Destinations
Cuba’s Liberty Island is well-liked by tourists for its magnificent nature, its excellent beaches and its many colonial and revolutionary attractions. The white stone beauty of Havana, the resorts of Varadero and Holguin, rum, cigars and Fidel are all about Cuba.
Some may still remember the name of this country 15 years ago: “Communism near the coast of America.” It is a joke, but Cuba does remain one of the few strongholds of a bright socialist ideology with such familiar attributes: the legendary Commander Che and his follower, an external ideological enemy in the face of the United States, and unprecedented patriotism. There are, however, radical differences from the USSR – a steady influx of tourists throughout the year, hotels with high level of service and rich opportunities for entertainment: diving, snorkelling, yachting and further on the list. Plus, of course, let’s not forget the famous rum and cigars.
In Cuba, there are many hotels of well-known worldwide chains, most of them Spanish, all-inclusive. Almost all the coastal hotels are on the front line of the beach.
The level of the hotel base is slightly lower than the European one. 4* hotels dominate, along with Cuba’s resorts offer a large selection of 2* and 3* hotels. The hotels of the same high level 5* and 5* Deluxe a bit.
Expensive hotels have a very good level – the price includes alcohol imported (several types), but mostly drinks will be locally produced. The level of service is low, lower than in neighboring Caribbean countries.
All inclusive hotels do not have any mandatory surcharges. Five-star hotels in Havana can block a credit card that will be unblocked at check-out if no additional costs are incurred by tourists.
A little nuance – check in after 3:00, but here’s the room availability, as in the whole world, until 12:00.
All beach hotels provide free sun beds, towels, umbrellas. Sometimes a deposit is required for towels, which will be refunded upon check-out.
Creole cuisine is common on the island, the main ingredients of which are pork and chicken, cooked in various ways. One of the most popular national dishes – “Creole Ahiako” – pork with vegetables and lots of spices. Still worth trying is langoustos with lemon, crocodile or turtle meat dishes, turtle eggs. In Cuba, many are made from fruits and served almost every dish. The coffee here is brewed very firm and sweet.
National drinks – Cuban rum and numerous cocktails based on it: mojito, cuba libra, daiquiri and many others.
There are few restaurants in the classical sense of the word in Cuba, and all of them are in tourist areas and resorts. Credit cards are usually accepted there, but failures are quite common, so it’s better to go with cash (convertible pesos). The average bill in a good restaurant – about 30-40 CUP per person without drinks, a more budget can be invested in 10-15 CUP. There are also many pizzerias and eateries with burgers in Cuba. You can have a snack there cheap (2-5 CUP) and often around the clock, but only for cash. A separate story is Cuban bars. Most of them are very colorful and with history, they do not serve food there (maximum nuts and chips), but you must try all the daiquiris.
Materials are from the site: tonkosti.ru
Tourists go to Cuba on their own or buy a tour and join tour groups. If you are traveling alone, you should first forget about sea transport. On the ship you will sail all month and have time to get bored. The most practical option is to fly an airplane.
It is best to buy tickets to Cuba with one of the four international airports in this country. Ukraine International Airlines, Air France and KLM are the most profitable offers. Flights from Kiev to Havana and back will cost in this case from 15 500 to 16 500 UAH. More than 17 000 UAH. will have to be paid for flights from Aeroflot. But all other offers in Havana or another city of Cuba will cost at least 20 000 UAH.
Locals often hitchhike around the country. There is even a law in Cuba that government cars are obliged to take hitchhikers when there are seats available in the car. This rule is closely monitored by special people.
In all major cities of Cuba there are bus terminals where intercity buses depart. Unlike urban transport, they are more or less scheduled. The most affordable option is the Astro Bus. The bus fleet leaves much to be desired, but the trip from Havana to Varadero will cost only 8-10 CUC. Viazul Bus is a more modern park, and the buses even have air conditioning. Fares are higher: from Havana to Varadero, the ticket will cost $ 8-15. The company has its own website (translated into English) where you can buy tickets online. In other cases, tickets are purchased at the ticket offices at the station and must be done in advance.
The main urban transport are buses, but they can be recommended only to extremals: stops are not marked at all, it is almost impossible to find them, buses are jam-packed and there is no clear timetable and routes. Buses – in Havana, they are called camallos (because of the outward resemblance to camels) – stop every 4 quarters. The fare costs 3-5 CUC, it is not recommended to check with the driver – he will suspect you a tourist and will take much more.
It is easy to rent a car in Cuba: you have to pay the rental price and the mortgage. Rental offices are located in all major cities and tourist centers. To rent a car, you must provide a driving license of the international model and a foreign passport. No credit card is required when paying in cash, the amount of the deposit depends on the brand of the car and averages from 150 to 300 CUC.
Rental is permitted from 21 years. The quality of the cars is diverse, and agencies cannot always provide even a pre-reserved car. The cost of gasoline in Cuba is very high – 1.20-1.40 CUC per liter.
For tourists there are special “tourist” taxis – these are always modern and serviceable cars. They can be ordered from any hotel or just by phone; fare is paid in dollars only. Cost of travel – from 0,5 to 1 USD for each km of the journey. The usual taxis in which the peso is taken are rather old cars and there are few of them. Finally, there are also “bombilas” in Cuba. