Old Havana hosts heritage cities meeting from 17 to 20 November
Published on 10/24/2026 at 12:53 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSHeritage planning in Santa Clara
- The Plan Maestro office will convene the meeting in Havana from 17 to 20 November 2026.
- The programme includes lectures, panels, workshops, case studies and technical visits in Old Havana.
- UNESCO inscribed Old Havana and its Fortification System on the World Heritage List in 1982.
- The Santa Clara convent stands at Calle Cuba 610 between Sol and Luz in the historic centre.
Old Havana (La Habana Vieja) will host the International Meeting on Heritage Cities Management from 17 to 20 November 2026 at the Santa Clara convent in Havana, Cuba. The programme will examine how historic cities can respond to metropolitan change while protecting their built heritage.
Heritage cities meeting comes to Santa Clara convent
The XXII International Meeting on Heritage Cities Management is organised by the Plan Maestro of the Office of the Historian of the City of Havana. Its published theme is a discussion of Plan Havana III and the metropolitan challenges facing the capital.
The event will run from 17 to 20 November 2026 at the Antiguo Convento de Santa Clara, at Calle Cuba 610 between Sol and Luz. The organiser's programme lists keynote lectures, scientific panels, case studies, workshops and technical visits. The opening day will begin the four-day programme, while later sessions will focus on exchanges between specialists working with historic urban areas.
The meeting is a public programme announcement rather than a regular attraction schedule. The published information identifies researchers, professionals, authorities, social organisations and international participants as its intended professional audience, but it does not state admission arrangements for general visitors.
Old Havana links urban planning with World Heritage
The venue sits inside a historic centre whose urban form and conservation work are central to the meeting's subject. UNESCO describes Old Havana as a city founded in 1519, with five principal plazas, narrow streets and a mixture of Baroque and neoclassical buildings.
Old Havana and its Fortification System entered the World Heritage List in 1982. The inscribed property covers 214 hectares and includes defensive structures created between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. UNESCO identifies the Office of the Historian of Havana, founded in 1938, as an institution involved in the rehabilitation and restoration process. The World Heritage description also records the area's arcades, balconies, wrought-iron gates and internal courtyards.
That setting gives the November programme a direct connection with the place itself: discussions about historic-city management take place among the plazas, buildings and fortifications whose protection has shaped Havana's modern conservation model. The Santa Clara convent therefore functions both as an event venue and as part of the historic urban fabric under discussion.
Visiting Old Havana: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- The International Meeting on Heritage Cities Management takes place from 17 to 20 November 2026 at the Antiguo Convento de Santa Clara, Calle Cuba 610 between Sol and Luz.
- The announced programme includes lectures, panels, case studies, workshops and technical visits, but the published notice does not confirm general visitor admission or a special access arrangement.
- Old Havana is in the historic centre of Havana, whose UNESCO-listed area includes five principal plazas and narrow streets.
- The area contains arcades, balconies, wrought-iron gates, internal courtyards and fortifications dating from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries, so visits involve historic urban streets and uneven architectural settings.
- Spanish is Cuba's official language and the national currency is the Cuban peso.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
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Frequently asked questions about Old Havana
When does the heritage cities meeting take place at Old Havana?
The International Meeting on Heritage Cities Management runs from 17 to 20 November 2026 at the Santa Clara convent.
Where is Old Havana and how do you get there?
Old Havana is the historic centre of Havana, Cuba. The event venue is at Calle Cuba 610 between Sol and Luz.
What is Old Havana?
It is Havana's historic centre and part of the UNESCO World Heritage property Old Havana and its Fortification System, inscribed in 1982.
