Havana

The coastline of downtown Havana, Cuba. With over 5,200 km/3,250 mi of coastline, Cuba is a popular destination for scuba divers and water sports enthusiasts. This stretch of seafront is occupied by the major hotels of the city.

Founded in 1515, Havana still retains much of its 16th-century Spanish architecture. During this period, it thrived as the main stop for Spanish ships weighed down with gold on their way back to Spain. The gold attracted the attentions of pirates, so Havana developed as a very well-fortified city.

Capital and port of Cuba, on the northwest coast of the island; population (2002) 2,201,600. Products include cigars and tobacco, sugar, coffee, and fruit. Moved to its present site in 1519, it is one of the oldest cities in the Americas. The old city centre was designated a World Heritage Site in 1981, and the oldest surviving building in the city and in Cuba is La Fuerza, a fortress built in 1538.

Founded on the south coast as San Cristobál de la Habana by Spanish explorer Diego Velásquez in 1515, it was moved to its present site on a natural harbour in 1519. It became the capital of Cuba in the late 16th century. Taken by Anglo-American forces in 1762, it was returned to Spain in 1763 until independence in 1898. The blowing up of the US battleship Maine in the harbour that year began the Spanish-American War.

Notable buildings include the 18th-century cathedral, the Palace of the Spanish Governors (1780), the National Library, and El Capitolio (1929), a capitol building that houses the Cuban Academy of Sciences. The University of Havana dates from 1721.