[Mario]

in reply to: From Havana to Varadero and back #23536

Hi, Varadero to Vinales would be possible too. I would have to know the dates and time of pickup and I can get a taxi for that. It would almost certainly be a private taxi. There are few group taxis that do this route (group taxis are popular with locals, but this route is not a popular local route, so it is hard to get a group taxi). In general, the Varadero to Vinales route is far less common, but I think I can get a taxi to do it.

If you are on a time constraint, you can do Vinales in 1 night. Let’s say you arrive in Vinales at 11am – You do the things mentioned above (farms, hiking, go walking up a mogote) and then the next day you take the horseback tour, and after the tour, let’s say around 3pm or 4pm, you take a taxi back to Havana. It’s a bit rushed, but you still get to see a lot.

But anyway, yes, I can get you a taxi from anywhere to anywhere. The less popular routes cost a bit more and would likely be private taxis rather than shared, but we can always find a taxi.

[Mario]

in reply to: From Havana to Varadero and back #23512

Hi, I think 2 days in vinales is enough. You might not have enough time to see every single thing, but you can hit almost all. The first day, when you arrive, take a walk in the valley an see some farms close to town. Explore the town. Keep it simple. If you have time and like hiking, go walking up a mogote (limestone hill). You dont need a guide for this. And tell your landlord to book you a horseback tour of the valley for the next morning. Then, on the next morning, take the horse tour. Its really good and you will get to go deep into the valley, tell the horse guide to show you the cave with the natural pool inside it. You can bathe there a bit. And then see the tobacco rolling and have lunch at a small cafe in the valley. It’s fun.

In front of the main town square in vinales you will see a tourist office. In front of the office there are taxi organizers. Tell them you need a ride back to Havana and they can set it up for you. Its easy. They can send a car to get you directly at your casa. The taxi from vinales to Havana is usually a minivan shared with other people. But if you a want a private one, just tell the organizer.

In terms of getting to vinales, we can organize a taxi, no problem. We can organize the casa too. We can even set up the return taxi (but as I said, it’s easy yo set that up in vinales too).

You can click on the taxi link in the menu above and book the taxis and use the casa link for the casas. Just put your date in the form and my assistant in Cuba will confirm that quick.

Have a great trip!

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Need a chauffeur driven car/van for six people with guide #23485

Hi, I can find a driver for you. It’s a bit early to confirm things with the driver since December is still many months away. But fundamentally, your request is a very easy one. I will tell you that you should not be worried at all about this request.

Now, for 6 people, you will need a minivan. Those are a bit harder to get in Cuba because those large vehicles are rare, but still, we should be able to find you a driver who can meet your needs.

But, I have some advice for you which will save you a lot of money.

Havana is a small city and there are thousands of taxi drivers on all major streets at all times of the day. Let’s say you want to go for dinner one evening and want to get from your apartment in Vedado to a restaurant in Old Havana (distance of 3km). You could just walk out to any street and hail a taxi (or 2) to take your group to that restaurant. And the cost would likely be about 10cuc per taxi or less. If you reserve a taxi driver for the whole day so that he is always at your personal service, it will cost a lot. Like probably 130 cuc to 150 cuc per day. I doubt you would be able to use him that much to make it worthwhile.

Furthermore, if you use the driver to go on long distance trips, you would have to pay the drivers daily rate, plus his gas, plus his lodging in the new town where he brings you. It will end up being more expensive than just hiring a taxi on a per trip basis.

But anyway, if money is not an issue, then of course, I can find you a personal driver who can take care of your group and do whatever you need.

Also note that I take no commission for this. I give you the drivers contact and info, but you would have to work out the details of the rates with him directly. I will give you a general idea of his costs, but for particular trip and small details, you would have to discuss with him directly.

I will send you a personal message to your email with some details.

[Mario]

in reply to: Average time needed for immigration and luggage pick up at Havana airport #23390

Hi Kevin,

I spoke with Claudia and the taxi driver and Casa Maritza. I will tell you what I was told.

