Cuba travel information -  FAQ

 

Cuba travel information. Reliable source for travellers visiting Cuba. Get information on Cuban public safety before travelling. What has to be done in case of loosing your passport or visa? What are prices and restaurants like in Cuba?

 

Useful travel information, frequently asked questions:

How is the public safety in Cuba?

We can tell you that it’s quite good. You can walk in the streets day and night it, is not typical that locals’ first idea about a tourist is to attack and rob him/her. It doesn’t mean that you should leave your cameras or purse unattended in a bar, park or museum of course.

 

Do they really give back the change in Cuban peso instead of convertible peso to unsuspecting tourists?

It is not true. It only happens if someone makes ‘good businesses’ in the street, gateway or stairway. If you buy something in official shops it is not typical to get your money with tricks like this.

 

Who can tourists turn to in Cuba if they got lost, they are at a loss or they had an accident?

You can trust the liveried. Nearly every corner there is somebody standing, watching and guarding - it is very common in the heart of the city and near to tourist attractions. It can be a police officer, soldier or security guard. Policemen wear blue - grey uniform, soldiers have the green one and the guards wear light blue shirt (with the sign SEPSA) and dark blue trousers. Although only a few of them speak English they are always helpful and using the common international words they can help in any case.

 

What currency should I take to Cuba: EUR, USD or CAD?

The best currencies are Euro and Canadian Dollar. These have the best rates at changes and you have to pay tax for changing American Dollars. You can’t use them for payment (except some places in Varadero but it doesn’t worth the price) so it is suggested to change to CUC. More about currencies change at travel information.

 

How can I pick up money in Cuba?

You can pick up money at official places, they are called CADECA (Casas de Cambio) and you find these everywhere at airports and hotels. You can use cards MASTERCARD or VISA. It is totally safe. You will get Cuban peso from your EUR, USD or CAD account. The procedure looks like the following: if you have for example an euro based account the amount of EUR you would like to pick up will be converted to USD and give you a change for it in CUC. American dollar has a fix exchange rate.

 

What shall I do if I loose my passport or tourist card?

First of all you have to call your country’s embassy in Cuba and ask for their help. It is not suggested to turn to the police in case of you loose your passport because you can find yourself in 3-day custody instead of getting help as they must identify you. 

 

Can I leave values at hotels and private accommodations?

Yes, but a relaxing holiday is better than one with unwished adventures. You should rent a safe at hotel (that costs usually only 3 CUC/day) and you can leave your money and other values safe. You can also trust legal private accommodations (you can see a blue anchor at the entrance of these), your stay at these houses is totally official so they will not take your money. Even so if it happens it is not easy to arrange annunciation. If you stay at an illegal accommodation it is your responsibility to take care of your values.

 

Can I eat in private restaurants at so called 'Paladars'?

We would like to highlight that the below mentioned cases are very rare!

But it happened and can happen at anytime so good to be careful.

Mostly in Havana, Trinidad, Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba they are very happy to help tourists walking in the streets by offering them a good meal. Of course they promise the best local food and help tourists into a yard or a garden.

Trick 1: Upon your arrival you already have an amount on the bill that we call commission.

Trick 2: On the menu you will see many things (if they have a printed one but it is not common) but at the first dish they will tell you ‘sorry, we just ran out of it’. You think OK, I will eat what they have and choose another speciality. Service is usually nice, cutlery is clean, food is snug and in most of the cases tastes good. At the end of the meal you get your bill and a nice smile.

Trick 3: Seeing the amount you can ask: did they add the actual date or what? After some angry oaths it comes to the light that it happened to add some extra juices or something like that. They apologize and reduce the amount with some Cuban peso but it won’t be the real amount still. As you want a nice, relaxed holiday you pay the amount and note that you won’t eat there any more.

 

Do Cuban people speak English?

Not really. At hotels and main tourist scenes they do but only those who get in contact with the tourists. At the back offices and in service sector only a few people can speak English. You can only arrange official things in local language also. People in the streets know the well-known sentences like ‘I would be happy to help you’ or ‘I can get you cheap cigar /taxi /or other services… Generally Cubans don’t speak English so it is good to prepare in advance and learn some Spanish words.

Of course from a travel dictionary you can’t have serious conversations thank to the Cuban dialect but you will understand what matters.

 

What are the most important things I should know in Spanish?

 

Here you will find a small dictionary:

 

English Spanish English Spanish

 

Greetings

 

   Days of the week  
Hi! Hola! Monday Lunes
Good morning! Buenos dias! Tuesday Martes
Good afternoon! Buenas tardes! Wednesday Miercoles
Good evening! Buenas noches! Thursday Jueves
Goodbye! Hasta luego!

