Havana with Kids: Classic Cars, Coconut Ice Cream, and Caribbean Color

Plaza de Armas

Start your first morning in Cuba at Havana's oldest square, where kids can browse the secondhand book market stalls for old Cuban comics and baseball cards while parents take in the colonial architect

El Dandy

This beautifully restored colonial restaurant on Calle Brasil is one of the most family-friendly lunch spots in Old Havana, with an airy interior courtyard and a menu that includes black bean soup, ro

Museo del Ron Havana Club

Despite the name, this interactive rum museum on Avenida del Puerto is genuinely engaging for families because of its detailed scale model of a 1930s sugar mill and the full-size distillery replica yo

El Floridita

Ernest Hemingway made this bar-restaurant famous and the bronze statue of him at the counter is an easy photo stop for families passing through after the museum. Order daiquiris for adults and the hou

The Malecon Seawall Walk

The five-kilometer esplanade running along Havana's northern shore is the city's great public living room and an easy late-afternoon walk with kids, where you will find fishermen, teenagers on bicycle

Museo de la Revolucion

Housed in the former Presidential Palace, this sprawling museum tells Cuba's history through photographs, weapons, uniforms, and personal artifacts, and the outdoor Granma Memorial pavilion where the

Coppelia Ice Cream Park

This legendary state-run ice cream parlor in the heart of Vedado has been serving enormous scoops of Cuban ice cream since 1966 and joining the local queue is half the experience, as families from acr

Necropolis Cristobal Colon

This massive Victorian cemetery sounds like an unusual family stop but it is one of the most extraordinary outdoor spaces in all of Latin America, with elaborate marble mausoleums, sculptures, and the

Callejon de Hamel

This narrow alley in the Cayo Hueso corner of Centro Habana is painted floor to ceiling in Afro-Cuban murals and filled with sculptures made from recycled bathtubs, car parts, and found objects, and o

Classic American Car Tour with Nostalgia Car Club

Booking a convertible 1950s American car through one of the established Nostalgia Car Club drivers for a one-to-two-hour city loop is an absolute highlight for kids of all ages and one of the most ico

Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro

The 16th-century fortress guarding the entrance to Havana Harbor is reached by a short ferry crossing from Habana Vieja and gives kids an authentic Spanish colonial fortification to explore, complete

La Guarida

Havana's most celebrated paladar (private restaurant) occupies a crumbling mansion staircase in Centro Habana and was the filming location for the Oscar-nominated film Strawberry and Chocolate, and it

Parque Lenin

This sprawling green park on Havana's southern edge is where Cuban families go on weekends for picnics, horseback riding, rowing, and simply being outside, and it offers a genuine break from the inten

Acuario Nacional de Cuba

Located in Miramar rather than the park but a natural pairing for a southern and western Havana day, Cuba's national aquarium has dolphin shows, shark tanks, sea turtle exhibits, and a touch pool with

Paladar Los Naranjos

This well-regarded private restaurant near Parque Lenin serves traditional Cuban food in a relaxed outdoor setting, making it a good end-of-day option when families are coming back from the park and w

Taller Experimental de Grafica

This working printmaking studio on Callejon del Chorro in Old Havana lets visitors watch Cuban artists pulling prints from antique lithographic presses and the prints are available to purchase directl

Casa de la Musica Miramar

The Miramar branch of Havana's famous live music venue holds weekend matinee performances that are family-appropriate, starting in the late afternoon with salsa and timba bands that represent some of

Feria del Malecon Artisan Market

The long-running craft and art market stretching along the Malecon offers the best selection of Cuban souvenirs in the city, from hand-painted vintage car prints and Che Guevara posters to handmade je

La Bodeguita del Medio

Hemingway's other famous Havana haunt on Calle Empedrado is a fitting final lunch for a family leaving the city, with walls covered in decades of graffiti signatures, a menu of Cuban classics like pic

Cafe El Escorial

This beautifully preserved colonial cafe on Plaza Vieja roasts its own coffee on-site and the smell alone makes it worth a final morning visit, with strong Cuban espresso for adults and house-made hot

Museo del Chocolate

A short walk from Plaza Vieja, this small museum and working chocolate shop on Calle Amargura lets kids watch chocolate being made by hand and purchase bars, truffles, and hot chocolate to take home a