Travel and tour to Soroa in Cuba. Cycling and mountaineering. Soroa waterfall

If a trip to Cuba is planned, undoubtedly, Soroa must be part of the itinerary, so we decided to start with the orchid garden. This site is located in the “Sierra del Rosario” Biosphere Reserve, on the outskirts of the municipality of Candelaria and is an essential place for a trip to the town.

Before January 2011 it was part of the Pinar del Río territory; But as of the implementation of the new administrative division in Cuba, it became, together with San Cristóbal and Bahía Honda, the geography of the province of Artemisa.

The guide explained to us that it already includes a little more than 20 thousand specimens and that the Canary Tomás Felipe Camacho is responsible for the creation of The Orchid Botanical Garden of Soroa, because in this place he found consolation after the painful loss of his wife and his daughter.

This year marked the 61st anniversary of the idea and due to its natural value, the wealthy lawyer was made a member of the Cuban Orchid Society affiliated with the American Orchid Society and the Eastern Orchid Congress, with plants from Asia and America.

At this time it has become an experimentation center, where very serious studies are carried out on each of the orchid variants, through in vitro tissue culture and reintroduction into their natural environment. It has 35 thousand square meters.

A mogote surrounds the site and serves as a lookout point. The Hotel is a few minutes away. The tourist complex has a special offer of mineral-medicinal baths based on thermal waters in collective pools. The guide explained that you could practice cycling and mountaineering.

In addition, later we witnessed the walks along the banks of the Manantiales River, following the path of the baths in the so-called Poza del Amor. They have shallow depth and crystal clear waters, perfect for enjoying a pleasant bath. We finish at the emblematic Salto de Soroa. It is one of those wonderful places that I recommend for an excursion in Cuba.

«The green route of the French coffee plantations» ruins from the 19th century, the Bayate river and the El Brujito-La Comadre peasant community, ended up being part of our journey. Then we learned that the coffee plantations Independencia, La Esperanza and La Merced were founded by settlers who fled Haiti as a result of the Haitian Revolution.

On the highest hill in Soroa the day ended at the restaurant El «Castillo de Las Nubes», where we were offered a delicious dinner. At the entrance, as if made from a single piece, we found a rarity: it was a table made of ebony wood. Once again we are sorry to have found the right place.

Do you know Soroa?