Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Cuba: Havana, Viñales and Trinidad
9 days from Havana: two nights in Viñales with a tobacco farm walk, the Bay of Pigs, a night in Cienfuegos, two nights in Trinidad and a last night back in Havana.
9 days · Round trip from Havana · up to 12 guests
The Viñales Valley from the Los Jazmines viewpoint, with the Dos Hermanas mogote beyond Photo: Rômulo Ferreira, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vi%C3%B1ales_-_Cuba_(40145119525).jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 9 days, 8 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Havana
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Activity level
Easy
Easy walking in heat on cobbles and farm tracks: about 2 to 3 hours on foot in Old Havana and Trinidad, a valley walk of about 5 km on flat, sometimes muddy farm paths in Viñales (with a ride in the vehicle instead if you prefer), steps up the Manaca Iznaga tower if you choose to climb it, and two long driving days, about 6 hours and about 5 hours, each broken by stops.
- Meals included
- 8 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 1 dinner
- Room of your own
- + CAD 560 (estimated price)
- Season
- Best November to April
Highlights
Why this trip
- Old Havana's four squares on foot at 9 am, then a classic-car ride along the Malecón to Plaza de la Revolución
- A morning walk across the Viñales Valley to a family tobacco farm, with a cigar rolled in front of you and lunch at the farm
- The Cueva del Indio, entered on foot and left by boat along an underground river
- A swim at Playa Larga and the Girón museum at the Bay of Pigs
- Cienfuegos at 9 am: Parque Martí, the Teatro Tomás Terry and the Palacio de Valle
- Two nights in Trinidad, with the Valle de los Ingenios, Manaca Iznaga and a salsa lesson
- A last evening on the Malecón and a farewell dinner back in Havana
What makes this trip different
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 560 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Havana
José Martí International Airport to your casa particular in Havana
- Welcome dinner
- Stay in Havana
- Drive about 30 min
Fly into José Martí International Airport (HAV), about 30 minutes south of central Havana.
Afternoon
Most flights from Canada land in the afternoon, and a driver meets you outside arrivals for the transfer to your casa particular, a privately owned guesthouse, in or near Old Havana. Arrive whenever your flight allows.
Evening
If you land early, walk down to the Malecón, the long sea wall where the city comes out in the evening to talk, fish and watch the waves. At 6 pm your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing: how the days are paced, what power cuts and shortages mean on the ground, and how to change money, since cash is what works here. Then we walk to a paladar, one of the privately run restaurants that have changed eating out in Cuba, for a Cuban welcome dinner. Menus depend on what the market has that day.
Included
- Pick-up at José Martí International Airport (HAV)
- Welcome briefing with your guide, including how to change money
- Welcome dinner at a paladar
Free time: Free until the 6 pm briefing
Activity: If you land after 6 pm, your guide meets you at the casa and briefs you over breakfast.
Old Havana on foot, then by classic car
Old Havana's four squares, then the Malecón, Vedado and Plaza de la Revolución
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Havana
Afternoon
We start at 9 am on foot in Old Havana, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1982, before the midday heat. Your guide links the four old squares in the order the city grew: Plaza de Armas with its secondhand book stalls and the Castillo de la Real Fuerza, the baroque cathedral on Plaza de la Catedral, the restored merchants' houses around Plaza Vieja, and Plaza de San Francisco by the harbour. Lunch is at a paladar in the old town. In the afternoon the classic cars arrive: American cars from the 1950s carry us out along the Malecón, through the leafy avenues of Vedado and up to Plaza de la Revolución, where steel outlines of Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos look down from the ministry buildings. The ride ends back at your casa by about 4 pm.
Evening
The rest of the day is yours: the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, a rest through the heat, or a drink on a rooftop at sunset.
Included
- Old Havana walking tour with your guide: Plaza de Armas, Plaza de la Catedral, Plaza Vieja and Plaza de San Francisco
- Lunch at a paladar in Old Havana
- Classic-car ride along the Malecón, through Vedado to Plaza de la Revolución
Optional experiences
- Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (Cuban art)
- The 9 pm cañonazo cannon ceremony at La Cabaña fortress
Free time: Late afternoon and evening free
Activity: About 2 to 3 hours on foot on flat but uneven paving. Bring a hat and water.
