Valle de Viñales is a beautiful and lush valley encircled by mogotes—freestanding, flat-topped, sheer-sided rock formations -  in the Pinar del Rio province of Cuba, some 190km west of Havana. Deep in the valley bottom you find cultivated lands - mainly tobacco, coffee, pineapples and vegetables – using old-fashioned farming methods. The town of Viñales, UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2009, has only two main streets where most of the buildings are one-story colonial casas, with most of them offering rooms for rent to tourists.

We went riding through the valley on our semi-automatic horses named Mullato and Caramelito. Semi-automatic? Well, the horses knew our scheduled stops without any direction from us. We started off in a tobacco farm, learnt about the cigar making process from planting of the seeds up until the point of sale, then of course we tried some cigars with mojito. What better breakfast? Later we visited the indian cave, a lake and a mirador bar for some sugarcane drink. Right next to the bar a farmer showed us his farm with cocoa, banana, orange, coffee beans, cinnamon tree and other crops.

For people who love nature and a quiet peaceful atmosphere, plan a few days in Viñales! For people who love their cigars, the National park has to be at the top of your list, if only for one night.

Can we please take a moment to appreciate the handsome cowboy below?

Interesting Fact: It is illegal to kill a cow in Cuba, where all cattle are technically owned by the state. You face a jail sentence of up to 20 years for illegally slaughtering a cow.

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