Old Havana

The houses in Old Havana (68)

Vacation Rentals in Old Havana (La Habana Vieja)

Old Havana is surely one of the most popular areas in terms of vacation rental, no matter if you stay in hotels or casas particulares. In Old Havana is where most tourists want to stay, it's the old downtown of the capital city and therefore the vacation house rental is highly featured.

General Description of Old Havana

Even if many people tend to confuse the boundaries between Old Havana and Centro Habana, Old Havana is officially the area portion starting from Egido / Monserrate street and ending with Port Avenue.

Old Havana is the historical downtown of the city, declared by UNESCO as the humanity heritage and it's the first absolute and ultimate destination of any non-beach tourism in Cuba. It's unthinkable to visit Havana without knowing the Bodeguita del Medio, the Revolution Museum, the Planetarium, the Plaza de Armas, the Ambos Mundos Hotel where Ernest Hemingway lodged, the El Morro Fortress, symbol of Havana (Santiago of Cuba city also has one), the National Capitol (very similar to the US Capitol), the National Ballet, the Arts Museum, the Prado and Old Port avenues, the Obispo, Oficios and O'Reilly streets, the Salsa House, Rhum House and Malta Houses, the Floridita Cabaret (cradle of daiquiri), the Cathedral, the Music Museum, the Museum of the City, the Colonial Art Museum, the General Capitans Palace, the Real Fuerza Castle, without counting the very popular Malecon littoral and most buildings and historical monuments as other places of interest that made and make the history and future of Cuba are located in Old Havana, which is the starting and ending point of the Capital, in sum, if you have not visited Old Havana, you know nothing about Cuba.

If you are looking for the most absolutely classical downtown, you have to go to Old Habana. Sure, there are drawbacks too. You will not always find the peacefulness, the space and the comfort, you can't travel in car in most of the streets, which are pedestrians, but you will find bicyce-taxis, which will easily transport you from one place to another. In Old Havana, you will always see movement of tourists and people, you will always see some event, so it will hardly be silent, nevertheless vacation rentals are quite silent and comfortable.

If you come to Cuba looking for events and life, if you want to stay at the middle of everything and you don't know Cuba well, this is the neighborhood of choice. But, if you want the peacefulness because you are intellectually active and you only want to see the world moving when you go out, so you might prefer to go to Miramar. While if you want to be in a place which is central and modern at the same time, then you should choose the Vedado neighborhood.

A walk in Old Havana will not delay to reveal its glorious past colonial architecture, much of it restored. In fact, all the profits from Habaguanex, state company who own most hotels and restaurants in Old Havana, is destined to restore the historical center. Thus, it's edifying to dinner at the exclusive and very fine El Café del Oriente restaurant, knowing that the historiographer of Havana may come at any time and seat in his permanently reserved table, or knowing that all the money you will spend will be used to restore some column or to paint some façade. Really, when you are walking in Old Havana, your will have the impression to move in a living museum.

For a complete description of the monuments, places of interest and cultural sites of Old Havana, please visit our Essential Guide to Old Havana.