Abercrombie & Kent has scheduled two fall departures for its latest Cuba tour.
According to A&K, the eight-day Cuba: People to People tour, part of the tour operator's Connections line, facilitates "meaningful interactions … which reveal the spirit of this culturally rich island, from the capital of Havana to the well-preserved colonial streets of Trinidad and the elegance of the coastal city of Cienfuegos."
Upon arrival in Havana, guests will meet their program director, who will accompany the group throughout the tour, and enjoy a welcome reception and dinner at a family-run paladar restaurant.
The next day begins with a visit to Old Havana, a Unesco World Heritage Site, joined by a local architect who will offer insights about the neighborhood's buildings and efforts to restore them. The day will also include a visit to the San Jose Craft Market and a lunchtime talk with a baseball expert who will discuss the sport's prominence in Cuban culture.
Guests take a trip through the country on the third day for a visit to a tobacco farm. The fourth day focuses on Ernest Hemingway, who lived in Cuba for two decades. It includes a visit to the fishing village of Cojimar and to Hemingway's Havana home, Finca Vigia, where he wrote "The Old Man and the Sea" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls." The day continues with a visit to the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes and concludes with a private concert by the Cuban Institute of Music.
An Abercrombie & Kent tour of Finca Vigia, Ernest Hemingway’s home in Havana.
Guests leave Havana on the fifth day for Cienfuegos and Trinidad, where they'll spend the remainder of the trip.
In Trinidad, highlights will include a visit with a local artist and an Afro-Cuban music-and-dance performance at the Palenque de los Congos Reales.
In Cienfuegos, guests will visit the Benny More Art School and Cienfuegos Graphic Workshop, attend a choir performance and take a catamaran cruise of the Cienfuegos marina.
A&K, which has operated Cuba tours for the past five years, previously offered cruise tours and other people-to-people itineraries, and the company's experience with those tours informed its latest offering.
"We've built upon our experience in Cuba, as well as the rest of the world, to ensure our guests discover Cuba at its most intimate and authentic," said Keith Baron, Abercrombie & Kent USA president. "This is essentially a 'best-of' itinerary that features the most highly rated aspects of A&K's past journeys."
Abercrombie & Kent's Connections line, for a maximum of 24 guests, was revamped last year, with accommodations now comprising mostly boutique properties.
This fall, the Cuba: People to People tour is being offered from Oct. 11 to 18 and Oct. 25 to Nov 1. Prices start at $6,395 per person, double; a single supplement is available from $1,395.
Visit www.abercrombiekent.com/travel-destinations/cuba.