SAN LUIS POTOSÍ, Mexico.- This icon of Cuban hospitality, the Hotel Internacional de Varadero, was inaugurated on December 24, 1950. Its privileged location, close to the beach, and its modern style, made it one of the most emblematic of the spa’s architecture.
Its owner was William Liebow, an American of Jewish origin. The cost of operating the hotel is estimated at about three million pesos, financed largely by the Sugar Retirement Fund and the rest by Liebow.
Work of the architects Ricardo Galbis and Vicente Llanera, it was executed by the firm Mira y Rosich, which was in charge of buildings such as the López Serrano, the Clínica el Sagrado Corazón (today the Ramón González Coro Gineco-Obstétrico Hospital), the La Moderna bookstore Poetry, the church of the University of Villanueva, the Jagua (Cienfuegos) and Comodoro (Havana) hotels.
The gringo sold the property to Resterforte and in 1957 it was acquired by Hoteles Internacionales SA. its last operator before being nationalized by the government of Fidel Castro. In 1958, the Hotel Internacional was considered the most luxurious in Varadero.
Its Continental Cabaret and the Casino, the latter converted into the Universal Restaurant after its closure, were part of its attractive offer.
Constructively renovated, first in 1983 and then in 1991, the site also incorporated the Villas Cabañas del Sol, independent until then, and constituted a hotel complex.
The cabins, built in 1957, were designed by architects Miguel Ángel Moenck and Nicolás Quintana.
In 1999 it had substantial changes in the decoration and some remodeling in its civil works. But it was not until 2013 that the hotel became the center of debate when its demolition was announced. Using arguments related to the location of the property on the dune or the decaying hydraulic system, the iconic Varadero hotel was in danger.
Officials warned that it could become another one, with nearly a thousand rooms, to accommodate as many tourists as possible.
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2024-03-10 17:40:09
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