This week, a group of tourists headed to Cuba for a six-day trip, where they’ll become more knowledgeable about the Caribbean country’s deep African roots. While it’s too late to join the Memorial Day trip, thanks to travel collective AfroLatino Travel, it’s now easier for Latinos and non-Latinos to explore Latin America’s African history.
AfroLatino Travel doesn’t book tickets or find hotels for eager travelers; instead, it gives them an unforgettable experience by consulting, building, and creating trips focused on finding Latin America’s African roots. For Cuba, for example, AfroLatino Travel suggests the Callejon de Hamel – where you can check out the rumba and the artwork of AfroCuban artist Salvador Gonzalez – or the Yoruba Museum to learn more about the Orishas.
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When Dash Harris, one of the founders of AfroLatino Travel, travels to Cuba, she is stunned. “Cuba is not African-influenced. Its core root is Africa,” she told USA Today. “I was absolutely floored by how the African and Afro-descendant connections have held so strongly in day-to-day life.”
Panamanian-American Harris has created AfroLatino Travel with four other travel enthusiasts – Lamar Bailey, Javier Wallace, Mark Armand Promax, and Gabriela Watson Arauz. Other than Havana, AfroLatino Travel can advise travelers on where to head in El Carmen, Peru; Bluefields, Nicaragua; Bahia, Brazil, and Guerrero, Mexico, among others. The organization also works with groups like Proyecto Iwa Pele in Peru, Miss Rizos in the Dominican Republic, and DIAFAR in Argentina.
Find out more about Afro-Latino Travel here, and check out some of their images from their travels below: