Cuba

I'll answer by asking some questions that you may or may not have considered.

Are you planning this on your own? If American citizens, know that the Trump administration has tightened restrictions on traveling to Cuba. It's my understanding that you can no longer just check a box that you are doing your own people-to-people contacts. Tour groups still work well as they organize all that for you and get the approvals.

It's been a couple of years now since I was there, but I think it is still difficult to travel there solo - logistically speaking. Havana would be easier to arrange, but how would you do a day-trip outside Havana? Shorter distances could be arranged by private taxi car, but be prepared to pay quite a bit for that, even in Cuba.

I'm not sure that credit cards and ATM cards work there, and few places can take them anyway. You have to bring all the cash you will need and then some. Expect things to cost more than you expect - Cuba is still relatively cheap but far more expensive than it was before Americans started arriving in droves. And prices continue to rise.

Cuba and Havana are amazing places, so I don't mean to discourage you. But it takes considerable planning given the logistics and resistance from our government for freedom of travel there.

If you're American, your credit and debit cards won't work in Cuba. You'll have to bring enough cash for all your on-the-ground expenses, and convert the cash to Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUCs, or "kooks"), the only currency you can use. I believe CUCs are pegged to the US dollar, but there's a tax in the neighborhood of 18% on dollars converted to them, i.e. a CUC is worth about 82 cents.

I took an organized tour last year and most of my costs were covered in the tour price, paid by credit card to a US-based company (Go Ahead Tours, there are others). I brought some Euros from previous trips to Europe and converted them to CUCs without the tax. It was a great experience but I wouldn't have been able to work the logistics on my own, and I'm used to doing that elsewhere. And I would have needed a pile of cash for hotels, meals, and transportation for a week.

I'd encourage you to visit this fascinating country but you'll need to know the particulars of current restrictions, most of which are US-imposed. I'd start with the US State Department website, guidebooks published within the last year, and other internet research.

I've also been considering a visit to Cuba, and have been looking at a few brochures. I'm not sure at this point whether I'll have the money for a winter trip, but it doesn't hurt to get some plans in place. I'm also trying to decide whether to take a tour or just do self guided travel and wander about on my own. There are direct flights in the winter from my local airport to Cuba, so it would be an easy trip.

American friends report that they took Euros and Canadian dollars to avoid the penalty on changing US dollars in Cuba. They claim that they came out ahead even with the cost of acquiring the Euros and Canadian dollars before leaving the US.

The Cuban government puts a fee on converting American dollars to CUC, even though officially the rate is 1:1. So yes, you can potentially save a little money using Canadian dollars or Euro. The problem is, hotels only convert US dollars so you have to do your conversion at a bank. Those can be hard to come by and have long lines. The people in my group that did this regretted it because they were wasting time converting money or had a hard time doing so.

In all our trips to Cuba - more than a dozen - we never had problems exchanging Canadian dollars, either at a CADECA (currency exchange) or bank. Banks and CADECAs offer the same rate, so you don't need to shop around. If you exchange at the hotel's front desk, then you will get a worse rate. Banks and CADECAs will give a printed receipt for your transaction, if they don't then ask for it. Count your money before you walk away. Front desk will not (or rarely) give a receipt. Almost all hotels and resorts have a CADECA onsite, unless there is a bank near by. Make sure you check the bank hours of operation. CADECAS have longer hours, they are also located in the arrivals areas of all the airports.

Oh, and I forgot to add that if you are approached on the street by someone offering to exchange money for you at a better rate - don't fall for it.....

I converted my Euros to CUCs at my Havana hotel, one of the big tourist places. Not sure a casa particular or smaller hotel would have done it. I'm sure the hotel would have converted Canadian dollars too. I probably got a worse exchange rate than at a bank or cambio but the convenience outweighed it and I avoided that tax. I converted surplus CUCs back to US dollars at the airport before leaving Cuba, otherwise I'd have brought home a collection of worthless pictures of Jose Marti.

Ken, I recommend getting yourself to Cuba as soon as you can (but in winter). Foreign tourism is the country's biggest industry, thanks mostly to Canadians, Europeans, and Latin Americans. Eventually we Yankees will flood the place. Whether the Cubans can benefit from all that investment without McDonald-izing their country will be the question. The answer will come later, rather than sooner, thanks to our current administration's policy shift.

Dick,

"Ken, I recommend getting yourself to Cuba as soon as you can (but in winter)."

I've been looking at Cuba for a couple of years, but have always had the impression they're not quite ready for "prime time" yet. Although a few years old, reports like this don't instill a lot of confidence

• https://globalnews.ca/news/2461921/canadian-travellers-report-illnesses-at-cuban-resorts-promoted-and-operated-by-sunwing/ .
• https://globalnews.ca/news/3247039/tourists-from-canada-and-england-report-illness-injury-at-4-star-cuban-resort/
• https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/cuban-vacation-terrifying-for-halifax-woman-1.4585597

In deciding on travel destinations, one thing that's become critically important for me, especially when travelling solo, is having good mobile phone access, both for voice and data. At the moment, the cellular network in Cuba is rather primitive and my home network charges a fortune for roaming there. It's a bit surprising that with all the money the Cuban government has been raking in from tourist dollars from Canadians, Europeans, etc. over the years, that they still haven't brought their network up to current standards.

