“Mi amor, mi amor, don’t go, don’t break by heart” a man clutches his heart dramatically and as I laugh and walk down the middle of the street in Havana. This is Cuba – a vibrant, expressive, and immersive culture in a beautiful Caribbean setting. There is music in all of the restaurants, sometimes spilling out onto the street, rum, cigars, classic cars, and EVERYONE can dance. Cuba was everything I thought it would be but at a slightly louder volume. There is also a layer of the unsaid, of lack that is ever-present that I found fascinating. For a US traveler, understanding how things are set up in the country can be challenging, but not impossible and, in the end, 1,000,000% worth the effort. For a less effortful first trip, I decided to go on a Cuba Group Tour.
This Cuba Group Tour not only allowed me to explore a lot of Cuba in a short period of time, but I also had access to a local guide, Danny, who patiently helped the group understand Cuba on a deeper level. I based this tour on the 8-Day Lively Group Tour with Locally Sourced Cuba. I chose this company because it is a small group (16 maximum), helps navigate the US restrictions, has a local guide, includes a good mix of activities, and (honestly) has a great price point. In this post, I will breakdown the trip day-by-day along with some of the things I learned that day. I’ve written separate posts for the activities I did outside the tour. You’ll see that in the description for each day. Without further ado, let’s get into the trip.
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Day 1: Arrival to Havana
Our flights to Havana were uneventful. We bought our Cuban Visas in the Fort Lauderdale airport at one of the JetBlue “Just Ask” desks. It took about 15-20 minutes to find the desk and pay for the Visa. The views were great from Florida to Cuba and I recommend sitting on the right side of the plane. The Havana airport is not too big. You’ll go through customs, and into departures, where you can exchange your money at the money machines. This is where our driver waited patiently for us while we exchanged our money. The price of the tour includes airport pick-up and drop-off.
The drive into Havana takes just over a half-hour. Though we were in an older taxi, we immediately began to notice all of the classic cars driving around. We wondered if it was only a Havana thing or if the cars are all over the country. Hint: they are everywhere. The taxi took us to our accommodations – a Casa Particular. Casa’s are homes where people take guests in their extra rooms. Like Airbnb, but with breakfast guaranteed.
In terms of our tour, it was a free day. We had lunch at a rooftop restaurant called Fajoma, which has delicious vegetarian options. After lunch, we arranged to have an Old Havana Walking Tour with Locally Sourced Cuba. This is not included in the tour, but we thought it would orient us a little better to the area. I’ve written a separate blog post about this tour – check it out here. We finished our day going to a no-host dinner with our group and getting to know everyone a little bit.
At a Glance:
- Rating: 4 (out of 4) stars, this was a great introduction to
- Intensity: Most of the included activities were relatively low impact, with an opportunity to go swimming
- Locations: Havana, Cienfuegos, Trinidad, and Vinales
- Cost: $690 to share a room, $760 for a private single
- Timing: 8 days, 7 nights
Included Activities:
- Snorkeling at the Bay of Pigs
- Bay of Pigs Museum (Giron Museum)
- Guided Cienfuegos City Walk
- A drink at the Palacio de Valle in Cienfuegos
- Che Guevara Memorial
- Guided Trinidad City Walk
- Salsa Class
- Tobacco Farm & Drying House
- Organic Farm Lunch
- Classic Car Tour
- Mojito Making Lesson
- Farewell Dinner
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Arrival to Cuba and Havana
- The tourist currency is the Cuban Convertible Peso or CUC. It is a closed currency system, meaning that you can only exchange money in Cuba.
- Bring Euro or Canadian Dollars to exchange at the airport. The is an additional fee if you are trying to exchange US Dollars.
- You’ll need your passport to use the money-exchange machines. The machines will not take small bills individually, but it took the small when it was in a stack (??). It took a couple of transactions to exchange all of our money.
- Although I remember seeing ATM’s in Havana and Vinales, there are no credit card machines because there are no credit cards in the country. Cash is truly king in Cuba.
