15 Great Things to do in Viñales, Cuba
Viñales is a small town in the north-central Pinar del Río province but not exactly an off the beaten track Cuban destination. Which doesn’t mean it should be missed! The valley, which is also Unesco world heritage since 1999, looks like dinosaurs are hiding between the numerous mogotes waiting for their lunch. But maybe that’s just me writing this while I’m hungry :-). If you’re doubting if Viñales is worthy of your time, then we can only answer with a resounding YES! Check out our top things to do in Viñales and you might end up staying for a week (like we did!). In fact, it was one of our favourite places to visit in Cuba with kids!
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How to get to Viñales?
Vinales, Cuba map
Getting from havana to Viñales
If you are coming from Havana (like we did, as do most people) it’s a 2h taxi ride or 185 km (115 miles) to get to Viñales. By bus, it should take you a little over 3 hours. You can also book a day trip from Havana to Viñales, but with our little girl and the good things we read about this town, we decided to stay there a bit longer. More than a bit longer actually 🙂 but as far as excuses go we just really liked this place.
At the beginning of the 1800s, the area was colonized by tobacco growers. And in 1871 the first settlement was a fact.
Things to do in Viñales
Let’s start with our favourite things to do in Viñales!
#1 Beautiful scenery
If we are honest a lot of journeys throughout Cuba were beautiful. Getting to your destination is always exciting, and when you are getting close you can see the difference in regions and you know this is a different part of Cuba. The big trees, the horses and carriages, the mogotes it’s like you arrived in a town at a different era. Although tourism is growing in Viñales luckily there are still parts where time stood still.
While looking at the mountains you can see multiple brown spots, those aren’t houses but places where tobacco leaves are left to dry.
We definitely took a lot of photographs in Viñales, and Norah as well!
#2 Tobacco plantations and Honey farms
Some plantations are possible to visit on foot, but we went on horseback. From almost every casa particular you can book a trip to a plantation or ask for more information. They always seem to know someone to help you, got to love Cubans! On your visit, you will get to learn more about the history of tobacco and the whole process of making a cigar. We could also smoke one if we wanted to. I thought our guide (who spoke Spanish, because we want to improve our Spanish) asked if we wanted to try and make one, so I enthusiastically said si gracias (yes thank you). But instead, he was explaining how to light a cigar in the proper way, and there we were smoking our first cigar in Cuba. All thanks to my great knowledge of the Spanish language :). At the farm is the best place to buy cigars if you want to. In Cuba they are obliged to give a large percentage of the tobacco they grow. so what you buy here goes directly to the farmers. You can also be sure it’s made of real tobacco ;).
Not every tobacco plantation solely focuses on growing tobacco but also a large variety of fruits, coffee beans, and even honey!
#3 Horseback riding
I only sat on a horse 2 times and I’m not afraid to admit that I’m not good at horseback riding. As long as they go slow I’m okay :). Babs (the brave one with the most experience) took Norah on her lap and of we went. It was awesome!! The owner of the horses was our guide, and had taken really good care of his horses. We did a trip for 3 hours (you can do a longer trip if you want to +- 5 hours) through the Viñales Vally, where the national park is situated. We walked past a Baobab tree no we weren’t somewhere in Africa, were we? It was so crazy all the different landscapes and all the lush nature. Luckily for me, the horses were very calm so it was a very relaxing ride. Only at the end, the horses got really enthusiastic that they were almost home. Let’s just say it ended well but Norah was really scared :).
Extra tip: – Certain stops are included in the guided horseback tour, so ask your guide in advance and discuss where you want to stop!
#4 Mural de la Prehistoria
This mural de la prehistoria, was painted by Leovigildo González in the 1960’s. It is gigantic and really admirable how he succeeded in doing this mural. It took him 3 years to finish it. They made it to attract more tourists, we believe that’s why they called it prehistorical as well. Although it looks very old this isn’t prehistorical although the mural explains the evolution of mankind so it goes back a few years in history ;). You can visit it up close for 3 CUC, but we stayed in the carpark to take a few pictures.
#5 Hiking or biking
You can do some amazing hikes with or without a guide. The most famous one starts from hotel los Yazmines to Mogote Cafe, and is about 13 km and will take about a half-day. All the hiking tours are easily booked with your hotel or casa particular. Biking is also very fun and popular in this town. Many casas rent their own bikes, even with gears (not like the ones we rented in Malaysia 🙂 ). The price is probably around 10 CUC for 1 day.
Valley of silence
The starting point of the hike is 3 km outside of the village. You can get there easily by taxi. The tour takes about 3 hours and is approximately 5 km. We recommend going in the afternoon, so by the end of the walk, you can enjoy an amazing sunset. You can also this tour on horseback!
If you’re a big fan of caves, the cueva de san Tomas is worth a visit. A guide is obligated and you also need some condition because some are very steep. The entrance fee is 10 CUC per person, helm with light included. The guided tour is about 2 hours.
