The itinerary:
Arrive in Havana
Taxi to Casa Particular in Old Havana
Explored Old Havana on foot
Had drinks at the Floridita, which was made famous by Ernest Hemingway! Spoiler Alert: the drinks were meh, In my opinion, there are better options.
Dinner & wayyyy better drinks at 304 O’Reilly! Best food and drinks I had in Havana!
Photo/Walking Tour around Havana (booked through Air Bnb experiences- 3 hour tour)
After the tour ended, we just roamed around on our own through the city streets popping into random bars with live music. It’s such a lively city; there was music filling the streets!
Night out on the town at the Casa de la Musica in Miramar. (There are 2 Casa de la Musicas in Havana. The Miramar location is where the locals go!)
TIP: If you are in Havana between the days of Thursday and Sunday you need to go to Fabrica del Arte. It’s all any and everyone talked about in Cuba. Unfortunately we were there on a Monday and Tuesday night and it was closed!
Day 3
Taxi collectivo to Viñales (I will discuss taxi collectivos more at the end!)
Check in Casa Particular
Horseback riding tour through the Viñales Valley to a coffee and tobacco plantation. We learned about the coffee making process and how to roll a Cuban cigar. This was booked on Air Bnb and it was my favorite activity of the entire trip. There were 4 people in our group including myself, my friend and a couple that we had just met on the tour. We all ended up polishing off a bottle of Havana Club rum with the tobacco farmer and danced the night away to salsa in a dark barn using only the light from our phones to see. It was the best night ever
Day trip to Cayo Jutias (It’s 2 hour taxi ride for only 20 miles because the road conditions to this particular beach were terrible!)
Returned to Viñales and ate at La Esquinita in town (they have WiFi)
Day 5
Taxi Collectivo to Varadero (5 agonizing hours crammed in a car, but worth it)
Arrived around 1pm and headed for the beach after checking into our Casa Particular
Ate dinner at El Caney (good food!)
Night out at Casa de la Musica & Calle 62! I really enjoyed Calle 62, they blocked off the side road beside the bar and had a block party with people dancing in the streets. I made friends with some girls from France, Senegal and Madagascar and went with them to Casa de la Musica afterwards! I love connecting with people from all over the world!
Day 6
Beach all day (We used access in front of Casa de la Musica. You can rent an umbrella for $3 CUC and the lifeguard will bring menus and serve you food and drinks at your request. The fresh coconut waters were amazing!)
Day 7
Beach again until check out time
Private Taxi to Havana
Stop at Mirador de Bacunayagna on the way back to Havana (Get a pina colada served in a fresh pineapple and admire the tallest bridge in all of Cuba!)
Day 8
Airport and return home
Cuba Travel Tips
#2 – Whew, communication was a challenge! I can speak a small amount of Spanish, and I had a really hard time! Not many people speak English there, so I suggest downloading google translate and use when you have internet and are able!
#3 – Stay at Casa Particulars! If you are American, you will need to stay in this form of accommodation anyways to be within the travel guidelines of your visa requirements. It will not disappoint! This is such an authentic travel experience and the Cuban hospitality is unmatched! My favorite casa was in Viñales. The view and the food were both incredible. You can book these on Air Bnb!
#4- Bring plenty of cash! American credit and debit cards do not work in Cuba. I also exchanged my USD to Euros at my local bank in the US and then changed from Euro to CUC at the airport in Cuba. I read that there is a 10% tax when converting USD to CUC, so its best to change to a different currency before arriving to Cuba.
#5- Screenshot or physically write down the addresses and telephone numbers to your Air Bnbs! Because of the limited WiFi, you will not be able to search for the address on the internet, so be prepared!
#6- Getting around in Cuba is not the easiest, or the most comfortable! A Taxi collectivo is a shared taxi. They are cheaper, but they literally cram as many people in one car as possible. It is quite uncomfortable and it takes longer because they have to go around and pick everyone up that needs a ride. Although, you can hire a private taxi. They are more expensive but they are more comfortable. Ask your host at your casa to set you up with a taxi, you will have no problems getting one arranged. The cost of the taxi depends on how far you are traveling. I believe the trip from Havana to Viñales was $25 CUC per person and the longest trip from Viñales to Varadero was $60 CUC per person.
#7- Cuba is very safe! I did get a few cat calls here and there, but other than that everything was wonderful!
#8- I booked a photo tour on Air BnB where a local guide took photos for us with his professional camera. Some of the other photos were taken by my travel buddy with an iPhone!