Jaunted

Cuba Travel / Restricted Travel / Fidel Castro / Golf / Golf Travel / → All Tags

Golf Travel: Swinging for Cuba

So Americans may be playing less golf, but that doesn't mean it's not a big, ahem, driver of tourism. And now that Fidel's on the way out--and Raul's in charge--at least a dozen golf-and-resort projects are underway around Cuba.

Seems the reason golf never caught on was Castro's taste in sports, though he did once play a game with Che Guevara, above:

Mr. Castro built a state-sponsored sports machine that produced world-famous boxers and baseball players, killer volleyball spikers and fleet-footed runners. But Mr. Castro was never keen on golfers, whose sport reeked of money and Yankee imperialism.

Today, there's only one nine-hole course in the capital, simply called the Havana Golf Club. Thanks to a pricey greens fee of 20 Cuban convertible pesos ($18) it draws more tourists than locals, and soccer great Diego Maradona has been spotted on the links. Also worth a trip is Varadero beach, where one 18-hole course is already open, and another resort is in the works.

Related Stories:
· Hooking Left: Cuba Tees Up Golf's Revival [WSJ]
· Castro Resignation Travel: Can We Go to Cuba Yet? [Jaunted]
· Travel Ban Not Stopping Cuba Tourists [Jaunted]

[Photo: Alberto Korda]