Viñales is always a place worthy to visit. It’s a unique place in Cuba, a constant invitation to contemplation and relaxation.

By the end of 1970's Cuba declared National Natural Monuments the Viñales Valley, the Great Cavern of Santo Tomás and a curious plant that lives nearby and it has survived since the Jurassic period. In 1999 the Viñales Valley was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site as a cultural landscape. Plus in 2001 the round-topped hills, called hummocks or "mogotes", which form all the northern area of the Valley and its surroundings, were declared The Viñales National Park.

Thus, there are plenty of reasons to visit Viñales. Hence the first thing to think about is where to stay and then, what to do in Viñales. Concerning lodging, there are two different places to stay: the Viñales Valley and the San Vicente Valley. The first one has more accommodation options since there is the Villa of Viñales with more than 100 private houses, two hotels and a camping site. On the contrary, in the San Vicente Valley, there is just one hotel. Still both places are excellent choices.

The Viñales Valley exhibits the most important group of karstical valleys in the country. In fact it is a set of small valleys limited by the north by calcareous mountain ranges of hummocks. By the south of the valley there are rocky hills where the schist and the slate abound, while in their bottom one can find small mountain ranges and isolated hummocks. Small rivers flow towards the north and they meet in a single current, which receives the name of Palmarito River. This stream submerges in a cavern by the bottom of the mountain range that limits the north of the Valley.

There are very fertile red grounds in the bottom of these valleys, which provide a beautiful sight when seen from high areas. The red color of these soils is combined with the green color of the vegetation of hummocks, of pine groves and of season’s crops. There are also small ways or paths inter crossing in all directions. Visitors can easily find these paths walking from the Villa or either from the two hotels located in the place. Here, it is common to observe farmers working. These pathways are located in privileged spots. They are constructed on small hills, which dominate the Southern side of the Viñales Valley and they also are situated in opposite places.

The Horizontes Hotel "Los Jazmines" is located in the central zone of these hills. The origins of this hotel are connected to a small private restaurant that was visited since 1948. Then in 1960 the hotel was built. Today it has a very different look from when it first opened its doors to guests, due to some restorations. Visitors can observe from its balconies and terraces the unique beauty of the Viñales Valley, especially at dawn. This hotel is about 3kms away from the Villa of Viñales, thus it’s very common to see guests going in either direction on foot, in bicycles or by car. Visitors can admire the valley during their strolls and notice different green tonalities according to the hour of the day.

The Horizontes Hotel "La Ermita" was built in the 60's. It is located more to the east than the Jazmines Hotel. Visitors can see from La Ermita Hotel all the eastern zone of the valley, including the Villa. This Villa seems to be within a forest and it is literally at guests’ feet, because it isn’t allowed to construct buildings of more than two floors in this area, so the trees of the houses’ backyards and the trees of the streets almost cover the Villa. Also it is very common, as it happens at the Jazmines Hotel, to observe at any hour guests traveling on foot, in bicycles or by car between the hotel and the Villa.

There are many private houses (known as "casas particulares") of all types, dimensions and comforts that can be found in the Villa or in the suburbs. Some of them are located in the historical centre and others toward the highest zones of the hills that border the Valley or the hummocks of the population’s surrounding area. Since the Villa is a small locality, from any place where the visitor stays, it’s possible to go in a few minutes to the village centre or to the different places where expeditions are organized to know the environs.

Another option in your lodging is the "Dos Hermanas" Camping Site, which is located at about 3km west of the Villa of Viñales, between two high hummocks and surrounded by some farmer houses. It has more than 70 small cabins, a swimming pool, a museum with fossils and schemes of the geologic evolution of the area, a restaurant with typical plates and it isn’t far away from a painting mural on the rock known as the Mural of Prehistory. The highway that communicates this place with Viñales is frequently used by locals and visitors at any hour of the day and at night, being this route an excellent road to observe the crops of the region, the Valley and the hummocks of the center of the Valley.

Unlike the Viñales Valley, the San Vicente Valley is totally bordered by high mountain ranges and it has an irregular form. In its bottom there is a small community, a primary school and one cowshed. In order to cross the 10 km between the Viñales and San Vicente valleys one must take a highway, where beautiful landscapes can be observed, in particular the high mountain ranges that separate both valleys. There is a narrow mountain pass crossing these hills, whose walls have peculiar forms of relief hanging out of them.

The Rancho San Vicente Hotel, situated in the North side of this valley, is the oldest one of Viñales. It is very cozy and different from the other hotels constructed in the Viñales Valley. In order to get to this place one has to cross a small river that springs forth from the calcareous mountain range next to the hotel. The Rancho San Vicente is not made up of buildings of several floors, but of more than 50 wooded small cabins of rustic style, scattered within a small forest. All of them are located around the swimming pool, of the thermal and sulfurous pools and an area dedicated to massages using medicinal mud.

It is common to observe and to hear the birds’ singing and the murmur of the wind in the trees. While in Viñales Valley it is characteristic to observe the combination of human action with nature, in the San Vicente Valley nature has a leading role. From the hotel it’s easy to go across of the well-known Indian Cave where one can enjoy a boat promenade in a river that runs inside the cave. Plus it is possible to visit tourist centers that were built in some of the caverns of the hummocks next to the hotel.

The communication between both valleys is very easy. Many people prefer to go on foot or by bicycle. Others use a transport that daily makes routes between Viñales and San Vicente valleys, which allows fast communication between both places. It also gives the possibility of stopping by the road and walking small sections, then taking it again in the next tour. Thanks to this alternative, travelers can take photos according to their interest with no need to stop the vehicle. Another advantage of this transportation is that visitors can use it through all day and they can take it from anywhere in the route and pay it a single time.

You already know where to stay. And… what to do in Viñales? We recommended you to read our following recommendation.

to be continued...