Province of Guantanamo | |
Native Name: | Provincia de Guantánamo |
Settlement Type: | Province |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | Cuba |
Seat Type: | Capital |
Seat: | Guantánamo |
Parts Type: | Municipalities |
Parts Style: | para |
Unit Pref: | Metric |
Area Total Km2: | 6164.47 |
Population Total: | 533,839 |
Population As Of: | (2021) |
Population Footnotes: | [1] |
Population Density Km2: | auto |
Blank Name Sec2: | HDI (2019) |
Blank Info Sec2: | 0.788[2] · 6th of 16 |
Timezone1: | EST |
Utc Offset1: | −5 |
Website: | https://www.guantanamo.gob.cu/es/ |
Guantánamo is the easternmost province of Cuba. Its capital is also called Guantánamo. Other towns include Baracoa. The province has the only land border of the U.S. Navy base at Guantánamo Bay.
Guantánamo's architecture and culture is unlike the rest of Cuba. The province is only 80km (50miles) away from Haiti at its closest point, across the Windward Passage (close enough to see lights on Haiti on a clear night). Guantánamo also has a high number of immigrants from Jamaica. Many buildings are comparable to those of the French Quarter of New Orleans in the U.S. state of Louisiana.
The Nipe-Sagua-Baracoa mountains dominate the province, dividing both climate and landscape. The northern coast, battered by prevailing winds, is the wettest part of the country, while the south, sheltered and dry, is the hottest. The north is characterized by rainforests, while the south is arid and has many cacti.