A group of friends and I are headed down in April 2017. I know enough Spanish to get by, so anybody have info about places to stay, go, etc?!? Any info is helpful - thanks!
Cuba...
- Thread starter JofromthaNO
- Start date
Went there in mid-May of 2014 for just over a week. Stayed in downtown Havana at the Iberostar Parque Central. Got around on foot the whole time, and got by on English. Had a little bit of Spanish to work with from back in 9th grade, but otherwise was able to communicate.
pls keep us informed, going in July
I stayed in Matanzas which is a small city near the older airport, but it's close to Varadero which is a nice resort place. The dollar goes a LONG way everywhere except Havana which is a real beautiful place that plays up to the world tourists around.
You can get by knowing no Spanish.
You can get by knowing no Spanish.
How did your vacation go?
Hey Jo did you take pics while in Cuba? (that you can share)
I did, but haven't transferred them to post them here. Will do in a little bit
Lovely - went to Santa Clara, Trinidad, Cienfuegos, Vinales and Veradero for a few days (did a whole week trip, though.) Loved the people, the beaches, and the community - hate what communism has done in terms of their rations system, etc. Everyone loved seeing Americans and it was totally safe. Sad what Trump is doing now, but that man just wants to undo everything Obama has done.
I did, but haven't transferred them to post them here. Will do in a little bit
Thank you
Nice, what about natives. Yknow, the women
I'm a woman so I can't say much about them. Everybody was pretty friendly, though.
First picture is Vinales - near where tobacco plantations are...
Beach picture is Veradero - resort strip where tourists go to "play." Other two pics are Havana - we did a few days in Havana, but also hopped around Central and North Cuba too.
Thank you for the update.
No problem - just got back from Ecuador and had a blast there too. Would go back to either country to experience more of the nightlife, etc.
Nice. Gonna be visiting Puerto Vallarta in early-December. Looking forward to that.
Had a chance to go here during the first few days in Havana. Walked over there from the hotel. Here's some photos from Google Images. Took some similar shots.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_the_Revolution_(Cuba)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_the_Revolution_(Cuba)
What did you have to do to go over there legally? Paperwork, Exemptions, etc.???
Flew out through JFK, and I applied for the visa and paid for it right there at the airport - $50. We had an itinerary of different tours we booked beforehand, and some not so structured days. In the event our trip gets "audited," I have that info to show - however, I've never heard of it happening. But, it was very easy. Even when we booked our tickets (through Delta,) it mentioned then about getting the visa at the airport. Not sure if it's changed but was very easy this April.
What info did you have to show if you were audited? I thought it was illegal to go to Cuba as an American citizen. Did you have a special assignment for going? Almost like an exemption?
No, but I'm in education and bilingual so it did help my Spanish skills lol. I have the copies of my itinerary. But, honestly, even the people who have gone after me (July 2017) didn't book official tours, flew out through different airports and they still had an easy time navigating things. And, no, it's not illegal - you just need a visa, like going to Brasil. The hardest thing for us was currency, initially, but we even figured that out. It's not difficult to get there, promise.
Oh ok. All this time I thought it was still illegal for Americans to travel to Cuba.
When you apply for your visa, at that time, you will list reason for travel. Trump restricted reasons but as long as you're not stating or implying you're there for tourism (which isn't one of the choices anyway,) you're fine. It really isn't a hostile situation because Cubans are happy to see Americans there - and Canadians and other English speaking countries have been there for decades before us.
Sorry didn't read through the whole thread but
Were you able to hit the beach..
And how was the food any memorable dishs
Great stuff Jo! Thanks! I needed this info.
We went to Veradero for three days and stayed at Naviti, a resort on the strip. The hotel, grounds and beach were gorgeous. The water was awesome - like, I played in the waves for a good 40 minutes straight like a big kid. The food was kinda meh, though.
You have to be careful if you're eating at government owned businesses or private ones. The private ones, by far, are so much better. The food was the biggest let down of the trip.
There is a beach closer to Havana - Veradero is almost 2 hours away, I believe. But, it was worth it.
oh sorry to hear about the food, I heard the food was great, but it was coming from people who ate at peoples homes, in bed and breakfast type hook ups...
they said lots of rice and beans but the fish and carne aka meats were seasoned to perfection.
thanks for this thread it reminded me how much I wanted to visit....