Cuba Bikepacking

Day 1: Arrival in Havana

Casa Particular in Havana (Sueño Habana or similar)

Welcome to Cuba! You’ll be met by a Cubania airport representative in the arrival terminal at Jose Martí International airport and we’ll have a vehicle waiting for you with ample space for bike boxes and luggage. The transfer from the airport to the accommodation for the night is an approx. 30-minute drive.

This evening you’ll be staying at a ‘casa particular’ private guesthouse in the Vedado district of Havana.
A member of Cubania staff will visit the casa this evening (exact time to be confirmed with travelers in advance, depending on flight arrival times) to run through the itinerary, hand over all of the necessary documentation, and answer any queries. For late arrivals this meeting will take place on the morning of day 2 at the bike workshop.

Day 2: Havana – Las Terrazas (Cayajabos)

63 km
+432 m / –320 m
Overnight: Casa Particular
'Las Tres Hermanas'
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast we’ll pick you p and take you to our workshop so you can fit your bike. You can borrow our tools and a mechanic will be on hand to help you. You can store your bike boxes here too.

We’ll provide a packed lunch and some basic snacks in order to set you up for today’s ride.

Ready to get going! The first task is to navigate your way out of Havana to the west, fortunately this doesn’t take very long when starting in Miramar district and you’ll soon be clear of the city traffic. One of our bike mechanics will accompany you for the first few kilometers of the ride to show you the best way out of Havana then you’ll be on your own to begin your independent bike packing adventure!

The first part of today’s ride skirts the Northern coast, passing villages and the Latin American Medical School where 1000’s of students come from all over the world for medical training. After around 30km you join the motorway! Although this is the main road, there hardly any traffic and it’s a joy to speed West on relatively smooth tarmac. The last 20kms of your route take you off the autopista and along a pot-holed secondary road until you reach Cayajabos.

On the stretch of road between Cayajabos and Las Terrazas Biosphere Reserve (6km before arriving to the entrance of Las Terrazas) you’ll reach a small cluster of houses perched up to the right-hand side of the road with a steep driveway approach. The overnight stay will be at Annie and Mario’s house, known as ‘Casa de las 3 Hermanas’ where you’ll be welcomed into their family homestay. All the rooms are clean and comfortable with ensuite bathroom. Enjoy a hearty homecooked Cuban dinner tonight at the casa.

Day 3: Las Terrazas – Soroa

33.5 km
+570 m / –498 m
Casas particular in Soroa
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Enjoy breakfast at your casa particular this morning and fill up your water bottles at the house before you set off.

Ride the first 6 km to the entrance checkpoint of Las Terrazas Biosphere Reserve. First stop will be to exchange your vouchers at the reception area and look at the map so that you get a lie of the land.

Lunch has been included for you today in El Romero Vegetarian restaurant (or another restaurant in the community, if closed) in the heart of Las Terrazas community. So, we suggest you cycle 5km down to the river for a morning swim or ditch your bikes and soar across the community on canopy (zip-lining optional cost per person $25 approx.)

After lunch it’s a 15km ride to Soroa along a beautiful, tarmacked road through the reserve. One steep hill brings you to your destination for tonight, known in Cuba as the Rainbow of Cuba for its exuberant vegetation and waterfalls.

Passing through into the park you have all day to explore this beautiful Biosphere Reserve, to take some detours and enjoy some of the sights and points of interest, including the community on the edge of a lake. There are several walking trails as well as a canopy ziplining course and the opportunity to swim in the Reserve’s river.

Day 4: Soroa – San Diego de los Baños

74 km / 57km
+1348 m / –1350 m
+307 m / –433 m
Basic Hotel or Casa Particular in San Diego de los Baños
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

After a gentle start to your adventure, today is the day to turn it up a notch! If you’re up for spectacular views and a challenging, undulating mountain ride, then the Skyline route is the one for you. If you’d rather take it easier, then opt for the Carretera Central Route.

Skyline Route: Ask your hosts to give you an early breakfast so you can enjoy the relative cool of the morning. Fill your water bottles and stash your packed lunch, then head back up the steep hill you descended yesterday and take the first turning left which leads to the road we call the Skyline Route. You’ll cross the Sierra del Rosario on a road which follows mountain crests and dips, offering spectacular views and exhilarating cycling. The road is entirely free of traffic, other than the occasional “guajiro” – or countryman – and there are no shops so it’s one for fit and experienced cyclists!

After reaching Niceto Perez you descend towards the valley and it’s gentle cycling all the way to your destination for the night, San Diego de los Baños.

