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Cine Yara
The city's most prestigious cinema stands on a busy intersection, and was built in the 1950s as part of the Habana's Radiocentro development. The second-largest cinema in Habana, it has three auditoriums.
It's also a great place to pick up a unique souvenir. There's a fabulous selection of old movie posters, antique postcards, T-shirts and, of course, all the greatest Cuban films on videotape are sold at the shop inside the theatre.
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Cinecito
Tucked behind the Hotel Inglaterra on pedestrianized San Rafael, Cinecito shows films for children, usually animation from the US, Mexico and Spain. There are also puppet performances.
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Circo Trompoloco
Named after a famous Cuban clown, Habana's permanent big top has nightly performances from Thursday to Sunday plus a weekend matinee. It's great for the kids.
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Club La Red
Club La Red is a Vedado disco-club that rarely gets animated before on a Friday or Saturday. Expect piped Western dance music with the odd revved-up reggaeton number thrown in for good measure.
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Club Tropical
Cheap but a little out of the way, this is where you come when your budget's blown but you still want to dance to salsa, pop and rap. After all, why should a lack of funds stop you from shaking your booty?
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Conjunto Folklórico Nacional
The Conjunto Folklórico Nacional, founded in 1962, specializes in Afro-Cuban dancing (all of the drummers are Santería high priests) and offers some of the best rumba in the city. It has toured the world - everywhere from New York to Angola - and is internationally famous. You can see the group perform at the Sábado de Rumba every other Saturday at El Gran Palenque, or to get in on the action you can organize dance lessons.
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Copa Room
Doormen in tuxes and an atmosphere that's pure 1950s kitsch make the refurbished Copa Room a nostalgic draw. Built as part of Mafia boss Meyer Lansky's Hotel Riviera in 1957, the nightclub was requisitioned by Castro's rebel army two years later (Fidel actually held a press conference in the Copa Room on January 21, 1959) as the glitter was quickly taken out of Lansky's hedonistic honeymoon. But the Copa Room has survived to fight another day.
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Discoteca Amanecer
Discoteca Amanecer (Dawn Disco) is another cheap Vedado nightspot that mixes pop and rap. Whether you'll want to stay here until dawn is another matter.
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El Baturro
Part of a long tradition of drinking houses situated next to train stations, El Baturro is a rough-and-ready Spanish bistro with a long wooden bar and an all-male - aggressively so - clientele. Don't come here if you're looking for girly cocktails.
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El Chevere
One of Habana's most popular discos, this alfresco place set in a lush park gets local tongues wagging, and hosts an animated mix of Cubans and tourists.
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El Floridita
Promoting itself as the 'cradle of the daiquirí,' El Floridita was a favorite of expat Americans long before Ernest Hemingway dropped by in the 1930s (hence the name, which means 'little Florida'). Indeed its fame began soon after WWI when a bartender named Constante Ribalaigua began using shaved ice to make frozen daiquirís.
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El Gato Tuerto
Once the headquarters of Habana's alternative artistic and sexual scene, this chic bar with live music still packs in the baby boomers in its role as a well-known shrine to the Cuban bolero. Hidden in a quirky two-story house with turtles swimming in a pond out front, the 'One-Eyed Cat' (as 'Gato Tuerto' translates into English) boasts an upstairs restaurant, along with a downstairs bar and performance space.
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El Hurón Azul
El Hurón Azul is the social club of the Unión Nacional de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (Uneac; National Union of Cuban Writers & Artists), Cuba's leading cultural institution. Frequented by writers and intellectuals, this charming mansion hosts musical performances in its garden. Wednesday is the Afro-Cuban Peña del Ambia and Saturday is authentic Cuban boleros; there's jazz and trova on alternate Thursdays. It doesn't get much better than this.
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Gran Teatro De La Habana
The amazing neobaroque Gran Teatro is the seat of the acclaimed Ballet Nacional de Cuba, founded in 1948 by Alicia Alonso. It is also home to the Cuban National Opera. A theater since 1838, it contains the grandiose Teatro García Lorca, along with two smaller concert halls where art films are sometimes shown. For upcoming events check the handwritten notices posted under the colonnades on the sidewalk outside.
