We started our holiday in Varadero - a chance to relax before travelling by bus around Cuba. We didn't want all inclusive experience and Hotel Pullman suited us perfectly. Location was really handy, close to local shops and restaurants/bars, and very close to a beach which was much emptier and peaceful than what we saw of the beaches outside the other hotels.
Service was adequate - we had a lovely breakfast every morning and staff were friendly. The room was dark, and though it wasn't room 124 mentioned by another reviewer, it had a broken spring sticking out of the mattress, which was ..pretty sore if you landed on it! We probably could have changed rooms but we were only there for 2 nights so didn't bother, the safe didn't work, which did make it harder for us to go swimming on the beach as there was only 2 of us and we didn't want to leave our money in the room as it was the beginning of the holiday, but for only 40 a night, it was great!
If you have the right attitude then its a good place to start a holiday! If you've already been travelling around cuba in Casas Particulares, it might be a step down!
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC