Thinking about holidays to Cuba? Varadero, situated on the North coast of the province of Matanzas, Cuba, Hicacos peninsula, was not always the world famous beach of the Caribbean which we all wish to visit.
The first to discover the wonders of the area were Aboriginal, judging by the existence of pictograms which appear to reproduce the image of the Spanish conqueror. And although it is not certainly known when was the arrival of the conquistadores at this beach, already in 1555 a French geographer Testu map reflects, clear and almost faithfully, the current territory of Varadero.
The first attempt to create a settlement dates back from 1815. It was finally in 1883 when the first community was founded. However, the beautiful beach was virtually unknown in the rest of the island, mainly because of road communications and also because the fashion at the time was spending the summer in Europe.
Since the first decade of the 20th century, some Americans recognized the magnificent natural conditions of Varadero beach and were attracted by its magnificent qualities. The First World War closed the European spas, forcing the rich Cubans to turn their eyes to Varadero and that is how it all started.
And so Varadero became really popular. In the 1980s was one of the favourite beaches in Cuba for domestic tourism.
So far Varadero has seen the rise of hundreds of hotels managed by the Cuban Governet and dozens of reputable international hotel chains such as Sol Melia, LTI, RIU, horizons, Iberostar, Grand Caribbean, among others. Diving Centers, supermarkets, restaurants and nightclubs have opened, and resources for the enjoyment of various nautical and land-based activities, rent of bicycles, motorcycles and cars have been implemented.
The seaside resort of Varadero reached the figure of one million foreign visitors in 2011, figure that for the fourth consecutive year records the main beach holiday destination in Cuba.