Pinar del Río, the island's westernmost province, is one of the least developed in Cuba.  Being as how Pinar del Río is fairly sparsely populated and in a non-central location, it is considered to be somewhat of a backwater province.  Thus, it has received comparatively little attention from the government and as such remains underdeveloped.

The province's main agricultural importance is in its tobacco production.  Grown in the Viñales Valley near the province's capital city of Pinar del Río, it is the nation's finest tobacco crop and is rolled into only the most expensive cigars. 

This province attracts very few tourists as it is somewhat out of the way and does not feature any spectacular beaches.  One of the province's main tourist attractions - the community of Las Terrazas - is unconventional and refreshingly so.  Las Terrazas represents the government's efforts to develop a less commercialized, more community-oriented form of tourism.