240
|
Even before you get to your room at the Presidente you may notice that this hotel rejoices in something that few other Havana hotels have: deliciously scented, carpeted corridors. Carpets in Cuba’s high humidity are often a recipe for dismally smelly interiors, but not here. It’s a positive pleasure to step out of the lift.
These promising standards are more than kept up in the President © 2013 Nigel Hunt
|
![]() 220 voltna vtičnica
![]() Badezimmer
![]() DoppelcBetten
![]() Heißes U. Kaltes Wasser
![]() Invalidom prijazno
![]() King Size Postelja
![]() Klimaanlage
![]() Minibar
![]() Otroška posteljica (na zahtevo)
![]() Postrežba
![]() Satelitska TV
![]() Sef
![]() Sušilec za lase
![]() Telefonska
![]() Zakonska Postelja
|
The tenth floor of the Presidente is reserved for privileged clients but all you have to do to gain the entrée is book one of the two suites. We wholeheartedly and unreservedly recommend these wonderful rooms. With their stunning views of the sea and the city, their generous interior spaces and their own private roof terraces, they are cool eyries of luxury high above Havana’s noise and heat.
© 2013 Nigel Hunt
|
![]() 220 voltna vtičnica
![]() Badezimmer
![]() DoppelcBetten
![]() Heißes U. Kaltes Wasser
![]() Invalidom prijazno
![]() King Size Postelja
![]() Klimaanlage
![]() Minibar
![]() Otroška posteljica (na zahtevo)
![]() Postrežba
![]() Satelitska TV
![]() Sef
![]() Sušilec za lase
![]() Telefonska
|
|
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
(manj kot 10 dni)
|