This itinerary is subject to minor changes during the trip. All meals and activities are included in the cost unless indicated by “cost not included.”
DAY 1: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6 | WELCOME TO CUBA
Meet at Santa Clara International Airport. When you arrive in Havana, you will pass through customs, get your bags, and exit the airport. Don’t be alarmed if it takes a long time to get your luggage. Cuba has a very slow x-ray system to scan all bags. When you exit the airport, you will be greeted by our Cuban tour guide, chauffeur, and U.S.-based tour leader who will be holding a PRCNO sign. We will gather outside the airport in groups according to arrival times and transfer to our accomodations.
2:30 pm ~ Light lunch and welcome mojitos at El Mejunje in Santa Clara. Welcome to Cuba! We won't get to spend much time in this historically important and culturally vibrant city, but we will begin our journey with a drive by the Che Guevara Memorial and a light lunch with mojitos at the El Mejunje. This performance venue and cultural center began a simple gathering of bohemians and intellectuals and grew as a multifaceted and unconventional cultural space that broke down national barriers to accepting LGBTQ culture in Cuba.
3:30 pm ~ Transfer to Trinidad. During the drive, our travel staff will introduce themselves and give you some important information about Cuba.
6:00 pm ~ Arrive at your bed & breakfast in Trinidad for a home cooked Cuban meal. We will be spending the nights at a bed & breakfast in the countryside. Trinidad has houses in their colonial streets that date back to the 1500s. Being able to stay in these homes is a more fun and personal way of getting to know the country life and its people. We will have a special home-cooked welcome dinner by our host family.
9:30 pm~ Open-air music concert. Every night there is music under the stars at the Casa de la Música just a short walk from our houses. Like Rome’s Spanish steps crossed with a Grotto, locals and foreigners gather to sit on the stone steps called la Escalinata or at bistro tables and listen or dance to Cuban rhythms.
DAY 2: SATURDAY, DECEMBER 7 | LICO'S BIRTHDAY IN TRINIDAD & CIENFUEGOS
9:00 am ~ Breakfast in our villa. Our house will cook a traditional Cuban breakfast which usually includes café con leche, freshly squeezed tropical juice, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, eggs, and ham.
9:30 am ~ Tour of Trinidad’s historic core with historian Nancy Benitez. This morning we will be guided through Trinidad’s Casco Histórico, the crown jewel of Cuban colonial architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This includes the Plaza Mayor, many cobblestone pedestrian streets, and museums of colonial sugar barons including the Palacio Cantero and the Sanchez Iznaga Mansion. Our specialist, Nancy Benitez, is the historian of Trinidad and is very in the field of local restoration. During this tour, we will visit the house where Lico Jimenez lived and trace his history here.
11:00 am ~ Free time to explore Trinidad. Take time to wander this beautiful colonial village on your own or with your guide. There are local artist galleries, artisan kiosks, and other fun places to explore. We recommend the museums of colonial sugar barons including the Palacio Cantero and the Sanchez Iznaga Mansion. You must have your bags ready to leave for Havana promptly after lunch.
12:00 pm ~ Lunch at paladar Los Conspiradores. Located in a 1750's corner villa at the foot of the Escalinata, this private restaurant is owned by an antique collector who has furnished it as it would have been a hundred years ago featuring delicious homemade traditional country cuisine.
2:00 pm ~ Live Concert of Tonadas Trinitarias. Celebrate the birthday of Afro-Cuban composer José Manuel "Lico" Jiménez Berroa (1851-1917) at the Plaza Jiménez Berroa Zambrana where he was born in Trinidad de Cuba, a UNESCO Heritage site. Tonadas Trinitarias, founded in 1848, will perform and be presented with a Certificate of Appreciation from Lico's descendants, for preserving music native to Trinidad. Led by Claro Valdespino, the elder member and lead percussionist of the group, with his son Francis de Asis Valdespino, the lead dancer and one of the singers, the musicians will accompany us as we march to the home of Lico's aunt Catalina Berroa, first female composer of Cuba, where they will sing her song, "La Trinitaria" in front of her home.
3:30 pm ~ Depart for Cienfuegos. Drive on a small road that cuts through the Escambray Mountains and then cruises along the coast to Trinidad, a charming UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the seven cities founded by the Spaniards between 1510 and 1515. Arrival for sunset.
5:00 pm ~ Check into the Buena Vista boutique hotel for dinner. Our boutique hotel is an old colonial family house recently remodeled and located in the center of the city of Cienfuegos. Buenavista preserves the aesthetics and colonial architecture of which the city is an exponent, with a contemporary decoration linked to the active local cultural and artistic production. On the patio, you can rest in the pleasant Cuban climate while you enjoy the pieces of Cienfuegos artists that decorate the room. Dinner will be served at 6:00 pm.
