My feet dangled from the open door of the old Russian helicopter as we traversed the Escambray Mountains of Cuba at treetop level. That was decades ago when I first visited the largest island in the Caribbean. At its closest it is only 90 miles from Miami and it would take you an hour to fly from the western to the eastern part of the island.
Cuba is amazingly diverse, though many only know it from the all inclusive hotels that dot the island’s amazing beaches. From the mist filled valleys of Pinar del Rio to the rushing waterfalls of the Sierra Maestra Mountains in the east Cuba has something to satisfy even the most spoiled traveller.
Sunset at the Sol Caribe Varadero
A good start for Canadians (who unlike US citizens, have been allowed to travel here since the 1980’s) is Varadero. Besides having an amazing beach it is in a key location to take a day trip to Old Havana with its 16th century church and fortifications and its Capitol building which looks like its American counterpart in Washington, DC. Or you can stay overnight and take in an evening performance at the world famous Tropicana nightclub. This was the one Barry Manilow was comparing the Copacabana to in his song, when he wrote of “…the hottest club north of Havana…” It was once the hangout of gangsters and wealthy financiers, but mostly you will find European and Canadian tourists these days, though the fabulous dancers haven’t changed!
Another must-do is to tour to the southern part of the island at the Bay of Pigs for warm water, snorkelling to see amazingly colourful tropical fish and taking a swamp buggy through the Cienaga de Zapata to see the ferocious looking and endangered Cuban crocodiles and tour a reconstructed Taino native village on a cluster of islands in the centre of the swamp. Unlike my shaky Russian helicopter ride many years ago transportation will be a comfortable air conditioned bus.
Our base of operations for this trip was the luxurious Sol Caribe Beach hotel. With an ocean view suite we were comfortably set up to enjoy an amazing week. The staff were inevitably friendly, and always willing to honour a request. We have always felt immensely safer in Cuba versus other Caribbean destinations. The last time I was in Cuba I misplaced my bag with money and passports. Items I’ve left behind in other destinations have disappeared without a trace but here it quickly turned up at the front desk!
Nightime by the pool
We really enjoyed the beach with ample beach chairs and lots of shade for our pale northern complexions (or sunshine and tanning for the more daring…but wear sun screen!) The pools were spotless, both the larger central pool where aerobics, pool exercises and lots of music enhanced the experience, or relax at the smaller, quiet pool. Evening entertainment was lively and varied with a taste of local culture.
The Sol Caribe Beach offered a dedicated coffee bar with Starbucks calibre coffees available in the all inclusive price. We befriended baristas Dios and Brenda (see photo) and had many a cappuccino and latte. Later in the day these went down even better with a shot of aged Cuban rum on the side (and yes, I know, you’re not supposed to drink cappuccinos in the afternoon, but what the heck!)
Our lovely baristas, Dios and Brenda
For Canadians, Cuba offers very reasonable pricing for a great experience of beach, nature and lively Cuban culture. Currently the world situation has resulted in shortages of certain essentials but we didn’t notice this much at our hotel. Cuisine is still good, varied and ample.
One thing that visitors may want to do is bring items like notebooks, pens and crayons for children, or soap, toothbrushes and similar items which are greatly appreciated, probably more than cash by the many mom’s who staff the hotel. Nail polish and hair bands also put a smile on many faces. We filled a suitcase with these types of items and emptied it before we left. This is a great way to make sure you have enough room to bring back holiday purchases!
Waist line endangering pastry array
One of the nicest features for us was that we could get direct charter flights with Air Transat from our home town of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The day we left, a Nor’easter blizzard hit Nova Scotia. The airport pretty much closed down but lucky for us our flight had landed the day before. The day we left we found that the departure board was a red sea of cancelled flights with a tiny island of blue…which was our flight. With the valiant efforts of Stanfield International Airport’s plow operators and ground crew and our Air Transat flight crew, we took off smoothly and were quickly in clear skies and southbound for a week to thaw out from a harsh Canadian winter.
To speak directly with Sol Caribe hotel sales staff director, e-mail Yolanda.
IF YOU GO:
Photo Credits
All photos by Stella van der Lugt
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