-
Cuevas de Bellamar
Cubas oldest tourist attraction, according to local propaganda, lies 5km southeast of Matanzas and is 300,000 years old. There are 2500m of caves here, discovered in 1861 by a Chinese workman in the employ of Don Manuel Santos Parga. A 45-minute Cuevas de Bellamar visit leaves almo
-
Playa Caletones
Youll need some sort of transport (bike, taxi, rental car) to get to this lovely little beach, 17km west of Gibara. The apostrophe-shaped stretch of white sand and azure sea here is a favorite of Holguín vacationers. The town is ramshackle, with no services except rustic Restaurant
-
Parroquia de San Juan Bautista de Remedios
One of the islands finest ecclesiastical buildings, this church dates from the late 18th century, although a church was founded on this site as early as 1545. The campanile was erected between 1848 and 1858, and its famous gilded high altar and mahogany ceiling are thanks to a rest
-
Cafetal Buenavista
The most moving ruins are about 1.5km up the hill from the Puerta las Delicias (eastern) gate, and accessible by road. Cafetal Buenavista is Cuba’s oldest (now partially restored) coffee plantation, built in 1801 by French refugees from Haiti. The huge tajona (grindstone) out the b
-
Museo de Playa Girón
This museum with its gleaming glass display cases evokes a tangible sense of the history of the famous Cold War episode that unfolded within rifle-firing distance of this spot in 1961. Across the street from Villa Playa Girón, it offers two rooms of artifacts from the Bay of Pigs s
-
Old City Wall
In the 17th century, anxious to defend the city from attacks by pirates and overzealous foreign armies, Cubas paranoid colonial authorities drew up plans for the construction of a 5km-long city wall. Built between 1674 and 1740, the wall on completion was 1.5m thick and 10m high, r
-
Rancho la Guabina
A former Spanish farm spread over 1000 hectares of pasture, forest and wetlands, the Rancho la Guabina is a jack of all trades and a master of at least one. You can partake in horseback riding here, go boating on a lake, enjoy a scrumptious Cuban barbecue, or even see a cockfight.
-
US Interests Section
The modern seven-story building with the high security fencing at the western end of this open space is the US Interests Section, set up by the Carter administration in the late 1970s. Facing the office front is Plaza Tribuna Anti-Imperialista (also known as Plaza de la Dignidad),
-
Puente Yayabo
Looking like something out of an English country village, this quadruple-arched bridge is Sancti Spíritus signature sight. Built by the Spanish in 1815, it carries traffic across the Río Yayabo and is now a national monument. For the best view (and a mirror-like reflection) hit the
-
La Hacienda la Belén
This protected area 36km southeast of Camagüey contains three low-hill ranges: the Sierra del Chorrillo, the Sierra del Najasa and the Guaicanámar (highest point 324m). Nestled in their grassy uplands is La Hacienda la Belén , a handsome country ranch that was built by a Peruvian a
-
Puente de Bacunayagua
Marking the border between Havana and Matanzas provinces, this is Cuba’s longest (314m) and highest (103m) bridge. Begun in 1957 and finally opened by Fidel Castro in September 1959, it carries the busy Vía Blanca across a densely wooded canyon that separates the Valle de Yumurí fr
-
Club Habana
This fabulously eclectic 1928 mansion in Flores once housed the Havana Biltmore Yacht & Country Club. These days the history of the establishment seems to have swung full circle and it is again a popular hangout for foreign correspondents and diplomats. The club has its own bea
-
Gran Teatro de la Habana
A style without style that in the long run, by symbiosis, by amalgamation, becomes baroquism. So wrote Cuban novelist and sometime architectural dabbler, Alejo Carpentier, of the ornate neobaroque Centro Gallego erected as a Galician social club between 1907 and 1914. Standing the
-
Museo de Ambiente Histórico Cubano
On Parque Céspedes northwestern corner lies the Casa de Diego Velázquez. Dating from 1522, this is the oldest house still standing in Cuba. Restored in the late 1960s, the Andalusian-style facade (youll know it by its enclosed balcony with the fine, Moorish-style woodwork) was rest
-
Balneario San Diego
Finally due to reopen to the public in 2015 after a protracted refurbishment, the Balneario bathing complexs thermal waters of 30°C to 40°C are used to treat all manner of muscular and skin afflictions. The sulfurous waters of these mineral springs are potent and immersions of only
-
Edificio Focsa
Unmissable on the Havana skyline, the modernist Edificio Focsa was built between 1954 and 1956 in a record 28 months using pioneering computer technology. In 1999 it was listed as one of the seven modern engineering wonders of Cuba. With 39 floors housing 373 apartments, it was, on
-
Loma de Cunagua
Rising like a huge termite mound above the surrounding flatlands, the Loma de Cunagua, 18km east of Morón, is a protected flora and fauna reserve harboring a ranchón -style restaurant, a small network of trails, and excellent bird-watching opportunities. At 364m above sea level, it
-
Parque Serafín Sánchez
While not Cubas shadiest or most atmospheric square, pretty Serafín Sánchez is full of understated Sancti Spíritus elegance. Metal chairs laid out inside the pedestrianized central domain are usually commandeered by cigar-smoking grandpas and flirty young couples with their sights
-
Loma de San Juan
Future American president Teddy Roosevelt forged his reputation on this small hillock where, flanked by the immortal rough riders, he supposedly led a fearless cavalry charge against the Spanish to seal a famous US victory. Protected on pleasantly manicured grounds adjacent to the
-
Río Canímar
Boat trips on the Río Canímar, 8km east of Matanzas, are a truly magical experience. Gnarly mangroves dip their jungle-like branches into the ebbing water and a warm haze caresses the regal palm trees as your boat slides silently 12km upstream from an insalubrious start beneath the
Total
729 -travel
FirstPage PreviousPage NextPage LastPage CurrentPage:
27/37 20-travel/Page GoTo Page:
