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Havana, Cuba – Top Places to See and Things To Do With Family

Check out the Best Havana attractions, cool family-friendly things to do, get our road-trip guide, beautiful photos of Cuba + Download our FREE detailed Havana day-trip itinerary and a prep. checklist!

Havana, the capital of Cuba, is definitely worth a visit at least once in your life. Whether you are staying in Havana for a few days, or are venturing out from your resort for a brief day-trip, there is much to do and plenty to see! You've probably seen photos of some of the most famous Havana attractions, such as Revolution Square or the Capitol? In this post, we'll show you some of the hidden gems off the beaten path that you can explore by venturing out on your own, outside of a standard excursion bus-tour.

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Check out our other posts about Cuba!

Fusterlandia at Jaimanitas: Most Unusual Artsy Discovery in Havana, Cuba

Top Things to Do With Your Family in Varadero, Cuba

Cuba Packing List For Totally Worry-Free Family Holidays

Starfish Varadero Resort – Family Review and Honest Feedback

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In Love with Havana

Nothing can be compared with the spirit and a particular vibe of this city. In the past century alone it transitioned from being a Spanish colonial capital, on to a popular vacation spot of the American elite, on to the heart of Revolution, ton o the headquarters of one of the longest dictatorships in the World, on to now slowly recovering and adapting to modern life technologies and trends… The Party still rules tight control over the country, and Cuba is still under the US embargo enduring all the challenges coming with it. Despite it, Cuban people are amazingly open-hearted, kind and high spirited.

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We’ve been to Havana for a day-trip on two occasions – in 2016 and in 2019. I am happy to report: things have become better! The downtown is undergoing massive restoration of its magnificent colonial architecture buildings. More cafes and bars are opening up: we’ve noticed many more little stores open for business in Old Havana, and the legendary Sloppy Joe’s bar had opened its doors this year after massive revamp. To learn more about Cuban History, read these books before your visit.

I am personally fascinated by Havana. The Cuban capital is one of my favorite places in the World! Despite the poverty, despite the heat, despite the stringent rules… I cannot get enough of it. In this article, and in the Photo Gallery offered below, I’ll attempt to share my fascination and tell you about all the best places to see and things to do in Havana.

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Getting to Havana

You have two options getting to Havana – as a part of an organized day-trip excursion or by hiring a private car tour. Regardless of where you are staying (Varadero, Mazatlan, other parts of Cuba) the information in this section is largely applicable – with a slight correction for travel time to be done.

We’ve stayed in Varadero on both our visits to Cuba – both our day-trips to Havana were from Varadero. Driving time to Havana from Varadero is about 2-2,5 hours. 

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Bus Excursion 👎

A Tour bus to Havana from Varadero typically departs at 8 am and leaves Havana at 4 pm. 

Although there are few variations of things to do in Havana offered by various tour operators, a typical Havana day-trip itinerary would usually include:

• El Morro Castle (with lunch at a restaurant on-site)
• Old Havana walking tour
• Drive through New Havana (without stopping here!!!)
• Stop at Revolution Square
• Stop at a Rum & Cigar shop (where you spend 2+ hours waiting for everyone to shop)

In our opinion, the standard Havana day-trip bus tour is too short, misses many fun places and amazing things to do in Havana, and frankly wastes your precious time.

For example, why bringing you to the rum and cigar shop as you can buy the same stuff in Varadero? If you travel with kids – that is definitely not fun at all! 

Walking tour through Old Havana is too rushed …and you have a crowd behind you on all those [otherwise amazing] photos! Oh… this sucks. 

Special note on NOT stopping in New Havana on a bus tour

In 2016 we’ve taken a bus tour – we didn’t know any better… 

We drove through New Havana on the way to Revolutionary Square, and it looked beautiful! We were eager to get out of the bus and explore! But they did not stop. 

We passed the Capitol again on the way to the rum & cigar store and then specifically asked our driver on how much time are we going to have here in New Havana? To which they informed us that we are not stopping here at all as per their standard Havana day-trip itinerary! At which time everyone started taking photos through the bus window, as Central Park and surrounding Spanish colonial buildings are absolutely stunning! This is completely unfortunate. 

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Hiring a Private Car 👍

Learning from our experience, in 2019 we have hired a private car to take a self-guided Havana day-trip. In our opinion, this is a MUCH BETTER OPTION. 

