Alex,

Although Varadero does have a 'down town' area, it's not as you imagine. The down town area has a few markets, shops, cafe/bars, park etc. There isn't much there really but then that's part of the charm of Cuba. The main shopping centre complex is where most of the shopping is located. Varadero is a purpose built holiday resort set on a peninsula so it's mainly just 20km of hotels, most of which are AI so there isn't much need for much outside of the holtels as most people stay within the complex. There's a bus you can jump on and off with a day pass that'll take you around the whole resort. It was 5 convertable pesos when I was there, it's probably a bit more now. This'll take you around the whole resort to places like the markets, shopping centre, Al Capone's house ( ) etc.

Darren

I'm afraid that you've hit what is a common problem in Cuba - virtually all the AI tourist hotels have been built on the coast at locations determined by where there is a nice beach rather than were the existing infrastructure is. Varadero is probably one of the more extreme examples of this - hardly anybody lived there there before the tourist development started. Indeed Varadero was probably chosen as the site for one of the earliest tourist developments precisely because it is so isolated. - its penisinula setting meant that access to the hotel strip could be easily controlled and at one point it was almost a secure 'gated' area to keep locals other than those employed in the hotels away from the tourists. Attitudes did change as the Government realised that there was more to be gained than lost by allowing for interaction between visitors and locals. So, for example, at least there is a town of Holguin and Guardalevaca was built around what had been a small fishing village. However, the most extreme examples of the original thinking are probably some of the Cayos which pre-tourist development were just little more than sandbanks off the coast. And for those tourists who simply want a beach/pool based holiday and aren't particualry concerned where the sunbed happens to be situated because they are unlikely to leave the resort environment then they are ideal.

But looking on the bright side, Varadero is just a short hop from Havana and if you can afford it I would suggest that a few days there is not to be missed. This will give you an insight into what Cuba is like away from the tourist resorts and provide you with pelnty of opportunity to visit local bars etc. If you have the choice I would suggest that you try and stay in a hotel in Havana Vieja, the old town, rather than out in Miramar, a seaside suburb of Havana, because you will end up spending a fair bit on taxis getting to and from the centre otherwise.

SM