Travel Questions and Advice

[BeersTerry]

Fuck that. Viazul runs by the airport at 8:30 am. 12 noon. 4:25 and 6:25 pm. Give or take a few minutes for $10. 50.

You might also catch a hotel bus picking up guests. Worst case is CUC$25 but you might haggle them down to $20.

Taxi will be about CUC$70/80

[Primusduvel]

Call this guy his name is Israel he is used to transport mongers, he has a little Daewoo car but it work just ok (535) 2908338.

Has anybody recently used taxi from to varadero airport-vedado, what's the current going rater for 1 person?

Any other reliable transport option to get to varadero airport at 8; 00 AM (have to leave vedado 5-6). No viazul at such early hour.

[Keiser]

Has anybody recently used taxi from to varadero airport-vedado, what's the current going rater for 1 person?

Any other reliable transport option to get to varadero airport at 8; 00 AM (have to leave vedado 5-6). No viazul at such early hour.

[Aluminosis]

I was thinking of bringing some unlocked phones with me to give away or possibly even sell for a few CUC's.

They should work, any reason why they wouldn't if I got a sim card from one of the local phone shops in town?

Up to 3 phones.

http://www.aduana.co.cu/images/docum.../res320-11.pdf

[Sammytheman]

The last guy to go to Cuba and give away cell phones was Alan Gross, and he is currently doing twenty years in a Cuban prison. Not worth the risk.

I believe he had a satellite phone, which is different than a cellphone. My buddy took 3 phones with him without any problems. My advice would be to put them inside your luggage, NOT carry-on.

[Steven Smith]

The last guy to go to Cuba and give away cell phones was Alan Gross, and he is currently doing twenty years in a Cuban prison. Not worth the risk.

Alan Gross brought satellite phones with military grade encryption. His intent was clearly not friendly to the country. The USA has imprisoned Cubans for far less.

[MCruddy]

I was thinking of bringing some unlocked phones with me to give away or possibly even sell for a few CUC's.

They should work, any reason why they wouldn't if I got a sim card from one of the local phone shops in town?

The last guy to go to Cuba and give away cell phones was Alan Gross, and he is currently doing twenty years in a Cuban prison. Not worth the risk.

[Lerxsttt]

I was thinking of bringing some unlocked phones with me to give away or possibly even sell for a few CUC's.

They should work, any reason why they wouldn't if I got a sim card from one of the local phone shops in town?

[Hotzo]

1. 100 cuc per day is more than enough.

2. Have a plan but do not worry about not following it as things change, the pace is slow in Cuba.

3. Havana is not necessarily the best place for chicas, you may find that Tridnidad, Sancti Spiritus, Holguin or some little shit hole town to be very good. Though your limited Spanish may be a problem.

4 Leave your rings, necklace and watch at home.

Hi Beersterry,

Thanks a lot for the quick information.

Depending on the forums I read, some say Havanna is the best, others say Havanna is the worst regarding chicas so I will try by myself. First some days Havanna and then more than 3 weeks somewhere else on the island. My Spanish is limited but good enough for some conversations so this should not be a serious issue.

The only fix date I will have there is my flight back home, so being flexible is also not an issue.

The question about the valuables was more related to the CUCs I changed at arrival, but this is also solved as I will use a mixture between CUCs and Visa (found a Visa card which is free of charge when using it at ATMs in Cuba. But also knowing that an ATM will not be available at every corner)

I will report early June about my experiences in Cuba. Really looking forward to visit this interesting country.

Stay save,

Hotzo

[BeersTerry]

1. 100 cuc per day is more than enough.

2. Have a plan but do not worry about not following it as things change, the pace is slow in Cuba.

3. Havana is not necessarily the best place for chicas, you may find that Tridnidad, Sancti Spiritus, Holguin or some little shit hole town to be very good. Though your limited Spanish may be a problem.

4 Leave your rings, necklace and watch at home.

[Tank Not Mt]

i have never used this site for accomodations so i cannot tell you if its reliable. i have my contacts who arrange accomodations for me. freinds i know have booked places and found when they arrived that for some unexplained reasons the places were occupied by others (probably paid more).

from my experience there should be many chica friendly villas avilable with a pool for a good price, in june-the best ones i know of are in vedado. i prefer miramar myself as it is close enough to the city and most of the good clubs, like la cecillia, are there. all locations are all good-but i would want to make sure they are chica friendly, otherwise you will need another place to party. i've never heard of anyone booking a villa in havana online but there's always a first. i'd be curious how it works out. let us know.

