Cycling Tips for Cuba – Road Conditions, Tires and Tire Pressure

Cuban roads are variable, from smooth as a dream asphalt in many cases, to worn/aged asphalt, and sometimes down to pot holes and gravel (kinda like where I live in Canada with all the winter frost).  Riding in Cuba is far nicer than North America with its busy roads and drivers rushing around oblivious to the experience of riding a bike.  Most Cubans spend a lot of time getting around on foot, or cycling to work and have empathy developed by that shared experience. 

People often ask me if it’s safe to cycle in Cuba – to which I unreservedly say it’s the safest place to ride bike that I’ve been.  I would put Mallorca Spain a close second but that’s a different type of vacation with its $5 cups of coffee.

In Cuba, you will want to be prepared for cars to pass you with a little toot from the horn.  They do this as a courtesy so you know they are passing. In small towns, bikes may be a large percentage of the traffic.  Expect to see cyclists weaving around and pretty much taking up the whole road.  I get a big smile on my face – bikes rule the roads of rural Cuba.  A bit like a full-scale critical mass cycling event.

The other thing you will want to be prepared for is passing carts pulled by horses, oxen or cows.  These are used to haul sugar cane to the mill, bring crops to town from the farms (fincas), or just to take passengers around often in the form of taxis (colectivos or almendrones) that follow designated routes, much like city buses.  The animals pulling these carts are familiar with traffic and cyclists, so don’t be concerned about passing them.  Simply check your shoulder to be sure nobody is behind you, and move over a few feet and give some space as you ride past.

Taking crops into town near Baracoa, Cuba.

Typical highway coming into Manzanillo from the south, note the path along the side of the road from people walking or riding horses.

Rural towns are full of bikes as this is a major form of travel in Cuba. In some areas you are more likely to see a horse pulled carriage operating as a taxi, than you are to see motor vehicles.  

The South Coast Road's name comes from it being the most southerly road in Cuba. It runs for nearly 200 kilometres between Santiago de Cuba and Pilon.  It has the Caribbean Sea on one side, and the Sierra Maestra mountains on the other side.  Riding on these roads should not seem too much of a challenge, as we’ve ridden with hundreds of cyclists on any manner of bike from mountain bikes, to hybrids, to road racing machines, and even folding bikes with small wheels and narrow 23 millimetre wide racing slicks.

This is a typical stretch of the South Coast Road with some sheep and goats grazing along the road as you will find in rural Cuba.  The road is a weathered asphalt, so great for cycling, but you will appreciate a bit of cushioning from wider tires.

Occasionally, there are smooth riding gravel stretches that are well packed and ride like a coarse asphalt road.  Slick tires work fine, but a bit of tread isn’t a bad idea.

The bonus aspect to the damaged bridges along the South Coast Road is that motor vehicles avoid it.  Bicycles rule here!

Generally, for most of our tours we recommend wider tires such as 28-35 millimetres. This actually can roll very fast, plus the added air volume greatly increases comfort.

This is my personal favorite tire a Donnelly X'PLOR 700x35.  I like how the nearly smooth centre tread rolls fast, and the diamond shaped side knobs give a bit of traction when the road surface is soft.  The 35 millimetre width gives the tire a lot of air volume to absorb bumps.  This tire has likely a 4-5,000 kilometres of riding without any flats and still has more mileage to go.

My favourite tire, a well-worn Donnelly X’PLOR from many rides in Cuba.

The next thing to consider is tire pressure. Most of us grew up thinking more air pressure is faster - often riding 100-160 psi. That's been debunked in recent years with real world testing where roads are bumpy and rough, not smooth like using a steel roller in the laboratory.

With the Donnelly X'PLOR 700x35 tire above, I typically run about 50 psi.  Higher pressure like say 70 psi feels faster as we perceive jolting around with going faster, but in reality the lower pressure is faster and more comfortable.

The tables below provide a good starting place for matching your tire width and your body weight to the recommended optimal tire pressure to GO FAST.  In general, as the tire gets wider the pressure drops.  This is balanced with the rider weight as more weight requires more tire air pressure for support. These pressures may be lower than you have used in the past but will be way more shock absorbing, and faster.

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Optimal Tire Pressure for a given tire width and rider weight

We hope to see you in Cuba on one of our bike tours.  The roads, the scenery and the Cuban people will make it an experience you will treasure.

With the information provided in this blog, you can confidently select the best tire and pressure to enjoy the ride.

If you want to join me on a bike tour of Cuba - send me an email cubalee2@yahoo.com

Please post your questions or suggestions, and I’ll do my best to respond.