[Mario]

in reply to: 5 day itinerary, arriving in Cienfuegos departing Santa Clara? #14996

Hi Brenda!

I will be honest with you, Cienfuegos has a reputation for being a boring city. A lot of travelers read great reviews about the city (travel guides always make everything sound amazing) and then once they get to Cienfuegos, they quickly see that it is just a small town with nothing much to do. I would mostly agree. But, if this is your first time exploring Cuba then you are unlikely to really get bored. Everything will be new and honestly Cienfuegos is a good city to start an adventure in.

You can spend an afternoon walking around the town. You will arrive there on a Saturday and there should be local craft fairs and lots of other people. It won’t be dead. Sunday will be slower. I recommend you visit El Nicho waterfall if you are into nature. It’s the top destination in the area. Most people who make a trip to Cienfuegos would go in order to see that attraction. There will be many taxis in town offering to take you to the waterfall. In a communal taxi (you ride with 6 or 7 other people) it will not be expensive. If it’s a nice day, you can go.

Trinidad is not far from Cienfuegos. It’s the most popular tourist area in central Cuba. There is a beach near the town. It’s an ancient town with lots to see and do. It’s one of the most expensive towns in Cuba because of all the tourism. Most people really like it. I recommend you stay at least a night in Trinidad.

On October 12 you can take a taxi from Trinidad to Santa Clara. If you leave in the morning, you will have more than enough time to get to Santa Clara. You might even have time in the early afternoon to walk around Santa Clara a bit. Always remember to arrive at the airport 3 hours before your flight departs.

Anyway, with only 4 nights, you won’t likely have time to travel to too many places and you are unlikely to get bored. I would not recommend that you go to Havana since your time is limited and your arrival and departure cities are a considerable distance from Havana.

My itinerary suggestion:

Oct 8, noon – arrival: Get out of the airport and go to your casa particular. You will probably arrive at the casa by around 1:30pm. Spend time walking around. Enjoy the nightlife. Mention to your landlord that you would like to visit El Nicho. Maybe they can hook you up with a cheap taxi ride.

Oct 9 – Visit El Nicho. Spend a day exploring

Or

October 9 – Go directly to Trinidad. If you leave in the morning you can get there before noon. Explore Trinidad and have fun with a Sunday night dance party in a cave. (Check the attached Trinidad Mini-Guidebook for more info.

October 10 – Trinidad fun. Explore the town and maybe hit the beach.

October 11 – You can go to the Topes de Collantes natural park. It is really nice. High up in the mountains.

October 12 – get to Santa Clara and depart.

So there you have it. You can either visit the waterfall in Cienfuegos or visit the natural park near Trinidad. No need to do both, in my opinion. So you either spend more time in Cienfuegos or go directly to Trinidad. Both options are fun and give you a good idea of what Cuba is all about.

take care and have fun,
Mario

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by Mario.
• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by Mario.

Attachments:

1. Trinidad-Mini-Guidebook.pdf

[Mario]

in reply to: Questions about Havana #14970

Hi David,

I think you will have  great trip to Cuba. Just a bit of a heads up. You know that Playa Larga and Cienfuegos are a considerable distance from Vinales, right? They are on the opposite side of Havana.. so you will have a lot of traveling back and forth. Instead of Vinales, you might want to consider Trinidad, which is very close to Cienfuegos. It would cut back on your driving time. But anyway…

Reggaeton is everywhere in Havana. To be honest with you, it’s mostly a young person scene and most tourists are not that into it, so it’s not really in most tourist zones. But most of the discos will play a lot of Reggaeton. The discos have theme nights. So one night it’s salsa, and it attracts locals and tourists. One night it’s hip hop and it attracts tourists mostly. And one night it’s Reggaeton and it attracts mostly locals.

A good Reggaeton place would be La Gruta in Vedado, on 23rd street between O and P. You can pass in front and check the marquee for who is playing on a specific night. There could be a dj or a live Reggaeton show. It’s not a tourist place, it will be mostly locals.

A more upscale place would be disco Turquino, which is at the top of the Habana Libre Hotel. But the entrance fee is higher and you won’t find many regular locals there… just working girls.

