SAILING PARADISE
Cuba offers the sailor idyllic tropical weather, where the trade winds fill the sails and take you to uninhabited cays, pristine white beaches and coral reefs…..pure escapism.
Cuba goes beyond all sailors' dreams - a favorable, warm climate year-round, steady winds, unique natural beauty and open-minded hospitable people contribute to this as well as the reliable nautical infrastructure.
To the sailor, most of the coast and off-lying islands are fully accessible within Cuban national waters. About twenty marinas and nautical centers all around Cuba gladly welcome yachts under all flags and offer all conceivable services. For those who have enough time it is possible to circumnavigate the island of Cuba – which would amount to some one and a half thousand nautical miles.
For a sailing holiday it is possible to charter a yacht on the island either bare boat charter or a crewed charter using the best international standard yachts such as a Bavaria monohull or an Athena catamaran. If you are an experienced skipper you can sail the yachts yourself, or have a qualified and experienced Cuban skipper to sail the yacht for you and a deckhand/cook who will provide you with special Cuban cuisine including freshly caught delicious seafood.
Garden of the Queens, Pirates Treasure & Columbus
An example sailing adventure starts aboard your exclusive yacht from Cienfuegos yacht marina situated on the southern Caribbean shore of Cuba, some three hours drive from Havana. Leave the yacht berth for a night cruise under the stars to nearby Guajimico arriving in the morning, situated in a narrow cove with a small village in a wonderful mountainous setting. There is a beach, and a good diving site.
Reach out the next morning to Cayo Blanco for some snorkelling on the coral reefs and sunbathing on the beach. Anchor off in the bay for the night before sailing to Cayo Zaza de Fera and Cayo Machos de Afuera.
The highlight of the cruise leads to Cayo Bretón, separated by several narrow channels and marked by a lighthouse. Here begins the ‘Gardens of the Queen’, so named from Columbus to his Queen Isabel , a natural reserve area of exceptional beauty and almost untouched. You will find the Caribbean unchanged to how Columbus once discovered it, thus becoming a paradise for sailors, divers and fishermen. Flamingos, turtles and iguanas roam here, and lobsters are numerous enough to be your daily diet. Treasures from old day pirates are said to be scattered on the seafloor as well as hidden on the cays.
Some divers call it the “Galapagos of the Caribbean”. 150 mile long mangrove and coral island system forming what belongs to the third longest barrier reef in the world. In the middle is a 90 mile long and at times 20 mile wide Natural Marine Park. There is no commercial fishing in the Park and the area is uninhabited. Imagine a marine wilderness with walls covered with brightly hued sponges and corals plunging well below the limits of safe diving to shallow reefs filled with both schooling and solitary fish and wrecks, even some Old Spanish galleons from the l7th century.
Hoist the main sail and off to Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of Cuba’s oldest Spanish colonial cities. The city is steeped in history, and is situated below the Escambray Mountains and the Topes de Collantes National Park. It is filled with entertainment and eateries; the city is a hub of activity for nightlife or just soaking up the Cuban culture. Leave in the late evening hours for the way back to Cienfuegos sailing through the tropical night. End your trip with lunch at the stylish historical ‘Club Cienfuegos’ at the marina where you can recall your adventures and sing a few sea shanties with a bottle of rum.
There are two excellent Cruising Guides in English language, which complement each other very well by the information contained, so that both can be recommended alike. Both originate in circumnavigations of Cuba by their authors and have an according structure. Simon Charles: The Cruising Guide to Cuba, and Nigel Calder: Cuba – A Cruising Guide.