Day 2: Bay of Pigs, Giron Museum, & Cienfuegos
On the second day, we met the bus bright and early to take us out of Havana to the Bay of Pigs. It is about a 2-hour drive and your first activity is snorkeling. There is one area along the Bay with a hut that provides snorkel gear or diving gear. We snorkeled for an hour before we needed to head to lunch. With such a short amount of time in the water, I recommend wearing your swimsuit on the bus and applying sunscreen at the bathroom stop. The water at the Bay of Pig had incredible clarity. The further you swim out, the more reefs and life there was, but it also gets deeper. I could have kept snorkeling for hours at this location, but sadly, we had to go. After a quick change on the bus (there is only one changing room for everyone), we headed to a no-host lunch at a nearby restaurant.
Following lunch, we headed to the Giron Museum, which covers the failed US attack on the Bay of Pigs. Though our guide walked us through the Museum, I wish I had done more research before the trip to better understand what happened there. The Museum includes memorabilia from the time period. I found it striking to see a pair of women’s white high heels with a bullet hole through the toe – a reminder of civilian casualty.
An Evening in Cienfuegos
It is an hour’s drive to Cienfuegos, which is perfect for napping. We met a local coordinator, who introduced us to a series of Casa hosts that were all located next to each other. Some group members were in the same Casa, but we were solo in the home of a lovely couple. With pictures of their daughter’s quinceanera and son, we were able to figure out that the kids had moved out. This Casa felt very homey as if I was staying with my aunt. Our Casa host offered us mango juice and our Casa hostess convinced us that we needed to rinse our swimsuits and towels of the saltwater. We let them know we had only a little time before meeting the group, so she took our suits from us and did it for us. They had laundry strings upstairs, where our items dried by morning.
We met the bus once more for a sunset cocktail at the Palacio de Valle. This palace is stunning. Located at the tip of Cienfuegos, so it is by water. With pastel purple color and striking architecture, it stands out. Upon close inspection of the exterior and interior, it is a luxurious hodgepodge of design and motifs. It is primarily a Moorish design with elements of Victorian flourishes. There are mosaic knights, quotes from the Quran, seashell fixtures, and spiral staircases. Somehow it works together! We went straight to the rooftop patio, where we enjoyed a cocktail, some live music, and a stunning Caribbean sunset.
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Bay of Pigs, Giron Museum, & Cienfuegos
- Most bathrooms will have an attendant, who asks for money in exchange to receive toilet paper and use the bathroom. I recommend bringing toilet paper with you where-ever you go. Some of the attendants will have a price next to their stand, but you can give whatever tip you like. $0.25 or $0.50 is great. In Europe, you often have to pay to use a public restroom, so this is not too different.
- Though you might recognize the names of some of the menu items, it might not be what you expect. In Cuba, they do not always have access to items that are not grown locally. For example, avocados were not in season during our trip and our servers had to keep reminding us that they did not have avocados. The same happened at our lunch stop, where lobster enchiladas were on the menu and a few group members ordered them. When they arrived, there were no tortillas. I didn’t see a single tortilla in the country until the last night, where I found some tacos.
- Surrounded by oceans, Cuba has the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south. If you want relaxing beach time in the winter, you’ll want to head to the southern coast.
- We did not have wifi at this Casa and the router in the main promenade was difficult to connect to. Locally Sourced includes two internet cards for everyone on the Cuba Group Tour, worth one hour each. The internet card work by connecting to a router, then using the code on the card to connect to the internet.
Day 3: Cienfuegos, Che Guevara Memorial, and Trinidad
Since lunch took a while the day before, we did our tour of Cienfuegos in the morning. The people of Cienfuegos have a lot of pride in their town and tout that they have the cleanest city in the country. I definitely noticed how clean the city felt, but also the fact that all of the streets had wide sidewalks, making it very comfortable to walk around and feel spaced out. The main square has a number of interesting buildings that I would have totally not seen, if not for Danny’s (our guide) tour. We had a little time to wander around and do some shopping before getting back on the bus.
