I’ve had a few friends ask for tips on traveling to Cuba, so I put together a rundown of what I found helpful. I loved our trip! Cuba is beautiful, lively, and exciting. It’s also not the easiest place to travel…
Here are some basic things to know:
Money
– You can’t use an U.S. ATM or credit card, so make sure to bring all the cash you think you’ll need for the duration of your trip in Cuba. I would recommend $75-100/day/person, plus a little extra just in case. You can always exchange it as you go.
– USD does not have the best exchange rate (there’s an additional 10% surcharge) so if you have the opportunity to change your money euros or pesos before you land in Cuba I recommend it.
– You can exchange your money right at the airport or at a bank or CADECA once you get into town. The exchange rate will be the same everywhere, except hotels- they can charge more.
Airport
– We breezed through the airport on our way home. But I’ve had friends that were there for hours checking-in for their flight. So make sure you give yourself plenty of time when you are heading home.
– If you have a tour booked, your transportation is likely included so be sure to check; if not, our experience with cabs at the airport was fine and felt safe – no need to reserve a cab, unless you’d prefer to.
Internet
– I was able to use my phone with AT&T and an international travel plan. Internet is still very spotty, so make sure to download a map app (we liked map.me) and an English/Spanish translation app that you can use without internet.
– If you have addresses or contact information you need for the trip, make sure to save it somewhere you can access without internet or write it down.
Lodging
– Options are generally private home stays, called casa particulares, or hotels.
– We didn’t do a lot of advanced scheduling, many places don’t have websites or the ability to book online. Instead we arranged most things (like casas, a driver to Trinidad, etc.) as we went along.
– If you want a little more structure there is tons of info popping up online. I found these links to be super helpful: La Habana, Cuba-Junky and, of course, on TripAvisor. When we went, there wasn’t much available through AirBnB but that is quickly changing too.
Food
– There are restaurants (government owned) and paladares (privately owned.) Paladares are generally considered to have better quality and service, plus you support the families that run them.
– Most locations, whether restaurant or paladar, have access to the same ingredients and serve similar meals, so don’t expect a lot of variety. Our best meals were in paladares or casa particulars.
– If you are going to a restaurant, check to see if you need a reservation, a lot of places get totally booked up.
Etc.
– You’ll have to pay 1 peso or so to use most bathrooms outside of the place you’re staying and don’t plan on those bathrooms always having seats or toilet paper. I just made sure to keep a little TP in my purse. 😉
– Bring all of the products you want and triple check that you don’t forget must-haves like medications. We lost our sunscreen to TSA and it was not easy or cheap to find toiletries.
Final note: If you are concerned about changing travel restrictions be sure to call your airline, visit the State Department website here, or book your flight through Mexico 😉
I’ll do a few other posts soon with recommendations and info about Trinidad and Playa Ancon. If you want to know anything, just ask!
