As we have mentioned, traveling to Cuba took a bit more travel planning and research than typical trips. Part of the issue is that there is conflicting information out there on topics such as money, getting a visa and bringing gifts versus not. We used resources such as "Real Havana: Explore Cuba Like a Local and Save Money" by Mario Rizzi and TripAdvisor. Read more about our trip here.
Practical Tips:
How to get there If you are a US Citizen, you can legally travel to Cuba under one of eleven approved travel categories. Currently, the easiest one to travel under is #8 -In Support of the Cuban People - see here which basically means that rather than spending money at state-run hotels, restaurants, and institutions, you spend your money and time with the Cuban people. It is easy and fun to create a fun-filled itinerary that not only satisfies the requirements of the travel category but gives you meaningful interactions with Cuban people! You will make friends in Cuba! Legally, you are supposed to be ready to show your itinerary if asked, so make sure you have one.
As of January 2020, US citizens are only allowed to fly into Cuba through Havana (if leaving from the USA) – all other ports of entry are currently closed - including cruise ships. Our airline took us to Havana through Atlanta, though it’s also possible to go from LAX , Miami and New York.
Visas and Insurance You will need a valid passport and VISA to enter Cuba. The visa can be purchased ahead of time online for $75. However, it is less expensive and easier to simply buy your visa/tourist card from the gate agent in Atlanta (or wherever) for $50. They have you fill out a form and attach your visa to your passport. Contrary to a lot of information out there, you do not need to purchase additional health insurance for your trip. Check with your airline to make sure the cost of insurance is included in your ticket price and your boarding pass will serve as proof of your insurance! Keep your boarding pass and passport safe with you for the entirety of your trip and you’re good to go.
Money, Money, Money
If you are a US citizen you will need to bring cash. Your U.S. bank-issued credit cards and ATM cards will NOT work in Cuba. Cash is king. If you are Canadian, European or from any other country, your credit and ATM cards may work as long as they are not affiliated with a bank from the USA. Check with your bank before leaving – and bring some cash along just in case. Another option is to buy a pre-paid debit card from international banks.
There are currently two currencies in use in Cuba – the Cuban Peso (CUP) and the Cuban Convertible Peso (CUC) * The CUP trades at 24 cup to 1 CUC. The CUC is tagged to the US dollar at 1:1.
*There are rumors and rumblings that the Cuban government will be taking CUC’s out of circulation and re-structuring the Cuban Peso as the single monetary unit but that has not yet happened and it's anyone's guess as to when or if it actually will.
When you exchange money you will receive CUCs, which are typically close to the value of an American dollar. See here for the current rate.
You can exchange money at the airport (long line) at banks (long line) or cadecas (cash exchange places). They will take 10% off the top if you are exchanging US dollars. Many people exchange dollars for Canadian, pound sterling or euros before traveling to Cuba. Don’t bother with this – you will lose on the commission at each end. Make sure that all of the cash you bring is clean, with no tears, stains, writing etc. The crisper and newer the better. We avoided the banks and cadecas altogether by arranging to exchange cash through our AirBnB (casa particular ) hosts at a 1 to 1 exchange rate – no commission.
Avoid exchanging money on the street!
Spend as much of the money you exchanged as possible before you get to the airport. You are not allowed to take CUPs or CUCs out of Cuba and are supposed to exchange and pesos back to another currency before you pass through security. The cafes and duty-free shops at the airport will take US dollars.
Make sure you know the difference between CUPS and CUCs! The bills are marked differently. CUCs have pictures of monuments and statues while CUPs have pictures of people – generally heroes from the revolution.
You will be able to manage to spend just CUCs, but if you want to take collectivos, taxis, buses or eat street food or at cafeteria-style restaurants, it will be good to have some CUPs (keep them separate from the rest of your stash) to make it easier.
