JOIN AUTOMOTIVE & MOTORCYCLE CORRESPONDENT CHARLES FLEMING & ACCLAIMED MOTO-JOURNALIST & CUBA EXPERT CHRISTOPHER P. BAKER ON A THRILLING 7-DAY ENDURO MOTORCYCLE ADVENTURE IN “SUPPORT OF THE CUBAN PEOPLE”
The program is U.S.-legal under the “support for the Cuban people” license, and is arranged and hosted by Germany’s Profil-Cuba-Reisen. Hence, our days will be full of fun meetings with Cubans from all walks of life… such as artists, tobacco farmers, owners of B&Bs and private restaurants, and above all Cuba’s resourceful and indefatigable harlistas (owners of pre-revolutionary Harley-Davidsons) and other motorcycle enthusiasts. In addition to riding “sweep,” ensuring the cohesion of the group, and attending to logistics, Christopher brings something unique to this tour… an ability to share a profound knowledge of Cuba, providing unparalleled context for your travel experience.
CHARLES FLEMING
Charles Fleming writes about automobiles and motorcycles for the Los Angeles Times. An avid adventure motorcyclist, he has a passion for all things relating to autos and motos and has written extensively about motorcycle touring around the world. Charles has also reported since 1987 as staff writer, editor and columnist for Newsweek, Variety, LA Weekly and The Los Angeles Herald Examiner, and as a freelancer for Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, Playboy, Time, The New York Times, New York Magazine, and McCalls, among others. His many best-selling novels include After Havana, a delicious crime novel about the sour twilight of the Batista empire in pre-revolutionary Cuba. In November 2019, Charles and Christopher co-led the Los Angeles Times Expedition trip ‘Cuban Chrome’ for automotive and motorcycle enthusiasts.
CHRISTOPHER P. BAKER
No-one knows Cuba as well as Christopher, the Lowell Thomas Award 2008 ‘Travel Journalist of the Year’ and author of six travel guidebooks about Cuba. National Geographic acclaimed him “one of the world’s leading authorities on Cuba travel and culture.” In 1996, Chris shipped his BMW R100GS PD to Cuba and made a three-month, 7,000-mile journey as a licensed journalist, resulting in publication of his Moon Cuba guidebook and his award-winning travelogue Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro’s Cuba. In January 2013, Christopher led the first licensed U.S. motorcycle group tour of Cuba end-to-end since the 1959 Revolution. He has since led many motorcycle tours in Cuba on behalf of MotoDiscovery, Edelweiss Bike Travel, Bob’s BMW of Maine, and the BMW Riding Academy of Turkey, plus almost one hundred tours to Cuba for National Geographic Expeditions and others.
LUIS ENRIQUE GONZÁLEZ
Luis Enrique González has more experience leading group motorcycle tours in Cuba than any other Cuban road guide. Between 2013-16 he worked alongside Chris to lead the first motorcycle tours in Cuba for U.S. citizens using BMW 1200GSs, F700s, and a medley of Harley-Davidsons. Since 2017, he has been lead guide for Profil-Reisen and has led scores of tours of Cuba end-to-end. An English-speaker, he’s a natural raconteur with a Rolodex of contacts throughout Cuba (his personal history includes as a Lieutenant in Cuba’s Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias in charge of an anti-aircraft battery in Angola in the 1980s). Luis is responsible for maintaining Profil-Reisen’s fleet of F700 GSs in Cuba. A superb mechanic, Luis exemplifies Cubans’ resourcefulness, ingenuity and indefatigable good humor. When not leading tours, Luis loves tinkering with his collection of pre-revolutionary Harley-Davidsons and 1948 Buick.
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ITINERARY (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Day 1: Meet in Havana
The U.S. “support for the Cuban people” license allows individuals to travel freely to Cuba as they wish. We’ll meet this evening at our B&B in Habana Vieja (Old Havana) for a welcome reception. Our welcome dinner will be nearby at Chacón 162, a popular bikers’ bar and restaurant.
