Colonial Cities and Beaches
Bike Tour of Central Cuba
Tour Leader
Cost
Extra USD $350. Should you register looking to share with another and we are not able to find an acceptable companion, you will need to pay the Single Supplement charge.
USD $3025.
Tour Details
- Destination: Central Cuba.
- Duration: 15 days.
- Arrives: 02/28/2026
- Departs: 03/14/2026
- Days of cycling: 10
- Usual daily distances: 15 km/10 miles to 86 km/54 miles (with flexible options).
- Terrain:Quiet back roads for the most part, a little city cycling, and there are hills and rolling countryside. The road surfaces can be quite rough in some areas. We recommend using wider tires (over 28 mm) to navigate comfortably. Opting for a hybrid bike or a gravel bike would be your best bet for this tour. Hybrid e-bikes are available.
- Support vehicle: 100% (option to ride the bus anytime)
- Tour staff: 1 tour leader, 1 cultural guide, 1 driver, 1 bike mechanic.
Cuba, with its rich culture, natural beauty, friendly people, and quiet roads is the Promised Land for cyclists. We at Bicycle Breeze have designed this new tour to take you through a variety of scenic landscapes that include beautiful beaches on the south and north coasts with overnight stays in-between in six of Cuba’s most historically significant and interesting colonial cities: Havana, the large and bustling capital whose well-preserved old city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; Cienfuegos, the lively, seaside “Pearl of the South” with its French-inspired grand boulevard and colonnades; Trinidad, a living museum of Cuba’s colonial past with its charming cobbled streets and another UNESCO World Heritage Site; Santa Clara, the university city famously captured by Ché Guevara to end the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and now the site of his impressive mausoleum; Remedios, one of Cuba’s oldest and most charming colonial cities that was deservedly declared to be a Cuban National Monument in 1979; and, Matanzas, a city of rivers and bridges, the former center of the sugar trade now known world-wide for its strong Afro-Cuban music and dance scene.
While Cuba’s rich colonial heritage is evident throughout the island, it is central Cuba that best recalls the days of the pirates of the Spanish Main and the boom and bust days of the sugar trade. Visually attractive, these urban centers reflect the long and colorful history of this region where early settlers were often forced to repeatedly move farther inland to escape pirate attacks, where sugar, slavery and tobacco fortunes were made and lost.
The tour will also allow for exploring the varied and often stunning Cuban landscape with its many hidden gems. It will follow the beach-lined shores of the Bahía de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs), the site of the attempted invasion of Cuba in 1961 by CIA-trained Cuban exiles all the way to Playa Girón, named after a notorious French pirate from the early 1600s. Going on, the tour will follow the verdant Escambray Mountains through the picturesque Valle de los Ingenios (Valley of the Sugar Mills), another UNESCO World Heritage Site made up of three interconnected valleys watered by four rivers. A full two days will be spent at Hanabanilla, a spectacular and enormous man-made lake surrounded by a pine-studded forest high in the mountains not far from the archeological remains of many Indigenous Taino villages.
The tour will also provide an opportunity to experience some of the more off-beat aspects of Cuban culture such as the distinctive, but strikingly different replicas of the Statue of Liberty found in Remedios and Matanzas that are more expressive than the original that sits in New York harbour, the statue of John Lennon in a park named after him in Havana that has become a pilgrimage site for many rock music fans, and the restored 43.5 metre (143 feet) high tower, the freestanding Torre de Manaca-Iznaga in the Valle de los Ingenios that was allegedly built as a result of a silly wager between two brothers in the 1830s.
Cuba, renowned for its beautiful landscapes, glorious beaches, wonderful people, and packed with great cycling routes is a paradise for those seeking a memorable cycling and sightseeing holiday. While Cuba’s beauty is undeniable, so too are the challenges its people face. Through our travels, we aim not only to revel in the splendour of this island nation but also to support its youth in pursuing their cycling dreams, potentially opening doors to international competition – a rare opportunity for many Cubans. Help us to help them.
TOUR GALLERY
DAY BY DAY SCHEDULE
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Day 1 – Arrival at Havana
You can arrive in Cuba to either Varadero or Havana airports and transfer to your casas particulares (B&B) in Vedado, the one-time red-light district facing the sea that is now the commercial heart of Havana and the site of many famous hotels and monuments.
You will have time to set up your bike with the support of our bike mechanic in front of the Cafe Rueda, our headquarters while in Havana. Our evening in Havana will give us an opportunity to chat and introduce ourselves.
– Cycling: 0 km
– Accommodation: Casas particulares (Cuban B&B) Vedado, Havana
– Meals Included: dinner
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Day 2 – Havana to Playa Girón
After breakfast, we will take the bus from Havana to Jagüey Grande, a large agricultural town. We will enjoy lunch at Finca Fiesta Campesina, a traditional-style restaurant on a farm serving good Cuban food. Then we will begin our ride to Playa Girón, one of two landing sites for seaborne forces of about 1,500 armed Cuban exiles during the Bay of Pigs Invasion
The road south is flat along the Bay of Pigs and has great scenery.
