Cuba Travel Guide

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Top Things to See

Bay of Pigs
Take an emotional journey to the museum at Playa Girón, scene of the US-backed ‘Bay of Pigs' invasion in 1961.

Capitolio
Take a tour of the Capitolio in Havana's center. Built by a dictator to mimic Washington DC's Capitol (though the detailing on Havana's version is finer), it housed a puppet parliament until the Revolution.

Castillo de Farnes
Follow in famous footsteps and have a beer at Castillo de Farnes, where Ché and Fidel Castro toasted the success of the Revolution.

Castillo de la Real Fuerza
Wander around the Castillo de la Real Fuerza and its new shipwreck museum. The oldest of Havana's three forts is still standing because it was, to all intents and purposes, built in the wrong place.

La Bodeguita del Medio
Raise a glass to Hemingway at his old haunt La Bodeguita del Medio (www.palmarescuba.com).

Museo de la Revolución
Visit the Museo de la Revolución for a historical context of modern Cuba. Outside is the Granma, a cabin cruiser built for 12 people. In 1956, 80 exiled rebels (both Castros and Ché among them) came perilously close to sinking the overcrowded yacht, as they sought to return to Cuba.

Museo Emilio Bacardí
Visit the Museo Emilio Bacardí, which contains the rum magnate's collection of antiques and fine art and the Moncada Barracks, where Fidel Castro launched an abortive uprising in 1953. The Castillo El Morro is now a museum of piracy.

Palacio de los Capitanes Generales
Head to the Plaza de Armas in Old Havana for a glimpse of colonial majesty at the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, former residence of the Spanish Crown's representatives, and now the Museo de la Ciudad.

Santa Clara
Visit revolutionary Santa Clara, and the monument, museum and mausoleum of Ché Guevara. His body was only returned from Bolivia in 1997, 30 years after his capture and execution. In 1959, he and 300 rebels defeated 3,000 of Batista's troops here, leading to the dictator's flight just days later.

Trinidad
Feel the history in colonial Trinidad, founded in 1514. Locals ride horses down cobbled streets, past houses painted in pastel colors. Elegant mansions are now museums in this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Top Things to Do

Bask on the beach
Soak up some glorious sunshine from one of Cuba's beautiful beaches, including Playas del Este near Havana, where the locals play, to exclusive island resorts like Cayo Coco. Varadero is a particularly lively resort that combines beach life with nightlife.

Climb Torre de Manaca Iznaga
Enjoy outstanding views of the Valley of the Sugar Mills from the Torre de Manaca Iznaga - a former slave watchtower by an old plantation house-turned restaurant.

Dive into the deep
There are 30 dive sites at Varadero alone. One of the world's biggest coral reefs is offshore at Cayo Coco, and there are more reefs around Isla de la Juventud - Robert Louis Stevenson's inspiration for Treasure Island. Wreck diving is also possible.

Explore mountains and caves
Pinar del Río is arguably Cuba's most beautiful province, and its most outstanding feature must be the mogotes: oddly rounded limestone mountains, covered in lush vegetation. The caves here are awash with stalactites and stalagmites, and underground rivers.

Feel the beat
Experience the country's best musicians and dancers hard at work in Santiago de Cuba. Unmissable are Ballet Folklorico Cutumba: their Afro-Cuban performances are simply spectacular (www.cubanfolkloricdance.com/cutumba.php).

Horse riding
Saddle up and gallop through the scenic sugarcane fields around Trinidad and the Valle de Ingenios, or the hills, tobacco fields and valleys of Pinar del Río.

Meander the Malecón
Join fishermen, families and couples, and take a stroll along the Malecón, the sea wall that links Old Havana to Vedado. Thisi s advised only when the weather is fair; during a storm, the sea can surge over the wall.

Meet the locals
Make time for a couple of nights in a casa particular, eat in paladares rather than state-run restaurants, and strike up conversation whenever possible. Cubans are polite, educated, fun, and keen to make contact with people from other countries.

Party in Havana
Live the high life in Havana's Vedado district. The Hotel Nacional (www.hotelnacionaldecuba.com) has hosted gangsters and film stars and is well-placed for Carnaval processions along the Malecón.

Trek tropical paradise
Hike the Sierra Maestra in the Oriente, dominated by Cuba's highest mountain Pico Turquino, or trek the marshes and forests of the Zapata Peninsula, teeming with bird, mammal and reptile wildlife.