get the beer. then go.

Hotel Colina.

The 80-room Hotel Colina is near the University of Havana in the Vedado neighborhood. Cheap and bare bones, it's a good jumping off point for other parts of the city - Old Havana, Playa, Miramar or Centro Habana.

But don't expect any creature comforts at the hotel, which many travelers describe as rundown.

Trip Advisor - whose motto is "get the truth. then go" - gives the place two stars. Said a Canadian traveler:

...the outdoor sidewalk cafe was decent for people-watching and meeting friends for beers. After many beers, the hotel didn't seem quite so bad ("seem" is the operative word).

Money was stolen from my luggage (unwisely, I had kept my Canadian money buried inside my luggage and only put my American money in the lobby safe). I recognized my own stupidity and wrote it off. Needless to say, the maid didn't get a tip that day.