Lincoln Hotel, Havana City Cuba. 2 stars.

Budget and bad
Edificado en 1926 y situado justo entre el centro histórico y la zona moderna de la ciudad de La Habana, a escasos pasos del afamado malecón habanero, este hotel se precia de sus años al servicio del visitante y su agradable ambiente de intimidad y calidez. Desde el Hotel se puede acceder al centro histórico de La Habana Vieja, Patrimonio Cultural de la Humanidad. Juan Manuel Fangio, el más grande automovilista de todos los tiempos, se encontraba hospedado en el hotel en el momento de su secuestro ocupando la habitación 810, convertida hoy en museo.

“Damp rooms with rude staff. ”
Stayed in the hotel for 2 night at the end of a months bike tour over Cuba and can safely say this is one of the worst hotels in the country. On arrival we had to wait 45 minutes to check in and still have no idea why this was. When we did get a room we found it to be covered (walls and roof) in mould. My girlfriend has asthma so we asked to change rooms and were told the place was fully booked. After an hour at reception they finally gave us a second room (2 doors away from room 1) which was worse than the first. Again back to reception told the same story of the hotel being fully booked. An hour later we did get another room one floor up which was marginally better so we accepted it. The downside of this room was one of the windows had no glass in it but just wooden shutters. This as first was nice allowing a nice breeze but that night we got no sleep due to it being a busy area of town. Next day we woke to a leaking toilet which had flooded the bathroom. After talking to staff apparently this leak was our fault and wanted us to fix it. We eventually did get extra towels to mop the water ourself but that was the total fix to the problem. Didnt eat at the hotel as the rude staff and room problems made us stay out of the hotel as long as possble. The positive of this hotel is the location. The location is the only thing that redeems it slightly. You can walk to the revalution museum national building and old havana all within 15 minutes or get a taxi for a few CUC.

“AWFUL ”
do not go there, dirty bed lines, disgusting breakfast (we also had to wait almost one hour to get a coffee) people unfriendly, we got to pay to leave our luggage only for one day before taking the airplane, a friend has been snatched just outide the "hotel", better to sleep under a bridge

“Can find much nicer for same amount ”
Stay away from this hotel, the staff are unfriendly and don´t want to know you. The breakfast is awful and the rooms are not great at all....... I know its quite cheap but still its not worth it. Don´t let this place spoil your trip to an intersting country like cuba

“Just say no to the lincoln. ”
the lincoln is being completely renovated just now. the lobby is closed, and unless you enjoy the sound of pneumatic drills and sledge hammers at 8am i would suggest you stay somewhere else. the rooms available at the moment are awful, damp stains on the walls, a safe that didnt work as reception did not have the key, and the maid left the keys to every room in the hotel on my bed one day...what thievery i could have done! when i took them to reception, such as it is, it was the one time they paid attention to me..talk about inattentive, i may as well have been invisible. if you are looking for bargain basement, i would suggest the lido, its cheaper and rooms are about as bad, but the staff are friendly and it has balconies. whatever you do dont stay here..perhaps when the work is finished it will be ok..but not now. you have been warned!

“pass on by ”
We were booked in here at each end of a Toucan tour. It was an ordinary introduction to what would later show itself to be a wonderful city. Running water was an all too infrequent luxury - hot water an impossibility. The breakfast was uninspiring, as was the location. The lift was cramped and very slow. The staff appeared all too aware of these issues. The highpoint of the stay was reading the guest comments book left at the front counter. Our observations above are mild by comparison.

“Roughing it in Havana ”
I had a clean room with 2 single beds, TV, fridge, batrhoom and shower. I found the bed very uncomfortable and would wake up sore. The shower only had cold water. Breakfast was included in the rate of 39 cuc, and was served on the restaurant on the top floor. While the view was of Havana from there was very nice, the food left much to be desired.

“I cannot rank this highly but it was perfect for my requirements ”
A very tired hotel with not great rooms or toilets. It was probably the worst hotel I stayed in whilst in Cuba but generally you always get less for you money in big cities anywhere in the world. I chose to go back before I flew and I would probably choose it as my hotel again of on the same budget. You get what you pay for and this is good value by Havana standards!

