Cuba: Art, Culture & History

ALL TOURS
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DETAILS

Experience the enigmatic island of Cuba through the lens of a local. Meet with a historian for a lecture on the architectural revolution that shaped Havana, followed by a guided tour of the UNESCO-recognized historic center. Gain a behind-the-scenes look at local art with a multilevel contemporary showcase at the Fábrica de Arte Cubano, named by Time magazine as “one of the world’s greatest places,” and enjoy an after-hours tour of the Ceramics Museum. Dine at family-run, privately owned paladres and enjoy a private dance performance. Meet with Cuban cultural leaders and attend a private reception hosted by the President of a nonprofit supporting emerging Cuban artists. Enjoy a private curator-led tour of Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana, Cuba’s largest museum, and join farmers to tour a tobacco hacienda in the Viñales Valley.

Pricing from
$5,499
Trip Type
Group Travel Tour, International Land & Rail Tours
Departure Dates
Mar 22, 2026 - Mar 28, 2026

HOTELS

LA RESERVA VEDADO, HAVANA
Experience Havana’s rich heritage at this privately owned boutique hotel. Set in a meticulously restored historic residence, La Reserva Vedado blends Old Havana’s architectural elegance with contemporary Cuban art and
modern design. Stay connected with complimentary Wi-Fi and unwind with expertly crafted mojitos and traditional Cuban cuisine at the hotel’s bar and restaurant.

TERMS & CONDITIONS

Click here for the full terms & conditions

TOUR MAP

Cuba map

ITINERARY

  • day 1

    DEPARTURE/ HAVANA CUBA

    Welcome to Havana! You will be met upon arrival at the José Martí International Airport and transferred to La Reserva Vedado, a historic mansion-turned-boutique hotel and our home for six nights. This evening, gather for our welcome dinner at a paladar, a privately owned restaurant in the proprietor’s home, largely staffed by family members.

  • day 2

    HAVANA

    Founded in 1519, Havana stands as one of the Caribbean’s most historically significant cities. Join a morning discussion with a local historian on Havana’s architectural evolution and the complexities of Cuban home ownership. Then walk through Old Havana’s UNESCO-listed streets, visiting four of its grand plazas and the 18th-century Havana Cathedral (Catedral de San Cristóbal), one of the oldest cathedrals in the Americas. Following lunch at a paladar, take a private tour of the splendidly renovated Gran Teatro de La Habana Alicia Alonso, home to the Cuban National Ballet. Afterwards, explore the homes and studios of some of Havana’s leading artists, where there may be an opportunity to purchase paintings and drawings. Later, gather for a rooftop dinner at El Cocinero, a former cooking oil factory transformed into a chic restaurant and bar with delicious food and world-class daiquiris. Next door, join a curator for a private tour of what Time magazine calls one of “the world’s greatest places,” the Fábrica de Arte Cubano (FAC). Housing performance venues and an art gallery, this spellbinding, multilevel space defies categorization.

  • day 3

    HAVANA / VIÑALES / HAVANA

    Set forth on a morning ride through the countryside, arriving in the western province of Pinar del Río, known for its lush tobacco haciendas. Amid the beauty of the Viñales Valley, admire the region’s distinctive mogotes, hills towering as high as 1,000 feet, with steep, almost vertical sides. Meet with a local farmer for a private tour of a tobacco hacienda and enjoy an engaging private demonstration of the drying and rolling processes. Then share lunch at a nearby privately owned organic farm with panoramic valley views, tasting traditional Cuban dishes crafted from locally sourced ingredients. Before returning to Havana, visit the studio of a local painter who has charted the history of his community through his work. Tonight, enjoy dinner on your own. Your tour director or local guide can share recommendations for privately owned restaurants near the hotel.

  • day 4

    Havana

    An independent curator will guide you on a private tour of the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana (National Museum of Fine Arts of Havana), Cuba’s largest museum. Explore its collection of works by leading modern and contemporary Cuban artists, including the revered Afro-Cuban surrealist Wifredo Lam, an acolyte of Picasso. After lunch, stroll along Calle Obispo, Havana’s main shopping street, and visit Dador, a privately owned boutique where designers craft and sell handmade clothing. Meet one of the shop’s owners to discuss the realities of running an independent business in Cuba’s shifting economic climate. In the early evening, visit the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, one of the nation’s few NGOs, to learn how the organization supports emerging Cuban artists. The Foundation’s President will host a cocktail reception and buffet dinner on the penthouse terrace, where guests include emerging Cuban artists. Later, consider attending a performance at one of Havana’s legendary music venues.

  • day 5

    HAVANA / SAN FRANCISCO DE PAULA / HAVANA

    Head outside the capital to the small, hilltop village of San Francisco de Paula. Visit Finca Vigía (Lookout Farm), Hemingway’s longtime Cuban retreat, where he lived for two decades. Hemingway wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea in the villa’s breezy rooms and shady porticos. View the beautifully preserved rooms through open windows from the surrounding terraces. While exploring the property, see Pilar, Hemingway’s famous, 38-foot fishing boat. After lunch, return to Havana and gather for a lecture on the island’s current realities by a former ambassador who was once Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs. In the early evening, attend a private after-hours tour at the Museo Nacional de la Cerámica Contemporánea Cubana, followed by dinner at a local paladar.

  • day 6

    Havana

    Attend a private rehearsal with the Rosario Cárdenas Dance Company, where some of Cuba’s top contemporary dancers train and perform. You will have an opportunity to chat and perhaps even have an impromptu dance lesson with the performers. After lunch at leisure, continue to the 122-acre Colón Cemetery, an exceptional repository of Cuban history and artistry. Often described as an open-air museum, Colón Cemetery is home to more than 500 elaborate mausoleums, chapels, and family vaults. Admire intricate funerary sculptures and grand mausoleums that blend Classical Revival, Art Deco, and eclectic architectural styles. This evening, explore the renowned 1930 Hotel Nacional de Cuba, designed by the acclaimed New York architecture firm McKim, Mead & White. Stop in its storied Hall of Fame to see tributes to its many famous guests, including Nat King Cole, Sir Winston Churchill, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Gabriel García Marquez. Enjoy the hotel’s signature mojito on a terrace overlooking Havana’s harbor before a festive farewell dinner at an excellent paladar.

  • day 7

    HAVANA / RETURN

    Depart the hotel this morning for the flight home.

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