Yumuri to Guantanamo Surfing

Beyond the postcard clichés of Mojitos, salsa dancing and cigars, Cuba has consistent surf along the Habana seaside promenade. The country also hides decent waves in warm, tropical and largely empty water. Blocked from the bulk of Atlantic wave activity by the fringe of the Bahamas, Cuban surfing is a winter-only affair with the northeastern coast gathering up only the biggest swells as they filter between gaps in the Bahamas. This stretch lacks consistency but when the waves arrive they hit all manner of beaches, bays and rocky headlands. Fortunately, northern Cuba also has another source of surf, the big storms that reliably churn out of the Gulf of Mexico and send stormy swell marching towards the north western corner of the island, around Havana. A third and much rarer swell generator comes from lows passing below the island, normally in the form of hurricanes, which can produce massive waves for the south coast of Cuba.