Fusterlandia, Las Terrazas and into Viñales
Havana to Jaimanitas and Las Terrazas, then west to Viñales
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Viñales
- Drive about 3.5 h
We leave Havana at 9 am heading west. The first stop is Jaimanitas, a fishing suburb where the artist José Fuster has covered his house, and much of the street around it, in ceramic mosaics; locals call it Fusterlandia. About an hour further on, Las Terrazas sits in the hills of the Sierra del Rosario, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, in a village built in the late 1960s as part of a reforestation project.
Afternoon
A local guide takes us to the ruins of the Buenavista coffee estate, worked by enslaved people in the 1800s, for the view back towards the coast, then we have lunch in the village. The afternoon drive runs through tobacco and sugarcane country past Pinar del Río. Just before Viñales we stop at the Los Jazmines viewpoint, where the valley opens below you: red earth, royal palms and the round limestone hills called mogotes.
Evening
We reach Viñales by about 4:30 pm, with the evening free in a town of single-storey houses and porches lined with rocking chairs.
Included
- Fusterlandia in Jaimanitas
- Las Terrazas with a local guide and the Buenavista coffee estate ruins
- Lunch in Las Terrazas
- The Los Jazmines viewpoint over the Viñales Valley
Free time: Evening free in Viñales
A tobacco farm walk in the Viñales Valley
Viñales town across the valley to a tobacco farm, then the Cueva del Indio
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Viñales
- Drive about 30 min
The cool hours belong to the valley. At 8 am a local guide walks us out of town on farm tracks between fields of tobacco, maize and cassava, with the mogotes rising on every side. The Viñales Valley is a UNESCO cultural landscape because farming here is still done much as it was: oxen pull the ploughs and leaves are cured in tall palm-thatched drying barns. At a family tobacco farm the grower shows how the leaves are picked, hung, cured and fermented, explains how most of the crop goes to the state, and rolls a cigar in front of you; there is coffee grown on the farm and a glass of guayabita, the local guava liqueur.
Afternoon
Lunch is a long farm meal of roast pork, rice and beans, root vegetables and salad. Afterwards we drive a few minutes north to the Cueva del Indio, a limestone cave you walk into and leave by small boat along an underground river.
Evening
The late afternoon is free, and at sunset the valley turns gold from the viewpoints just outside town.
Included
- Valley walk with a local guide
- Family tobacco farm visit with cigar rolling, coffee and guayabita
- Farm lunch
- Cueva del Indio with the underground boat ride
Optional experiences
- Horse ride through the valley with a local guide
Easier option: Ride to the tobacco farm in the vehicle instead of walking, and meet the group there.
More active option: Carry on with the local guide after the farm on a longer loop through the valley floor, about 4 km more, and rejoin the group for lunch.
Free time: Late afternoon free
Activity: About 5 km on flat farm tracks, muddy after rain. What is growing depends on the month: tobacco is planted around October to December and harvested roughly January to March.
To the Bay of Pigs and Cienfuegos
Viñales to Playa Larga and Playa Girón on the Bay of Pigs, then Cienfuegos
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Cienfuegos
- Drive about 6 h
Evening
Today is a full day of about ten hours, with about 440 km and six hours of driving, because there is no shorter way from the far west to the south coast; the alternative is another night back in Havana. We leave Viñales at 8 am and break the drive three times. First a coffee stop after about two hours, as we skirt Havana on the motorway. Then lunch at Playa Larga, booked ahead for about 12:30 so nobody waits for a table, at the head of the Bay of Pigs, with time to swim in the clear water off the rocks when the sea allows. Mid-afternoon we stop at Playa Girón and its museum about the invasion of April 1961, when an exile brigade trained and backed by the CIA came ashore on these beaches and was defeated within three days. The last 90 minutes run inland through cane fields to Cienfuegos, arriving at about 6 pm. The evening is free; your guide points you to the Paseo del Prado and the waterfront for a walk before dinner.
