Havana Travel Guide and Places to Visit in Havana
What kind of preparations we make, when and how to go to Cuba, how we travel between cities and what we pay attention to
We’ve written about it in detail in our strong>Cuba Preparation Guide. Therefore, we recommend that you take a look here before reading this.. No, if you say let’s dive directly to Havana. Here you go to our Havana Travel Notes 🙂
We planned our Cuba trip for two weeks in September 2016. The first stop of this journey with 4 people was Havana (not a tour, it’s manual labor). Havana, where we stayed for 5 days in total, exceeded our expectations in every aspect and remained in our minds as the most beautiful and proudest city we have ever been to.. It’s good that we say we’re gone and come to the point.
Havana is a very safe city, its streets are always full of people, women come home alone in the middle of the night, no one is afraid.. Cuban people are very clean. Once in a while, vendors approach you on the street, but if you say we don’t want it, nobody becomes “paste”.. There are cops on the streets, but they are with the people, drinking coffee together and joking around.. People do not believe that police can inflict violence on people in other countries. Cuban people are friendly and can get along with you in a way, even if they don’t speak English.. We are writing about this city, where we enjoyed visiting!
Getting to Havana
We went to Havana with Air Canada via Toronto. We bought our tickets for 2200 TL per person.. After a journey of approximately 25 hours, we landed in Havana.
Havana’s Jose Marti Airport is not very close to the city and you cannot reach it by public transport.. Unfortunately, your only option is taxi.. The part that is considered the center of Havana costs around 25 Cuc (approximately 25 Euros).. Don’t forget to bargain first for every vehicle you take in Havana.. They learned this job very well.
Although Havana is a city where you will mostly wander the streets and walk, sometimes you want to take a taxi because you faint from the extreme heat.. Normal taxis are not very expensive. It costs around 10 Cuc from one end of the city to the other.
Coco Taxis, on the other hand, are used to attract tourists rather than transportation.. These are similar to the ‘TukTuks’ used in Asia and are yellow colored motorcycles that go on 3 wheels and seat two in the back.. You can always see it in the most touristic places of the city. They usually want around 10 Cuc for a 5 minute journey, but once you come to Cuba, it doesn’t hurt to try at least once
And of course, the fancy American cars that appear in every photo.. They usually offer in the form of tours. You can tour about 30-40 Cuc and it will show you most places from Havana’s beaches to its side streets.. Bargaining definitely works. do!!
Where to Stay in Havana?
The main event in Havana takes place in Old Havana (Habana Vieja). You can hear Buena Vista Social Club music from every street of Old Havana, those old cars, cigar sellers, cheerful streets, handicraft markets, souvenir shops, cocktail bars are whatever you look for.. So we chose this area to stay and stayed at Casa Aleman. We loved our “casa” for 35 Cuc per room per night (our hostess was very sweet). There were two rooms in the house and one of them had an en-suite bathroom.. The location was very close to ‘Plaza Vieja’, which in our opinion is the most beautiful part of Old Havana. If you want, you can find this casa and many others here.
If you want to stay in a hotel and don’t want to pay 200 CUC per night to the most popular hotel, El Nacional, we are very proud of ‘Hotel Marques. You can also try Prado Ameno. Here you can book Havana hotels reliably.
Where to visit in Havana
Havana (namely La Habana) is divided into three parts. Old Havana (Habana Vieja), Centro Habana (Central Havana) and Vedado (more modern part). As we said, the events mostly revolve around Old Havana.. Let’s start with the Old Havana part.
Plaza Vieja:
This is our favorite square in Havana.. Music restaurants, handicraft shops, small coffee shops. This square is one of the places in Havana that can not be explained but felt.. What can we say, we hope it never breaks. If you go here, listen to music for us at La Taberna, at La Muralla, which is just around the corner.
Plaza de la Cathedral
While visiting Havana, you will draw lots of circles in the streets.. And in one of them, your path will definitely come to this square.. Located in the middle of Old Havana, this square is full of street vendors and musicians during the day.. While looking at Cuban photos, you must have seen old aunts posing with cigars in their mouths.. Those aunts are also an integral part of this square.. They pose with cigars for 1-2 Cuc The name of the cathedral in the square is San Cristobal de la Habana.
Calle Obispo
This is not a square but a place where Havana residents live. The streets, and now the tourists walking around the streets, and the children of Havana playing ball in the street are intertwined.. The street is always alive, always full of people and life.. If you want to have a snack, every corner is full of tiny shops selling ice cream and slices of pizza.. Also, if you want to buy oil paintings, the prices of the shops here are affordable compared to the rest of Havana.. Finally, cigar vendors can stop you as you walk down the street.. If you want to buy cigars, check it out, we wrote a long article about cigars in our Cuba preparation article.. you can have a look. Watch out for fake cigars, but if you can find the original, it’s much cheaper than the government-run Tobacco Shops.
