Country Guide

Cuba is the largest of the islands of the Caribbean. It is about as large as the state of Pennsylvania and a little smaller than England. It extends for a distance of almost 110 km/700 mi. Although there are mountains rising to 900-1,800 m/3,000-6,000 ft, much of the island is low-lying.

The table for Havana is representative of the low-lying parts on the north of the island.

Rainfall on the north coast is rather more than in the south and the hills may receive over 2,500 mm/100 in a year. The drier region of the island is in the southeast around Guantánamo, where rain is as low as 500 mm/20 in a year.

Western Cuba is occasionally affected in winter and spring by waves of cold air from the interior of North America, which cause temperatures to drop below 10°C/50°F for a day or two. Such low temperatures are most unusual for the Caribbean Islands.