Viñales valley, a good hundred miles West of Havana, offers some of the most beautiful scenery in Cuba.

[Version française ici]

DSC_5538-Pano The area is famous for its “mogotes”, steep-sided hills bringing attractive drama to the often flat Cuban horizons.

DSC_5567 An agricultural (and touristic !) area ...

Cuba – Viñales – 2018  ... it has remained essentially untouched by mechanization ...

DSC_5985 ... and work in the fields is particularly tough.

Cuba – Viñales – 2018

Tobbaco is Viñales’ main produce.

Cuba – Viñales – 2018

Farmers are both rugged and eager to help tourists discover their lives (trying to sell a few cigars along the way doesn't hurt 😉)

Cuba – Viñales – 2018   Cuba – Viñales – 2018

The Viñales village is essentially one main street focused on the tourism business ...

DSC_6820 ... but overall life remains quite traditional. Transportation still often relies on muscle power ...

Cuba – Viñales – 2018 Cuba – 2018 ... and even when it is mechanized, we are far from our Western luxury.

Cuba – 2018 The center of the village is marked by the church and its square ...

Cuba – Viñales – 2018 ... where both locals and tourists congregate to try to connect to the government controlled WiFi Internet infrastructure, like in most Cuban city centers.

Cuba – Viñales – 2018 Incidentally, in Cuba, umbrellas are mostly used to protect oneself from the sun (at least in the dry season...)

Cuba – Viñales – 2018In the dry season, umbrellas are used mostly for sun protection... Even here, the hairdresser is a Barca fan!

Cuba – Viñales – 2018

The coast North of Viñales is pretty. Cayo Levisa island in particular, about 30 minutes away from the coast by boat, is a good example of Caribbean paradise.

Cuba – Cayo Levisa – 2018

It hasn't been spoiled by constructions or trade. The only people who try to sell something are these two, offering fresh coconut!

Cuba – Cayo Levisa – 2018 Walk a couple hundred feet from the "busy" area (above), and you've basically got the beach to yourself... 

Cuba – Cayo Levisa – 2018

You liked reading this article? Please share it! Thank you! – and comments are always welcome.
And if you liked it, you will probably also enjoy my other articles on Cuba:

Cuba – Santiago – 2018	Cuba – Havana • La Havane • La Habana – 2018	Cuba – Trinidad – 2018	Cuba – Santiago – 2018
My first impressions of Cuba, including my favorite pictures of Cuba overall - the article to read first and foremost 😉	A trip back to the 1950s in present day Havana,	Back to the 19th century & amazing nature – Trinidad & area, incl. Cienfuegos, the Escambray range, and the Valley de los Ingenios	Santiago de Cuba, the rebel of the South East

Stay tuned, more to come!
Didier.