“I Envied Fangio; Whizz On By ”
I have travelled widely and don't expect luxury...but this was awful. On arrival, AC didn't work. Had to ask about 6 times before someone fixed it. Es Cuba, I didn't expect everything to be in perfect working order, but being virtually ignored is another thing. The receptionist was outright rude, mocking my Spanish to her colleagues. Yes I mistakenly used caliente, not calor to say the room was too hot - I just got off an 8 hr flight, and had had a few hours of Spanish classes! No need to be so rude. Then water began coming through the ceiling. I had to move rooms. Again, the AC didn't work. I didn't bother asking them to fix it, just made do with the pathetic whisper of a breeze it provided. The breakfast was awful - bread, sticky heavy pastries, tired tinned fruit. The hotel is generally tired and dilapidated. The lifts are pointless, as they are so slow, I thought the hotel would be atmospheric, due to its history including the kidnap of racing driver Fangio in the 1950s, but it wasn't. The rude staff ruined it.

“Dont stay here ”
We stayed here as at the beginning and end of a tour of Cuba. I could almost copy and paste some of the other posts, as very little seems to have changed. The location was quite central and near the malecón. I was not expecting very high standards considering I was taking an adventure tour around Cuba, but I think our tour company could have found somewhere better for similar prices. Most of the reception staff are extremely rude and unhelpful, although there were two nice girls on the day we left. Rooms are quite small and basic but okay for short stays. However, at the beginning of our tour there was no safe and we had to use the one at reception. At the end of the tour our room had a safe, but the key was lodged in the safe. We walked downstairs to reception (we had long since given up on those lifts!). When we told the receptionist she raised her eyes and said - tell chambermaid. Chambermaid was nice, and tried to help but told us that we'd have to use the reception safe. Unfortunately we could not use the reception safe as they were all full. Presumably because no one else's room safe works. Many of our tour group had the same problem. The air conditioning broke after one night in this room, but thankfully we checked out a few hours later. Some of those who had booked extra nights at the end of their tour had to change rooms. I think the rooms on the eighth floor are better than the third and fourth floor, but you will be quite dependent on the stairs, lift is often full if it stops on your floor. If you do stay here, please make sure you lock your door properly. On our first night we had a drunken intruder in our room, who would not leave for ages! I was quite shaken, we informed reception, but we dont think they understood what we were saying. Breakfast was okay and the rooftop restaurant had lovely views of Cuba, staff in the restaurant and the cleaning and door staff- everyone apart from reception really, were very nice. If, like most posters here you are booking a tour of Cuba, check with your company that you will not be staying here. I think all of our tour group complained about it in the survey for our tour company so hopefully they will take heed! We stayed in a few hotels in Cuba, but the standards in the Casa Particulars are much higher, and I would recommend spending most of your nights in cuba in this type of accommodation

“Run down, basic but clean”
We stayed at the Lincoln at the start and end of a round Cuba tour. As an introduction to Havana the Lincoln is a bit of let down. The rooms are basic, the hotel generally run-down and the location in Central Havana (which has not had the investment of Old Havana) is not so convenient for the nicer parts of town. On the plus side, the rooms were clean (if in need of maintenance). The rooftop bar/breakfast venue had some lovely views over the rooftops of Havana and the freshly cooked omlettes were much the best bet for breakfast. Negatives (in addition to the location) were only one lift (we ended up using the stairs a lot but beware if you've a room on the 8th floor), general state of disrepair and the plumbing - although we had hot water others in our group didn't so it seems a bit hit and miss and in our second room we had to flush the toilet using the shower... It was also quite noisy with cockerels and general street sounds being the early morning wake up call.

