°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Around 600m west of the frenzy of República sits another sublimely beautiful square, one less visited than the central plazas. It's backed on the eastern…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Around 600m west of the frenzy of República sits another sublimely beautiful square, one less visited than the central plazas. It's backed on the eastern…
Museo Provincial Ignacio Agramonte
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Named (like half of °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â) after the exalted local War of Independence hero, this cavernous museum, just north of the train station, is in a Spanish…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â is home to two of Cuba's most creative and prodigious contemporary painters, Joel Jover and his wife Ileana Sánchez. Their magnificent home in…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
In Cuba's ceramics capital, the studio-gallery of Martha Jiménez Pérez shows the work of one of Cuba's greatest living artists. See everything from pots…
Museo Casa Natal de Ignacio Agramonte
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
The birthplace of independence hero Ignacio Agramonte (1841–73), the cattle rancher who led the °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â area's revolt against Spain. The house – an…
Necropolis de °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
This sea of elaborate, lop-sided, bleached-white Gothic tombs makes up Cuba's most underrated cemetery, secreting the resting place of °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â-born…
Mercado Agropecuario Hatibonico
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
If you visit just one market in Cuba, make it this muddy one. Beside the murky RÃo Hatibonico just off the Carretera Central, and characterized by its…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Cuba's largest urban park sits across the RÃo Hatibonico from the old town, and was laid out in 1860. There are shaded benches, a baseball stadium,…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
The so-called 'lake of dreams' is as an out-of-town escape from °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's urban maze. It uses the same inventive (if slightly kitschy) methodology…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Housed in a former hospital administered by Father José Olallo, the friar who became Cuba’s first saint, the museum chronicles °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â’s history and…
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Merced
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Dating from 1748, this is arguably °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â’s most impressive colonial church. Its history is imbued with legend. Local myth tells of a miraculous figure…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
The working studio of Joel Jover, a noted Cuban artist with exhibits in New York, Vienna and Italy. By comparison, his works here are a bargain (though…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Impossible to miss thanks to its eclectic facade (a mix of Moorish and neoclassical elements), this museum's best exhibit is the building itself. Four…
Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Any exploration of °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's religious history should begin at its most important church, named for the city's patron saint. Rebuilt in the 19th century…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Looking more Mexican than Cuban (Mexico was capital of New Spain so the colonial architecture was often superior), Plaza San Juan de Dios is °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's…
Iglesia de Nuestra Corazón de Sagrado Jesús
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
One of Cuba’s rare neo-Gothic churches beautifies Parque MartÃ, a few blocks east of Parque Ignacio Agramonte. The triple-spired Iglesia de Nuestra…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's most dazzling square in the heart of the city invites relaxation with rings of marble benches and an equestrian statue (c 1950) of °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's…
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Soledad
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Gleaming after a much-lauded 2007 renovation, this massive baroque structure dates from 1779. Its picturesque cream-and-terracotta tower actually predates…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
On the southeastern edge of the city, this church was originally constructed as a chapel in the 18th century. It got a couple of 20th-century renovations …
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Dr Carlos J Finlay (1833–1915), °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â's other hero, made medical breakthroughs in discovering how mosquitoes transmit yellow fever. Calling this place …
Iglesia de San Cristo del Buen Viaje
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Next door to Necropolis de °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â and overlooking a quiet square, this church is probably the least visited of °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â’s ecclesial octet, but it is…
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
This twin-towered baroque beauty dates from 1825. Its former convent, Monasterio de las Ursalinas, is a sturdy arched colonial building with a pretty…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
The Iglesia de San Lazaro is a beautiful (if diminutive) cream-coloured church dating from 1700. Just as interesting is the nearby cloistered hospital…
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
A shopping complex, Cuban-style, with all its engaging foibles and interpretations of commerce. Hit this pink colonial building, spruced up for the city's…
Monument to Mariano Baberán & JoaquÃn Collar
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
On a traffic island near the Casino Campestre entrance is a monument dedicated to Mariano Barberán and JoaquÃn Collar, Spaniards who made the first…
Casa Natal de Nicolás Guillén
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
This modest house gives visitors a small insight into Cuba's late national poet and his books. It doubles as the Instituto Superior de Arte, where local…
Centro de Interpretacion de la Ciudad
°ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â
Cuba loves its maquetas (scale models), and °ä²¹³¾²¹²µÃ¼±ð²â is no exception. This one offers a good overview of the twisting streets of the city.