1. The taxi driver (Roberto) says that he waited at the airport. He saw that your flight landed and he was waiting at the arrivals area. He had a sign. He said that the people from your flight passed and nobody approached him. He was unable to locate you as you passed. But, the driver waited about 30 more minutes (with his sign saying “Cutler”) and he was eventually approached, in the top area of the airport, by somebody who identified himself as Cutler. The driver took this person to Havana. The driver could not remember what house he took this “Culter” too. It’s very strange. I’ve worked with this driver many times and he has no reason to lie. If you did not meet the driver at the airport, then somebody else took your taxi. I’m sorry. This is the first time this has happened. Honestly, I never even expected something like this. I will work to make sure this does not happen again.
2. As for Casa Maritza, as mentioned, I confirmed it myself, with Claudia, in person. I spoke with Maritza just now and explained the problem. She was being evasive. I have removed that casa from the website. As mentioned, I don’t want to work with landlords who are not reliable. They make me and my team look bad and obviously make the clients upset. It’s just not worth it.
3. Claudia mentioned that as soon as you arrived at Casa Maritza, you called her to tell her there was a problem with the reservation. According to Claudia, she sent a taxi to pick you up and brought you to another casa. The taxi was free to you (Claudia paid it). If this is not correct, please tell me.
4. According to Claudia, the new casa (Guido) seemed good to you. You checked it out and told Claudia that you would be satisfied staying there.

 

Is this more or less correct? I don’t know what happened with the airport taxi. Obviously there was a problem meeting the driver. Sorry for that.

As for Casa Maritza, I removed her from the website. I’m sorry for that problem. I feel we worked hard to make things right, but I can understand your frustration. Things did not go according to plan.

As for Vinales and Trinidad, I will be honest, landlords in those areas are far less money hungry and they have a bit more long term business sense. I’m happy you got to stay at the casas that you booked. I know you mentioned that the landlord in Trinidad said some strange things about the reservation, but ultimately, you stayed there (and we certainly did make your booking there.)

Kevin, I hope that overall things were not too bad. I have been in many circumstances in Havana which were totally not planned and very inconvenient. I know how frustrating it is. Honestly, despite how much I know about Cuba, every time I am there I still always seem to get into sticky situations. It’s extremely common for things to go haywire sometimes. It seems that it’s almost part of the “Cuban” experience. It’s something that will likely change as business and hospitality develop in that country. My team and I are constantly trying to improve the client experience. Some things are not in our control, which is annoying to me immensely.

I hope that overall your experience of Cuba was positive.

thanks,

Mario

• This reply was modified 7 years, 7 months ago by Mario.

[Mario]

in reply to: Average time needed for immigration and luggage pick up at Havana airport #23383

Hi Kevin,

I think we exchanged a few emails before your trip. I take it seriously that things did not go as planned during your trip. I will look into this and see exactly what happened.

I will say a couple of things right from the start. 

1. You mentioned that you spent about 2 hours exchanging money and looking for the driver. I have repeated several times on the website that travelers must meet the taxi driver first, before going to exchange money. The driver can track your flight on the TV monitors in the airport. Once your flight lands, he looks for you at the gate. If you miss each other, he cannot search the whole airport. If you go upstairs to exchange money and the driver is waiting at the gate (downstairs) and you guys never find each other, the driver leaves after a certain point. The driver was booked, his name is Roberto, and I can confirm that he arrived at the airport, as scheduled. Somehow, he was unable to find you. Let me look into it and I can get you more details.
2. As for the casa, I confirmed your stay at Casa Carlos And Maritza. I was there with Claudia and we went to the landlords house directly, because we were in that area of Vedado, and I confirmed your booking. I saw the landlord write your name down in her reservation book. This was done many months ago. I am not certain what the issue was. I will call them and see what happened. I will tell you this, if those landlords bumped you, I am removing their house from the website. I have no great recourse against these landlords, I cannot force them to pay for bumping clients, but the protocol is, any landlord who disrespects a reservation like that, gets automatically removed from the website. Let me check into it.
3. Vinales – I’m happy that went well. 
4. Trinidad – Let me look into that. I find it strange that the landlords initially said they did not have your confirmation, but then had vacancy anyway, and took you in. I can see from the reservation system which we have in place that on April 10 (one day after you arrived), the landlord from Trinidad actually called us to confirm that you arrived, and said that everything went well. She had the reservation. She took our number down, and she called Claudia to confirm that you arrived. We made your reservation, it’s a guarantee. And in the end, it all went well… You stayed at the house you booked and there were no issues… I’ll take that as a positive.