Club 1830 which is very popular and located on the Malecon is a great place for Reggaeton but as always, it depends on which night you go. It’s more upscale and you will find tourists there. But it’s popular with locals too.

 

As for fish and seafood, in Havana you will have to pay up if you want that food. There are a couple of cheap and prominently advertised seafood restaurants on 23rd, but you will find out that despite being seafood restaurants, they do not really offer seafood at all. It’s tough to get good seafood in Havana. I will refer you to the following list of restaurants which offer some seafood. https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurants-g147271-c33-Havana_Ciudad_de_la_Habana_Province_Cuba.html

From the list….

I have been to La Fontana and eaten excellent calamari and octopus which was freshly caught. You pay, but the food is good.

I have been to El Balcon but despite the good reputation and high price, I was disappointed.

El Idilio is good, but expensive.

El Litoral is good but expensive.

Personally, my favorite restaurant was Al Carbon (https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g147271-d8607677-Reviews-Al_Carbon-Havana_Ciudad_de_la_Habana_Province_Cuba.html). For Havana, it’s very expensive, but I thought the food was perfect. They are not a seafood restaurant and the menu changes daily, but they often have fish and seafood.

In Playa Larga you will find seafood. It will be cheaper (but still expensive by Cuban standards). Your casa host will likely offer to make you a lobster dinner. This usually involves the host going for a quick dive in the ocean in the morning to catch a couple of lobsters and then cooking them at night. It’s usually really fresh. Playa Larga is a tiny place with very few restaurants.

The main restaurant in town is called Chuchi (named after the owner). He has 2 places.. one marketed to tourists as a seafood place located on the ground floor beside the bay, and another one located on a top floor which is marketed to locals (but tourists can eat there too.) He used to have rock bottom prices but with the influx of tourists he has raised prices for everything by about double or triple. You won’t get anything fancy at these places, but a reasonable fried fish meal should cost about 10 to 12cuc and it will be fresh.

 

I hope this help. Have lots of fun man,

 

Mario

 

 

 

[Mario]

in reply to: Trains Havana – Santiago de Cuba #14930

Hey man,

ok, I got the info.

The train from Havana to Santiago leave this Saturday 10th of August, then on Tuesday (13th) and then on Friday (16th). It always leaves at 6:10pm.

I hope this help,

take care,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Trains Havana – Santiago de Cuba #14928

Hi, the train from Havana to Santiago is called the Tren Francès (French Train)

The most updated info available online concerning train schedule is on the following website. http://www.seat61.com/Cuba.htm#.V9K9OfkrLDc

If you are not used to reading train schedules then it can be confusing a bit. But if you read the page you should be able to figure it out.

But, the most important part of taking the train in Havana is actually going to the train station and speaking with the agent and booking your ticket. You cannot get your ticket online of book electronically. It’s a person to person thing. And during that interaction the agent will tell you when to arrive at the station. Delays can arise or even cancellations so it is important to go to the station ahead of time in order to confirm things..

Note: as stated on the website…. 

• Havana Estación Central is closed for a major renovation from June 2015 until summer 2018.

  During this period most trains are using the nearby La Coubre station instead, although those to Cienfuegos & Pinar del Rio are using Havana’s 19 de Noviembre (Tulipan) station.  Just to confuse you, Le Coubre may be referred to in timetables as Central station, so stay alert!

 

I know that this response does not fully answer your question. In all likelihood, you already knew this information, since it is available online. I know that you know the train runs every 3 days, and you were specifically asking which days it runs, so you could plan your trip. I will call the station later today and try to get you the exact info, but I cannot guarantee that I will be able to get through to an agent over the phone.

[Mario]

in reply to: Baseball games #14850

Hi Lisa,

You are in luck. For the next 2 weeks the Industriales are doing a home set and will be playing many games in Havana.

The Industriales are currently playing in Havana against Las Tunas on September 1 and September 2, at the Estadio LatinoAmericano.

Here is the calendar for the next 2 weeks.

