In March 2025, ExperiencePlus! tour leader Melanie Chilesotti, who lives in Padua, Italy, traveled to the island nation of Cuba for an 8-day tour of Cycling Central Cuba with 11 ExperiencePlus! travelers. It was her second season touring in Cuba. Following the tour’s end, Melanie surprised us with a detailed a travelog she wrote about her time on the road, the people she met, and what makes Cuba a fascinating place to travel. Thanks to Melanie for sharing her experiences and insights.
Day 1
In 2024, I spent two and a half months in Cuba, leading three tours and taking several weeks of holiday for myself. When I was asked to return to Cuba to lead a tour in 2025, I couldn’t but say yes. Cuba is fascinating. I love so many aspects of this big island, like light and the colors. I think that if Van Gogh, who was in love with Provence’s light, would have had the chance to come here he would have agreed with me. I love the slow rhythm of life, people always hanging around, the musicians and the architecture.
This year I got the chance to work with the team I already knew from last year: Ramon the Cuban guide, Pipo the bus driver and Reinaldo the extra driver supporting us along the road. Three grown up boys with a permanent smile on their face.
We meet half of the ExperiencePlus! group at the airport while the other half is already in Remedios, a small village in the northern corner of the Santa Clara region. Once the necessary stuff is done (checking in, safety talk, bike fitting), we head out and we get to know some of the unique history of Cuba. While Ramon is telling us about this lovely village, we take a look around and walk through the main square which is actually a park with big trees where people love to meet. Young people are rollerblading while taxi tricycles, waiting for clients, chit chat together. Some of the trikes have speakers; in Cuba music is always in the air.
The history of Remedios dates back to the 16th century. Besides being a very small city it is hometown to a big fest: a carnival called Las Parrandas. On this occasion, locals split into two neighborhoods and they “fight” against each other with music, parade with floats, fireworks and light artworks!
In this place we’re also able to admire the only Statue of Liberty in Cuba, made from Carrara marble, to honor the first martyrs of Cuba who fought for Cuba’s independence from Spain.
After a first day of sightseeing, it is definitely time for a toast: Mojitos, Daiquiris and Rum of course!
Before going to sleep I take a minute to have a look from the terrace. There’s a power outage, no electricity. It’s very dark. The blackouts here are scheduled at specific times of the day. That’s part of normal Cuban life. But, we’re lucky enough for our hotel to have a generator.
Day 2
Yahoo! It’s time to get on the bike! Our ride starts with a beautiful and gradual uphill, some switchbacks lead us to the top of the hill where the small town of Meneses is settled. Ramon was trying to convince me to avoid the ascent and start riding from the top but…sorry guys I love uphills! Some of us are struggling a little with the heat and the humidity, which is normal since in our home countries it’s still cold. We just need to acclimate. What a privilege to be here to enjoy the warm weather… but yes, we’re gonna take it slowly!
We stop here and there to drink some water and eat snacks. Reinaldo is doing a great job providing us with some local food. Today we are tasting mani, which is basically a peanut bar, delicious and perfect energy for cyclists. Indeed, these mani bars are going to be our best companions along the route. It’s impossible for me to get bored of them.
The ride goes on along some freshly harvested tobacco fields. The leaves have been picked and are now hanging to dry nice and tidy on homemade wooden structures. It looks like a piece of artwork on those wavey hills! You certainly know that Cuba is a big producer of cigars!
Shortly after, we get to our lunch spot, they call it a paladar, on a nicely shaded terrace, and guess what? We are having pizzas! Cuban people eat a lot of pizzas.
Someone is asking about the palms we see along the road. Ramon explains that these are not coconut palms but Palma Real, the Royal Palm, which is the Cuban national tree. They use the leaves for building roofs, the trunk for wood construction and the small fruits for feeding pigs. The fruit is called palmiche and it’s very important to get good quality pork meat.
