Viñales-Valley

The history of Viñales has been shaped by both tobacco farming and tourism, yet it still maintains the original charm which made the town famous to begin with. Before the Spaniards arrived in Cuba, the Taíno village people made themselves at home in the many caves in the region, this population was boosted by slaves who had escaped captivity.

Their livelihoods were disrupted in the 1800’s when the Spanish Conquerors arrived and started farming tobacco like many of them had done in their homelands of the Canary Islands. The tobacco industry continued to boom, and it was this industrial growth that allowed the town of Viñales to become the place that it is today.

It was during Fidel Castro’s reign that Viñales’ scenic value was identified and tourism became a prime Cuban destination. Castro claimed that Viñales was his favourite place in all of Cuba and in 1999 UNESCO named it a World Heritage Site. Since then it has become an extraordinarily popular tourist destination for local and international tourists.

With the boom in tourism, Viñales needed to open up a few tourist friendly hotels to ensure that every visitor gets to experience the authentic, warm Cuban hospitality. There aren’t very many hotels in the town, so visitors need to book in advance. These cosy Cuban hotels offer comfortable accommodations that offer guests a first-hand look at traditional living in Viñales.