	01.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Las Tunas
	02.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Las Tunas
	04.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Sancti Spiritus
	05.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Sancti Spiritus
	06.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Sancti Spiritus
	08.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Villa Clara
	09.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Villa Clara
	10.09. 13:15	Industriales	vs  Villa Clara

You can get the full calendar here: http://www.beisbolencuba.com/series/serie-nacional-beisbol-2016-2017/todos-contra and here: http://www.baseball24.com/team/industriales/CYRmJOpR/fixtures/

 

Note that these seem to be afternoon games. The site says that they start at 13:15, but I think they actually get going at 2pm, but I am not sure of the exact start time.

You can go to the box office at the stadium ahead of time and pick up a ticket. Or you can just show up at the door around starting time and pay to get inside. There are no assigned seats. You just pay and enter. I don’t know the exact price. I usually just walk in during the 4th inning without paying anything. The security is very lax. If you pay anything, it would probably be only about 3 cuc. If they ask for more money then it is probably some sort of a scam. The locals pay only a few pennies to enter.

My advice, if you don’t speak spanish, ask you casa landlord to go with you to either buy the tickets or to guide you into the stadium. Don’t just pay money to some random guy standing around the stadium, because there are lots of hustlers. In the worst case, just pay a taxi driver a few extra dollars and ask them to get you inside the stadium.

As I said, there are no assigned seats and everybody just walks around during the games. It’s a zoo… But it’s fun and if you keep an open mind, you will surely enjoy it. Especially if the home team wins.

There is a nice write-up here with some good tips: http://www.visitcuba.com/2015/12/how-to-go-to-a-baseball-game-in-cuba-the-inside-secrets/

take care and have a great time.

Mario

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by Mario.

[Mario]

in reply to: Maquinas/Collectivos #14847

Hi, the taxis will always make a quick stop in Havana first, before going to the bay of pigs. But the ride is quick(faster than the viazul bus) and only costs about 40cuc per person.

 

Here are the instructions:

From Vinales to the bay of pigs you can use a communal taxi. In Vinales, in front of the main square, there is a tourist information office with posters and prices marked all over the windows. In front there is almost always a taxi organizer who can help you arrange a taxi to Trinidad. The cost is about 40cuc per person. The organizers name is Leonardo. His phone number is 5 240 9142. He speaks a bit if English. But either tell your landlord to call him and organize the taxi, or go visit him in front of the tourist office. He has short, black hair and he will probably approach you if you look like a tourist. There is always a crowd of people in front of the office and many drivers offering rides all over cuba. But i know this organizer and he is professional and has always given good rates. He can arrange the taxi to pick you up at your casa and take you, along with a car full of other people, to the bay of pigs or Trinidad, or playa larga or cienfegos, by way of Havana. It will be a 1950s station wagon or small truck.

 

I warn you, bay of pigs is a rather dull place. Do your research. Playa Larga is good. Trinidad is popular. But the bay of pigs, despite being popular, does not have much to offer. The town is small, dusty and rather boring. The beach is rocky. If you go, dont stay long. You might be more interested in Trinidad and playa Larga. Take care. Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Guidebook #14844

Why do you say that? The guidebook has been downloaded, as of today, over 23 000 times, freely. It is available on this website for free, you dont even have to download it. You cans ee the book right here for free – https://bestcubaguide.com/free-havana-guide/

What country are you located in? For certain countries amazon.com charges a fee for all downloads. There is nothing I can do about that. I have marked the book as free and in almost all markets it is priced at 0$.

And, the full digital version of the book is priced at less than 5$ and the print paper copy of the book is less than 9$, and is in fact priced as low as Amazon will allow me to list it. I make exactly zero profit from this book…. And you still complain?

• This reply was modified 8 years, 2 months ago by Mario.
• This reply was modified 8 years, 2 months ago by Mario.

[Mario]

in reply to: Taxi collectivos #14758

Hi,

Taxis Colectivos are like buses… small buses, that are independently run and can fit only 5 or 6 passengers. Like buses, they drive down major streets and go from one specific area to other areas. They generally start and stop at a main terminal (could just be a roundabout or field or landmark). They pick up and drop off people along the way. There are no specific “bus stops” for the taxis… you just hail them from the side of the road with an outstretched hand.