“Expecting the worst...wasn't disappointed. ”
Paint peeling, terrible food, one elevator works most of the time, located right in the Barrio, not the cleanest, noisy, no hot running water (but lukewarm in some rooms), broken windows and bugs!. But I was expecting all this thanks to the reviews on TripAdvisor... and I wasn't disappointed. Positives were; Cheap, reasonably good location. If you make an arrangement with the Staff (big tips) you can get a better room and have the towels and bedsheets changed everyday. I changed room 3 times then got different pillows. The earplugs I got on the flight helped me sleep better. TV was good with 3 english channels. Staff are good but Hotel run down. Dont forget you are going to a 3rd World Country where people make less than $10/month. Every begs and wants to be your friend. People here have no luxuries like toothpaste, shampoo or what we take for granted. Fill your suitcase with stuff that you can give away and come back home with an empty suitcase (or leave it there. Rather than stay at this Government Hotel you would be better to stay in a Casa Particular which is a private home licensed by the Government to rent out a room. They are generally better and cheaper. Havana is very safe even for young single women. There are Police everywhere. I had a guide who was excellent, his name is Richardo Stusser, contact me for his email and phone. Pay him double what he asks. He is very honest, an educated, highly intelligent gentleman, Unlike many Cubans I met, he did not ask for anything, he is particularly knowledgeable about History and has many interesting stories to tell, his English is flawless. Havana is fantastic but desperately needs paint, you need to look deeper to see the beauty, the Architecture, the old American Cars and above all the People. I think Cuba will change once Fidel goes so go now. It is expensive too, I spent a grand in a week, gave a lot of it away but it was a great experience. Dont buy Cigars on the street and dont exchage currency except in proper exchanges. Hotel Ingliterra much better but a lot more expensive, food was ok there. Beach at Santa Maria was filthy but water was fantastic, warm.

“More less ”
We stayed at the Lincoln hotel because of the price and location. I was ready for everything. When we got there we were surprised because they had our reservations in paper and everything else was in paper, pretty weird. Then we went to the room and we had two single beds instead of one double bed! We asked at the reception and the lady said the other rooms were busy, then the next day the cleaning lady told us that a room was empty but with no balcony, so we stayed in the room with two single beds because it had a balcony. The room and the bathroom were very clean. We didn't have hot water two mornings, but afterwards the hot water came back. Breakfast.... ummmm every day was the same, but I realized that it wasn't a problem of the hotel, was a problem of cuba, food in cuba is not very good. EVERY day at the hotel we had the same breakfast, scramble eggs, sausages with tomatoe, chicken meatballs, boiled eggs, bread, fruit and juice. We stayed at a better place in Varadero and food was a little bit better but not too much. Our room had a balcony with a view to the street and it was noisy at night and early in the morning. The elevator is really slow and the last day it didn't work. We had to go by the stairs to the restaurant which is located on the 9th floor!!! After all my complains, it has a good location, it is located right in Old Havana, which is not very beautiful. The streets are dirty and the buldings are really old. It is located like 10 minutes for the tourist area by walk and 2 minutes from the malecon. Price is really good compared with the other hotels. The maid was soooooooooo nice with us. Another thing, outside the hotel there was a bunch of people every day selling cigars, trying to bring you to their homes to eat, asking for money. We got upset because they don't stop!! every day the same questions and the same people!

“Dissapointing - But it might be the level”
This hotel is very old in all senses. The rooms are rather destroyed and the restaurant is really not very good. The price was ok, compared to rest of havanna, but we hope not. Some refurbishing might do the trick!

“Room 321 ”
Cross-ventilation. No mold. AC works (as of mid-June 2012). Faces quiet rooftops. Maybe the "21" rooms on all the floors are good, but I wouldn't put money on it. In fact, 321 may be ruined, too, by the time you get there. There was a great variety among rooms. Room 317 had its own pond -- just outside the door. Room 318 suffered from a toilet overflow so severe the room had to be quickly vacated and then "disinfected." (There are no signs warning not to put ANY toilet paper into the toilets. Don't.) Rooms facing the street are astoundingly noisy, though it's possible to experience that as part of being in Havana. Glass in the windows? Bah! For sissies. Our group loved the Hotel Stinkin' because nobody could quite believe it was real. It was so bad it was good. The street-level terrace, where all the world goes by, is a great place to hang out. The roof-top bar has entertainment. Some of the staff were scary, some were wonderful. Much music is within walking distance, which was key to us. The food was uniformly adequate, nothing more. I would stay there again. Don't ask me why.

“Good value for money ”
This hotel was quite cheap with good location. Unfortunately when we checked in there was no water, lately when the problem was fixed there was no hot water. Anyway, the staff was very friendly and helpful. It was good value for money.

