Today you will explore the nearby city of Trinidad. Frequently described as a “living museum”, Trinidad boasts the country’s best-preserved collection of colonial architecture.

Strolling the cobbled streets of the town center, you’ll learn about Trinidad’s colonial heyday. Your first stop is the city’s central square to visit the 18th-century Church of the Holy Trinity, home of the venerated Christ of the True Cross (1713). You’ll also visit Palacio Brunet, set on the same impressive plaza, for an insight into the life of Trinidad’s colonial elite. Once owned by a wealthy sugar baron, the masnion now houses a vast collection of antique furniture. Your tour continues with an educational libation at Casa de la Canchanchara. Canchancharas, a basic rum-based cocktail, are thought to have been invented by Cuban guerilla fights during the 19th-century wars of independence.

Refreshed from lunch, you will visit the extremely-grand Museum of Colonial Architecture, set in an 18th-century mansion previously owned by the sugar barons of the Sanchez Iznaga family. The tour continues with a visit to Casa de Aldeman Ortiz, a mansion built in 1809 for Ortiz de Zuniga, a slave trader and mayor of Trinidad. The building now hosts an art school and gallery mainly exhibiting contemporary Cuban pieces. You’ll visit the site where Padre Bartolomé de las Casas – “Protector of the Indians” – delivered his first mass before concluding the tour at an artisan market.

Your day of touring begins at the Cienaga de Zapata, where you will explore a small reproduction of an indigenous Cuban village. The village, named Guamá, owes its title to a Taino chief who led a rebellion against Spanish rule in the 1530s.

As well as boasting incredible natural beauty and famed sunsets, this beach has a special historical importance as it played host to the Bay of Pigs Invasion. You’ll enjoy a picnic in these beautiful and profoundly significant surroundings before returning to Cienfuegos.

Your driver-guide will take you to Cienfuegos Airport where you will bid “adios” to Cuba. While we don’t currently offer flights to the USA, please don’t hesitate to get touch if you need advice on traveling back home.