Havana travel guide

Colonial period

Havana, the capital, founded in 1519 on the present site, is situated at the mouth of a deep bay; in the colonial period, this natural harbour was the assembly point for ships of the annual silver convoy to Spain. Its strategic and commercial importance is reflected in the extensive fortifications, particularly on the east side of the entrance to the bay where there are two large fortresses, El Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro, built in 1589-1630 and San Carlos de la Cabaña, built in 1763-1774. On the west side of the canal are the smaller, 16th-century Castillo de la Punta and the Castillo de la Real Fuerza.

The city was prey to pirate attacks as well as being a pawn in European wars. In the 18th century, the British attacked Havana and held it from 1762-1763, but exchanged it for Florida. From that point, the city’s importance as the gathering place for the silver convoy was superseded by trade. The local planters and merchants had briefly discovered the value of trading their crops with Britain and North America. From the second half of the 18th century to the end of the 19th century, ships came in to Havana carrying slaves,while exports of coffee, tobacco and, most importantly, sugar were the mainstay of the local economy.

19th century

From the beginning of the 19th century, the local sugar plantocracy began to move out of the city guarded by defensive walls and build neocolonial villas or country estates in what are now the municipalities of Cerro, 10 de Octubre and the high part of Marianao. One example of this architecture is Quinta del Conde Santo Venia, built in 1841, now a home for the elderly, just behind the Estadio Latino Americano. By the 1850s, the city walls had more or less collapsed and the Prado was absorbed into the old city instead of running outside the walls. A fine neoclassical example here is the Palacio de Aldama, opposite the Parque de la Fraternidad. Competition began to come from the west in the 1870s, with the rise of Vedado, which reached its high point in the 1920s, where neoclassical, romantic and art nouveau small palaces with internal courtyards vied with each other for luxury and originality. The Casa de la Amistad, on Paseo, is an example, and the Colón cemetery also reflects this bourgeois competitiveness.

20th century

By 1918, Miramar, on the western outskirts across the Río Almendares, now Playa municipality, began to take over, in another new style: that of beach resorts, exclusive seaside clubs and, of course, casinos. It was the salon of the city, American-style. In the 1950s, the development had reached as far west as the present districts of Siboney and Cubanacán (now given Amerindian names in place of their former ones of Biltmore and the Country Club) in Playa, housing some 300 wealthy families. The houses where the wealthy lived in Miramar before the Revolution are today occupied by embassies and government buildings, but there are also many abandoned villas. Major building operations took place after the two World Wars in Miramar and after the Korean war in the far western suburbs, both of which were boom periods in terms of sugar and also nickel sales for armaments. This was also the moment for the extension of Nuevo Vedado, tower buildings like the Focsa, and the Hotel Nacional. The sea was regarded as a threat during most of Havana’s history and only became an asset in the 20th century. The Malecón seafront drive was built in 1901, the tunnel to Miramar (replacing a bridge) in 1950, and the tunnel leading to Playas del Este, on the other side of the bay, in 1958.

The wealthy middle class also built property for rent (80% of Havana was rented to other nationals and foreigners). Landlords lived in houses built on the manzana (block), architectural style. Those that were built for rent were on a smaller scale, with fewer green areas and small apartments off passageways. Working- class areas within these suburbs or municipalities were also developed, such as Pogolotti (early 1900s in Marianao), and parts of San Miguel del Padrón, in 1948. Buena Vista, in Nuevo Vedado, was also a poorer area. After the Revolution, construction was concentrated on the rest of the country, which had been largely forgotten. Havana was seen as relatively well-developed in comparison. Exceptions were service buildings, such as the Almeijeras hospital on the Malecón, and educational institutions. A whole section of the bay was also developed for the fishing industry. The municipality of Havana del Este is post-Revolution. The Camilo Cienfuegos housing estate was built in 1959-1961 and Alamar in 1970. There is also the scientific complex near Siboney in the far west of Miramar, housing a state-of-the-art genetic biology centre and a neurological hospital, among other facilities.

Before the Revolution, Havana was the largest, the most beautiful and the most sumptuous city in the Caribbean. Today, it is rather run down and the weather has wreaked havoc on both pre- and post-Revolution buildings. Thanks to the government’s policy of developing the countryside, it’s not ringed with shanty towns like so many other Latin American capitals, although some reappeared in the 1990s. Nevertheless, the city is shabby and visitors are often taken by surprise by living conditions. Half the people live in housing officially regarded as sub-standard. Many buildings are shored up by wooden planks. Some of it is very old, but the ancient palaces, colonnades, churches and monasteries have undergone so much renovation that they are in considerably better shape than the newer housing.