Los aquaticos
This hiking tour will take your breath away. First, a short taxi ride out of the town centre (5kms) very early in the morning. This to ensure you will be able to watch the sunrise. With no signs whatsoever you have to follow your guide to get to this community called los Aquaticos. Still, 2 families live in this remote part of Viñales. Than the return starts by walking trough the Valle Dos Hermanas, and finishing near the Mural de la Prehistoria. From here the taxi will take you back to the village. The total tour takes about 3 hours, and will cost about 15 CUC per person.
#6 Climbing
Enjoy some Cuba rock climbing in Viñales. The most famous climb is Cueva de Cabeza de la Vaca but also the most difficult one. If you are up for a challenge check out the route Esplendidos.
La Costanera is also worth visiting. La Costanera is a spectacular cathedral chamber of limestone. If it’s hot, you better take the northside walls to climb.
Ask your casa for more information they will be happy to help. Climbing gear is very hard to find in Cuba, so if you have any spare gear the Cuban climbing community will be very happy!
#7 Zip lining – canopy tour
If high and fast is your thing, Canopy Tour El Fortin is worth a visit. Our hop-on hop-off bus stopped here, but we didn’t do the ziplining. But our landlord really recommended it. We get an adrenaline rush if our daughter sleeps until 7 o’clock ;). You can also take a taxi for 5 CUC to the canopy center.
#8 Hop-on hop-off bus
Yeah, they have an hop-on hop-off bus. We ended up taking this bus a few times just to entertain Norah (and myself) and it works perfectly to visit the caves or the mirador at Hotel los Jazmines. The bus will stop for about 5 minutes so can easily jump off to take some pictures. There is only one bus (and one day the bus was broken so you have to take it as it comes), if you get off you have to wait for about 1.5 hours to get back.
#9 Caves
The most famous cave is defenitaly Cueva de los Indios. You can take the hop-on hop-off bus that has a direct stop near the cave. Bear in mind that this cave is very touristic. You have a big restaurant, and several shops where they sell drinks and cuban artisanias. The entrance fee is 5 CUC per person. First you have to descend some stairs to arrive to the first part of the cave. It is really stunning. The second part is behind a lower part of rocks where you have to crawl under (still very doable). Here you can take a small boat to visit the underwater rivers. Very spectacular beacuse this way you exit the cave.
Best time to visit both caves is in the morning, before the tour buses arrive.
#10 Beaches
The two beaches closest to Viñales are Cayo Levisa and Cayo Jutias. After all those trips we took a break to Cayo Jutias. We were blown away by its beautiful beach! Check out our article on cayo Jutias here.
#11 Artesanías
If you are looking for some souvenirs, in Calle Ceferino Fernandez is the place to be. The street is across the bank with ATM (very convenient 🙂 ). You can buy anything here, t-shirts, cigar boxes, key chains, jewelry, pan flutes,… We bought maracas for our daughter and wonder by wonder they made it safely home.
#12 Botanical garden
We had to wait for a few hours and found this really nice botanical garden. Also, perfect to escape the heat! The entrance is free, but a gift is highly appreciated. There is a guide to show you around if you want to. The garden itself is more than 100 years old and has lots of different kinds of trees and flowers. In total more than 190 varieties. We spend an hour here without a guide, just enjoying the scenery and sitting on a bench taking some pictures of the chickens that were running around freely in the garden.
#13 Mirador – look out point
To get an amazing view, we recommend going to the mirador close to Hotel las Jazmines. Here you get a picture-perfect panoramic view of the Valley and the surrounding Sierra de Los Oreganos. We went on the hop-on-hop-off bus but you can also take your bike or a taxi.
#14 Swimming pools
Yes, there are swimming pools in Viñales :). The biggest one is in Hotel Los Jazmines, but also some other hotels or casas particulares have swimming pools. At Hotel Los Jazmines you are not obliged to stay there to use the pool, you pay a small fee per person. Another one with good reviews is Casa El Moro. If it’s a hot day you can just relax by the pool, whatever it is can wait until tomorrow. This is Cuba!
#15 Live music
Cuba without music is like a mojito without rum :). The best live music is probably at the Casa De Cultura in the main square. It most likely starts around 9 pm but you can never be sure in Cuba.
Final words
We really loved visiting Viñales. It’s the vibe and the unique things to do that make you fall in love with this place. Let’s put the kindness of the people in this cocktail, that’s what is going to want you to stay for a few days longer than you originally planned 🙂
We made this trip in March 2020. This article was published in May 2020.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Babs Rodrigus is the co-founder and main writer of Mums on FlipFlops . She is absolutely crazy about traveling – especially together with her wife and kids. Babs loves animals, chocolate (what did you expect from a Belgian?), reading, and writing.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Babs Rodrigus is the co-founder and main writer of Mums on FlipFlops . She is absolutely crazy about traveling – especially together with her wife and kids. Babs loves animals, chocolate (what did you expect from a Belgian?), reading, and writing.
