Cuba

A Picture of Tropical Beach Paradise at Santa Maria, Cuba

The most densely populated country in the world, Cuba is situated in the northern Caribbean at the confluence of the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic Ocean. Get acquainted with the magnificent country of Cuba, which is a unique mélange of epic colonial architecture, Che Guevara murals, and spectacular silvery sand beaches. Cuba is the perfect blend of rich historical heritage and contemporary cosmopolitan cities.

The perfect time to visit Cuba is between December and April as the climate during this period is ideal to visit the various fantastic tourist attractions of Cuba. So during your visit to Cuba don’t hesitate to taste the numerous mouth watering cuisines of Cuba and the food lovers are bound to get thrilled by the plethora of choice that one gets while savoring the delicious Cuban delicacies.

Travelers mostly arrive at Cuba by air and there are direct scheduled flights from most of the developed countries of the world.

Santiago de Cuba, Trinidad, Cueva Punta del Este, La Jungla de Jones, Mirador de Bacunayagua, Museo de Ciencias Naturales Sandalio de Noda, and Valle de los Ingenios are some of the interesting places in Cuba which all the tourists must visit.

Cuba Travel Map

Getting In

Cuba is a much popular tourist destination and is noted for scenic locales as well as cultural events and pulsating rhythms of mambo, cha-cha. For reaching Cuba you have to come by air or sea routes as this is an island country so no possibility of land routes remains.

Getting to Cuba By Air : If you want to come by air then Jose Marti International Airport situated outside Havana is the focal point. This airport has all the major airlines connecting Cuba to Canada, Mexico, and Europe. Apart from these, there are regional flights from other Caribbean islands. The national airlines in Cuba is Cubana de Aviacion which connects it to destinations like Mexico, South and Central America, Canada, and Europe. You will also have the option of holiday charter flights to resorts such as Varadero which can be surprisingly less expensive sometimes than those going to Havana.

The airports in Cuba are all well maintained and are fully-air-conditioned. Here you will find good medical care and they have customer friendly services as well.

Getting to Cuba By Sea: You may not get regular service of ferries or boats to Cuba from foreign ports, but you can always avail the services of some cruise liners. The ships have to anchor at the public marinas. There are restrictions on most of the ports in Cuba and tourists are not allowed to hang around them. Private vessels are allowed entry at Marina Hemingway in Havana or Marina Acua in Varadero. You will require a US passport, but there are no visa requirements.

Transport

Cuba tours is full of enjoyment and what impresses the tourists here is the presence of good transportation in Cuba. There are whole lot of options to choose from.

The Víazul buses are luxurious air-conditioned buses provided with toilets, large comfortable seats an enough leg room. In fact, you would be served refreshments and the booking for travel through these buses has to be made in advance. You can also avail the regular Astro Buses which are quite affordable. There are also tourist mini buses as well as vans for traveling in Cuba.

The official taxis can be quite costly if you travel for along distance in them. It can cost you CUC 90-100 . The plus point is that it can be quite convenient traveling in the big city. You will get different types of taxis here like the official government taxis, the private as well as the small three-wheeled coco-taxis.

Cars are also good option for you and the hire starts at CUC 65 per day. Here you will get imported European or Asian cars for hire. On the highways you will find cyclists as well as horse drawn vehicles. There are also railway tracks sometimes crossing Autopista which is the main highway. There are also checkpoints in the interior of the country.

You can choose airways as well when you are going to farthest tip of the island or avail ferry service when you want to go to island of Pines.

Leisure

People here know how to enjoy life. They have passion for music and dance. And it is understandable that here you can find the various dance forms like Bolero, rumba, and salsa to enchant you.The capital Havana is a hub for live music in clubs, bars, and also on the streets. If you want to hear the best salsa bands then come to El Palacio de la Salsa in the Riviera Hotel.

Another option is listening to the National Symphony Orchestra, which performs regularly at the Teatro Nacional in Havana also you can watch the performance of The National Ballet of Cuba based in the city. If you desire to see some informal live music performances, then Casa de la Trova is the right place for you.

The excitement doesn’t end here only, there is the Havana Carnival which takes place in late February. This three-week carnival is a huge extravaganza on the streets of Havana and you also have an International Jazz Festival every second year. The music lovers have more reasons to rejoice as in October there is the ten day Festival of Contemporary Music. If you are looking for more entertainment and leisure in Cuba, then don’t worry as the Santiago de Cuba’s Carnival which takes place in July is surely going to impress you. You will find splendid parades, all night dancing rejoicing along with Carnival rum.

Havana can be your one stop destination for entertainment and leisure in Cuba. Figure this the city has some 30 museums, 10 art galleries, 25 theaters as well as it is the venue of number of international festivals of cinema, dance, plastic arts, and literature much to the delight of erudite and art lovers.

Cuba’s leisure industry is on the trend of rapid growth with the presence of picturesque beaches, scenic locales as well as its culture and history.