Included
- Lunch at Playa Larga with a swim stop on the Bay of Pigs
- The museum at Playa Girón about the 1961 invasion
Optional experiences
- Snorkel gear hire at the swim stop
Easier option: Skip the swim and stay in the shade at the lunch stop.
More active option: Snorkel along the reef edge at the swim stop, where the water is clear and full of fish.
Free time: Evening free in Cienfuegos
Activity: The longest day: about six hours of driving, broken into stretches of no more than about two hours. Wear swimwear under your clothes and keep a towel in your day bag.
Cienfuegos in the morning, Trinidad by evening
Cienfuegos to Punta Gorda, then the coast road to Trinidad
- Breakfast
- Stay in Trinidad
- Drive about 1.5 h
Cienfuegos was founded in 1819 by French settlers from Bordeaux and Louisiana, and its grid of wide streets and neoclassical facades is why the centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. At 9 am we walk Parque José Martí, with the cathedral, the columned Colegio San Lorenzo and the Teatro Tomás Terry, opened in 1890, where we step inside when it is open to see the painted ceiling and the wooden tiers of boxes. Then a short drive down the peninsula to Punta Gorda and the Palacio de Valle, a mansion of Moorish arches and tilework finished in 1917; climb to the rooftop for the bay.
Morning
By late morning we take the coast road east, about 80 km and an hour and a half, with the Escambray mountains on one side and the Caribbean on the other.
Afternoon
Lunch in Trinidad is your choice. At 4 pm, when the cobbles have cooled, your guide walks you to the Plaza Mayor and the lanes around it.
Evening
The evening is free, and live music starts on the steps beside the church after dark.
Included
- Cienfuegos walk with your guide: Parque José Martí, the cathedral and the Teatro Tomás Terry (when open)
- The Palacio de Valle at Punta Gorda
- Trinidad walking tour: the Plaza Mayor and the old town
Free time: Lunch on your own and the evening free in Trinidad
Activity: Trinidad's streets are rough cobbles on a slope; wear shoes with a firm sole.
The Valley of the Sugar Mills and a salsa lesson
Trinidad to the Loma del Puerto viewpoint and Manaca Iznaga, then back to Trinidad
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Trinidad
- Drive about 1 h
We leave at 8:30 am for the Valle de los Ingenios, the valley of the sugar mills, listed by UNESCO in 1988 together with Trinidad itself. In the 1800s dozens of mills here made the town rich on sugar and on the labour of enslaved Africans, and the mansions you walked past yesterday were built on that money. From the Loma del Puerto viewpoint the whole valley lies below, green with cane and palms. At Manaca Iznaga, the old estate of one of the wealthiest planter families, you can climb the tall watchtower once used to watch over the fields, or stay below where local women sell embroidered tablecloths.
Afternoon
Lunch is at a farm restaurant in the valley. We are back in Trinidad by about 2 pm for a free afternoon: a museum, a rest, or a taxi to Playa Ancón, about 12 km away.
Evening
At 5 pm a local teacher gives the group a one-hour salsa lesson, so you have a few steps ready for the music on the steps tonight.
Included
- Valle de los Ingenios with your guide: the Loma del Puerto viewpoint and Manaca Iznaga
- Lunch in the valley
- One-hour salsa lesson with a local teacher
Optional experiences
- Taxi to Playa Ancón for the afternoon
- The Museo Romántico or the Museo de Historia Municipal in Trinidad (when open)
Easier option: Skip the tower climb at Manaca Iznaga and wait in the shade of the estate house.
More active option: Instead of the free afternoon, a guided hike to the Salto del Caburní waterfall in Topes de Collantes, about 5 km return on a steep trail (extra cost, confirmed at booking).
Free time: Afternoon free until the 5 pm salsa lesson; evening free
Activity: The Manaca Iznaga tower has steep, narrow stairs.
