Replete with cultural and historic attractions, Old Havana is a 350-acre trove of intriguing attractions guaranteed to enthral for days. Its four main squares are graced by an architectural A-list of palaces, castles, and mansions, many turned into restaurants, boutique hotels, galleries, and eclectic museums.

Much of Old Havana is a lived-in a museum: decrepit and now lacking its fortified walls but fascinating for the earth, timeworn appeal of life lived in the darkening shadows of Cuba’s past.

In 1977, Old Havana was declared a national monument, and the following year a major restoration project was declared. The need was urgent: most of Old Havana’s 3,157 structures had deteriorated to a point of dilapidation. Three decades on, having been named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1982, the remarkable effort has lent new vigour to the world’s most authentic colonial collection.