We got a classic car WITH air conditioning – all included in the price! No need to be standing in-line to get photos – we had our own for the full day!

With a car and a driver at your disposal, you are in control of the departure time! We made our car to leave at 9 am and had enough sleep. We’ve also paid a bit extra and stayed in Havana till 6 pm instead of leaving at 4 pm. This way we were able to see many more amazing places – there are sooo many things to do in Havana, both Old and New, after all! 

You go wherever you want and spend as much time as you want sightseeing, mixing with locals, trying street foods, shopping (nah.. not for us).  You can stop anytime for a delicious authentic Pina Colada, or try local street food – a Cuban sandwich called Pan Con Lechon, which is A-bso-lu-te-ly delicious!

Your driver can be as hands-on or hands-off as you want: he can act as your tour guide AND your photographer! 

The best part: the cost is not that expensive at all! There were three of us traveling – two adults and a toddler. Our tour with extra hours, additional art village location outside of Havana and tips ended up less than 200 cuc. 

Strongly recommend hiring a [classic] car with a driver!

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Havana Day-Trip Itinerary

A few days before our day-tour to Havana we’ve looked-up places we wanted to visit and things we wanted to do and came up with the following agenda: 

• 8:00am – Depart Varadero
• 10:30am – El Morro Castle
• 11:30am – Modern Havana Centre
• 1:00pm – Old Havana (Lunch in Old Havana)
• 2:30pm – Revolution Square
• 3:00pm – Parque Almendares
• 4:00pm – Fusterlandia at Jaimanitas
• 5:30pm – Hotel Nacional
• 6:00pm – Malecon
• 6:30pm – Depart back to Havana

Considering the drive to Havana from Varadero is almost 2.5 hours, we wanted to fit as many fun things to do in Havana into our itinerary as possible. As such we’ve decided to skip shopping or even having formal restaurant meals when in Havana. Good news, the variety of snacks and street food is more than sufficient for you to be able to experience the Cuban capital from side to side.    

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El Morro Castle

The first stop is one of the most advertised Havana attractions – El Morro Castle or Castillo de los Tres Reyes Magos del Morro in Spanish. It was originally built in 1589 to protect Havana harbor from frequent pirate raids. 

The Castle is a magnificent sight to see and you can view the entire city of Havana from the cannon windows and castle walls. There are a few exhibitions going on here all the time – one notable one is the exhibit on the lighthouses of Cuba. Interestingly, in the past, the Castle used to have a school of lighthouse keepers!

It is best to leave the Castle for either the first thing in the morning or the late afternoon to see. The area is flat and exposed to the sun with little to no shade found along the walls. It is getting really HOT here in the afternoon!

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Modern Havana Centre

Modern Havana City Centre is the one I was excited about the most on this day-trip! 

New Havana is where you can experience the real vibe of the city. The downtown is being slowly restored, and is absolutely stunning! 

You can see the intricate architecture of touristy streets, with little shops here in there selling souvenirs and food… But turn the corner and step into the next street and you find yourself in the middle of the ancient ruins. Some buildings are way past restoration point and crumbling under the weight of trees growing right out of them. 

Locals smoking cigars, factory workers wearing the party-specified uniform rushing out for their bell-announced lunch break. School children rushing along: growing up back in USSR I do clearly remember those red neck-scarves worn so proudly by my classmates. Modern Havana is absolutely fascinating! It is like you find yourself in a broken time machine.

We parked our car near Memorial Granma and chose to leave our driver behind to wait for us.

Here is a list of places of special interest we chose to see and things to do in Havana with a quick map.

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Sloppy Joe’s

Sloppy Joe’s is a historic bar.

During the years of American Prohibition, the place was a popular spot for the US tourists to enjoy drinking, gambling and other stuff they could not find at home. It used to have over 80+ cocktails and even its own brand of rum!

Notoriously, the Sloppy Joe’s was a place you could spot many of celebrities and movie stars. 

The bar operation was shut down during the early years after the Cuban revolution. Currently restored to its former glory, Sloppy Joe's is firmly on the list of Havana attractions. You can find historical photos of the American elite, autographs, and letters all over the walls. and you can, of course, have a drink here!

If you want to have a drink at Sloppy Joe’s, however, it is best to visit in the afternoon or in the evening. We checked it out before noon, so it wasn’t working, although the doors were still open to indulge curious tourists. 

