Itinerary: Cuba Travel in 6 Days

You will barely scratch the surface of exploring Cuba in just 6 days, but if you are limited on time like we were, here is the itinerary that my friend and I followed for our trip to Cuba. Unfortunately, due to the arrival of Hurricane Irma, we had to cut our trip short and take out the beach town of Varadero, which was part of the original 7-day itinerary.

Day 1: Arrival in Havana

Our flight from Newark airport (EWR) arrived in Havana in the early afternoon, and we spent some time going through customs/security/money exchange that we ended up arriving at our casas particulares in the early evening. For those curious about our travel experience from the US to Havana, here is my account of what to expect.

We wanted to make the most out of our short time there, so shortly after checking into our casas particulares at the Malecon (a boardwalk similar to San Francisco’s Embarcadero) in Centro Habana, we headed towards Hotel Nacional de Cuba just a short walk away in Vedado to relax and enjoy the view. This hotel has 85 years of history and housed a number of famous people, including Winston Churchill and Frank Sinatra, so it is definitely worth a look around.

When we arrived, there was a parade/festival at the Malecon, so we were able to catch the floats and parade going by while we sipped on our first cocktails in Cuba.

And then it’s time to eat! We enjoyed our first meal/dinner at Los Nardos, a charming place across from El Capitolio that serves Cuban cuisine that locals would bring their families to on a night out (at least, that’s what the hotel concierge claims).  They do not take reservations, so eating here would require waiting outside in line for 20-30 minutes, which is not a problem with good company!

Once inside, we were welcomed with relaxing piano music, A/C (!!), and a high-end vibe. Since this restaurant was recommended by the concierge at Hotel Nacional, we didn’t know what to expect, so we were pleasantly surprised!

The menu offered a wide variety of entrees, appetizers, desserts, and drinks. It was so hard to decide what to eat!

The portions were very generous, and pretty soon we overstuffed ourselves with food. Lesson learned – we need to start sharing our meals. . .

After stuffing ourselves, we headed out to Buena Vista Social Club located within walking distance of the restaurant. We were looking forward to music, dancing and a night of fun. The club was located upstairs in an open-air building, perched on a balcony with an open space in the middle. The entrance fee was 30 CUCs, and it included 3 free drinks. In our minds, we were expecting music and dancing all night long, but what we encountered was more of a series of singing/dancing shows to watch while sitting in assigned seats with our cheap/watered-drown drinks. At times there were opportunities for the audience to walk up to the “stage” area to dance with the performers, but those moments were really forced and quite awkward. With an open space in the middle and tables set everywhere, there was no space for you to dance even around your table area. Also this was a place all the tourists went to, so the experience was quite touristy. I was quite disappointed! We decided to leave and try another music club the next night.

Day 2: Exploring Havana

We spent our second day exploring La Habana Vieja (Old Havana). Our casas particulares was located in Centro Habana, so we walked along the Malecon to get there.

We started the day by visiting Museo de la Revolucion, or the Revolution Museum. There we learned about the history of Cuba and its struggles with revolutions over time. The museum used to house the government, so it was interesting walking around the rooms where officials used to have meetings in and also to see the bullet holes from past revolutionary attempts. Be warned – there is no air conditioning in the building, so it is super stuffy in there, especially on a hot summer day!

After the museum we stopped ate lunch at La Calesa Real, a recommendation from our Ala Mesa app, somewhat similar to Yelp but without the user reviews.

After lunch we started our self-guided walking tour of Old Town, which included 4 major plazas: Plaza de la Catedral, the Plaza de Armas, Plaza Vieja, and Plaza de San Francisco. Along the way we walked through Calle Obispo, which is a walking street with lots of shops and street vendors and Calle Mercaderes, a cobbled street with restaurants and museums throughout.

At Plaza de Armas, we stopped by Castillo de la Real Fuerza, the oldest stone fort in the Americas. Inside there is a small maritime museum that’s worth a quick look. Admission is 3 CUCs. Once inside the museum, you can climb to the top of the fort to get a good view of the area.

After a fruitful day enjoying Old Town, we had dinner at Cha Cha Cha, another recommendation from Ala Mesa.

Of course we cannot end a night in Havana without some music and dancing. Though I was disappointed with my experience at Buena Vista Social Club, we decided to try again by visiting the famous Casa de la Musica that moved from Centro Havana to Mirarmar, a longer taxi ride away.  This was a better experience for me than the one at Buena Vista Social Club, though the show/live music started much later, closer to 11 PM. The inside reminded me of a dance floor of a club, only there was a stage up front and it was full of tables for visitors to enjoy the show. Cover charge depends on the different shows, and that night we paid 15 CUCs for entrance, and drinks were separate. Maybe it was due to the location, but overall the vibe of this place was more local than touristy, and there was room for dancing nearby your tables, so I would recommend visiting Casa de la Musica over Buena Vista Social Club.

Day 3: Travel to Vinales

After 2 nights in Havana, we headed to our next destination: Vinales, the “country side” about 2.5 – 3 hours from Havana. The weather was so hot, so we hired a private taxi with air conditioning for this drive. The cost was 100 CUCs, which wasn’t too bad if you are sharing the taxi. Another option for getting between cities in Cuba is the taxi collectivo, which is a shared ride. The cost of a collectivo is about 25 CUCs.

After a quick lunch at El Olivo, which was highly recommended by our casas particulares host, we hired a private taxi to give us a tour of Vinales and its surroundings. On this tour we enjoyed a boat ride inside Cueva del Indio, walked through Cueva de San Miguel, took fun pictures at Mural de la Prehistoria, and enjoyed the view of Vinales from Hotel Los Jazmines.

