THE ULTIMATE CUBA TRAVEL GUIDE ⋆ blonde & bubbly

Tristan surprised with a trip to CUBA for my birthday last year. He knew how I much I wanted to go and he completely surprised me with the flights. My sister Julie joined along when she heard we were going. We went for 5 days during May and it was absolutely amazing! Below is the ultimate Cuba travel guide, including my best tips, and our itinerary.

THE ULTIMATE CUBA TRAVEL GUIDE:

CUBA TRAVEL TIPS:

Taxi company: 24/7 hotline you can dial locally in Cuba: http://www.taxivinalescuba.com
Enable ROAMING on phone: Avoid texting (massive delays in delivery), calling is quicker!
Cuban Visa: Buy at the airport for $100 round-trip
WIFI: You can often buy wifi cards (1 hour of internet) for around 3 CUC. The people who sell them are hanging out in parks/near hotels. We bought ours across the street from our airbnb & used the wifi at the hotel next door.

OUR ITINERARY:

Day 1:

After landing and checking into our Airbnb, we made our way to Old Havana for lunch at El del Frente, a place someone recommended we check out for their mojitos and rooftop! The food was alright but the mojitos were great! Address: 303 O’Reilly, Havana, Cuba

We went to the Partagas Cigar Factory. Rather than taking a tour of the factory, we followed a guy into a space behind the building and bought cigars. It was an interesting experience to say the least. Address: Calle Industria 520

Checked out Azucar Lounge & Bar for daiquiris & a very nice view! Address: Mercaderes 315 Teniente Rey & Vieja., Muralla

We had dinner at Rio Mar, on the water – AMAZING food & atmostphere! Highly recommend. Address: 3ra y Final # 11, La Puntilla, Miramar, Havana

Day 2:

I don’t remember much about this day except that we had dinner at El Cocinero – really good food and a cool rooftop. Address: Calle 26, e/11 and 13, Vedado (next to the Puente de Hierro). TIP: Make reservation to eat on second floor, drinks first on roof.

Day 3:

We took a cab (2 hours each way) to Varadero Beach, probably the MOST amazing, beautiful beaches I’ve ever been to in my life. We got dropped off at Casa del Al, a restaurant ON the beach and we were literally the only people in sight.

After the cab ride back to Havana we had dinner at La Guarida. We ate on the roof because we couldn’t get reservations at the main restaurant. The food was decent and the view was nice. I would recommend making a reservation at the main restaurant since they have a full menu. Address: 418 Concordia, La Habana

Day 4:

We had churros from the guy on the corner of Aguacate and Obispo – whatever you do TRY THESE!!! These churros are SO GOOD. Probably the best thing we ate the entire trip.