Sereno 11 days - Cuba Private Tour
Itinerary highlights
Day 1: Havana
Arrival date. Bienvenidos a Cuba! (Welcome to Cuba). We will greet and welcome you at the Havana airport. Look for one of our Experience Cuba Tours representatives. Look for our logo and your group leader name, which is usually the person that made the booking. The transfers to your accommodation are part of the inclusions in this tour. Take this opportunity to go for a little wonder around your accommodation. Havana (and Cuba in general) is incredible safe, and Cubans are welcoming and warm people. or perhaps take this opportunity to rest from your journey (the calm before the storm!).
Day 2: Havana
Old Havana Walking Tour and Classic Convertible Ride
Enjoy a walking tour of the colonial district Havana Vieja (Old Havana) accompanied by your private local guide. UNESCO declared Old Havana a World Heritage Site in 1982, a genuine living museum, in which more than 144 buildings from the 16th and 17th centuries are conserved. This colonial and historic center is a museum at open air of architecture, art and culture. This tour is a real treat for history and culture enthusiasts.
Bask in a beautiful Classic Vintage Convertible Car while you take in the highlights of Havana.
Day 3: Havana
Havana free day
Refer to our Daily Activities page for ideas of what to do.
Day 4: Havana
Hemingway Tour
Relive Hemingway’s steps in Havana by visiting the Nobel Prize’s favourite spots in the city. Visit where he lived at the “Finca La Vigia” and Room 511 at the Ambos Mundos Hotel. Stopover at La Bodeguita del Medio and El Floridita: the birthplace of the Daiquiry.
Day 5: Havana
Havana free day
Refer to our Daily Activities page for ideas of what to do.
Day 6: Mariel
A Taste of Cuba Tour
This is our signature tour: 1 full day tour in Mariel. Get a taste of life in a small Cuban town. Mingle with the locals, be the guest for one full day of an authentic Cuban family, play some dominos, have a go at dancing some salsa, and help to cook your own food. All meals and drinks included. Overnight in Soroa. Nobody else does this tour!
Day 7: Pinar del Rio. Viñales or Soroa.
Select 2 activities
Travel to the Western province of Pinar del Rio. An area of great importance, though it may not have the large cities and infrastructure that you would normally associate with importance, to Cuba as it is an area that produces some of the world’s finest tobacco. Still stereotyped as a simple area with pure country folk it has withstood the temptation to adopt the big tourist developments and remains an area of simple houses and homes in basic small villages and towns.
Select 2 from the following options:
- Soroa Tour
- Tobacco Plantation
- Viñales Prehistoric Mural
- Indian Cave
- Las Terrazas
Overnight in Viñales.
Day 8: Havana
Havana free day
Refer to our Daily Activities page for ideas of what to do.
Day 9: Havana
The Cigar and Rum Tour
The best way to discover the secrets of an ancient tradition in the land of the best cigars of the world and get to know the origin and development of the rum production in the island. Includes visits to a Cigar Factory, the Cigar’s Museum, the Cigar Smoker’s Hotel, shopping opportunity at the specialized cigar stores, Rum museum and a tasting of the Havana Club rum.
Day 10: Varadero
Varadero Beach Group Tour
All-inclusive full day tour. Air-conditioned bus and guide service provided. Courtesy room for change of clothing and bath, furnished with soap and towels. Lunch, snacks, and drink during the whole stay is provided as well as the use of the nautical equipment (non-motorized) at the nautical centre of the hotel.
Day 11: Havana
Departure date. We are sorry we have to say goodbye…for now ;-P
Adiós muchachos, compañeros de mi vida,
Barra querida de aquellos tiempos.
Me toca a mi hoy emprender la retirada
Debo alejarme de mi buena muchachada.by Carlos Gardel.
Translation:
Goodbye guys, companions of my life,
Bye dear bar, memories of these times.
It’s my turn today to undertake the withdrawal,
I must get away from my good companions.
Personalised for you
Take a look at our Daily activities for further ideas on how to personalise this tour for you!
Or give us a call so we can discuss.
