CUBA'S UNFINISHED PARADISE, SANTA LUCIA
May 03 '04
The Bottom Line A great place to really get away from it all and relax.
The first thing you notice out of the planes window as you start to descend is the colour of the ocean. It just doesn’t seem possible that water could be that beautiful shade of turquoise, but there it is below you. The next thing you see as cross over the coastline is the almost blinding whiteness of the sand.
It is these two images that will sustain as the plane heads inland and eventually lands at the nearest airport. It takes some time to muddle through the normal customs and immigration procedures. Then you must board a bus for the lengthy drive through flat barren farmland to the coast. Eventually though the road takes one final turn and there in front of you is that turquoise sea and white beach again. From this close up view they are even more magnificent.
Santa Lucia was supposed to have been one the largest vacation resort areas in all of Cuba, rivalling even Varadero. There were plans to put over 7,000 hotel rooms in the area to take advantage of this remote but beautiful peninsula on Cuba’s north coast.
Economic necessities shelved these plans and at present less than 700 rooms in five hotels grace the area. Despite this all the necessary infra structure to support a much larger tourist population is in place. There is an international clinic, shops, a bank, gas station, car rental place, bars, restaurants and all the expected tourism conveniences but built to serve ten times the number of guests that they actually do. This makes Santa Lucia a great destination, all the amenities and with out the crowds.
Naturally the main attraction of Santa Lucia is the beach. The beach is the third longest in Cuba. It is pure white sand and stretches along the entire northern side of the peninsula. From the town of Santa Lucia at the base of the peninsula over twenty kilometres to the fishing village of La Boca at the tip, this ensures that there is plenty of space for everyone to “get away from it all.”
Playa Santa Lucia is a water lovers dream come true. Just about everything is available here, from deep sea fishing, through wind surfing and sailing, to snorkelling and scuba diving on the reef off shore. Most of the hotels have aquatic centres and/or dive shops for their guests to avail themselves of.
Beyond this though there is not much to see or do here. The old colonial city of Camaguey is an hour or so drive away. There one can find restaurants, museums, cultural attractions and some limited shopping.
Just west of the "hotel zone" is a rather ugly Government housing complex. Most of the people who live here are employed either in the resorts or the nearby small salt works. The buildings are of a standard East European design seen all over Cuba.
Hastily and poorly built, they are rundown and overcrowded. But as the slogans painted on the sides of the buildings demonstrates, the Revolution for some is still alive here more than forty years after the fact. Ironically these buildings are also the main source for jinteras (hustlers, literally jockeys) and other black market activities including cigars that make their living off of the nearby tourists.
Santa Lucia lies on Cuba’s north coast in the province of Camaguey. As noted it is about an hour’s drive from the capital of that province the city of Camaguay where the nearest international airport is located.
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
JAMES23
|
 - Top 200 |
|
Member: James Smith
Location: Toronto Ontario CANADA
Reviews written: 450
Trusted by: 222 members
About Me:
I'm back
|
|
|
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.