Fundamentally, almost any old car traveling down a major road in Havana is a taxi colectivo. Outside of Havana… ie, in other towns and cities, it is usually the same things.

But taxis colectivos usually operate on major roads. Avenues and boulevards..  main traffic arteries. They get you easily from one general area to another, and then you can walk the last few blocks to the specific area you want to get to.

When the colectivo stops to pick you up, from the window, you tell the driver more or less where you want to go. For example, if you are on 23rd street, you could say… take me to M Street.. or take me to the Capitolio.. If the driver is going that direction, then he will say, ok, jump in. Then you get in,. and when you are getting close to the destination, remind the driver, and tell him to stop. He will stop… And then pay him the 10 pesos per person in MN. You have to know which direction your destination is. For example, if the destination is east then you hail the taxi which is traveling east, on the side of the road which is going in that direction. You don’t hail the taxi going west, because he will be going in the opposite direction.

Be confident during the ride. Watch how other riders do it. If you look and seem like a tourist, the drivers can try to take advantage of you. They might ask for more money, or offer to bring you directly to the front door of your hotel or casa.. and then ask for more money. But if you use the taxis as a bus.. as everybody else does, then it is only 10 pesos MN for the ride within the city, or 20 pesos MN for the ride for longer distances to the suburbs. Going from Havana to the beach of Guanabo usually cost 50 pesos MN since this is much farther.

Like a bus, you don’t have to find other passengers to ride with you. Just consider it to always be similar to a bus.

The Viazul is a national long distance bus service. It’s like Grey Hound in the USA. You take it to get from one city to the other. It is usually cheap, but it makes many stops along the way, so it takes more time. You can take a taxi to make this trip and it usually costs a bit more.. maybe 50% more or double… but it gets you there faster and you can make your own schedule.

In Havana and most large cities there are also city buses that operate standard routes. These are extremely cheap. Like 0.2 pesos MN per person. But they are hot and cramped and you will have a hard time figuring out the complicated routes. You can try it for fun, but usually for a first timer to Havana I do not suggest it for actual efficient transportation.

I encourage you to get my guidebook or any other guidebook to help you in Cuba and Havana. My guidebook is less than $5 in digital format from Amazon and contains heavy details for everything you might need to know about traveling in Cuba and Havana. https://bestcubaguide.com/about-the-best-cuba-havana-travel-guidebook/

Take care and all the best, Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Itinerary of Cuba including Trinidad #14693

Hi, have you checked out the Real Havana guidebook?

 

Here is a description of what the book includes…

About The Best Cuba Travel Guide

 

You can also download a free mini guidebook to Havana with some basic info. The free guidebook also has information about visiting Trinidad and interesting things to see.

Buy The Best Cuba and Havana Travel Guide

 

Also, if you scroll over the Havana Tips heading  at the top of this page you will find tips on places to visit in Havana (https://bestcubaguide.com/top-10-best-things-to-do-in-havana/) as well as some more info on taking a trip to Trinidad (http://bestcubaguide.com/going-from-havana-to-trinidad-a-great-adventure-excursion/)

 

Also, there are many videos and photos of places in Havana if you click on the Havana Tips section above.

 

Finally, if you browse the forum, you will see lots of recommendations for things to do in Havana and Trinidad.

https://bestcubaguide.com/forums/search/Trinidad/

 

Two weeks will give you a lot of time to explore Havana and more than enough time to get to Trinidad and back. You should use a guidebook. Even if you dont buy my guide, get any guidebook as they will all have useful info. And if it is your first time to cuba, there will be lots of new things that you should know in order to make your trip go well.

You can also read the FAQ section on this website for more info on basic things to consider during your trip.

