Located around 20km from the centre of Cienfuegos stands the island's oldest botanical garden. Established at the beginning of the 20C by American sugar magnate Edwin Atkins, this vast forest became Harvard University's tropical research institute in 1919. Covering 96ha, it has over 2 000 plant species from tropical and sub-tropical regions, including 300 types of palm tree, making this one of the most important collections in the whole of South America.