camagüey province - lonely planetmedia.lonelyplanet.com/shop/pdfs/cuba-7-camaguey-preview.pdf ·...
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Camagüey Province%32 / pop 780,600
Why Go?Neither Occidente nor Oriente, Camagüey is Cuba’s provin-cial contrarian, a region that likes to go its own way in politi-cal and cultural matters – and usually does – much to the chagrin of folks in Havana and Santiago.
Seeds were sown in the colonial era, when Camagüey’s preference for cattle ranching over sugarcane meant less reliance on slave labor and more enthusiasm to get rid of a system that bred misery.
Today Cuba’s largest province is a mostly pancake-flat pastoral mix of grazing cattle, lazy old sugar mill towns and, in the south, a few low-but-lovely hill ranges. It’s flanked by Cuba’s two largest archipelagos: the Sabana-Camagüey in the north and the Jardines de la Reina in the south, both underdeveloped and almost virgin in places.
Staunchly Catholic capital Camagüey is, with its alluring architecture and cosmopolitan charm surpassed in Cuba only by Havana, pin-up for the province. It’s a fiercely in-dependent city that nurtured revolutionary poet Nicolás Guillén, groundbreaking scientist Carlos J Finlay and an internationally famous ballet company.
When to Go¨¨ There’s debate about the actual year of Camagüey’s
founding (the 500th anniversary is being celebrated in 2014 with innumerable parties) – everyone, however, hits the streets in February to celebrate Jornada de la Cultura Camagüeyana (Days of Camagüeyan Culture).
¨¨ For outdoor enthusiasts, March is prime time for viewing migratory birds on the northern keys.
¨¨ In playa Santa Lucía, the amazing underwater shark-feeding show is held when sharks are in the area between June and January.
¨¨ In September, Camagüey showcases some more of its cultural prowess with the Festival Nacional de Teatro (National Theater Festival).
Best Places to Eat¨¨ Café Ciudad (p332)
¨¨ Restaurante 1800 (p332)
¨¨ El Bucanero (p341)
¨¨ Restaurante Italiano Santa Teresa (p332)
Best Places to Stay¨¨ Gran Hotel (p332)
¨¨ Casa de Magalis (p337)
¨¨ Los Vitrales (p330)
¨¨ Motel la Belén (p336)
Camagüey.................. 325Florida........................336Sierra.del.Chorrillo.....336Guáimaro.................... 337Nuevitas..................... 337Brasil.&.Around..........338Cayo.Sabinal..............338Playa.Santa.Lucía.......339
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Camag
üey ProvinCe .
Camag
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Camag
üey ProvinCe C
AmAGüey.P
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324
Spíritus (40km)Sancti
(68km)Holguín
NuevitasBahía de
GuacanayaboGolfo de
Ana MaríaGolfo de
OCEANATLANTIC
SEACARIBBEAN
Ciego de
ProvinceLas Tunas
ProvinceÁvila
Ciego de Ávila
Las Tunas
Nuevitas
Vertientes
Morón
Cromo
Jobabo
Cascorro
Sibanicú
FloridaMinas
Sola
BrasilEsmeralda
La Tomatera
Contramaestre
Najasa
La Jagua
Altagracia
Senado
Lugareño
La Gloria
Cubitas
Caonao
SecoPalo
del SurSanta Cruz
de BagáSan Miguel
de CéspedesCarlos Manuel
la BelénLa Hacienda
CocodrilosCriadero de
RanchKing
ValentinaEl Canyon 2,Poseidon 2,
Avalon, Pipin, Farallón Meseta de los Meros,La Cueva del Pulpo, Faisy,Cabeza de Coral Negro,
VelázquezFaro Diego
Morteva, Escalón,
MuñozEmbalse
la LecheLaguna de
PorvenirEmbalse
GrandeCayo Paredón
de la Riena
de los Jardines
Archipiélago
Sabana-
yeüg
ama
C
edog
aléi
pihcrA
GuillermoCayo
JudasCayo
CocoCayo
Doce LeguasLaberinto de las
RomanoCayo
Ana MaríaCayo
GuajabaCayo
SabinalCayo
Playa Bonita
Airportdel ReyJardines
Ignacio
AirportInternational
AirportAmeijeirasHermanos
Agramonte
Gómez AirportMáximo
Checkpoint
Playa CuatroVientos
PinosPlaya los
Central
Carretera MáximoSilvestre Río
Refugio de Fauna
Cayo Cruz
Camagüey
Guáimaro
Sierra del Chorrillo
LucíaPlaya Santa
0 40 km0 20 miles
1.retreat.into.the.Sierra del Chorrillo,.harboring.rare.birds.and.petrified.forests.(p336).
2.Watch.dive.instructors.fearlessly.feed.sharks.off.Playa Santa Lucía (p339).3.Discover.huge.flamingo.nesting.sites.on.the.Refugio de Fauna Silvestre Río Máximo (p339).
4.Say.your.penance.in.Camagüey.and.find.Cuba’s.Catholic.soul.in.a.stash.of.colonial.churches.(p328).5.Stop.in.Guáimaro,.where.Cuba’s.first.constitution.was.signed.(p337).
6.Go.fly-fishing.for.tarpon.and.bonefish.in.the.shallow.flats.off.Cayo Cruz (p338).
7.explore.the.most.sophisticated.restaurant.scene.at.one.of.Camagüey’s.delectable.eateries,.like.Restaurante 1800.(p332)..8.Go.shopping.for.fresh.produce.with.the.locals.at.Camagüey’s.Mercado Agropecuario Hatibonico.(p330).
Camagüey Province Highlights