C
Cafetal Buenavista
The most moving ruins in Las Terrazas are about 1.5km up the hill from the Puerta las Delicias eastern gate, and accessible by road. Cafetal Buenavista is…
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Artemisa & Mayabeque Provinces
Leap-frogged by almost all international visitors, Cuba’s two smallest provinces, created by dividing Havana Province in half in 2010, are the preserve of more everyday concerns – like growing half of the crops that feed the nation, for example. But in among the patchwork of citrus and pineapple fields lie a smattering of small towns that will satisfy the curious and the brave.
The most interesting corner is Las Terrazas and Soroa, Cuba’s most successful ecoproject and an increasingly important nexus for trekking and birdwatching. East of Havana, Jibacoa’s beaches are the domain of a trickle of Varadero-avoiding tourists who guard their secret tightly. Wander elsewhere and you’ll be in mainly Cuban company (or none at all) contemplating sugar-plantation ruins, weird one-of-a-kind museums, and improbably riotous festivals. For a kaleidoscope of the whole region take the ridiculously slow Hershey train through the nation’s proverbial backyard and admire the view.
Explore Artemisa & Mayabeque Provinces
- CCafetal Buenavista
The most moving ruins in Las Terrazas are about 1.5km up the hill from the Puerta las Delicias eastern gate, and accessible by road. Cafetal Buenavista is…
- PPuente de Bacunayagua
Marking the border between Havana and Matanzas provinces, this is Cuba’s longest (314m) and highest (103m) bridge. Begun in 1957 and finally opened by…
- PParque Escaleras de Jaruco
This wild park, 6km west of Jaruco via hushed unmarked lanes, is a protected area featuring forests, caves and strangely shaped limestone cliffs. Havana…
- MMuseo del Humor
Unique in Cuba is this fun selection of cartoons, caricatures and other entertaining ephemera. Among the drawings exhibited in a neoclassical colonial…
- FFinca Excelencia
Fitting right into the ecological rainbow of Soroa is this private farm where you can relax, learn about medicinal plants and even partake in a day of…
- CCasa-Museo Polo Montañez
The former lakeside house of local musician Polo Montañez, regarded as one of Cuba’s finest-ever folk singers, is now a small museum containing various…
- OOrquideario Soroa
Tumbling down a landscaped hillside garden next door to Hotel & Villas Soroa is this labor of love built in the late 1940s by Spanish lawyer Tomás Felipe…
- SSan Pedro & Santa Catalina
These ruins of a 19th-century coffee estate are down a branch road at La Cañada del Infierno (Trail to Hell), midway between the Hotel Moka access road…
- SSalto del Arco Iris
The vegetation-rich 'rainbow falls' is a 22m-high cascade on the Arroyo Manantiales. The entrance to the park encompassing it is to the right just before…
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Artemisa & Mayabeque Provinces.
See
Cafetal Buenavista
The most moving ruins in Las Terrazas are about 1.5km up the hill from the Puerta las Delicias eastern gate, and accessible by road. Cafetal Buenavista is…
See
Puente de Bacunayagua
Marking the border between Havana and Matanzas provinces, this is Cuba’s longest (314m) and highest (103m) bridge. Begun in 1957 and finally opened by…
See
Parque Escaleras de Jaruco
This wild park, 6km west of Jaruco via hushed unmarked lanes, is a protected area featuring forests, caves and strangely shaped limestone cliffs. Havana…
See
Museo del Humor
Unique in Cuba is this fun selection of cartoons, caricatures and other entertaining ephemera. Among the drawings exhibited in a neoclassical colonial…
See
Finca Excelencia
Fitting right into the ecological rainbow of Soroa is this private farm where you can relax, learn about medicinal plants and even partake in a day of…
See
Casa-Museo Polo Montañez
The former lakeside house of local musician Polo Montañez, regarded as one of Cuba’s finest-ever folk singers, is now a small museum containing various…
See
Orquideario Soroa
Tumbling down a landscaped hillside garden next door to Hotel & Villas Soroa is this labor of love built in the late 1940s by Spanish lawyer Tomás Felipe…
See
San Pedro & Santa Catalina
These ruins of a 19th-century coffee estate are down a branch road at La Cañada del Infierno (Trail to Hell), midway between the Hotel Moka access road…
See
Salto del Arco Iris
The vegetation-rich 'rainbow falls' is a 22m-high cascade on the Arroyo Manantiales. The entrance to the park encompassing it is to the right just before…
Guidebooks
Learn more about Artemisa & Mayabeque Provinces
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