8:00 pm ~ Cudanza interactive dance workshop at the Teatro Terry. Join us for a tour of the historical 19th-century Italian-style Teatro Terry by the theater's Artistic Director Miguel. We'll see a dance performance and rumba class taught by Wuendy Estrada Soto, past recipient of the Certificate of Excellence from Lico's descendants. Finish off the evening with cocktails.
DAY 3: SUNDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2024 | CIENFUEGOS
8:00 am ~ Cuban breakfast at our villa. Wake up to a typical Cuban breakfast of eggs, fruit, breads, ham, cheese, juice, and other selections.
9:00 am ~ Morning free in Cienfuegos historic core. A relatively young town in Cuban terms, Cienfuegos was founded in 1819 by French settlers from America and Haiti. As a result, there’s a decidedly French provincial town feel about it and because of Cuba’s isolation for so long, the entire town is almost as it was in its 19th-century glory days. The entire old city of Cienfuegos is a UNESCO world heritage site and the square, flanked by stunning neo-classical facades, wide streets, and a collection of palaces and public buildings, is an example of why it is considered a colonial treasure. We will have some free time to explore, shop in the markets, and talk to the locals on the Prado Promenade and Central Park.
11:00 am ~ Check-out. Meet with your luggage for lunch and head to Havana.
11:30 am ~ Palacio del valle. Take a stroll down Punta Gorda to see the old French houses of New Orleans style. Arrive at the former 1910’s palace of a wealthy sugar baron. The ghosts of Cuba’s past, when rich sugar barons built elaborate mansions and planted out vast estates, still seem to linger in the sultry Caribbean air, especially around the central Cuban city of Cienfuegos. Lavishly decorated with Neo-Moorish, Venetian and Gothic motifs and often compared to the Alhambra Palace in Spain, the Mudejar architectural style of this home resembles an elaborate wedding cake.
12:00 pm ~ Lunch at Finca del Mar. We will have lunch on the water at the tip of the peninsula of Punta Gorda at this scenic paladar. The food is reliably outstanding.
2:00 pm ~ Check out and depart for Havana. Leave Cienfuegos and head to Havana. On this drive, we will transition from the Southern Caribbean to the Atlantic. The route will cross many sugar cane fields and agricultural farms. We’ll have a rest stop along the way, stretch, and use the bathroom
5:00 pm ~ Check into the Casa Calis. We will be staying in one of our favorite private boutique hotels in Havana. This charming, comfortable, and stylish house is set in the centrally located Vedado neighborhood. The staff is very friendly and serves the best breakfasts in the city. This is an opportunity to support independent small businesses and get to know Cuban people on a more personal level.
7:30 pm ~ Welcome dinner at El Del Frente. Enjoy specialty cocktails and mojitos in our favorite restaurant in Habana Vieja. El Del Frente makes food and drinks that will rival any trendy restaurant in New Orleans.
9:00 pm ~ Evening concert or cultural activity (optional). Enjoy your first evening in Havana with live jazz, Latin music, or one of many art or film events happening in the city during this exciting week of international cultural programming. We'll have our ears close to the ground and suggest many great options to choose from as we get closer to our travel dates.
DAY 4: MONDAY, DECEMBER 9 | OLD HAVANA
To best experience the historic core of Havana, we will be walking--more today than any other day. Please wear your best walking shoes and anything else that will help you be comfortable such as a hat, sunglasses, a backpack, and sunscreen. Shorts and t-shirts are fine to wear. And make sure to grab some waters from the bus in the beginning of the day. There will be many interesting things to see while we walk but we ask you to please stay together as a group. There will be plenty of time to return and visit anything on your own. If the walking is too much please let Gretell know and we can arrange an alternative accommodation that best meets your needs.
8:00 am ~ OPTIONAL: Early morning yoga with Julie Carmen. Julie Carmen will lead a Yoga Therapy for Travelers classes with the goal of helping each traveler adjust to their unique travel challenges. No previous experience is necessary.
9:00 am ~ Breakfast at our villas. Wake up to a typical Cuban breakfast of eggs, fruit, breads, ham, cheese, juice, espresso, and many other selections. The Casa Calis serves our favorite breakfasts in Cuba which is served daily from 8:00 - 10:00 am.
10:00 am ~ Old Havana four plazas walking tour. We will get to know the historic core of Havana surrounding our hotel. In this UNESCO World Heritage Site, we will see extraordinary Colonial architecture of Cuban baroque and art nouveau, both well preserved and decayed, many galleries, contemporary centers, boutique museums, and little shops. We'll begin with the Plaza de la Catedral where our hotel is located. There we’ll visit the collective graphic arts workshop, Taller de Gráfica. This public studio for local artists was established by Pablo Neruda and Che Guevara at the beginning of the Revolution as a place where artists living and visiting Havana work on printmaking. Next we'll see an exhibit at the Wilfredo Lam Center. We'll continue on to la Plaza de las Armas, Havana’s first square and origin point of the city’s settlement. The next stop is Plaza San Francisco where we'll enter the Basílica. End at the Plaza Vieja where we can see a couple of exhibits of contemporary Cuban art at two of Havana’s most important contemporary art centers, El Centro del Desarollo de Arte Contemporánea and la Fototeca de Cuba.