Meals: D
Overnight: Hostal Maletas, Habana Vieja
Day 2: Havana / Las Terrazas & Soroa
After breakfast, we discover the colonial-era core of Havana, which celebrated its 500th anniversary in November 2019. Chris will guide us on a walking tour through the cobbled pedestrian-only plazas of this magnificent historical quarter. After an early lunch in Plaza Vieja, we return to our hotel to change into our motorcycle gear and pick up our motorbikes. In order to get familiar with your bike, we’ll make a circuit of greater Havana, including such iconic sites as the Malecón, Plaza de la Revolución, and “Fusterlandia,” where we’ll marvel at artist José Fuster’s amazing community project. Passing through Mariel, we reach the low Sierra del Rosario mountain range and the nature reserve of Las Terrazas. After a brief stop for coffee in this exquisite lakeside mountain community, we continue the short distance to Soroa, where we overnight in casas particulares (private B&Bs).
Meals: BD
Overnight: Casas particulares, Soroa
Day 3: Sierra del Rosario / Las Terrazas / Viñales
After breakfast with your hosts, we’ll combine the deteriorated Circuito Norte coast road and backcountry mountain trails that lead through the stunning Sierra de los Órganos mountains to “Cueva de los Portales.” This cave is fantastically situated and was used as headquarters by Ernesto Che Guevara during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1960. We’ll have further off-road training from Shawn before continuing our tour to Viñales. This colonial-era village is in the midst of Cuba’s most impressive scenery—the Valle de Viñales—studded with massive freestanding mogotes (limestone formations) that rise over the tobacco fields.
Meals: BLD
Overnight: Casas particulares (B&Bs), Viñales
Day 4: Sierra de los Órganos
Today we’ll have fun on the endures exploring the Valle de Viñales and Sierra de los Órganos mountains along routes that offer plenty of challenges, including water crossings… mud pools… and eroded hillsides. Our route will include a visit to Gran Caverna de Santo Tomás, one of the world’s largest cave systems. Tonight, we recommend you enjoy dinner at your B&B.
Meals: B
Overnight: Casas particulares (B&Bs), Viñales
Day 5: María La Gorda / Cabo San Antonio / Pinar del Río
An early start for a long day today as we follow a sensational and little-trafficked route through the Cordillera de Guaniguanico mountains via Guane and Sumidero to Parque Nacional Guanahacabibes. We’ll lunch beside the Caribbean Sea at the scuba diving center of María La Gorda before continuing along a stunning limestone peninsula to Cabo San Antonio, Cuba’s westernmost point. We’ll return via the Carretera Central to Pinar del Río city for overnight.
Meals: BD
Overnight: Hotel Pinar del Río, Pinar del Río
Day 6: Vuelto Abajo / Havana
This morning we head through the heart of Vuelto Abajo, Cuba’s main tobacco-growing area, to visit Cuba’s most famous private tobacco farm—Finca El Pinar Robaina. Chris’ friend, owner Hiroshi Robaina. will give us a private tour. We then continue east along the Carretera Central (the arterial road running through Cuba end-to-end) to return to Havana. After return of the motorbikes, the transfer bus takes us back to our B&B in Habana Vieja. After cleaning up, we’ll ride in convertible classic cars to our farewell dinner at La Guarida, Cuba’s most sensational restaurant.
Meals: BLD
Overnight: Hostal Maletas, Habana Vieja
Day 7: End of trip
Today transfer to the airport for your departure flight. Or, if you wish, you can stay more days in Cuba.
THE BIKES
We’ll ride BMW F700 GSs exclusively. Each will be fitted with twin side panniers. No support van will accompany this tour… so travel light!
Dates
TBD
Price
$TBD
Services included
Rental motorbike (from noon of 2nd day until 2pm of penultimate day)
English-speaking Cuban road guide
Services of Charles Fleming and Christopher P. Baker
6 overnight stays in hotels and/or casas particulares (B&Bs)
Meals as indicated
Luggage storage for duration of tour
Maps for every stage
Not included
Fuel (full-to-full-rule): roughly around 130 Euro
International flights
Airport transfers
Cuba visa
Support vehicle during tour
“Christopher… I gave the tour a 99 on a 100 scale as I can’t imagine it gets much better than we experienced in Cuba.
You did everything well and made sure that everyone in the group had a very memorable trip.”
BOB HENIG, BOB’S BMW of MAINE 