Plaza de Armas
Another Cuban square! Let’s not go without saying, all of these squares we have mentioned are intertwined, and as soon as you pass through one, the other appears in front of you.. You don’t even need to remember the names of the squares.. This square is full of bookstores, antique shops and handicraft vendors.. Even if you don’t buy anything, we recommend that you spend some time here to look at the shelves and review the books.. The restaurants just across the street are a bit expensive compared to Havana average, but it’s worth a try.. Since Cuba doesn’t have a cuisine of its own, restaurants play all kinds of strings.. There’s also Italian cuisine, fast-food outlets, and of course, seafood restaurants.. The neoclassical colonial temple ‘El Templete’ is also in this square.
Malecon
Cuba’s ocean-inspired promenade is named Malecon. We liked the fact that they use the coastline very actively and beautifully, which is the common feature of the coastal cities we visited.. However, this is not so in Havana, the use of the beach is almost zero.. In other words, it is unfortunately not possible to understand that Havana is by the sea except for its weather (climate).
Revolution Museum: (Museo de la Revolucion)
Cuba’s famous Revolution Museum Old Havana. In this museum, which you can reach on foot from Old Havana, the statues of the heroes of the Cuban Revolution, their personal belongings, letters they wrote to each other and newspaper clippings describing the revolutionary process are exhibited.. We must have gone with great expectations, we were not as impressed as it was described and most of the articles were in Spanish.. Maybe there were very beautiful letters, but we could not understand because there was no translation.. Entry is 8 Cuc. Of course, if you’ve come all the way to Havana, you can’t stop by.
Museo del Ron Havana Club (Havana Club Rum Museum)
The most beautiful thing about this museum is its interior architecture. By visiting the building with the entrance 7 Cuc and a guide, you listen to the place of rum in Cuba’s history, how it is made and why Havana Club is preferred the most.. Although the entrance is a bit expensive, it’s a one-time experience, so it’s worth the money.. Its place is in Old Havana.
Museo Nacional Palacio de Bellas Artes
Here, in our opinion, this is the most beautiful museum in Havana. You see, Cubans are not only successful in dance and music, but also in art! There are also traveling exhibitions inside.. Definitely worth a visit. Its entrance is 3 pm and remember it is closed on Mondays.
Museo Hemingway (Hemingway Museum, or rather his house)
This is Hemingway’s home in Cuba. And both the garden and the interior are so beautifully preserved that if you are one of those who read Hemingway books as a kid and loved them before you even met them, you will love this house.. The only downside is that it’s a bit far from the city center, but you can easily get there by taxi (Hemingway has something to do with every city he goes to).
Plaza de La Revolucion (Revolution Square)
1 This is the square where millions of people gather and dance to songs in May! Millions of people gather in this square and on the way to the square on May Days, and people from all over the world come just to see the May Days in this square.. The evocation of this square was so strong that we didn’t care much about its distance from the center (yes, it’s a bit far).. We came here from Old Havana by Coco Taxi for 10 Cuc).
On one side of the square Che Guevara and on the other side Camilo They have huge silhouettes. ‘Hasta La Victoria Siempre’ inscribed in the silhouette of Che Guevara means ‘Forever until Victory’. This slogan became the symbol of victory after Che finished one of his last letters to Fidel as ‘Hasta La Victoria Siempre’.
In the silhouette of Camilo on the other side, It reads ‘Vas Bien, Fidel’. It means ‘You’re on the right track, you’re doing well, Fidel’. It also has a story. When the victory was first won, Fidel stopped for a moment while speaking to the enthusiastic crowd and turned to Camilo and asked, ‘Voy bien, Camilo?’ It means ‘Camilo, am I on the right track?’. Camilo replied, ‘Vas Bien, Fidel’. So, ‘You’re on the right track, you’re doing well, Fidel.’… Although Camilo is not well known in our country, he is very, very popular in Cuba.. He was the youngest to die, but he never lost the love and respect of the people.. Even the minority that complains about Fidel does not smack Camilo. we said, the pleasure of Havana is street by street, cafe cafe, that corner is yours, this corner is mine.. You walk down a street, you drink a cocktail, then you walk down the street again and drink another cocktail. Time flies like this. Of course, we wouldn’t be able to write down the places where we drank our best cocktails and ate our best meals!
Eating and Drinking Moroccan in Havana
La Floridata
This is Havana’ s most touristic bar. We can say that it is the first time we have seen such a touristic, so expensive, but also so beautiful and uninflated bar.. Known as Ernest Hemingway‘s bar, ‘La Floridata’ is always overcrowded and with live music! There’s always live music and Buena Vista Social Club tunes are playing while you drink your famous ‘Daiquiri’. The waiters are overly sympathetic. Every day we spent in Havana, we stopped by here at least once a day and tried different cocktails.. Although the most famous one is ‘Daiquiri’, we loved the Pina Colada of this place. According to our own theories, a good Pina Colada has coconut particles and the Pina Coladas we drank here were by far the best we drank in Cuba.. Cocktail prices are at least twice that of Havana’s other bars but well deserved. Cocktails range from 7 Cuc to 9 Cuc.. Cocktails are a tad cheaper compared to La Floridata, but the food is expensive. But the menu is very rich and worth a seat if you can find a place. Cocktails start from 5 Cuc, an average meal is between 13-15 Cuc.