Friday

 Viernes
Bye! Adiós! Saturday Sabado
    Sunday Domingo

 

Salutation

 

   Numbers  
Miss Señorita (srta.) 1 uno
Mr. (young man) Señorito (srto.) 2 dos
Mrs. Señora (sra.) 3 tres
Mr. Señor (sr.) 4 cuatro
    5 cinco
Polite phrases   6 seis
    7 siete
Please! Por favor! 8 ocho
Thank you! Gracias! 9 nueve
Thank you very much! Muchas gracias! 10 diez
Excuse me!

Perdón!

 20 veinte
I'm sorry! Lo siento! 30 treinta
    40 cuarenta
Other   50 cincuenta
    60 sesenta
Yes Sí 70 setenta
No No 80 ochenta
Today Hoy 90 noventa
Yesterday Ayer 100 cien
Tomorrow Mañana    
Every day Todos los dias Simple questions  
Your passport, please!  Por favor su pasaporte!    
I don't know No sé How are you? Como esta? 
I don't understand No entiendo Do you want a taxi? Quiere taxi?
I'm from... Soy de ... Where are you going? A donde va?
The bill, please! Por favor la cuenta! Where are you from? De donde viene?
Room Habitación Where are you from? De donde es Usted?
Where is the ... Hotel? Donde esta el hotel...? What's your name? Como se llama?
On the left Izquierda What does ... mean? Que significa...?
On the right Derecha How much does it cost? Cuanto cuesta?
Straight Dereho What's up? Que tal?

 

When do you suggest travelling to Cuba?

At any time. If you would like to know in which season or month: from October to April. This is the dry season and the temperature is around 25 degrees. Cold fronts are very rare in this period and the temperature doesn’t go under 18-20 degrees in this case neither. Cubans feel it much colder than us and they wear warm jackets, hat and scarf but you will feel good in a sweater or light jacket. : ) 

Considering the price the best period is in spring after Easter till half of May because hotels are cheaper this time before the rainy season. In the autumn the best is in October after hurricanes leave Cuba and hotel prices are lower before December!

 

Recommended hotels in Havana:

Hotel Deauville; Hotel Melia Habana; Hotel Plaza; Hotel Inglaterra; Hotel Nacional de Cuba; Hotel Tryp Habana Libre

 

Recommended hotels in Varadero:

Hotel Club Amigo Tropical; Hotel Villa Tortuga; Hotel Aguas Azules; Hotel Brisas Caribe; Hotel Melia Varadero; Hotel Tryp Peninsula Varadero

 

What are the prices like in Cuba? How much do general things cost?

 

Prices below are showed in CUC /1 CUC = 1,1 USD/.

 

Product / Service Price /CUC/ Product / Service Price /CUC/

 

Food

 

   Fuel  
breakfast (eggs, cheese, ham, salad... etc.) 5.00-6.00 Petrol 94 (especial) 1.10
lunch (rice with black beans, grilled chicken, salad) 8.00-10.00 Petrol 91 (regular) 1.00
dinner (pork, side dish, salad) 8.00-10.00 Diesel oil 1.00

 

Drinks

 

   Entrance fees  
beer 0.5l (bucanero, cristal) in a bar 1.00 Casa de la Musica /other city/ 2.00-5.00 
beer 0.5l (bucanero, cristal) in a shop 0,50 Casa de la musica /Havana/  5.00-10.00 
soft drink/mineral water 0.5l (national) in a bar 1.00    
soft drink/mineral water 0.5l (national) in a shop 0,50 Others  
soft drink/mineral water 0.5l (foreign) in a bar 1,25-1,50    
soft drink/mineral water 0.5l (foreign) in a shop 0,85-0,95 deck - chair 1.00-3.00 
cocktail (cuba libre, mojito, daiquiri) 3.00-6.00 postcard 0.50-0.75 
spirits 1l (rum, whiskey)  5.00-30.00 stamp 1.00 
wine 0.7l 4.00-10.00 internet slow /hour 6.00 
coffee 1.00  internet fast /hour 12.00
fruit juice 1l (packed) 0.95-2.50  printing /page 0,50-1.00

 

Transportation (besides car rental)

 

   Telephone calls  
taxi 1.00- >> from hotel /minute 5.00-6.00
bicitaxi 1.00- >> with card from telephine box 10.00-20.00
cocotaxi 3.00- >>    
horse carriage 5.00- >>    
       

 

What sights can I see in Cuba? Which are the most interesting ones?