12:30 pm ~ Lunch at Los Mercaderes. We’ll stroll down the oldest street in Havana, Calle de los Mercaderes (Merchants Street), to have lunch in a beautiful new restaurant built inside the home of the owner.
2:00 pm ~ The music and legacy of the Jiménez family of musicians with live performances by Johana Simon and commentary by Dr. Olavo Alén. At the Casa Humboldt in Old Havana, Olavo Alén, Director of the Center for the Research and Development of Cuban Music, will deliver a dynamic multimedia presentation on the history of the Jimenez family of musicians. His presentation will be accompanied by live performances of Lico's repertoir by Johana Simon and other Cuban musicians. This glimpse into 19th-century Cuban musical life will contextualize the concerts and other events throughout this tour.
3:30 pm ~ Time at leisure. Continue exploring Old Havana or return to the hotel to connect to WiFi, recharge your batteries, or take a siesta.
7:30 pm ~ Dinner at La Guarida. Anyone who has been to La Guarida will find it difficult to disagree that Enrique and Odeisys have managed to create their own magical home restaurant. The building, originally known as La Mansión Camagüey, shows its former grandeur from the magnificent wooden entrance door through the marble staircase up the two flights of stairs to the restaurant itself. The location is glamorized by Cuba's provocative and most iconic film “Fresa y Chocolate.” La Guarida has gone on to become one of the most popular restaurants in Cuba. On the menu is a choice of squash soup, eggplant caviar, or smoked marlin tacos for a starter; fish, chicken, or pork for the main course with sides of rice, black beans, fried yuca and plantains; and a cocktail, spring water, and coffee for dessert.
10:00 pm ~ Late night noir (optional). After dinner with those who are interested, we will visit some of Havana’s most interesting bars and music venues with an emphasis on showing you some of the out-of-the-way dives that give the city its grit and sense of noir (optional--cost not included).
DAY 5: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10 | THE HAVANA ART BIENNIAL
9:15 am ~ Breakfast at our villas. Your house will cook a traditional Cuban breakfast which usually includes café con leche, freshly squeezed tropical juice, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, eggs, and ham.
10:00 am ~ Detrás del muro. The popular and unique exhibition of the Habana Biennial, called Detrás del Muro (Behind the Wall), transforms Havana's famous "Malecón" into a long outdoor corridor gallery along the city's waterfront. Enjoy a series of outdoor sculptures and installation works by artists from Cuba and abroad. The exhibition stretches from Maceo Park to La Fortaleza de la Punta.
11:00 am ~ Ernest Hemingway’s Finca Vigía. Visit the hilltop house of American writer Ernest Hemingway where he lived from 1940 – 1960 with his wife, Martha Gellhorn, and their children. Cuba was Hemingway’s most frequented country where he wrote the Old Man and the Sea, To Have and Have Not, and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Hemingway donated his Nobel Prize to the Cuban people. His home in San Francisco de Paula has recently been the subject of a massive preservation effort by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. At this farm, you will see his sport fishing boat, the Pilar. The Finca Vigia estate and the fishing village of Cojimar are considered the most significant locales for those interested in Hemmingway’s history.
12:30 pm ~ Lunch at La Esquina. We'll have a light lunch at a neighborhood outdoor cafe called La Esquina. Family-owned and operated by an Italian and Cuban couple, they specialize in salads, calzones, and other unique innovations.
2:00 pm ~ Opening at Cristina Vives Gallery. We will attend an opening at the gallery of Cristina Vives, Cuba's most respected independent contemporary art curator. She has played a significant role in the success of many contemporary Cuban artists who are now active in the international art world. Cristina, along with her daughter Cristinita Figueroa, supports and champions a new generation of artists, some of whom you will see in their home. They have also established a collaborative relationship with the Norwegian Embassy, which is next door to their studio, and regularly hold collaborative art events. The opening will showcase “Obsessions and Accumulations: The artists' cabinet” with works by Alexandre Arrechea, Alejandro Campins, Javier Castro, Jacqueline Maggi, Fidel García, Alejandro Gonzalez, Lorena Gutierrez, and Fernando Rodriguez.
3:30 pm ~ House tour of Curator Pamela Ruiz. Pamela Ruiz and artist Damien Aquiles have invited us to their beautifully restored luxurious Havana mansion for a tour with cocktails. Read more about their home and story in New York Times Style Magazine.