TIP: if you are looking for a nice, clean and air-conditioned public bathroom – Sloppy Joe’s is your best bet. 

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Central Park

Havana’s Central Park isn’t much of a park at all – just a nice square with few trees giving a pleasant shade. From here though you can take amazing photos of the Grand Theatre, Hotel Telegrafo, and Hotel Inglaterra. 

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The Grand Theatre

Many tour guides advise that The Grand Theatre is one of the must-see Havana attractions. When we visited, the Grand Theatre was closed for a royal visit – the King and Queen of Spain were taking a tour of Havana on this day. Therefore regretfully we were not able to get inside. However, the building itself is stunning, and I’ve probably made a hundred photos of it! 

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The Capitol

The National Capitol Building, or El Capitolio in Spanish, is a public place and a functioning public service building. Remarkably, after its restoration, the building does indeed look very much like American Capitol in Washington DC. 

The Capitol is a popular Havana attraction – it is open to visitors year-round and there are tours available to go inside. 

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El Floridita

El Floridita Bar & Restaurant is notorious for two claims: firstly, it was one of the most favorite places Ernst Hemmingway used to visit, and secondly, their daiquiri cocktails are best in town.

Although we were not able to confirm the first claim, we did stop here for a refreshing daiquiri and happy to report – it is indeed very very good. 

Over 200 years old, the bar is very popular among both tourists and locals. On our visit there were so many people inside, it was hard to find a spot to sit. Even at noon, they had live music blasting, which definitely added to the vibe. The staff is superb – they even served our toddler a juice-daiquiri in a formal glass so Cosmos could part-take in the excitement! Loved this place! 

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Bacardi Building

The Bacardi Building is an Art Deco landmark right in the heart of modern Havana. It used to be the headquarters of the Bacardi Rum Company, but in the early 1960is it was nationalized by the Revolutionary government while Bacardi left the country. 

Two decades ago, after extensive restorations, the Bacardi building opened its doors once again. It is now considered to be one of the finest Art Deco buildings all across Latin America.  

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The whole tour walking through Modern Havana with a 4yo, including few stops for photos, drinks and admire the city, took us a bit over an hour.

There were a few other notorious spots along our way – the entrance to Chinatown and the Tree of American Fraternity with its beautiful park. The tiny touristy streets around the Capitol building are quite interesting, and we’ve even peeked into a tobacco factory and the local Engineering University. 

We could not possibly cover all the attractions Modern Havana has to offer on our brief tour. There are definitely more interesting things to do in Havana, and you can easily spend a full day exploring the neighborhood, but we only had a few hours. 

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Conveniently, you can also walk from Havana city center to the Old Havana along O’Reilly street.

But we opted into getting our car to drive us to the Old Havana through the “main doors” of the Parque Luz Caballero.  

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Old Havana

The Old Havana neighborhood in Cuba’s capital city is a maze of tiny alleyways covered in cobblestone, colorful buildings and numerous squares “plazas” that date back to the 16th century and were originally built by Spaniards. Everything is so neat and adorable – you won’t even realize you are walking through a communist-ruled Cuba. It is definitely a South European feeling that you get. You can easily spend your Havana day-trip on the Old Havana alone – so interesting everything about it is!

In Old Havana, we’ve opted into taking our car driver with us to give us a walking tour. He firmly navigated the tiny streets guiding us through squares and teaching us a few history lessons. 

Did I also mention that our driver became our family photographer here too! Super-cool!

Plaza de la Catedral

We’ve started at Plaza de la Catedral – one of the five main squares in Old Havana – and one of the most popular and most photographed Havana attractions. You can find the magnificent Cathedral of Havana (also known as the Cathedral of the Virgin Mary) and the Colonial Art Museum. Cathedral is open to visitors, although if you’d like to go inside and partake in prayer, women need to cover-up legs and shoulders – luckily the Cathedral staff does give out the necessary attire. 

Plaza de San Francisco de Asis

Plaza de San Francisco de Asis is one of the oldest squares in Havana dating back to 1628. It is named after the Franciscan Convento located here. The covenant is famous for its Basilica, which is also open to the public and is a popular Old Havana attraction. You can go in as a part of the tour or peek inside by yourself. 

