The beautiful Caribbean island of Cuba, situated south west of the USA, is known to most travellers and tourists due to its turbulent cold war history with the US and its remaining a communist state. However, Cuba offers plenty for travellers to see, do, and eat with incredible historical architecture and sunny weather. With the recent news that its fifty-year-long US trade embargo has ended, the time is ripe for visiting before the ‘Americanization’ of its culture begins.
Hotels
Over the last couple of years Cuba has increasingly expanded as a tourist destination, from further emphasis on its rum tours to the huge variety of live music and nightlife in Havana. As the country is set to finally open its doors to North American holidaymakers, new hotels are cropping up all over the place, with at least nine set to open in Havana within the next five years. These are set to compete with the current range of hotels for all budgets, from newer luxurious honeymoon resorts to family friendly, vintage B&B styles, including a converted former mob palace.
Food
It’s difficult to say what impact the importation of American groceries will have on traditional Cuban menu fare, which usually consists of simply prepared dishes with Spanish, African, and Caribbean influences and organic, locally-sourced ingredients. Unless you are staying in an inclusive resort hotel, the best grub can usually be found at a paladar (home restaurant) or street food made by locals and sold on the premises, usually in the front garden. In bars and restaurants, rum is very easily available and remarkably cheap, with bottles available for approximately 3$CUC, and is used as a base for a wide range of cocktails.
Culture
As with all of the Caribbean islands, Cuba is ideal for visiting to get some R&R on a sunny beach, but its unique cultural charms beg to be appreciated. For an introduction to the country’s turbulent history, visit the Museum de Revolucion, or wander around the art galleries of Havana’s Plaza Vieja. For a big picture tour of Havana, take a classic car tour in a modified pre-revolutionary classic car for the novelty of it. If you’d rather escape the city for a few days, bookworms and nature lovers alike can hop on a bus to Finca Vígea and visit Ernest Hemingway’s house.