I will say the team of people I have working in Havana is really good. I think you exchanged over 30 emails with myself, Claudia and Isabel over the last few months. We answered every question and I gave you as much advice as I could. And now, for you to say that we didn’t do our job… We tried really hard, as we do with all customers. Concerning the Havana reservation, don’t believe some random landlord who barely speaks English, over myself, Claudia or Isabel, whom you have been interacting with for months, always professionally and amicably. The landlord will always give a song and dance when pressed for answers. But me and my team actually care about your stay. If we didn’t we would not have exchanged so many emails and spent so much time organizing your trip. 

Also, on 28 March 2017 Claudia gave you her phone number (cell phone) and told you to call if there should be any issues. Did you call her? She is glued to her phone and if she was made aware of an issue, I know she would have bent over backwards to make things right.

Give me a couple of days and I can try to get more answers. 

thanks,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Overnight Cruise #23201

Hi Emjay,

We have walking tours (https://bestcubaguide.com/old-havana-walking-tours/)

and

taxi tours (https://bestcubaguide.com/havana-taxi-guided-tour/)

The walking tours are in Old Havana. You learn about architecture and art and culture and music, etc. The typical tour is 2 hours and it is very interesting.

The taxi tours get you all around Havana and especially to the neighborhoods of Vedado, Central Havana and places on the outskirts of the city. These places outside the main city are far to walk to, but very nice to see and it is best toured in a taxi. You get to basically see all of Havana and hit many culturally important areas and many good tourist attractions. These tours also take about 2 hours.

For either option, you can always stay longer (you pay the hourly rate which is like 25$ per hour for a taxi tour… it’s not expensive)

It really just depends what you would prefer to do. In my opinion, it would be best if you schedule a walking tour first, and then, if you also want a taxi tour to see the rest of the city, we can organize that for the next day.

It get’s very hot in Cuba. And very humid in Havana. The ocean is right beside the city. When it rains, the air becomes very humid, but the sun is so hot that it usually burns off the water pretty fast. The walking tours are best in the morning, since it is cooler. The taxi tours have air conditioning, so it doesn’t matter the time.

[Mario]

in reply to: Overnight Cruise #23145

Hi, for sure, we do evening tours. Basically, we can organize the tour around your schedule and your interests. It’s 100% customized for you. You can make a list of things you want to specifically see and we can check those out in detail. Or tell us your favorite themes and we can focus on those. The standard tour covers everything, but we can go into details as you like. And the times are completely your choice.

Morning or evening is good since the temperature is cooler, and it can get really hot in Havana.

Once you decide, just tell me and my assistant will work out the details and book you the tour.

take care,

mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Overnight Cruise #23125

Hi, the cruise ship will dock in Old Havana. It’s touristy, but it is packed with things to see and do. You can easily walk around the neighborhood and visit castles, museums, art galleries, and restaurants. You will see musicians playing outside. You will see locals going about their daily lives. It should be really fun and I think you will learn a lot. If this is what you had in mind, then you can easily navigate around the neighborhood yourself.

Walking further out, you can see other neighborhoods. You might consider taking a taxi since vedado is a bit of a long walk from the old havana cruise port.

For more detailed tours, we offer walking tours of old Havana. You would have an English speaking guide walking with you in Havana, describing architecture and culture. More details on this option can be found here:

Old Havana Walking Tours

I hope this help.

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Exchange Rates #22979

Hi Dav, you originally asked this question in the comments of this page

What is the Best Cuba Guidebook for Exploring All of Cuba?

so I answered there. Anyway, I have pasted the answer for you below. No worries man. Have a great day.

Hi,
I assume the main goal of this strategy would be to avoid the 10% surcharge on exchanging USD to CUC directly. There is no 10% surcharge on converting MXN to CUC. You would just pay the international rate minus a 3 to 4% exchange fee (standard for all currency transactions). With converting USD to CUC, you also have to pay the 3% exchange fee, so after the 3% and the 10%, it would mean that 100 USD = 87 CUC.