It was about an hour inland to Santa Clara and the Che Guevara Memorial. The memorial is extremely impressive and includes a museum of Che’s life, his remains and the remains of 29 other guerrilla’s, an enormous statue and stone mural of him stopping a train to Havana. The memorial is located on a hill overlooking the area. Che was truly the symbol of the revolution and hope for the Cuban people. Regardless of what you think of his beliefs, I found the love and adoration of Che to be interesting. While we were there, we saw people wearing clothing with Che’s face or name going to visit the memorial.
After the visit to the memorial, we went to a nearby buffet restaurant that seemed to serve ALL Cuba Group Tours who visit the Che Memorial. It was busy, but run efficiently with servers constantly refilling the food. I honestly didn’t mind how busy it was as they had vegetarian options and was so much faster than our entire group ordering different items. The chocolate ice cream ran out quickly, so get some right when you get there.
Onward to Trinidad
The drive to Trinidad is stunning as you go through the mountains. There are entire hillsides covered in green grass and palm trees. Trinidad is a darling town that is set on a hill. Its colonial, colorful, and a UNESCO heritage site. It reminded me of Antigua in Guatemala with its cobblestone streets and colorful buildings. Danny gave us an orientation walk, but there is primarily one street you need to remember and everything else is not too far from that central street.
After a walk, we had a coffee or a drink at Cafe Don Pepe (an open-air cafe that has a fantastic vibe). While everyone was ordering, we broke away from the group to walk up the stairs of the bell tower on the corner. The lighting and views were so perfect – I love every single one of these photos. I think it was $1 or $2 CUC to climb the stairs. We rejoined the group, just as everyone was getting their drinks.
We eventually had to leave Cafe Don Pepe to head to a salsa class (included with the Cuba Group Tour). This salsa teacher, Yory, was hilarious and amazing for our extremely novice group. She spoke English and gave us the basic steps, including the rhythm, how to spin, and how to exchange spots with our partner. She would predict our mistakes and kept us going for just under an hour. The environment was fun and enjoyable – not judgemental at all. With this class, you’ll do better than no instruction at the outdoor Casa De La Musica.
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Cienfuegos, Che Guevara Memorial, and Trinidad
- TAKE A SALSA CLASS. I honestly wish we had more energy to take more than one, especially with this teacher. Dancing seems to be in every Cuban’s blood, so it’s worthwhile to participate, even if you think you’re terrible.
- Climb the steps of the bell tower to see a view of the city before sunset.
- Watch the professionals at the Casa De La Musica, which is an outdoor music and dancing venue in Trinidad. You can get a table or a bartender/host will find you some seats on the steps, where they will come to you to serve you. It costs $1 CUC to witness a 10+ person band and the incredibly complex salsa moves.
- We had dinner at Restaurant San Jose and it was one of my favorite meals in Cuba. Flavors were incredible, the environment is nice, and the service is superb. Go early (before 7 pm) or expect a wait).
Day 4: Free Day in Trinidad
There were no scheduled activities during the Cuba Group Tour on this day in Trinidad! However, Locally Sourced Cuba allows guests to pay the bus a small fee if there are enough people interested in the same activity. We took a vote and almost everyone wanted to do a waterfall trek and then go to the beach in the afternoon. Since this was not included in the tour, I am going to separate out this activity into a new blog post. Access that information here. Even if you are not with Locally Sourced, I included my thoughts on how you can arrange to do these activities on your own and other things to do in Trinidad.
Waterfall Trek and Beach Afternoon in Trinidad Blog Post
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Trinidad
- Our Casa in Trinidad was my favorite of the trip. It was a large home with an interior courtyard, where we had breakfast each morning. We had a hilarious duo of older women – sisters perhaps? They offered laundry service, which we took advantage of since we were going to be there for two nights. If you do this, give your hosts time to do the laundry – I don’t think I saw a dryer in the country. Each casa is so different but allows you access to more locals and their lifestyle. These sisters were expressive and chatty. They were proud to have TripAdvisor site with good reviews. One example of an interaction I had was with one Casa host feeling my hands and asks if I work, shows my hand to her friend, then compliment my blouse and sends me on my way. They might not think I do chores around the house, but I loved how welcoming they were.