Sancti Spiritus town is our final stop. During our sightseeing walk we learn from Ramon that the Guayabera shirt, which is the classic elegant shirt of Latin America, was born here, or at least that’s what they claim. Legend has it that a farm worker headed home picked up guayaba fruits (guavas) and brought them home to his wife. The wife said, “Why do you only bring me 2 guavas?” And the farmer, “That’s what I can carry with me. If you sew more pockets on my shirt I’ll bring you more!” And the wife sewed 4 pockets for him! From the name of the guayaba fruit comes the name of Guayabera, a shirt with 4 pockets!
Day 3
In Cuba there’s no traffic on the road. There are few cars and some are very old. This is because of the embargo that makes importation of goods extremely difficult and very expensive. People in Cuba have learned to fix everything; nothing gets thrown away.
Especially in the countryside people travel by horses with carriages, bicycles, electric scooters and foot. Small and colorful houses made by wood are spread along our route. Clothes are hanging outside to dry and animals, such as cows, oxen and goats are left to graze freely. There are a lot of kids, adults and old people, but younger generations have emigrated abroad, mostly to Florida. It’s estimated that 1.5 million Cubans have left in the last 10 years, seeking a better life.
Despite all the difficulties not everybody wants to leave. Cubans love their country and they know that a new lifestyle abroad is totally different, for better or for worse.
Today the ride goes up and down with great views over the mountains. We get to see different plantations: mangoes, rice, tomatoes, sugar canes and bananas. The highlight of the day is the big farm of Manaca Iznaga, a former sugar plantation dating back to the 18th century. Nowadays, it’s a restaurant and they serve us a well-deserved lunch. We learn how to make guarapo, which is sugar cane juice, and we climb up the high tower located in the property. From here the view is beautiful!
We are staying in Trinidad for 2 nights. We sleep in casas particulares, private homes of local people which are renting rooms: basically a Cuban Air B&B!
Trinidad has nothing to envy any historical European town! The city center’s roads are covered with cobblestone and the buildings date back to colonial time. Ramon shows us around, he’s very knowledgeable and passionate about history and culture. Before dinner we stop for a typical drink, la canchanchara, made of lime, honey, aguardiente (sugar cane’s distillate), water and ice. Everybody likes it!
Day 4
The sun is shining and that’s very good news as we are cycling to the beach! We ride out of town and slightly downhill until we leave the main road and get into one of the most beautiful segments of our trip with la Sierra del Escambray (the mountains of Trinidad) in the background, small trees and bushes along the road, and a good road to ride straight to the sandy and white beach. The group loves swimming and we’re all enjoying this relaxing time on the beach.
We stop for lunch in a village called La Boca. We have to wait almost one hour for our lunch to be served but considering that we’re sitting right in front of the sea, no one seems to be impatient. And what could we say? These guys have to deal with electricity going away and coming back several times during the day and they are doing their best.
In the afternoon we learn how to make cigars and we do some unplanned rum tasting. This is an out of program activity but everybody is very curious, so there you go! Because cigars are handmade by a super-fast professional, the demonstration lasts a very short time!
There’s something unique and special in cigar factories here and that’s the job of the reader. Every morning he starts with reading the news to the cigar makers at work and then goes on with reading books like classic novels and even research studies. Amazing!
Day 5
We’re leaving the city of Trinidad and heading west. After a few kilometers we get to a spot with a terrific view over the sea and the road leads downhill to the coast. From now on we chase the sound of the waves on a perfectly flat route.
We come across a group of cows standing in the middle of the street, they gently move to the side and let us through. Many rivers flow out into the sea while we cross them on long bridges. It’s impossible not to stop and take pictures.
We watch a guy immersed in the water. He’s praying and eventually throws a bouquet of flowers into the sea (plastic wrap included). Ramon explains that he’s doing a ritual, probably practicing the Yoruba religion, an African religion that spread in the island with the arrival of enslaved Africans.
Ramon tells us the story of Camilo Cienfuegos and Huber Matos, two Cuban heroes of the Revolution who disappeared only two years after the triumph of the Revolution. Rumors have it that Fidel Castro didn’t like them anymore as they were asking for more participation in the government decisions. We can now only imagine what happened to them.
