About
Habana Riviera By Iberostar
Perhaps no hotel in Havana retains the swing and flavor of the 1950s as well as the Hotel Habana Riviera. Ginger Rogers inaugurated the hotel in December ’57, playing the legendary Copa Room of this seafront hotel built by mobster Meyer Lansky. Two scant years later he left Cuba in a rush, dumping his dreams of lucrative casino operations into the nearby ocean.
The Riviera’s mafia and gambling vestiges were quickly scrapped, but the lobby still reflects elements typical of the era. Including royal blue chaises paired with red club chairs and a beautiful marble floor. Prominent Cuban sculptors were commissioned back in the day and their timeless marble and bronze statues still decorate the lobby.
The lobby bar, poolside cafeteria, and the elegant L’Aiglon restaurant still exude a genuine 50's atmosphere, when cocktail dresses and tuxedos were de rigueur. Back then, this was the place in Havana to wine and dine people you wanted to impress and was one of the city’s most popular honeymoon hotels.
Flash forward to today and the lobby’s Salon Internacional is abuzz with conversation, while a young Cuban practices a few sassy salsa moves nearby.