Casa Colonial 'Maruchi'

Santiago de Cuba


This 19th-century colonial with brick walls and museum-worthy furniture is a temple to all things Santería. The three guest rooms feature brass beds with quilts, the upstairs option the most private. All types stay here: santeros (priests of Santería), backpackers and foreign students studying for PhDs on the Regla de Ocha. With encyclopedic knowledge of Afro-Cuban religions, Maruchi can organize presentations.

The food is legendary, and the fecund courtyard equally sublime.