Must See

Baseball

Catch a game in the Major League. It's the national game, the locals love it and it's a super atmosphere.

Beaches

Cuba has some fine coastline, with sandy beaches and azure sea. Snorkelling, diving and other watersports are popular among visitors, as well as boat tours out to the reef. After a hard day on the water, grab a daiquiri or mojito, local rum cocktails, and watch the sunset.

Havana

Settled for over 400 years, this seaside Caribbean city is rich in history, culture and architecture. It boasts ancient forts and wide avenues, along with spectacular churches devoted to religions unique to Cuba. Many of the old buildings are being restored, but there's a satisfying air of faded glory that hangs about this glorious Spanish colonial city. Paint peels from the walls of its buildings, while American cars from the 1950s and 1960s cruise the streets. Havana's old town is on UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Plaza de Armas

The Plaza de Armas has been a central gathering spot in Havana for the past 500 years and is where locals and visitors alike stroll, sit and watch the world go by. There are many cafés and restaurants where visitors can relax and have a pleasant meal or a cool drink. The Plaza is surrounded by beautiful Baroque buildings, most dating from the mid to late 18th century. In the centre of the square is a statue of the Cuban patriot Cespedes and a beautiful fountain is nearby.

Palacio de los Capitanes Generales

The nearby Palacio de los Capitanes Generales was built in the late 18th century and is the former residence of the Spanish Crown's representatives. It is now home to the Museo de la Ciudad, Havana's City Museum. Designed by Antonio Fernandez de Trebejos y Zaldivar, this palace has a limestone façade with an arcade below and stained glass windows above. A statue of Christopher Columbus stands in the middle of the central courtyard. Concerts are frequently held in the courtyard; check with the main desk to find out when the next one is scheduled.

Castillo de la Real Fuerza

The oldest of Havana's three forts, Castillo de la Real Fuerza, was built in the mid 16th century. Designed and built by Francisco de Calona, the fort was an engineering marvel with 6 m (19 foot) thick walls and even a drawbridge. However, it was never used as it was built too far inside the bay, rendering it all but useless.

Although it was never used as a fortress, it was put to good use as a residence for members of the military and gentry and a store house of valuables. Nowadays, the Museo Nacional de la Ceramica Cubana is securely housed in its thick walls, and is home to a collection of works by Cuban artists in several different mediums including ceramics, pottery and mosaics.

Capitolio

The Capitolio in Havana's centre was built in 1929 to mimic Washington DC's Capitol (though the detailing on Havana's version is finer); it acted as the seat of government until 1959, and now houses the ministries of Technology, Environment and Science.

Tours are available around the neo-Classical and Art Deco-styled building; some of the key sights include the gold covered Statue of the Republic (reputed to be the largest bronze statue of Pallas Athena in the world), a copy of a 25 carat diamond inlaid in the floor and the acoustically unique Salon de los Pasos Peridos.

Museo de la Revolución

The Museo de la Revolución is housed in the old presidential palace, which was designed by the Belgian architect Paul Belau and was built in the early part of the 20th century. The museum gives visitors a historical context of modern Cuba, including a multitude of displays on Cuba's struggle for independence. Behind the museum is an interesting display of the yacht Granma, which brought 80 exiled rebels (Fidel Castro and Ché Guevara among them) from Mexico. Also on display is a plane shot down during the ill fated Bay of Pigs invasion.

Isla De La Juventud

The largest of the 350 islands in the Archipielago de los Canarreos, this swampy place was formerly a hideout for pirates and inspired Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. Unlike many Cuban islands, Isla de la Juventud (Island of Youth) does not have any large scale all inclusive luxury hotels and has a very real Cuban feel. The main town is the lively Nueva Gerona, and scattered around the island are a number of attractions in the form of fishing villages, caves, beaches and rock paintings.

Pinar del Río

Located at the western tip of Cuba, Pinar del Rio is arguably Cuba's most beautiful province. Noted for its green fields, mountains, forests, and beaches, the area's outstanding feature is its mogotes (oddly rounded limestone mountains, covered in lush vegetation) found in the Valle de Vinales. At the far western end of the Pinar del Rio, travellers will find some of the regions most beautiful beaches, as well as offshore scuba diving opportunities. The caves in Pinar del Rio, notably the Cueva del Indio, are also well worth a visit, with stalactites and stalagmites and underground rivers.

Playa Larga

Playa Larga is located at the top end of the Bay of Pigs (Bahia de Cochinos), the site of the famous, yet disastrous US invasion of 1961. The long, beautiful sand beach is backed by lush vegetation, and the area is also popular with scuba divers, with numerous dive sites along the offshore reef.

Northeast of Playa Larga is a large bird sanctuary and the International Bird Centre (Centro Internacional de Aves).

Santiago De Cuba

Santiago de Cuba is the island's first capital and a cosmopolitan city. Called the Ciudad Heroe, or Hero City, Santiago was a focal point for revolutionary activity due to its proximity to the majestic Sierra Maestra - Castro's mountainous battle-ground. The city is home to a number of museums, including the Castillo del Morro (a museum of piracy), Museo Emilio Bacardí, which contains the rum magnate's collection of antiques and fine art, and the Moncada Barracks, where Castro launched an abortive uprising in 1953.

This city has a number of old colonial buildings in the city centre, but also boats a variety of more modern style architecture. Santiago de Cuba is also home to one of the country's most prominent universities, giving it a young and vibrant edge.

With many different cultural influences and an Afro-Caribbean heritage, the city is often said to be the most Caribbean in the country. It was here that the energetic music known as 'son' originated and, in July, the city hosts one of Cuba's most amazing carnivals.

Santa Clara

Santa Clara is an inland city known for being the site of the last guerrilla battle led by Che Guevara in late December 1958. He and 300 rebels defeated 3,000 of Batista's troops here, leading to the dictator's flight just days later. Thirty years after his capture and execution in Bolivia, his body was returned here in 1997, and his mausoleum and monument complex are the town's largest attractions. Santa Clara also has a number of other museums and galleries, along with nightlife activities for both young and old.

Trinidad

Colonial Trinidad was founded in 1514, and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. Much of the architecture dates to between the 17th and 19th centuries when Trinidad was a wealthy town, prospering from both the sugar and slave trades, and includes restored homes, church, and other buildings, along with the cobble stone streets. Some of the colonial homes in the city centre are run as guesthouses, offering independent travellers accommodation in the heart of the city.

Other attractions include the Museo de Arquitectura Colonial, the Iglesia y Convento de San Francisco with its distinctive bell tower, the art gallery at the Casa de Aldeman Oritz, the Iglesia Parroquial de la Santisima Trinidad and the Palacio Brunet.

Trinidad can also make a good base from which to explore some of the surrounding areas, and visitors may head to the beach for some relaxing and water sports or take day trips to the mountains north of the city for hiking and sightseeing.