| Highlights |
Sip Cuban rum whilst relaxing on the gorgeous beaches - go to Cayo Largo for some of the best. For some culture, Havana is a fascinating city to visit - once known for its infamous gambling, it has transformed itself into a reputable capital filled with architecture, traditional music and a sense of nostalgia. Viñales is a small but charming town set in a stunning ancient landscape of tranquil valleys with weird and wonderful rock formations. Trinidad is a well preserved colonial town surrounded by sugar and tobacco plantations, perfect for an exhilarating horse ride, whilst Santiago de Cuba has a distinctly Caribbean flavour, with a fantastic music scene and famous fiestas. With the backdrop of the beautiful Sierra Maestra, Santiago and the surrounding areas were at the centre of the 'revolution' led by Fidel Castro. Cienfuegos is a prosperous seaport on the south coast at the foot of the Escambray Mountains. Baracoa is a beautiful town which lies between two bays surrounded by tropical countryside, perfect for any history or nature buff. Visit the Bay of Pigs for information about the Cold War and 1961 invasion. Go diving at Isla de la Juventud, Robert Louis Stevenson's inspiration for Treasure Island, or at Varadero. Visit the mogotes in Pinar del Rio, rounded limestone mountains surrounded by lush green vegetation. Wherever you choose to go, Cuba is never dull.
Due to political isolation, Cuba has avoided being overrun with tourists, making it the perfect destination if you are looking to escape the crowds. The locals show nothing but friendliness to those who do visit, and a loosening of the reins since Raul Castro's takeover has made interaction with Cubans not working in the travel industry much easier. This is certainly a country that has long gone against the grain, and there is more to surprise and explore in this Communist state than in many other better-loved travel destinations. It is an easy country to travel in, and one of the most rewarding.
For those looking for a quiet trip the countless pristine beaches and wild backcountry offer a retreat for hikers and swimmers or those simply looking to chill out under a palm tree. This is an island with natural beauty and an unparalleled diversity of flora and fauna. For the more active amongst you, Cuba is internationally renowned for its delicious cocktails, sparking salsa scene and famous fiestas.
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| History |
When Columbus reached Cuba in 1492, he encountered three indigenous groups: the Siboney, Guanahatabey and Taino. Although all three were virtually wiped out within 50 years, Siboney and Taino are popular terms in Cuba still.
In addition to disease, the Spanish and French settlers who followed brought with them sugarcane and later slaves; both sugar and Cubans of African descent continue to help define the character of the island. The racial make up of the country is a mosaic of these separate waves of human inhabitation and in Cuban cities, dynamic and varied racial mixtures can be observed.
Two wars of independence defined 19th-century Cuba. The first, between 1868 and 1878, ended in stalemate; the second, in which the rebels were inspired by the poet and revolutionary, José Martí, began in 1895 and ended when the USA was drawn into the war in 1898. Interestingly, the term 'yellow journalism' was coined during this latter Spanish-American war. Cuba was initially occupied for two years by US forces. After their withdrawal in 1901, the USA maintained effective political and economic control of the island, while Cuba was governed by a series of corrupt dictators including Fulgencio Batista. Then came Fidel Castro and his rebel army which overturned the hugely corrupt Batista Government in 1959, establishing a socialist republic. He became the first, and only Secretary of the Communist Party in Cuba. All US businesses were expropriated in 1960, and diplomatic relations between the two countries were broken by the USA. Thereafter, Cuba accelerated relations with the Soviet Union and the USA instituted a full economic and financial blockade on the island.
In 1961, the US Central Intelligence Agency organised a corps of anti-Castro rebels to invade the island. This 'Bay of Pigs' invasion was a complete fiasco; all the invaders were captured or killed and US involvement was quickly revealed. The following year, Soviet missiles capable of hitting targets in the USA were installed on Cuba. President Kennedy ordered a naval blockade against the island. The confrontation escalated to the threshold of nuclear war, before Kennedy and Khrushchev reached a settlement.
When the Eastern bloc dissolved in 1989, Cuba lost nearly all its trading partners and foreign aid overnight. A 'Special Period in Time of Peace' was declared, an extraordinarily difficult economic period that threatened the revolutionary government's survival. In the new millennium, Cuba began pulling back from the economic abyss, largely thanks to help from Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, Evo Morales in Bolivia and aid from the People's Republic of China.
In recent years Fidel Castro suffered illness that led to the National Assembly electing his brother Raul Castro to replace him as President of Cuba.
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| Geography |
Cuba is an archipelago of islands located in the northern Caribbean Sea at the confluence with the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The United States lies to the north-west, the Bahamas to the north, Haiti to the east, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands to the south, and Mexico to the west. Cuba is the principal island, surrounded by four smaller groups of islands: the Colorados Archipelago on the north western coast, the Sabana-Camagüey Archipelago on the north-central Atlantic coast, the Jardines de la Reina on the south-central coast and the Canarreos Archipelago on the southwestern coast. The main island consists mostly of flat to rolling plains, apart from the Sierra Maestra in the southeast.
Cuba has a hot almost tropical climate all year round. The majority of rainfalls between May and October and January to April are the cooler months when the least amount of rain falls.
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