★ Cuba Travel Guide

Source: © iStock.com/rgreatrix

Cuba's Top Attractions &
Best Places to Visit

June 17, 2015

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Escape Hunter

Cuba is a vast country, there are dozens and dozens of wonderful attractions to see, so this list only picks a handful of places of interest.

These below would be the very top place I wouldn't like to miss out on when traveling to Cuba.

#1 El Malecón

The Malcón is an esplanade stretching along the coast in Havana.
A scenic place with lots of old buildings, a great place for spotting the old yank tanks driving by.

The length of this broad roadway is 8 km (5 mi) long.

The Malcó is part of Old Havana (the historic city core), which I chose to treat separately, below...

#2 Old Havana

Locally known as La Habana Vieja, it's the central part of Havana - where the city actually grew out from.

While Old Havana is an attraction itself, I can't help highlight several places of interest (individual attractions within the attraction constituted by the old historic district):

Plaza Vieja, Plaza de Armas, El Capitolio, the Havana Cathedral, the Church of Angel Custodio, the El Floridita Bar (as historic fish restaurant, actually, opened in 1817), the Museum of the Revolution (where you can see objects that have belonged to Che Guevara and the engine of the Lockheed U-2 that was shot down during the Cuban Missile Crisis), the Gran Teatro de La Habana (Great Theatre of Havana) and there are 4 heavy fortresses there as well (Castillo de la Real Fuerza), Castillo El Morro, Catillo San Salvador de la Punta, La Cabaña.

#3 Partagas - Real Fabrica de Tabacos - Cigar Factory

Even if you're a no-smoker (like myself), you should still learn about and see Cuban cigars - since they're so famous. And, what better place to do this, then pay a visit to a cigar factory?

#4 Cienfuegos

Yet another city with stylish old buildings and a scenic port area.
Cienfuegos should not miss from your itinerary if you'd like to enjoy a thorough trip within Cuba.

The hotspots include the Plaza José Martí, Palacio de Valle, Jagua Castle.

#5 Varadero

Cuba's most popular beach destination attracting an abundance of foreign tourists.
Gorgeous beaches with palms and turquoise water make this a wonderful destination. And, luckily: you can fly in directly, there are lots of airlines serving the Varadero Airport.

There's a large number of modern hotels and there's good service.

#6 Pinar del Rio and the Viñales Valley

Pinar del Rio is the name of a scenic province and its capital with the same name, famous for the Viñales Valley found in it.

The Viñales Valley is a scenic lush green valley, believed to be Fidel Castro's favourite place in Cuba.

It's not just the beauty of the place that's important, it's also a major tobacco producing region. In fact, considered to produce the best tobacco in the entire Cuba.

#7 Trinidad

The town of Trinidad is an incredibly scenic quiet old town east of Havana.
Thanks to its splendid views, Trinidad and the Valle de los Ingenios have landed on UNESCO's World Heritage sites list in 1988.

Travelers also like visiting Trinidad for taking old steam engine-driven train trips in the area.

About the Author:

Escape Hunter, the young solo traveler in his early 30's explores the World driven by curiosity, thirst for adventure, deep passion for beauty, love for freedom and diversity.
With a nuanced, even humorous approach to travel, an obsession for art and design, Escape Hunter prefers to travel slowly, in order to learn and "soak up" the local atmosphere...