By bringing Mexican pesos, you only pay the 3 to 4% exchange fee charged by the exchange house in Cuba (CADECA), so you would seemingly save 10%. But the largest issue in the transaction is, what rate can you get Mexican pesos while you are in the USA? If your bank in the USA gives a crappy exchange rate (if the bank charges 5% or 6% -which is very common) then it dramatically reduces your savings. If you can get MXN at a good rate (close to the international rate) then for sure, doing this strategy is a good idea. If you can get Euros or CAD or GBP at a good rate, then you can exchange your USD to any one of those currencies and save a lot of money. If you can’t get a good rate from your American bank, then it negates most of the savings.

[Mario]

in reply to: 3 1/2 weeks in cuba #22803

Hi, I can set you up an itinerary. Just know that Cuba is a well traveled place. The best beaches already have hotels on them. And the ones that don’t have hotels, it’s usually because they are too far from anything to make them viable destinations. I know that some travel books will tell you about “the best hidden beach in Cuba” and things like that, but generally speaking all the truly great beaches are not so hidden anymore. The hidden ones are far away and would be mostly expensive to get to with a private taxi, and once you are there, you will be alone on the beach, but also alone within a 20km radius, so no water, restaurants, groceries, markets, etc. Many taxi drivers will not go far from the highway simply to get to a hidden beach, because if their car breaks down they are stuck.. and there are no on-call tow trucks in Cuba. Anyway, I just wanted to mention that.

Also, how do you plan on getting around? My suggestion it to use city to city taxis. If you are solo or a couple, it will save money. If you are 3 or 4, you might be better off renting a car. But there are risks to that.

Ok, so

Days 1-4: You are in Havana. Relax, explore the city. You won’t get bored.

Days  5-7: Go to Vinales. It’s a fun place and if you like nature you will enjoy the mountains and valley. Also you can check out the secluded beaches. You can go to Cayo Jutias or Cayo Levisa. Cayo Jutias is more popular and it only costs 15cuc per person to take a taxi there. Cayo Levisa costs 30cuc per person, but that also includes the ferry to get to the island. From Vinales you can organize these excursions at the tourist office in front of the main plaza in the town (there will be a crowd of people there and it is impossible to miss). Taxi drivers all around will offer rides to these beaches.

Day 8: Leave Vinales and take a taxi to Playa Larga. It’s gotten built up a lot in the last year, but it is still a small beach town with charm. Go there just to relax for a day. If you like it stay longer, but there is nothing much there.

Day 9: Go to Cienfuegos. It’s not my favorite town but it has charm and it has french architectural flair. Spend the night there and enjoy the day wandering around. If you like it stay longer.

Day 10 – 13: Go to Trinidad. Spend 4 nights in this area. One to explore the town. One for a horse ride or hike around the fields and hills. One for the beach (Playa Ancon) and one for going to the nearby Topes de Collantes mountains. You can also check out El Nicho waterfall. You might want to spend more than a day here. More info here. It’s between Cienfuegos and Trinidad. Also for trinidad, check out my free mini guide to trinidad.

Day 14: For most people, this is as far east as they go in Cuba. Please know that going further east, you will see a different, poorer and much less touristy Cuba. You can go to Camaguey. This is a large city. You can stay there for 1 or 2 days to explore.

Day 15: You can go to Playa Santa Lucia. This is about 2 hours north of camaguey. There are tons of secluded beaches in this area. The main town has resorts, but walk for 15 minutes away and you can find empty beaches. There is nothing else there.. just small empty beaches. You can find a casa or stay in a hotel. Hotels are not expensive here.

Day 17: Go to Holguin. It’s a beautiful town. Spend 3 nights. That gives you enough time to see the town and the surrounding countryside. There is a beach at Guardalavaca. It’s the nicest beach in the east. Many hotels, but still lots of secluded areas and rental casas.

Day 20: Go from Holguin to Moa. There is nothing in Moa but it is the main area to take a communal taxi to Baracoa. This is one of the eastern most towns in Cuba and the first place Columbus landed in North America. Baracoa only has 2 roads in. One from Moa and one from Santiago. The town was hit by a hurricane and has not fully recovered, but it is ok to visit. See here and here for more info. Spend 2 or 3 nights in Baracoa.

