discover vinales

My husband and I did two tours with Yaniel. He loved the tobacco tour but the stunning vistas tour was my favourite. The hike was challenging in a good way (we climbed part of a Mogote, afterall), and it made the views from the top all the more rewarding. I loved seeing the Cuban countryside and I particularly enjoyed ending the tour with fresh bananas and pineapple at a local tobacco farmer's farm. Yaniel spoke very good english and was very knowledgeable. He is from a small town outside of Vinales so our casa owner did not know him, but he took us into the countryside near his village, which allowed us to get away from all the tourists in Vinales. I would highly recommend this tour!

We did the Discover Vinales tour with Yaniel.As we didn't have a car we rented a taxi to go around the various attractions.Both Yaniel and the taxi driver are very nice and helpful and at your service.As part of the tour we visited a tobacco farm,can't remember the name of the farmer but he was a lovely person and we enjoyed the time smoking cigars with him.The highlight of the tour for us was the Indian cave.We really had a great time with Yaniel and can recommend his tour if you want an expert guide to take you around Vinales.

Everything said on this site about Yaniel is true. He is highly knowledgeable in many areas, courteous, friendly, speaks excellent english . We booked Photo Tour a week before our vacation started. Yaniel responded to emails promptly. As we were to stay in Havana, Yaniel arranged a private car driver for the entire day and a lunch in an organic farm restaurant.My husband has a medical condition that makes him feel physically exhausted if people talk fast or loud around him. I asked Yaniel in an email to follow some rules to make the tour enjoyable for us. Yaniel remembered the rules, was extremely considerate, asked if we would like to leave the car and walk for some time. He never rushed us giving enough time to take hundreds of pictures. I talked to Yaniel while we walked between fields and plantations and could feel how deeply he loves nature and people of Vinales area and the way people leave there. I highly recommend Yaniel as a tour guide.

Highly recommended if you want to see the real Vinales! Yaniel is superb, we saw the real Vinales with him, had lots of fun, amazing meals with the farmers, he's super knowledgeable when it comes to the area, its history, flora and fauna..it was a boutique guided hike for us. we did it for 2 days in row, 8 hours each day.Yaniel is an amazing person, and a great professional. we wish him and his business the best.

I booked the walk with Yaniel before we left England which was easy using email. He had his walks outlined on his website and everything was in English. We chose the Three Valleys walk.There was then two full weeks before this walk so I managed to get the date wrong. Yaniel was very understanding and thankfully managed to fit us in for the next afternoon. We started off with lunch at his favourite restaurant then started the walk from there. The only tourists we saw were some doing horse riding otherwise we came across only the occasional local walking no other tourists. We did get to areas away from the usual tourist routes which is always good and hopefully gives a glimpse of the 'real' country. The walk was interesting but not too taxing. Yaniel is very reliable and does his job well. Worth the money.

Yaniel was extremely professional and a great tour guide with excellent english. He took us to a local authentic plantation where we met the owners and took photos without the pressure of buying cigars (though we did as my husband liked them). He took us to some scenic spots and the highlight was our lunch at a farm. Highly recommend Yaniel and his tours!

When Yaniel is busy, you will be in the safest hands possible with Emilio! He knew so much about everything we would ask him and has been most entertaining with even singing included. We have had an amazing day starting with horse and car, hiking for hours, sigars being rollen for us and so many beautiful views, chats and laughter. All had been taken such good care of and we really had a great time in Casa la Tita as well, the families casa. Perfect experience of Vinales!!

Yaniel guided us through an unforgettable day in what felt like our own private paradise on his Stunning Vistas tour. The Viñales valleys are so stunning, so unspoiled, so full of wildlife and birds and beautiful flora; not to mention friendly and hospitable farmers. Yaniel was a genial, easygoing and knowledgeable companion with a great sense of humour and excellent English (also speaks good French). He found rare and wonderful birds we never thought we'd see, made the hike a real adventure, and told wonderful stories along the way. Our 16-year-old daughter said it was her best day in Cuba by far, and we all agreed (and we love Cuba!). A view into another world and another culture you didn't know existed. Don't miss the lunch at the organic farm - delicious, healthy, and a delightful experience altogether. Thank you, Yaniel - we'll never forget our day with you. Very highly recommended! Also very easy to book by email - Yaniel was quick to reply to enquiries to his website, Discover Viñales. (PS This page is for Yaniel Luiz Alvarez of Discover Viñales - his website is http://www.discover-vinales.com/ - another recent review names a guide called Yadiel Gomez, but I guess they are on the wrong page.)

