Fodor's Expert Review Hotel Moka

On the highest forested part of Las Terrazas Biosphere Reserve, this "ecologically" designed hotel makes its point with a huge carob tree growing in the lobby, its branches escaping through skylights. The red-tile roof, green wood railings, and white walls echo the colors of the Cuban flag. The 21 original rooms on two levels have floor-to-ceiling windows looking on to private terraces, and come equipped with minibar, safe, and flat-screen TV. Modern bathrooms have tub/showers with leafy views. Sixteen newer rooms have higher, slanted ceilings and are a little more spacious. There are also five self-contained, modern rooms attached to community houses nearby. There's Wi-Fi in the lobby (extra charge) and in the restaurant, which has tables on two terraces suspended over the valley's edge, as well as a cozy inside dining room. Try the roasted Moka chicken bathed in a coffee liqueur sauce ($). This singular spot in the middle of a forest is still less than an hour from Havana. Activities include an 11-platform zip line (CUC$20) or a three-hour scenic walk. There's also a smallish pool in a forest setting.