Carretera Central Route: Ask your hosts to give you an early breakfast so you can enjoy the relative cool of the morning. After filling your water bottles and stashing your packed lunch, freewheel down the hill for about 7km until you reach Candelaria village. Here you turn right on to the Carretera Central, once the main Havana-Pinar del Rio Road, until the “ Autopista” Highway was built about 40 years ago. This is a fun route to take as you share the road with an entertaining variety of local traffic (think 1950’s Chevy’s, Russian lorries, Czech motorbikes, rusty Chinese bicycles….) and pass by small villages, schools and towns. It’s an opportunity to witness Cuban country life.

At Entronque San Diego take a right and the road rises gently towards your destination for the night, San Diego de los Baños.

San Diego was formerly a popular spot to come and “take the waters” and you can see the old Thermal Baths in town, and evidence of its former prosperity in the shady squares and elegantly crumbling buildings.

Day 5: San Diego de los Baños – San Juan y Martínez

72 km
+517 m / –556 m
Casa Particular Hector Luis Prieto or similar in San Juan y Martinez
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast set off back towards the Carretera Central and make your way through country towns to Pinar del Rio Town, the provincial capital of Pinar del Rio Province.    This is the perfect place to get off the saddle and stop for lunch.   Pinar del Rio town is best known as the city where dried tobacco is collected and graded before most of the leaves are sent to Cigar factories in Havana. Havana’s cigar factories make the finest cigars in the world – hence why cigars are known as habanos in Spanish.

Once you’ve navigated your way through the traffic in central Pinar del Rio, head towards a small village considered to be the Mecca for cigar aficionados throughout the world.   San Juan y Martinez continues to be the place for tobacco growing and you’ll be visiting the Vega, or farm, of one of Cuba’s finest tobacco growers. You’ll learn about the unique climate and soil conditions and the traditional farming methods which create the highest quality of tobacco used to roll cigars such as Cohiba’s, Montecristo’s, Romeo y Julieta’s etc.

After a tour of the farm, you’ll check into your accommodation for the night and enjoy a Cuban country dinner cooked by your hosts.

Day 6: San Juan y Martínez – Viñales

80 km
+859 m / –758 m
Casa Particular Viñales
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

After filling up your water bottles and stashing your packed lunch, set off on an epic ride to Viñales, awarded World Heritage Site status for its outstanding karst landscape encircled by mountains and dotted with spectacular dome-like limestone outcrops (mogotes). Traditional methods of agriculture have survived largely unchanged on this plain for several centuries, particularly for growing tobacco.

Leaving San Juan y Martinez, retrace your steps towards Pinar del Rio and, once you reach town, head North on the road towards Pons. You know you’re on the right road when, shortly after leaving town, you pass the provincial jail!
The road twists and turns and featured some climbs, all amid beautiful green scenery and with little in the way of traffic. After the turning right at Pons, you’ll start cycling through the scenery familiar to those who have seen photos of Viñales. Rich, green fields of tobacco or other crops on the valley floor, dotted with thatched tobacco drying houses, all interspersed with the majestic limestone outcrops ( mogotes).

Viñales village is a charming small town in the heart of the valley and is your destination for the night. The main road is dotted with local homes, cafes and restaurants and it’s usually easy to find some live Cuban music and dancing either at “Polo Montañez” Bar by the church, or in one of the smaller places along the main road.
Dinner is included this evening in your casa particular.

Day 7: Viñales Valley

Casa Particular in Viñales Villa Los Reyes’ or similar
Breakfast

Enjoy the day in Viñales. Take a break from the saddle and explore the charms of the surrounding valley.

Viñales town acts as the ideal base for activities; you can walk trekking trails, explore cave networks (Cueva Santo Tomas), take a canopy ziplining tour, ride horses and go rock climbing. The nearest beach is Cayo Jutias on the north coast, and transport can be arranged should you be craving a beach day. We haven’t included any activities today, but your hosts will be happy to help organize whatever you decide to do.

This region of Cuba is known for its tobacco growing and produces tobacco for the finest Cuban cigar brands (Cohiba, Monte Cristo, Romeo y Juliet etc.). You’ll see tobacco growing everywhere and farmers are happy for you to visit them and learn more about the art of tobacco.

If cycling today then we advise against going on the main road that connects Viñales and Pinar del Rio, due to the fast traffic and dangerous turns.

Pre order your packed lunches for tomorrow and let the casa staff know by what time you’ll need them ready.

Day 8: Viñales – Puerto Esperanza

25 km
+208 m / –344 m
Casa Particular Puerto Esperanza
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

You don’t have far to cycle today, so you can choose whether to spend the morning in Viñales or set of early for Puerto Esperanza.

Whatever you decide , you’ll be taking the main road through Viñales town towards San Vicente. It’s an incredibly beautiful road winding along the valley floor and past farms and homesteads, dramatic mogotes on either side and tropical trees dripping with epiphytes. You fork left at Ancon and take the bumpy road to Puerto Esperanza, a little-known fishing village. One main road, colourful wooden houses, a long pier to the bay, a fishing port, an open-air bar by the sea, couple of restaurants, a handful of guesthouses, fruit trees, stray dogs and chickens. That’s Puerto Esperanza for travellers in a nutshell.

