Travelers flock to Savannah, Georgia, to see its picture-perfect scenery – like a time capsule of years past with carefully preserved architecture.
21.07.2023 - 08:10 / roughguides.com
Sitting just 160 km off Florida’s coast, Cuba is the largest of the Caribbean islands. From its bigger cities to its rural utopias, each area of Cuba has its own specific history and unique atmosphere. But at 109,884 km², the island is bigger than most people realise and you might just have to make some hard choices when it comes to your itinerary.
To give you a hand, we’ve put together a list of five of the best places to go in Cuba on a first-time visit.
Most trips to Cuba start and end in Havana. But Cuba’s capital deserves to be first on the list for many more reasons than its convenience as a transport hub. Full of free spirit, crumbling buildings and classic American cars, Havana is a heady mixture of the run-down and the sophisticated, charged with an under-current of excitement and vigour.
La Habana Vieja, Havana’s old town, is where most of the action takes place. Wander past colourful facades to check out grandiose monuments like El Capitolio (the National Capitol Building). Next, check out the baroque 16th century Catedral de San Cristobal. Then break for a cocktail at the Plaza de Armas, the city’s longstanding social hub.
Before delving headfirst into Havana’s legendary nightlife, spend the rest of the afternoon people watching at the Malecón. The seawall’s coastal views and carefree atmosphere make it one of the best places to go in Cuba.
A ride in an American classic car is a must when in Cuba. Take this 2-hour ride through the streets of Centro Habana, Vedado and Miramar before heading to the famous Hotel Nacional for a sunset cocktail. Cuba in style!
Spend 4 nights in Cuba's capital Havana before heading to the white sandy beaches of Varadero: The Culture and Beaches of Cuba trip is the ideal sample for those wanting to taste Cuban life in the capital before relaxing on the beach.
View of Viñales Valley, Cuba © Zaruba Ondrej/Shutterstock
It’s been said that Castro’s favourite place on the whole of the island was the Viñales Valley. It’s not hard to see why. Interspersed with rocky karst outcrops, its fertile plains run against mountains to breath-taking effect. Most importantly, the Viñales Valley is also where the country’s finest tobacco is grown – likely another reason for the cigar-loving leader’s adoration. A few days in Viñales will give you a perfect snapshot into rural Cuban life. And while the town is certainly tiny, there’s a dance club if you feel like letting off steam in the evening.
Explore the region on an e-bike: discover tobacco plantations, stop en-route to chat with the ever-friendly locals and visit a cave that has since turned into a night club.
Discover Western Cuba in depth with this sample trip. After two nights in Havana you set out to explore Soroa and Vinales
Travelers flock to Savannah, Georgia, to see its picture-perfect scenery – like a time capsule of years past with carefully preserved architecture.
OAG, which dubs itself an “air travel intelligence company,” has released its top-10 rankings of the most and least punctual airlines in 2016. The group analyzed 54 million flight records using full-year data from 2016 to compile the list, and for the purposes of the study defined “on-time” as “a flight that arrives or departs within 14 minutes and 59 seconds (under 15 minutes) of its scheduled arrival/departure time.”
The best place in the U.S. to buy a vacation home is Sevierville, Tennessee, in the foothills north of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. That’s the lead finding of a new report from Vacasa, the major vacation home rental site. The report names the top 25 locations for buying a vacation home based on capitalization, or “cap rates,” which is a ratio of home cost and the income a property can produce by being rented out.
The esteemed Dr. Beach has released his annual list of America’s top ten beaches, and you’ll want to visit all of them this summer—doctors orders.
In Willemstad, the capital city on the island of Curaçao, the waterfront is dotted with buildings the color of tropical fruit: mango orange, banana yellow, kiwi green. Paired with the bright blue water in nearby bays, it’s almost a full kaleidoscope of color. Originally, the structures were limestone white, but an 1817 law forbade white facades on buildings to protect islanders’ eyesight from the bright reflections of the Caribbean sun – but locals joke that it was a money-making bid on behalf of the island’s only paint supplier.
Australia enacted some of the most strict lockdown restrictions in 2020, which kept any and all tourists out. Then, in February, the country once again opened back up to Americans — just in time for the more comfortable Australian winter temperatures.
Abutting the US border with Canada, North Cascades National Park is a land of contrasts. Cerulean blue lakes sit at the foot of mountains forested in deep green pines, with their peaks capped in snow and pointing to the heavens. The park mirrors the various landscapes of the Pacific Northwest, shifting from mountainous areas dominated by rain showers and heavy snowfall to arid plateaus cut by glaciers since melted into alpine rivers and lakes. The park is remote, accessible only by the beautiful North Cascades Highway or from hiking trails to the north.
The culinary landscape of Havana is shifting. While Cuba is not typically known as a gastronomic destination, a new wave of innovative restaurants is putting the capital on the foodie map for the first time.
Georgia’s leafy capital is due its time in the spotlight. Dynamic, progressive and home to one of the country’s most exciting food scenes, Atlanta is the new star of the South. Whether you stay for a week or stop by on a layover, you’ll soon discover why it’s one of our top 10 cities to visit this year.
While the American lobster is found all along the east coast of North America, from Newfoundland to North Carolina, it is most commonly associated with Maine, where the crustacean is abundant and devoured in a number of dishes and numerous restaurants.
As any cyclist will tell you, there's few better ways to see the world than on two wheels. From Armenia to Vermont, here's some of our favourite bike trips across the globe. Let us know your own favourite cycling holidays below.
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