Traveling to cuba : what you need to know

[byte]

I've been in Cuba the last 2 and a half weeks or so on vacation,
and it has been a big learning experience!

If you are going to travel to cuba the most important thing is to bring lots of american cash!!!

This is important because you can't withraw american $$ anywhere in the country and the exchange rate to pesos is awful, about 25 - 1.

However the street value of us to cuban pesos is 75 - 1, so if you bring only your visa you will be getting ripped off big time.

There are also many shortages so you won't be able to find things like ketchup, toothpaste, suntan lotion, peanut butter.

There is a shortage of clothes as well, so don't plan to buy flip flops here, you will pay 50 - 100 us in some places for simple clothing items.

If you travel to havana, local tour guides and con artists will be all over you, and most of the information you will read about cuba online is false. There is also a lot of conflicting information, but again the most important point is to find a local who you trust to convert your us to pesos for at least 65-1 or bring a lot of 1$ and 5$ us bills and just spend those.

Tipping someone here 20$ is giving them at least a months salary, so keep that in mind as well. Poverty is rampant here as well, the sanctions by the u.s. and the pandemic have wreaked havoc on the locals, so they are very grateful for your business!!!!  Just remember to be polite, it is a very different ciuture than back home!!

[RobertELee]

So you're saying not even the Cubans want your worthless Kanukian Pesos?

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So you're saying not even the Cubans want your worthless Kanukian Pesos?

The cubans will accept your CAD in lieu of USD in many cases, but USD being at a higher value than CAD and being the world reserve currency, it is better to use usd.

You might get 50 - 1 for CAD

[byte]

It sounds like fun and a great experience Pete.
You just keep safe out there!

I think my favorite part is just being allowed to have a nice sit down dinner in a restaurant.
That's a luxury i won't have back home till early 2022 with the proof of vaccination requirements of the fascist state of quebecistan and the corrupt judges who uphold it.

[mayday]

one question?
what drives one to want to go to Cuba?
to me that's like saying, I'm vacationing in Iraq this year, I'm going to the swing by Beirut and sit by the beach and eat camel spiders

[PAnderson]

My wife is Cuban and has not been there since she was a baby. Her brother has gone a few times. When he goes, he takes a half dozen pair of blue jeans and some other clothing like socks and shoes. He trades them for services and food and other things money won't buy. But you need to get out of Havana for that. Havana is a "showcase". Once you are out of there, the reality sets in and you get to see how the country really lives. Basic necessities are like gold in Cuba. Clothing, toothpaste, childrens toys. You name it. But you don't do it to make a killing but to give something to people who have absolutely nothing. A pair of jeans to a guy who works his ass off is a godsend.

[byte]

My wife is Cuban and has not been there since she was a baby. Her brother has gone a few times. When he goes, he takes a half dozen pair of blue jeans and some other clothing like socks and shoes. He trades them for services and food and other things money won't buy. But you need to get out of Havana for that. Havana is a "showcase". Once you are out of there, the reality sets in and you get to see how the country really lives. Basic necessities are like gold in Cuba. Clothing, toothpaste, childrens toys. You name it. But you don't do it to make a killing but to give something to people who have absolutely nothing. A pair of jeans to a guy who works his ass off is a godsend.

We met a group at the resort who come every year with suitcases loaded with razors toothpaste sponges and many other necessities that they give away for free to the cubans.

These people badly need supplies.
I gave 50 pesos to a homeless man yesterday and he promptly looked to the sky and praised god for sending us here. I found it rather touching..

[byte]

one question?
what drives one to want to go to Cuba?
to me that's like saying, I'm vacationing in Iraq this year, I'm going to the swing by Beirut and sit by the beach and eat camel spiders

Cuba is hardly Iraq, Wes.
It's a beautiful country with great resorts and tourists are treated very well, as long as you follow the rules it is very safe.
The embargoes by the united states gov however have done a lot of damage here, although it pales compared to the damage and loss of life in the D.P.R.K. or North Korea as it is called here.

