Parque Escaleras de Jaruco Artemisa & Mayabeque Provinces

This wild park, 6km west of Jaruco via hushed unmarked lanes, is a protected area featuring forests, caves and strangely shaped limestone cliffs. Havana residents come here for bucolic weekend breaks Thursday through Sunday, the park's only official opening days, but with a minor road bisecting the park between Tapaste (off the Autopista Nacional) and Jaruco, you can slip in any time. This forgotten oasis has outstanding miradores (viewpoints) over Mayabeque province. The highest and best is crowned by El Árabe, a bewitching if slightly bizarre restaurant built in the style of a mosque with a domed tower accessed by a spiral staircase and an interior decked out with rich Moorish lamps. The food could do with some work though.