Phim Gilberry, owner of Passion Travel Services, at the entrance to Disco Ayala
Beyond Havana - Disco Ayala, a Club in a Cave - Trinidad Cuba
I fell in love with Cuba after my first visit back in September of 2017. I ended up having to leave early that year due to the unexpected arriving of Hurricane Irma.
Since then, I have returned 3 times but had not ventured outside of Havana with the exception of day trips to Vinales. That is until my last visit in May of this year.
My first stop was Trinidad, Cuba. I had heard about a club inside a cave that piqued my interest. I did very little research before visiting this club.
I just wanted to know the basics, like how do I get there and how much does it cost to enter. After more research for this blog, I am glad I kept the research to a minimum and here is why…
According to legend, the club was named after a serial killer named Carlos Ayala who used to kidnap children from Trinidad, bring them to the cave, and murder them. This took place around 1879 and the guy was executed a few years after.
Yea, I may not have gone if I knew, even reading about it gave me goosebumps. However, that was a long time ago! Today, Disco Ayala is perfectly safe and a must-visit when in Trinidad!
At Plaza Mayor in Trinidad, Cuba before heading to Disco Ayala
How to Get to Trinidad
I booked a shared taxi through a nearby 4-star hotel. I was not staying at the hotel but enjoyed their clean and air-conditioned lobby and needed to use their Wi-Fi a few times.
I befriended a few of the staff and one hooked me up with a driver. You can get to Trinidad also by taking a bus for approximately $25 each way. If you’re a US passport holder, you may want to check to make sure taking the bus is allowed per the new regulations.
I believe buses are state/government-owned and operated. I paid $30 for the taxi. I ended up sharing the taxi with a young lady from Amsterdam and since we were both traveling solo, we decided to check out Club Ayala together. It’s probably okay to go alone and I would have if I had to but glad I found Claudia.
We met up at the city center, Plaza Mayor, at around 7 pm, had dinner at a restaurant next, enjoyed live music, and watched locals dance salsa while sipping on mojitos. Club Ayala is the only club in Trinidad and it opens up at 11 pm, so our itinerary was perfect!
How to Get to the Club
You can easily ask for directions from the locals but if you have Maps.me, please use it. I put in the club name on my app and it gave us perfect walking directions from Plaza Mayor.
The club is about half a mile from the plaza. You do not need to be connected to Wi-Fi for the app to work. It’s dark and you’ll pass by several other establishments, I think local bars and maybe other establishments catering to men (wink-wink).
We pretty much ignored them and continued hanging on to each other for support and finally made it to the club. At some point, it will look like you’re going nowhere but don’t give up, it’s worth the short walk up the hill. You can’t miss it!
What You Need to Know Before You Go
Besides the directions. Here’s what you should know. Ladies, please wear comfortable shoes. The streets are all cobblestone in the town center.
Cover charge is 5 CUCs per person and it comes with a mojito or a beer. You can buy more drinks. Sorry, I can’t tell you how much the additional drinks were since I only had my free mojito but I don’t think they are very expensive. Wear light clothes, its hot inside the cave. The dress code was pretty casual.
We stayed for about 2 hours. The crowd was a good mixture of tourists and locals and age is just a number there. You’ll see people from their 20’s (maybe younger) to 70’s. Again, it’s the only club in Trinidad. The music was a mix of Reggaeton and western music like hip hop etc. I enjoyed both, so no complaints from me.
Receipt from Disco Ayala, Trinidad, Cuba
More photos from Disco Ayala:
Taking photos inside Disco Ayala
Passion Travel Services specializes in tours to Cuba. You can join one of our pre-scheduled tour dates or we can customize a Cuba tour for you that meets the new embargo requirements and at a date that is convenient for you.
Phim Gilberry
Travel Director/Founder, Passion Travel Services
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