Ramon cut some mangoes for our coffee break and they’re the first of the season!
Some kids come out of the houses screaming “Yuma Yuma,” which is what they call white people from abroad. Reinaldo stops and gives out to the locals some goods that guests have brought over from their home country. They will definitely appreciate the presents. We’re pretty off-grid here and kids don’t really have access to drawing materials and the like.
We visit the Botanical Garden of Cienfuegos. Our guide Hilda is super knowledgeable and we learn a lot about tropical trees that have come from all over Central and South America, Sri Lanka and Africa. There’s a Brazilian nut tree and some fruit tree we have never tasted before!
Our lunch spot today is directly on the beach and they serve a delicious bean soup. Some of us don’t miss the opportunity to go for a dip in the water!
Tonight we’re sleeping here in Cienfuegos, Ramon and Reinaldo’s hometown.
Day 6
From the hotel breakfast room we look at the sun rising over Cienfuegos, the sun brightens the pale colors of the church, a few blocks away, the birds are singing and flying in the sky. Today’s ride is flat and with no significant turns. It may sound a bit boring, but it’s actually a very relaxing and meditative ride. We observe the fields along the road: potatoes, yuccas, beans, rice, mangoes, bananas. Locals look at us and wave hands, they say hola. They ride horses and protect themselves from the sun with long sleeves and big hats. By now I am used to people riding horses here, but at the same time I still realize that people here live how they were living 100 years ago.
For many kilometers we cycle under the shade of big trees, they create a natural tunnel over the street. We have a break in San Blas, a small cafe owned by Juan. I’m happy to see how nice this place has become. When we rode through here a year ago there was almost nothing. Juan is preparing for us some fresh fruit, coconut water, coffee and yogurt to take away for tomorrow’s breakfast.
Once we reach Playa Giron we go directly to the museum of the Bay of Pigs to learn about the U.S.-Cuba conflict from Cuba’s perspective. On April 17, 1961 a group of 1,400 soldiers landed on the beaches of the Bay of Pigs. The men were mostly Cuban exiles, trained by the CIA. Their military operation was secretly directed by the U.S. government to overthrow Fidel Castro. The attempt failed miserably.
We are blessed by amazing weather so we decide to stop for snorkeling and swimming in the clear waters of the Bay of Pigs. Tonight we’re sleeping in a casa particular that’s 50 meters away from the beach.
Day 7
We’re having breakfast at Dalia’s house on the terrace. Another beautiful sunrise lights the morning. Temperature is just perfect and we hear the sound of waves crashing on the shoreline.
Today we have a very short ride on a gravel path that goes through a forest with a lot of birds singing. The ride is short for two very good reasons: our visit to Korimacao and to a hummingbird garden.
The visit of Korimacao is a highlight of the trip. An aboriginal word “kori” means man and “macao” means the snail’s house, Korimacao is a community of musicians, dancers, singers and painters who live and study together. Their job is to spread arts in Cuban areas which are less populated and less connected with towns. They travel around and find places to stay for few days, making art and performing for local people. When they start playing “Hallelujah” many of us get teary and emotional.
One block away lives Bernabe, who created a perfect garden environment for hummingbirds to live. It’s beautiful to see them so close up. Among them lives the bee hummingbird: the smallest bird in the world!
We get to Havana for lunch and eat in a very good restaurant downtown. Musicians playing in the background. Ramon shows us around old town Havana. It’s a beautiful town and deserves multiple days to be explored. Personally, I just love to walk around and see the colonial buildings, the green parks, and different neighborhoods, and observe people in the streets.
Unfortunately, it’s time to say goodbye at our farewell dinner. We like to ask everyone what the highlights of the tour were for them and these are the most popular ones: snorkeling and swimming in the sea and Ramon’s historic and cultural explanations and getting to know the Cuban culture. This last reason is why you should choose to take this cycling tour.
There’s no other place in the world like Cuba with its revolutionary history, blend of cultures, legends, unique colors and lights, musicians, slow rhythm and friendly people.
