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OUR CASA LIST BEGINS HERE
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REGIONAL MAP HERE
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 Some 19 km east of Santiago, at the foot of the Sierra Maestra, Siboney boasts quite a few casas particulares allowing travellers a beach base from which to explore interesting sites nearby — especially those in the huge Baconao UNESCO Biosphere Reserve —and discover even more and better beaches along the coast which goes all the way to the city of Guantanamo and the infamous US military base on Guantanamo Bay. This place is actually the city of Santiago's closest beach but it is hugely populated mainly from June to September. One gets here by the Carretera de Baconao from Santiago through the small towns of Sevilla and Las Guasimas, the turnoff to La Gran Piedra. To peruse the coast east of here, it's back up to the carretera which goes all the way to lovely Baconao lake. Map here. This route is the one tour busses use to carry tourists to the package-hotels along the coast : Bucanero, Daiquiri, El Indio, Costa Morena, Carisol, Los Corales, etc. Recent history was made nearby in Granjita de Siboney where native Siboneyers Marcos Marti and Ciro Redondo joined Fidel to plan the attack on La Moncada in 1953. Native-born Compay Segundo (1907-2003) was almost as famous as the Revolución when he toured the world as a 90-year old member of the Buena Vista Social Club. POPULATION 1,500 (est.)
RESTAURANTS Restaurante La Rueda (22) 39-9325 serves comidas criollas (Cuban traditional food) and occupies the spot of Compay Segundo's birth place. In Playa Siboney itself. Also in the area : • La Punta on the Carretera de Baconao (main road from Santiago), 5 km from here towards Santiago • Finca El Porvenir (22) 62-9064 with its nice swimming pool 5km east on the Carretera de Baconao • El Rodeo nearby in barrio Oasis • Pedro el Cojo in Parque Baconao • Casa de Rolando by Baconao lake at the end of the coast road, TRANSPORTATION Bus 214 will get you here from downtown Santiago at Avenida de los Libertadores 245 or from calle Cespedes 110 close to Pekin Restaurante; bus 407 also plies the route, ending in Playa Juragua • Cubataxi in Santiago (22) 65-1038 : ask for Che (Osvaldo Bez), a super guy — like his namesake — and part-time beekeeper or his buddies Daniel "Italiano" or Eugenio Borrero, best taxistas in town. Estimated fare : 20-25cuc for the cab one way. |
 The Baconao coast from Santiago to Guantanamo : enlarge. •|• Playa de Siboney — the local beach seen from the sea © santiagoencuba  Playa Casonal © santiagoencuba •|• Balsa de Siboney the permanent dive board © santiagoencuba  Baconao Acuario : swim with the dolphins •|• Mountain coffee plantation in the area  Playa of Hotel Bucanero •|• Valle de la Prehistoria in Parque Baconao : one of 242 man-made dinosaurs. Eat your heart out, Señor Spielberg !  View from La Rueda : see the sea, sense the scene ; ) and Bon appétit !  Yet another view of the playa local © michael homann |
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| OTHER PLAYAS ALONG THE COAST - MAP HERE Separated by the main road — Carretera de Baconao —with its numerous turnoffs going down to the sea (see coast map) • Playa Arroyo and Playa Bucanero (see above), via Playa Juragua • Playa Daiquiri (sugar cane railroad, famous site of US landing on June 24 1898), near large hotel of same name, only 400m of gray sand but off limits as reserved for soldiers on R&R : in front of Museo del Transporte via Moya and El Oasis. Leads to Playa Bacajagua. • Playa Juragua, very linda, via Moya, El Oasis and Arroyo La Costa. About 22km from Santiago, 8 from here. • Playa Larga (gravel, hotel Delta Balneario, 125 rooms) and Playa Verraco (Los Manoncillos, Hotel Sierramar, 200 rooms), 18 km east of Siboney via Moya, El Oasis, Demajayabo, El Cupey and El Verraco. • Playa Casonal, 29km from here and barely one km from the Acuario Baconao in Carisol (Hotel Los Corales, 310 rooms)  |
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| PARQUE BACONAO This is a 92,000-hectare sea and mountain park, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve since 1987 which is visited every year by some 375,000 visitors — two-thirds from abroad. Its major habitats include coastal and sub-coastal bush forest with tree and column cactii; coastal rocky and sandy habitats; mangroves; rainforest; cloud forest; evergreen forest; gallery and pine forest; agroecosystems with coffee, fruits and other crops.; forestry systems and cave ecosystems. Located some 20km from Santiago, it encompasses various attractions : Reserva de la Biosfera de Baconao, (1,800 floral species and many threatened endemic species like bats, spiders and insects’ species living in natural caves), Museo de Historia Natural "Valle de la Prehistoria" (22) 63-9197 with some 242 real-size dinosaurs, elephants et al : no shade, bring lotion), 6km east of Siboney as well as Museo de Ciencias Naturales (stuffed animals), Museo del Transporte Terrestre por Carretera (22) 63-9239 with "metal dinosaurs", ie old cars including a surprising collection of 2,500 toy cars and Fidel's mother's 1929 Ford Roadster and some 18 km further east, the Delfinario y Acuario (two shows daily, 5cuc; swim with dolphins : 39cuc.); further east Comunidad Artistica Verraco, a village-like settlement where artists make and sell their ware. Furthermore within park territory, Granjita de Siboney (museum : where attackers of the Moncada gathered in 1953) and its most popular spot La Gran Piedra (1 234 meters high, superb views, 450 steps to climb); also there Prado de las Esculturas with 20 huge sculptures by artists from 10 paises. Some photos of previous attractions here. To get there from here, one has to back up to Moya, then take the Carretera de Baconao which goes to Sigua, the Criadero de Cocodrilos and Baconao. Last on the coast road (maybe 30 km from Siboney) and most quiet spot in pristine surroundings is Laguna Baconao (large lake, tour by boat, nice views from Casa de Rolando, a restaurant) and its Criadero de Cocodrilos (croc farm in Baconao). ALSO IN SURROUNDINGS Jardines de la Siberia (botanical garden 2km before La Gran Piedra), Museo/Cafetal la Isabelica (14km from Santiago, 1,226m high — Victor Constantín's coffee plantation (one of 60 in the area during the golden era of Cuban coffee) built in 1795 and dedicated to his woman slave), Finca El Porvenir (before Juragua : swimming pool, restaurant, bar, tel. (22) 39-9325), Finca Guajira El Oasis Rodeo 4km east for horseback riding, rodeos 4 days/week., restaurant), Casa El Indio (pre-colombian site, deer hunting). |
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| OUR RECOMMENDATIONS ::: Make sure that in your first email or phone call you specify that you want to book a room in that particular casa and that you will reconfirm your booking on arrival in Cuba. Unless you only want a room in any house which may be of the same quality, not the specific casa you booked through photos on these websites ::: So as to not abandon expecting owners with empty rooms, reconfirm (or call ahead to cancel) your booking by phone as soon as you can after arriving in Cuba ::: Please write or phone a casa owner to cancel a booking. As late as it may seem, it allows them a chance to rebook. ::: Children under the age of 16 may share a bedroom with adults for free. Specify the child's age when booking. ::: Since October 2010, maximum bedroom capacity is not limited to two adults ::: Also, large casas are not limited to renting only two bedrooms per night. ::: At the end of the casa name, the V signals the casa was suggested by travelers or owners but not verified by the website staff. If you try it and like it, write us about it. ::: Unless otherwise mentioned, the average room rates and service prices are : 20-25cuc per bedroom per night [up to 40+ for 4 in a room]; breakfasts 3-5cuc, dinners 7-10cuc.::: Any casa particular anywhere in Cuba must have a hot water shower, otherwise it cannot have a permit to rent ::: Please share your Complaints, comments & suggestions webmaster [@]cubacasas.net |
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BOOK BY PHONE • From Canada and the USA : 011 53 (add phone # preceded by the town's area code, 22) • From Europe, Great Britain, Scandinavia and Mexico : 00 53 (add phone # preceded by the town's area code, 22) ••• HOW TO DIAL A CUBAN PHONE NUMBER HERE ••• CELL PHONE NUMBERS on our town lists and casa pages are preceded by 05 for calls originating Havana; from anywhere else in Cuba, dial 01 + the 8 digits of the cell. BOOK BY EMAIL :  Click on logo to open a message addressed to that casa in your email application; or right-click to copy address. Spanish vocabulary here. |
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OBELISCO V One aircon bedroom with ensuite, large patio Calle Obelisco 1, entre Camino del Oasis y Primera (1ra) 30 m from playa. Tél (22) 39-9121 Cell 58 14 62 92 (Javier) 53 62 98 37 (Martica)  |
SULEMA V Two aircon bedrooms with ensuites, view Calle Obelisco 7 (altos-upstairs), entre Oasis y calle Primera (1ra), 60 m from the playa. Cell 52 53 22 63  |
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| MARIA ELENA V Three aircon bedrooms with ensuites, pool Calle Obelisco 10, entre Oasis y calle Primera (1ra), seaside with great views. Tel. (22) 39-9200  |
LUIS MANUEL V
One aircon bedroom with ensuite Avenida Serrano # 8, about 200m from the sea. Tel. (22) 39-9503  |
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| GUILLERMO V Two aircon bedrooms with ensuites Malecon (seaside), (altos-upstairs), entre 4ta y 5ta Tel. (22) 39-9518  |
AVILA V
Two aircon bedrooms, terrace, view Avenida Serrano # 61, near the end of main street, seaside with swimming pool. Cel. 53 79 13 17 or 54 24 03 90  |
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| VISTA AL MAR V Two upstairs ac br, ensuites, balcony, views Avenida Serrano s/n (sin numero - no number), 300m from the sea. Tel. (22) 39-9610 Cel 52 07 24 09  |
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| OVIDIO V Three ac br's, terraces + apartment, views Avenida Serrano, above the farmacia. Tel. (22) 39-9340 LP18 |
GLORIA y JUAN CARLOS V Two ac br's, terraces Calle de Barco 13, a round casa. Tel. (22) 39-9129 LR17 |
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RECOMMENDED BY PAPERBACK GUIDEBOOKS Footprint (FH), GéoGuide (GG), Insight/Gallimard (IG), Le Routard (LR), Lonely Planet (LP), Michelin (MC), Moon (MH), National Geographic Traveler (NG), Petit Futé (PF), Rough Guides (RG), Stefan-Loose (SL) ::: LP : Ovidio Gonzalez Salgado, Maria Gonzalez, Hospederia El Cobre (in El Cobre-run by nuns, 15 rooms) ::: LR : Guillermo Gonzalez Soto, Gloria y Juan Carlos, Jorge Ascencio Ruben, Sergio Peña (Chelly) ::: MH : Enrique y Rosa ::: SL : Maria Gomez, Marlene y Eduardo, La Rueda 180218 |
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