Getaway to Cuba: Havana, Cienfuegos, Trinidad, and More

The sunlight shines through the stained-glass windows of the 19th-century Catedral de la Purisíma Concepción. The off-white exterior glints in the sunlight beneath the red-tile dome of the tower. The Cuban Arch of Triumph rises above the plaza in the central park across from the cathedral. The structure is dedicated to the independence of Cuba from the Spanish. A marble statue of Jose Marti stands beneath the archway. After breakfast, you make your way to the charming city of Trinidad. Horses trot down the cobblestone streets.

The sound of their hooves on the stone echoes through the city. Old men move slowly along the avenues selling fresh-baked bread from their bicycle baskets. You easily embrace the city. At the same time, you feel the historical reaches of the city embrace you. Trinidad was erected on the wealth of sugar barons throughout the 19th century. Colonial mansions continue to illuminate the prestige of the once lavish city. Italian frescos and French chandeliers harken back to the grandeur of pre-revolutionary Cuba.

Musicians strum their guitars on the streets. Pastel colored buildings with wood-shingle roofs emphasize the quiet charm edging the foothills of the surrounding rolling mountains. Learn about the secrets of Santeria, Cuba’s main religion stemming from African roots, in the Casa Templo de Santeria Yemaya. The house is dedicated to Yemaya, the Goddess of the Sea. Fruit, water, and stones provide offerings to the deity. Priests oversee the house. Paintings representing the phases of the moon color the opulent white walls.

Today you venture the natural paradise of Cayo Largo del Sur, located on a remote stretch of deserted beach at the Caribbean Sea. The pace is even more relaxed than that of Trinidad. You can hear the water lapping at the fine-grain white sand. Palm trees rustle in the gentle breeze. Coconuts drop from the tree into the sand. Locals crack open the fruit, which emanates a succulent, sweet aroma. Coral reefs glow beneath the surface of the sea. Mangrove trees grow on the edges of small inlets, where they can dig their roots into the mixture of salt and fresh water.

The natural wonders of Cuba come to life before your eyes, from the remarkable image of the landscape to the presence of iguanas, bee hummingbirds, and flamingos. After your visit to the local clinic to meet with doctors and nurses providing healthcare in the area, you make your way to the Centro de Rescate de Tortugas Marinas for a different type of healthcare education. The marine project helps ensure the safety of turtle nesting in the area. Your guide leads you through the turtle farm.

Each year the specialists and volunteers collect hundreds of turtle eggs during the summer and bring them to the farm to incubate. After the eggs hatch, the baby turtles grow in pools under strict supervision before being released safely into the sea. During nesting season, you have the unique opportunity to stay out on the beach until the late hours of the night under guided supervising to watch green turtles and hawksbills lay their eggs in the sand.

Travel across the stunning Caribbean Sea, moving from Cuba’s east to weighing anchor at its most western point, Maria La Gorda. Peninsula de Guanahacabibes is rich in history and ecology, remaining one of the country’s most isolated areas. It once provided shelter to the island’s aboriginal communities during the Spanish settlement. The rainforest canopy drapes the interior landscape, rising with the hills and sinking with the valleys. The tree line frames the secluded white sand beaches. Marshy grasslands lead to coastal mangrove trees. The Cuban iguana sunbathes on the rocks near the water.

It can grow to a length of over five feet when measured from snout to tail. Discover the beauty of the natural habitat during a morning private tour of the forest floor. In the afternoon, you can relax underneath a palapa and listen to the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. The aroma of freshly grilled sea bass cooked with salt and garlic emanates from the one restaurant near the beach. The sweet taste of pina coladas adds a refreshing moment for you during the day.

In the morning, the sweet aroma of fresh coconut blends with the salty scent of the Caribbean Sea. At breakfast, you bite into a juicy pineapple and savor the flavor. After your meal, you depart from the romance of Cuba’s remote western edge. Travel beneath the lush canopy of the Guanahacabibes Peninsula, making your way to captivating Havana. Pass by rich farmland, home to tall stalks of sugarcane and emerald tobacco leaves.

