Matanzas is a city in western Cuba, famous for its beaches, scattered throughout its territory. Among them is Varadero, one of the most famous in the world.
However, this time I want to tell you about a different experience. Another wonderful choice in this region for sightseeing, sailing and swimming. It's the Cumanayagua River, a spectacular paradise that is on the outskirts of the city, but still very close to it, under the bridge of the same name.
The landscape alone is enough to go on a picnic and spend many hours of rest and relaxation. But there is much more. The river, in the area closest to the pillars of the bridge, has shallow waters and wet sandy soil. This is ideal for bathing and swimming, just like on a beach. It's true that these waters are notably cold, but it's super enjoyable anyway.
If you follow a path behind it, you can go on a hiking experience and get to know the surrounding wooded areas, their flora and fauna, which is made up mostly of birds and some small reptiles. This is nature like throughout all of Cuba, without dangers of any kind.
On the other side of the river there is a very modest but comfortable enough motel, which in Cuba is known as "campismo". In general, they are somewhat rustic and quite cheap places.
Some distance away, across the river, is a boat station for rent, since the waters in that area are deeper. Right there, a dance group entertains tourists with a choreography similar to that performed by the aborigines who inhabited the area more than 500 years ago.
Since we arrived here on a trip from Havana, I couldn't afford to enjoy just one of these wonders. So, we took advantage of them all on the same day since we had to get going to enjoy the rest of this beautiful city of Matanzas during our vacations.
Bonus photo: If you leave the bridge behind and follow up that way, you will find yourself in the open sea, less than 1 km from here.
If you liked it, I will continue to show you more of my adventures in this beautiful province that I love and many more places in my country. Until next time!