- There is a nightlife in Trinidad that I didn’t anticipate for a town of that size. Generally, people seemed to warm up at Casa de la Musica, then at midnight or 1 am, they head to Discoteca Ayala – a club in a CAVE. You walk up a giant hill, then down a series of staircases into the cave. The caverns are lit up. Like a Discoteca anywhere it is extremely loud, but also extremely hot. Not a lot of ventilation in the cave. Explore it if you dare.
Day 5: The Big Drive to Vinales
One of the least exciting days of the Cuba Group Tour was the big drive from Trinidad to Vinales. The bus had regular interval stops for bathroom breaks, then lunch as a very meh sandwich stop. The sandwiches were cheap and they had passionfruit juice, so fair enough. The best scenery of the drive was the costal route from Trinidad back to Cienfuegos and the last 45 minutes coming into Vinales.
We arrived in Vinales around 4:30 or 5:00 pm, where we met the local coordinator and assigned into our Casas. Afterward, Danny gave an orientation of Vinales, which was short since the town is so small. Though the town itself is small, the area is stunning. Vinales is in a valley surrounded by steep limestone hills called mogotes. These are the same karstic formations that I saw in southern Thailand, except they are inland. They are so cool that we arranged to do a sunrise hike the next morning.
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Vinales Arrival
- There is more police presence in Vinales that we’ve seen elsewhere, which means the town is one of the safest in the countries. Our driver even had to talk to them when we arrived for a good 5 minutes. Vinales was one of the first tourist hubs in the country and I imagine the Cuban government wants to ensure the area is safe for travelers, so they continue to go there.
- We had dinner at 3 Jotas or 3 J’s, which was super delicious. It is a tapas bar, but the flavors were fabulous.
- By now and especially on this massive drive, it’s hard not to notice things on the road. First off, the classic cars are everywhere in the country, not just Havana. And they are driven like normal cars, not just as a novelty. The second thing I noticed was how empty the freeways are. On the largest freeway with three lanes in each direction, it was primarily empty and a bit rough. We would see a classic car every couple of minutes, then a newer foreign car, and then a horse-drawn carriage going in the wrong direction. Yes, there are horse-drawn carriages everywhere in the country. It felt like a study in what would happen if there were fewer cars in the country.
Day 6: Vinales Tobacco Farm and Lunch
To make the most of our time in Vinales, we arranged to do a sunrise hike. Since that is not included with the Cuba Group Tour, I wrote a separate blog post – take a look at it here. We got back from our sunrise hike at 8:30, which was perfect to join the group for the rest of the day. The group had voted to add on doing a cave boat adventure ($5 CUC), prehistoric mural ($3 CUC), plus bus fare ($5 CUC) to our day. Although these items were secondary to what I was looking to see during my time, the fact that the bus was already going made it almost too easy to see everything. Everyone in our group joined in on these additional activities, which I’ve written briefly about in my sunrise hike tour.
Sunrise Hike in Vinales Blog Post
Included with the Locally Sourced Cuba tour were a viewpoint, tobacco farm visit, and lunch on an organic farm. The viewpoint was great to see and compare to where we were for sunrise – on the other side of the valley. You get a sense of the scale of the limestone formations from the viewpoint that is hard to grasp in town.
Tobacco Farm Visit
I assumed that I would enjoy our visit to the Tobacco Farm, but it was even better than expected. Not only was it informative in learning about this product that has worldwide recognition, but also the Farmer we visited was hilarious. The farm has acres of tobacco with views of the karstic formations in the background. The plant itself grows to about waist high with different leaves causing the tobacco to taste slightly differently. What makes Cuban tobacco and cigars so special is the rich soil from the limestone formations, consistent weather, and lack of chemicals. Without access to pesticides or preservatives, every part of the process is very natural.
