My Dear Santiago

Nashville has been my home for 17 years but...

Santiago de Cuba is always home for me, and it's still calling me. I was 13 years old when I moved to the big city from the countryside where I lived with my grandma. My mom had moved to the big city a year earlier, and I wanted to be there so bad. Finally, she said to me "I will bring you to live with me if you promise me to have good grades." I said yes and off I went to Santiago. What a change of scenery that was from a little town with a dirt road to a big city with lots of traffic, lots of people and busses. Again, we only had one room for the five of us, and I had to sleep on a hammock just like when I was a kid, and we moved into my grandma's house when my parents divorced. I really didn't care, I was happy in the new city and wanted to make new friends.

Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city of Cuba. Very colorful with colonial style buildings, with lots of balconies, up and down hills everywhere and narrow streets but always bustling with people. When you least expect, there it comes, la conga Santiaguera... making it rounds through the city and it's neighborhoods. It starts somewhere in a corner with a few people and by the time it reaches about a mile, it will be a few hundred dancing to the rhythm of the music. I rarely, joined in but I miss the sound of it coming down my street and seeing all the people enjoying it. It's quite an experience for visitors and Cubans as well. Enramadas, the street in the picture above, is the main street of Santiago de Cuba. There are shops, museums, a movie theater and restaurants on each side of the street and I used to go very often to eat pizza or check out the latest movie. It used to be open to cars, but now it's for pedestrians only. I can't wait to go back and see my Santiago, and I miss it very much. You would love my city and hope you plan a trip there with me very soon.

Havana's Malecon flooded by ocean waves. Photo by Karen Martel

Summer is almost gone

We made it through half of the year already... It's unbelievable how time goes by so fast. Summer months are sweltering in Cuba, and that's why we didn't plan a tour for August. You are welcome to go at any time, and I highly recommend you going in the fall because of better temperatures. It's also the rainy season, so an umbrella is a must have with you at all times. It's also hurricane season, and although the Caribbean has been quiet lately, it's imperative that you keep that in mind when planning your tour to Cuba. What to do if you are in Cuba and are in the hurricane path? Best thing to do is to listen to the advice of the authorities and get to higher ground and a safe area. If you are staying at one of the keys around Cuba, you probably will be taken to the main island to a shelter. Make sure you have plenty of water bottles and snacks. Cuba is always prepared for the storms and has shelters available for everyone.

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Please RSVP to our Cuba Travel Party!

Cuba Travel Party

It has been a year since we hosted a Cuba Q&A and it's time to organize another one. We want to make sure you know everything you need to know before planning a trip to our beloved island. I sent the invitation via email last week, but I have to remind you in case our email got lost in the shuffle ;-) We'll have a promo, so make sure you attend to learn how you can make some cash! Refreshments and lite Cuban snacks will be served.

The Cuba travel party is on Saturday, August 11th from 1-5pm. Please RSVP by sending an email to [email protected] ​

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Referral Program

Did you know about our referral program? We have passed a few cards around telling people about it, but now we can make it official. To join the referral program all you have to do is sign up for our bi-weekly newsletter where we'll be announcing promotions and giveaways. More details about our referral program, will be available right here on our website under the Travel Info tab. So stay tuned!

Our 2019 Tours

It's time to start planning your tours for 2019! Make sure to visit the tours tab here on the site to check out the dates for 2019. All our tour dates are flexible so if you can't make it on the set date, let us know, and we'll do our best to accommodate your needs. Have you seen our Nature and Bird Watching Tour? Make sure to visit the page here and share it with your bird lovers friend and bird photographers that you may know. 

Follow us on Social Media @YourTourGuidetoCuba #TourGuide2Cuba #CubaTravel 

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