Finding A Hidden Beach in Cuba

By Alyssa Ramos

(Note: Sorry if these posts seem rushed or have any errors or missing links – I only get one hour of wifi per day in Cuba!)

Sometimes doing your research really pays off. While brushing up on my extremely rusty history of the Revolucion, and gawking at photos of Che on the flight to Cuba, something stuck out to me that no one had mentioned while recommending places to see while I was there.

‘The only gated community in Cuba, where Che spent months recovering and where he wrote ‘Guerilla Warfare”. My eyes bulged out as I imagined a scruffy, long-haired Che relaxing on the porch of a beach front house in Cuba, writing one of the most infamous books in Cuban history.

Villa Tarará cannot be found on a typical map, and I think it was meant to be that way.

I had actually almost forgotten about it until I saw it on the route path of one of the touristic buses that takes you around Havana, and couldn’t believe my luck! For only 5 CUC (about $5 USD) I could take this tour bus to Cuba’s “only gated community” and see the private beach where Che and Hemingway both used to write their novels!

It only took about twenty five minutes to get to Tarará from Havana Vieja, which makes it one of the closest beaches to get to. When we pulled up, I saw the supposed “gated community”, which consisted of a metal pole-gate that a guard had to hand lift. The community wasn’t entirely what I expected — it looked like houses built mostly in the 1970’s, similar to ones you’d see in Hialeah, but spaced out more with land.

Since the Revolucion made it so that everyone is equal in pay, housing, food, etc., the prestige of the neighborhood circa 1958 was probably way higher, but now it just seemed like a ghost town. I got off anyway, and was the only one on the bus of tourists to do so. I assumed they hadn’t done their research on what made the town so unique.

As I stepped out into the hot, dry air, my ears perked up towards salsa music that I heard coming from behind a large building called “Casa Club”. I followed it around the corner while an enourmous smile crept across my face like I had just found sunken treasure.

Off in the distance was the distinct palate of shimmering hues of blue that went from crystal clear to indigo starting at the white sand shore and stretching off into the horizon.

Before making a mad dash for my found paradise, I decided to sneak up into this Casa Club, where I knew I’d be able to find a Cuba Libre. What better way to celebrate my find than by having a rum and coke on the beach? It turns out this Casa Club is some sort of community center – but it looks like a 5 star resort’s pool. There seemed to be many Hispanic people there, no Americans or Europeans, so I wondered if they lived in the area or were renting rooms in the neighborhood.

Anyway, I got my Cuba Libre and headed out to the beach. All I can say is, WOW! The beach was nearly deserted; only a few young locals hung near a bench, and a woman lounged on a single chair near the shore. Surprisingly, there was someone kite-surfing, but other than that the beach was empty.

Immediately I ran into the water and splashed around for a bit before noticing that further down the beach there was a lot more people. The thing about traveling solo is that sometimes it gets lonely, especially when you’re on a gorgeous deserted beach in Cuba!

That being said, I wasn’t exactly in the lounging mood, especially since I was by myself, so I wandered around for a bit more before waiting for the bus to pick me back up and take me to the final destination of the route — Playa de Santa Maria!