Photos of Cuba’s Classic Cars

Getty Images

There’s really nothing more enchanting about Cuba—that time-capsule of an island off the coast of Florida—than its antique cars, which dot the street like colorful reminders of an era long gone.

Travel + Leisure’s 2015 Destination of the Year has enchanted travelers with its vintage postcard-vibe, and people are as excited to see its four-wheel artifacts as they are to sip a mojito in Ernest Hemingway’s favorite watering hole.

Related: The Best Beaches in Cuba

Havana’s cobblestone streets are lined with everything from pristine Ford Fairlanes to rickety, smoke-belching Studebakers. After the U.S. embargo in 1962, it became impossible for Cubans to get new cars from America—or parts for the vehicles that remained after the revolution. And Castro’s socialism prohibited Cubans from purchasing new cars of their own until 2011.

In an effort to keep their relics from the 50s and 60s running, Cubans have learned to improvise: hand-built parts and mismatched innards. That Chevy? It’s likely to be rolling down the street on the power of a German or Japanese engine.

These forces have kept Cuba’s parking spaces full of old-fashioned vehicles, and provided the country with one of it’s greatest tourism draws. After all, you can’t visit without finding yourself in a 1955 Cadillac taxi.

As travel restrictions ease, however, it’s becoming easier than ever to make that once-forbidden journey to Cuba—and people fear that those beautiful Bel-Airs and Buick Specials will be systematically replaced by crappy, used American cars from the 90s. While we keep our fingers crossed that Cubans remain as attached to their family heirlooms as, apparently, the rest of us are, there's no better time to go than now: before the modern car dealerships pop up everywhere from downtown Havana to colonial Trinidad. And in the meantime? Here's a little automotive eye candy.

Start Slideshow

1 of 14

Vintage cars in Cuba

Frederic Lagrange

2 of 14

Rearview Mirror

Frederic Lagrange

3 of 14

The Cuban Flag

Getty Images

4 of 14

Plaza de la Revolución

Getty Images

5 of 14

On Display

Getty Images

6 of 14

Aerial Shot

Frederic Lagrange

7 of 14

At Night

Getty Images

8 of 14

Colorful Display

Getty Images

9 of 14

A Gray Car

Getty Images

10 of 14

More Cars on Display

Getty Images

11 of 14

Havana

Getty Images

12 of 14

Covered Truck

Getty Images

13 of 14

Yellow American car

Getty Images

14 of 14

Shades of Blue and Purple

Getty Images

Replay gallery

Your Profile

14 Reasons to Fall in Love with Cuba’s Antique Cars

1 of 14

Vintage cars in Cuba

1 of 14

2 of 14

Rearview Mirror

2 of 14

3 of 14

The Cuban Flag

3 of 14

4 of 14

Plaza de la Revolución

4 of 14

5 of 14

On Display

5 of 14

6 of 14

Aerial Shot

6 of 14

7 of 14

At Night

7 of 14

8 of 14

Colorful Display

8 of 14

9 of 14

A Gray Car

9 of 14

10 of 14

More Cars on Display

10 of 14

11 of 14

Havana

11 of 14

12 of 14

Covered Truck

12 of 14

13 of 14

Yellow American car

13 of 14

14 of 14

Shades of Blue and Purple

14 of 14

Share the Gallery

Up Next

Share the Gallery