Taxi tour in Havana

[marc]

#7774

Hi, I spoke with Tomas, the driver that is recommended in this site. He has great rates. He will take me for a tour of Havana when I arrive next week. But, do you know a good tour route? What are some interesting areas to see in the city?

[marc]

#7776

Also, how long should a good tour last?

[Mario]

#7777

As for the Havana tour, I think 2 hours would be enough. Tomas might ask you what you like to see. In my opinion, I would tell him this.

1) I would ask him to drive a bit around the Miramar neighborhood, (there is a place called La Puntilla, and there are large hotels and things in Miramar). It’s not super exciting, but if you are in Vedado, you likely won’t walk to this area, so at least now you get to see it a bit. This might take 25 minutes.

2) Then he can take you around Vedado, along 23rd street. These will be places that are more of interest to you. You might ask for a drive-by of Parque Almendares. It’s a nature park right under the 23rd street bridge. It’s joining to Miramar, so it is not far at all. Another 25 minutes maybe

3) Meander through Vedado and then get into Central Havana. Spend a bit of time driving along Infanta and then turn on Carlos Tercero. It will give you a great idea of the area. (20 minutes)

4) By now you will be in Old Havana, in front of the Capitol building. He can drive you around this area. Taxis can’t really go into Old Havana much, but he can take you for a tour around it. Drive by the harbor. Old Havana is a place that you explore on foot, and you will have tons of time for this later on your trip. 15 minutes.

5) From there, I would ask him to pass through El Cerro neighborhood. It’s a poor, densely packed area. You will see locals only in this area. He can take Maximo Gomez down into Cerro a bit and then turn up on Tulipan. (20 minutes)

5) At Tulipan and Ayesteran street, you will be in the neighborhood of Plaza de la Revolucion. His daughter (Gretel) lives here. Maybe he even invites you up for a drink. In either case, he can now drive past the Revolucion square and all the monuments to Cuban leaders. Your casa particular in Vedado is just a few blocks away and Tomas would bring you back there. You would get a good idea of Havana’s layout and you could explore the places which are most interesting to you later. (15 minutes.)

Anyway, maybe Tomas has an even better tour planned. This would just be my idea. Either way, it’s always great to drive around Havana in a vintage car.

[Vicky]

#7950

Hi which taxi agency do you recommend?

[Mario]

#7951

Hi, all the taxis are owned by the government. The drivers are licensed by the state. Maybe I am not understanding your question correctly….

If there are agencies offering specific taxi tours then they are simply hiring local taxi drivers. I imagine those tours would be rather expensive. You might be best off just asking a local taxi driver to take you on a tour of the city. A lot of the taxi drivers hang around the capitol building waiting for fares. If you approach them as a foreigner, they will likely overcharge you a bit for regular trips, but offer you a great price for a taxi tour (compared to prices that “official” taxi tours agencies would ask).

 

If you need a specific list of places which I would suggest visiting on your tour, I have indicated them below. 

Starting in Vedado:

-Malecon (National hotel, US interest section, Riviera hotel built by Meyer Lansky, Melia Cohiba hotel,)

-Tunel of 5^th Avenue

-Miramar through 3^rd Ave till the Russian Embassy, the biggest one in Cuba, former Soviet embassy and then back through

– the 5^th avenue, embassies of Belgium, Italy, Switzerland and future US embassy….., park of 24^th and 5^th avenue with the big ficus trees more than 100 years old

-then the metropolitan park of Havana (the forest and the river), Nuevo Vedado quarter, bordering Colon Cementery

-Market of Tulipan for a juice, lunch or browsing.

-Revolution Square, Carlos III, Reina, China Town, Capitolio, Central Park, Prado Promenade

-Tunel of the bay of Havana, Christ of Havana for a global view of the city

-and then back through the tunnel and the harbor avenue, 4 caminos market area and the “interior” part of the city (Cerro)

 

End either in Old Havana or go back to Vedado.

 

A trip like this would likely cost about 30cuc to 40cuc. Not more. And last about 1.5 hours. At those rates, almost any driver in an old American car would agree to take you. A formal agency would likely charge at least twice that price. I have seen some drivers in nice shiny cars ask for over 100$ for this same trip.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by Mario.

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