We just returned from our trip to Cuba. To say the least, it was AMAZING. The country, the people. the food, the sites, the CARS!!!!! We would highly recommend without hesitation that everyone make plans to get there before American tourists take over and ruin things...sorry...you all know what I mean.
We do not ascribe to a herd mentality. The thought of getting on a cruise ship or staying at a beach resort is about as unlikely as us voting for Donald Trump. We always plan our trips independently. We use small local hotels and private homes, we rent cars or take local transportation, and we eat at small neighborhood restaurants. We visit schools, hospitals, clinics, orphanages, and other community centers wherever we go and we always engage in conversation with the people. What we find over and over again is that we are all alike, no matter what country we call home. We want the same things - a safe place to live, free education and good healthcare, fair priced food and commodities, and the freedom to think our own thoughts and share our opinions. What truly differs from one place to the next, and it is the same all over the world, are the governments and those that run them. Control, power, greed, and prejudice...just like here in the USA. We have now visited collectively over 70 foreign countries...we have NEVER found this to be different anywhere.
For this trip, considering where we were going and not really knowing much, we used a local agency called Select Cuba Travel. Our agent was Amelia Calzadilla. She was honest, direct, polite, professional, and put together an amazing ten day plan that included meet and greet, all transfers in and out of Havana, all transfers between cities in private vehicles, all private tours and English speaking guides, all guest houses (fabulous as you will soon see) and was available at a moment by several different methods. She met us in person on the second day. We found her to be a young, attractive, assertive, and bright women in here late twenties. She gave us each a lovely gift of Havana Club rum. Contact her. Tell her what you want to do and what you want to spend...and let her do the rest. She will NOT arrange your air or visas. That's covered below. Her final price based on my tweaking fell well below what I would have designed and created myself. Color me IMPRESSED!!!
As most of you know, this was my business in Alaska and we are certified IATA agents. This is what we did for thousands of Alaska visitors. The level of her service was equal or beyond ours and it ran seamlessly. You could easily do it all yourself with AirBnb and TripAdvisor. The transfers and guides are another thing. So give her a contact. You can't go wrong just asking a few questions.
AND, you can use an American credit card to purchase your package.
Amelia Calzadilla
Cuba Select Travel
www.cubaselecttravel.com
amelia@cubaselecttravel.com
It's best to start at the beginning....
Visas and Getting to Cuba - We flew JetBlue from Ft. Lauderdale. There are flights available from a lot of major cities on other airlines. When we landed in Havana there were Delta and American Airline planes at the terminal, as well as planes from all over the rest of the world. Even now after the blockade had been lifted more than a year, we found ourselves as Americans, far and few between. Cubans are fascinated by us. They have lived in a social isolation for 56 years. Truly the only thing things they know are from movies and TV, relatives that write and get their letters through, and now what they learn from visitors. It was an eye-opening experience on both sides. We too came to understand that we have lived in a vacuum as well. Cuba was not what any of us expected.
So go online and find the best price available for your flight. Our JetBlue fare was $120. For your first visit we recommend flying into Havana. There are other major airports but truly this seems the best place to start. Book your flights just like you would with any other trip. We used Expedia to research fares and then went directly to the JetBlue website to book the tickets. It ended up being about $20 less that way.
Have your passport handy as you will need to enter that information just as you would with any other international flight. With JetBlue anyway, a few days later you will receive an email with a link to the US Department of Treasury (yes, the treasury). The email will direct you to select the provided link and complete the affidavit questionnaire. You want to select the "cultural people to people exchange" option. I believe it was No. 3 on the list. DO NOT select any of the others, regardless of how appropriate they may sound for your adventure. Period.
Shortly, maybe a day or two later, you will receive a confirmation from the treasury that your affidavit is received. Print and keep a copy of the email with your passport just in case. You'll also get a lot of "stuff" they say you need to do, like document your trip and keep a record of where you went and who you spoke to. Ignore it. This we learned is simply a formality and will not be investigated as an ordinary tourist.
Shortly after this you should receive an email from your airline that says your affidavit has been confirmed. Print and keep that email as well. If you do not receive that email, call your airline. The whole process will take about ten days. Don't wait until the last minute. That's it. On the day of your flight get to the airport no less than three hours before departure. Check in at the counter. You will be issued a paper visa on the spot that will cost you $50 per person. Upon arrival you will need this visa to get into Cuba. You will get back the return portion after you clear immigration. DO NOT LOOSE THIS. We heard nightmares from our guides about people who did not have it with them when they tried to leave.