Day 23: Go to Santiago de Cuba. The largest big city in the east and the former capital. Spend 2 or 3 nights there. It’s a hot place… super hot. But nice and not touristy. Check out the Sierra Maestra mountain range.. the tallest mountains in Cuba (El Turquino). Rich in history, this is where Castro and the rebels camped out for years.

Day 25: Take a flight from Santiago de Cuba to Havana… and then go home. Check the flights at http://www.cubana.cu. Flights from Santiago to Havana are usually about 100CUC per person.

Anyway, with a trip like this, you see all of Cuba. You can say you explored the island. But you did it quick. You saw Cuba but I don’t know if you can say that you “know” Cuba. Either way, it gives you a great sense of the country and the people. The trip is long and it won’t be cheap to see all these places. You might be exhausted at the end.

If you want something more relaxed, then cut out Cienfuegos and Camaguey. Or, if you want to spend more time in the east, cut out Vinales. Generally, the more time you spend in one place, the easier it is to establish relations with the locals and learn culture. But, if you spend all the time in one place, then you don’t see much of the country. It’s the trade off.

What do you think?

I hope his helps,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: traveling with a 6- year old.. #22717

Hi, ok, first of all, congratulations on planning this trip. I think it will be very fun. I have a daughter who is 5 and a half years old and I travel everywhere with her and never have serious issues. I just came back from 1 month with her in Havana and Vinales and we had a lot of fun.

If you are staying in Cuba for 2 weeks then you can certainly visit Havana, Vinales and Trinidad. You have more than enough time. But for people who are in Cuba just 1 week, I personally think it would not be wise to visit Havana Vinales and Trinidad all together because you waste a lot of time traveling and Vinales and Trinidad are too similar. But you have 2 weeks, and even if you travel a lot the first week, you will have you second week to relax at the beach, so it should be fine.

1. The airport taxi pickup is very easy. All the info is at this link. The taxi will pick you up at the airport and can wait for you as you exchange money, and then bring you directly to your casa particular.
2. Organizing your stay in Havana is easy. Do you have a casa booked? Just pick which part of the city you want to stay in (I suggest Vedado or Plaza neighborhood) and we can book the casa for you. Then you just walk around and explore the city. With a young child you will have most fun just walking around. You can also take communal taxis and buses, just exploring the city cheaply and casually. My daughter loves cats and ice cream, so we go to “meet all the cats” wandering around the streets (they are save and mostly clean animals) and she enjoys many cheap ice cream cones as we walk around the city.
3. Havana to Vinales – The Viazul is the cheapest way. The bus ride is like 4 hours, but it is comfortable and air conditioned. It will be fine. Vinales is great for horseback riding. If you are good with a horse, then you should ride with your daughter (she sits in front and you in back, on the same horse.) If you are not comfortable with a horse, then just go for a hike in the valley with a guide. Your landlord can organize all these things. Just tell the landlord a day in advance and she will make arrangements.
4. Vinales to Trinidad – We can organize this taxi, no problem. We can get you a private taxi (more expensive) or a communal taxi (cheaper). It’s a long ride… like 6 hours, but many people do it. The taxi usually stops for like 10 minutes in Havana to do a transfer (you get out and get into a different taxi). They will not stop for lunch… You are best advised to bring a lunch with you. (Pack some sandwiches, water and crackers). Check out this Trinidad article too. Also, have you see the Trinidad Mini Guidebook . You should download and read it.
5. Vinales and Trinidad – We can organize the casas. No problem. We have a list of casas here and we can set you up with something comfortable and affordable.
6. Trinidad will be fun. Again, you can walk all around the town. There is a lot to see and do. If you went on a horse in Vinales then you might not want to go again in Trinidad. But take a hike up the hills and enjoy the fresh country air. Your daughter will like Trinidad as all the houses are small and cute looking. It’s a very nice area. The discos (casa de la musica) is only for adults. But there is a lot of outdoor music in the main squares. The town is tiny, and you will hear the music at night.. so just walk towards the loudest music and you will find the fun.
7. Trinidad to Varadero – In the Viazul bus (http://www.viazul.com) it takes 6.5 hours. This is very long. Honestly, I suggest you try to get a communal taxi in Trinidad. Go to the Viazul station and negotiate with some drivers. You should be able to find a driver willing to take you and your daughter for about 50 cuc total (or less). In a taxi you can get from Trinidad to Varadero in about 3.5 hours or less. It will be much faster than with the Viazul.
8. Where will you stay in Varadero? We can find you a casa, or you can stay at a hotel. For hotels, look on http://www.Sunwing.ca You can find something cheap and good. A hotel in Varadero is the best option. You will have a pool and a beach and the food is all included in the price. In a casa you will have no pool and you will have to walk to the beach and the food will be expensive. All told, a hotel will usually be cheaper than a casa in Varadero, and much better.

