Cuba Multi Sport

Itinerary

Day 1 Havana

Arrive at Havana Airport, meet your tour guide and transfer to the hotel. One of the oldest cities in the western hemisphere, Havana was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982. It contains a wealth of colonial architecture, and the old city and streets around the malecon (ocean-side walkway) are best discovered on a walking tour.The Spaniard Diego Velázquez moved San Cristóbal de la Habana in 1519 from its original site to its present location and the city remained a port of relative obscurity, within the empire, until gold and silver began to flow from New World mines back to Spain. Havana became the gathering hub for shipments of treasure from the ports of Cartagena (Colombia) and Veracruz (Mexico).Soon pirates turned their attention to the port and the city of Havana and its annual treasure trove became the number one target for the Dutch, English and French. Eventually the Spanish began construction of various forts and a protecting wall to repel the invaders. Nevertheless, the city was sacked in 1762 and held by the British under the command of Lord Albermale for nearly a year. Eventually, the Spanish exchanged the Florida territory in trade for the island. The end of the British occupation also signalled the beginning of more economic freedom for the islanders, as they were given the right to trade with cities other than Cadiz in Spain. The ensuing economic boom translated into steady growth in population and material progress.The main area of interest to visitors is La Habana Vieja (The Old City), where walking or a taxi tour are the best modes of transportation. Points of interest in this part of town include La Catedral de San Cristóbal de La Habana, the Palacio de los Marqueses de Aguas Claras (which now houses a restaurant), the Museo de Arte Colonial and the Plaza de Armas, with its statue of Manuel de Céspedes (one of the leaders of the Cuban independence movement). The Palacio de los Capitanes Generales is also located on the Plaza de Armas, which now houses the Museo de La Ciudad. You will find the oldest colonial fortress on the plaza’s northeast sector, the Castillo Real de la Fuerza, whose construction began in 1558.The city is home to various museums, and depending on your area of interest, there is practically a museum for everyone. One of the city’s (and the island’s) most prominent attractions though, are its music and clubs. Everywhere you go you will hear and feel the music and see people freely dancing in the streets. The island literally pulses with the beat and blend of Afro-Hispanic rhythms and movement.

Day 2 Pinar del Rio (B,L,D)

Depart for Pinar del Rìo and enjoy cycling through the area and the community visiting the ruins of the Buenavista coffee plantation, the Curujey ranch and the San Juan river. In the afternoon, go for a swim in the river and enjoy a picnic lunch. Continue cycling toward Soroa and visit the waterfall. Depart by bus to your hotel for the night.Pinar del Rio is a bustling, appealing town southwest of Havana. It appears to have more bicycles per capita than any city in Cuba, with masses of cyclists crowding the roads. The better than average transportation facilities make it easy for touring this colourful province.

Day 3 Pinar del Rio (B,L,D)

Cycle to Viñales Valley. Ride through the town and out into the countryside enjoying the beautiful and unique hills called “mogotes”. Lunch in Rest Dos Hermanas. In the afternoon cycle back to your hotel.

Day 4 Cienfuegos (B,L,D)

Depart by bus to Havana where bikes and lunch will be delivered. Continue to Cienfuegos.Cienfuegos is a delightful and interesting city with a history largely different to that of the rest of the country.It is a pleasant city which, because of its role as an important port, both domestically and internationally, has a slightly more cosmopolitan feel about it than most other areas in the south. The streets are straight and wide with the Paseo del Prado, which dissects the city and extends out to the peninsula's end, being the most important street. The street extends south through the Punta Gorda area and north along the bay, there are some excellent views to be had from here, especially at sunset when the bay takes on a quiet and brooding appearance.This important port has many sights clustered around Parque Jose Marti, including the Casa de la Cultura Benjamin Duarte, where it's possible to climb a tower for stunning coastal views. Visit the Palacio del Valle, the architectural pride of Cienfuegos. The botanical gardens is perhaps the most famed botanical garden in the country, housing over 2000 tropical and sub-tropical plants. Among the impressive collection of plant species are more than 200 types of palm trees of araceae, there is also a collection of different types of palm trees indigenous to Cuba.

