Thinking of going to Cuba

Bonaparte

HiYa!

Thinking of going to Cuba and would like to find some detials about the place.
First would be the america issue-Is there any difficultys with the fact you have a Cuban stamp on the passport when trying to get into the US?

Other info that i'd like to know is, how long would you spend in the country and where to go?, how much funds should I bring? And any random info somone might find helpful on the place?

Cheers for any help given!

biofreak

I've never been to Cuba myself. You can get a lot of information on where to go from the Cuba tourist board here http://www.gocuba.ca/en/index.asp

Rcuomo

hey, i was in cuba, 2 summers ago...what a great place...
in answer to your first question, they didnt stamp my passport so no trouble with the yanks there...
its pretty cheap over there, you cans tay in nice hotels for about 15-30dollars, depends where you go of course....
most travellers start in havana....a few days here would be enough i'd think.
it really depends on what you're looking for...there's plenty of museums if you're into that and loads of bars if you like partying....theres so many tours you can do - snorkelling the coral reefs, cave exploring, ancient ruins, cigar factories...that kind of thing.
from there we went to the cardenas, cienfuegos and a few other places.
you really need a month if you want to see cuba properly. its surprisingly big.
santiago de cuba way down the southern end of the island is supposed to be great too, sadly i didnt make it that far.

also the women are great too!

14jake88

a friend said it was great so did one of my teachers, she is a fanatical socialist though.I heard the service is bad and a myth if you arrive without booked accomadation you are but in an overpriced state hotel.

netwhizkid

Never been to Cuba but it is extremly high on my areas to visit along with North Korea. it is supposed to be a lovely place and apparently opens the eyes of people to the hell hole the Capitalism has created.

Coney Island

I was in Cuba on holiday a few months ago. Cheapest airline to fly there is Air France (from Dublin via Paris). Don't forget to get a tourist visa before you leave (I didn't and had to spend a night in Paris and get one urgently the following day as they didn't let me on the flight.

Avoid Varadero as it is only full of tourist (I wasn't there but I heard so). Havana is nice, 4-5 days there will be enough....the city is very safe and you can walk nearly everywhere even at night as it full of police all over the place.
Then you could go down to Trinidad for 3-4 days, a beautiful little town with wonderful beaches on the west coast....I loved it there!

I was only in Havana and Trinidad, so I can't advise on other places.

If you like salsa music you will love Cuba.

Bring condoms and be careful!

Bonaparte

.

If you like salsa music you will love Cuba.

Bring condoms and be careful![/QUOTE]

The girls are friendly then?

Coney Island

Bonaparte wrote:

.

If you like salsa music you will love Cuba.

Bring condoms and be careful!

The girls are friendly then?[/QUOTE]

Yes, they will especially like you wallet. Average salary in Cuba is 15 Euro per month, and taxi drivers are probably the richest workers in the country.

You will walk along the Molecon or wherever in Havana and people will approach you in a smart and charming way and be friendly with you, guys will tell you that they have a sister living in Ireland and that tomorrow is their birthday...girls will want to sleep with you, and bet that they will say that tomorrow is their birthday.
You buy them dinner and buy some clothes etc. and they will sleep with you. Not the best place if you like a challenge, but if you just want to have fun it is the place to be. But please take condoms and do nothing without. Also don't stay in a hotel, much better to book a "casa particular" (you can google it). Also note that night clubs over there are as expensive as in Ireland, so obviously look for the cheap ones if you want to meet locals, as they can't afford to go to expensive night club.

I love Cuba, beautiful wheather, beautiful people, nice girls (not all), I love salsa music, beaches, sea, etc.... people manage to be happy although they have little or nothing, they dance all time and enjoy life in a simple way.

Bonaparte

Is there any, good hikes or things like that to go on?One of the main things i'd be interested in is getting around the whole country and not just the citys. Is it easy to travle within the place?

Coney Island

Yes the best way to travel around is by bus with Viazul http://www.viazul.cu/home.htm or you can easily take a Taxi to travel from one city to another. They usually manage to arrange for you to share a couple with other people and you share the payment, so in the end it will cost you the same as if you travel by bus.... ie. cost of taxi Havana-Trinidad= 100 convertible dollars (about 100 euro) === split by 4 is 25 each.

I advise you to buy the Lonely Planet guide for Cuba which is fantastic.

thedyingrebel

Anyone have any experience with using european spanish in Cuba?
And what kind of budget would you need to be there 2 - 4 months?

I must go soon!

Bonaparte

Not sure about Cuba but i know that in peru you'll do grand with spanish spanish.So i suspect its the same for all of south america.