Cuba - Lonely Planet [115]
P-10 Vibora – Playa (via Altahabana & Calle 100)
P-11 Alamar – G y 27 (via harbor tunnel)
P-12 Santiago de Las Vegas – Capitolio (via Av Boyeros)
P-13 Santiago de Las Vegas – Vibora (via Calabazar)
P-14 San Agustín – Capitolio (via Lisa & Av 51)
P-15 Santiago de Las Vegas – Hermanos Ameijeiras (via Av Boyeros & Calle G)
P-16 Hospital Naval – Playa (via Calle 100 & Lisa)
Older buses still run along some cross-town routes (eg bus 400 to Playas del Este) but there are no printed timetables or route maps. Individual services have been mentioned in this chapter where appropriate.
Taxi
Metered tourist taxis are readily available at all of the upscale hotels, with the air-conditioned Nissan taxis charging higher tariffs than the non-air-conditioned Ladas. The cheapest official taxis are operated by Panataxi ( 55-55-55), with CUC$1 starting fare, then CUC$0.50 a kilometer. Tourist taxis charge CUC$1 a kilometer and can be ordered from Havanautos Taxi ( 73-22-77) and Transgaviota ( 206-9793). Taxi OK ( 204-0000, 877-6666) is based in Miramar. Drivers of the tourist taxis are government employees who work for a peso salary.
The cheapest taxis are the older yellow-and-black Ladas, which are state-owned but rented out to private operators. They won’t wish to use their meters, as these are set at an unrealistically low rate, but you can bargain over the fare. They’re not supposed to pick up passengers within 100m of a tourist hotel.
Private pirate taxis (ie those that aren’t supposed to take foreigners) with yellow license plates are a bit cheaper, but you must agree on the fare before getting into the car, and carry exact change. There are usually classic-car taxis parked in front of the Hotel Inglaterra.
Walking
Yes, walking! It’s what the gas-starved Habaneros have been doing for decades. Most parts of Habana Vieja, Centro Habana and Vedado can be easily navigated on foot if you’re energetic and up for some exercise. You’ll see a lot more of of the local street life in the process.
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OUTER HAVANA
Splaying out on three sides from the downtown district, Havana’s suburbs are full of quirky and easy-to-reach sights and activities that can make interesting day and half-day trips from the city center. Playa boasts a decent aquarium, top-class conference facilities and Cuba’s best restaurants; Guanabacoa and Regla are famous for their Afro-Cuban religious culture; and the bayside forts of La Cabaña and El Morro exhibit some of the island’s most impressive military architecture.
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PLAYA & MARIANAO
The municipality of Playa, west of Vedado across the Río Almendares, is a paradoxical mix of prestigious residential streets and tough proletarian housing schemes.
Gracious Miramar is a leafy neighborhood of broad avenues and weeping laurel trees where the traffic moves more sedately and diplomats’ wives – clad in sun visors and Lycra leggings – go for gentle afternoon jogs along Av Quinta (Fifth Avenue). Many of Havana’s foreign embassies are housed here in old pre-Revolution mansions, and business travelers and conference attendees flock in from around the globe to make use of some of Cuba’s grandest and most luxurious facilities. If you’re interested primarily in sightseeing and entertainment, commuting to Vedado or Habana Vieja is a nuisance and an expense. However, some of the best salsa clubs, discos and restaurants are out this way and the casas particulares are positively luxurious.
Cubanacán plays host to many of Havana’s business or scientific fairs and conventions, and it is also where several specialized medical institutes are situated. Despite the austerity of the período especial, vast resources have been plowed into biotechnological and pharmaceutical research institutes in this area. Yachties, anglers and scuba divers will find themselves using the Marina Hemingway at Playa’s west end.
Marianao is world-famous for the Tropicana Nightclub, but locally it’s known as a tough, in parts rough neighborhood with a powerful Santería community and a long