Easy Classic

Just under a fortnight is enough time to complete a classic trip, visiting the lovely Viñales Valley and Cienfuegos, as well as Havana and Trinidad. This is the chauffeur-driven ‘door-to-door’ version.

Customer rating 98%

'Easy Classic'

What makes this trip special?

Cuba's unforgettable capital

Havana

There is no other capital city in the world quite like Havana. Impossible to sum up in only a few words its combination of magificently restored buildings, crumbling apartment blocks, classic cars, lively atmosphere and sense of defiance will stay with you for a long time.

Cigars, gardens & village life

Vinales

The small town of Vinales offers visitors a peek into everyday rural cuban life, as well as stunning botanical gardens and a number of family run tobacco farms.

Rich colonial heritage

Cienfuegos

The magnificent colonial town of Cienfugos with its lively squares, elegant buildings and fascinating history is a pleasant place to stroll around and get to know the local life.

Life by the sea

Ancon Peninsula

Just outside Trinidad, the sandy beaches of the Ancon Peninsula provide an alluring alternative for beach lovers to staying in the town itself.

Colourful and lively colonial town

Trinidad

The magnificent colonial town of Trinidad has recently been restored under UNESCO World Heritage, with brighly painted facades, cobbled streets, bands playing and horse drawn carts the town feels very much alive.

Sweet like sugar

Valle de los Ingenios

The eastern slopes of Sierra del Escambray were once the hub of slave-powered sugar production in Cuba. Today the valley is scattered with ruins of old sugar mills.

Itinerary

Day Overnight
1 Havana
2 Havana
3 Havana
4 Viñales
5 Viñales
6 Cienfuegos
7 Cienfuegos
8 Trinidad
9 Trinidad
10 Trinidad
11 Trinidad
12 Havana
13 Havana
For the detail of each day click the ‘Day-by-day’ tab above.

Day-by-day itinerary for 'Easy Classic'

DAY 1

Havana

You arrive at Havana airport, where you are met and transferred to your chosen hotel for 3 nights.

DAY 2

A day in Havana with a city guide, see ‘Your Man in Havana’ on page 9.

DAY 3

Free day in Havana.

DAY 5

Viñales

Your driver picks you up from the door of your hotel in Havana for the journey to the Viñales Valley, set among some of Cuba’s most distinctive and photogenic scenery. Stay here 2 nights.

DAY 5

A free day. Your hotel is set in the countryside and has a beautiful view of the valley and a swimming pool. Optional excursions are available locally.

DAY 6

Cienfuegos

Early this morning you are picked up from the door of your hotel in Viñales and driven to the French colonial town of Cienfuegos for a 2 night stay. The rest of the afternoon is free.

DAY 7

Free day in Cienfuegos for sightseeing. Much of the city can be explored on foot, but it is worth taking a taxi to visit the port at Punta Gorda and the Byzantine folly, Palacio del Valle.

DAY 8

Trinidad

After a morning free in Cienfuegos, a driver collects you from your hotel for the journey to Trinidad, on a road that passes between the Caribbean and Cuba's second highest mountain range–the Sierra del Escambray. On arrival you are dropped at your hotel at Playa Ancón beach where you stay for 3 nights. The rest of the afternoon is free to relax on the sands or beside your hotel's pool.

DAY 9

Today your English-speaking local guide meets you for a morning walking tour of picturesque colonial Trinidad and its museums. After lunch your guide takes you out of town to the Valle de los Ingenios, a valley of sugar plantations and mills where a picturesque village stands beneath a belfry from which slaves were called in from the fields.

DAY 10

Two free days to relax at Playa Ancón beach, with your evenings either in Trinidad or at your hotel.

DAY 11

At Playa Ancón.

DAY 12

Havana

You are collected from your hotel in Trinidad and driven to your hotel in Havana. Evening free in Havana.

DAY 13

Free time in Havana until it is time for your private transfer from your hotel to the international airport. Beach options As well as the beach options for 'Havana & Trinidad' opposite, we could arrange a private transfer from Trinidad across the island to the beaches of the Cayos de la Herradura, where there are both mainstream resort options and also the laid-back Cayo Las Brujas. See p41.

