“An intelligent man is sometimes forced to be drunk to spend time with idiots.”
– Ernest Hemingway
The beautiful finca "La Vigia" (Hemingway House) is located in the San Francisco de Paula district of Havana, about 24 km from Havana's city center.
The house was built in 1886 by the Catalan architect Miguel Pascual y Baguer and is now a museum. In the meantime, the house was remodeled by its famous owner Ernest Hemingway. The house has an impressive view of the city of Havana from the veranda.
Ernest Hemingway himself lived in the house from mid 1939 to 1960.
At the Finca la Vigia Ernest Hemingway first wrote the novel "For Whom the Bells Tolls", a Spanish Civil War drama, of which he had reported in the early 1930s as a journalist. From the license revenue of this book, he bought the property.
In 1951, Hemingway wrote his most famous book "The Old Man and the Sea" here.
As a template served here his longtime friend Gregorio Fuentes (1897-2002), who had rescued him in 1926 from distress. Later, a deep friendship developed between the two men.
To this day, the stories are told of the fisherman from Cojimar and the world-famous writer who, together with their ship, drove the Pilar to fish.
After the death of Hemingway Fuentes was given the supervision of yacht Pilar, which was then still in the port of Cojimar. Today, the famous motor yacht is on the estate of La Vigia and can be visited there.
Famous visitors to the house were the Hollywood actors Katharine Hepburn, Ava Gardner, Errol Flynn and Spencer Tracy.
Opening hours
Monday - Friday: 10 am - 5 pm
Saturday: 10 am - 4 pm
Closed on sunday
Admission: 125 CUP per person
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