Cuba and Havana FAQ and Basic Answers Checklist

Take care,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Looking for Casa Particulares in Guanabo and Varadero #14394

Hi Kevin,

In Varadero, I would really suggest that you stay in a hotel. A good, 4 star hotel can usually cost about 120$ per night, per couple. So 4 nights would be under $500. Actually, these prices are in Canadian dollars, because the largest hotel operators working in Cuba usually sell their rooms in Canadian dollars. I urge you to check out the website Sunwing.ca and to see the hotels they have. I would choose a 4 start hotel. The Memories brand has good reviews and is currently the best value, by most accounts. The Memories Varadero is 4 stars and the Grand Memories is 4.5 stars. Both are good. I would also suggest that you check out some reviews on Trip Advisor and also on this website – http://www.debbiescaribbeanresortreviews.com/cuba/cubarevind.html. Also, on this forum, http://forums.debbiescaribbeanresortreviews.com/c/cuba you can ask questions about specific hotels. The users are mostly Canadian and have very good experience in explaining the different hotels and the pros and cons of each.

 

The reason I think you should go with a hotel vs a casa in Varadero is simple.

1. Varadero is a beach community. You go there to relax and have fun. This is much easier done in an all inclusive hotel rather than in a rental apartment, where you have to walk to the beach, search for shade, search for food and drinks each day… etc. In a hotel you have everything, and it’s included in the price.
2. Varadero is expensive. Unless you plan on eating street food while you are there, it will be very tough to find cheap restaurants. You can easily spend 12 cuc per meal, per person while you are there. Plus drinks, plus transportation. You can spend 50$ per day for a couple on food and drinks and still not receive anything special.
3. The casas are good in Varadero, but still, they will never be like hotels. You can spend 30$ to 40$ per night on a casa, but there will be no pool (or a tiny plastic pool), and it will be at least a few blocks walking to the beach. Add this price to the food cost and you get a total expense of about $80 per day for living in a casa. For $120 per day you could be relaxing in an all inclusive hotel…

 

Anyway, as I said, I recommend a hotel, and particularly the Memories brand, as it is a good value for your money. It’s not high end, but it suits the needs of a large portion of the market.

 

And for general advice, I will say, Cuba is a place that tries hard, but often fails to live up to high expectations. If you go there expecting quality, you will probably be disappointed a lot. But if you have an open mind and expect a reasonable value for your money, you can almost always be sure to get it. Cubans have a pretty good idea of what the mid range consumer expects, and they often meet or exceed those expectations. 

I think you will have a wonderful trip.

take care,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: 14 day itinerary??? #14356

Hi, congratulations on planning a Cuba trip, I am sure it will be great fun. I wouldn’t’ worry too much about hurricane season. Yes, there could be storms, but there is nothing you can do to control that. The island is pretty well prepared in case of storms and most storms do not hit directly on the main cities in Cuba, historically.

 

Here are some answers.