Route map for Cuba 'Easy Classic' holiday

Guide prices for 'Easy Classic'

*where possible

options	based on	all year	low season	mid season	high season	peak season	other season
Mid-range hotels, shuttle bus	2 people sharing
Mid-range hotels, private transfers	2 people sharing
Upper range hotels*, shuttle bus	2 people sharing
Upper range hotels*, private transfers	2 people sharing
Mid- plus hotels, shuttle bus	2 people sharing
Mid- plus hotels, private transfers	2 people sharing

Prices are per person and include:

Cuba Visa
airport transfers
all transport
all accommodation
meals where specified, B = breakfast, L=lunch, D= dinner

Prices do not include:

international flights
travel insurance
items of a personal nature such as drinks, tips, laundry, etc

Customer reviews for 'Easy Classic'

Recent reviews are shown here from holidays based on this initial design. In each case the itinerary may have been modified (a little or a lot) to suit the individual traveller.

Average customer rating 98%

Excellent organisation, everything ran very smoothly, helpful guides in Havana & Trinidad.

Best parts: The balance of places we visited was about right.

We were very impressed with our guide in Havana and the tour there and we loved Cayo Levisa. Top marks for good rooms in each hotel and the time spent in each resort was about right. When we wanted to move from Jibacoa to Cayo Levisa we were give

Best parts: Havana, Vinales, Trinidad and Cayo Levisa.

I was very impressed with the service provided by Geodyssey and would definitely recommend you. I am used to making all my own travel arrangements but realised that in the case of Cuba it was very helpful to have Geodyssey take care of things. I loved hav

Best parts: Cuba is an amazing country to visit – proud but humble people, amazing sights and sounds and lots of things going on. I loved Havana and definitely plan to return.

Will definitely recommend Geodsyssey for Cuba. Excellent.

Best parts: Tour guides were excellent and really made the holidays for us

We are very impressed by the local guides.

Best parts: All of them as each place was so different

I could not have asked for anything better - you are very efficient, informative and helpful. It was a fantastic tour. The suggestions on what to do each day were very helpful - I ended up following most of them. Time allocation for each city was perfect.

Seasonal information for 'Easy Classic'

Select your month of travel:

Along this route in January

Day	Location	Max °C	Monthly rainfall

Typical weather for January

Max °C figures are the average daily maximum temperatures for the month. Rainfall is the average precipitation for the month.

Hotels for 'Easy Classic'

Select your preferred accommodation option

Days 1 - 3

Hotel Park View, Havana

This 3* Habaguanex hotel is a good choice of hotel for people on a budget who wish to stay in central Havana and be comfortable. Hotel Park View is mid-range Habaguanex hotel - 7 floors with lift and staircase. There is a popular small bar on the ground floor. It is very conveniently situated close to the Prado and Old Havana and a short walk from Parque Central and the Malecon. The hotel rooms are small, well furnished and comfortable with air-conditioning. There are excellent views of the city from the seventh-floor restaurant, where you have breakfast.

Day 5

La Ermita

Vinales

Situated in the beautiful Vinales Valley with spectacular views, the hotel is simply furnished but with 62 comfortable ensuite rooms that surround the gardens and swimming pool. There is a small terrace outside each room and views of the famous mogotes and countryside. The food is not brilliant here, although better than expected and meals are usually served on a dining terrace with stunning views of Vinales. There are local paladares (private family run restaurants) in Vinales. It is possible to book locally guided walks and horse riding excursions at the hotel that has a large, welcoming public area and lobby. We opt for this hotel as it is within walking distance of the town and local family restaurants. Some clients even bring their own supplies and make a picnic on their terrace!

Days 6 - 7

Hotel Jagua, Cienfuegos

Punta Gorda

Average rating 4.5 (8 ratings)

Spacious, clean rooms (149 rooms) and well run hotel next door to the Byzantine folly Palacio del Valle at Punta Gorda. Modern hotel. Great views. Large swimming pool. This hotel is used by groups. Services include curreny exchange, internet, laundry service,satellite TV area, parking.

Days 8 - 11

Costa Sur Hotel

Small all-inclusive hotel with swimming pool and plenty of daily activities to choose from, Costa Sur was refurbished in 2008 and is situated a ten minute drive from Trinidad at Playa Aguilar. Rooms are a mixture of two storey hotel, garden and bungalow rooms, some of which open straight onto a small private beach (good for snorkelling) set apart from the rest of the hotel and the main beach.

Day 12

Hotel Nacional, Havana

Average rating 4.1 (48 ratings)

The historic Hotel Nacional, a short taxi ride away from Old Havana and overlooking Havana's seafront Malecón, has enjoyed the patronage of many distinguished guests in its time, Winston Churchill and Franklyn Roosevelt to name but two. There is oodles of atmosphere and the hotel is always lively. It has a lovely terrace and gardens overlooking the Malecón - a great place for that evening mojito. This is a hotel to watch people and it is a meeting place for Cubans doing business with non-Cubans. The rooms are standard business hotel type rooms but the majestic lobby and regal gardens add a certain frisson.