We rendezvous in sunny Havana today for one of the most unusual walking adventures we’ve yet experienced. A representative of WAI will be on hand at the airport to greet you and arrange transportation to our hotel in Havana.
We look forward to sharing an unforgettable array of activities with the Cuban people through a cornucopia of cultural connections and excursions into the unspoiled natural wonders of this Caribbean island that seems to be working their way through a late-19th to mid-20th century time warp.
0800 – Begin optional Malecón and More Havana walk from the hotel
Travelers who opt to arrive early are invited to join us for a walk along sections of the 7-kilometer-long Malecón (esplanade) that borders the Atlantic. After walking about half of the Malecón, our route takes us into Centro Havana for an optional visit to the Museum of the Revolution to see that piece of history from a different point of view. We finish with a stroll down the Paseo del Prado to Central Park and the Capitolio. Originally the home of the Cuban Congress, it’s currently under renovation to serve as the new home for Cuba’s National Assembly.
Noon (but it was closer to 2pm) – Bus back to the hotel
1800 – Welcome orientation meeting
Later this evening we join travelers arriving today for a Welcome Orientation and dinner at Hotel Nacional de Cuba, Havana’s most famous hotel and a magnet for foreign celebrities and diplomats during the pre-Castro years. (We actually had to walk to dinner). [The dinner was at a restaurant a 10-minute walk from the hotel that took 25 minutes. I'm just sayin'.]
Monument to the Victims of the USS Maine
US Embassy in the distance behind the arches
On the Malecón separating the Atlantic Ocean from Havana. As we walk, the buildings on the right change from the new Havana to what is known as Centro Havana. The buildings are pre-Castro. Note the differing levels of disrepair. Changes in the socialist rules has allowed some to refurbish and repurpose buildings for profit.
At the Museum of the Revolution. Everything from the Cuban perspective, where the CIA was responsible for everything. Very interesting.
Into the edges of Old Town Havana
Paseo del Prado to Central Park and the Capitolio
Group dinner, shredded beef appetizer, back to Hotel Nacional after dark
