Old Havana (World Heritage)
According to best-medical-schools, the old town of Havana has been able to retain its colonial charm for a long time, although many buildings are now in danger due to lack of restoration. The city, founded by the Spaniards at the beginning of the 16th century, was expanded and fortified as a trading and military base. The Castillo de la Fuerza (1544 – 83) is considered to be the oldest military building in Latin America. Worth seeing is the Plaza de Armas with the Palacio del Segundo Cabo and the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, as well as the baroque and neoclassical aristocratic palaces and the Cathedral of San Cristóbal.
Old Havana: Facts
| Official title: | Old town and fortifications of Havana |
| Cultural monument | Old town with Castillo de San Salvador de la Punta and de la Real Fuerza, with the baroque Catedral San Cristóbal, the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, seat of the US occupation forces from 1899-1902, with El Templete, the place where Havana was founded, according to legend, the Teatro Garcia Lorca and the Capitolio Nacional, built on the model of the Capitol in Washington |
| continent | America |
| country | Cuba |
| location | Havana |
| appointment | 1982 |
| meaning | homogeneous colonial urban ensemble of baroque and neoclassical architecture |
Old Havana: history
| 1519 | Foundation of the city of San Cristóbal de la Habana |
| 1538 | Attack by French pirates |
| 1558-77 | Fortress Castillo de la Real Fuerza |
| 1592 | City rights |
| 1597/98 | Completion of the fortress Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro |
| 1674-1767 | Construction of the city wall |
| 1723 | first shipyards |
| 1728 | University foundation |
| 1762 | Attack by the British fleet |
| 1863 | Sanding the city wall |
| 1886 | Abolition of the slave trade |
| 1895 | War of liberation against the Spanish colonial power with 200,000 dead |
| 1959 | Attack on the Batista bastion by guerrillas led by Fidel Castro |
Desembarco del Granma National Park (World Heritage)
The approximately 400 km² Desembarco del Granma National Park in the southeast of the island has an enchanting coastal and karst landscape. These include the cliffs of Cap Cruz as well as numerous caves and canyons. The protected area is a habitat for a rich flora and fauna.
Desembarco del Granma National Park: facts
| Official title: | Desembarco del Granma National Park |
| Natural monument: | National park in the largest Cuban mountain range Sierra Maestra; rich flora and fauna, impressive, pristine coastal cliffs; over 40 archaeological sites of indigenous culture; over 60 km of caves and grottos |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Cabo Cruz, in the southwest of Cuba |
| Appointment: | 1999 |
| Meaning: | Worldwide important place for geomorphological questions; unique testimony to ongoing geological processes |
Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape (World Heritage)
The Viñales Valley cultural landscape, about 200 km southwest of Havana, is made up of bizarre limestone hills, so-called mogotes. The overgrown limestone cones are the remains of a huge cave system that collapsed over the course of millions of years. Traditional cultivation methods, especially tobacco, shape the landscape to this day.
Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape: Facts
| Official title: | Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape |
| Cultural monument: | Landscape characterized primarily by limestone hills (»mogotes«); heavily overgrown rocks (remains of a cave system that formed 160 million years ago and later collapsed); traditional agriculture: cultivation of maize, beans, malangas (similar to potatoes) and above all tobacco; traditional farms and villages |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Viñales Valley, about 200 km southwest of Havana, Pinar del Rio province |
| Appointment: | 1999 |
| Meaning: | Exceptional evidence of traditional agriculture, especially tobacco growing |
Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape (World Heritage)
The Viñales Valley cultural landscape, about 200 km southwest of Havana, is made up of bizarre limestone hills, so-called mogotes. The overgrown limestone cones are the remains of a huge cave system that collapsed over the course of millions of years. Traditional cultivation methods, especially tobacco, shape the landscape to this day.
Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape: Facts
| Official title: | Viñales Valley Cultural Landscape |
| Cultural monument: | Landscape characterized primarily by limestone hills (»mogotes«); heavily overgrown rocks (remains of a cave system that formed 160 million years ago and later collapsed); traditional agriculture: cultivation of maize, beans, malangas (similar to potatoes) and above all tobacco; traditional farms and villages |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Viñales Valley, about 200 km southwest of Havana, Pinar del Rio province |
| Appointment: | 1999 |
| Meaning: | Exceptional evidence of traditional agriculture, especially tobacco growing |
Alexander von Humboldt National Park (World Heritage)
The approximately 71,140 hectare national park is located in eastern Cuba and has been included in the World Heritage List due to its scenic diversity and the large number of endemic species in flora and fauna. In addition to mangrove and rainforests, the park also includes the reefs off the coast. In El Toldo the reserve reaches an altitude of 1168 m.
Alexander von Humboldt National Park: facts
| Official title: | Alexander von Humboldt National Park |
| Natural monument: | Ecologically richest area of the island of Cuba with 711 km² total area; more than 400 endemic animal and plant species; diverse climatic conditions; including sea coast with mangroves and offshore reefs |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Provinces of Holguín and Guantánamo in the east of Cuba |
| Appointment: | 2001 |
| Meaning: | Unique region with exceptional biodiversity |
Old town of Cienfuegos (World Heritage)
Even if the bay of Cienfuegos was described by Christopher Columbus as early as 1494, the city of the same name that was later created there only received city rights in 1881. Today, Cienfuegos, with its historic center, is one of the most beautiful cities in the country. The Government House, the Episcopal Palace and the Ferrer Palace are all worth seeing. Cienfuegos is still an economically important region of Cuba.
Cienfuegos Old Town: Facts
| Official title: | Historic city center of Cienfuegos |
| Cultural monument: | Colonial city in neoclassical style; Founded in 1819 on Spanish territory as “Fernandina de Jagua” by French colonists; Renamed after being destroyed by a storm (1825) and rebuilding; Trading port for sugar, tobacco and coffee, the world’s largest sugar cane port; systematically developed and stylistically closed old town ensemble with ao town hall, school San Lorenzo, Ferrer palace |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Cienfuegos, south-central Cuba |
| Appointment: | 2005 |
| Meaning: | Outstanding example of the implementation of modern urban planning in Latin America during the 19th century. |
Old town of Camagüey (World Heritage)
Founded in 1514 as Santa María del Puerto Príncipe, Camagüey was given its current name in 1923 after an Indian leader. The historic city center is reminiscent of the colonial era. The city’s landmarks are the head-high, bulbous clay jugs, which have been made to collect rainwater since the 16th century.
Old town of Camagüey: facts
| Official title: | Historic center of Camagüey |
| Cultural monument: | Old town one of the first places founded by the Spanish conquerors in the New World (1514 on the north coast of Cuba as Santa María de Puerto Príncipe); Relocation inland in 1528 to the site of an Indian village called Camagüey; today the third largest city in Cuba with over 300,000 residents; characteristic old town, built in Spanish colonial style, following medieval European architecture; Over the centuries, the influence of neoclassicism, baroque and art nouveau on the cityscape with partly colored facades; Uneven structure of blocks of houses, narrow alleys, winding streets and avenues of its multitude of squares of different sizes, which is atypical for Latin American colonial cities; large number of religious buildings (“city of churches”) |
| Continent: | America |
| Country: | Cuba |
| Location: | Camagüey, Central Cuba |
| Appointment: | 2008 |
| Meaning: | Exceptional, well-preserved example of colonial Latin American architecture; diverse and stylistically impressive cityscape with identifiable architectural influences over the centuries |