Back to Havana for a last evening
Trinidad to Cienfuegos and the Autopista Nacional, then Havana
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Havana
- Drive about 5 h
We leave Trinidad at 8:30 am for the drive back to Havana, about 330 km and five hours of driving by way of Cienfuegos and the Autopista Nacional.
Evening
That is over our four-hour aim, but there is no shorter road, and splitting it would cost a night in Trinidad or Havana. We stop for coffee after the first hour and for a sit-down lunch at about the halfway point, so no stretch runs much over two hours. We skip the detour to Santa Clara and the Che Guevara memorial, which would add more than an hour; ask if you want it on a private trip. We are back at a casa particular in Havana in the late afternoon, with time to rest. In the early evening your guide walks the group along the Malecón as the light drops behind Vedado and, on windy days, the spray comes over the wall. Our farewell dinner is at a paladar, and afterwards anyone who wants to can take a taxi across the harbour to La Cabaña fortress for the cañonazo, the 9 pm cannon firing performed in colonial uniform.
Included
- Drive from Trinidad to Havana with your guide
- Sit-down lunch on the way
- Evening walk on the Malecón
- Farewell dinner at a paladar
Optional experiences
- The 9 pm cañonazo cannon ceremony at La Cabaña fortress
Free time: Late afternoon free
Havana and home
Havana to José Martí International Airport
- Breakfast
- Drive about 30 min
Morning
The last morning is yours. If your flight leaves later in the day, have a last coffee on Plaza Vieja, visit the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, or walk the Paseo del Prado under its laurel trees. Check-out is usually late morning, and your luggage can wait at the casa until the driver comes.
Evening
A private transfer takes you to José Martí International Airport (HAV), about 30 minutes away, and your guide confirms the pick-up time with you the evening before. Allow three hours before an international departure, since check-in and security at HAV can be slow. Book a flight home leaving after about 12 pm. If you want to stay on in Havana, ask us to add nights at the same casa before the trip. Cuban pesos are hard to change back outside Cuba, so spend or change what you have left before security, and keep a few small notes for coffee at the airport.
Included
- Drop-off at José Martí International Airport (HAV)
Free time: Morning free until your transfer
Activity: Book a flight leaving Havana after about 12 pm.
- Havana2 nights
- Viñales2 nights
- Cienfuegos1 night
- Trinidad2 nights
- Havana1 night
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: November to April is the dry season, warm by day and pleasant in the evening, and the best time for walking in Viñales and Trinidad. From May to October it is hot, humid and wet, with heavy afternoon showers. The hurricane season runs from June to November, peaking from August to October, when plans can change at short notice. The tobacco fields are green from about December to March and bare after the harvest.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Canadians who know the Cuban beach resorts and want to see the country beyond them
- Travellers who like history, music and countryside more than nightlife or shopping
- People happy in privately owned guesthouses with character rather than international chain hotels
- Solo travellers who want company and a guide who handles cash, transfers and the unexpected
Not for you if you want
- Travellers who need reliable power, Wi-Fi and hot water every day
- A beach holiday: there is one swim stop at Playa Larga, depending on sea conditions, and an optional afternoon at Playa Ancón
- Step-free access: Trinidad's cobbles are rough and steep in places
- US citizens who have not checked that their trip fits a US authorized travel category
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
8 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Havana2 nights
- Viñales2 nights
- Cienfuegos1 night
- Trinidad2 nights
- Havana1 night
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 8 nights: 2 in Havana, 2 in Viñales, 1 in Cienfuegos, 2 in Trinidad and a last night in Havana
- Privately owned casas particulares in Havana, and central casas or small private hotels elsewhere, each room with its own bathroom and air conditioning; we name each one when we confirm your dates
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
Transport
- Pick-up and drop-off at José Martí International Airport (HAV)
- A private air-conditioned vehicle and driver for the group for the whole loop
- A classic-car ride in Havana
- The boat inside the Cueva del Indio
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from day 1 to day 9
- Licensed Cuban local guides in Las Terrazas, the Viñales Valley and at sites that require them
Activities
- Havana: Old Havana walking tour, the classic-car ride to Plaza de la Revolución and a Malecón evening walk
- Fusterlandia in Jaimanitas
- Las Terrazas and the Buenavista coffee estate ruins
- Viñales: the Los Jazmines viewpoint, the valley walk, a family tobacco farm and the Cueva del Indio
- Bay of Pigs: a swim stop at Playa Larga and the museum at Playa Girón
- Cienfuegos: Parque José Martí, the Teatro Tomás Terry (when open) and the Palacio de Valle
- Trinidad: an old town walking tour and a salsa lesson
- The Valle de los Ingenios and Manaca Iznaga
- All entrance fees for included sights
Meals
- 8 breakfasts
- 6 lunches, including a farm lunch in Viñales and sit-down lunches on both long drives
- 2 dinners: a welcome dinner and a farewell dinner at paladares in Havana
Not included
- International flights to and from Havana
- Travel health insurance valid in Cuba (required for entry) and the tourist card if your airline does not supply it
- Travel insurance for cancellation and baggage
- Meals not listed
- Drinks
- Tips
- Optional activities
- Personal expenses
- Currency exchange costs
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 560 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the Cuba trip price include?