The old city has been declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations. Priorities include the restoration of the historic centre, under the auspices of UNESCO and the City Historian’s Office, whose brief is also to rebuild communities in the widest sense of the word, with income from cultural tourism, and aid from European NGOs. Restoration will encompass the Malecón, starting from the historic centre, where housing has been badly affected by salination and sea damage, and the Bosque de la Habana, crossed by the Río Almendares, now suffering from pollution and contamination, which is a potentially rich green belt, extending over several kilometres.

The driest and least humid time of the year is between December and March, when you can have completely cloudless days. From July to August is the hottest time but most public buildings have air conditioning and there is usually a breeze along the Malecón. Rain falls mainly in May and June and then from September to October, but there are wet days all year round. In recent years, the worst storms have hit between September and November, destroying many of the decrepit houses in the city, but Havana is exceptionally well prepared for hurricanes and loss of life is rare. Carnival is a movable feast. For some years it was held along the Malecón at the end of July and the beginning of August, then it was moved to November and it could be any time, check in advance. There are many cultural festivals (jazz, ballet, film, etc) and sporting events (baseball, cycling, boxing, fishing, sailing, etc) all through the year that are worth catching. There are many festive days which are not national holidays, for example José Martí’s birthday (28 January 1853), which are very important, particularly in Havana. New Year celebrations are a major event, coinciding with the anniversary of the triumph of the Revolution on 1 January 1959.

Accident and emergency

Ambulance: T7-838 1185/838 2185. Fire: T105. Police: Policía Nacional Revolucionaria (PNR) T106. Main police station is at Dragones entre Lealtad y Escobar, Centro, T7-863 2441.

Banks

For credit-card withdrawals, TCs and currency exchange, open Mon-Fri 0800-1500, last day of the month until 1200, Banco Financiero Internacional. In Vedado: Línea 1 esquina O, T7-833 3423, in Habana Libre complex, T7-838 4429; in La Habana Vieja: Oficios y Brasil, T7-860 9369; in Centro: Centro Comercial Carlos III, T7-873 6496; in Miramar: 18 111 entre 1 y 3, T7-204 2058, Av 5 esq 92, T7-267 5000, Edif Sierra Maestra, Av 1 y O, T7-203 9764. Banco Internacional de Comercio, 20 de Mayo y Ayestarán, Plaza de la Revolución, T7-855 5482, Mon-Fri 0830- 1400. Branches at Empedrado y Aguiar, La Habana Vieja, T7-866 6410, Av 3 y 78, Playa, T7-204 3607, both open Mon-Fri 0830-1500. Banco Metropolitano, Av 5 y 112, Playa, T7-204 9189, Línea 63 esq M, Vedado, T7-838 3116, Mon-Sat 0830-1500.

Cadecas

(exchange houses): Obispo 358 entre Compostela y Habana, T7-861 8501, daily 0800-2200; Neptuno 161 entre Consulado e Industria, T7-863 6853, Mon-Sat 0800-1800, Sun 0800-1300; in Hotel Sevilla daily, 0900-1900; in Hotel Nacional, 0800-1200 and 1230-1930, credit card cash advances.

ATMs

Most banks and Cadecas now have ATMs for cash CUC$ withdrawal. An ATM outside the business centre of the NH Parque Central is a safe place to get money out. There is also an ATM in the Plaza Carlos III shopping centre, Av Carlos III.