– Cycling: 63 km/40 miles (+161 m)
– Accommodation: Casas Particulares (Cuban B&B) Playa Giron
– Meals Included: breakfast, dinner
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Day 3 – Playa Girón to Cienfuegos
In the morning, before leaving Playa Girón, we will gather at the town center to visit the Museo Girón where we will learn about the failed attempt by Cuban exiles in 1961 to overthrow the Castro regime. Over 72 hours, fighting took place in many parts of the Cienaga de Zapata, Playa Girón being the last remaining area occupied by the invaders.
Our ride east to Cienfuegos is along fairly flat roads through fertile farmlands. The Historic Centre of Cienfuegos was placed on the World Heritage List by UNESCO in 2005. Cienfuegos being considered the best example of early 19th century Spanish Enlightenment in urban planning. We will have a walking tour of the city centre before dinner.
– Cycling: 82 km/51 miles (+208 m), Walking 3 km/2 miles
– Accommodation: Hotel la Union, Cienfuegos
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 4 – Cienfuegos to Trinidad
We will start our day taking the tour bus to the Jardín Botánico de Cienfuegos, an outstanding botanical garden stocked and maintained for many decades by Harvard University. We will explore the garden with an arborist who will share stories as we walk in this oasis filled with 285 types of palm trees and 2,400 species of plants.
Following our garden tour we will hop on our bikes and head down to the coast gaining glimpses of the Caribbean Sea and the upland pine forests of the Sierra Escambray mountains. After arriving in Trinidad and settling into our casas, we will have time to explore the city and, after dinner, we will be able to enjoy Cuban music, dancing, and mojitos at Café de la Música.
– Cycling: 83 km/52 miles (+545 m)
– Accommodation: Casas Particulares (Cuban B&B) Trinidad
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner.
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Day 5 – Trinidad White Sand Beach Day
Today we take a break with a short ride to Playa Ancon, a peninsula south of Trinidad with one of Cuba’s finest white sand beaches. At Playa Ancon we will sit beneath palapa huts, swim in warm clear water, and have an optional lunch at a small beachside restaurant.
After spending the afternoon at the beach, we will return to Trinidad by bus and continue exploring this beautiful city with a guided tour including a large ceramic arts workshop and store.
– Cycling: 16 km/10 miles (+25 m), Walking 3km/2 miles
– Accommodation: Casas Particulares (Cuban B&B) Trinidad
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 6 – Trinidad to Lake Hanabanilla
We will take our tour bus from Trinidad through the scenic Valle de los Ingenios to the Torre Manaca Iznaga. The astonishing view from this imposing tower more than justifies a short visit. We will then begin our bike ride through the green lower hills of the Escambray Mountains – the main mountain range in the middle of the island – before climbing to the Village of Hanabanilla on the banks of Lake Hanabanilla.
This hotel is perfect to relieve the stress produced by the hustle and bustle of the city. Its vast natural surroundings are rich in flora, where green semi-deciduous woods predominate, as well as vegetation on carso soil. Its fauna is rich in birds, reptiles, and mammals.
– Cycling: 83 km/52 miles (+1,240 m)
– Accommodation: Hotel Hanabanilla
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 7 – Hike and Boat Trip at Lake Hanabanilla
Hanabanilla means “A basket full of gold” in the Taino language, the indigenous people of Cuba. In the morning we will enjoy a guided hike exploring the hills around Lake Hanabanilla with our local guide explaining names and details of the flora and fauna. If we are fortunate, we may spot a Tocoroco the Cuban national bird resplendent in the colours of the national flag. After our hike, we will take a boat to the other side of the lake for lunch at Rio Negro, in a quiet restaurant with beautiful views.
When we return by boat to our hotel we can lounge around the pool and enjoy the views.
– Cycling: 0 km, Hiking 8 km/5 miles
– Accommodation: Hotel Hanabanilla
– Meals Included: breakfast/lunch/dinner
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Day 8 – Hanabanilla to Santa Clara
Today’s we will cycle an easy 56 km/35 miles from Hanabanilla on a well-paved road into Santa Clara, a youthful city well-known for the mausoleum of Ché Guevara at Revolution Square in the city where he led the final battle of the revolution. We will have a tour of the mausoleum which commemorates the life of Ché.
Our hotel is designed to reflect the culture of the Taino indigenous population of pre-colonial Cuba. There is a nice pool for swimming and relaxing after the bike ride.
– Cycling: Morning 56 km/35 miles (+396m)
– Accommodation: Hotel Los Caneyes
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 9 – Santa Clara to Remedios
Before leaving Santa Clara, we will visit the battle site where Ché Guevara and a small number of men essentially ended the Cuban Revolution by derailing the Tren Blindado (armoured train) and defeating the government troops it carried. Batista fled Cuba into exile after this battle.
