The Cuban archipelago, full of natural, cultural and historic attractions for vacationers, is one of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in the Caribbean region.

A wide range of recreational options are available for thousands of foreign tourists who visit the island nation every year to spend their vacations.

In addition to dozens of excellent beaches throughout the country, the Caribbean Island offers architectural assets brought from Spain and carrying a strong European influence from the years that followed the colonization period.

Precisely, the five-century-old village of San Cristóbal de La Habana, one of the first villages founded by the Spanish conquistadors, is one of the most faithful exponents of Spanish colonial architecture in Cuba and its prominence dates back to the late 16th century.

Called at the time the Fortified City of the West Indies and the Key to the New World, Havana is at present a living museum showing a wide range of architectural styles, as a result of the different stages of the development of the city.

For those who want to stay in an environment full of centuries-old memories, the company Habaguanex S.A. runs a broad network of hotels in Old Havana.

The heart of the Cuban capital consists of a series of castles, fortresses and highly valuable buildings constructed around a system of squares, monasteries and temples.

Those open spaces, especially the Arms, Cathedral, Old, Cristo and San Francisco squares, marked the design of the so-called inner city.

Moreover, Cuba's mountainous ecosystems also attract foreign visitors, who enjoy excursions and stay overnight in the countryside.

The Caribbean Island has four mountain ranges that cover about 21 percent of the country's territory, 37 percent of which is covered by forests.

Cuba's mountains, particularly those in the eastern region, are considered major centers of evolution, dispersion and endemism in the Antilles.

Precisely, that peculiarity of Cuba's mountainous ecosystems resulted from the fact that those regions were the first areas in the archipelago to emerge from the sea, so they benefited from the long evolution of its flora and fauna.

The Caribbean Island is inhabited by some 16,500 animal species, including some zoological groups whose endemism is over 90 percent. Cuba's fauna includes arthropods, mollusks, amphibians, reptiles and birds.

In addition, more than 1,700 plant species, 51 percent of which are endemic, can be found in Cuba's highlands, where 3,000 varieties of mushrooms grow.