Street Food in Vinales, Cuba

There are now dozens of stalls on the main street selling food for Cuban pesos so you might want to change a few dollars in the Cadeca for street snacking. The most common stall you will see is pizza, mostly ham and cheese, selling for around 10 Cuban pesos, about 40 centavos in CUC. Vendors will accept CUC but make sure you check your change. Dinner in a box to go (normally rice, meat and salad) sells for about 1 CUC (25 Cuban pesos) Sandwiches, soft drinks, coffee and icecream are also available and all prices are prominently displayed.

On the roads out of town, you will lots of quiosks selling fruit. While prices are displayed in Cuban pesos, it is best to check the prices first as some entreprising Cubans just change the price to CUC!

Drinks and Cocktails in Vinales, Cuba

If Cubans haven’t put their energy into expanding their national cuisine, there is no shortage of cocktails and other beverages in Cuba. And while eating is a fast affair, sitting around having a few drinks while listening to or making music, this can go on all night long. Rum is the universal drink in Cuba and you will rarely see a Cuban on the beach or out on the town without a bottle of rum at their side. Other spirits are available depending on the venue. As a general rule, the fancier the place, the wider the offering. Irish whiskey, Jameson, and brandy are more commonly available while gin and vodka are mostly confined to the hotels.

Havana Club is the most popular rum and comes in a variety of different bottles and vintages. From the cheapest Anejo Blanco (white) at around 4 CUC a bottle, there are also reserve and vintage dark versions that can go anywhere up to 40 CUC. White rum is good for cocktails while the rum connoisseurs drink the older vintages neat.

There are a variety of cocktails including a local one, Amanecer del Valle (Dawn in the Valley) made up of rum, mint liquer, fresh mint and orange and it is the same colour as the dawn!

Cuban beers in CUC are Cristal and Bucanero, both lagers but watch out as Bucanero is very strong (8%)

For non drinkers, there are plenty of juices, bottled waters, soft drinks and coffee to order. Coffee mostly comes black and with lots of sugar and cappuccino and ‘café con leche’ (coffee with milk) drinkers will have to check first if milk if available. Read more…

Shopping in Vinales, Cuba

Shopping is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think about Cuba but there are some things worth considering. Cuban rum, cigars and coffee are excellent and prices here are much better than at home. Music CDs, DVDs and instruments are also worth looking at. In terms of souvenirs, the leader of the pack is anything to do with Che, from t-shirts to key rings and so on and so on. Leather is not of great quality nor are the wooden carvings but you can find some nice artwork and prints if you look hard enough. Most of these items can be bought in all of the tourist attractions in and around Vinales. The town square also has stalls selling items geared at the tourist. The Art Gallery on the square also has artwork for sale. Coffee cups with designs from Cuban modern artists are a tasteful souvenir and this series, available in all tourist attractions, also features plates, oil and vinegar, shower curtains, towels and aprons. Click here to see photos of things to buy. Read more…