I hope you are ready for a beast of a post. Even though I have only spent two days in Havana, it’s hard to capture the city’s atmosphere into less than 40 photos and 1,000 words. Now that you have an idea of what’s coming for you in this post about beautiful and vibrant Havana, sit back and enjoy the ride.

I can’t say I fell head over heels in love with the city. I arrived late at night, and the only feeling I had was one of dread. As I have mentioned before, I visited Cuba as part of a group tour, so the hotel was pre-booked. I had read the reviews about the hotel online and I was afraid about what I would find upon arrival. Turns out that Hotel Deauville isn’t all that bad – it’s by no means great so I wouldn’t advise you to book it-, and the view along the Malecón is close to perfect. The noise from the nightly music-playing kids on the Malecón not so much but beauty sometimes hurts a little bit.

Day 1: Habana Vieja

Walking Tour
I find that a walking tour is usually the best way to explore a city. It’s a great way to get acquainted with the lay-out, the landmarks & the main sights. I’m going to throw a Dutch saying your way because I feel it’s really accurate: We fell with our noses in the butter with this walking tour, because our tour guide Amed who would be travelling with us for the next two weeks is a masterful storyteller.

Let me start by saying that Havana is not like most Latin American capitals. I’m saying this based on what I’ve heard from others, because I have only visited San José in Costa Rica. This city corroborates what I’ve heard though. I have the impression that most Central & South American capitals are marked as uninteresting to visit & even a bit dangerous at times. This is certainly not the case for Havana! The city
centre feels very small, and there are a lot of historical sight packed into this small centre. It’s a treat to walk through the tiny streets of the city, and I never felt threatened.

Ok, back to the walking tour!

Our starting point was Parque Central. Here you can find a marble statue of José Marti, and the very impressive looking El Capitolio.

It’s a great place to get acquainted with the hustle and bustle of Havana. Ladies are walking around dressed up, hoping for a CUC for a photo, and horse carriages & old-timers are waiting for tourists to get in.

The best way to tackle a walking tour is by hitting up all the different squares in Old Havana. We used the same tactic. Next up was Plaza del Cristo where you escape the tourist hordes for a few seconds and where you can breathe in daily life.

We walked north from Plaza del Cristo and ended up on Calle Obispo. Havana’s main interconnecting artery. It’s packed with art galleries and shops. We spotted a lot of sights from this street.

For example, Hotel Florida with its cute and typical inner courtyard.

A bookstore which storefront is oddly one of my favourite pictures of Cuba.

We had our coffee break at Ambos Mundos hotel, which offers a great lookout over the city. This hotel was one of Ernest Hemingway’s favourite places for writing.

All-in-all, if you’re staying in Havana you cannot miss the colourful and lively Calle Obispo.

At the end of the street, we ran into the next square of the tour: Plaza de Armas. We didn’t visit the Castillo de la Real Fuerza’s fort museum or Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, but according to the Lonely Planet they are both worth a visit. I’ll remember that for next time.

We walked south again to Plaza de San Fransisco de Asis. This plaza is dominated by its church.

Further south we walked to Plaza Vieja, which is a square filled with buildings that started out as private residences. They housed some of Havana’s richest families who would gather to watch the plaza’s gory public spectacles including executions. Today, you wouldn’t be able to tell that these gruesome activities took place since the plaza is the most colourful one of the whole of Havana.

The final stop of the tour was further up north at the Catedral de la Habana. From this stop we could make our own way to other sights we wanted to see.

If you’d like to take part in a similar walking tour, check this one out by Get Your Guide.

La Bodeguita del Medio vs. La Floridita
My newfound friends and I immediately ran to one of Ernest Hemingway’s favourite bars. He has two in Havana. He apparently said: “My mojito in the Bodeguita del Medio and my daiquiri in the Floridita.”

We felt we deserved our first mojito in the country after the tour, and I couldn’t think of a better place than Hemingway’s favourite haunt.

The drinks are lined up, the crowds are reaching the alleyway and vibrant live music is played in the corner. The bar really has to be experienced.

I didn’t check out La Floridita – I don’t think I have even tried the daiquiri in Cuba – but apparently that one’s also worth a visit.

Museo del Revolución

Another sight worth a visit in the city centre is the Museo del Revolución. This museum is housed in the former Presidential Palace, which shows because you can still see the bullet holes made during an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate the president.

You can also tell it used to be the Presidential Palace by how lavishly it is decorated.

In this museum you can find (in chronological order) a description of the events leading up to, during, and after the Cuban Revolution.

I’m not generally a fan of museums, but I liked this one because I’m interested in the Cuban Revolution.

Here you can also find one of the only statues of Fidel Castro. He demanded in his will that no statues be made of him, so this is actually one of the only ones and it’s not much bigger than my hand.

Cristo de La Habana
In the evening we watched the sun set over Havana from the Christ statue.

It is said that he has been positioned with his hands this way to depict a cigar in the right hand and a mojito in the left hand, honoring popular Cuban culture.

It gets quite busy here, so it’s a good place to go for a sunset and for a little picnic.

El Guajirito
The last stop of the day was a bit of a tourist trap, but an incredibly fun one at that. We were lucky to be part of a tour group, led by a Cuban because we managed to get good seats. I’m not sure what it’s like when you go by yourself. We didn’t eat here, but we did enjoy the drinks and dancing.

This bar plays Buena Vista Social Club music and the musicians do so with a smile and a desire to make the audience laugh every now and then. It was a lot of fun to experience this place.

Day 2: Vedado & Outer Havana

Plaza de la Revolución
You will need a car for all the stops on the second day of the trip. Luckily, it’s easy to rent one. If you make it an old-timer, you could also cruise the Malecón as I had done on this day.

Our first stop of the day was one that is really worth a visit: the infamous Plaza de la Revolución. The place where all the political rallies took place and where a huge crowd once collected to hear the Pope speak.

For me, it’s the place where Che’s face is depicted on one of the buildings.

You’ll see Che’s face all over the city actually, so if you want to see his face and you don’t make it to the square. Don’t worry about it.

Fusterlandia
Another stop which really should not be missed, is the lesser known Fusterlandia. I have already dedicated a post to this colourful and artistic area so you can read more about it here.

Conclusion

Havana is a great city to visit when you’re in Cuba. I have heard friends say that they only visited the city one day as per their itinerary and they regretted it.

I loved everything about Havana. The music on every street corner, the very chilled atmosphere, the delicious rum, the beautiful sights and the colourful buildings. Not to mention the insanely gorgeous old-timers.

If you’d like to share your experiences of the city, or if you have any questions let me know in the comments! My next post about Cuba will take us to the west of the country.

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