Hotel Nacional in a 50s promotional postcard |
Winston Churchill and wife having a well earned rest at
the Hotel Nacional shortly after winning WWII |
The big swimming pool today |
Hotel, Malecon and Parque Maine |
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In the warm Cuban twilight, the silhouette
of a man can be seen wading in the pool of the Hotel Nacional
and smoking a long, pungent cigar. Forty years ago, it could have
been Winston Churchill, who had an affinity for this grand hotel
in Havana, but today it is simply another tourist enjoying the
facilities at the city's finest hotel.
The Hotel Nacional showcases old Cuban traditions
for luxury and service and suggests that they have not been completely
forgotten in the wake of the 1959 Revolution. A face-lift costing
$64 million has brought the hotel back to its former glory. Everything-the
simple yet tasteful rooms and apartments, elegant dining areas
and vibrant swimming pools-has been restored.
Located on a small knoll overlooking the entrance
to Havana Bay, this stylish Havana accommodation was originally
built in 1929-30 through a joint agreement with the Cuban government
and U.S.-based banks. American companies designed and built the
Nacional, and as soon as it was completed, tourists from America
flooded the hotel's spacious reception areas, dining rooms and
gardens. It was "the" place to be in Havana. This hotel was frequented
by film legends like Frank Sinatra, Errol Flynn, Clark Gable,
and Ava Gardner - their pictures decorate the walls of the hotel's
café bar.
Hotel Nacional is inextricably linked to the
mobster years. In 1946 Lucky Luciano called a summit at the Nacional
at which the carving up of Havana was on the agenda. In 1955 the
Nacional's casino and nightclub were opened and managed by Meyer
Lansky.
In 1990 the government decided to renovate the
hotel and bring it back to its showpiece status. In May 1992,
the 483-room hotel reopened, catering primarily to businessmen
and high-class tourists. Unlike most other hotels in Cuba, the
Nacional does not focus on the package tour business, giving it
an altogether more professional and luxurious ambiance.
The Nacional is now a major business centre
in Havana. Businessmen are in abundance, speaking English and
Spanish and making deals. The Hotel Havana Libre used to be where
the deals were made, but the power centre is quickly moving to
the Nacional. There's even an executive floor in the hotel with
concierge service, meeting rooms, faxes and computers. All the
guest rooms have air conditioning and are well-equipped with minibars,
direct line telephones and cable television.
However, this doesn't mean that you can't come
to the Nacional just to relax and enjoy the Cuban weather and
culture. The main swimming pool is large and extremely welcoming
after a hot day spent on the Havana streets or visiting cigar
factories. There are few things better in Havana than taking a
quick dip in the pool and then sipping an ice cold Cuban beer
while overlooking the cityscape or the bright blue Caribbean.
A three-minute walk from the hotel and you are on famous Malecon
Boulevard, which runs along the rocky coast of Havana. In addition,
the hotel has a good gym, tennis courts and plenty of gardens
to stroll through.
Finishing the day in such a glorious way, it's
easy to see what Churchill liked about the Nacional - or whoever
it was in the swimming pool that evening.
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