Day 5 Trinidad/Topes de Collantes (B,L,D)

Enjoy a morning kayak session. After lunch check-out and travel to Trinidad. Explore the city and continue to Topes de Collantes.Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988, is home to lovely Spanish-style churches and great museums. La Villa de la Santísima Trinidad was founded by Velásquez in 1514 and the defender of indigenous rights in the Americas, Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas, attended over the settlement’s first mass. The future conqueror of Mexico, Hernán Cortés recruited sailors here for his future expedition into that land. It is a charming, small town with the green mountains of the Sierra del Escambray in the background, and the turquoise waters and pure white, sand beaches of the Caribbean Sea just a short distance away. The town and area also saw a lot of action during and following the triumph of the Revolution, as gangs of counter revolutionaries hid out and struck from the safety of the mountains. The Museo Nacional de la Lucha Contra los Bandidos and the Casa de los Mártires de Trinidad chronicles the struggles of this period in the town’s history.Trinidad is the hub of the cultural activity, and you are never out of earshot from a group of musicians playing local salsa or son. The town also has the requisite Casa de la Trova, a mainstay of Cuban musical culture in every town, the Palenque, Las Ruinas, Teatro de Brunet, the Artex, the nightlife, the conga lessons and salsa lessons. Enjoy two included salsa lessons during your time in Trinidad.The nearby Valle de los Ingenios (Valley of Sugarmills) is where you will see some remains of the island's vast sugar cane plantations. The beautiful green landscape has attracted visitors from around the world who visit it for enjoying its historical and cultural attributes. Valle de los Ingenios was fairly inactive until the 1800s, when French refugees fleeing a slav revolt in Haiti landed here en masse and brought with them sugar cane cultivation. The new residents settled and farmed in the valley. Wealth flowed into the local economy from sugar cane cultivation and the area produced one third of the country’s sugar at one point. The sugar boom was terminated by the two wars of independence, but the wealth generated by the industry remains visible in the town’s once grand mansions, colourful public buildings, wrought iron grill work and cobblestone streets.

Day 6 Varadero (B,L)

Travel by van to Guanayara Natural Park, to hike the trail “Centinelas del Rio Melodioso”. Lunch will be served in La Gallega Hacienda. Return to Topes by van and depart by bus for Varadero.Topes de Collantes is a nature reserve park in the Escambray Mountains range in Cuba. Nature is the big attraction here. Caves, rivers, falls, grottos, canyons, natural pools with crystal clear water, mountain hills surrounded by Mariposa (Butterfly lily, Hedychium coronarium) Cuba’s national flower announcing their presence with a soft unique fragrance from June to early September. More than 40 indigenous species of orchids and 100 species of ferns, of which 7 are 6m (20 ft) tall palm-like ferns, wild plantain and banana trees, jasmine, begonias, several representatives of the ginger family and around 40 species of coffee are growing under the shade of giant 40m tall pines, eucalyptus, mahoganies and magnolias making the wonder of this tropical rain forest. Important animal species live here as well. They include the cartacuba (Todus multicolor), royal woodpecker (Campephilus principalis), unique hummingbirds, and Cuba’s national bird the tocororo (Priotelus Temnurus).

Day 7 Varadero/Havana (B,L)

Travel to Rio Canimar. Take part in a morning kayak sesion in the river and in the afternoon continue to Havana.Varadero is a resort town in the province of Matanzas, and one of the largest resort areas in the Caribbean. Varadero is also called Playa Azul, meaning "blue beach" in Spanish. Varadero is first and foremost a tourist resort town, boasting more than 20km of white sandy beaches that makes up the Peninsula de Hicacos; a beach so large that even lined with large resorts and filled with every imagnable watersport, it remains uncrowded. For a refreshing afternoon, find an open air cafe with street musicians where you can sip "Mojitos" a popular Cuban drink made more so by Hemmingway's taste for them.

Day 8 Havana (B)

Transfer to the airport for your onward flight.