ONCE the forgotten island of the Caribbean, Cuba has emerged from isolation as one of the world's most seductive holiday destinations. It has a spectacular and fertile landscape, with 300 beaches lapped by unpolluted seas, rugged mountains, deep green valleys, and smooth lakes, as well as haunting colonial towns dating back centuries.

Hurricane Michelle left much damage in its wake, but the smiling Cubans have soldiered on. They are used to crises throughout their history, but they boast: "We get through, because love and music are our lives." Now, flights to the capital Havana and other parts of the island are being resumed and tourists are returning.

In the land of Latin rhythm, where salsa, the rumba and the cha cha cha originated, you quickly catch the lilt of life. Music goes on 24 hours a day, from corner bands, car radios, cafes and cassettes. Everyone walks down the street swinging their hips in time and visitors are encouraged to do the same. The music stays long in the head after you get home, together with the taste of cigars, Cuban coffee and rum.

Havana, the vibrant capital is sprawling and chaotic, a mix of seediness and splendour, with a wonderful 16th century old quarter, a World Heritage Site with "the best preserved colonial city in the world". There are grand palaces; handsome mansions, with flower-filled inner patios; spacious plazas, and churches everywhere.

The Cathedral de San Cristobal has been restored in its stately square where, on "rumba Saturdays", a vast crowd collects, plunging hectically into dance backed up by a loud band. The women wear hip-hugging skirts, with flowers in their hair, and the children in their weekend best join the fun.

Communist Cuba can be seen on tours which take you to the huge Revolution Square and the memorial from which Castro makes his legendarily long May Day speeches. The Museum of the Revolution contains Che Guevara's beret and his horse (stuffed and in a glass case). Nearby is the cruiser Granma, on which Castro and his revolutionaries returned from Mexico.

If you're on the Hemingway Trail, visit the Ambos Mundos (Both Worlds) Hotel where, for a small fee, you can see the room where the American author wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls. Nearby is the Floridita restaurant, where he drank with his fellow bohemians.

The grand sweep of the Malecon, the promenade along Havana's waterfront, has a less frenetic pace than the rest of the city and is perfect for a sunset stroll and an ice-cream.

Hard as it is to leave Havana, Varadero, 90 miles east, is a westernised resort with a 12-mile beach and hundreds of upmarket modern hotels. In lush green countryside you will pass roadside bohios, cottages in the style of the ancient Indians, the first settlers on Cuba who had to hide in caves when the Spanish conquistadors arrived. Ten million perished.

At Pinar del Rio Province the finest tobacco is grown and you can tour a cigar factory. Santiago de Cuba, the second city, is home to some of the most ancient churches and palaces, and the residents have a range of lovely faces, from African to European. This is a land of beautiful people.

The cultural heritage is rich everywhere, but Trinidad, on the Caribbean coast, is one of the prettiest towns, full of wooden mansions with quiet exteriors which hide magnificent interiors of murals and colonial furniture made from local mahogany and cedar. Climb the staircase of the ancient church tower for the best view of red-tiled roofs, framed by blue mountains, and wander through the quiet cobblestone, backstreets. You can almost hear the rustle of floor-length gowns and the creek of old carriage wheels.

Cienfuegos (100 fires) is a pretty coastal town on a grand bay with a long waterfront and a town centre of pastel coloured buildings, art galleries and an old theatre seating a thousand. Stop at the Valle Palace for its style and have a Creole meal to a background of Latin music, then take a boat ride to the old castle to see a fishing village, where houses are built on stilts in the water. In the province of Santa Clara, Che Guevara's tall statue looks hauntingly into the distance. An Indian-style complex of thatched huts with mod-cons is set in woodlands full of the sounds of nature.

Cuba has sunshine, verve and music, and offers all kinds of holidays: tranquil, energetic, historical and flamboyant. You'll find one visit just isn't enough.

Fact File:

Sylvia travelled with Air Cubana and stayed at the Hotel Nacional, Havana. A tourist card is required: tour operators can supply them. The currency is the peso, but all tourist transactions are in American dollars.

For literature, contact the Cuba Tourist Board, 154 Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2H 8JT (020 7240 6655).

Reading: Berlitz, Cuba pocket guide; Lonely Planet, Cuba; Rough Guide, Cuba; Cuba: Vacation Work, by Simon Calder.