“You get what you pay for - an experience!" ”
Having stayed here for a total of 7 nights on both arrival and return from Cuba (6 in and 1 out), it fitted perfectly with my needs.... a bed and a shower! It is right in the middle of downtown so exactly where you want to be if you want to experience "real" Cuba. The staff were utterly delightful and it's cheap... cheap, cheap, cheap (at the time I stayed in June 2011 cheaper than all casa particulars) If you get to know the staff, you'll be in for a riot of a time! Amenities wise... well, there's a toilet which might flush properly, air con which is a god send after trekking around the city for hours in the sweaty heat and a lovely cool/luke warm shower to wash the exhaust fumes from your hair. I didn't try the breakfast.. what's the point when you can get a coffee and egg bap around the corner for 10p! Whilst I was there, they were refurbishing the 9th floor bar area and are putting in a sun-lounging area (if that's what you crave) which will be pretty decent by the look of it. It still has one of the best views of Havana city from here though - on a truly clear day you can see Miami 80-ish km away! Say "Hola" to Albita, Juan Carlos, Mario and grumpy Ernesto!

“very very cheap dont expect alot”
we stayed here at the recommendation of a canadian couple we met on the bus journey to Havana, we hadn't booked anywhere and wanted something cheap. when we go there you can tell at some point during it long life this must have been a very nice Hotel, it's very run down now. we booked a room for 3 which was on the 8th floor and was a 2 room suite, and paid £70 for 2 nights so very cheap. we didn't have hot water which we had been told at check in. the view from the roof bar is fantastic and worth the stay. the area the hotel is situated in is very run down as well so if you are not an adventurous traveller i wouldn't stay here. the staff don't speak much if any english we were luck that the bell boy who did speak english helped us when we checked in. all i would say is this is not a hotel for people who want 5 star hotels with exceptional service. it a place to stay and see the real havana

“Great Location, good service...skip breakfast ”
This is a great location for a hotel in Havana...its not in the tourist area, so a lot more Cuban style. The rooms were fine, the beds were clean, and the toilets were clean. The showers had great pressure (unlike the rest of cuba) and the staff always cleaned the room well. We stay for three nights at the start of the trip and really enjoyed it, close to Capitol and old havana. The bar was great (open 24 hours) and the drinks were cheap. Breakfast, give it a miss!!! We found down the road towards the Captiol building was a pizza shop called Bombay pizza there were $1 each and great value. Loved this place...we will be going back

“Exceeded expectations! ”
My friends and I stayed at the Hotel Lincoln and were extremely happy at what we found considering we thought we were staying in a 1 star dump. The rooms are very dated, but clean. The best part was the view, so if staying make sure you request a room in one of the top floors. The hotel is in close proximity to restaurants and bars.

“basic but great value ”
I stayed in the hotel twice last year and had quite a good experience both times. The rooms were clean and a good size. The beds were comfortable. The location is great, just 5 minutes walk from the main toursist attractions. The hot water supply was somewhat sporadic but it didnt bother us as we mainly had cold showers to cool down anyway! Although we did experience power cuts, this is not uncommon in havana and the staff were very helpful and friendly when faced with these problems. Breakfast was pretty good, consisting of eggs, meats, fruits and juices. Its not a luxury hotel by any stretch of the mind but it is a very comfortable, decent place to stay given the price.

“Good value”
I booked this hotel whilst in Havana. It is a budget hotel and I thought great value for the money. The location is good too for the price, it's only a couple of minuted from the malecon, and taxis into old havana are only 2 peso. The staff are really friendly and helpful and you also get breakfast included. The hotel is not luxury but that is reflected in the price. Rooms are kept clean. I would stay here again.

“Excellent value for money! ”
I stayed here for 3 weeks. At 20$ a night incl. breakfast it's a real bargain! Nice and friendly staff. As quiet it can be when you're right next to the real lively city of Habana. I'm so tired of people ( especially American citizens ) who think they will have the most exquicit luxury for no money at all just because it's in Habana. Go stay at Hotel Nacional! Probably you can afford it to! It's 50 years since Habana was USA:s cheap backyard.....