Sugar Mill Valley

The Sugar Mill Valley known as “Valle de los Ingenios” whose official name is Valle de San Luis. This beautiful region source of heritage of the ancient Cuban city of Trinidad. As well as due to the historical importance that this valley had, its archaeological representation in the Cuban sugar industry, its geography and originality of its landscape was declared by UNESCO in 1988 a World Heritage Site.

Valle de los Ingeios is located between the Escambray mountains and the Caribbean Sea. To have a better impression of the valley and take some good pictures, we recommend you visit the famous Iznga Tower, from whose top you can enjoy the panoramic view of the valley and in turn take the best pictures of the valley.

The history of the valley is as old as that of the city. At the time of the discovery of Couba its native inhabitants “Tainos” cultivated tobacco, which was assumed by the Spaniards as soon as they settled in the territory. On the banks of the Arimao, Caracusey and Agabama rivers, there were tobacco plantations since the beginning of the 17th century. The valley was also the support of cattle ranching and the cultivation of fruits, which transformed the region into one of the most important settlements for exchange and production on the island.

The arrival in 1655 of Spanish emigrants from Jamaica contributed to the development of the sugar industry in an area that had optimal conditions for the production of sugar.

The highlight of the valley is the estate Manaca Iznaga, on which more than 100 slaves lived in its heyday. The main attraction of this country estate is next to the well-preserved colonial house of the plantation owner of the Torre de Iznaga. This 45-meter-high tower was used to monitor the slaves but also that sugar baron Alejo Iznaga could demonstrate his superiority to the competition in the form of his brother. At the foot of that very tower is a bell with which the slaves were called to work. A bit away from the country house are the barracones, small huts which served the slaves as accommodations. Other worth seeing objects in the Valle de los Ingenios include the 18th-century Guachinango estate or the village of San Pedro, a typical example of a traditional sugar-growing town.

You also have the possibility to take a trip through the history of this beautiful region by train, where you can learn more about the Valley.