Embassies and consulates

All in Miramar, unless stated otherwise: Argentina, 36 511 entre 5 y 7, T7-204297. Austria, Av 5 A 6617, T7-204 2825, Mon-Fri 0900-1200. Belgium, 8 309 entre 3 y 5, T7-204 2410. Brazil, Lamparilla 2, La Habana Vieja, T7-866 2912. Canada, 30 518 esq 7, Playa, T7-204 2516, Mon-Thu 0830-1700, Fri 0830-1400 (Consular section). France, 14 312 entre 3 y 5, T7-2013131, Consulate T7-201 3121, Mon-Thu 0830-1230. Germany, 13 652 esq B, Vedado, T7-833 2569. Greece, Av 5 7802, esq 78, Playa, T7-204 2995. Italy, Av 5 402 esq 4, T7-2045615, Mon-Fri 0900-1230 (Consular section). Japan, Av 3 esq 80, Centro de Negocios, 5th floor, Playa, T7-204 3355, Mon-Fri 0900-1700. Mexico, 12 No 518 entre 5 y 7, T7-204 2583, daily 0900-1200, Mon-Fri. Netherlands, 8 307 entre 3 y 5, Playa, T7-2042511, Mon-Fri 0830-1130. Peru, 30 y Av 1, T7-204 2477. Portugal, 7 2207 esq 24, T7-204 0149, Mon-Fri 0900-1230. South Africa, 5 4203 esq 42, T7-204 1058, Mon-Fri 0900-1200. Spain, Cárcel 51 esq Zulueta, La Habana Vieja, T7-868 6868, Mon-Fri 0900-1300. Sweden, 34 510 entre 5 y 7, Playa, T7-2042831, ambassaden.havanna@ foreign.ministry.se, Mon-Fri 0930-1130. Switzerland, Av 5 2005 entre 20 y 22, Playa, T7-204 2611, Mon-Fri 0900-1200, swissem@ enet.cu. UK, 34 702 y 704 entre 7 y 17, T7-204 1771, embrit@ceniai.inf.cu (Consular Section), Mon-Fri 0800-1200. US Interests Section of the Swiss Embassy, Calzada entre L y M, Vedado, T7-833 3551, Mon-Fri 0830- 1700. Venezuela, 5 1601, Playa, T7-204 2662.

Insurance

Asistur is linked to overseas insurance companies and can help with emergency hospital treatment, repatriations, robbery, direct transfer of funds to Cuba, financial and legal problems, travel insurance claims, etc. For (24-hr) emergencies go to Prado 208 entre Trocadero y Colón, La Habana Vieja, T7-866 8339/8920/8527, F7-866 8087, http://www.asistur.cu.

Internet

Access is available at a limited number of places. Most hotels now have 1 or 2 terminals in the lobby, which are not reserved for guests but they will be more expensive than Etecsa, which charges CUC$6 per hr throughout the island. The large hotels of 4 or 5 stars, such as the Habana Libre, Nacional, Parque Central (business centre on 1st floor, ext 1911, 1833, daily 0800-2000), Meliá Cohiba, all have business centres with computers for internet access, as well as printing, photocopying, telephone, fax and telex facilities, but they charge a lot more.

The best place in La Habana Vieja is Etecsa’s Telepunto, Habana 406 entre Obispo y Obrapía, T7-866 0547, daily 0830-2030, which has a communications centre with phones and fax service as well as 8 new terminals for internet access; Lonja del Comercio, Lamparilla 2, Plaza San Francisco de Asís, T7-866 2824, Mon-Fri 0830-1700, 4 terminals; Aguila y Dragones, Centro, T7-866 4641. There is a cybercafé in the Capitolio. Go in the main entrance and follow the signs to the left and through the building. There are 6 old terminals, very slow and appalling keyboards, open 0830-1800 (although 2000 is advertized but the Capitolio is shut by then). You may have to wait up to 45 mins for 1 to be free.

Medical services

Clínica Central Cira García, 20 4101 esq 41, Playa, T7-204 2811, http://www.cirag.cu. Payment in CUC$, emergency health care, also the place to go for emergency dental treatment. There are other branches at the Hotel Comodoro, Sevilla, Habana Libre, Marina Hemingway, Terminal 3 at the airport and at Clínica Playas del Este, Villa Tarará, and Villa Panamericana to the east. Hotel La Pradera Pharmacy and Treatment Centre, 230 entre 15A y 17, Reparto Siboney, T7-273 7467-76, comercia@pradera.cha.cyt.cu, water therapy, yoga, sauna, physiotherapy, Mon-Sat 0800-1700. Servimed Biotop, Av 41 2206 esq 22, T7-204 2377, F7-204 2378. Body and facial aesthetics, stress management, revitalizers, innovative techniques for psychological and physical evaluations, alternative non-invasory techniques.