After our tour, we ate dinner at Finca Agroecologica El Paraiso, located on a farm, with a view of the Vinales Valley. We even a bonus tour of the farm from the resident farmer there. He took us through the farm to show us a viewpoint, and he also showed us his work area where he made cigars.

We ended our night dancing at the Centro Cultural Polo Montanez. The Centro Cultural Polo Montanez is located in the plaza at the center of town. Admission is only 1 CUC. Similar to the clubs in Havana, you get to enjoy a live  and music, but this place is far more intimate and local than the places we went to in Havana. The culture center was full of locals, and everyone was friendly and knew how to dance. We spent the night learning how to salsa and danced the night away. This was by far one of my favorite experience in Cuba!

Day 4: Explore Vinales

On our second day in Vinales, we signed up for a 5 hour horseback riding tour through the Vinales Valley. In the morning, we set out with our guide Luis, and we rode through the town of Vinales and entered the Vinales Valley on horseback.

The first stop was at the tobacco farm where we learned about the tobacco plants and how cigars are rolled/made. I even got a chance to try smoking a cigar (and smoking in general) for the first time in my life. I found the idea quite gross, to be honest, but then in Cuba, you gotta try it out! We dipped the tip of our cigar in honey, so it didn’t taste gross at all!

The next stop was at a coffee plantation that also manufactures a local rum made from a local fruit.

 

We also visited a small cave (“Swallow Cave) and stopped by for a quick bite at the Valle el Silencio view point before heading back to town.

I had a blast on the horseback riding tour! The valley was so beautiful, and it was so much fun exploring on horseback. And the best part? It was only 30 CUCs per person! Definitely not a price you easily find at home!

After a long hot day, we kicked back with a homemade meal at our casas particulares, made by our casa host’s mother. The dishes ranged from lobster from the market to avocado and fried plantains from our casa’s garden. If you are ever in Cuba and staying in a casas particulares I highly recommend buying a meal from your casa – it’s really unique experience!

We enjoyed our time dancing at the Centro Cultural Polo Montanez that we went back for another night of fun.

Day 5: Travel to Havana

Originally we were going to leave for Varadero on this day and stay for a couple of nights before heading back directly to Havana airport, but due to the anticipated arrival of Hurricane Irma, we decided to skip Varadero and spend an extra day in Havana instead. We wanted to make the most out of our trip to Vinales, so we decided to pack in the morning before heading back to Havana. Thus, we signed up for 2 tours – Los Aquaticos and Cuevas de Santo Tomas (the largest cave in Cuba and second largest in the American continent).

Los Aquaticos is a mountain community that is only accessibly by horse or on foot, with a beautiful view of the Vinales Valley. We arranged for a sunrise tour, leaving our casa at 6AM, first on a horse-drawn cart and then on foot in the dark. Beware – the trek on foot is an adventure in itself. The path is very muddy (especially since it rained the day before), and the path is quite challenging at times (stream crossings, steep and narrow trails). Once you complete the trek, you will be rewarded with a beautiful sunrise view over the valley.

Visiting Los Aquaticos is a must do, and if you can, go for sunrise. There is something magical about making this journey under the cover of darkness, with the moon illuminating the the mogotes from behind, casting beautiful silhouettes along the way.  This was by far the highlight of my entire trip to Cuba!

At the end of the trek you can visit the local family that lives in the community at the “blue house” at the top. From the house you can sip on fresh squeezed juices and home-grown coffee while enjoying the view of the valley. The home-grown coffee was available to purchase as “artisan crafts” packaged in recycled water bottles. If you prefer ground coffee, they even grind it for you on the spot!

After our first morning adventure, we hired a taxi to drive us to Cuevas de Santo Tomas, the largest cave system in Cuba and the second largest on the American continent. To visit the cave you will need to sign up for the guided tour, which is 10 CUCs per person and totally worth it. The tour will provide a hard hat and a head lamp, and if you need to you can rent shoes for the trek. After destroying our shoes on the muddy hike to Los Aquaticos, we ended up renting a pair of shoes (2 CUCs) at Santo Tomas before going on the group tour to the cave. I was so glad I rented the shoes. The cave was located at the top of a steep hill, and we had to hike up quite a ways before entering the cave. The hike was steep and narrow, and there was no way I would have made it with my sandals. It would be a good idea to bring a good pair of sneakers or hiking shoes on this visit.

The cave was huge, and it was gorgeous! There were different levels of the cave, so at times we would have to climb up/down ladders and climb through openings in the cave. When we were deep inside the cave, our guide had us turn off our headlamps so we could get a sense of how dark the place was. I even got to see real live bats for the first time! Though Santo Tomas is a little farther away from town than the other caves, this was my favorite cave in Vinales. It is definitely worth the trip and the taxi ride there.

After an action-packed morning, we left for Havana in the afternoon. After settling in with our casas particulares, we went to La Guarida‘s rooftop bar to watch sunset over Havana before heading out for dinner at La Catedral.

The adventures in Vinales tired us out, so we decided to skip dancing and music that night.

Day 6: Travel back to US. Good bye Cuba!

We did a quick shopping trip along Calle Obispo, and then it was time to leave. 🙁

Though the time was short, we had a blast in Cuba. There was so much more we wanted to do, so I guess we will just have to look forward to coming back in the future!

Where do you recommend going in Cuba? Leave me a message!