Viñales Valley Tour

Tour Overview

Designed for the laid-back, culture-seeking adventurer, this 3-day private Viñales Valley Tour delivers the ultimate experience of the Cuban countryside. On this fully hosted 2-night private journey, you’ll discover the captivating heartbeat of the Viñales Valley—exploring its lush landscapes, rich traditions, world-famous tobacco farms, and sweet-natured local people, while having plenty of unhurried time to relax and soak it all in.

From your departure in Havana through your entire countryside stay, your dedicated professional guide and private driver take care of every detail, allowing you to connect deeply with Cuba's authentic roots.

What Makes This Journey Unforgettable

• Farm-to-Table Tobacco & Coffee Immersion: Learn the traditional craft directly from master local farmers during immersive, hands-on tours of authentic Viñales tobacco and coffee plantations.
• Underground Cave Explorations: Discover the second-largest cave system in the Americas, or boat through the subterranean waters of the Indian Cave (Cueva del Indio) to uncover ancient indigenous history.
• Custom Valley Adventures: Choose to explore the dramatic valley floor and limestone mogotes on a guided horseback ride or a scenic nature walk through local farmland.
• Authentic Countryside Hospitality: Savor hand-picked dinners at fine local paladares, unwind with local hosts over coffee, and experience the warm, calming spirit of rural Cuba.

Itinerary Highlights at a Glance

• Viñales Valley (2 Nights): Two nights nestled in Cuba’s most awe-inspiring agricultural countryside, surrounded by dramatic limestone mogotes, traditional family farms, and peaceful natural beauty.

Experience Cuba Hosted by Gardner Tours

Gain an enlightened understanding of why travelers have fallen in love with Cuba for centuries—all backed by Gardner Tours' signature warm hospitality and private care.

Explore the authentic roots of what makes Cuba great. Select your travel dates above and book your private tour today!

Day One: Arrival in Viñales & Tobacco Farm Tour

Based upon the time you choose to be picked up in Havana or upon the time your flight arrives at José Martí International Airport in Havana, your professional guide will meet you to begin your tour! Following a quick meet and greet and an overview of your tour, you will take off for Viñales. After arrival to Viñales, you will get settled into your BnB, then kick your tour off by enjoying lunch at a restaurant of your choice (your guide can recommend a great restaurant if you like) on the city’s main street! You will then have the opportunity to either rest a bit and get acclimated to the slow pace of Viñales or take off for a tour of a local tobacco farm where you will receive an education on Cuban tobacco from seed to harvest from a local campesino (farmer). Depending on the season and availability of tobacco, you might even get to help in the process of harvest or roll your own cigar! At the end of the Tobacco Farm Tour, you will have the opportunity to kick your feet back with the farmers and enjoy a smoke, a drink, and the view as long as you please.

Following, you will be transported to what many claim as the best view in all of Cuba, a panoramic view of the Viñales Valley. You will see farms and mogotes (random mountainous formations in the valley) for miles and dream of what life was like as the natives roamed the land. Following a time of relaxation and photographs at the viewpoint, you will be taken just a short walk away to a restaurant with one of the best views in all of Viñales. You will taste their exquisite cuisine and relax as you soak in the view and assume the slow-paced lifestyle of the campesino. And if you’re one to enjoy a Cuban cocktail, this restaurant places a bottle of rum on your table and simply explains, “Here is a bottle for your table, in case you would like to add more rum to your cocktail.” Your dinner will include a drink, appetizer, entrée, dessert, and a coffee, and we can guarantee that you’ll walk away from your dinner satisfied and refreshed, ready for a big night in Viñales! If you choose, after dinner, your guide will drop you off at your BnB. If you desire to explore the nightlife of Viñales, you will be free to do so.

Day Two: Valleys, Caves & Culture

At the arranged time you choose, your professional guide will meet you at your BnB to begin your day. First, you will be transported deep into the valley to the Cave of Saint Thomas, part of Cuba’s largest cave system (over 46km of continuous caves) for a 75 minute guided tour of the caves. The difficulty of the cave tour is light to moderate with the initial ascent being the most difficult. If you choose not to forego the Cave of Saint Thomas, our guides will gladly adjust and introduce you to another part of the valley.

Following your tour of the Cave of Saint Thomas, you will be driven to a local farm for an extensive education on Cuban coffee from a local farmer. There you will have the opportunity to learn the entire process that Cuban coffee undergoes from plant to espresso. Depending on the season and availability of coffee, you might even get to help in harvest and join in the process all the way from picking the beans to brewing your own espresso! After the coffee experience, you will have the opportunity to eat lunch at a local restaurant. If you desire a more relaxed lunch, you can arrange to eat a home cooked meal at your BnB.