Opticians

Optica Miramar, 11 14614 esq 146A, Siboney, Playa, T7-208 6257, also branches at 7 y 22, Playa, T7-204 2269. Optica Miramar Arrinda, Neptuno 411 entre Manrique y San Nicolás, Centro, T7-863 2161, arrinda@opticam.cha.cyt.cu, Mon-Fri 1000-1800, Sat 1000-1300; Optica El Almendares, Obispo 364 entre Habana y Compostela, La Habana Vieja, T7-860 8262, Mon-Sat 1000-1800; and other locations, Ophthalmology consultants, contact lenses, photochromic brown and grey lenses, light- weight glasses, plastic and metal frames.

Pharmacies

The pharmacy at the Clínica Central Cira García T7-204 2880, sells prescription and patent drugs and medical supplies that are often unavailable in other pharmacies, as does the Farmacia Internacional, Av 41, esq 20, Playa, T7-204 2051, daily 0900-2100, and at the Habana Libre, L y 23, Vedado, T7-838 4593. Camilo Cienfuegos Pharmacy, L y 13, Vedado, T7-833 3599, daily 0800-2000.

Post/courier services

Post offices sell stamps in pesos, but hotels will charge in CUC$, making them very expensive.

Línea y Paseo, T7-830 5138, open 24 hrs, incredibly busy, long queues. Oficios 104 entre Amargura y Lamparilla, opposite the Lonja, open 24 hrs, T7-862 0103, and postal facilities in the Hotel Nacional. Also on Ejido esq Arsenal, next to central railway station, T7-862 2174, 24 hrs, and in the same building as Gran Teatro de La Habana.

Couriers

Cubanacán Express, Av 5A 6223 esq 66, Miramar, T7-204 7848, http://www.cubanacan-express.cu, national and international courier service. DHL in Miramar on Av 1 102 esq 26, T7-204 1578, commercial@dhl.cutisa.cu, and at Calzada 818 entre 2 y 4, Vedado, T7-832 2112.

Telephones

Empresa Telecomunicaciones de Cuba (Etecsa) is on 18 3303 entre 33 y 31, Miramar, T7-204 1828, with offices listed above (Internet), also called Telepunto. There are also Minipunto cabins dotted around the city for phone services, internet, fax and pre-paid phone cards. There are phone boxes all over the city, taking coins or phone cards; it is written on the side whether they are for local, national or international calls. Cubacel, which operates mobile phone service, is part of Etecsa.

The year in Havana is crammed with festivals of one sort or another. The most popular cultural events are the cinema and jazz festivals, but there are also several ballet and contemporary dance festivals as well as folk and classical music events. There are book fairs, many sporting events and even a cigar festival, while at the Marina Hemingway there always seem to be regattas and fishing tournaments in progress.

Bus

The Víazul bus service for foreigners is based quite far away from the old city and from Vedado and a taxi will be needed to get you to your destination. Cubataxis wait outside the terminal and will cost around CUC$5-6 to La Habana Vieja or Centro.

Havana is very spread out along the coast. La Habana Vieja to Miramar along the Malecón (the seafront boulevard) is more than 8 km. Bus Tricky for the uninitiated, involving complicated queuing procedures and a lot of pushing and shoving. In 2009 the Government cut back on the number of buses in service to save fuel, increasing the difficulties of getting on them. There is, however, a hop-on, hop-off tour bus service for foreigners, the HabanaBusTour, CUC$5 per day, leaving from the Parque Central with one route to the Plaza de la Revolución and the other out to the Playas del Este. Bicitaxi More leisurely than taking the bus is to hire a bicitaxi (bicycle taxi) for short journeys. However, it is now illegal for bicitaxis to take foreigners and they risk a large fine if caught, so they are likely to charge you over the odds to make it worthwhile. Cocotaxi These overpriced, bright yellow motorcycle taxis are called cocotaxis because of their shape. Taxi You can opt for the traditional taxi, although those too come in lots of different styles. Walking Much of the city can be covered on foot, but the average visitor will be content with one district at a time and still feel well-exercised. It is also possible to hire scooters and cars.