4:30 pm ~ Return to our accommodations for dinner and evening exploration on your own. Relax, connect to WiFi, or explore the city on your own. There are dozens more art shows of the Havana Biennial as well as Film Festival screenings and gatherings to participate in. We’ll recommend dinner options and make reservations at the best restaurants in town such as O'Reilly 304, El Del Frente, Jama, Ecléctico, Casa Mía, and Atellier (optional – cost not included).
10:00 pm ~ Suggestion: Tropicana Caberet. The Tropicana was the most famous nightclub in the world from 1939 to 1959. Built in the gardens of an early 20th-century residence, it contains one of Cuba’s most significant modern buildings, the Arcos de Cristal (1952), a thin-shell concrete structure by architect Max Borges Recio. The club continues to operate and is the only of Havana’s famous clubs to survive the Revolution. You will see the gardens and the show, which is based on the 1950s cabaret-era spectacles (optional–cost not included--talk to Gretell about reserving tickets ahead of time).
DAY 6: WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 11 | GRAND FINALE
8:00 am ~ Morning yoga class with Eduardo Pimentel (optional). For those of you who want an early rise and sun salutation, be ready to leave at 7:30 am for Eduardo Pimental's yoga studio. Pimentel, known as the "Godfather of Cuban Yoga," has taught in Nepal and at a Yoga Journal conference in Colorado. He has authored three books published only in Cuba. Pimentel's teaching style was inspired by "Light on Yoga" by B.K.S. Iyengar. He met Iyengar in 1997 and developed a similar retreat in Cuba. Pimentel has dedicated his career to spreading yoga throughout Havana and has taught in Catholic churches and cultural centers. Despite challenging times when the country lacked basic necessities, Pimentel received government support.
9:15 am ~ Breakfast at our villas. Your house will cook a traditional Cuban breakfast which usually includes café con leche, freshly squeezed tropical juice, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, eggs, and ham.
10:00 am ~ The Cuban art circuit at El Apartamento gallery. Spaces now play a significant role in showcasing some of the most notable independent projects within the local art scene. One such space is The Apartment, which is currently hosting an exhibition called "The Cuban Art Circuit." This exhibition offers a comprehensive collection of the younger generation of Cuban superstars such as Raúl Cordero, Arles del Rio, Tomás Esson, Leandro Feal, Diana Fonseca, Rene Francisco, Flavio Garciandía, Orestes Hernández, Reynier Leyva Novo, Yornel Martínez, Levi Orta, Eduardo Ponjuán, and Ezequiel Suárez.
11:00 am ~ Private performance with modern dance company "Mi compania". Watch one of Cuba’s top contemporary dance companies under the direction of Susana Pous. We will visit a beautiful house transformed into her private dance school and company headquarters.
12:30 pm ~ Lunch at Cinco Sentidos. Located in a mid-century modern home with an exceptional view of the Havana seafront and a piano-shaped swimming pool, this restaurant is a favorite place to catch the breeze while enjoying quality Cuban cuisine inspired by the sea.
3:30 pm ~ Afternoon free to attend Art Biennial and Film Festival events. Continue to explore the art of the Havana Biennial. Or attend the Havana Film Festival, which is also happening and includes a range of activities such as screenings of fiction, documentary, and animation films, graphic design exhibitions, panel discussions, and industry events.
6:00 pm ~ Classic convertibles scenic car ride. Leaving from our hotel, we will travel to our final dinner “Havana-style” in a fleet of specially selected 1950s American convertibles that will take us on a scenic route through Havana’s most beautiful neighborhoods. Don't forget your cameras!
7:00 pm ~ Final dinner at El Cocinero. El Cocinero (“The Cook”) is just as much about the Havana arts scene as it is about food. Built into the same building as the Cuban Art Factory, this paladar pushes the limits of private industry and government cooperation in an atmosphere offering landmark views and enthusiasm for a variety of mediums. The restaurant makes use of the old smokestack of a 100-year-old and long-abandoned cooking oil factory along the Almendares River between the Vedado and Miramar neighborhoods.
9:00 pm ~ Evening concert or cultural activity (optional). Savor your final night in Havana with live jazz on a rooftop, Latin music, or one of many art or film events happening in the city during this exciting week of international cultural programming. We'll have our ears close to the ground and suggest many great options to choose from as we get closer to our travel dates.
DAY 7: THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12th | ¡HASTA LUEGO CUBA!
9:00 am ~ Breakfast at our villa. Your house will cook a traditional Cuban breakfast which usually includes café con leche, freshly squeezed tropical juice, fresh fruit, bread, cheese, eggs, and ham.
8:00 am ~ Transfer to José Martí International Airport. We will bring people to the airport in groups according to departure times. You will be assisted through check-in.