It is just after sunset on the Malecón, and the sea wall is filling up: couples leaning on the stone, fishermen packing up, someone passing a bottle between friends while the traffic runs behind. Further inland, the doorways of Centro Habana open onto small bars where the lights are bare and the conversation is quiet.
Havana's nightlife divides roughly along the lines the city itself does. Old Havana and the hotel districts serve visitors, with polished bars, live music and prices to match; the local neighbourhoods offer something plainer and cheaper, where you will meet Cubans rather than other travellers. The city suits anyone willing to move between the two, and to treat the evening as a walk rather than a schedule.
Where to go out in Havana
1. The Malecón
The sea wall along the coastline is where locals come to party at weekends, and the source's advice is simply to bring a bottle and join in. It costs nothing, it runs for kilometres, and it is at its best late, when the heat has gone.
Suits an evening that starts with a walk and no fixed plan.
2. Paseo del Prado
A lively pedestrian zone full of locals spending their free time. It is a promenade rather than a venue, so the night is whatever you make of it between the surrounding streets.
Suits an early-evening stroll before deciding where to settle.
3. Old Havana's western-style bars
Around the tourist spots of Old Havana and the tourist hotels you will find bars with near-Western prices, a good selection of quality drinks, sometimes food, nice decorations and often live music. Expect to meet other tourists, expats and a few Cubans with access to hard currency; the source is blunt that this is not a local experience, and that bars advertising a Hemingway connection charge more.
Suits a comfortable, familiar night with music and cocktails.
4. Local neighbourhood bars
These are the alternative: a limited but decent selection, mainly locally produced rum by the bottle, beer and soft drinks, with cocktails such as mojitos rarely available. They usually have no prominent sign outside, and you find them by asking or by walking a local neighbourhood and looking for a bare-walled, neon-lit room with a bar, a few rickety chairs and tables and little else.
They are quiet rather than boisterous, music is rarely played, and they are a good way to meet locals. Offering to buy a drink gets a conversation going; the source warns that discussing politics over one is a lose-lose proposition, whichever side you take.
5. Salsa and live-music venues
Nearly every restaurant and hotel in town has a house band playing old favourites. For something more specific, the source names the Casa de la Musica de Centro Habana as the place to be if you like to dance salsa, with different top-rated bands on different nights, so check the programme before buying tickets; La Zorra y el Cuervo, a tiny club below street level on La Rampa near the Hotel Habana Libre, for jazz; and La Tropical, a large venue that opens only for live music, advertised by signs in the streets.
Suits anyone who wants the music to be the reason for going out rather than the background.
6. Cabaret and dinner shows
The source names the Tropicana Show, a 1950s-style cabaret, and Legendarios del Guajirito, similar but smaller and more immersive, which turns into a nightclub after the live show. The Museo del Ron puts on an outdoor 1950s Cuban music show, Buena Vista, which you can watch with or without dinner.
Suits a planned, ticketed evening rather than a wandering one.
7. Vedado
The National Theater, at Paseo and Calle 39 in Vedado, holds concerts, ballet and theatre, though functions are irregular. The source warns that ushers may try to sell you the same ticket shortly before a performance at an inflated price, and advises going to the box office instead. The Bertolt Brecht Cultural Center, on 13th street in Vedado, is where the collaborative group Interactivo plays on Wednesday nights.
Suits a night built around a performance, with the box office as your first stop.
How a night out unfolds
The sources describe the Malecón as a weekend party and the Prado as a daytime and evening gathering place, and note that one named venue keeps going as a nightclub until around 02:00. Beyond that, they do not set out when Habaneros eat, when they go out or how late the city runs, so treat the hours you find on the ground as the reliable guide.
Festivals and events worth timing a trip around
- Latin American New Cinema Festival — held every December, screening international films.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I drink cheaply in Havana?
Local neighbourhood bars are the cheapest option, serving mainly locally produced rum by the bottle, beer and soft drinks. The source also notes good daiquiris and mojitos at affordable prices just outside the Hotel Inglaterra near the Capitólio Building.
Can I get a mojito in a local bar?
Rarely. The source says cocktails such as mojitos are very rarely available in local neighbourhood bars, which concentrate on rum by the bottle, beer and soft drinks.
What is the difference between a tourist bar and a local bar?
Tourist bars, found around Old Havana and the tourist hotels, have near-Western prices, a good drinks selection, nice decorations, often live music and mostly foreign customers. Local bars are plain, quiet, rarely play music, and are a better way to meet Cubans.
Do I need to book in advance for live music?
For the salsa venues, the source advises checking the programme before buying tickets, since different bands play on different nights. At the National Theater, functions are held irregularly, and you should buy at the box office rather than from ushers outside.
Decide before you leave whether you want the polished version of the city or the plain one, and let the evening take its course from there.