Cayo Santa Maria - a beach paradise in Cuba - January 2017

Cayo Santa Maria is one of the paradise islands in the immediate vicinity of the island of Cuba, to which the same long road leads from the Estonian mainland to Muhumaa. In other words, it is right next to the island of Cuba and is not considered a separate island or anything like that. We left this beautiful place at the very end of our adventure to enjoy the sun and the beautiful beach and just relax. This coast is an absolute paradise. It does not have to be Cayo Santa Maria, there are many other beautiful destinations, we just logistically chose this place.
Why did we go to this place at the end of our trip? Still because there are some of the most beautiful beaches in Cuba. There are wonderful sandy beaches like Playa Pilar, Playa Flamingo etc in the same area. If you are looking for beautiful beaches in Cuba, this place is for you. We deliberately avoided the crowded resort of Varadero, where the hotel is attached and full of American tourists, to enjoy this seclusion and clean nature.
In any case, we were very satisfied, we spent our last 3 nights there. It was again a nice "human feeling" when we arrived there. In a way, the first day was even a shock. Everything was in abundance, eat as much as you want, eat and drink what you want, all for one price, the choices are insane and everything is in abundance. Cuba is something completely different. In the real Cuba you have to look for places with a match to get something on your plate. Large hotel rooms, spacious pools, open bars, wide and soft beds, the water really comes out of the shower. Amazing!
We thought it was interesting, there may be people who come to the place just for a vacation, for example to Varadero, and then wonder how beautiful this Cuba still is... but that's what it is. A nice point for a varied two weeks in Cuba. We spent the last night in Havana, where we started our tour. Muchas gracias, Cuba!
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Cayo Santa Maria on üks nendest paradiisisaartest, mis on Kuuba saare vahetus läheduses, kuhu viib samasugune pikk tee nagu Eesti mandrilt Muhumaale, põhimõtteliselt. Ehk siis tegelikult kohe Kuuba saare kõrval, ei olegi aru saada, et see oleks nagu eraldi saar vms. Jätsime selle ilusa paiga justnimelt meie seikluse kõige lõppu, et nautida päikest, ilusat randa ja lihtsalt puhata. See rannik on absoluutne paradiis. Ei pea olema just Cayo Santa Maria, tegelikult on seal mitmeid teisigi ilusaid sihtkohti, me lihtsalt logistiliselt valisime selle koha.
Miks me seda paika sihtisime reisi lõpuks? Ikka sellepärast, et seal on ühed ilusamad Kuuba rannad. Seal samas kandis on sellised imelised liivarannad nagu Playa Pilar, Playa Flamingo jne jne. Kui otsida üldse Kuubas ilusaid randu, siis see kant on õige koht. Meelega vältisime turistidest pungil olevat Varadero kuurorti, kus hotell hotelli küljes kinni ning Ameerika turiste täis, et nautida pigem seda eraldatust ja puhtamat loodust.
Jäime igaljuhul väga rahule, veetsime seal oma viimased 3 ööd. See oli mõnus “inimese tunne” taaskord, kui sinna jõudsime. Mõnes mõttes esimesel päeval oli isegi šokk. Kõike oli külluses, söö palju tahad, söö ja joo mida tahad, kõik hinnas, valik on meeletu ja kõike on palju. Päris Kuuba on ju hoopis midagi muud. Päris Kuubas peab tikutulega otsima kohti, et endale taldrikule midagi kokku panna. Suur hotellituba, avarad basseinid, avatud baarid, lai ja pehme voodi, duššist tuleb korralikult vett. Amazing!
Mõtlesime isekeskis, et huvitav, võib ju olla inimesi, kes tulevadki lihtsalt kuurorti puhkama, näiteks Varaderosse, ja siis imestavad kui ilus see Kuuba ikka on…. aga see selleks. Ilus punkt mitmekülgsele kahele nädalale Kuubas. Viimase öö veetsime veel Havanas, seal kus oma ringreisi alustasime. Muchas gracias, Cuba!