We can take care of all the taxis and the casas. You are already in contact with my assistant Claudia, and she can easily manage all the other reservations you might need.

Don’t worry. It will be fun, and you will have no problems traveling with your daughter.

take care,

Mario

 

• This reply was modified 7 years, 8 months ago by Mario.

[Mario]

in reply to: traveling with a 6- year old.. #22711

Hi, i will give you a detailed answer in a couple of hours.

[Mario]

in reply to: Casa Particular AnMar (Ana Margarita) #22370

Hi Audrey,

Thank you for this review. I will forward it to Ana. I know she tries really hard to make her guests happy and to provide them useful information about Havana. I had the great pleasure of spending a few days in this casa a few years ago, and I enjoyed it very much. It’s large and clean and completely independent. And very quiet. I am very happy you enjoyed your stay as well. Have a great day, Mario.

[Mario]

in reply to: Average time needed for immigration and luggage pick up at Havana airport #22259

Hi, just tell us the time you land and we will have the taxi waiting for you when you get out. The customs is fast. You wont be there more than 30 minutes. Anyway, the taxi sees your flight on the screen at the airport and he just waits. Even if it takes an hour, he waits for you. That’s his job.

To schedule an airport taxi just check here: https://bestcubaguide.com/havana-airport-taxis-transfers/

take care,

Mario

[Mario]

in reply to: Guanabo #22191

Hi James,

Well, if you want to go to a beach near Havana and spend the night, you have very few options. Guanabo has a terrible beach, but it is a town so you can find bars and restaurants and hotels and room rentals. You can see a couple of the best casas in Guanabo on my website (https://bestcubaguide.com/casas-particulares-in-guanabo-cuba/)

Santa Maria is just about 1km west of Guanabo, but it is not really a town. It is just a large, beautiful beach, with 4 or 5 hotels on the beach. You cannot find independent room rentals in Santa Maria. Only hotel rooms, and the hotels are absolutely terrible. The Tropicoco hotel is old and probably the worst hotel in Cuba. The Atlantico is terrible too (and the beach in front of the Atlantico is also terrible as it is close to Guanabo.

Fundamentally, if you want a nice, big beach, close to Havana, then your only choice is Santa Maria. (There are other smaller beaches but they are tiny). But if you want lodging for the night, I would suggest you get a casa in Guanabo. So, sleep in Guanabo and then go to the beach in Santa Maria. You can get there by bus or walk about 1km. I have some details on how to get to Santa Maria from Havana here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H199wCzPg2Y&t

It’s really the only choice I see and it is what I personally do as well. Basically, get a good casa in Guanabo and use that as your base. Then, from there, go west to Santa Maria. Also, in the summer, Guanabo is slightly better. I just came back from Cuba and visited Guanabo and Santa Maria. At this point, I would not even call Guanabo a beach. It was pitiful. The demarcation between Santa Maria and Guanabo can loosely be said to be Hotel Atlantico. West of Atlantico, the beach is good. East of Atlantico, the beach is bad. I found this video on youtube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kestfXW4ceQ It shows the walk from Atlantico, east, towards the town of Guanabo. Not my idea of a great beach. (The first few minutes of the video are in front of Hotel Atlantico. I was there in 2013 and the beach was one of the best beaches I had ever seen. Now it is a pile of rocks with a bit of sand and tree roots… Too bad).

Also, I have recently found another very nice beach which has very few tourists on it (almost nobody at all really). The locals call this beach Rincon de Guanabo. It is located east of Guanabo, on the east side of the city. Here is a map with some details. You can check it out here: https://www.scribblemaps.com/maps/view/Guanabo_Beaches/J0DtbQkV9A

[Author]

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