Isla de la Juventud

Located just 100k south of Cuba is the Isla de la Juventud, which is also known as the island of youth. There are hundreds of islands scattered around mainland Cuba, but Juventud is the largest of all in the Archipelago de los Canarreos, and is quite literally an island paradise. The beaches are made up of soft white sand, and the shallows are peppered with coral.

The capital of the island is Nueva Gerona, and although a thriving town, development here has seemed to have slowed down, with just as many horse drawn carriages on the road as there is cars and trucks. The city was founded in 1830, and has some architecture feats that bring visitors in year after year. It is a low key and relaxing place, and can be explored in its entirety over a weekend. Despite its sleepy existence, the island has a long and notorious history that is just waiting to be discovered.

Although it is not many people first choice of place to stay, it is a great place to visit from your Cuba holiday rental on the mainland. Greatly unaffected by the tourist trade, it has an authentic charm, where you can relax and unwind after seeing some of the more flamboyant sights in the cities of Havana and Santa Domingo.

For those wanting to delve a little deeper into the island’s history, in the south you will find a collection of cave paintings that are pre-Columbian. There is also an interesting museum close to the capital in the abandoned prison of Presidio Modelo.In the past the island was also popular with pirates, therefore was once known as ‘Treasure Island’, plus J M Barrie is also thought to have drawn on accounts of the island when writing Peter Pan.

Unfortunately, thanks to same huge hurricanes over recent years, the island has suffered some serious storm damage, and the local are only just able to start making the necessary repairs to bring the island back up the splendour that it once was.