Following this visit, the day’s ride east through tobacco country to Remedios will be on a gently rolling road, leading back to the north shore of Cuba.
– Cycling: 51km/30 miles (+216m)
– Accommodation: Hotel Mascotte
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 10 – Remedios to Cayo Santa Maria
In the morning, we will explore the old colonial city of Remedios, famous for the amazing state of preservation that makes it one of Cuba’s most charming and attractive cities. At the city square we will find a Cuban Statue of Liberty that recalls the fulfilled dream of independence for Cuba.
We will then ride to Caibarién, a colourful fishing town called “La Villa Blanca” (The White Town) for its white-sand beaches. We’ll take some time to look around before riding to the causeway where we board the bus to arrive at the beautiful beaches of Cayo Santa María.
– Cycling: 15 km/10 miles (+49 m)
– Accommodation: Hotel Starfish Santa Maria
– Meals Included: breakfast/lunch/dinner
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Day 11 – Beach Day at Cayo Santa Maria
Today we enjoy a day at the white sand beaches of Cayo Santa Maria where the sand is uniquely flour-like, as it is so soft and fine. We will be pampered at our all-inclusive resort with food, drinks, swimming pools and entertainment.
This cayo (small island) is linked to the mainland near Caibarién by a 48 km causeway constructed between 1989 and 1999. Making this area one of the newer tourism areas in Cuba.
– Cycling: 0 km
– Accommodation: Hotel Starfish Santa Maria
– Meals Included: breakfast/lunch/dinner
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Day 12 – Cayo Santa Maria to Matanzas
We will begin the day by taking the bus from Cayo Santa María past Santa Clara to Colón, a small town with neoclassical architecture and an impressive statue of Christopher Columbus guarded by four lions.
From Colón, we will ride to Matanzas, the former center of the sugar trade that sits on a wide and beautiful bay. We should have the wind at our backs for the entire ride from Colón to Matanzas on a generally flat road through farm fields. Matanzas is known as the City of Bridges with a beautiful pedestrian mall lined with restaurants and art galleries along the Rio San Juan. In the evening, we will have a walking tour of the impressive buildings, the Plaza de la Libertad, and the riverfront.
– Cycling: 86 km/54 miles (+243m), Walking 3 km/2 miles
– Accommodation: Hotel E Velasco, Matanzas
– Meals Included: breakfast/dinner
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Day 13 – Matanzas to Playa Jibacoa then Havana
Today is our last day of riding. Our cycling route takes us on a quiet back road out of Matanzas, to the Valle Yumuri and along the “Via Blanca”. On the way, we will cross the Puente de Bacunayagua, Cuba’s highest bridge at 110 metres above the valley below, and enjoy a stunning lookout, before arriving at our all-inclusive beach hotel in Jibacoa.
At Jibacoa, the site of a beautiful white sand beach, we will enjoy a bag lunch and a quick dip in the ocean before taking the bus to the Havana Velodrome where we will meet the coach and riders of a your cycling club and leave donations. We will then take the bus into central Havana to check into our casas before having dinner.
– Cycling: 47 km/30 miles (+353 m)
– Accommodation: Casas Particulares (Cuban B&B) Havana
– Meals Included: breakfast/lunch/dinner
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Day 14 – Tour Havana
Today is the day to explore Havana. We will take the bus to the bottom of the Paseo del Prado, a long tree-lined boulevard that leads into the center of Old Havana and its main squares and monuments. Our tour guide will describe the history and culture of Havana as we explore this charming city that was awarded UNESCO status in 1982.
We will have lunch in a quaint part of the old city near one of Cuba’s most famous churches. Be ready with your cameras for a thrilling drive in vintage American cars through parts of Havana that you may have heard about like the University of Havana where Fidel Castro studied, Chinatown, the National Theater, the well-known hotels frequented by American mobsters before the Revolution, the long and impressive Malecón seaside boulevard and esplanade for which Havana is famous and more.
We will have a farewell dinner in Havana and share stories of our adventure.
– Cycling: 0 km, Walking 6 km/4 miles
– Accommodation: Casas Particulares (Cuban B&B) Havana
– Meals Included: breakfast/lunch/dinner
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Day 15 – Departure Day
Sadly, today is departure day and the bus will take us to the airport for the flight back home. We hope you have enjoyed the ride, our country, its wonderful people, and that you will return for more cycling with the Bicycle Breeze tour team.
Cycle Rental
Bicycle Breeze has bike rentals at great prices. For this tour you will need either hybrid or gravel bike. Should you prefer to bring your own that is fine with us, you will get the same mechanical assistance as the renters.
Check your travel company for costs of shipping your bike. Depending on your country of embarkation you may be better to rent. Renting has other positive aspects. Your bike will not get lost in transit. It is far easier to travel without a bike box and spare bikes are on the bus for renters. The negative side is that this is not your favourite ride.
Customize This Tour
With a group of 10 or more riders, Bicycle Breeze can offer the ability to customize a tour to suit your needs. Contact us to start planning your next great adventure.