in regards to the police, the policy changes from year to year and month to month. generally the cops try to police prostitution and do a terible job. if you're at a club and pick up a girl; the cops are usually nearby and nab the girls if they go in a private car; even in one cab with a tourist. if however you are driving arround with a chica or 2 they will generally leave you alone. there is no problem with you-the cops will generally not bother a tourist unless you have drugs or **** girls-then you're in big trouble. otherwise if you get stopped-say for a traffic ticket (and if you don't know the local rules, it may be unexpected) you can ususally buy yourself out of trouble with a 10 cuc slipped into the paperwork. again, i don't recommend renting a car. if you're in a traffic accident, wether its your fault or not you may spend a few nights in jail, depending on how serious it is; or posting a $500 bond you may never see again. and if you have a chica with you it'll be worse for her. like i said before, in today's havana i wouldn't drive. 5-10 years ago it was different. you could drive by the malacon and pick up dozens of chicas and pile them in-not today.

good luck and be safe.

thank you for your reply my friend,

it is important to book the villa from my country since i will not pay for the trip. it will be a gift. but it has to be booked before i go.

is this site reliable.

www.havanacasaparticular.com

i will go with a friend and we will rent a car.

in which area is it better to stay? center? miramar? vedado?

as i understand, police checks everything relating to girls. will it be possible to take girls in the car for a ride?

thank again!

ps i have given my 20, but i don't want to bother people with pm. (yet.

[Hotzo]

Hi there,

Currently I'm planning a four week trip through Cuba maybe in may and maybe some experienced guys here could help in answering some questions. I will arrive in Havanna and stay there in a Casa Particular for 4-5 days, then I plan to see some other cities and regions (not Varadero as I'm not looking for tourist spots). Viazul wil be used for longer distances, maybe also a train ride could be a nice challenge. My spanish is limited but I do not care about. Maybe most questions are more tripadvisor related than Jackson's forum but I will do a detailed report when I'm back. About Havanna and all other cities and girls I have visited.

- what daily budget is expected for a backpacker-like live in Cuba (excluding girls as this is a separate budget) , I will stay in casa particulars, use Viazul buses maybe every 3rd or 4th day and need to buy food and drinks. My expected budget for this is 100 CUC a day which should be ok.

- I will take either CHF or EUR with me (and a master card as backup) , and it seems that I need to change most of my travel budget at the beginning. Can I leave this in the Casa Particulars or do you advise me to better keep always all the money at the body, wherever I go?

- maybe you have some advises which cities to go in addition to Havanna. E. G. Camaguey and Trinidad are on my radar, knowing that the girls scene in Havanna still seems to be the best but I should also see some interesting areas, not only chicas.

Thank you very much in advance,

Hotzo

[ApolloCreed]

Thank you for your reply my friend,

It is important to book the villa from my country since I will not pay for the trip. It will be a gift. But it has to be booked before I go.

Is this site reliable. www.havanacasaparticular.com

I will go with a friend and we will rent a car.

In which area is it better to stay? Center? Miramar? Vedado?

As I understand, police checks everything relating to girls. Will it be possible to take girls in the car for a ride?

Thank again!

PS I have given my 20, but I don't want to bother people with PM. (yet.

[Tank Not Mt]

Appollo.

First thing-spend the time and read the reports; especially in the Reports of Distiction there is tons of info there that will help.

SEcond pay Jackson his $20 and pm some of the senior members who have been there a lot and they can give you additional insite.

Some good tips:

1) June is a good time. Its not 'tourist season' so its not as busy and you can more easily find accomodations and chicas. Try to pu a good book or CD to learn a little spanish-it"ll go a long way; June is usually pretty hot. There are less tourists then.

2) There are a few Villa's available. You can find good chica friendly CASAs with a pool if you do some research here. Forget about finding anything on th internet and forget about trying to book there as it is first come first serve. (If you run out of ideas you can pm me and I can give you a couple of my Havana contacts).

3) No need to rent a car unless you are shareing with one or two friends; cabs are cheap and plentiful and most drivers are friendly and can help you. There are many clubs and bars you can read up on and good places to walk and pu chicas-again a little spanish will go a long way. For the most part Havana is very safe but you don't have to be stupid either.

Ps-there's a good chance I'll be back in June but maybe on a week long tour of the country.

Good luck.

Hello, to everybody!

I am planning my 1st trip to Cuba (Havana) and I really have some questions for the more experienced.

1) I am thinking about June. Is it a good time? How is the weather? There will be many tourists?

2) I am thinking about renting a villa. Is it safe? Can girls enter without problem? Where can I look for one in internet? (I want to have arranged everything from here till I go)

3) I want to rent a car. Is it really so important? Is there any fear of theft during the night?

Thank you very much in advance!

[ApolloCreed]

Hello, to everybody!

I am planning my 1st trip to Cuba (Havana) and I really have some questions for the more experienced.

1) I am thinking about June. Is it a good time? How is the weather? There will be many tourists?

2) I am thinking about renting a villa. Is it safe? Can girls enter without problem? Where can I look for one in internet? (I want to have arranged everything from here till I go)

3) I want to rent a car. Is it really so important? Is there any fear of theft during the night?

Thank you very much in advance!