Things we learned: I called JetBlue four different times during the above process and got a different story each time. Their staff are not well trained yet in all of this. Don't be discouraged and don't believe everything they tell you. I was misinformed on all of my calls. The bottom line is quite simple. Make your reservation, wait for the email from the treasury, wait for the email from your airline, go to the airport early to get your instant visa. If any of the the above does not happen, you WILL not board that plane. Two folks behind me in line were denied boarding in Ft. Lauderdale for these very reasons.
Money - As of this moment, once in Cuba you can't use a credit card or ATM card issued from any US bank for credit card company. DO NOT believe anything that anyone tells you. We never had an opportunity to even try. Your expenses must ALL BE IN CASH. Be prepared. Period. Unless you are a huge shopper or intend to bring back a bunch of rum and cigars, $50 a day per person should cover everything...as long as your trip package is pre-paid.
There are two different currencies used in Cuba - the CUC (Cuban Convertible Peso) and the CUP (Cuban Peso) They are entirely different. The CUC is used by tourists. The CUP is used by locals. There is no issue here since you should not have a reason to need CUP. Everywhere a tourist goes, the CUC is used. Prices are quoted in CUC at all shops, restaurants, activities, etc. Unless you go into a local neighborhood or shop at a local market or store, you will not need CUP. There are no grocery stores. And if for some reason you need to buy what little there is available to you locally, I'm sure at that point many would be more than happy to try and confuse you with a conversion that benefits the shop owner.
What you need to know is that CUC ALL HAVE pictures of monuments and buildings as well as the word CONVERTIBLE on each note. CUP have pictures of PEOPLE. Why is this important? Because one CUC equals one US Dollar; while one US Dollar equals 25 CUP. Sounds confusing..of course. Simply check your change and make sure you are getting back CUC and not CUP. Some unscrupulous vendors on the street use this tactic so be vigilant. It should not happen as restaurants, shops, and hotels.
Do not listen or heed the advice on line to get Euros or Canadian before you leave the states. You DO NOT SAVE any money unless you are not charged a commission. Wells Fargo (no surprise) wanted a 13% for Euros. So did Citibank. So we opted to simply take USD and change it there. US Dollars carry a 10% penalty for exchange (everywhere) and 3% commission at the exchange and banks. So it didn't matter. My brother-in-law bought Euros at his bank for 10% and then paid the 3% commission as well once there so it worked out the same. So at current time, expect 87 CUC for each $100 USD. Just accept it. Our hotels, tours, guides, and transportation were prepaid. We ate well, drank well, bought rum and cigars, tipped VERY GENEROUSLY and spent just under $500 per person for the whole ten days.
DO NOT EXCHANGE money on the street. NEVER. First of all it is probably counterfeit; and secondly it is against the law. What we did discover however at the end of our trip is this: When you arrive you will be on the arrival LOWER floor at the airport. Outside is the currency exchange. There is a huge line and a long wait. There you will pay the 3% fee on all exchanges regardless of country and of course the 10% USD penalty. UPSTAIRS on the departure level between the ticket counters and the security gates is another exchange. People there are in line to get their CUC switched back to their local currency. If you are discrete and ask western looking folks in line if they are converting back to dollars, most will sell you there CUC on a one to one basis. If we had known this we could have been $270 ahead of the game since we each switched $1000 US for CUC. Just don't be too obvious. No one is really looking, and as we learned throughout Cuba, no one really cares. Use your good judgement. At the end of your trip you will want to convert and CUC left back into dollars. There is only a 3% fee at that point if no one in line will cooperate with you.
Cell Phones and Wifi - Your phones won't work for now and honestly, we got along just fine without them. If for some reason you can connect, be prepare for some pretty hefty fees. You can buy a SIM card at the airport but the fees are steep and once again the coverage is limited. Wifi on the other hand was available for about $1 an hour at the local Wifi spots. The big hotels all have it and some small guest houses. It you have WhatsApp, Viber, or even iMessenger and Facebook, you can keep in touch. HOWEVER download those apps before you leave the US. You won't be able to get them once in Cuba.
The service is however spotty, even at good hotels, etc. so don't be disappointed if you pay for it and still can get connected. We each received a free hour with our package. We tried to use it off and on with little success. On our last two days we were at a beach resort (boring) and only got on once or twice. In reality is was rally nice to be disconnected for the time we were gone. Everything is still here and pretty much the same when we got back.