The Process
In general, I understood the process to be:
- Seedlings are grown in a nursery, then planted in the fields
- Tobacco grows quickly and is ready to harvest in about 6 months
- Farmers harvest the leaves in three rounds: the bottom, the middle, then the top
- They dry the leaves in the drying huts made of palm fronds (You’ll see them all over Vinales)
- Once dried out, they soak the leaves to ferment and soften in a mixture of water, honey, vanilla, and possibly one other natural ingredient that I’m not remembering
- After fermentation, the leaves are hand-rolled into cigars, using honey to seal the last edge.
- They use liquid byproduct as a pesticide in the fields
With my recent visits to the Thailand Tea Plantation and Guatemala Coffee Plantation, I asked a ton of questions about labor and plant care. Overall, I got the impression that the people of Vinales take great pride in their tobacco farms, the lack of additives, and the community involvement. They sell a portion of cigars to the government and a smaller portion locally without labels. We had the opportunity to smoke a cigar and buy some directly from the farmer. Cigars feel so specifically Cuban that I am so glad we got to learn about the process and what makes them special.
Lunch at an Organic Farm
Not only was lunch on an organic farm, but it also had a spectacular view of the Vinales valley. The lunch included too many courses of food, including soup, salad, vegetables, chicken, fish, beef, and finishing with flan. Also included was a virgin drink, but with a bottle of rum on the table, for you to determine how much to add. The drink was a secret recipe and so delicious! This lunch spot was also one of the only other places (the first was on our waterfall hike), where I saw coffee sold. This time it was in a plastic water-bottle.
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Vinales
- Although it made this day long, I am extremely glad we added on the sunrise hike.
- Even if you don’t smoke anything, I recommend going to a tobacco farm in Vinales. You cannot walk around Havana or anywhere in Cuba without seeing Cubans with a cigar hanging from their mouth. It is such a part of their life that it is worth understanding the plant origin. Another thing I noticed about the cigars in Cuba and specifically during our farm visit was how unobtrusive the smoke smelled, compared to the cigar shops back home. The farmer told us this was due to the lack of chemicals used in the process.
- The roasted coffee in the plastic water bottle is another example of the lack of access to normal production that I’ve seen in Guatemala and Costa Rica. In a way, I love to know that no harsh chemicals were used in the process. But at the same time, I would have loved to buy coffee beans with a “Cuba” label as a souvenir gift.
- More than anywhere else, rum flowed freely in Vinales. At three separate places, we ordered a drink and it came as a virgin drink with a bottle of rum delivered to the table. It was shocking at first, but I came to miss this when we were back in Havana.
- We were also able to find a restaurant easily that had real free wifi (not a router to use a card to connect to) with the purchase of a drink. The restaurant we visited actually turned it on when we arrived because there were no other guests there yet.
Day 7: Havana, Mojito, and Rooftop Dinner
Back to Havana and it’s hard to believe the Cuba Group Tour is nearly over. The drive takes a couple of hours and after getting our Casa assignments one last time, we had free time for lunch before meeting up in the afternoon. The last day includes a classic car tour, mojito making, and have a rooftop dinner. Unfortunately, we had our first storm of the trip roll in and start dumping buckets when we were supposed to do the classic cars…. Which are convertible. Instead, we went to our rooftop dinner early. There was a structure to protect us with plastic siding added on later. The rain stopped and the views of Havana were stunning.
We also learned the Cuban Classic Mojito recipe and were free to make our own. By this time, the members of our group knew each other pretty well and we had a great time chatting just chatting with each other. Everyone was so easy-going and understanding that circumstances change due to the weather. We had so much fun telling stories that we stayed well after our servers cleared our family-style dinner. Our classic car tour was rescheduled for the next morning. It was super lucky that everyone was staying an extra day, except one person who had already done the classic car tour when she arrived.
Day 8: Classic Car Tour and Goodbyes
Bright and early, we had our Havana Convertible Classic Car Tour. There were five cars for our group of 15, each stunning and well-taken-care-of. We had such a fun time getting photos with the cars before, during, and after the tour. In groups of three, I enjoyed the back of the car for the first portion of the drive. Once my hair went nuts, I moved to the front where there was far less wind! But that’s all part of it. If you go to Havana, do a classic car tour – it’s worth it.
