Cuba
A cloud-forest climb to the island's high point, and a karst valley still farmed with oxen.
2 expeditions across coasts & islands, 2 of which are inquire-only. Windows on offer: Nov–Apr.
- Expeditions
- 2
- Open to plan
- 0
- Inquire only
- 2
- Days
- 6–8
What Cuba is actually good at
The Sierra Maestra runs along the south coast of eastern Cuba, and Pico Turquino at 1,974 m is the island's high point. The approach climbs from coffee slopes into genuine cloud forest — tree fern, epiphytes, the Cuban trogon and the bee hummingbird — and from the summit ridge the Caribbean opens south with no land between you and Jamaica.
Viñales, in Pinar del Río, is a UNESCO cultural landscape and the listing is agricultural rather than scenic: limestone mogotes standing out of red tobacco soil, with the crop still worked by oxen and hand-strung in thatched curing barns. Both Cuban itineraries are inquire-only, and that is a compliance matter rather than a difficulty one.
Access and permits
Country-level constraints that decide whether a date is possible.
- US law prohibits travel to Cuba for tourist activities. Travel by US persons must fit an authorised category and be documented accordingly. We structure to that or we decline.
- We do not transact with entities on the Cuba Restricted List, which shapes lodging and dining toward private-sector alternatives — which is also the better trip.
- Pico Turquino requires park-assigned guides. Independent ascent is not permitted.
The Cuba catalog
Cuba
By invitation
Cuba Sierra Maestra Ascent
Sierra Maestra (Granma / Santiago de Cuba)
Cloud forest trails climb Cuba's highest ridge. Coffee farms cling to slopes; from Pico Turquino the Caribbean spreads south without edge.
- Duration
- 8 days
- Effort
- Moderate
- Window
- Nov–Apr
On inquiry
Access →
Cuba
By invitation
Cuba Viñales Valley Circuit
Valle de Viñales, Pinar del Río
Limestone mogotes rise from tobacco fields like green islands. Cave systems cut the rock; evenings smell of curing leaves and rain.
- Duration
- 6 days
- Effort
- Easy
- Window
- Nov–Apr
On inquiry
Access →Inquire only in Cuba
Why some of these are not bookable
Cuba Sierra Maestra Ascent
- US law prohibits travel to Cuba for tourist activities. Travel by US persons must fit an authorised category and be documented accordingly; we structure to that or we decline.
- We do not transact with entities on the Cuba Restricted List. Where that constrains lodging, we use private-sector alternatives.
Cuba Viñales Valley Circuit
- Travel to Cuba by US persons must fall within an authorised category; tourism is not one of them. We structure for Support for the Cuban People where that genuinely applies, or we decline.
- We avoid entities on the Cuba Restricted List, which shapes lodging and dining choices.
Something else
Combine Cuba with a neighbour
Most private journeys cross a border — the Atacama to Uyuni crossing, Copán into Guatemala, Iguazú from both sides. Tell us the shape you want and we will say whether the logistics hold together.
Private & custom