| Day
5 |
Havana
- Viñales
Taking
the new freeway Havana
- Pinar
del Rio it is possible to avoid the old Central
Highway and to reduce the necessary time to cover the
distance between both points. In les then two hours
you arrive to the city of Pinar
del Rio.
There are approximately 180 km of distance.
The
trip is very pleasant. You can find florid fields, abudant
vegetation, valleys and some mountain chains, as the
Sierra de Rosario, one of the most beuatiful places
of the Isle. It is one of the reservation of the Biosphere
of the country.
This
route doesn't cross towns or cities. It starts in Havana
and it ends up in the city
of Pinar del Rio, capital of the province with the
same name, and the westernmost of the country. It is
located in the western end of the Isle.
All
Through this route, you will find in both sides of the
freeway landscapes and cultivated fields. Nevertheless,
you can choose certain deviations to get to small towns,
cities and very attractive touristic centers.
The
deviation could be:
In the km 50, you can move away from the freeway and
4 km far you will find the San Juan River, a place of
wild nature, cascades and small lakes, ideal to take
a bath and enjoy a camping day.
2 km far through the same highway you will get to La
Moka Hotel. This touristic center,
located among big trees and surrounded by pure, wild
nature, is probably one of the nicest and most pleasant
places of the country.
Soroa.
A national park with a hotel,
a magnificent orchd garden, divers nature and the most
amazing Cuban flora. It laso counts on an observatory
that, to get there you will have to climb stones and
mountains, and finally, a great valley to your feet.
There
are some of the towns you will find if you cross the
city
of Pinar del Rio 5 to 20 km far: Artemisa, Candelaria,
San Critóbal, Los Palacios, Paso Real de San
Diego, Herraduras, Consolación del Sur, Viñales,
La Coloma, San Luis, San Juan y Martinez, Guane, Sandino
and Mantua.
You
can also, all along the iternerary, visit some touristic
places of interest like Los Portales Cave, La Güira,
which is a National Park, the Santino Tomás Cave,
the Mines of Matahambre, Cayo Levisa, Cayo Paraiso and
Maria
La Gorda. All these places are located a few
km far from the city
of Pinar del Rio.
Cape
San Antonio is the westernmost point of the country
Just
before you arrive to the city
of Pinar del Rio, you can turn to the right
and there you will find a group of touristic places
of great value.
Among them it stands out the Viñales
Valley, a prominent height, in which you it is located
the Hotel
Los Jazmines. This is the most spectacular
touristic scenario in Cuba. It is a group of hummocks
that surround a great valley where you will find the
famous Cuban tabacco plantations.
Near
the valley you can find interesting places such as The
Indian Cave, the San
Vicente Hotel and Hotel
la Ermita.
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| Day
7 |
Viñales
- Cienfuegos
Back to Havana and from there ...
From
Havana to Guamá:
Departing from Havana
you can take the highway about 200 km and arrive to
Zapata March.
Taking the highway heading Playa Girón near the
Central Australia, you will find Guamá, which
is the name of an original Taino village, as those belonging
to the Cuban ancient inhabitants when the Spanish came
to colonize the Isle.
Guamá
is a very special touristic center. It is the reproduction
of a Taino village on the water.
Beautiful indigenous style cabins are built on pivots
in the water. Hanging bridges link the residences to
the central point where there are a quay of yachts and
boats, a restaurant and a balcony.
About
30 km forward is located Playa Girón, a place
full history. There, the inviasion organised by the
CIA in April 1961 took place.
There are still remains of the infernal combat, which
happened about half a century ago. But now, there is
also a village, a school, a museum, a restaurant and
Hotel
Playa Girón. A few kilometers before is Hotel
Playa Larga, another historical invasion point.
From
Playa Girón to Cienfuegos:
Less then 100 km seperate Playa Girón from Cienfuegos,
taking the southern coast and skirting the swamps. It
is a journey amid abundant vegetation very near to the
coast, small villages and scare cities.
The
Jagua
Hotel is a great place to lodge in Cienfuegos.
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| Day
9 |
Cienfuegos
- Trinidad
From
Cienfuegos to Trinidad:
Skirting approximately 50 km of coast you can
get to Trinidad,
in a journey where very dens vegetation, valleys, plantations
of sugar and small towns are found.
Trinidad
city is like anyone would say "A city detained
in time", where large houses, cherches and buildings
of the XVII, XVIII and XIX can be admired just the way
they used to be at that time. It is a beautiful, kind
of an alive historical relic, because their new resedents
have taken charge of conserving it. It is not a "dull
city", but it is vivacious, loquacious, picturesque
and really nice.
You
can lodge in several casa
particulares and hotels:
Las
Cuevas, Brisas
del Mar, Ancón,
Costa
Sur, the luxery Gran
Iberostar Trinidad or the idylic Finca
Maria Dolores
In the outskirts of the city you can stay in Topes
de Collantes
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| Day
13 |
Ciego
de Avila - Camaguey
From
Ciego de Avila to Camagüey:
Taking
the Central Highway it is a 150 km trip crossing the
center of the island and passing by small and distant
towns. Here you will be able to see sugar cane fields
to both sides, cattle and fruit-bearing territories.
Following
this route you will find the small cities of Colorado,
Gaspar, Piedrecita, Alganabo, "Carlos Manuel of
Cespedes" and a bigger one Florida.
Then
you get to Camagüey,
one of Cuba's historical cities, among the first ones
been founded by Spaniards in the Isle. It is a city
with many old buildings, churches, parks and squares.
It is very well conserved that's why people can appreciate
the typical city that the Spaniards used to settled
down in their colonies.
The
best hotel is Camagüey
Hotel, two kilometers far from downtown. From
this place you can enjoy two quite different types of
distraction.
One
is Santa Lucia, a beach 60 km far from the city. It
is a beautiful coast of sand and sea.
Four comfertable and modern hotels allow the visitor
to lodge and enjoy the charms of the place. In Santa
Lucia, besides taking a bath in its calm waters it is
also possible either the aquatic activity, yatismo,
diving, and fishing or driving to Cayo Sabinal. This
is a magnificent territory with beautiful beaches and
cabins to lodge.
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