After an hour of fun, it was time to say our goodbyes to our group members. Each of us had different plans for the day, so we went in separate directions without tears. Off to the next thing! I wrote a separate blog post on things that I did in Havana including a boxing class (Kelly did), going to Parisien Cabaret show, and going to the beach. These a description of what the experience was like and how to book or reserve them in my “Things to do in Havana Post”.
Things to do in Havana, Cuba Blog Post
Old Havana Walking Tour Blog Post
Tips, Tricks, and Takeaways – Havana & Goodbyes
- If you’re going on a group tour, be sure to grab people’s contact information as you go or by the goodbye dinner. The last day happened like a whirlwind that didn’t afford the opportunity to exchange information.
- There is a lot of life happening on the streets of Havana, simply take a walk to see kids playing baseball with a stick and a rock covered in tape or playing a game of dominos, fishing from the Malecon or a promenade where people go to advertise buying and selling their home. The old town of Havana feels very “lived-in” with locals everywhere that I appreciated versus other large cities, where the center of the city becomes too expensive for locals to actually live in.
Making the Most of this Cuba Group Tour
If you decide to take this tour, here are my tips for making the most of the tour:
- Read through all the materials that Locally Sourced Cuba provides. It is a ton of information – about the casa particulars, the visa, activities, and what to expect. Understand what is included and what is not before you jump on a flight.
- Look at and research the optional activities, so you have some ideas of what you would like to do in your free time and on your free days. Finding information about Cuba can be tough, likely due to the fact that the internet is not easily available for all people. However, you can usually find a few pictures in these areas of the activities. Things tend to take longer with a group of over 5 people, so you might not have entire afternoons to do things, but it is always good to have some backup activities on hand.
- Do some research about the destinations you’re going to and restaurants in the towns you’re visiting. By having a bit of background knowledge, it allowed Kelly and I to jump on things during our free time – such as climbing the steps of the bell tower in Trinidad.
- Ask the guide questions as you think of them. Don’t be afraid to speak up. There were so many times when someone else asked a question that I ended up learning something super interesting.
- Have an open, curious mentality toward Cuba, which I think will allow you to truly enjoy the tour.
Benefits of a Cuba Group Tour
As you might be able to tell from the description of each day, I truly enjoyed this particular Cuba group tour. In general, I think it was a great introduction to traveling around Cuba and I feel far more confident about going back and traveling on my own to other cities. To keep it short, here were the positive things about this Cuba Group Tour:
- The trip is thoughtfully arranged to visit key cities and include key cultural activities that are sure to please everyone, gave a well-rounded introduction to Cuba, and included a lot of items that I would have planned to do anyway.
- Access to Danny’s knowledge of Cuba allowed me to learn more than on other trips where we had to go out of our way to visit museums to learn things. Danny would often explain things to the group as we saw them – what the uniforms meant on the schoolkids, what plants we were passing by, what different buildings were in Havana, and etc. We also could ask anything that came to mind – about tipping, university, internet cards, animal life — all those things that I wonder while in a foreign destination.
- The bus access also allowed us to move around efficiently and quickly. If I were to try to self-plan this trip, there would be a lot more waiting for transportation and paying for taxis.
- I liked the free time on this tour and many no-host meals. This allowed us to choose our own restaurants and eat at our own pace, however, it is necessary that we all eat together during some of the lunches and pay separately. Without as many meals included, it keeps the price down and gives you more control.
Group Dynamics
I feel so fortunate that I was part of fantastic group of people. In our group of 15, we had a wide range of ages – from college to retirement and a good chunk of us being in our 20s or 30s. There was also a good handful of solo travelers, which I attribute to Locally Sourced Cuba’s great pricing for the solo traveler. But the best part of the group was that there were no complainers and no one constantly negative. With everyone in the group having traveled quite a bit, we were all there to learn about Cuba and were open and curious. Without reliable access to the internet, lack of options in Cuba, and things not quite being where they should be, Cuba can be a challenging destination for many travelers. Luckily everyone in the group seemed to go with the flow and appreciate the experience. So wonderful – I miss them already!