- Transfers from and to Havana airport on arrival and departure.
- Transport/transfers in car or minivan as specified in the itinerary.
- Premium accommodations in “casas particulares” (Cuban term equivalent to guesthouses, home-stays, B&Bs). Private bathrooms/ensuites and air-conditioning guaranteed. Upgrades of accommodations to superior casas, private apartments, luxury villas or hotels are available on request and incurs additional surcharges.
- Daily breakfast.
- Daily bottle of water per person, excluding arrival, departure and free days.
- Same local tour guide throughout the tour.
- Activities/excursions as specified in the itinerary.
- Travelers Information Package with lots of practical advice (PDF).
- Cuba Tourist Map, advised by MINTUR, Minister of Tourism in Cuba (hard-copy) on arrival in Cuba.
- DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Cuba with a pull-out map (hard-copy). Allow 4 weeks for delivery. Available only to residents of Australia and New Zealand.
- ECT personnel tips and gratuities.
- Old Havana guided walking tour.
- Classic Vintage Convertible Car ride (1 hour).
- 2-hour private salsa class in a dance center with an instructor.
- Hemingway Tour, including a visit to Finca La Vigia (entry fees included).
- Rum and Tobacco tour, Havana. Visit to a cigar factory, visit to the Rum Museum and visit to El Cristo de La Havana outlook point (entries fees included).
- Mariel: A Taste of Cuba Tour. All meals and drinks in this tour included.
- Pinar del rio: Selection of 2 activities included.
- Varadero Beach Group Tour: All-inclusive full day tour.
- International flights.
- Travel insurances (required to participate in our tours).
- Visas and passport fees. Visas can be arranged for additional costs and subject to our Terms and Conditions.
- Additional meals (except daily breakfasts and the meals in Mariel Tour).
- Drinks (except bottles of waters as stipulated in the itinerary).
- Additional optional activities not specified in the tour. They can be added, incurs surcharges.
- Tips and gratuities (except ECT personnel).
Low season (15th of March to 14th of November):
- One person, one room: price on request
- Two people, one room: $2,068 AUD
- Three people, two rooms: $1,915 AUD
- Four people, two rooms: $1,691 AUD
- Five people, three rooms: $1,749 AUD
- Six people, three rooms: $1,602 AUD
High season (15th of November to 14th of March): Supplement of $90 AUD per person.
Notes: For groups with more than 6 travellers please contact us for details and a quote.
- It is an exciting time in Cuba with rapidly changing legislation and local conditions. Cuba has seen a massive increase in tourism, which has put a strain on local tourist infrastructure. While we will strive to operate our tours as closely to published itineraries as possible, conditions often change from one day to the next, and minor tour modifications may be necessary with no advance notice.
- Casa Particulares can refer to home-stays, B&B’s, guesthouses, self contained apartments or entire villas. They are family run businesses that are legal and formalised to provide accommodation to foreigners in Cuba. Though much nicer than general Cuban homes they can seem a bit rustic and simple compared to what most international travellers are used to back home. Experience Cuba utilises premium accommodations as their entry level, with private bathrooms and air conditioning services guaranteed.
- Cuba as a developing country is subject to power outages and it is common to have low water pressures in the showers and sinks.
- If understanding and expectations are kept in check staying at Casa Particulares is a very personal and pleasurable way to accommodate yourself in Cuba.
- The transport system in Cuba is in many ways different to anywhere else in the world. We (Experience Cuba) are restricted in a large way by the local transport laws. We use privately owned transport with approved licences to provide taxi services to tourists and the state-owned transport services of TRANSTUR, the only inter-provincial taxi provider in Cuba. The privately-owned transports vary between classic vintage cars (hardtop and convertible) and more modern models of cars, all in good condition. It is not law in Cuba for cars to be fitted with seat belts and neither is it against the law to use a mobile phone while driving. This is not condoned or encouraged by Experience Cuba but when travelling to other countries it is customary to abide by the local laws.
- While it is hard to know what every individual’s expectations might be, we do remind travellers that Cuba is in most respects a third world country and as such considerations should be made and understood.