This is a tour made for adventurous travellers. You’ll get a real taste of the 1950s Cuban revolution with visits to Fidel Castro’s former HQ and the place where the action all began. Also on your agenda is some time in the cities of Santiago de Cuba and Bayamo where you can look out over the Bay of Santiago from a 17th-century fort.

Holguin: 2 nights
Santiago De Cuba: 2 nights
Sierra Maestra Mountains: 2 nights
Guardalavaca: 8 nights

DAY 1 Arrival
When you arrive in Holguin, you’ll be taken to the Pinares de Mayari hotel. This is your base for the next two nights and the start of your tour.

DAY 2 Scientific Research Station - Guayabo Waterfall
You’ll head up into the Nipe Highlands in the morning to visit the Scientific Research Station, 2,000 feet above sea level. After that you’re off on a nature trail to learn about the native plants and wildlife. And then it’s on to the Guayabo waterfall where you can hike down about 100 metres to the bottom and take a dip. You’ll also have time to do some solo exploring or to relax by the hotel pool before dinner.

DAY 3 Santiago De Cuba
After breakfast you’ll set off for Cuba’s former capital and the original home of Bacardi rum, Santiago de Cuba. This was the first place liberated by Fidel Castro and his freedom fighters in the 1950s revolution and has been called the Capital of the Caribbean. It’s a city of boulevards and winding back streets and has a reputation as one of the prettiest and most cosmopolitan cities in Cuba. Once you’ve had lunch you’ll be taken on a sightseeing tour to get to know it better. At the end of the day you’ll check in at the Hotel Versailles for a two night stay.

DAY 4 Santiago De Cuba
This day’s packed with things to see and do. First off, you’ll visit Morro Castle, a 17th-century fortress guarding the Bay of Santiago, originally built to keep the real pirates of the Caribbean away. It later doubled up as a prison and now houses a museum about those seafaring bad guys. And it’s also a great place for viewing the Sierra Maestra Mountains. After this, you’re off to the Moncada Barracks to see the spot where the Cuban revolution sparked off in 1953 - you can still see the battle scars on the building today. And finally, you’ll go to the Bacardi Museum to see the private art and antiques collection of Emilio Bacardi and learn more about Cuban history.

DAY 5 Bayamo & the Sierra Maestra Mountains
After breakfast you’ll head off to Bayamo, the country’s second oldest city, for some sightseeing. At almost 500 years old, this place is full of interesting buildings and sights. Make sure you check out the huge ochre-coloured Bayamo Cathedral and make time for Parque Cespedes - a quiet square surrounded by pastel-coloured buildings. You’ll have lunch here before heading to the Sierra Maestra Mountains, Cuba’s highest range, and to the Villa Santo Domingo. This hotel is made up of little wooden homes surrounded by winding tracks and has a mountain stream at the foot of it all.

DAY 6 Sierra Maestra Mountains
You’ll be picked up by Jeeps and taken to the starting point of your trek to La Plata, the headquarters of Fidel Castro during the guerrilla war in the 1950s. The rebels’ old camp is made up of thatched wooden huts and hidden deep in the forest, so you’ll soon see why the government forces never managed a successful attack on it. After you’ve looked around, you’ll learn all about the history of the area, the animals and plants and then it’s back to your hotel for dinner.

DAY 7-15 Guardalavaca
With the tour at an end it’s time to take it easy on the beach. You’ll be taken to Guardalavaca to stay at your chosen hotel for a week.

DAY 15 Transfer to Holguin airport for the return overnight flight to the UK.


IMPORTANT Depending on the number of people taking the tour, it may be in a taxi, mini-van or coach.

Due to the popularity of this tour, it may sometimes be necessary to accommodate guests in an alternative hotel of the same rating to those mentioned in the above itinerary.