Transportation - We walked everywhere and took a few taxis. All of our intercity transfers were in private taxi-vans and mini-buses-just for us, with uniformed drivers, all air-conditioned, and quite comfortable.
Language - Most Cubans we met spoke some or perfect English. A little high school Spanish goes a long way in making friends and they truly appreciated the gesture.
Temperatures - It was February and HOT! Can't imagine what it would be like in summer. No thanks. We had a few days of rain. It didn't stop us and we got a bit wet. Bring some waterproof bags for your cameras and phones and buy an umbrella.
Tips - For goodness sake, don't be CHEAP. Cuban income is unbelievably low. The average monthly income is between $50 and $100 A MONTH. Google it. You'll be shocked. We tipped our guides, drivers, waiters, and guest houses very well. This meant the world to them and meant a huge jump in their lifestyle, even if it was only for a short time. They all have cell phones. Most get a monthly service for only $5 to $10. So don't be fooled by the nice clothes and such. They are all EXTREMELY POOR. They don't each in restaurants. They don't travel. They get free education, amazingly good health care, and food coupons. Every one of them. There are only government run food depots and each person, no matter of income or age gets coupons for the basics and that sitll isn't enough. There were no homeless that we saw, very few beggars (a few that really were playing it up for the extra cash we believe) and no gangs or thugs. There are of course the rich. Those are far and few apart and you will more than likely never meet them. What we paid is quoted in our posts. Honor these people and be generous. It will come back to you in ways you can't imagine. Lots of websites tell you to take small US bills for tips. DO NOT DO THIS. They will certainly accept them, but local businesses usually won't...and they will have to pay the 13% penalty just like you did. When you get your money exchanged, ask for many 1 CUC coins and small bills.
Safety - It was more safe in Havana and everywhere else we went than back at home. We wandered the streets and alleys at all hours, early morning and late at night. We never once felt uncomfortable and there were plenty of police, military, and security everywhere. Even in the neighborhoods away from the tourist areas. I'm sure there are criminals and thugs. However the laws are very strict and jail is a sentence for even the most minor of crimes. This is a communist associated country and I can assure you that government control was everywhere. We looked and if you do, you'll see it too.
LGBTQ - To our dear friends who express this lifestyle, please, please, PLEASE keep it close to your heart. In Cuba homosexuality is still a crime punishable by a long prison sentence. Don't even think about a tryst, responding to a flirtatious gesture, or discussing your lifestyle. Be safe and enjoy these beautiful people. We asked our guides how gays are treated, and although most said they had gay friends, several who were in prison, they said the government still strictly enforces the law and it applies to tourists equally. They also warned us to be careful talking about it, etc. So a word of warning. Please be careful.
Politics - We asked a lot of questions once we got to know our guides and had developed some trust. Keep your conversations simply and basic. Don't speak badly of their government. That's called respect. It's also called being smart. There are pictures of Che and Fidel and others all over the place as well as posters citing the revolution, etc. The American Blockade is also well signed, and not in a positive way. While the Cubans really need the income from tourism, remember that this is not your country, your rules, or your way of life. Enjoy getting to know them on a person to person basis...and be prepared for questions about the new US president. If you ask, you may be surprised at their response.
Religion - Most Cubans are Catholic. A lot also practice Santeria. It's not the voodoo-woo-hoo you may think. We took a half day tour to discover what it really is and we were surprised. There were also a few synagogues as well as a couple of Baptist and Methodist churches. While religion was banned for years, in the recent decade things have opened up. The cathedrals were beautiful. Masses were being held regularly and people displayed their devotion in many, many ways. Things are changing.
Food - Absolutely not the highlight, but certainly good and plentiful, and dirt cheap by our standards. Lots of rice, black beans, meats, chicken, fish, lobster, shrimp. Nothing really spicy except the Ropa Vieja. Ethnic restaurants abound, mostly Italian and Asian. I did not see any taco stands, although a friend has recently sent me a TripAdvisor post that they actually do exist. Lots of bars serving most any cocktail you can imagine, most with rum. Beer was everywhere and truly pretty bland by our standards.
Water - Although we were told the water was safe to drink, we followed Tom and Bobbie's Golden Rule and only drank water from our purification filter or sealed bottles. We had no problems with salads or fruit in restaurants and guest houses. Ice in most bars and restaurants is claimed to be made our of filtered water and once again, no issues. Becky picked up something in the last few days and unfortunately had a rough night and a couple of queasy days..so be careful.
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