Our Provinces of Cuba
Explore the provinces of Cuba and their distinctive elements that will make you fully enjoy them.
"The Most Western of the Provinces"
Pinar del Río is located at the west end of the country. Two of its multiple attributes would be enough to call the attention of visitors who have just arrived in the island: El Valle de Viñales (Valley of Viñales), Cultural Landscape of Mankind; and the fact that the lands of Vueltabajo produce the best tobacco of the world.
"The Garden of Cuba"
Artemisa is one of two new provinces in Cuba by splitting former La Habana Province and were enforced in January 1st, 2011. The newly formed province comprises the 8 western municipalities of La Habana, and incorporates 3 eastern municipalities from the neighbour Pinar del Río province (Bahía Honda, Candelaria and San Cristóbal). The capital is Artemisa, the largest city and municipality of the former La Habana province.
"The Agricultural Capital"
Mayabeque is one of two new provinces in Cuba by splitting former La Habana Province and were enforced in January 1st, 2011. Mayabeque comprises the 11 eastern municipalities of the former La Habana province with the capital in San José de las Lajas. Mayabeque province takes its name from the Mayabeque river as well as, from the Mayabeque beach, in the south shore, the place in which is believed the original Havana village (San Cristóbal de La Habana) was founded in 1514.
"The City of the Columns"
The cuban capital is, without a doubt, the tourism destination of excellence of the largest of the West Indies. Within the city, its historic center (considered by UNESCO World Heritage in 1982) is an obliged reference destination for all visitors who come to this city. For centuries, this city has been considered the key to the Gulf of México.
"The Athens of Cuba"
Out of the 16 provinces the island is divided into, Matanzas is probably the one with the highest number and the greater density of tourism attractions, among which, the beach resort of Varadero is the most well known and demanded in the international market. The city of Matanzas (founded in 1693), land of poets also known for its many bridges that enrich the urban area.
"The City of Ché"
The studied development of a solid hotel and service infrastructure in its north keys and the exploitation of other tourism attractions, mainly related to the traditions and history of the region, must lead Villa Clara to becoming, in a middle term, a preferred tourism destination within the largest of the Antilles.
"The Pearl of the South"
Located on the south central region of the Island and with a unique tourism product, whose main elements are its enormous nautical potential and its rich historic and cultural traditions, the province of Cienfuegos is today a must-see place for most of the visitors who tour the country. Without a doubt, its main attraction is the capital city itself, identically named and unique settlement founded by French settlers who came from Burdeos, Philadelphia and Louisiana.
"The Most Colonial City of Cuba"
Located at the center of the island, the province of Sancti Spíritus has the privilege of being the only territory of the Cuban archipelago where two of the first seven villas were founded at the beginning of the XVI century by the Spanish discoverer, Diego Velázquez: Espíritu Santo and Santísima Trinidad.
"The Land of the Pineapple"
The impetuous development of its north keys -particularly Cayo Coco and Cayo Guillermo- has distinguished the province of Ciego de Avila. Its fertile and mostly flat territory covers 6910 km2 and its subsoil contains large reserves of underground water, as well as the highest quality crude exploited in the island, the production of sugar, the cultivation of citrus and other agricultural products are of great economic importance.
"The City of Tinajones"
Near a hundred kilometers of beaches of an exceptional quality located at Santa Lucía Beach and a group of surrounding keys, is the main and most renowned tourism attraction of the province of Camagüey. This province covers 15 900 km2 of the central-east region of the Cuban archipelago, and the two main pillars that sustain its economic development have traditionally been the sugar and cattle industries.
"The Cuban Capital of Sculpture"
Recently included in the international tourism scenario of the largest of the West Indies, the province of Las Tunas covers 6 584 km2 of the northeastern portion of the Island and has more than 35 absolutely virgin beaches in its 265 kilometers of irregular coasts. The production of sugar and the cattle raising activity are the two main economic pillars of this territory, of which there are historic references since 1510.
"The City of Parks"
Such a beautiful thing has never been seen, were the words -according to historical testimonies- said by the great admiral of the oceans, Christopher Columbus, on October 27 of 1492 after setting foot on Cuban soil for the first time; in a far place of the eastern waterside, Bariay, located today within the territorial limits of the province of Holguín.
"The Birthplace of Cuban Nationality"
The rich historical traditions, the fascinating contrast of its landscapes (combining sea, mountains and fertile planes) and its prodigal nature are the biggest attractions which support the incipient tourism development of the Province of Granma, an extensive plane divided into two by the mountains of La Sierra Maestra, irrigated by the long Cauto River and covering 8 362 km2 of the southeast portion of the Island of Cuba.
"The Capital of the Caribbean"
Its transcendental historic and cultural values and the well-known hospitality of its people, of happy and noisy character, are two of the characteristics of that distinguish the southeastern province of Santiago de Cuba, considered the authentic capital of the Caribbean because of its geographic position and ethnic origins.
"The Most Eastern of the Provinces"
Guantánamo is the province of Cuba located at the eastern end of the Island. This is a predominantly mountainous region of deep contrasts, and the only place in the country where you can find semidesert landscapes. The main door of this province for international tourism is the Baracoa, Prime City of Cuba.
"The Isle of the Thousand Names"
The special municipality named Isle of Youth, the largest of the more than 600 isles forming the southern Archipelago of Los Canarreos, is called by many the "Isle of the Thousand Names". Isle of the Treasure and Isle of the Parrots were names also given to this place before Spain decided to colonize it at the beginning of the XIX century.