Pitfalls of a Cuba Group Tour
Being a traveler who primarily self-plans my own trips, I was excited yet hesitant to go on this Cuba Group Tour. But now I’m so glad I did because I got such a great introduction to traveling in Cuba. As to be expected with any group tour, there were constraints on our time in order to make sure we did all the activities. I would’ve really loved to snorkel longer at the Bay of Pigs, for example, but not everyone in our group got into the water. To make the most of our day, we snorkeled for an hour and then went on to go get lunch.
Speaking of meals, most of the meals on this tour were not included or no-host. Our casas provided all of our breakfasts and lunch we often had together when we were on the move, but dinners were pretty much on your own. As a vegetarian, this was great for me. Not only does it keep the cost low for the tour, but it allowed me to seek out vegetarian-friendly restaurants on HappyCow.
The “Change” in Cuba
Back when Obama opened up travel to US citizens, there was a fervor to get to Cuba. More than one person recommended to me that I go before it “changes”. At the time, I nodded, thinking I understood what that meant – that it would become “touristy” and “ruined”. Oh how little I knew! Let’s talk about the reasons why I no longer fear the “change” in Cuba…
Don’t Fear Change:
- All destinations are changing all the time: I guarantee that 20 years ago, your city looks different than it does now. It happens slowly, incrementally, and I think that is how it will be in Cuba.
- Tourism to Cuba has been open for years… to other countries: this may come as a surprise to some Americans, but Cuba has been a destination for Canadians, Europeans, Australians and more for nearly three decades. By the late 1990s, the revenue from tourism surpassed sugar, which was the country’s leading export. So, there are already known channels for tourism. Although you might not be making new landfall, there is still such value in seeing this country and you’ll be able to get around and do things easier.
- The Cuban identity is strong: While in the country, I heard a version of Frank Sinatra’s “I did it my way” at least 6 different times. From what I experienced, Cuba people are proud to be Cuban. They are going to figure out how to solve a problem and when it comes to change, they are going to do it their way.
- The Cuban people want change: This might be the most important thing of all. For many Cubans, change is a positive thing that can allow their family to make more money or have opportunities. Although I understand that from an outsider’s perspective, there is a positive connotation to what is “authentic” or simply different. However, change doesn’t necessarily mean “inauthentic” or the same as we have. Again, the Cubans will do it their way, and I look forward to seeing what happens.
Full Transparency
I negotiated a discounted rate for my travel partner (Kelly) and myself for this 8-Day Cuba Group Tour and I wanted to talk about how that would have impacted my trip. First, I knew Kelly was super interested in going to Cuba, so we probably would have gone anyways. Second, our guide (hi Danny) and group members were not aware that I would even be writing about the trip until the final evening, so I did not have any kind of special treatment. Although, I did get a lot of “Ohhh, I see why you were taking a million photos” type of response when I mentioned the blog. Overall, I think that the only tangible impact that the discount had was that I was more willing to spend additional money on outside activities – i.e. Trinidad waterfall trek, Vinales sunrise hike, going to the beach, and to the Parisien Cabaret.
Overall Thoughts: Cuba Group Tour
This was such a great tour. Writing this post and reviewing all my photos, I truly had such a fun time. A large part of the fun was the Cuban culture – the music, the dancing, the friendly nature, and the sense of humor. And another part was being able to explore the country so deeply in a short amount of time, which I attribute to a thoughtful itinerary, cultural activities, and Danny’s knowledge. Here’s the link to the website, one more time.
This post is already massive, so I wanted to pull out the additional things that I did outside of the Cuba Group Tour into their own posts. This way, I could speak in-depth to each of these activities. Read those posts here:
This was my first group tour, but I hope to have many more. Where do you think it would be good to do a group tour? Somewhere challenging? On a tour you loved? I know a lot of people (like myself) that typically plan their own travels, but there are some locations that are simply more challenging if you do not speak the language, know what’s going on, or need exclusive access. Let me know in the comments!
Happy Travels,
Hanna
