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The lovely neo-classical three star Hotel del Rijo was formerly the residence of the renowned and illustrious doctor Don Rudesindo García Rijo in 1818, after whom it is named. It’s located on the tiny Plazuela Honorato del Castillo looks out toward the 17th-century parish church, Parroquial Mayor del Espíritu Santo, and is very close to the bridge over the Yayabo river, both of which are National Monuments, allows guests to step back in time as they move through the narrow streets of Sancti Spíritus that date back to 1514.
A thoughtful restoration around the Millennium reinvigorated this former dilapidated mansion. You feel like you're stepping back in time as you pass through the tall nail-studded carriage doors to a lobby with wrought-iron chandeliers beneath a sturdy beamed ceiling.
The charming little bar has a small humidor that usually tempts us to buy a stogie and sink into the lobby's leather lounge chairs with mojito in hand. Breakfast is served in the delightful atrium courtyard with Mughal-style fountain.
However, that's it as far as meals go. No worries, as directly across the street, the Mesón de la Plaza replicates a Spanish bodega and delivers excellent Iberian dishes (such as garbanzo with bason and sausage), plus a delicious baked chicken in orange sauce. We've always thought the inflatable plunge pool on the rooftop to be a disaster just waiting to happen. There have been reports of major spillage!
All said, this is one of few provincial hotels in Cuba that should leave you smiling from beginning to end. Not least because it represents excellent value.
This spot hosts live-music shows starting at 10 pm Wednesday through Saturday and on Sunday afternoons.
This refurbished 19th-century building overlooks Plaza Serafín Sánchez and the porticos of the colonial buildings that surround it. It's an impressive edifice, with large, arched doorways. Seating is at sturdy wooden tables, a couple of which have views of the Iglesia Parroquial Mayor. The menu is traditional Cuban with a few twists, such as garbanzo mesonero (garbanzo and pork soup) and ternero a la villa (veal stewed in a clay pot).
Between the muddy Río Yayabo and the Calle el Llano, this ancient yellow manor house with a large, tree-shaded terrace is an appealing spot. Seating is available on the terrace, which has a river view, or inside, where the terra-cotta floors, thick columns, and wide arches attest to the building's lifespan of almost three centuries. Specialties are pollo a la quinta (chicken in a vegetable tomato sauce) and vaca frita (strips of beef sautéed with onions), and an array of creole dishes.
The Parroquial Mayor del Espiritu Santo is one of Cuba's oldest and best-preserved churches. The original church on this site was built in 1522 and made of wood construction but was rebuilt in 1680 in stone. Today the Parroquial Mayor del Espiritu Santo is a Romanesque and baroque design. Its massive bell tower is visible from much of Sancti Spíritus, and though its interior is sparsely decorated—a carved wooden ceiling and a blue-and-gold wooden arch framing a simple altar—it's extremely well preserved. The church is also famous for the sermon of Fray Bartolome de las Casas that he delivered here, and became the beginning of his effort to help the Amerindians.
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