Casa de Carmen Montilla

Right across from the Basilica there is a unique Art Museum – Casa de Carmen Montilla. It is a private garden with an art exhibit and sculpture installations. You can simply walk in and admire the art. There are tables and chairs conveniently located in the courtyard so you can find shade from the Havana heat.. The art gallery was established in 1994 by Venezuelan artist Carmen Montilla (now passed). It now features art pieces by both Venezuelan and Cuban artists. Most art is available for purchase. 

Of all the things to do in Havana, exploring local culture through Art is definitely at the top of our list.

Plaza Vieja

Plaza Vieja or Old Town Square you can find. Curiously, it used to be called New Square in the past. Well, considering it was originally built in 1559, I can understand why the name has changed. Today, the Plaza Vieja is a popular Havana attraction, but also a place for local concerts and street art performances.

The Plaza Veija scores a working water fountain right in the middle of it – so much needed water considering Havana sun.

Cosmos, along with other local and tourist kids, had much fun playing with water! 

He also enjoyed chasing the pigeons a lot, as you know, my idea was to take a photo of him running and pigeons flying in all directions. ..but Havana pigeons, it looks like, are so used to kids chasing them that all they do is slowly walking away not even lifting a feather! hahaha!

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Here we ate our lunch at the Don Julio Cafeteria-Pizzeria – sitting outside with the view of the Old Town Square and enjoying deliciously crafter mojitos.

By the way, did you know that the Mojito drink was invented in Old Havana? The Old Havana bar that claims to have invented the drink is now a popular tourist attraction – but we decided to skip it.

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Drogeria Johnson

Another interesting find of Old Havana is the old French pharmacy – Drogeria Johnson. It comes as a bit of a surprise amongst all the other shops, cafes, art galleries and buildings that feature traditionally colonial Spanish background. 

Johnson Drug Store is beautifully decorated in ornately carved wood from top to bottom. The marble floor is admirable as well. However, the main attribute of this pharmacy are the endless shelves that hold the decorated porcelain jars – each featuring herbs of some kind. I take it that in the past French pharmacists might have kept those exact herbs in each porcelain jar. 

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Revolution Square

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Revolution Square is definitely the main square of Havana and probably one of the most photographed attractions in Cuba (other than Cuban beaches of course). The square is a historic symbol of Cuba – from this place Fidel Castro was ruling his country, many notorious speeches were made and patriotic acts have been carried out. 

In current times the Revolution Square is a check-mark on the tour agenda – nothing more, nothing less… 

The place is indeed humongous. But Revolution Square history aside, there is not much to do here other than to take a few photos with the Monument to Jose Marti, and the two buildings featuring Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos. 

So we did, and quickly moved on, as there are many things to do in Havana that are much more interesting.

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Parque Almendares

Our family lives in British Columbia, Canada and we are active outdoorsy folks. Of course, we wanted to see the famous Parque Almendares – Forest of Havana – or Bosque de La Habana as locals call it.

The Parque is located about 10 min drive from the Revolution Square along the Almendares River amid residential neighborhoods. 

We’ve learned that in the past its entrance was guarded by a castle-shaped building, long disappeared leaving only a few rocks. 

The green jungle-like scenery is indeed beautiful and we were excited for a 30-40 min hike into the depth of the forest… but we’ve only made it about a hundred steps in. The amount of garbage under our feet and the foul smell of it made us stop. Some of the trash, like broken glass, condoms, metal wire sticking up from the ground and Gods know what made Alex and I very uneasy – our 4yo Cosmos wasn’t going to be careful running the forests… So we turned back.

Frankly, we were disappointed and sad for, if properly cleaned and taken care of, Parque Almendares could be a well-desired oasis amidst the heat and dust of the Cuban capital.  I am sure, once it is properly cleaned and restored, the Parque could join the list of popular Havana attractions.

While on the trail back to our car, we’ve noticed a group of locals near the river singing. Our driver-guide explained that the Almendarez river is a popular spot for Afro-Cuban religion practitioners and their rituals. 

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Fusterlandia at Jaimanitas

Fusterlandia is not exactly in Havana, it is located in a small fishing village called Jaimanitas about 15 min drive from Havana, and we had to pay a bit extra to get here. 

There is a separate blog post on Fusterlandia up now! Fusterlandia at Jaimanitas: Most Unusual Artsy Discovery in Havana, Cuba SPOILER ALERT: Fusterlandia and Jaimanitas village are the most unusual artsy discovery in Havana you don’t want to miss! Vibrant colours, kaleidoscopic murals, misshaped sculptures, ornate bus stops, and childish wall paintings – Fusterlandia is an Instagrammer's Dream!

