Immersion in Cuban soil from Havana to Santiago
2024
Highlights of the trip
During your stay you can enjoy the following highlights: Culture / Heritage, Faune and flora, Discovery, Adventure / Sports & Leisure, Free time, Relaxation / Well-being.
Best times to go
The best time(s) to go is/are : Printemps, Automne, Hiver.
Where to stay - Baracoa ?
The map of your stay "Immersion in Cuban soil from Havana to Santiago"
Detail of the stay : Immersion in Cuban soil from Havana to Santiago
How to get there - Baracoa
Arrival in Havana
Steps: Baracoa
Once the luggage has been dropped off at the hotel or in your particular casa, head for Le Malecón for a short walk at sunset to soak up the unique atmosphere of Havana, so sensual at dusk time. We continue with a mojito tasting in a trendy bar in the Vedado, before choosing one of the very good restaurants in the area for dinner. A good night's rest will then be welcome!
Havana - day 1
Steps: Santiago De Cuba
We will begin our stay with a visit to Habana Vieja: discovery of the old historical center classified as a world heritage site by UNESCO, walk in the picturesque paved streets, visit of the baroque palaces, museums, and the unmissable monumental squares that are the Plaza Vieja, the Plaza de Armas and the Plaza de la Catedral. We can plan a lunch in the latter, in a superb historical setting. Afternoon relaxation, on the terrace, before venturing into "La Habana nocturna"!
Places of interest : PLAZA DE ARMAS PLAZA DE LA CATEDRAL PLAZA VIEJA
Havana - day 2
Steps: La Havane
Visit of the Museo de la Revolución and the Plaza de la Revolución. Discover the Centro Habana district, less touristy than the others, and lunch in the picturesque Chinese barrio, Chinatown. Evening in a Vedado paladar and outings to a trendy bar in the Miramar district
Places of interest : MUSEO DE LA REVOLUCIÓN Y MEMORIAL GRANMA BARRIO CHINO PLAZA DE LA REVOLUCIÓN
Viñales
Steps: Viñales
Departure for Viñales in the morning. Discover the village and meet its inhabitants, before enjoying a Cuban bocadillo with a cold beer. At the end of the day, you will enjoy a moment of relaxation on the terrace of a special casa to admire the play of light on the sublime mountains at nightfall.
Viñales Park
Steps: Viñales
A day trip, on horseback or on foot, through the Viñales Park, a UNESCO natural heritage site, and its famous mogotes, these immense limestone hills, rounded and covered with lush vegetation. We will take this opportunity to discover the tobacco plantations and learn more about the Cuban art of cigar rolling. Night in Viñales or return to Havana at the end of the day.
Places of interest : VALLE DE VIÑALES
Varadero
Steps: Varadero
We will spend the day on this paradisiacal beach to recharge our batteries, before attacking a big fiesta in the evening in one of the many bars or clubs of the seaside resort
Santa Clara
Steps: Santa Clara
Direction Santa Clara, which is joined by the central highway to visit, among other things, the memorial dedicated to Ernesto Che Guevara before stopping at the Florida center for a lobster grilled or an excellent vieja ropa (cooked beef). We will take advantage of the afternoon to stroll through Vidal Park and visit the Museum of Decorative Arts.
Places of interest : MUSEO DE ARTES DECORATIVAS
Trinidad and Playa Ancon
Steps: Playa Ancón
Wake up at dawn to take the road to Trinidad, which we will reach in half a day from Santa Clara. Lunch then visit of the colonial historical center classified as World Heritage by UNESCO. The afternoon will be dedicated to lazing around and sunbathing on the beautiful wild beach of Playa Ancon.
Places of interest : PLAZA MAYOR
Trinidad - Valley of Los Ingenios
Steps: Valle De Los Ingenios
After a good breakfast in the picturesque centre of Trinidad, you will take the road to the valley of Los Ingenios. This vast area, located 30 minutes east of Trinidad, was the home of Cuban sugar production in the th century. You can cross the valley on horseback through the ruins of over 70 sweets.
