153 Obispo St. on the corner of Mercaderes St., Old Havana ,
Havana, Cuba
(+53) 78609529
yes
About
Ambos Mundos
Much is made of Ernest Hemingway’s predilection for staying at the Hotel Ambos Mundos. He wrote the first few chapters of ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ in room 551, which is now maintained as something of a shrine.
The rooms are comfortable and this also applies to the ground floor bar area, with its cosy, squishy modern sofas. The roof terrace has great views of the Plaza de Armas and environs; for the main advantage of staying in the Ambos Mundos is proximity to all the best and most beautiful parts of Old Havana.
Clients can derive a warm philanthropic glow from the fact that since the hotel is run by the Office of the City Historian of Havana through its company called Habaguanex. All its profits are reinvested in the restoration of the city’s historical centre.
From 15th June 2014 the Hotel Ambos Mundos will start renovation on their 5th floor. All rooms on this floor (including Ernest Hemingway’s museum room) will be closed. The renovation will last for at least 6 months.
Calle Mercaderes No.120, Habana Vieja, La Habana
Tobacco Museum
The Museo del Tabaco (Tobacco Museum) is located within an 18th century building that belonged to the Bartolomé Luque family, in Calle Mercaderes Street, Old Havana. This museum is dedicated to the preservation and display of collections related to the plantations, production and commercialization of Cuban tobacco. It exhibits a large collection of pipes, leaves and other related items, as well as a collection of lithographic stones and machines of important cigar companies. The museum has a small shop where you’ll be able to get different Havana cigars and items for smokers.
Tacon e/ Obispo y O'Relly, Habana Vieja
Arms Square
Plaza de Armas surrounds a statue of the patriot Céspedes and is ringed by shaded marble benches and second-hand bookstalls. This square, founding in 1519, was the city's first open space, around which the most important political, military, religious and civil institutions were located. The palaces that surrounded it during the 18th century are worthy exponents of Cuban Baroque architecture. On the square’s eastern side a small neoclassical temple, El Templete, marks the spot where the first Catholic mass was celebrated in 1519. Next door is one of the city’s most luxurious hotels, Hotel Santa Isabel. To the north, the squat but angular and moated Castillo de la Real Fuerza (Fort of the Royal Forces) is one of the oldest forts in the Americas.
Oficios, e/ Amargura y Churruca, Habana Vieja
San Francisco de Asís Church and Convent
The San Francisco de Asís Church and Convent is the current scenario of the richest cultural traditions. This is one of the most extraordinary convent and church complex of the colonial time. The construction of the current set dates from 1738, and it replaced a more modest one completed in 1591. After a restoration in the nineties, the architectural group has harbored, also, a concert hall and the Holy, Sacred and Religious Art museums. The most significant element of the Church is the Tower 42 meters of height, second in altitude at the colonial time.
Calle Mercaderes No. 114, Habana Vieja, La Habana
Maqueta Museum of Old Havana (Scale Model Museum)
The Museo Maqueta de La Habana Vieja (Maqueta Museum of Old Havana) (Scale Model Museum) hosts a 1:500 scale model of Old Havana, one of the most important of these models in all of Cuba, and is considered as a place of great interest, knowledge and entertainment by its inhabitants. It is continuously updated and is rather impressive due to the incredible attention to detail in its works in regards to some of the most important buildings of Old Havana. This is one of Old Havana’s must-visit museums, as it allows you to imagine what the historical center of Havana is like as a whole, and therefore being able to get a better look at it when walking its streets.
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