Casa de la Música de Miramar — Local services in La Sierra – Almendares

The straight: Great live Cuban music.

Time and Price: We visited for the early set (4-10) so keep this in mind. We arrived about 5, the live music started around 6:00 and we stayed until about 8. There was a 10cuc cover which is outrageous considering that Doctors in Cuba make about 40cuc a month! Yet there weren't many obvious tourists there. Drinks were more reasonably priced at 2.50 cuc per person.

Music and Dancing: The live music was good and both bands played about 45 minutes each. Prior to them playing there were videos up on the screen. ----- The disappointment for me came in the fact that there was no where to actually dance. The little walking area was where most people would be or they would stack chairs and dance near the table, but there was no sitting to the side and watching or joining on a dance floor, just many chairs and tables. But you can't play Salsa and not expect everyone to want to move so the setup was impractical and I'd actually sat out dancing, which isn't like me. ---- Side note: The bathroom has an attendant and like many places in Cuba, you bring change for her and she'll give you tissue and then soap.

Final: Would I go back? Possibly for some live music, but I'd definitely want to check out other...

One of my FAVORITE experiences from my trip to Havana! We were following a recommendation from a local on places to dance. Got there about an hour before the main showroom opened and were greeted like we were stepping out on to a red carpet. They have a bar waiting area that was fun enough to go to just for a drink. When the main room opened, we were able to choose a table right up at the front. Drinks were available at bars to each side. When the show started we were treated to an old school night club SHOW! The MC was a comedian and quite funny, in Spanish. The crowd was a nice mix of locals and some tourists like us but mostly locals. During the first intermission in the show, music was played and most Cubans will take any opportunity to dance. So we did, with the locals on either side of us. Dancing with breaks to enjoy the show. Left there with the biggest smiles...

Waited in line for around 45 minutes and decided to leave at 11:45 pm. As expected someone offered us a deal to skip the line, $5 each. There were 2 lines, one for "Americans" (tourists) and one for "reservations" (locals). Also some people were going through skipping the line, like VIP's. Bouncer was an a-hole. This was our second and last failed attempt to go out and dance salsa. No queue organization / logistics whatsoever. We stayed at Plaza Vieja but if you stay at a resort (I wouldn't recommend that thought. You might as well go to Florida) they typically have salsa parties. My recommendation: save up to $50 USD in taxis and lots of time and...