We only had one day in Havana. We took a tour in a vintage taxi that picked us up from our Hotel in Varadero and cost us half the price of the tour operator on the coach. When we first got in the vintage car there was a little panic at there being no seatbelts, but once we were underway it was all forgotten, plus there is so little traffic on the roads.
Our tour guide took us first to the old town. It is car free so you have to get out and walk and as he said although it was 2 hours it is so beautiful you will not notice the time or the length and he was right. First stop was San Francisco De Asis square, then La Habana Vieja (New Square), Cathedral Square and lots of little other delights along the way. It was so quiet and peaceful despite tourists.”Havana Inside out Tour from Varadero”:http://www.varaderotourtaxi.com/
We went back through the tunnel for lunch to a spot near the Christ of Havana and then were treated to views back across the bay of Havana. Then we drove back over and along the El Malecon (seafront) and into the newer part of Havana. As Havana is going to be 500 years old in 2020 there is a lot of renovation happening, painting everywhere; and so we were not able to get out in Revolution Square but our guide took photos for us. In fact he took photos of us at all the spots on the tour – so we had a private guide and a photographer. We saw all the major sights in the day – there is little to no English signs or explanations so without the guide I think we would have struggled to understand as much as we did.
To see everything in more detail then a few days would be good and I would feel able to do that on our own now I have had a guided tour and got my bearings and a lot of facts.
