DAY 1 Friday USA-Havana

• Check in for ​flight from departure city
• Arrive at Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport
• Pick up luggage and meet your tour leader at the arrival area 
• Visit Finca Vigía, Ernest Hemingway’s residence in Havana for over 20 years

Peek into the Cuban home of celebrated novelist Ernest Hemingway, where the celebrated writer penned “The Old Man and the Sea” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” On this guided tour you will get a sense of the writer’s life in Havana and see his collection of books, trophies, and other memorabilia. Outside you will be able to view the gardens, pool, pet cemetery, and Hemingway’s boat, Pilar.

• Head to your lodging for check in and orientation
• Visit the famed Hotel Nacional

The upscale Hotel Nacional is one of the country’s most famous landmarks, with a fascinating and storied history, ranging from a major mafia meeting in the ’40s that took place on-site to tunnels in the gardens used during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The common spaces, including the lobby and the ocean-view gardens, are gorgeous. Some past famous guests include Frank Sinatra, John Wayne, Winston Churchill, Mickey Mantle, and Marlon Brando!

• Experience a ride in a classic convertible car around Havana City

Havana is beloved by American visitors with its collection of thousands of vintage American cars, manufactured before the Revolution and subsequent US embargo. In the absence of automobile imports, these living relics are preserved by Cuban mechanics or improvised fixes by the owners themselves. Experience an hour in a classic convertible Chevy, Ford or Oldsmobile!

DAY 2 Saturday Havana 

• Greet the day with a one hour yoga session at Parque Lenin, a big green park in Havana; head back to lodging to freshen up
• Visit Old Havana and learn about Havana’s world-renowned UNESCO heritage designated architecture on an expertly guided walking tour (2 hours)

There is no better introduction to Cuba than a walk through Old Havana, where the streets are full of life – vendors, musicians, performance artists abound. On this walk you will explore Old Havana’s five major plazas and see the interiors of cathedrals and other important buildings. UNESCO designated Old Havana as a world heritage site in 1982.

• Visit the Taller de la Grafica to meet lithographers at their collective

Located in the heart of the old city, Taller de La Gráfica de la Habana is one of Havana’s most revered artistic attractions, featuring lithograph artists who create and sell their own experimental work on site.

• Lunch at El del Frente paladar
• Visit a privately owned jewelry and clothing shop, run by Cuban entrepreneurs OR Visit the Museo de la Revolución and learn a bit about Cuban history
• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 3 Sunday Havana

• Yoga session at the studio of Eduardo Pimentel, the “Godfather of Cuban yoga”
• Visit Fusterlandia, neighborhood of artist Jose Fuster, for a tour and Cuban lunch

Inspired by works he saw by Gaudí in Spain and Brancusi in Romania, this self taught artist devoted himself to creating a more colorful and creative atmosphere for himself and his neighbors. The result is unlike anything you have ever seen!

• Lunch at Fusterlandia
• Experience a Cuban salsa dance lesson (no experience required!)

Cubans learn to dance from a very young age and the way they move their bodies is amazing! You’ll learn all the best steps with one-on-one tutors who’ll expertly and patiently turn you into a salsa, mambo, rumba, danzon, and cha cha chá whiz.

• Enjoy a one hour massage and unwind
• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 4 Monday Las Terrazas in Pinar del Rio

• Travel to Las Terrazas UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (about 1-1.5 hours drive)

Leave Havana and head into the Cuban countryside to visit Las Terrazas, a small community located 45 miles west of the capital. This ecotourism center and biosphere reserve is located in the Sierra del Rosario mountain range and was assigned UNESCO status in 1984. The area is home to over 177 species of birds and features the remains of more than 70 coffee plantations originally founded by the French.

• Enjoy a one hour yoga session while enjoying Cuba’s rural scenery at this gorgeous park
• Visit the home of the much beloved musician Polo Montañez

Polo Montañez was a self-taught singer-songwriter whose distinctly Cuban country-style music became immensely popular throughout Latin America and are still covered by major artists to this day. A small house on the water was this music star’s home until his life was cut short by a tragic car accident in 2002. The house is now a museum containing clothing, awards, musical instruments, and photos, all capturing his humble beginnings. 

• Enjoy a traditional Cuban lunch at Las Terrazas Restaurant
• Visit San Juan River for a swim OR go horseback riding

Relax and stroll by the San Juan River; enjoy its great natural beauty, sparkling pools, and small waterfalls with crystal clear water.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 5 Tuesday Havana

• Greet the day with a one hour yoga session at Monte Barreto, a big green park in Havana; head back to lodging to freshen up
• Visit Bellas Artes (Fine Arts) Museum with a private guide

Enjoy as an art expert guides you through the Cuban wing of this beautiful museum, providing rich historical detail and context. The displays are chronologically ordered, so you will be introduced to classic works such as La Gitana Tropical (The Tropical Gypsy) sometimes referred to as Cuba’s Mona Lisa, and then taken through a visual exploration of Cuban identity and political expression over the course of several galleries.

• Lunch at Esto no es un Café paladar
• Experience an incredible performance by music/dance troupe Habana Compás

This energetic group showcases how African and Spanish influences have melded together into distinctly Cuban artistic forms.