Café El Escorial
This is a coffee shop right in Plaza Vieja square. They sell their own coffee and there are also options such as ‘coffee + cigar’ on the menu.. You can also drink their specially made coffee and order a cigar with it.. If you want to have breakfast, breakfast menus and sandwiches are also available.. We highly recommend this coffee shop, which we have turned into a frequented place.
Let’s talk about a detail that happened while we were there.. We guess that the foreign customers at our next table have a problem with the incoming omelet.. However, the way the customer women said this to the waiter really bothered us, and let’s share what happened next with pleasure.. Another waiter who came from inside collected all the forks, knives and plates from the table and left.. Tourists leave it like that. It means you are done here, you can go.. In short, it means you can say your complaint, but you can’t insult the other person.. We liked it so much that in Cuba, no one has the right to humiliate the venue staff, while in other countries the waiters are crushed and cramped in these situations.. From the Cuban point of view, the waiter is on an equal footing with the customer, no one is more or less than the other.. And no one has to be on a whim just because they’re a waiter! (Well, long live Cuba!)
Factoria Plaza Vieja
This is another very nice place right at the corner of ‘Plaza Vieja’ square. They have very good cocktails, cheap, good food and always lively! There is live music especially in the evenings and you can have fun as you please.. We spent two evenings in Havana having fun here.. If it’s full when you come here, you can go to ‘La Taberna de La Muralla’ right next to it.. Of course, there is entertainment, music and dance there too!
Café el Dandy
This is a coffee shop in Old Havana, again. This tiny place has very good coffee and delicious tapas.. And the prices are cheap.
Hanoi
This is a family restaurant right across from Cafe el Dandy. Very good food, cheap. Their drinks are very good, very cheap! Cuba’s local beer Bucanero is 1 Cuc and cocktails vary between 2-3 Cuc. You can have a dinner here. You might even see that you spent an entire evening here!
Jazz Club La Zorra Y El Cuervo
This is a music club around the Malecon and its evenings are extremely entertaining. If you want to not just sit but dance, shed your wolves and get your fill of latin music, we’ll get you here!
Casa de La Musica
Casa de La Musica, the famous, state-run music of Cubans houses. Almost every city has one ‘Casa de La Musica’ and Havana is located in Centro Havana. Don’t expect booze quality around here, but the music is boundless.. People are dancing in the middle, someone can invite you to a dance when you least expect it, and you find yourself in the middle without realizing what you are! The entrance to Casa de La Musica in Havana is paid and varies between 10 -15 Cuc depending on who comes out.. (You should also see the one in Trinidad, we don’t know it! It’s only 1 Cuc)
La Marina
This is a restaurant in the Old Havana area and unlike the others ‘Guarapo’ making the cocktail. While waiting for the cocktail, you watch the whole sugar cane enter the machine and come out as liquid sugar.. Cocktails are cheap, too. (What more could we ask for) La Marina is one of our favorite favorites in Havana.
Habana 61
This is Cuba, close to the streets leading to the Museum of the Revolution. restaurant. Although the food is very good, it is a bit expensive and always crowded! If it’s full when you come here, you can try ‘El Figaro’ on the parallel street right away.
Café Lamparilla
This is one of the places to eat quality food in Havana and it’s very nice. a restaurant. We especially recommend seafood.
O’Reilly 304
O’Reilly is a tapas bar on the streets of Old Havana but isolated from the Cuban concept! We can even say that it is one of the rare ‘hipster’ places of Cuba.. It was very quiet since we went during the day and they had great mojitos.. A bit of side streets, but don’t miss it if you find it!
If you’re looking for a place where locals eat, not tourists, we’ll recommend ‘Pizzas y Bebidas’. This is a tiny pizzeria hidden behind the famous restaurant ‘Santo Angel’ located just around the corner from Plaza Vieja. Mostly locals go and prices are very cheap, also local pesos pass. We met Ibo here, who came to Cuba 10 years ago and fell in love with the country, but never returned to Turkey and stayed here.. We talked to Ibo about the situation in Cuba and we explained what he told us in the Cuba Preparation Guide.
Havana’s places to eat and drink cocktails are endless! We can’t say this is the most fun place, because a place with dance music one day can be quiet the next! The reason is that there are a lot of traveling bands in Havana and they play in a different venue every day, and people sit where the music is! A place where you listen to great music and have a meal one day can be quiet when the band doesn’t go there the next day! So, if there is music when you pass by a place, do not doubt, dive in, you may not find the same place in the same way the next time you pass
Don’t ask how you ate so much in 5 days, you spend so long on the streets that you sit on the streets every two hours. no storage! If you prepare well and go to Havana and know the places that make good food, you do not find the food culture strange, so there is no hunger!
We loved this city, so to speak, we fell in love.. The most enjoyable travel article we wrote was Cuba for us, on the one hand, we turned on the music we listened to in Cuba and on the other hand wrote it and went back to the time we were in Cuba.. We have a feeling that you will love it too.
What shall we say,
Hasta la Victoria Siempre!
Our next stop after Havana It was Santa Clara and Trinidad.
For our Santa Clara travel article, here you go!!
For our Trinidad travel article, here you go! !
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