Travel Guide Parque Nacional Desembarco Del Granma

90 km south of Manzanillo beyond Niquero, on the southwestern tip between Cabo Cruz and Pilón. Declared World Natural Heritage by UNESCO in 1999, the area covers 27,545 hectares. Its system of marine terraces, the spectacular cliffs of Cabo Cruz, its caves and a 60% endemic flora justify such a classification. Historically, Fidel Castro and his 81 companions, who left the coasts of Mexico, landed on December 2, 1956 on the beach of Las Coloradas, after six days at sea. On the spot, in Playa Las Coloradas, visit the small museum that traces this journey. More than sixty guerrillas, stuck in the swamps, were decimated by Batista's troops. Twelve of them finally retreated to the Sierra Maestra, among them Raúl Castro, Camilo Cienfuegos, Che Guevara and Juan Almeida.