Me? I needed a vacation, here i can eat out at restaurants, go to a movie or the opera. Ride a bus or train across the country,
Back in Canada i can do none of these things because i refuse to take an experimental vaccine for a variety of the flu.

Cuba is more free than their neighbors to the north in many ways.

[CNCAppsJames]

one question?
what drives one to want to go to Cuba?
to me that's like saying, I'm vacationing in Iraq this year, I'm going to the swing by Beirut and sit by the beach and eat camel spiders

Iraq? C'mon now...

I think maybe vacationing in North Korea is a more parallel comparison.

[Jim at Gentex]

[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18382 time=1636940357 user_id=50]
Just remember to be polite, it is a very different ciuture than back home!!
[/quote]

Wait...Do you mean Canadian polite or American polite?   :w00t:  

[byte]

[quote="Jim at Gentex" post_id=18432 time=1637003006 user_id=83]
[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18382 time=1636940357 user_id=50]
Just remember to be polite, it is a very different ciuture than back home!!
[/quote]

Wait...Do you mean Canadian polite or American polite?   :w00t:  
[/quote]

American polite?

Never heard of it.  

[CNCAppsJames]

See @jim, he's TOTALLY one of us.

[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18433 time=1637003345 user_id=50]American polite?

Never heard of it.  [/quote]

[Jim at Gentex]

[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18433 time=1637003345 user_id=50]
[quote="Jim at Gentex" post_id=18432 time=1637003006 user_id=83]
[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18382 time=1636940357 user_id=50]
Just remember to be polite, it is a very different ciuture than back home!!
[/quote]

Wait...Do you mean Canadian polite or American polite?   :w00t:  
[/quote]

American polite?

Never heard of it.  
[/quote]

Normal Canardian response to a panhandler: 'Sure, I can spare a few bucks...'
Polite Canardian response to a panhandler: 'Wait...let me give you ALL of my money since you REALLY need it.'  

Normal American response to a panhandler: 'FUKOFF!'
Polite American response to a panhandler: 'Please FUKOFF!'  

See the difference there?  

[PAnderson]

[quote="Thee Byte™" post_id=18419 time=1636994682 user_id=50]

one question?
what drives one to want to go to Cuba?
to me that's like saying, I'm vacationing in Iraq this year, I'm going to the swing by Beirut and sit by the beach and eat camel spiders

Cuba is hardly Iraq, Wes.
It's a beautiful country with great resorts and tourists are treated very well, as long as you follow the rules it is very safe.
The embargoes by the united states gov however have done a lot of damage here, although it pales compared to the damage and loss of life in the D.P.R.K. or North Korea as it is called here.

Me? I needed a vacation, here i can eat out at restaurants, go to a movie or the opera. Ride a bus or train across the country,
Back in Canada i can do none of these things because i refuse to take an experimental vaccine for a variety of the flu.

Cuba is more free than their neighbors to the north in many ways.
[/quote]

The embargos are somewhat necessary because anything and everything will be confiscated by the government. It would never make it to the people. Remember, this is a dictatorship. Corruption runs rampant. They pit citizens against citizens with promises of perks. My wifes family lives in Cien Fuegos, on the other side of the island from Havana. They live in abject poverty, getting by on a few dollars a week. I see this in a different light because of the family ties. She also has family in Miami and the stories they have of the things that happen there are horrifying. One of her aunts was a revolutionary working with Che Guivera.
Her dad was a pilot that did crop dusting and advertising before the revolution. After, he was one of the personal pilots for Castro.
One night in 1962, her dad loaded the family in one of his planes. He couldn't tell any member of his family because of the ties to Castro. People were so destitute they would turn in their own family members. He flew to Miami and defected. They were housed on an indian reservation in Kansas until her dad was debfriefed.
It may seem sinister to embargo the Cuban people but in reality, they are trying to embargo the government.

[PAnderson]

Also, I have wanted to take my wife there for a really long time. But I am nervous to go and leave the well established tourist areas. An American white guy roaming around outside of the permitted areas would possibly raise a few flags.