I've heard that the Cuban people are wonderful. I may decide to just "go for it" one of these days despite the reservations I have.

Food poisoning is always a distinct possibility in Cuba. Not to mention the water. A few in our group got minor stomach issues on our trip; fortunately no one got badly sick.

Upgrading cell phone networks is the least of Cuba's investment worries. They still have buildings collapse in Havana every time it rains hard. Or hotels running out of water each day. Or power outages...

I lived in Germany from 87-91 and visited a lot of then Communist countries.

The infrastructure, accommodations, shops and amenities were appealing. In the DDR some of the autobahns were to dangerous for our bus to go more than 40 MPH. Bombed out building from WWII were still common. I was interesting to a degree, since when we went many of the people seemed to know that change was coming and they were enthusiastic about the future and becoming free.

I suppose it would be interesting to compare today's Cuba with that experience, but frankly, I am in no hurry to check it out.

Douglas,

"Upgrading cell phone networks is the least of Cuba's investment worries. They still have buildings collapse in Havana every time it rains hard. Or hotels running out of water each day. Or power outages..."

I agree! Again, with the billions they've been bringing in from tourism for many years, why are these problems not being addressed.

Again, with the billions they've been bringing in from tourism for
many years, why are these problems not being addressed.

I think you overestimate the amount of money tourism brings to Cuba and underestimate the devastation that the American embargo reaps on the Cuban economy. Tourism alone won't come close to solving Cuba's many, many problems.

Cuba's time as a tourism destination, even for non-Americans, is pretty short-lived. It was only the early 2000s when Cuba really began to open up to tourists, after the devastating "Special Period" of the '90s and the lightening of restrictions on private enterprise.

"I think you overestimate the amount of money tourism brings to Cuba and underestimate the devastation that the American embargo reaps on the Cuban economy."

Yes, perhaps. However, Canadians and Europeans have been travelling there for many years, and even if the main influx of tourists didn't start until 2000, they've still had more than 18 years to start getting their act together - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Cuba#/media/File:VisitorsCuba.png . According to the numbers, Canadians were by far the largest tourist group, with over 1.2 million visits in 2016.

I get the impression that those running the state-owned hotels don't really know how to run a hotel, as I've seen recent reports of sub-standard facilities and deplorable service in some properties.

I was under the impression that the Obama administration relaxed many of the tariffs, but I haven't seen any recent information on how this has changed under the current administration.

I suppose what I'm looking for are the same standards that I've enjoyed in Europe over the years.

I get the impression that those running the state-owned hotels don't
really know how to run a hotel, as I've seen recent reports of
sub-standard facilities and deplorable service in some properties.

I was under the impression that the Obama administration relaxed many
of the tariffs, but I haven't seen any recent information on how this
has changed under the current administration.

I suppose what I'm looking for are the same standards that I've
enjoyed in Europe over the years.

State run hotels and restaurants do often lack employee initiative, but it really isn't a matter of "knowing how to run a hotel." Our Havana hotel ran out of water repeatedly, not because no one cared, but because the pump broke. There is no standard water supply in old Havana and everyplace gets its water delivered and pumped up to tanks on the roof. If the pump breaks, no more water until the pump is fixed. And by then, everytime a truck delivered water, it would be drained in an hour from everyone flushing toilets and taking quick showers. A second hotel lost power every so often. Several elevators didn't work because there is no way to repair them. Beds were clean but horribly old and uncomfortable because it is nearly impossible to get new mattresses and frames. Restaurants (private and public) usually didn't have half their menu items because they can't get enough food supplied.

The American embargo isn't about tariffs, its about completely cutting off Cuba to outside trade and imports. Without the Soviet Block, Cuba was left to trade with Venezuela (you can imagine how pathetic that might be). The Cubans literally starved in the '90s because there was almost no food being imported and the Cubans don't grow much themselves. In the past few years, China has been stepping up but the Cubans have very little to offer in trade or hard currency to buy things.

Until you've been there its hard to imagine just how isolated they have been and the incredibly severe conditions under which they have been forced to live. That's why I said that wifi networks are the least of their worries. And the warnings about how difficult tourism is there. It's worth it to me to visit, but it's definitely not for everyone and won't be for years.

Douglas,

Thanks very much for the additional information! That clarifies the picture considerably and provides lots to think about.

"State run hotels and restaurants do often lack employee initiative"

In many places, it's up to management to provide that initiative - do the job and keep the customers happy, or get the sack!

"And the warnings about how difficult tourism is there. It's worth it to me to visit, but it's definitely not for everyone and won't be for years."

That's actually one attribute that makes Cuba attractive as a tourist destination for many people. Once it's opened up to mass tourism, it could become like so many places in Europe that have been overwhelmed with tourists, to the point where the locals are saying "no more!"

I look at Cuba travel on a regular basis, and one of these days I might give it a try. A lot will probably depend on the money situation as the CUC is at about the same level as the US dollar. I'll stop and have a chat with my travel agent next time I'm in the vicinity of her office.