INBOX

Our faithful readers sound off.

I have been a longtime fan of Power & Motoryacht and am an experienced boater having cruised from Florida to Venezuela and back again over 25 years.

I just completed a cruise to Cuba and I thought it might be useful to your readers to share a bad experience I had, which might help them avoid a similar problem for them. I have been to Cuba before but this was my first experience at the Varadero Melio Resort & Gaviota Marina located in Varadero.

After checking in we were directed to tie up at their Customs and Immigration dock. After clearing in we were directed to stay on this dock overnight, since it was now after dark, and move to the assigned slip in the morning. I asked the dockmaster if it was O.K. to use their shore power and he confirmed it was and in fact plugged us in himself. Immediately we suffered what I suspect was a power surge which blew out a lot of our electronics. In the end we suffered two exploded batteries, a burned out battery charger, television, television receiver, and some stereo equipment. There was this great flash of sparks, smoke, and unholy popping sounds.

In the end they replaced the batteries but were unable to do anything else. There was no availability of parts, other than batteries, and the service staff were not very competent. The hard part was their attitude. They accepted no responsibility for anything, blaming it all on the boat. I was forced to pay for the batteries by threat of police involvement. The batteries were new but of a brand I did not recognize and they were flat the day after installation. They blamed that on the boat as well.

It is hard to understand their attitude since it is in a beautiful location but is virtually empty of any transient boaters or cruisers. I do not recommend this marina to your readers. I guess it will be a while until Cuba’s infrastructure and services catch up to modern standards? —Mike Lowthian

MV Acadia II Toronto, Canada