On arrival check into your casa particular for the night and maybe join local kids who love to jump off the jetty for a refreshing swim in the clear Cuban sea. Dinner in your casa particular tonight.

Day 9: Puerto Esperanza – Mil Cumbres

59.3 km
+762 m / –635 m
Eco-Lodge house at Mil Cumbres
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast by the beach, time to saddle up and set off towards the mountains. Our destination today is ‘Mil Cumbres’ ( translates literally as 1000 peaks ) and the impressive scenery today will be accompanied by some poor road conditions, especially on the last stretch as you approach the remote location known as ‘Mil Cumbres’.

The first part of your route retraces your steps to Ancon where you take the left fork towards La Palma, a small town which has built up around an important junction in the road. Turn left and you’d head for the coast, turn right and you climb into the mountains. The road undulates dramatically as you head deep into the interior and towards Mil Cumbres.

Off the beaten track for all but a few visitors to Cuba, this region offers some great cycling and trekking opportunities (Pan de Guajaibon is Western Cuba’s highest point and located nearby) as well as offering a genuine insight into rural Cuban agriculture and a beautiful natural environment. The lodge is located on the right-hand side of the road up a steep unpaved driveway.

Ask the staff to heat up some hot water for you, as there isn’t any hot running water on site. Enjoy a dinner at the lodge and the tranquility of the evening.

Day 10: Mil Cumbres – Soroa

55 km / 67 km
+1425 m / –1381 m
+986 m / –923 m
Casa Particular Soroa
Breakfast, Packed Lunch, Dinner

Wake up in Mil Cumbres to the sounds of birds singing and the breeze rustling palm fronds, the smell of Cuban coffee in the air. After a simple country breakfast, it’s time to fill your water bottles and stash your packed lunch before setting off through the hills and back towards Soroa.

Once again, you can choose your route and either take the challenging but spectacular Skyline Route or the more leisurely Carretera Central.

Skyline Route.
The first 20km include some steep climbs and descents until you reach Niceto Perez. Turning left you’re back on the Skyline Route you took on Day 4 (but in the opposite direction ) so you have another opportunity to test your legs as you pedal across the Sierra del Rosario.
At 51km approximately, you reach the turning towards Soroa and are rewarded with a steep descent back to Soroa where you’ll receive a warm welcome at your casa particular.

Carretera Central Route
The first 20km include some steep climbs and descents until you reach Niceto Perez after which you descend to the valley floor and cycle along the old Carretera Central, which was once the main Havana-Pinar del Rio Road until the Autopista Highway was built. Enjoy sharing the road with an amazing array of vehicles – horses and carts, Chinese bicycles, American Chevy’s , Russian Lada’s – as you cycle past agricultural communities and small towns. Stop in the village squares and chat to locals as you enjoy the cool of shady trees. At Candelaria take a left and cycle over the Autopista for one final climb into Soroa, where you’ll receive a warm welcome at your casa particular.

Ask your host to check if the Baños Romanos are open – a small stone cottage close to Soroa hotel where it’s possible to book a massage. Well-deserved after so many km!
Enjoy dinner and overnight in Soroa.

Day 11: Return To Havana (Transfer)

Casa Particular in Havana (Sueño Habana or similar)
Breakfast

Wake up in Soroa and after a hearty breakfast you’ll be transferred back to Havana for one final night in Cuba’s capital city.
We’ll arrange for the van to either bring your bike boxes to Soroa or stop off at our warehouse on your way into Havana, so you can pack your bikes ready for your flight home.

You’ll have the afternoon to explore Havana at your leisure.

No evening meal is included tonight but Havana has a wealth of inventive and delicious paladar restaurants. Ask us to help make a reservation or check with your host for their restaurant /bar recommendations!

Day 12: Havana; Departure

Breakfast

Check out of casa accommodation. Your private transfer vehicle will take you back to the airport for your departure flight at an agreed time. Note that extra nights in Havana can be booked through Cubania, in addition to extra services and experiences.

End of Services.

Cycle

Interact

Freedom

Discover

What's included

Accommodation

Meals

Arrival in Havana

Havana – Las Terrazas (Cayajabos)

Las Terrazas – Soroa

Soroa – San Diego de los Baños

San Diego de los Baños – San Juan y Martínez

San Juan y Martínez – Viñales

Viñales Valley

Viñales – Puerto Esperanza

Puerto Esperanza – Mil Cumbres

Mil Cumbres – Soroa

Return To Havana (Transfer)

Havana; Departure

What to bring

Bike

Cycling helmet

Water bottle

Sun protection

Comfortable clothes for cycling

Is this tour for me?

Travel style: Independent

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Group style: Small

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Notes:

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