How much Money to Bring:
We had pre-paid for our lodging and our Air BnB experiences (horseback ride, tobacco farm visit, and Cuban cooking class) Our trip was 10 days. We brought $2,000 USD with us which we distributed and carried in several places - a below the waist and trousers money belt, several pockets and a couple of locations within our luggage. We exchanged money 3 times. $700, $300 and $200 – so a total of $1,200 – or, $60 per person, per day. That paid for all of our meals, our many mojitos and cuba libres, museum entrance fees, taxi rides and transportation costs, t-shirts, 20 cigars, 4 bottles of rum, honey and various sundries. We had about 90 cucs left at the end of our trip which we converted into Euros at the airport upon leaving. You could get by with less if you are frugal but you could also spend a lot more if you were so inclined. Food and transportation were our greatest expense. We didn’t scuba dive, rent a car or dine at very expensive paladares. We also limited our travel to other parts of the island top just Viñales. If your plans include a bit more travel, scuba diving or more purchases, you will be safer with a budget of $90 to $120 per person per day.
Do I need to Speak Spanish?
In a word? NO. But you should try. You can, of course, get by without speaking any Spanish at all but speaking at least a little does help. Spanish is the official language of Cuba, after all. Nearly all Cubans connected to the tourist industry speak at least a little English, French, German and Italian. Many Cubans – especially those outside of Havana or not connected to the tourist trade do not. Any attempts you make at communicating in Spanish will be appreciated. Be prepared to make mistakes. Learn some Spanish before you go – especially some key phrases. “How much, where is, may I..?” Use Google translate to help. Even if you are a fluent Spanish speaker you may have some trouble with the Cuban dialect, as they tend to shorten words, drop consonants, have their own slang and speak very quickly. I learned Spanish in high school more than 40 years ago and was able to get by and even hold some conversations with local Cubans. It helped that I have Spanish speaking friends, continue to hear Spanish spoken here and there in my daily life and studied a bit online before going. I also speak Italian. I was constantly complimented on my Spanish. They were just being kind. I speak slowly and poorly, make plenty of mistakes – but have a good accent. It worked.
Phone and Internet Your phone may not work – depending on your carrier. To avoid high roaming charges, keep your phone in airplane mode and only connect to wifi when logging in with your access card. We used WhatsApp to communicate with folks back home and our Airbnb hosts. You can save yourself some weight buy not bringing maps or guidebooks. We downloaded google maps and maps.me app for offline access before we traveled.
Access to the internet is spotty in Cuba. Generally, you will need to purchase an internet card (NAUTA) from an Etecsa stand or office. The cost is about 1 cuc per hour. One and five-hour cards are the most common, and they are valid for 30 days. Some hotels also sell their own cards, which tend to be more expensive. The card contains an access code you can type into available networks (your hotel, Airbnb, public plazas, and parks also have some degree of wi-fi availability. It can be spotty and the minutes go quickly. Roxanne was never able to connect using her I-phone. I was able to connect with my google pixel 2. If you don’t want to stand in line to buy an internet card, you can probably get on from your Airbnb host or buy one from one of the dudes who will sell them to you on the sly at any of the plazas. You’ll pay an extra cuc or two for the pleasure. Just make sure that the card you are buying is a new one – you can tell if its new because the bar under which the access code will appear hasn’t been scratched off yet.
When you turn on wifi – select the ETESCA network. A log-in screen should pop up . Enter your username (usario) and the password (contrasena) located on the back of the scratch-off Nauta card. If you have troubling connecting or the login screen doesn’t pop up try typing “1.1.1.1”. You may need to disconnect and forget the network – turning off wi-fi and/or your phone and reconnecting again. If you are in a crowded plaza you may have difficulty connecting due to the high number of users accessing it at the time.
When you are done, make sure you disconnect from the network AND turn off wi-fi on your device.
Taxis
Old Havana (Habana Vieja) is very walkable and we enjoy walking so we did not use the many taxis available throughout Old Havana. We weren’t often in a hurry and so simply smiled and said no to the many offers for a ride. We took taxis when the destination was more than 5 miles away or if we were in a hurry.
You will constantly be asked if you need a taxi, or a mojito, or a meal. Get used to it. Just be polite and say no or "mas tarde" (later).