Eight nights in casas particulares and small private hotels, 8 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 2 dinners, airport transfers both ways, a private vehicle and driver, a See Sight Tours guide throughout with Cuban local guides, and every visit in the day plan, including the tobacco farm, the Cueva del Indio boat, the classic-car ride and a salsa lesson.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests, so everyone fits around one table at a paladar and can hear the guide in the narrow lanes of Old Havana and Trinidad. Many Cuba group tours take up to 16.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the airport on day 1 to the airport on day 9. Licensed Cuban guides join for Las Terrazas, the Viñales Valley and at sites that require them, so you hear Cuban voices as well as ours.
How fit do I need to be?
Easy fitness is enough. The longest walk is about 5 km on flat farm tracks in Viñales, and you can ride to the farm in the vehicle instead. Expect heat, rough cobbles in Trinidad and two long driving days of about six and five hours, each with stops.
I'm travelling solo. Is there a single supplement?
Yes. A room of your own costs from CAD 560 more, shown up front with no change at checkout. If you would rather share, tell us when you request to book and we will see whether another solo guest on your departure wants to share too.
When is the best time to visit Cuba?
November to April is the dry season, warm by day and comfortable for walking. May to October is hot, humid and wet, and the hurricane season runs from June to November, peaking from August to October, when plans can change at short notice.
How does booking work?
Choose your start date and request to book. We confirm your place within 24 hours and no payment is taken when you request. The small group starts from CAD 3,295 per person sharing, with taxes included.
Can I travel on my own dates?
Yes. The trip comes as a private trip for your party only, with your own guide and vehicle, on a date you choose. If you would rather travel independently, ask us from the dates section and we will quote the same casas, drivers and local guides.
Do Canadians need a visa for Cuba?
Canadians need a Cuban tourist card rather than a visa, usually supplied with flights from Canada and also available electronically, plus the D'Viajeros online form before arrival and proof of travel health insurance. Your passport must be valid for your stay. We confirm the current rules when you book.
Can US citizens join this trip?
Only if their travel fits an authorized US category, because US law does not allow tourism to Cuba and the rules tightened in 2025. We stay in privately owned casas and avoid hotels on the US Cuba Restricted List, but you are responsible for your own compliance. Ask us before booking.
Should I bring cash, and what are power cuts like in Cuba now?
Bring cash for the whole trip in Canadian dollars or euros, because cards and cash machines are unreliable and US-issued cards do not work. Power cuts are common, and fuel, medicines and some foods run short. We look for casas with backup power, but bring your medicines, a headlamp and a power bank, and expect shorter menus.
How long are the drives on this Cuba trip?
Most days drive well under four hours: about 3.5 hours to Viñales, 1.5 hours to Trinidad and an hour in the sugar valley. Two days are longer: Viñales to Cienfuegos, about six hours with coffee, lunch, a swim and a museum stop, and Trinidad back to Havana, about five hours with coffee and lunch.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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