Havana Tour Bus
We've already discussed the difficulty tourists can have getting around in Havana. For this reason I'd like to recommend the Havana Bus Tour, mostly for its great price, though that's not all. It's a transportation system that runs from 9:00 am. to 9:00 pm. and has 3 main routes. The price is $ 5.00 CUC, is good all day, and children under 6 travel for free. The price is also the same for tourists and Cubans.
The routes are quite scenic: The T1 route leaves from Alameda de Paula and ends at Plaza de la Revolucion José Martí, a total of 23 kilometers round trip. It stops at Castillo de la Real Fuerza, Hotel Sevilla, Parque Central, Hotel Presidente, Plaza de la Revolucion, the Napoleonic Museum, the University of Havana, the Hotel Habana Libre, the Casa de las Americas, the Ministry of Foreign Relations, the intersection of Prado and San Lazaro, the National Capitol (Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment), the Floridita Restaurant, the Bar Cabaña, the Marina Building, and the route concludes at the first stop, Alameda de Paula.
The T2 route begins at the Hemingway Marina and ends at Plaza de la Revolucion José Marté, and is a total of 40 kilometers. Stops include: La Ferminia Restaurant, the Centro Comerical Nautico, La Cecilia Restaurant, the Miramar Trade Center, the National Aquarium, the intersection of 1st Avenida and Calle 28 (Model of Havana), Don Cangrejo Restaurant, the International Cira Garcia Clinic, the intersection of Calle 23 and Avenida 47 (west of the bridge over the Almendares River), the Colon Cemetery, and the Plaza de la Revolucion. The return trip makes the same stops.
The longest of the three routes, at 65 kilometers, is known as the T3. It leaves from the Parque Central and ends at the Santa Maria del mar Beach, with stops at the exit of the Tunnel leading to the Eastern Beaches, the Naval Hospital, the Villa Panamericana, the Alamar, the Villa Bacuranao, Taramar (facing the Tarara Marina), Villa Megano, the Hotel Tropicoco, and the Hotel Blau Arenal (formerly Itabo). Same route returning.
Each stop has signs with information on the schedules, and each bus has printed material with plenty of route information. The larger buses have guides, but there have been tourists who have found them to be not very knowledgeable about the different sights along the routes.
The Havana Bus Tour's fleet consists of 9 buses, some of which are open-air double decker buses, and very brightly decorated (as seen in the image at left). With Havana Bus Tour, you can see much of the city at a very low price.
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