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Hotel Nacional 

Many tour guides are stating that Hotel Nacional is a must-see stop on your Havana day-trip. So we included it into our agenda as a “nice to have if we still have time.” 

We did have time left after visiting Fusterlandia, and it was on the way – so we stopped here.

Well… nothing special at all about this Havana attraction. Yes Hotel Nacional is indeed probably a luxury hotel as per Cuban standards, but it is merely ok to someone who’ve seen luxurious hotels in London, New York or even Toronto. Nothing special at all, other than if you walk to the very end of the park, to where the Cuban flag flies, you can have a beautiful view of the Malecon.

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Malecon

Malecon, or Sea Wall, is a broad pedestrian esplanade that stretches for 8 km along the coast.  

Although we had Malecon on our list, we did not stop there specifically. From the Hotel Nacional’s viewpoint, it was clear that the ocean was wild and the waves were so high, anyone walking Malecon was soaking wet! No thank you 🙂

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Preparing for Havana Day-Trip

What to bring with you

Havana is an extremely hot place to visit – likewise in June and in November – the daytime temperatures are over the top! Even though you can find shade at some of the Havana attractions, most of the places to see are outdoors.

Bring a sun hat and sunglasses. Make sure to use sunscreen. 

Wear clothes covering your back, neck, and shoulders. 

Use a back-pack for anything you take with you so your hands are free to take photos – no need to worry as the cut-purses are very rare in Havana, unlike in Europe where you need to pay better attention to your backpack. 

Other than that, bring cash. It is hard to find a bank in Havana without wasting much time. You’ll need to pay little entrance fees here and there for attractions. I haven’t seen a single place (other than Hotel Nacional) that would accept a credit card. 

Water

Also, make sure to have your water bottle with you at all times. It is quite expensive to buy water in Havana. We’ve actually brought water with us – simply asked the Varadero resort staff to fill-up a few large bottles and left those in the car. Glad we did it! By the end of the day-trip – all our water was gone!

Washrooms

There are plenty of options for washrooms in both: Modern and Old Havana. Cafes, restaurants, art galleries and museums have bathrooms available to the tourists. There are public bathrooms as well. There is typically an attendant inside, and they ask for a nominal fee – anywhere from 0.25 cuc, but are also nice about it if you do not have cash with you. So no worries.

Learn this in Spanish: “Donde Estan Los Banos?” – that is how you ask where to find washrooms 🙂

Car Safety

Special note on car safety, if you are renting a car and traveling with a child. 

None of car rental companies, nor agencies provide baby car seats. Nor there are any seat belts in the back seat of any classic car. 

Child car seats are simply non-existing in Cuba. You can not even buy them – these are too expensive for locals + the US embargo of course influences this result. You can't even buy or rent an old car seat, so bring your own.

Good news, however, there are not too many cars on the road, there is almost no traffic, the rules of the road are quite strict and the police is fierce, so a car accident is rare in Cuba.

If you are adamant about your child’s car safety: bring a child car seat with you from Canada (or wherever you are from) and when requesting a car – ask specifically for a non-classic modern car explaining you need a car seat affixed. 

… And Just a Bit Of Road Trip Humour!

Check you our collection of hilarious family road trip memes, cartoons and jokes! 100++ Hilarious Road Trip Memes and Cartoons Speaking Truth About Family Travel

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Photo Gallery – Havana Day-Trip

Please enjoy our photo gallery. There are so many cool things to do in Havana, that I am almost sad we only had one day. But hopefully, my photos can give you a taste of what it looks like and inspire you to pay the Cuban capital a visit. 

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More Cuba!

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Final Notes

I hope we were able to convince you that Havana is worth a visit, if only for a day-trip! There is much to see and tons of cool things to do in Havana. We could not possibly list all of the amazing Havana attractions. I am strongly hoping one day I can come to the Cuban capital to stay for a few days to explore the city top to bottom.

Have you traveled to Cuba yet? Have you visited Havana? What was your favorite Havana attraction you want to tell us about?

If you have any questions about our trip – ASK AWAY IN COMMENTS!

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Enjoy!

Cheerfully yours,

Alexandra, Alex & Cosmos

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Share your pictures from your Havana day-trip on social media! tag #PerfectDayToPlay to be featured on our Instagram! 

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