The active travel company known for its transformational journeys has curated a new, nine-day plunge into Cuba focused on that country’s soul – its art and music.
Wildland Adventures’ itinerary, Adventure Cuba: Art, Music & Dance that debuts Nov. 10-18, 2018, probes how music and the arts overall have celebrated the revolution and sustained Cubans through decades of deprivations. See: https://www.wildland.com/trips/caribbean/cuba/adventure-cuba--col---art2c-music-26-dance/overview.aspx
“Music and revolution go hand in hand in Cuba, as music in many aspects is a representation of the revolution,” says Kurt Kutay, CEO and President of Seattle-based Wildland Adventures (https://www.wildland.com/) who will be co-leading this departure with company Vice-President, Anne Kutay.
People-to-people moments are staples of all Wildland Adventures. This trip reveals the creativity of 21st century Cubans and stories of their forebears who toiled in sugarcane and tobacco fields but who never stopped singing and dancing.
“We've chosen a variety of artists and a range of both musicians and performance venues from living rooms to community centers and performance stages. Our travelers will experience the vibrant character of Cuban culture, with opportunities for open-ended Q&As in private-audience settings,” he underscores. “The musicians will showcase how deep – and how far reaching – this musical heritage is with a musicologist lecture on the history of Cuban music and performances from Dayme Arocena’s songs reflecting the original Yoruban culture up to contemporary fusion jazz performances.”
This stroll-by way of Havana, Cienfuegos and Trinidad explores how music, art and dance rooted themselves in the Cuban character, helping Cubans endure isolation imposed on them by political isolation and economic blockade as they used art to challenge artificial boundaries and limitations.
Every day this exploration guarantees dialogue with Cubans who are at some level engaged in the arts: culinary, visual including needle and pottery, music, dance, literature and architecture. Some meals are taken with artists and scholars. Farmers markets and, yes, ration stores are mixed into the tour, along with a private sunset cruise and a walk through El Cubano National Park.
Guest accommodations include bed & breakfast-style overnights in casas particulares (private homes) and the glamour of Hotel Nacional de Cuba, a national monument overlooking Havana Harbor that harbors the stories of the rich and famous pre-revolutionary days. Cuban-American Gloria Estefan immortalized the hotel in song. Its gardens include a museum memorializing the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The 2018 scheduled trip date is Nov. 10-18 (additional small group scheduled departures are available and private trips on request). A per person double rate starts at $5,600. A single hotel room supplement is available for $900. Included are:
- all guided tours, group transport (including airport transfers) and excursions;
- entrance fees, speaker fees and private concerts;
- services of two in-country guides;
- accommodations with breakfasts;
- some lunches and dinners;
- gratuities for presenters, luggage service and meals
- limited Cuban medical insurance of only $1,000 coverage;
- People-to-People tour license;
- Wildland Adventures travel consultation and pre-departure services
This itinerary is available upon request for educational and arts groups who seek to expand their familiarity with Cuban culture and music. For organized groups of 12 to 14 the per person, double rate is $5,800. For 15-18 participants the rate drops to $5,600 per person, double, including an American escort from the sponsoring organization.
Local in-country guides use their extensive network of friends and professional colleagues to design in-depth and personal small group experiences for over 18-years leading specialist in tours of Cuba and focusing on Cuba’s burgeoning music world.
For more information on the new Cuba programs as well as all of Wildland Adventures’ worldwide offerings, availability and reservations call 1-800-345-4453 or email [email protected]. Visit http://www.wildland.com/.
Wildland Adventures
Kurt Kutay, Founding CEO/President, and Anne Kutay, Vice-President, established Wildland Adventures in 1986. As active managing directors, they are continuously refining and evolving their Wild Style of travel. The ‘Wild Style’ is based on an ethic of sincerity, compassion and understanding that breaks down barriers of separation to build lasting intercultural, interpersonal, and environmental bonds designed to enhance rather than exploit the people and places where they travel. Rated by National Geographic Adventure as the #1 Best ‘Do-it-all’ Outfitter on Earth and Fodor’s as one of the World’s Best Tour Specialists, Wildland Adventures offers more than 150 unique itineraries on seven continents in 45 countries.