| It
is bounded on the west by Granma Province, on the north by Holguin
Province and on the east by Guantanamo Province.
To
the south, the Caribbean Sea bathes its coast. Most of the beaches
are spectacular, with dark sand or pebbles and the Sierra Maestra
Mountains as a backdrop.
The
1215-square-mile tourist region has three well-defined areas: the
Sierra Mastra Mountains, Santiago de Cuba Basin and the coastal
plain.
The
province has good raods that connect it with its neighboring provinces,
and is also linked to the rest of the country through the port of
Santiago de Cuba.
Visitors
from abroad can come to Santiago de Cuba through Antonio Maceo International
Airport, Guillermon Moncada Port and the Punta Gorda International
marina.
The
Baconao World Preserve of the Biosphere, the Guama area (El Mazo
and El Papayo Bay) and the northern subregion of the Sierra Maestra
Mountains (El Salton and El Cedron) also form a part of the Santiago
de Cuba tourist region.
Santiago
de Cuba is a tourist destination combining many values and atractions,
which enables visitors to come into contact with the distinguishing
characteristics of its people and the culture and history of the
province while, at the same time, enjoying its exotic beaches and
other well conserved natural attraction.
From
thehistoric-cultural point of view, many aspects of this province
which is known as the cradle of the son and of the bolero and where
traditional ballads and choral expressions are deeply rooted are
unique.
This
explains why the city of Santiago de Cuba hosts so many important
artistic and other cultural events, such as Caribbean
Festivals, International Chorus Festivals, Miguel Matamoros Son
Festivals, Pepe Sanchez International Festivals of Ballads and Bolero
Festivals.
The
first house that Europeans built in the Americas, the first cathedral
erected in Cuba, the first open-sky copper mine in the Americas
and the first museum in Cuba are all in Santiago de Cuba.
Its
rum made from sugarcane and aged in oaken barrels is the best of
all the rum produced in Cuba and even in all of the Antilles, and
UNESCO has declred the impressive colonial fortress called the Castle
of San Pedro de la Roca del Morro to be a part of world heritage.
It is the vastest, most complete example of early renaissance military
engeneering in the Caribbean.
This
is the place where Hernando Cortes set out on his conquest of Mexico
and the one to which scores of Frensh immigrants flocked in 1791,
after Toussaint L'Ouverture's Haitian Revolution and introduced
coffee growing in Cuba.
The
poet Josa Maria Heredia, one of the early romantics in the Spanish
language, was born here. The remains of Jose marti, a native of
Havana, are buried here. He is Cuba's greatest revolutionary and
intellectual, a poet, essayist, diplomat, teacher and combatant,
considered to be the country's National Hero.
Those
who want to enjoy the natural attractions of this
territory should definitly visit the Sierra Mastra Natural Park,
consisting of the youngest, most extensive mountain system in the
country.
It
includes 17 peaks that rise to over 4265 feet above sea level. Turquino
Peak, at 6476 feet above sea level, is the highest of them and the
highest mountain in the Cuban archipelago.
The
Siboney-Justici Ecological Preserve and the Gran Piedra mountain,
which is classified as protected natural scenery, are also "musts"
Gran
Piedra is an enormous rock on top of a high mountain. It weighs
around 75.000 tons. In terms of both volume and weight, it is one
of the largest rocks in the world.
Nearby
there are ruins of French coffee plantations, testifying to the
Franco-Haitian influence in the area. They are a part of world cultural
heritage.
The
Baconao Preserve of the Biosphere is another place that's well worth
visiting.
The
enormous natural park has beaches, woods and cultural offersopen-air
exhibits and museums. There are also trails for hikings
and series of scuba-diving centers along the coast.
For
scuba-divers, there is a well-preserved coral reef
in clear, pure water and 73 wrecks on the insular shelf.
The
hotels
on the coast also offer other water sports, including yacht cruises. |