Air
The José Martí international airport is 18 km from Havana and all flights from abroad use Terminal 3, the newest terminal, with the exception of flights from Cancún which arrive at Terminal 2. As many transatlantic flights arrive late at night it can be sensible to arrange the transfer from the airport to your hotel in advance with your travel agent. However, it is cheaper to get a taxi when you arrive; fares range from CUC$15-25, but CUC$25 is commonly asked to the old city. On the way back to the airport it is possible to arrange a private taxi, which may work out cheaper, if you negotiate with the driver. However, their cars are not as reliable as the state taxis and if they break down on the long drive out, you will be stuck. A metered taxi from the Parque Central to Terminal 3 cost CUC$19.75 in 2009. Travelling by bus is not practical. The P12 bus from Parque Fraternidad, or the P16 from Vedado go along Avenida Rancho Boyeros, relatively close to the domestic terminals, but still a long walk, it is difficult with luggage and it will take forever. Terminal 3 is a long way from the other two (although just five minutes in a taxi) there are no connecting public buses either between the terminals or from Terminal 3 into Havana.

The city of Havana has 200 districts in 15 municipalities, including 14,000 manzanas (blocks). These municipalities are: Playa, Marianao and La Lisa in the west; Boyeros in the southwest; Plaza de la Revolución, Centro Habana, La Habana Vieja, Cerro and Diez de Octubre in the centre; south-central Arroyo Naranjo; Regla, San Miguel del Padrón going eastwards; Cotorro in the southeast; and in the east, Playas del Este and Guanabacoa. The centre is divided into five sections, three of which are of most interest to visitors, La Habana Vieja (Old Havana), Centro Habana (Central Havana) and Vedado, linked by the Malecón, a picturesque thoroughfare along the coast.

Most of the museums, palaces and churches of interest are in La Habana Vieja. Centro is largely residential and Vedado has most of the action, with clubs, bars, theatres, cinemas and hotels with murky pre-Revolution tales to tell. Beyond Vedado, west of the Río Almendares, is Miramar, once an upper-class suburb, where embassies and hotels for businesspeople are located. Streets have names in La Habana Vieja and Centro, but numbers or letters in Vedado and numbers in Miramar, although some of the main roads in Vedado are still referred to by names.

An address is given as the street (Calle or Avenida), the building number, followed by the two streets between which it is located, eg Hotel Inglaterra, Prado 416 entre San Rafael y San Miguel. However, sometimes this is shortened to showing merely which corner it is on, eg Hotel Florida, Obispo 252 esquina Cuba. A large building will not bother with the number, eg Hotel Nacional, Calle O esquina 21. Cubans usually abbreviate entre (between) to e/ while esquina (corner) becomes esq.

The oldest part of the city, around the Plaza de Armas, is quite near the docks where you can see cargo ships from all over the world being unloaded. Here are the former Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, El Templete, and Castillo de La Real Fuerza, the oldest of all the forts. From Plaza de Armas run two narrow and picturesque streets, Calles Obispo and O’Reilly. These two streets go west to the heart of the city to Parque Central, with its laurels, poincianas, almonds, palms, shrubs and gorgeous flowers. To the southwest rises the white dome of the Capitolio (Capitol). From the northwest corner of Parque Central, a wide, tree-shaded avenue with a central walkway, the Paseo del Prado, runs to the fortress of La Punta. The Prado technically divides the old city from Centro, having once been the edge of the city, although architecturally there is little distinction. At its north sea-side end is Havana’s beguiling oceanfront highway, the Malecón, which snakes westward from La Punta to the residential district of Vedado.

Further west Calle San Lázaro leads directly from the monument to General Antonio Maceo on the Malecón to the Universidad de La Habana (Havana University). Further inland, past El Príncipe castle, is Plaza de la Revolución, with the impressive monument to José Martí at its centre and the much-photographed, huge outline of Che Guevara on one wall.

From near the fortress of La Punta in the old city, a tunnel built in 1958 by the French runs east under the mouth of the harbour; it emerges in the rocky ground between the Castillo del Morro and the fort of La Cabaña, some 550 m away, and a 5-km highway connects with the Havana–Matanzas road. This is an area of post-Revolution housing, designed to improve the living conditions of the average citizen. Both the Camilo Cienfuegos barrio, dating from 1961, and Alamar, from 1970, were built by microbrigades, with citizens helping to build their own apartments, schools and clinics. There are also vast sporting facilities, built for the Panamerican Games, which include athletics tracks, a bicycle track, swimming pool and tennis courts, as well as a hotel. The three or four decades since construction started have taken their toll, however, and the tropical climate and sea winds have eaten into the concrete and metal structures, leaving the district looking run down and depressed.