After an amazing lunch, you will then have the opportunity to kick your feet back and relax. In the afternoon, you will have the option of learning and playing Cuban dominoes with a group of our local friends or experiencing another cave tour, the Cave of the Indian, where you will encounter a performance by the natives and finish on a boat through the cave.

To finish your evening in the most immaculate style, after cleaning up, your car will take you into the valley to a former tobacco farm that has been converted into an acclaimed restaurant manned by a Cuban chef that can’t be matched (trained by the King’s Chef in Spain). You will dine at what we claim is Cuba’s best restaurant and experience true Cuban hospitality and the fine food that comes with it! Your dinner will include a drink, appetizer, entrée, dessert, and coffee. We can guarantee that this will be the best dining experience that you will have in all of Cuba. The view, the hospitality, the cuisine, and the atmosphere simply can’t be beat.

If you choose, after dinner, your guide will drop you off at your BnB. If you decide to explore the nightlife of Viñales, you will be free to do so.

Day Three: Final Taste & Departure

Most like to take the last morning easy, but if you desire to get out and about on your last morning in Viñales, your guide will meet you at your chosen time to explore and get your final taste of the Cuban countryside. You will have time to purchase any last-minute souvenirs from local artisans and take those photos that you may have missed.

After lunch at the location of your choice, you may return to your BnB and complete any last-minute packing before the ride to your chosen location in Havana.

If, by chance, you are flying out on this day, this might affect your itinerary a little, but we will arrange your airport transportation and ensure that you arrive on-time.

Included

• Professional Guide*
• Transportation
• Accommodations at BnB*
• Two Nights in Viñales
• Breakfasts (2) & Dinners (2)
• Panoramic View of Viñales Valley
• Tobacco Farm Tour*
• Cuban Coffee Experience
• Optional Cuban Dominoes Experience
• Optional Cave Tour
• Detailed Itinerary & Tour Packet
• Seasonal Packing List
• Emergency Support

Not Included

• Airfare
• Cuban Visa
• Lunch
• Alcoholic Drinks
• Tips (Guide, Drivers, etc)

More Information

* See the What to Expect tab for details on starred items.

WHAT TO EXPECT ON YOUR TOUR

On this Viñales Valley Tour, you can expect your complete itinerary from transportation, accommodations, private tours, and meals to be previously arranged and paid for by your guide. You will be accompanied the entire tour by a Gardner Tours professional guide, educated on Cuban culture, history, tobacco, coffee, etc, and all we require of you is to simply enjoy yourself! In the event that something changes or doesn’t go exactly as planned, please be patient and courteous, as we guarantee that our guides will handle any challenges with timely grace to ensure that you are taken care of and that you get the authentic Cuban experience you desire.

You will be picked up and dropped off in Havana at the most convenient location to you, whether it be at the airport or your BnB.

Your Tour Guide

Each of our guides are well versed in their culture and able to answer almost any question you may have for them! You will have complete freedom to take your tour at the pace you please, deciding to sit and enjoy the view as long as you desire, asking the tobacco farmer as many questions as you want, or simply enjoying your dinner just a little longer than you normally would. Your guide will give you time and space to enjoy your lunch each day as you like (with or without them). They meet you at the arranged time each morning to begin your day and will drop you off at your BnB each night. They will serve you along the way and ensure that you are well taken care of during your entire stay.

Viñales Valley Tour Accommodations

Your accommodations will be at a Cuban BnB equipped with air-conditioner as well as a private bathroom. Each of our accommodation partners provide private rooms with a full bed and a twin bed, and can occupy up to three persons per room. If you desire to share a room with your travel companions (up to three persons per room), please specify in the details of your booking.

Cuba Tobacco Season

Tobacco season in Cuba is during the dry season, with planting season starting in late October and harvest season from January to early April. If you book outside of these months, know that you might see barren lands, but we guarantee that you will experience the same education and tobacco experience as if you were visiting in-season. You might not get to witness the acts of planting or harvest, but you will encounter the world’s greatest tobacco culture at work.

Our Guarantee To You

Gardner Tours is committed to delivering you the most hospitable and entertaining tours offered in Cuba! If you have questions or would like to adjust this tour in any way, feel free to contact us and we will gladly accommodate your desires.