222 Best Sights in Cuba

Inspired by the diplomatic battle to repatriate Elián González, the five-year-old rescued off the coast of Florida in 1999, this museum, in a restored, neoclassical-style firehouse, is an ideological examination of the opposing Battle of Ideas between Cuba and the United States. Inaugurated in 2001 by Fidel Castro himself, the concept is a perfect example of how any threat to Cuba's sovereignty quickly becomes a rallying cry for unity in Cuba and grist for the propaganda mill. Other exhibits focus on the history of Cuba's battle to achieve and maintain its national sovereignty, displaying such wide-ranging "artifacts" as two English cannonballs fired in 1756, and the cross given to Elián by Reverend John Brown Campbell.

If you can read Spanish, the museum provides an excellent insight into the official Cuban mind-set.

There's a great view of the town and the harbor from the roof terrace.

If you really wish to delve into Trinidad's amazing architecture, this museum documents the city's development. (Of course, nothing replaces actually wandering around the city's fabulous streets themselves and soaking it all in.) Exhibits on its most important 18th- and 19th-century buildings fill the rooms of a sky-blue 18th-century house, once the home of the Sánchez Iznaga family. Don't miss the lovely garden patio.

The meticulously restored mansion that now houses the Museum of Colonial Art was long the property of the Valle Iznaga family, who owned sugar plantations, processing plants, a railroad, and a port, among other things. Dating from 1744, it's furnished with antiques from several centuries, most of which belonged to the Valle Iznagas, so the house appears much as it might have for a party a century ago—the music room is full of instruments, the dining room is set for a banquet, and the kitchen is ready for the cooking to begin.

Directly across the square from the Catedral de la Habana, the museum's rich collection of colonial objects ranges from violins to chamber pots. It's in the Casa de Luis Chacón—also known as Casa del Conde de Bayona after the son-in-law of the original owner—which dates from the 17th century and which saw its first restoration in 1720.

The oldest building on Parque Vidal is a former home built in 1810 that's now open to the public as a museum. The house itself is half the attraction, with its marble floors, fluted columns, and hand-painted tiles. Its rooms hold an array of antiques—including crystal, china, statues, and furniture—that date from several centuries.

The house containing this museum was built in 1927 and owned by José Gómez Mena, one of Cuba's wealthiest aristocrats. The collection is a staggering display of treasure and taste: antique furniture; Aubusson rugs; a Louis XVI secrétaire; Ming vases; paintings by Tocqué, Nattier, and Largillière. Don't miss the impressive comedor (dining room) with its vast array of silverware or the main salón, dripping with chandeliers.

Located in a former military airfield, which has now been turned into a giant school complex called Ciudad Libertad, this museum is dedicated to the literacy crusade of 1961. During this time students and teachers took to the countryside to teach illiterate peasants to read and write.

This still functioning Art Nouveau pharmacy may sometimes be short on drugs, but it is certainly long on design. Founded by a Catalan apothecary in 1874, it was built in the elaborate Modernist style universally favored by 19th-century pharmacies. The carved wooden racks and shelves backed by murals painted on glass are especially ornate, and the ceramic apothecary jars, though probably empty, are colorfully painted. Also known as La Reunión (note the inscription on the wall behind the counter), this pharmacy was a famous meeting place, a sort of informal neighborhood clubhouse.

This museum, a Moorish-style structure with beautiful ceramic tile work, contains a decent natural-history collection with preserved specimens of 11 Cuban ecosystems. Be sure to check out the Polymita snail-shell collection from Baracoa.

Every Cuban city of any size has a museum dedicated to the Revolution. To be frank, most begin to blur together after awhile. This so-called Museum of the Clandestine Struggle is one of the country's better such facilities. It is housed in a 19th-century building that was once the city's police headquarters. It was attacked and burned by Frank País and a band of rebels on November 30, 1958. Displays in this now-restored structure give you a complete overview of the struggle, and the architecture and bay views are as compelling as the exhibits.

On the northern side of Plaza Martí you'll find one of the city's best-preserved colonial buildings. The former home of composer Alejandro García Caturla is now a museum dedicated to his life with many of his musical instruments on display. Built in 1875, the house has a small central patio planted with palms and surrounded by rooms that contain antique furnishings or exhibits on the composer's works.

If you can't be here during December for the annual holiday Parrandas celebrations, a visit to this interesting museum makes a nice consolation prize. The carnival-like parades punctuate Christmastime in Central Cuba, and Remedios does them up bigger and better than any city in the region. The city is divided into two neighborhoods—El Carmen and El Salvador—each of which creates its own floats, costumes, lanterns, and fireworks as part of an informal competition during the month-long festival that culminates on Christmas Eve. Though no winner is ever declared, most townspeople will tell you that not only does their neighborhood win every year, but the rest of Remedios isn't even good competition. The museum has photos, costumes, and floats from past Parrandas.

The spirit of one of the Caribbean's most vibrant street parties, Santiago's annual July carnival, is recalled in photos and newspaper clippings, floats, costumes, and musical instruments. To be honest, the artifacts here are rather ho-hum and do not justify the added camera fee on top of the admission price.

