Trinidad City Guide - excursions

Valle de los Ingenios (Valley of the Sugar Mills)
The picturesque emerald valley was once the centre of the sugar trade industry, and home to the plantations that brought wealth and prosperity to Trinidad in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today the ruins of estates, sugar mills and other remnants are visited by tourists who are attracted by the history of slavery and the beauty of the valley. The main site is the Manaca Iznaga, a striking 144ft (44m) high tower that was used by plantation owner and one of the wealthiest men in Cuba, Pedro Iznaga, to keep watch over his slaves working in the fields. Visitors can climb the tower (1 CUC) for impressive views over the countryside. Horse riding tours to the valley are a popular way to see the sights from Trinidad.

Santa Clara
Located 55 miles (88km) north of Trinidad, the city of Santa Clara is best known for its Che Memorial at the Plaza de la Revolución and monuments relating to the Cuban Revolution. The train monument (Monumento a la Toma del Tren Blindado) marks the spot where Che attacked the train carrying Batista's troops to Santiago de Cuba to counter attack the revolutionaries and the battle was the final decisive factor in the victory of the revolution. There is a museum inside the wagons. The Ernesto Che Guevara Monument was built to pay homage to the memory of Che and his comrades who fought with him in Bolivia, and the enormous monument incorporates a huge statue of Che with his famous phrase Hasta la Victoria Siempre (Forever Onwards Towards Victory), as well as representations of many aspects of his revolutionary life. To one side of the statue a huge stone block has been inscribed in full with his farewell letter to Fidel Castro. The monument also includes a chilled mausoleum where the remains of Che and his comrades have been interred, and a museum with displays about his life and involvement in the revolution.

Sancti Spiritus
The beautiful colonial city of Sancti Spiritus, with its gracious people, delightful architecture and maze of narrow winding cobblestone streets remains almost completely unassuming and detached from tourism. Located in the centre of Cuba and 43 miles (70km) east of Trinidad, Sancti Spiritus lies on the banks of the Yayabo River, exuding charm, affability and authenticity. The old town has been declared a National Monument, filled with picturesque, colourful little houses with uneven red tiled roofs and weathered colonial homes. Streets are crammed with horse-drawn carriages, bicycles, scooters and pedestrians licking at guava ice-creams, a fruit which grows along the banks of the river. Spanning the river is the Puente Yayabo, an arched brick bridge built by the Spanish in 1815, and the city's most famous sight.