Colloquially known as the Paseo del Prado, the Paseo de Martí is a 1 km long boulevard stretching southwards from the entrance of the bay to the Central Park. It is a great place to take a leisurely stroll and observe daily life in Havana.
Its construction was ordered by the Marquis de La Torre, Captain General of the Island of Cuba in 1772 and was completed in 1852. It was originally called the ‘Alameda de Isabel II’ promenade, in honor of that Spanish sovereign.
In 1929 the French artist and landscapist Forestier remodeled the boulevard to its current form, endowing it with expansive granite floors, comfortable benches, and the 8 bronze lions positioned in pairs on each of its corners that were to symbolically keep watch over the walkway.