Headed to Havana, Cuba after a work trip in New York with some old college pals— Mich, Adam, and Caro. I must say, Havana is one of the most interesting and unique places I’ve visited. The planning and execution of this trip was a lot different, and because of Cuba’s unique position in the world right now (both politically and economically) there was so much to learn and so much to see!

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

HOW TO GET THERE

  • Buy flights from America, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest, and United. The Obama Administration restored flights from Cuba. To my knowledge, you can fly direct from NYC, Houston, and Miami.

  • Obtain a Visa. Once you obtain the your flight, the airline has specific instructions for how to obtain the Visa. For JetBlue, we arrived at least an hour before flight time departure, picked up Visa for $50 at check in.

Currencies

  • Bring lots of cash. Cuba does not except any foreign transaction cards (including Chase). Make sure to bring excess cash for your trip to pay for everything

  • Convert cash to Euros before going to Cuba. There is a 10% surcharge from converting from USD. Convert to Euros first and then convert Euros to CUC when you land.

  • Understand the difference between CUC and CUP. Cuba has a very complex currency system. They have two different currencies CUC (AKA cook) and CUP (AKA coop) which are both called “pesos” colloquially.

    • The differences…

      • CUC is commonly used by tourists. It is Cuba’s way to make sure conversion rate and prices are around the same ballpark as those from visiting countries. Current conversion rate from CUC to USD is 1:1. Most restaurants / popular tourists areas only except CUC.

      • CUP is more commonly used by locals. 90% of the Cuban workforce is employed by the government, and are paid an average of 20-30 CUC a month. Conversion from CUP to CUC is 24:1.

    • Why this matters…

      • When purchasing items (and this has happened to me quite a bit especially with taxi’s) inquire CUC vs CUP or use common sense (haha!). I remember seeing a popular pizza place with a line flowing out the door with “15” written next to “pizza slice”. Not knowing about CUP conversion I thought “$15 for a pizza? That’s outrageous!” But turns out it was CUP making the pizza ~$0.60 vs $15.

Internet

  • Understand how Cuban internet works. Internet is not readily available in Cuba. Some Airbnb’s / hotels will have their own personal router, and if so you can buy internet cards (for 1 CUC/hour) at hotels and convenience stores. Make sure to inquire that the internet card is for available to use everywhere (including personal routers) and not just at the hotel. If your accommodation does not have a router, you will only have Wifi in public spots (such as squares and parks).

  • Be prepared to be without internet. Great to download maps / google drive before you head to Cuba. Will make life a lot easier, and you won’t be scrambling to get online to find places / things to do. High chance any wifi hot spots / phones won’t work.

Itinerary

  • September 2018 - 3 days @ Airbnb in Havana, Cuba. Loved my Airbnb and would love to share a few tips on booking places

    • Walkable distance— think living in Old Havana is the best. It is very safe to walk home at night, even in the dark

    • Wifi — make sure your Airbnb / hotel specifies there is a specific router for you to be able to use in your room. Otherwise you’ll have to go to public spaces (IE, the park) to use.

    • Balcony — LOL so extra but really glad I got cute balcony pics in Havana!

Highlights

  • Exploring life with a Cuban economist. This was by far the highlight of my trip and worth the 3.5 hour tour. Yvonne had recommended it to me on her trip, and I am so grateful she did. It give such an interesting and deep look into Cuban economy. The tour guide was wonderful at answering questions, welcoming us into his home, and providing lovely snacks. Definitely something I would recommend to everyone (and if you do go, please — would love to chat about (!!) but my three biggest takeaways after the tour…

    • I am so grateful for my mobility and American passport. Wow, always forget how accessible other parts of the world are because of my passport and I am so grateful to have opportunities to travel to parts of the world (like Cuba) to learn about their culture with both ease and affordability.

    • I will always respect the hustle humans have. Whether it be driving for Uber or hosting an economy tour, people who hustle truly make the world move.

    • There is so much more for me to learn. Majoring in IS -Economics, I thought I had a pretty good grasp of the economics from a world-wide lens but there is so much more to learn and see. Loved this tour, it real lifted the veil on the island's economy.

  • Eating really bomb seafood at Santy Pescadaor. A 25 min drive from city center, Santy Pescador is a charming / hidden seafood shack. Well decorated and right along the water, the restaurant is secretly hidden where you have to enter into a house to go to the “backyard” to get to the restaurant. Food was amazing. I recommend ceviche — best I’ve ever had & grilled octopus. Close seconds where huge bowl of seafood pasta & sashimi (15+ pieces of tuna for $10!). Also did not get the lobster, but saw it and it looked AMAZING.

  • Taking a Vintage Car Tour. For 50 CUC/ hour, we took amazing tour to see Cuban missiles, Christ of Havana statue… and wrapping up with DIY daiquiri’s. Recommend doing this right before sunset.

  • Buying lots of great drinks. So many wonderful drinks to try (and so many for >$5). Daiquris (pineapple ones are the best!) and mojitos are famous in Cuba.

  • Finding appreciation for cigars. Cigars are famous in Cuba. I don’t know much about them tbh, and didn’t have a chance to tour any Cigar factories.

  • Grabbing drinks at Hotel Nacional. Skip the food, grab drinks for ~$8, and enjoy the beautiful view at sunset.

  • Experiencing Cuban UberPool. Cabs in Cuba implement an UberPool system where they will pick up multiple people at once. Fascinating!

  • Meeting really genuinely kind people. From our Airbnb host who tirelessly helped Caro find her missing passport, our taxi driver Rodolfo who kindly gave our group 4+ rides to and from the airport, Jorge our Economist tour guide who answered all our questions… to kind waiters who showed us pics of New York and bartenders who taught us salsa dancing, I’m grateful to the Cuban people for reminding me no matter where you’re from, kindness goes a long way.

 

Lowlights

  •  Getting ripped off. It happens, and you have to be careful in Cuba. I think especially with two different currencies, it is super important to understand which currency they are asking for.

  • Missing our flight back to JFK. The airport didn’t have wifi, so we weren’t notified of a gate of time change in our flight and ended up missing it. Reminding me no matter how many flights I take, I can’t ever get too “comfortable” and need to be aware of my surroundings.

 

For Next time

  • Dancing at Fabrica de Arte Cubano. Famous club in Cuba, it was closed when we went.

  • Drinks at El Floridita. Famous for the Hemingway Daiquiri. Went twice and both times they were closed (once for a private party!). Have heard the drinks are a bit expensive and watered-down, but who doesn’t want to toast to Hemingway?!