10 of the most beautiful areas in Cuba

Cuba is naturally blessed with very good looks. From its sugar-soft sandy beaches lapped by turquoise seas to its epic mountains tumbling into the ocean, Cuba has all the beauty. Discover these top 10 most beautiful areas on the largest Caribbean Island for your holiday!

From the air, the mini, plant-cloaked mountains of Viñales Valley look like the backs of walking elephants. Ancient erosion created a muddle of pudding-basin mountains, known as mogotes. The rich red soils of this UNESCO-protected Jurassic park are planted with tobacco and arable crops; today they are still tilled by oxen and plough.

On the pirate coast of Cuba’s Isle of Youth curves an unspoilt golden sweep of silky sand that slips into turquoise sea. Backed by palms and seaside forest, this untouched, protected area, Punta Francés, is home to Cuban hawks, reptiles and the tocororo, the national bird, handsome in shades of blue, white and red.

Deep in the folds of a UNESCO mountain biosphere reserve in western Cuba are Soroa and Las Terrazas villages. Dip into waterfalls, swim in river pools the colour of teal, walk among mahogany forests to find ruins of 18^th-century coffee plantations, and spot colourful endemic birds among the trails.

The Bay of Pigs, punched into a deep bay on Cuba’s Caribbean coast is at its most appealing in the tiny coves and beaches strung along the shore between Playa Larga and Playa Girón. Wild and unspoilt, this swamp-fringed coastal spot sits on a grooved limestone ledge and is peppered with sink holes. The sea is a most beautiful colourful of sapphire and the water sparkling and crystal clear. Bring your bathers to swim with shoals of colourful fish.

Cayo Santa María, a group of scattered tropical islands sun drenched in the north Atlantic are known for their beautiful wide beaches, topaz seas and all-inclusive resorts. The best sands for barefoot living are spectacular curved Playa Mégano and Playa Ensenachos, part of Iberostar’s Selection Ensenachos hotel. Dig your toes into the butterscotch sand. It’s all about snorkelling, sunbathing, and searching for pink flamingos here.

Close to the exquisite small city of Trinidad, all cobblestones, and colonial homes in hues of cinnamon, mustard and minty green, find the fresh air of high-altitude Topes de Collantes. Part of the Escambray Mountains, looking towards the Caribbean Sea, you’ll find waterfalls, orchids, coffee, walking trails and elegant royal palms.

Close to Holguín city are Gibara and Guardalavaca on the north coast of eastern Cuba. Gibara, a fishing community known as the ‘white city’, faces a pretty bay. Go for its shellfish dishes, an annual international film festival, tunnelling caves, and a chance to snorkel or dive in sinkholes. Guardalavaca’s beaches and coves, backed by sea grape, are some of the most gorgeous and secluded on the island.

In remote eastern Cuba a coastal road is squeezed between the sky-hugging rugged mountains of the Sierra Maestra and the wild Caribbean Sea. It’s the most spectacular road route in Cuba. Heading into the mountains, stay at pretty Santo Domingo, a tiny village of homes and a hotel settled along the Yara river. Swim, horse ride, dine on fresh country fare, and take a ramble through Revolution history by trekking to Fidel Castro’s late 1950s hideout, La Comandancia de la Plata.

Baracoa, the first city founded by the conquering Spaniards in Cuba, leans in to two Atlantic bays fringed by lush mountains of coconut palms, and gushing waterfalls, coffee bushes and cocoa trees. From here, explore the miles of coast edged with beautiful wild beaches. Tuck into local shellfish and homemade desserts of coconut, honey and nuts along the way.

Slithers of sugar-soft sand hemmed in by sapphire seas surround Cayo Largo, a coral island found off the south coast of Cuba. Only a handful of all-inclusive resorts dot this island with a sprinkle of beach umbrellas. Seek out the iguanas, a marine turtle sanctuary, dive and snorkel, and head out onto the baby blue waves on a catamaran.