Things to do in Cuba

Wander through a UNESCO World Heritage treasure of pastel plazas, baroque churches, and weathered colonial facades that hum with daily life and street music.

Zip along Havana's iconic seafront boulevard in a vintage convertible as waves crash against the wall and the sunset paints the sky in pinks and golds.

Walk among rustling tobacco fields against a backdrop of limestone mogotes, learn the art of rolling a perfect cigar, and taste the earthy richness of Cuba's most famous leaf.

Step onto the open-air dance floor under the stars and move to live Cuban son in one of the country's most enchanting colonial plazas.

Stand before the solemn memorial and eternal flame that honor the revolutionary icon, whose remains rest here after a life that reshaped a nation.

Descend into crystalline waters to explore sunken wrecks, vibrant coral walls, and the eerie remnants of the Bay of Pigs invasion beneath a tranquil surface.

Climb the ramparts of the 16th-century Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro and watch the sun melt into the Caribbean as cannons still face the sea.

Climb the crumbling marble staircase of a cinematic mansion to feast on modern Cuban cuisine made from local ingredients in a bohemian, candlelit setting.

Wander a city frozen in time, where horse-drawn carts clatter over cobbles and every pastel doorway opens onto courtyards dripping with bougainvillea.

Hike through lush Sierra del Escambray jungle to a series of cascading waterfalls and take a refreshing dip in the natural pools surrounded by giant ferns.

Sip rum beneath towering palm trees as sequin-clad dancers and live orchestras deliver an open-air spectacle of music, color, and Cuban glamour that has endured since 1939.

Walk through an ancient limestone cavern and then glide by boat along an underground river past stalactites and petroglyphs left by the Taíno people.

Stroll through a whimsical neighborhood transformed by artist José Fuster into a Gaudí-esque explosion of colorful tile mosaics covering every wall, roof, and bench.

Feel the pulse of Afro-Cuban culture in an alleyway alive with drumming, chanting, and spontaneous dance, surrounded by vibrant murals and shrines to Santería orishas.

Join the pilgrimage to Hemingway's favorite haunt, where walls are scribbled with graffiti and the scent of mint and lime fills the air as bartenders muddle classic cocktails.

Admire the twin bell towers and ornate baroque facade of Havana's cathedral, built by the Jesuits on the site of a former swamp, and step inside its serene, column-lined nave.

Venture to the Isla de la Juventud to view pre-Columbian pictographs in a remote seaside cave, where abstract red-and-black circles and figures tell a story centuries old.

Climb the tiered stone terraces of this UNESCO-listed 17th-century citadel, built to guard Santiago de Cuba from pirates, and gaze down at the deep-blue Caribbean.

Trek through cloud forests in the Sierra Maestra to reach the rebel command center where Castro and his guerrillas plotted the revolution amid simple wooden huts.

Paddle or hike through the Ciénaga de Zapata, a wetland biosphere reserve teeming with flamingos, parrots, and the tiny endemic bee hummingbird, the world's smallest bird.

Sink your toes into miles of blindingly white sand and wade into gentle turquoise shallows on a peninsula renowned as one of the Caribbean's finest stretches of coast.

Get lost purposely in a UNESCO-listed inland city of winding alleys, tinajones (giant clay jars), and hidden plazas that once confused pirate attackers.

Browse stalls inside a converted 19th-century warehouse on the waterfront, picking up hand-rolled cigars, carved wooden figures, vibrant paintings, and linen guayaberas.

Venture into a UNESCO biosphere reserve to see coffee beans drying on racks under the sun, then sip a freshly brewed cafecito amid the fragrant mountain air.

Peer into the preserved study of Ernest Hemingway, where his typewriter stands ready and his fishing trophies line the walls of a hilltop house overlooking Havana.