Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Havana Suburbs
The vast majority of tourists will never leave the main Havana neighborhoods of
Vedado, Central Havana and Old Havana. This is a shame, because in reality, the
Havana suburbs are fantastic places to explore. These suburbs are not sleepy,
desolate areas like the bedroom communities that can be found around most west-
ern cities. In Havana, the suburbs are filled with people and, in some cases, are
even busier than downtown areas. Best of all, in the suburbs you will be immersed
in the Cuban lifestyle since there are virtually no foreigners and absolutely no
tourist-oriented shops or restaurants.
El Cerro
South of Central Havana and Vedado you will find the large and poor neighbor-
hood of
El Cerro
. The main roads leading to this suburb are the north/south orien-
ted streets of Infanta (in Vedado) and Maximo Gomez (in Central Havana).
Continuing even further south you will eventually get into the neighborhood of
Diez
Octubre
, and going a bit east from there, the very hilly suburb of
San Miguel del
Padron
. If you are in Old Havana you can simply walk, bike, or take a taxi east
along Ave. del Puerto, which runs all along the Bay of Havana, and you will pass
through all of these neighborhoods. The road concludes on the opposite side of
the Bay of Havana, in the town of Regla. The largest attraction in El Cerro might be
the Estadio Latinoamericano (corner Ave. 20 de Mayo and Amenidad), which is the
large stadium where Havana's
Industriales
baseball team plays.
Regla
On the other side of the Bay of Havana, is the town of
Regla
. As mentioned, you
can get there by going all the way around the Bay, but there is also a much more
direct and cost effective route. Just take the Regla ferry. The ferry terminal is loc-
ated in Old Havana, at the corner of San Pedro (Ave. del Puerto) and Santa Clara
Street, directly in front of the
Catedral Ortodoxa Rusa
(Russian Orthodox
Oathedral). The building is unmarked but is easy to identify since it juts out into the
harbor and there are always a few security guards in front (you must pass through
a metal detector in order to get on the ferry). The ferry costs only 0.2 pesos (MN).
This is such a small price that most tourists simply pay 1 peso to board, since they
do not have smaller change. The ride is noisy but safe, and only takes about 15
minutes. It leaves about every half hour. The town of Regla is not large but it is
beautiful, quiet and very clean. Along the main road there are dozens of great
places to eat and prices are very cheap.
While the ferry going to Regla is the most popular ferry line, there is also another
ferry operating out of the same Havana terminal. Named the
Casablanca
ferry, it
will take you across the bay of Havana and drop you off at the Casablanca termin-
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