1. The best way is to take a taxi. Yes it is 25cuc, but that is the standard rate. There is like a taxi cartel set up at the airports and they fix the prices. You won’t be able to find much cheaper than that. There are some city buses that pass near the airport, but you would have to walk out of the airport with your luggage and then find a city bus.. I would not suggest it. You are better off just paying the 25$ and starting your trip on the right foot. But, if you can find a couple of other tourists at the airport who are also going to Havana, you can split the ride with them. It’s easy to do, as there should be many people at the airport. 
2. If you read through a couple of the above posts, you will see that the most common cities to visit on a 2 week trip are Havana, Vinales and Trinidad. Vinales and Trinidad are similar. Vinales is closer to Havana and thus a bit more easy to visit. But honestly, based on what you want to do, you might be better off going to Trinidad. You can still ride horses and see tons of nature in Trinidad. And a bonus is that there is a beach just a few minutes from the town. Cayo Santa Maria is very far, both from Havana and Trinidad. And extremely far from Vinales. You would spend a whole day in a car trying to get there. I would suggest you skip it. The beach is nice, but it’s not so much better than many other beaches in Cuba. You would be better off going to Varadero, which is close to Havana. Also note that in Cayo Santa Maria there are no casas particulares. You would have to stay in an expensive hotel (but it would be fun) or to rent a casa in a small town outside of the Cayo, which would be far and you would have to drive to the beach each day.
3. You should only buy cigars at state run stores, called the Casa del Habano. There are many of these stores across Cuba and at the airports. They sell official cigars. Everything else you find in the street is likely to be fake. Even if they look real, they are probably fake. Anybody who offers to get you discount cigars is running a scam. The plantations, like the ones near Trinidad or Vinales will sell cigars, but they will be no-name. If they are selling them in boxes with official looking stickers, they are fake, 100% guarantee. 
4. Horse riding is easy to set up. Either in Trinidad or Vinales or anywhere else in Cuba, you just ask your casa landlord a day in advance, and they set it up. They might make a few dollars in commission, but it is fine and better to let them set it up rather than you going to find a horse guy on your own. Surfing is not big in Cuba. You probably will have trouble finding a place to do it and get the equipment. You can check out the following websites. http://www.havanasurf-cuba.com/ and http://www.surfingmagazine.com/originals/reality-surfing-cuba/#BzMQvfwzeKqxl7YO.97 . It’s really a tiny community in Cuba and it’s not a big thing here.
5. The best advice I can give you is to explore. You are only there for 14 days. If this is your first trip I guess you will want to see Havana a bit. So that would take a few days. Also you don’t mention if you speak Spanish or if you have a budget. My recommendation for a first trip is to follow the advice given in the other posts and see a Havana and then either Vinales or Trinidad and go to Varadero for a good beach experience. You can do those things without having a real plan and it will be fun. There are caves in both Trinidad and Vinales which are fun to explore. Also near Trinidad there is the Topes de Collantes natural park with nice mountains and many waterfalls. It is a great place to explore. You can do more.. If you felt comfortable and wanted to go all out you could fly from Havana to Santiago and visit the east of the island, which is less touristy and has mountains and jungle. But that would be more expensive and take more time, and it is better to go there is you speak a bit of Spanish. But you don’t need to get far away from Havana to have a good time. As a first trip I would recommend focusing on Havana, Vinales and Trinidad areas.
6. Tourists have been coming to Cuba for decades. There are no more real secret places on the island. But, the further you get from Havana, the more likely you are to find small places where there are almost no tourists. But these places are harder to get to, more expensive to get to and usually are not worth the effort. I know beaches near Playa Santa Lucia (eastern part of Cuba), where you can spend a week and never see another person pass by, and the water is crystal clear. But to get to that beach from Havana would take a day of driving. And there are also no casas near the beach, and no restaurants or bars. So, it’s a great place to be if you are in the area and stumble upon it, but you would never want to actually make a trip there. But generally, in Cuba you will be surprised at how easy it is to get away from the tourist path. If you are in Vinales or Trinidad and take a horse tour, it will probably be you, your girlfriend and the guide. If you feel comfortable on the horses, you can tell the guide you want to get off the path and just wander. Or you can ask the guide to show you something cool.. And they can take you to a hidden cliff or waterfall. And also know that in Vinales or Trinidad on any given day there might be 3000 tourists. But only 30 or 40 will take a horse tour. So once you get out of the town and get on horseback, you will be pretty much alone. The caves you visit will be empty of tourists. You will probably find yourselves alone at the waterfalls. It’s not packed with tourists, especially not in September.

take care and all the best.

 

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Cheap casa particulares #14210

Hey!

I’ve been in Cuba for the last few weeks and missed your message. I hope you were able to find a place. It’s really very easy and as this is low season you should not have trouble finding a place for about $600 per month.

 

Here are some excellent choices:

 

Casa Particular Alejandro y Sandra – 2 Independent Apartments, Vedado

 

Casa Particular Ruben – Independent Apartment Vedado

 

Casa Particular Maria Elena- Independent Vedado Apartment

 

Casa Particular Abraham – Independent Vedado Apartment

 

Casa Particular Mara – Independent Apartment

 

Casa Particular Enrique – Independent Apartment

 

take care,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: antique/Vintage shopping #13848

Hi, thanks for the compliments.

There are not too many antiques for sale in cuba. Over the years people have been forced to keep using their household goods and they have basically been used up. Cups and plates and any kitchen items.. they don’t last long with continuous use. And honestly, most small items of value were probably sold or smuggled out in the 90s during the deep depression.

