Varadero

"In all the beaches in Cuba the sand was made of grated silver," says a character in Roberto Fernández's Raining Backwards, "though in Varadero it was also mixed with diamond dust. Who can argue? The 12–mile–long swathe of white radiance is ground zero in Cuban tourism. Almost two–thirds of the hotel rooms in the country are here.

Varadero has been Cuba's trendiest beach town for more than a century. In 1926, U.S. industrialist Irenée Du Pont bought most of the peninsula beyond the town and built a large estate, complete with a golf course, called Xanadu. Having reputedly paid four cents a square meter for his land, he profited handsomely by selling off parcels at 120 pesos a meter. Al Capone and dictator Fulgencio Batista built vacation homes as Varadero metamorphosed into a Miami in miniature, peaking in the 1950s, when yanqui corporations put up ritzy hotels and casinos. Since the 1990s, the Cuban government has added dozens of new, even ritzier, all–inclusive hotels B most of them managed by foreign hotel corporations, such as Bleu, Barceló, Oasis, Sandals, Sol Meliá and Superclubs.

Varadero's prize beach coats the north shore a the slender 20–mile–long Peninsula de Hicacos protruding east like a crooked finger into Bahía de Cárdenas. The town lies at the western end of the island–peninsula, which is separated from the mainland by a man–made lagoon. The main beach – Playa Mayor – is a virtually unbroken 7–mile strip. The most deluxe hotels line additional beaches further east.

The dining in town is somewhat desultory. However, you can easily fill a few days off the beach by dining at Las Américas (Du Pont's Xanadu, which today operates as a hotel and restaurant); with a round of golf at the 18–hole Varadero Golf Club; hiking in Reserva Ecológica Varahicacos; and watching dolphins perform at the Delfinario (you can also swim with them for a hefty additional fee). The sightseeing is otherwise limited, although hotel tour desks offer excursions to Matanzas, the Bay of Pigs, and Havana. And catamarans and other sail–craft offer daytime sightseeing and party excursions. For many, though, Varadero's main draw is the excellent diving offshore, in the gin–clear waters of Parque Marine Cayo Piedras del Norte, where scuba aficionados give a new meaning to raptures of the deep – there's even a Soviet AN–24 aircraft, and a gunboat, still laden with missiles!

There are relatively few Cubans, and interactions between Cubans and tourists are severely constrained.

Situated between Varadero and Havana and surrounded by rolling hills and scenic countryside, Jibacoa is still un–spoilt and the Matanzas province's best kept secret. Its stunning beaches and sheer peace make it the perfect place to unwind and enjoy life in the Cuban sunshine.

Between Havana and Varadero is the namesake city of Matanzas, a once wealthy sugar and slave–trading port known as the Athens of Cuba for its literary and artistic vitality. Today it is a recognized center for Afro–Cuban culture, although the predominant impression when passing through is that of modern port industries, not least petrochemicals. It is also famous for its many bridges and interesting architecture. It is the birthplace of the Danzón and a good place in which to hear a danzonete or rumba. A city on the sea, it has drawn on the rhythm of the waves, the vigor of its morning breeze and the stately calm of its rivers in creating its culture.

Matanzas came into its own during the 19th century when it served as the country's sugar capital. On the classic, leafy main square, Parque Libertad, the Pharmaceutical Museum is a wonderfully preserved chemist's shop, also there are plenty of interesting buildings, monuments and museums to keep you occupied like Museo Historico Provincial, Teatro Sauto, Cathedral of San Carlos, Bellamar Caverns.

Playa Giron

Playa Giron, on the eastern side of the famous Bay of Pigs (Bahia de Cochinos), 48km south of Boca de Guama, is named for a French pirate who frequented the area centuries ago. The CIA–sponsored landing here on April 17, 1961, was defeated within 72 hours, as a museum and many monuments proclaim. In all, 200 invaders were killed, 1197 captured, and 11 hostile planes shot down. You really get the feel of reliving history by coming here, and the clear Caribbean waters washing these shores make Playa Giron a favorite destination for scuba divers and snorkelers. A lasting legacy of 1961 is that the entire Bay of Pigs area is strictly out of bounds to cruising yachts.

Playa Giron's main resort is rather pleasant, and a huge seawall provides a protected swimming area. Long, white Playa Los Cocos, where the snorkeling is good, is just a five–minute walk south along the shore. The rocky soils of this region are of little use for agriculture and the population is sparse. Distances are long and public transportation is poor, so unless you've rented a car, you'd better be prepared to rough it.

Parque Nacional Ciénaga de Zapata

The 490,417 hectare Zapata is encompassed within a national park protecting Cuba's most important wetland area. As yet, it is little utilized by ecotourism, though a handful of bird–watchers and fisherman are savvy to its allure. The complex ecosystems include marsh grass, mangrove thickets, and thickly wooded swamp forest of dense marabou bushes with their inch long thorns. It is a biological mirror of the Everglades of Florida - there are even beautifully banded ligutus snails, a kind of tree snail common in the Everglades. Vegetation includes the button tree, so small that it looks like a bonsai.

Zapata harbors more than 900 species of Flora, 171 species of birds, 31 of reptiles and 12 of mammals including the pygmy jutia native to the Zapata swamp. There are also freshwater turtles. Iguanas will come up to you, completely fearless. The alligator gar is the most primitive of Cuban fish, is found in lagoons, as are crocodiles and caimans, a diminutive species of alligator.

Bird watching
Of Cuba's 22 endemic bird species, 18 inhabit the marshes. Zapata protects the bee hummingbird (the world's smallest bird) as well as endemic tanager and gallunuela de Santo Tomas, the Zapata sparrow, Zapata rail and Zapata Wren. Cuba's national bird, the Cuban trogon or tocorroro, is also found here, as is the long–tailed sparrow hawk, plus a significant population of Cuban parrots.

Zapata is a favorite stop for tens of thousands of migratory birds. The best time is October to April when overwhelming numbers of birds flock in, among them sandhill cranes, great blue herons, tricolored herons, and wood ibis. Even flamingos wade in the soupy lagoons.

The best spot for bird watching are Laguna de la Salina, a 26,400 hectare expense of flats, watercourses, and islets on the southern shores of Zapata and where flamingoes flock in their thousands; and also around Santo Tomas, about 30km west of Playa Larga. The areas around Sopillar and Bermejes are splendid for ubran bird–watching including the tocororo. Early morning is best for bird watching, and springtime the best time of year.

Fishing
Zapata has been isolated from fishing pressure since 1959, making this huge reserve as close to virgin fishery as one can find in today's world. There are said to be places where you can catch the fish with your bare hands, the way the indigenous Indians did. Tarpon and bonefish are the species of choice. Bonefish is most productive late fall through June; tarpon fishing peaks late February / early March through June.

There are two distinct areas for fishing - the 200m wide Rio Hatiguanico and its tributaries, and La Salina, which is world–famous for bonefish; several well–travelled anglers consider La Salina the standard by which all other locations should be judged worldwide. Being shallow and firm–bottomed, it is ideal for wading and spotting bonefish. Other species include palometa which can reach 20 pounds. Underpowered skiffs mean long periods getting to the best lagoons.

Playa Larga, a beach community at the head of the Bahia de los Cochinos, was one of the two main landing sites during the Bay of Pigs fiasco. The village comprises a few fishermen huts, military buildings, the International Bird Watching Center and a hotel facing a cream colored beach. The main attraction here is with some excellent diving which is a real treat.