To and from Airport to Central Havana: 30 cucs
From Havana to Viñales: 25 cucs each (shared with 3 other riders) arranged through the Airbnb host. The return trip was 20 cucs each arranged with the driver with a 10 cucs deposit.
From Vedado to Old Havana: 5 cucs
From Vedado to Miramar: 8 – 10 cuc
Taxi and guide to Finca Vigia (Hemingway’s house) and back to Havana: 40 cucs
Collectivos are much less expensive, as are the buses, costing just a few pesos but you need to know the routes and be willing to wait until an available one comes along.
Lodging
There are of course a few very expensive hotels (even by U.S standards) at which you can stay I suppose, but that's not our thing. These hotels will be clean and easy, the hotel staff bright and smiling and accomodating to be sure. But. We think it's far more enjoyable to stay in a casa particular - a private residence, owned and managed by locals. You can find these on Airbnb, among other places and contact them in advance of your trip, or wander the streets in the neighborhood, village or city you are visiting and knock on their door. Expect to pay between 20 cucs and 45 cucs per night, depending on the location and amenities. We reserved ours in advance. Some are rooms within their house or apartment and others are private houses or apartments. Take your pic. Either way, you will be sure to engage with your hosts! The rooms are clean and easy, the hosts welcoming and accomodating. They can help you arrange for taxis, exchanging cash, bike rentals, tours, and guides (if you like) restaurant (paladares) reservations, you name it. They will have connections to almost anything and anyone. They may get a small commission from whomever they refer, but they're doing you a service and it's no big deal - the cost to you is the same. Every house we stayed at was impeccably clean, comfortable and the hosts extremely kind and helpful. We are happy to refer you to them. No commission!
Bringing Back Alcohol and Tobacco from Cuba Chances are you’ve enjoyed at least one mojito (or cuba libre or cubata or cancháncharra) and a cigar during your trip and you’d like to bring some of that Cuban flavor back home with you. Every country is different so check the requirements for your country. For US travelers the requirements are here. Check for updates before your trip.
If you are over the age of 21, you are allowed to bring back 5 liters per person if the alcohol content is between 24 and 70 percent (48 to 140 proof). Anything more than that will be taxed by customs.
The US allows you to bring in up to 100 cigars (up to $800 worth) per person duty-free. Twenty of those cigars can be loose and un-banded. The rest need to be banded and in sealed boxes – and keep your receipt of purchase for those in boxes. You can bring more than that if you want to pay taxes on them.
Don’t bring+ back any other agricultural products (fruits, vegetables, meats, etc.) they will be confiscated. You might get by with bringing back some coffee or honey. It’s up to you to try.
Cigar Top Tip:
You will be approached often by people on the street to buy cigars. Do not do so. The cigars will be fake or of very low quality. Please purchase them at one of several official cigar stores in Havana or other cities you may visit.
You can also purchase some of your cigar stock directly from a tobacco farm – they will be loose (not in a box) and unbanded (no ring) but they will be of good quality. You can buy Cohibas at 5 cuc per cigar, Monte Cristos at 4, and Romeo and Juliets at 3. If you buy in larger quantities, you get can a better deal. Remember, you are allowed to bring back up to 20 loose cigars per person -
Top Tip: If you purchase rum or other alcohol at the duty-free shop at the airport in Havana – make sure to pack it in your checked luggage. You can bring it as carry on when you depart Havana, but it will be confiscated from you if you attempt to board your airplane with it in your carry-on luggage after passing customs in the US. The prices in the airport are no cheaper than the prices you will find all over Cuba, so you might consider purchasing your rum on one of your final days in town and just putting it into your checked baggage and avoid the hassle. You can avoid the worry of the bottles leaking by bringing a couple of 2 gallon-sized ziplock bags with you and placing your bottles inside and surrounded by clothing items to cushion the bottle(s).
Check out our posts on Viñales and Cigars for more information about cigars.
Interested in other aspects of our trip to Cuba? Read about them here:
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