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Havana Café
The Havana Café is a fancy nightclub-cum-cabaret at the Hotel Meliá Cohiba. The decor is 1950s American retro, with old cars, motorcycles, gas pumps, and even an airplane hanging from the ceiling. It's hip and trendy (this, after all, is the Meliá), and most people come here to have dinner and dance. After the tables are cleared and the place rocks to 'international music' until the cock crows.
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Jazz Café
This upscale joint overlooking the Malecón is like a jazz supper club, with tables and a decent menu; come here for cocktails at sunset. Locals will tell you it is one of Habana's best jazz venues - at night, the club swings into action with jazz, timba (modern salsa mixed with funk, rap and rock) and occasionally straight-up salsa. It's a pity the dance floor is just a strip between the tables.
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Jazz Club La Zorra y El Cuervo
Vedado's most famous Jazz Club is La Zorra y El Cuervo (the Vixen and the Crow) on Calle 23 (La Rampa), which attracts long lines of committed jazz fiends. The subterranean performance space is smoky and a little cramped (the official capacity is 130), but the freestyle jazz showcased here is second to none. In the past, this club has hosted such big names as Chucho Valdés and George Benson.
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Karachi Club
The Karachi is a ferociously caliente (scorching!) disco situated on a leafy Vedado street corner. Rumba dancing has been reported here, but you're far more likely to encounter Euro-disco, techno and rap.
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La Bodeguita del Medio
Made famous thanks to the rum-swilling exploits of Ernest Hemingway, a visit to Habana's most celebrated bar has become de rigueur for literary sycophants and Walt Whitman wannabes. Notables including Salvador Allende, Fidel Castro, Nicolás Guillén, Harry Belafonte and Nat King Cole have all left their autographs on La Bodeguita's wall.
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La Casa De La Música Miramar
The Casa de la Música in Miramar is one of Habana's top music venues, launched with a concert by renowned jazz pianist Chucho Valdés in 1994. Run by national Cuban recording company Egrem, its programs are generally a lot more authentic than the cabaret entertainment you see at the hotels. As well as Valdés, platinum players such as NG la Banda, Los Van Van, Aldaberto Alvarez and Su Son play here regularly.
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La Dichosa
It's hard to miss the rowdy La Dichosa on busy Calle Obispo, despite the fact that it doesn't display its name outside. Small and cramped, with at least half the space given over to the resident band, this is a good place for a quick drink before heading off down the road.
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La Lluvia de Oro
It's on Obispo and there's always live music belting through the doorway - so it's always crowded. But with a higher-than-average hustler-to-tourist ratio, La Lluvia de Oro might not be your most intimate introduction to Habana. Small snacks are available and the musicians' 'hat' comes round every three to four songs. Bring plenty of small change.
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La Madriguera
Locals bill it as a 'hidden place for open ideas,' while outsiders are bowled over by the musical originality and artistic innovation on display. Welcome to La Madriguera, home to the Asociación Hermanos Saíz, the youth wing of Uneac. This is where the pulse of Cuba's young musical innovators beats the strongest. The program is varied but there is a strong bias towards the three Rs: reggaeton (Cuban hip-hop), rap and rumba.
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Las Orishas
In the heart of Habana's Santería community, Las Orishas is a funky restaurant that at the weekends hosts live rumba music, including regular visits from the Conjunto Folklórico Nacional. The pleasant garden bar is surrounded by colorful Afro-Cuban sculptures depicting Santería deities such as Babalou Aye, Yemaya and Changó. Well off the beaten track and hard to get to at night, this quirky music venue is usually visited by foreigners in groups.
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Macumba Habana
Cocooned in a residential neighborhood southwest of Cubanacán is Macumba, one of Habana's biggest venues for live salsa. The outdoor setting is refreshing and the sets are long, so you'll get a lot of dancing in. You can also dine at La Giradilla in the same complex. This is a great place to catch jazz-salsa combos and timba music; NG La Banda performs here regularly. Hotels and Infotur sell excursions here, but you're better off catching a cab.
