EXPLORING THE REAL CUBA
THERE’S MORE TO THE ISLAND THAN BEACHES AND RUM
Abruptly, I jam the Jeep into first gear. This is where the real off-road thrills of our Jeep safari in Cuba begin.
The puddle up ahead, stained red from the crimson earth, is as wide as the narrow track and the ruts leading up to it are thick with mud. My wife and I and our 13-year old daughter ram through this section as quickly as possible, splattering the jeep with sloppy muck and murky water.
Then it’s onto a smoother track. We take time to admire the yellow-flowered brush enveloping the Jeep and head for the beach to zoom parallel to the Caribbean Sea. We could be taking main roads on this journey, but what would be the point? This is the Yamuri Jeep Safari and taking the path less travelled is what it’s all about.
The first destination of this all-day adventure is Coral Beach for some snorkelling. My daughter and I slip into the water while my wife opts for a waterfront massage.
Back in our Jeeps, our convoy of nine vehicles snakes toward Rio Canimar, where we change modes of transportation and race up the river in little speed boats.
As we dock, Tainos Aboriginals welcome us with a dance, complete with barebreasted women and loin-clothed men.
Back in the Jeeps, we’re off for a bit of history. Our convoy parks in an semicircle around the monument at Massacre Bay, where a battle for Cuban independence was lost in 1898. The bay is also the closest Cuba is to Florida, just 145 kilometres away.
Hungry, we drive through a series of ramshackle villages to Rancho Gaviota for a traditional Cuban lunch of roast pork, rice and beans and Cristal beer.
At the ranch we take a quick horseback ride around the sugarcane fields, and sample the ranch specialty of freshpressed sugarcane juice with lime and white Ron Cubay rum.
On the way back, we take rutted back roads. Kids run out of the houses to wave at us.
Like many tourists in Cuba, we’ve come to a big resort, Grand Memories on the Varadero Peninsula, where the beaches are spectacular, the water stunning and the weather always warm.
Our Jeep safari is all within Matanzas province where Varadero is located. But a trip to Cuba isn’t complete without the two-hour drive to the UNESCO-certified capital of Havana.
So, we sign up for the Colonial Havana all-day jaunt and first arrive at the modern side of the city to take pictures in Revolution Square.
But Havana’s real charm is in the old colonial city, where the oceanfront malecon walkway stretches 12 kilometres, classic cars cruise the streets, forts and castles overlook the bay, and plazas reveal cathedrals and bars that spill onto the narrow streets with music and mojitos.
However, before we can indulge in that cocktail of mint, sugar syrup, lime, white rum and soda, we cruise along the malecon in a cherry-red 1951 Chevrolet Deluxe convertible with driver Rafael.
Back in Varadero the next day, we head to the ocean for a catamaran tour, to snorkel some more, play with dolphins at Rancho Cangrejo, eat a lobster lunch and lounge in the crystalline waters at Cayo Blanco.
On a one-week all-inclusive Sunwing Vacations holiday at the 1,110-room Grand Memories Resort, we also have lots of time to hang out on the beach, bask in the pool and eat and drink at 16 restaurants and bars.
Sunwing is the largest provider of tourism to Cuba with non-stop flights and allinclusive packages from 24 Canadian cities, including Vancouver
The writer was a guest of Sunwing Vacations, which neither read nor approved of this story before publication.