It seems that everything has already been said about Yadiel Duartes Gomez, the best Tour Guide in Vinales!!!! You can book him through the Museo Vinales, Oficina de Patrimonio or his phone number is 5398937 You will not be disappointed, he deserves 5 Points plus:)Catherine and Rolando

We have spent a day with Yaniel during our trip to Vinales. Unlike other tour guides, he invests a lot of time to undestand ahead of your trip what you want to do and keeps in touch on a daily bases (which is challenging knowing the Cuban internet situation). He has designed a special active tour just for us, avoiding touristy places (and tourists as such), including bike-trip, trekking in the valley of Vinales, visiting a private tobacco farm (with Antonio and his son José Antonio) and a lake. We appreciated his flexibility in organizing the activities as well as the informal but informative style he conducts his tour. Based on his recommendation we had our dinner on an organic farm, where I had the most delicious pig (lechón) of my life. Thanks a lot Yaniel, you made our stay unforgettable!

My wife and I spent 4 days in Vinales in November 2014, and for 2 of those days Yaniel was our guide. WOW - he knows so much about the Vianles valley and Cuba generally (nature, flora and fauna, trails, geology, environment, people, history) and his English is excellent! He also pays a lot of attention to what you want to do, and is always conscious of making sure your activities with him are safe and enjoyable. Plus he's such a courteous and friendly guy, and as you travel around the valley with him it seems he knows everybody. If you're planning to be in Vinales and are thinking of hiring a guide, you can't go wrong with Yaniel!

This was the highlight of our trip to Cuba.Yaniel is determined to give the best and most exclusive tour possible. Avoiding the typical tourist areas, we were the only ones in the beautiful farmlands surrounded by the mountains. He is very fluent in English and seems to know everybody. We went with our 3 kids for a few hours and saw pigs, ox, horses, chickens and how things grow like pineapples, tobacco, bananas. We met a tobacco farmer and had wonderful fruit he had like the best grapefruit ever, cut on the spot and it was delicious. Like stepping back in time the farms are kept up the old way. Charming, interesting and all with this amazing landscape. For us it would be probably the only time we will experience this since these types of areas are very rare and access to these areas are only possible with someone who is a Vinales local and knows all. Thank you Yaniel.

We wanted to make the most of Vinales. It was important to find someone speaking at least english. We were so pleased Yaniel speaks also french fluently. It makes such a difference. We enjoyed this private tour. We visited a tobacco farm, an indian cave and so much more. We ended with a beautiful sunset. We had time to stop by the organic farm where we have excellent cocktails and fantastic meals (highly recommended!). Yaniel really knows the area and we were really happy about the tour. We highly recommend Yaniel as guide, especially if you are looking someone who speaks french or english and knows his stuffs. Thanks again for this wonderful tour!

My wife and I recently spent 2 weeks in Cuba. We had a great experience on 2 days of tours in Vinales with Yaniel. Yaniel is very familiar with what seems to be the best parts of Vinales whether it be nature hikes or cigar and tobacco tours. I especially enjoyed his tour of cigar manufacturing and tobacco farming. He also arranged for lunch which both my wife and I enjoyed as the best food that we had in Cuba. Yaniel’s personal attention helps one to avoid tourist bus crowds. He speaks very good English and I really enjoyed our tours with him.

We did the Discover Vinales Tour with Yaniel and it was just amazing. We visisted a tobacco factory, a tobacco farm where we were shown how cigars are made. Furthermore we saw wall paintings and an amazing cave which we passed in a small boat. The tour took about 4 hrs and Yaniel is really a cool guy. His English is perfect and he told us also a lot of Cuban live and even helped us with the police. :DI just can recommend a tour with Yaniel!