Guardalavaca Travel Guide: Travel and tourist information, things to do and see in Guardalavaca

Guardalavaca was originally a farming community, horse rearing is still a local speciality although the shoreline area which is about about 1 ml from end to end, abd is now given over totally to tourism.

The first hotel was inaugurated in the late 70s by Fidel Castro who swam in the pool. The village inland comprises several rundown apartment blocks and is home to about 200 inhabitants. The whole place depends completely on its superb, carefully maintained beaches. Tropical rains in May and June; sweltering weather in August.

The area is strictly for the get-away-from-it-all brigade seeking sun, sea and sand. There are water sports and scuba-diving enthusiasts catered for. There are lots of Canadians and a smattering of Europeans.

The accommodation here is mainly all-inclusive options, with some sited at Playa Esmeralda. However, most all-inclusives actually exclude motorised water sports and some limit drinks to locally produced rum and beer. So if you want to drink French champagne and water-ski every day for free, check the tour-operator's brochure very carefully.

Guardalavaca is situated towards the east end of Cuba's north coast (500 mls SE of Havana, 15 mls NE of Santa Lucia, 45 mls NE of Holguin and its airport). It is on a stretch of rocky north west-facing shoreline with several fine beaches backed by rolling tree-covered hills.

The main beach is of the picture-postcard Caribbean variety with sand the colour and texture of caster sugar shelving gently into clean, warm turquoise water, it is about 800 yds long and up to 60 yds wide, backed by trees for shade and with a picturesque flower-lined promenade.

It features a diving centre, water sports, pedalloes, catamarans, sun loungers, bars, restaurants and even a disco. The private beach in front of Hotel Las Brisas is artificial. Playa Esmeralda is similar to the main Guardalavaca beach and is effectively for the private use of guests at its hotels.

There is a rather tatty shopping centre by the beach caters mainly for locals but does include a bank, minimarket and travel agency; a few other embryo businesses are scattered about. Hotels all have more attractive offerings.

During the daytime apart from the activities provided by hotels, there is very little apart from the beach, water sports and scuba diving. There are several good dive sites featuring submerged caves and abundant sponges. You can take Catamaran cruises, go Horse riding and Sky diving.

The nightlife offers a disco near the beach, but all hotels provide nightly entertainment.

For food the main choice is in hotels, where the better, foreign-managed properties make a valiant effort with what is available but even they struggle to satisfy European expectations. A few independent offerings: seafood, Italian, Cuban and international. Food everywhere in Cuba is restricted in choice and often of comparatively poor quality, so it is definitely not a destination for gourmets.

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Population: 11.346.700
Languages: Spanish
Currency: Cuban peso
Currency code: CUP
Local Times:
Cuba - Havana

Country Dialling Code: +53

Cuba lies in the northwest of the Caribbean Sea, 90 miles south of Florida, at the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico.

Almost the size of England, it is by far the largest island in the Caribbean - in fact, at 744 miles long by an average 60 miles wide, it's as big as all the rest put together. To Columbus it was also the best: he called it "the most beautiful land yet seen by human eye".

Cuba means different things to different people. For some, the name stands for revolution and communism, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. For others, it conjures up retro images of 1950s American cars and glamorous cocktail bars.

The island's history as a haven for gangsters and gamblers has given it a reputation as a macho country - think Ernest Hemingway, deep sea fishing and dusky maidens rolling cigars on their thighs. And then there's its colonial heritage: all those crumbling Spanish buildings and sugar plantations.

In the 1990s Cuba suddenly found itself musical flavour of the month, thanks to the success of the Buena Vista Social Club film and CD. Now it has really taken off as a sunny beach destination, with brochures raving about its idyllic silver sands, swaying palms and turquoise seas, as glorious as any in the Caribbean.

The truth is that you can find a bit of all those things - and more besides. One of the most fascinating things about Cuba is its people. A blend of races and cultures, African, Asian, and European, they're friendly, easy-going and welcoming, despite the fact that rationing and restrictions are a constant part of their lives.

The Cubans' love of music is legendary, and many towns have a regular weekly party night, when everyone gathers in the streets to eat, dance and make merry.

The towns themselves have kept most of their beautiful old buildings (mainly, it has to be said, because there weren't enough funds to knock them down and build new ones), and many of them are now being renovated from their former crumbling, dilapidated state. The faces and facades alone make for a photographer's dream.

Outside the cities the attractions are just as appealing. Hikers can trek through beautiful mountain ranges covered in tropical forest. Ornithologists will be drawn to the marshes and mangroves of the Zapata peninsula, home to more than 160 species of bird.

Snorkellers and scuba divers are lured by the coral reefs that surround most of the island, attracting a wide variety of fish, in perfect viewing conditions.

	Day	Night
Fri	Scattered T-Storms	T-Storms Early
Sat	PM T-Storms	T-Storms Early
Sun	Scattered T-Storms	Partly Cloudy
Mon	Scattered T-Storms	Partly Cloudy
Tue	Scattered T-Storms	Partly Cloudy

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