It would be a very long list if we would try to collect all the things so we highlight the most interesting things to visit if you want to see more than the white sandy beaches. We suggest to all who are interested in Cuba’s colourful culture and life of the local people to visit as many cities in the countryside as they can after getting familiar with Havana.

In Vinales Valley you can visit tobacco plantations, in Cienfueos: former palaces of "sugar barons’’, in Trinidad: historical city centre, in Santa Clara: monument of CHE GUEVARA, in Holguin: parks, in Camaguey: Cathedral, in Santiago de Cuba: House of Velazquez - these are all unforgettable moments of a Cuban tour. It is practical and cost-saver to visit these places after each other like in a chain.

 

Is Varadero only a crowded tourist point?

You can hear many negative things about Varadero.

 

Most people think it is only a plastic tourist resort even so this is the most popular place of Cuba (20.000 tourist / day) – it can’t be coincidence.

Others say: "Cubans can’t even enter Varadero. That is even not Cuba; you can only meet foreigners there."  It is not true. There are Cubans living in Varadero and of course they can enter the city. If you would like to see it just walk to the street at the entrance of the peninsula and you will meet one in 5 minutes, it’s sure.

The strangest is to hear the followings: "There is nothing to do in Varadero besides lying on the beach." If 30 different excursions (trips, water sports and programmes, city tours) and the numerous restaurants and exotic entertaining bars and shows ate nothing then yes, you can do nothing there.

One thing is sure: 'The white sandy beach, palm forrest and turquoise sea is breathtakingly beautiful!'

 

Is it necessary to rent a car during the holiday? What are the most important things I have to know about car rental?

Yes, if you would like to get know the country on your own and don’t want to go on a collective tour it is a need to rent a car. Every year more and more people choose this. Public transport is not the best solution to tell you the truth. Of course during a car rental and transport there are rules that must be observed.

 

The 5 most important rules:

 

 1. On receipt of the car (before signing the rental contract) you have to examine the car and note all the injuries and defects (buckle, nick, state of spare wheel, face of cassette or CD player, fuel level) to precede reductions from deposit.

 2.  You have to observe the rules during driving the car although it is not always easy thanks to the lack of signing boards and signs on the road (rules of transport are international so you can drive as you usually do). Speed limits are the following: in built-up areas: 50km/h, outside built-up areas: 70km/h, on motorways and highways: 120km/h.

 3. You can even meet cows or tractors on highways also so always be careful. Quality of the roads is bearable but of course there can be potholes.

 4. M Before the built-up areas there are so called 'Puntos de Control' (check points) where the speed limit is 30km/h because of an incidental control.

 5. You must stop at every crosswalk and railroad crossing even in the lack of any signal or if nobody is to cross the road. /It is not that bad it seems first as in Havana for example there are only 10 official crossroads for pedestrians and they do not have too many railroad either... Another thing that you can find one on a motorway also :-)  /

 

It is obligatory to pay the penalty, the amount of which can be different according to the foul. You won’t pay on the spot: policeman will write the amount of the penalty on your rental contract and the car rental company will reduce it from your deposit /usually 10, 15 or 30 CUC/.

 

Which are the best restaurants in Cuba?

As we wrote above it is not suggested to eat at a "paladar", private restaurant as you can have problems.

There are restaurants where you can have delicious meals for moderate price so we offer these first of all. In these restaurants there are many guests so you can avoid getting 3-day-old meals…

Many people get in restaurants with tempting Cuban music and nice smiles in the front door but sometimes the pleasant lunch or dinner ends with problems.

Of course it doesn’t mean that you can’t choose a restaurant where the staff is polite or live music is presented we just say be careful. If you feel staff is too mealy-mouthed just walk along and chose another place to eat.

Below you can find restaurants we suggest to try if you want to eat something for moderate price at a pleasant place:

 

Havana:

Restaurant Cabana, at the beach (Menu no.1. is very good: grilled chicken, side dish, dessert, coffee and soft drink for 7 CUC).


Pinar del Rio:

Restaurant next to the Indian cave (breathtaking environment, few dishes but taste quite good! classical Cuban cuisine).


Cienfuegos:

Italian restaurant opposite to the Hotel Boutique La Union (grilled chicken with side dish and pizza are fantastic).


Trinidad:

Restaurant of Casa de la Trova, next to the main square (intimate terrace, panorama of  Trinidad, few dishes, fine food for affordable price: at about. 10 CUC/pax for a lunch).


Camaguey:

Restaurant of knights at Cathedral Square (Wonderful environment, domed interior, fine dishes, perfect service, our favourite!).


Santiago de Cuba:

Terrace and restaurant of Hotel Casa Granda (Colonial style building, view to the main square, intimate, a bit slow service but it worth the time, live music from square).

 

 

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