Suggested Iteneraries?

[amaxp81]

My wife and I are taking the plunge and heading to Cuba this spring.  We've been talking about it for several years but the time has come to actually follow through!  We're looking to be there 13-14 days. 

I'm trying to strike a balance between our time being spent around cigars/rum (my favorite 2 vices), historical sites, and beaches.  She really wanted to fly over to Cayo Largo but if we can find equally beautiful beaches on the main island I'd rather do that.

We were thinking the following so far, but would love the advice of anyone that's done a similar-length trip to give us their 0.02. 

Arrive in Havana, 4-5 days there

Vinales, 2-3 days there

Trinidad, 2-3 days there

then things get blurry....  Do we make the trip over to Varadero and stay there a few nights or do we find another beach for a few nights that's closer and less like the Varadero strip?

Secondly, would Havana be better to do on the back end so I don't have to lug around a ton of cigars the whole trip from city to city?

Any advice would be fantastic!

 

[amaxp81]

anyone with suggestions? Booked flights but still all over the place on what beach area is the least difficult travel-wise... wife isn't interested in Varadero..

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[Guest Nekhyludov]

My wife and I did a similar trip for our honeymoon in 2015, and this was our itinerary. We broke it up so we were in Havana at the beginning and the end of the trip, but we also stayed within driving distance of Havana. We would have loved to go to Cayo Largo, but the logistics were messy and we didn't want to spend our whole time trekking from place to place. We wanted a balance of time in the city and time at the beaches, so this is what we settled on. Cayo Junita was a beautiful beach. Playa d'Este is a beach for locals near the city, so it's more crowded and there are some hustlers there. But it's still a nice beach. The only thing I would change about our itinerary is that I don't think we needed more than two days in Vinales. After you see the farms, there isn't a whole lot to do in the town. 

Day 1: Miami - Havana

Day 2: Havana

Day 3: Havana

Transfer to Playa de Este for the afternoon

Day 4: Havana - Vinales

Day 5: Vinales

Day trip to Cayo Jutias beach

Day 6: Vinales

Day 7: Vinales – Las Terrazas

Day 8: Havana

Day 9: Havana

Morning on the beach at Playa d’Este

Day 10: Havana - Miami

[amaxp81]

Appreciate the input @Nekhyludov !!

 

 

[stogieluver]

Check out the Cuban Travel forum.  Also, Cigar Aficionado's web site has a Cuban Travel section with some very good restaurant and accommodation recommendations.    

My wife and I spent nine days in country, but that was almost five years ago, so I can't give current info.  About half that time in Havana with side trips to Pinar and Vinales, and about half in a resort in Cayo Santa Maria with side trips to Santa Clara, Remedios, and Cienfuegos.  We enjoyed all. 

Since you're taking your wife, you should prepare her for less than stellar accommodations (spotty air conditioning, spotty hot water, not so good public toilet facilities, etc), some really good, some really bad food, and absolutely wonderful people, scenery cigars, and rum.  If you go with the right attitude and both of you are on the adventuresome side, you'll have a great time. 

[amaxp81]

Finalized our itinerary !!! Casas particulares the whole trip till the last few nights then 2 nights in Conde De Villanueva

5 nights in Havana
3 nights in Vinales
4 nights in Trinidad
2 nights Havana (CDV)

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[uscmd310]

Sounds like an amazing trip! Make sure and take notes. I'd love to hear about Trinidad. Find out which customs fit your palate early, then place a custom order and pick it up at the end. Let me how Reynaldo is at Conde. That's my goal in July when I visit.