Vinales Valley is a karstic depression in Cuba, meaning that it is characterized by irregular limestone in which erosion has produced fissures, sinkholes, underground streams and caverns. The valley has an area of 132 sq. km and is located in the Sierra de los Organos, just north of Vinales in the Pinar del Rio Province. The conspicuous cliffs rising like islands from the bottom of the valley are called mogotes. The Viñales valley is encircled by mountains and its landscape is interspersed with dramatic rocky outcrops. Traditional techniques are still in use for agricultural production, particularly of tobacco. The quality of this cultural landscape is enhanced by the vernacular architecture of its farms and villages, where a rich multi-ethnic society survives, illustrating the cultural development of the islands of the Caribbean, and of Cuba. Viñales Valley (Spanish: Valle de Viñales) is a karstic depression in Cuba. The valley has an area of 132 km² and is located in the Sierra de los Organos, just north of Viñales in the Pinar del Río Province. Tobacco and other crops are cultivated on the bottom of the valley, mostly by traditional agriculture techniques. Many caves dot the surrounding hillfaces (Cueva del Indio, Cueva de José Miguel).The conspicuous cliffs rising like islands from the bottom of the valley are called mogotes. Viñales is a major tourist destination offering mainly hiking and rock climbing. The local climbing scene has started to take off in the last few years with many new routes being discovered resulting in an increase in local tourism. Cayo Levisa and Cavo lutias, with more than 3 km and 7 km of beach respectively, are ideal places in which to encounter what is sought after. They are surrounded by warm, clean calm waters which are reminiscent of the way it must have been at the beginning of time. The keys also have outstanding coral reefs which are excellent for diving, snorkeling and boating excursions, diving center. A tour of their coastline gives the visitor a feeling of absolute tranquility while introducing them to a previous unknown and unspoilt beauty, impossible to compare. Many are the attractions that these islets have to offer, such as the trigonia, considered to be the oldest living fossil within Cuba.
A recent addition to the UNESCO World Heritage list, the town of Vinales and the valley in which it is set in Cuba's 'green' Pinar del Rio province, is characterised by its impressive round-topped hills, or mogotes. These date back to the Jurassic period and are covered with rich and varied vegetation, and are remnants of the plateau that was eroded by a network of underground rivers millions of years ago. The Vinales Valley is located about 112 miles (180km) west of Havana. The natural beauty and tranquillity of the valley is interspersed with green fields of tobacco, coffee and other crops that grow out of the rich red earth, where traditional agricultural techniques have remained unchanged for centuries. Scattered palm trees and pine forests shelter a variety of melodious birds, and the area is also a magnet for speleologists, being riddled with limestone caves and caverns. The hilly landscape, quaint villages, oxen-ploughed fields, rustic barns and underground rivers, stalagmites and stalactites provide a striking contrast to the colonial grandeur and white sandy beaches found on the rest of the island. The main valley village, Vinales, is a charming, very laid-back place that makes a good base to explore the beautiful surrounds. Few landscapes in Cuba are naturally as beautiful as Vinales, province of Pinar del Rio. Two of the six World Biosphere Reserves in Cuba are located in this land of natural blessings. One is in the Sierra del Rosario and the other is in the Sierra de Guanahacabibes. The region is rich in unique features such as Valley Mountains, ancient haystack mountains, archaeological enclaves of undeniable archaeological interest and carsic plains. The mix of carsic mountain and geological formations that constitute the haystack mountains in the Vinales Valley combine to make truly wonderful scenery. Vinales Valley offers many attractions. Just as on the painter's canvass, this site brings together the the polychromy of tobacco plantations, fields of crops, and exclusive flora and fauna of unequalled beauty. Even art has been unable to remain indifferent in the face of the overwhelming charms of this site; this landscape has been a continuous source of inspiration for both fine art and literature
This valley nestled among the mountains of Pinar del Rio (Cuba’s westernmost province) has the requisite prehistoric look. The unique landscape is characterized by huge rock formations, known locally as Los Mogotes Carsticos (Karstic Hummocks), caprices of nature formed millions of years ago in Jurassic period and now seemingly suspended in time. This fantastic setting of lush green ferns and palms (part of Vinales Valley’s 10500 acres of natural forests) is complemented by crystalline springs, meadows, fruit trees and plants of Vueltabajo, the cradle of the world’s best tobacco. Monumento Nacional (National Monument), the area’s principal population center, was founded in 1879 and owed its commercial success to the coastal trade that passed through Puerto Esperanza, San Cayetano’s old shipping zone. Whether dispersed among the valley’s depths or forming sierras, the Mogotes are an astonishing site, resembling enormous elephants sleeping alongside the tobacco plantations and Bohios, the rustic dwelling of the campesinos. Their morphology is a result of the erosion caused by time and by water, which has penetrated many Mogotes, forming caverns with subterranean rivers, such as Indio cave, Grand Caverns of Santo Tomas and Majagua-Canteras system: the purity and curative properties of these subterranean water can be enjoyed by the public at the Valle de San Vicente’s hot springs. Common flora is the indigenous Palmita de la Sierra and the slender plants that have had to adapt to the rocky, hostile Mogote environment. ”Palma Corcho” (cork palm), a botanical rarity exclusive to this zone, deserves special mention: It is species estimated to be more than 250 million year old and is still growing, a veritable living fossil. This region offers opportunities for hiking, horseback riding, nature walks, spelunking and photography. The Mural of Prehistory however, is a must; executed on the flank of a Mogote, it is a colossal work that depicts the entire evolution of the Valle de Vinales, from prehistoric cephalopods to the appearance of man. The colorful mural measures 384 ft length and is 576ft high; its author, the Cuban painter, Leovigildo Gonzales, was a disciple of the Mexican master Diego Rivera, whose influence is readily apparent. .
