The latest colonial—era offering from Hoteles Habaguanex, this gracious hotel (opened in March 2008) occupies an 18th—century mansion built for the Marqués de Prado Ameno. Backing up to the popular and elegant Hotel Florida, this smaller boutique hotel offers greater intimacy.

This long-awaited newcomer, which opened in 2008, is tucked into a cove at Playa Las Tumbas, at the very westernmost tip of Cuba. The all-timber single-story hotel is intended to serve as an eco-resort granting access to the Península de Guanahacabibes Biosphere Reserve, preserving a rare swatch of tropical dry forest inhabited by endemic species such as solenodon and jutía.

This is one of our favorite provincial hotels. The lovely neo-classical building dating from 1818 sits on tiny Plazoleta Honorato del Castillo and looks out directly toward the 17th-century Parroquia Mayor del Espíritu Santo church—a great setting. However, traffic noise echoing through the streets can be a problem for late sleepers.

This is a marvelous choice for vacationers seeking a laid-back, unpretentious à la carte hotel on a lovely beach. Run by the Gaviota group, it offers a magnificent location too. Tucked into a broad cove, the narrow and curling sugar-white beach immediately east of the hotel shelves gently into turquoise shallows. The beach is never crowded, as the small hotel has it all to itself.

A tiny boutique gem, this hotel close to the colonial center stands out as one of Cuba´s finest provincial hotels thanks to a recent and thoughtful restoration and sound management. The building first opened as a hotel in 1927 and is today part of the Islazul chain, serving both Cubans and tourists. A key element here is the gracious lobby, with its gleaming mahogany fixtures, colorful colonial-style tilework, and handsome marble staircase.

Recently transferred to the Cubanacán brand, this small and intimate hotel enjoys a tremendous position just two blocks from the main square in downtown Santiago de Cuba. It opened as an eight-room hotel in 2004 after being converted from a colonial mansion. The hotel retains its colonial ambience thanks to thoughtful antique reproduction furnishings. Needless to say, facilities here are limited to the tiny lobby bar and adjoining restaurant. But you´re not here for a spa, etc.

This unique hotel is one of our favorite provincial hotels in Cuba. What was once a fairly simple villa rental on the beach, tucked into a small cove about 20 km west of Baracoa, was recently expanded and upgraded, metamorphosing into an atmospheric lodge on the sands. Backed by thickly forested mountains and edged by mangrove forest, it´s a perfect venue for nature lovers to escape the madding crowds.

The Hotel Armadores de Santander (which means “Shipowners of Santander”) overlooks the port of Havana. The building´s façade, with its stone reliefs of the coat of arms of Santander surrounded by maritime motifs, is wonderfully evocative of the city´s seagoing past.While the overall building is quite impressive the ambience can be a little cold and impersonal especially compared to some of Old Havana´s smaller Habaguanex places.

The yin to the Kurhotel´s yang, this hotel lies literally in the latter´s shadow and offers a much smaller, intimate and—at first sight—more appealing alternative. Surrounded by woodland at Topes de Collantes, in the heart of the Sierra del Escambray, it´s a perfect base for exploring the mountains. Several hiking trails begin within a stone´s throw of the hotel.

The central north coast of Cuba between Varadero and Cayo Coco is a bit of a no-man´s-land when it comes to accommodations. Options are thin on the ground, which makes an arrival at Villa Islazul San José del Lago all the more pleasurable while exploring along the Circuito Norte—the north coast road.