Late afternoons here give a better sense of what carnival is like; stop by at 4 pm Tuesday through Saturday for a performance by music and dance troupes.

The short spectacle of colorful costume, Afro-Cuban rhythms, and stirring song might justify the photo fee and might have you planning your next trip to coincide with the main event. The performers are always grateful for tips.

Exhibits here take you through the rum-making process. You'll also find displays of antique rum paraphernalia and bottles, as well as exhibits documenting the history of the former Bacardí factory. The Bacardís, one of Santiago's oldest families, initially supported Castro's revolutionary goals but left Cuba for Puerto Rico when their installations were nationalized. In the same building (but accessible only through an entrance around the corner) is the Taberna del Ron, which sells rum products and gifts.

The museum, in the former Casino Español at the plaza's northern end, contains an exhibit of pre-Columbian artifacts as well as displays on the Revolution and the province's role in it. Locally, the redbrick building is known as La Periquera ("the Parrot Cage"), because brightly dressed Spanish officers peered through its barred windows while the city was under siege by General García's troops in 1868.

The museum has displays on local history and popular culture. One exhibit is dedicated to Taty Labernia, who was so famous for her renditions of boleros (traditional Cuban songs descended from troubadour ballads) that she was known as "La Reina del Bolero" (The Queen of the Bolero).

Set in the impressive Palacio Cantero, which was built by a sugar baron in 1830, the History Museum's displays trace the development of Trinidad from its founding by Diego Velázquez to the early years of the Revolutionary government. Two rooms are furnished with antiques, and elaborate murals cover some of the walls. A lookout platform atop the building's large tower affords a wonderful view. (The stairs look rickety, but are safe, although you probably won't want to negotiate their narrowness if you are claustrophobic.)

Installed in a handsome, if somewhat rundown, colonial mansion, this museum exhibits a comprehensive history of Guanabacoa, with emphasis on its ethnic and religious traditions. For a deeper understanding of Santería as well as of the Palo Monte and Abakua sects that have been so important in Afro-Cuban sociology and history, this is an important visit.

The museum has one of Cuba's largest collections of such indigenous artifacts (20,000 of them) as pottery, jewelry, and tools. There are also murals depicting indigenous life.

The highlight of the Plaza de la Revolución is the memorial at its center. It consists of a massive granite sculpture of the national hero—in a seated, contemplative pose—on a 30-meter (98-foot) base and a 139-meter (456-foot) tower constructed of marble from La Isla de la Juventud (where Castro was imprisoned for his attack on the Moncada Barracks). The museum contains first editions of Martí's works, drawings, maps, and other memorabilia. Also on display are the original plans for both the monument and the square. You can also climb to the top observation deck for some views of the city.

Housed in one of Varadero's prettiest early 20th-century summer houses, built entirely of wood and painted sky blue with white trim, this collection chronicles Varadero's early days as a resort. Of special interest are photographs of Che and Fidel "taking" the Hotel Internacional after the Revolution.

In a rather shabby building, this small, eclectic collection displays odd objects and photographs that focus on local history, including antique farm tools. You'll see some stirrups, weapons, weights, locks and keys, and branding irons from Spanish colonial times, as well as personal objects that belonged to the museum's namesake, a top-ranked woman warrior who fought for Cuba's independence in the 19th century. A bronze bust of Captain Adela Azcuy herself stands on the street in front of this house, where she spent much of her life. The museum organizes two- to three-hour guided walking tours in the town of Viñales, CUC$8 per person. Make reservations for the tour the day before at the museum.

This museum offers insight into Regla's history. During the Revolution, this area was a rebel stronghold known as La Sierra Chiquita (The Little Sierra; as opposed to the Sierra Maestra where Fidel and his forces operated). Close to but outside and largely separate from Havana, Regla was a convenient place for clandestine activity. Photographs of the Regla heroes and heroines (such as Lidia Doce) who were tortured and murdered by the Batista regime line the walls. Also on display is a copy of the first edition of Eduardo Facciolo's La Voz del Pueblo Cubana, dated June 13, 1852, as well as a room dedicated to the orishas (deities of the Santaría religion). The museum can also organize guided tours of Regla for CUC$5 per person.

The collection is housed in the splendid Centro Asturiano finished in 1928 (in answer to the Centro Gallego across the Parque Central), a building designed by Spanish architect Manuel del Busto, as dazzling as the collection it contains. Its sweeping stairway was inspired by the Paris Opera House, and its immense stained glass window alludes to the discovery of America. The collection ranges from Roman, Greek, and Egyptian ceramics and statuary to European art from the Italian, German, Flemish, Dutch, Spanish, French, and British schools. In addition there are rooms devoted to the art of the United States, as well as displays of Asian, Mexican, Cariibbean, and South American works. Works by Joseph Turner, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Francisco José de Goya, Bartolomé Estaban Murillo, Zurbarán, Brueghel, Canaletto, Peter Paul Rubens, Velázquez, Sorolla, and Zuloaga, among others, are displayed here.