There is some antique furniture being sold in old Havana but it’s super expensive. Thousands of dollars.

Honestly I have never seen any small antiques or vintage articles sold anywhere.

But what is sold are handicrafts. Home made items which are cool and interesting. Any large market I’ll have handicraft sections. There are some street fairs which have them too, although at higher prices. One place is located on 23rd street between M and N, I think. A cheaper place is the Tulipan market in the Plaza neighborhood.

You can usually get hand made coffee cups for about 25cents each. They are made of clay and are very cute. There are also handmade dresses, tablecloths, linens and toys. Those are the kind if things Cuba is know for. And they are not just tourist items. Even Cubans use these in their houses.

Art, like paintings can be found all over Havana. A popular place is the art market located on a dock in old Havana. It’s a huge indoor place with paintings and crafts everywhere. Some people like it. Other people say that the stuff is just cheap knock offs. It depends. But it’s still fun to look at.

Mind you, cuba has strict laws pertaining to the export of antiques and art. For anything of value you must an export sticker attached to all paintings. All authorized dealers sell art with the sticker. And never pay more for the sticker. It only costs the artist like 1$.

Take care and I hope this helps.

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Taxi ride in HAVANA and Varadero #13757

Hi, thanks for the message.

Ok, so the tickets to the show cost about 75$ each for the standard admission. There are different packages available. You can check them out and reserve here (http://tropicana.payresline.com/web/app.php/en/Portal/Tropicana/)

Now, to get from Varadero to the Cabaret theater, the taxi would cost about 90 to 100cuc. I now that in the above comments I had mentioned being able to get a taxi from Varadero to Havana for 50cuc. But that was like a one time thing. I knew the driver was already going and he was able to pick up the other woman on his way. The standard price is 90cuc for the ride. But I say that it can go up to 100cuc because the theater is about 20 minutes outside of the main Havana center, so it’s a bit of extra driving.

So basically, the taxi fares would be 100cuc to go to the show, 100cuc to return back to Varadero. The taxi can fit 4 people, plus the driver, so you will all fit. And it will have air conditioning.

Now, a thing to remember is that the show can go pretty late. Are you sure you want to drive back on the same night? You might arrive back in Varadero like at 3am… It’s up to you, but you might also consider staying 1 night in Havana. I can probably find a deal where you could stay all in a 2 bedroom apartment for about 60 or 70$. You would be 2 per bed… if it works, it’s pretty cheap, and you get to see Havana a bit. If you want all separate beds, it would cost a bit more.

Also, I will say, the Tropicana show is good. But I don’t know if it is worth the time and money to travel from Varadero to Havana just for the show. Personally, I would suggest that if you are doing this, you should consider staying at least 1 night in Havana, you can arrive early, check out the city a bit and then go to the show. They you go back to your apartment and rest. And the next day, like at 11am, you head back to Varadero. Not only would this option be less stressful, but it would probably be more fun and you could say that you’ve seen Havana.

Anyway, tell me what you think,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Solo Cuba travel 14 days #13567

Hi, I don’t know if this specific hostal is good, but I can say that most places in Havana are adequate. In many cases, you pay for what you get, but generally the service at hostals and casas is pretty good. The Cubans are respectful and safety is always a top priority.

 

Hostals are great places to meet other travelers. Other good places are to hang around CADECA money exchange offices, especially in touristy places like old Havana. Bars and cheap restaurants also attract foreigners. And just walking along a street like Obispo in old Havana you will hear more foreign languages being spoken than Spanish. You can always just approach a group of people around your age and chat them up. People are usually pretty relaxed while on vacation.

Also, specifically about sharing taxi rides and stuff like that, the best place to meet other ride shares is to hang around the Viazul station. There are always dozens of people outside the station who are unable to get bus tickets and who are looking for travel buddies to share a taxi. I always find travel friends at the bus stations. You can even try the bus station for the Astro bus service. Foreigners cannot take this bus, but many still go to the station and search for cheap rides there. In Vedado, the station is located at the corner of Ave. De la Independencia and 19 de Mayo.

 

Take care and have a great trip.

[Author]

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