Gigantic oxen pull plows through the red soil of the region. The farmers wear faded khaki-green pants and jackets. They bite into a thick cigar while guiding the plow through the field. Near the eco-community of Las Terrazas, you find the remnants of 19th-century coffee plantations. The Bueanvista Coffee Plantation was built in the early 1800s nestled into the foothills of the surrounding Sierra Maestra Mountains. Your guide takes you to the artifacts leftover from the estate’s days involved with slaves.

The barracks have been preserved, along with the drying platforms where workers would set the plants in the sunlight. The plantation’s beauty and elegance contrast the history of slavery in the region, along with the heritage of the coffee trade. Once in Havana, you meet with a local traditional dance group who set the tone of the city. The dancers use choreography utilizing chairs, shoe-heels, drums, flamenco gestures, drumsticks, and everyday materials to tell the story of Cuba, from the country’s past to the depths of Cuba’s folklore.

Havana connects contemporary Cuba with historical streets, fashionable locals, and past grandeur. In the morning, couples walk along the seaside avenue of the Malecón. Waves crash intermittently against the sea wall and mist along the walkway. The avenue stretches for more than five miles, providing a perfect location for lovers to listen to traveling musicians and wandering poets. Fishers dress their fishing poles and cast their lines into the water below braving the intermittent splashes from the ocean.

The romance of the walkway comes like an open-air theater, a cabaret of local life framed by layers of blue water and the crumbling buildings of historic Havana. After breakfast, your transfer greets you at the hotel and escorts you to the suburbs of the city where you find Finca Vigia, once home to the American author Ernest Hemingway. The writer lived in Cuba until 1960 and left the house, along with his possessions, to the state. It has since been preserved in its original form.

Visitors are no longer allowed inside the house. However, open windows and doors provide enough light and space for people to see the entirety of Hemingway’s former property. Books drape the walls around the entirety of the home, including in the bathroom. Viewing the structure not only takes you back in time but also offers a glimpse into the mind of Hemingway. His typewriter stands atop his tall desk like a relic, memorializing the spirit of the writer and the stories he took pains to place tirelessly on the page.

Old Havana combines remnants of Spanish conquistadors and former glitterati. 19th-century mansions line the elegant boulevard of Paseo del Prado. Hotel Inglaterra encapsulates the splendor of the city’s past in its elegant décor, from the charming exterior arcade to the rooftop terrace. The legendary structure housed Winston Churchill at one time, along with Frank Sinatra during the crooner’s visits to the city. Your guide begins your tour in the Cathedral Plaza, ornamented by the opulent Catedral de San Cristobal. Coral from the Gulf of Mexico’s seafloor creates the golden hue and unique texture of the edifice’s façade. The old city comes to life near Plaza Vieja, the oldest square in the city, which was erected in the mid-16th century.

The plaza once held processions, fiestas, and even bullfights, as the city’s wealthiest citizens could watch the festivities from their balconies. A large 18th-century fountain fills the heart of the square. An attic column rises out of a bowl basin more than six feet high, decorated with the coat of arms of Havana. The frame of El Morro fortress continues to stand proudly over the edge of the Bay of Havana. The 16th-century edifice defended the city against pirate attacks. The 19th-century lighthouse was built from solid stone. A view from the top provides a panorama of Havana stretching from the far reaches of the old city to contemporary Havana’s skyline.

The spirit of an Afro-Cuban culture in Havana lives on Callejon de Hamel. When the morning light spreads across the city, the vibrant murals and psychedelic shops return to life. Musicians fill the avenue with the sounds of rumba. Drumbeats interlock shaping the rhythms of the day. Santeria followers call upon deities. Murals decorate the houses, creating a vast picture spreading across the facades of the neighborhood. Locals have utilized every object to shape sculptures, make paint, and produce the artwork they feel expresses their beliefs, from bathtubs to old typewriters. After breakfast, your private transfer greets you at the hotel and escorts you to Jose Marti International Airport for your flight home. You leave Cuba behind, but you take the indelible passion with you.