OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
“Cuba… this gorgeous siren of the Caribbean,” puffs the 1948 Blue Guide to an island that “has lured millions of earth’s children across the seas within the spell of her languorous beauty.” The guide’s punch-drunk scribe wasn’t the first to be enchanted by the crocodile-shaped isle. That credit goes to Christopher Columbus. Rocking up in a far-flung bay in eastern Cuba, 450 years beforehand, the roving admiral was so blown away by the place that he confessed words failed him when writing about the island’s beauty.
Back to the future, and my Instagram feed is full of gleaming gelatocoloured cars and fancy buildings in Havana. Even the James Bond producers were seduced. However, nowhere in Santiago de Cuba looks like the neon-signed El Nido Bar in No Time to Die. The mise en scène created at Pinewood peddled a decadent aura that simply doesn’t exist – and, in fact, the raw reality is more thrilling. Cuba’s cities and landscapes are ravishingly beautiful but there is also chronic dilapidation. And this summer, protests rocked the country as Cubans called for change, enhanced civil rights and an end to shortages.
Dig a little deeper, escape Havana and the tourist spots with these three regional trip ideas, and you can experience the island as the locals do. But do bear in mind that straying off the beaten path means arranging things for yourself, being flexible, bringing lots of cash (sterling or euro), and getting a sim card on arrival (£22) from nationwide provider Etecsa for data on the go rather than patchy, commonly al-fresco Wi-Fi (etecsa.cu/telefonia_ movil/cubacel_tur).
CIGARS, CAVES AND BIRDING COUNTRY
Beneath the spine of the Guaniguanico mountain range in western Cuba, in forest bristling with royal palms and hardwoods, is the eco-community of Las Terrazas (lasterrazas.cu). Here you can head out with guides to spot the national bird of Cuba, the blue-, redand white-striped Cuban trogon, and walk among the ruins of 19th-century coffee plantations. Seek the chocolatey perfume of the striped blush pink Encyclia phoenicia at the national orchid garden in nearby Soroa.
Anyone with the necessary skills can
hire a horse to ride through the Valley of Viñales, two hours south of Las Terrazas, a Unesco-protected jumble of limestone haystacks and caves embedded with giant owl fossils, and meet a farming family via The Viñales Experience (thevinalesexperience.com; £80pp). Book a suite at rustic beauty Viñales Lodge (airbnb.co.in/ rooms/38698787; from £15).
If you are curious about Cuba’s cigar business, then tour Finca Quemado del Rubi in tobacco country San Juan y Martínez, 45 minutes south-west of Viñales (£12 including lunch). And – hungry or not – treat yourself on your way out of Havana (40 minutes) or your