Overview
This trip is authorized by the US Government under the category of Support for the Cuban People.
Join Jim Cline on this memorable photo tour to two the most photogenic destinations in Cuba, or anywhere. Jim has travelled to Cuba since 1997, leading photo groups there since 2011, and has established long time relationships with many people there. We’ll get to see many of the finest iconic sights that Cuba has to offer, but we will dig much deeper into the lives of the amazing Cuban people. We will interact with Cubans from all walks of life, while taking advantage of the best light, and with a flexibility that allows us to make the most of opportunities as they arise.
We will start in Havana, with its world-class street shooting and so much more. We will organize photo shoots, such as the most important boxing gym in Cuba, Afro Cubano dancers, and ballet dancers from the Cuban National Ballet posing in an old mansion. We will be assisted by local Cuban photographers, and everywhere we go we will meet and photograph the friendly people of Havana. We will eat at some of the best privately owned restaurants, and maybe sample some of the local mojitos.
Also, we will explore the tobacco-growing region of Vinales – with its stunning limestone cliffs, or Mogotes. Vinales would be an important photo destination just for the scenery alone, but it is the traditional farmers that make it so great. We are friends with many of the farmers in the area, and they will invite us into their homes, providing photo opportunities that the typical group will never have. Also, we’ll be working with a local photographer who was born and raised there. We will be in the Vinales area at the peak of the tobacco harvest time, so we can witness a great deal of activity in the fields, the tobacco barns, and their homes.
This trip has been designed to offer a combination of the best urban and rural photography and experiences that Cuba has to offer.
Itinerary
Day 1: (Jan 20)
Arrival Havana – check into your room in our private B&B. We’ll have an orientation meeting, followed by dinner at a terrific private restaurant. Spend the night in Havana.
Day 2: (Jan 21)
Morning optional activities with Cuban photographers, such as boxing, or a photo walk in Old Havana. In the afternoon more photo opportunities, such as Afro-Cubano dance. In the evening we’ll ride in classic convertibles and tour parts of the city, including Revolution Square, finishing at our dinner restaurant, the famous La Guarida. Spend the night in Havana.
Day 3: (Jan 21)
In Havana, we’ll have an optional early morning photo walk. Later in the morning, we’ll visit a boxing gym where some of the top boxers in Cuba train. After lunch, we’ll visit and photograph an exciting dance performance. In the evening we’ll take classic old convertibles to our rooftop dinner restaurant in New Havana, with a stop at Revolution Square with its giant monument to the national hero, Jose Marti. We’ll spend the night in Havana.
Day 4: (Jan 21)
After breakfast, photograph models in a beautiful old mansion, using the light streaming through windows and doorways. We’ll have a late afternoon photo walk in Centro Havana, finishing at the malecon. We’ll walk to a nearby restaurant for dinner. Spend the night in Havana.
Day 5: (Jan 22)
In the morning drive to Viñales. We’ll have lunch in a private restaurant with a beautiful view of the Viñales Valley and the iconic mogotes (the limestone cliffs) which surround it. We’ll make a stop at a tobacco farm, maybe a rural school, and then check in to our rooms in private homes in the center of the town. In the late afternoon we’ll photograph in town. Dinner in a private restaurant in town. Spend the night in Viñales.
Day 6: (Jan 23
Early morning at a tobacco farm for sunrise, then a farmer’s breakfast before heading out to visit another tobacco farm. In the late morning back to our casas for some rest, and lunch on our own. In the afternoon we’ll venture to areas seldom visited by tourists – we’ll explore an authentic town unchanged by tourism and visit with farmers who seldom see outsiders. We’ll finish with dinner at a terrific location to view and photograph the sunset. Spend the night in Viñales.
Day 7: (Jan 24)
In the early morning we visit tobacco farms at the height of the harvest season. We’ll have a mid-day rest and time to explore the town some more. In the afternoon we’ll visit more farmers and go to a farmhouse (the family has been friends of Jim’s for 22 years) for dinner, drinks, and music. Spend the night in Viñales.
Day 8: (Jan 25)
Depart Viñales, have lunch when we arrive in Havana, then visit the iconic and beautiful Hotel National, the base for the American Mafia in the mid 20th century. We’ll arrive at our B&B and check in to our rooms. Dinner on our own. We will arrange an optional evening at the Tropicana floorshow. Spend the night in Havana.
Day 9: (Jan 26)
Havana – In the morning optional activities with our Cuban photographer. We’ll finish with an afternoon photo walk, and maybe catch one more sunset on the malecon. We’ll
have our farewell dinner at a rooftop restaurant, then image sharing party in the B&B. Spend the night in Havana.
Day 10: (Jan 27)
Departures, you will be transported to the airport in a classic car.