Archipelago Los Jardines del Rey - day 1
Steps: Cayo Coco
From Trinidad, we will reach Morón, the ideal gateway to the cayos - rocky islets - of the north of the island, connected to the mainland by pedraplen, road medians. We will spend the first day at Cayo Coco, one of the leading destinations of Cuban tourism: in addition to a colony of 30,000 pink flamingos, 158 species of birds and mammals thrive on the paradisiacal beaches bathed in turquoise water
Archipelago Los Jardines del Rey - day 2
Steps: Cayo Santa Maria
Cayo Guillermo and its 5 km of white sand beaches bordered by transparent waters is connected to Cayo Coco by a road. The only beach of Pilar, true natural treasure coiled up at the end of the islet, would deserve in itself a trip to Cuba! We can push the stroll to Cayo Ensenacho and Santa Maria, better preserved.
Places of interest : PLAYA PILAR
Archipelago Los Jardines del Rey - day 3
We will take advantage of this small corner of paradise to stroll, toes in fan, or to devote itself to the birdwatching.
Santiago de Cuba - Day 1
Steps: Santiago De Cuba
Direction Santiago de Cuba in the early morning. Arrival at the end of the day due to the long journey from Morón. Stroll around the Parque Céspedes and then aperitif on the panoramic terrace of the nearby Casa Granda hotel to get a global view of the city and take pictures of the mythical Sierra Maestra on the horizon.
Santiago de Cuba - day 2
Steps: Santiago De Cuba
Visit of the city and its casco histórico. Discover the different squares - Plaza Marte and Plaza de Dolores - to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of Santiago. At the end of July, the carnival broke out in the city. Huge fiesta guaranteed! If you visit the city the rest of the year, visit the Carnival Museum which is very well done.
Places of interest : PLAZA DE DOLORES PLAZA DE MARTE MUSEO DEL CARNAVAL
Santiago de Cuba - day 3
Steps: Santiago De Cuba
A second day in Santiago is not too much to grasp the various facets and to visit its remarkable buildings. The Panoramico bus stopping at the various key points of the city is an interesting option for exploring Santiago. The evening can be dedicated to a show at Cabaret San Pedro del Mar or at the Tropicana.
Places of interest : BUS PANORAMICO
Baracoa
Steps: Baracoa
Wake up early to take the road to Baracoa, which is located in the extreme west of the island, in the province of Guantanamo. After enjoying a meal of crab and other grilled fish at the El Castillo Hotel, overlooking the city with the ocean as a backdrop, head for the newly restored Malecón de Baracoa. Along this seaside promenade you will discover the bays and mountainous foothills surrounding the city, the statue of Christopher Columbus who landed here on October 27, 1492, as well as the La Rusa Hotel which hosted Fidel Castro and Che during the guerrilla war and after the Revolution, before heading to Miel Beach.
The surroundings of Baracoa
Steps: Playa Maguana
We will take advantage of being in Baracoa to visit its surroundings, starting with El Yunque, this mountain in the shape of anvil. Two options here: a 1h30 walk to the waterfall, or a 5h round trip hike to the top. The afternoon can be spent either visiting Alejandro de Humbolt Park, a tropical treasure, or relaxing on the beach at Playa Duaba or Playa Maguana.
Hiking in the Sierra Maestra
Steps: Bayamo
Change of course, heading west towards the province of Granma and its capital Bayamo, at the foot of the Sierra Maestra and the Turquino peak, the highest peak in the country (1,972 m). Hiking day in the mythical and lush Sierra Maestra, following in the footsteps of Cuban revolutionaries. The night is spent in the Aguada de Joaquin refuge at an altitude of 1,750 m.
Places of interest : PICO TURQUINO
Bayamo
Steps: Bayamo
Once back from the heights, visit Bayamo starting with the birthplace of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, Father of the Fatherland, settled in a splendid colonial residence. After a refreshing stopover at the restaurant of the Hotel Telégrafo, a stroll in the Plaza de la Revolución, the nerve centre of Bayamo, to finish at the piano bar sipping a few cocktails.
Places of interest : PLAZA DE LA REVOLUCIÓN CASA NATAL DE CARLOS MANUEL DE CESPEDES
Gibara
Steps: Gibara
In the province of Holguín, there is the very picturesque port of Gibara, a pretty white village with a Mediterranean style and enchanting atmosphere. Most tour operators do not include it in their programmes, so there are few tourists there. If you are there at that time, don't miss the Festival Internacional del Cine Pobre in the second half of April.
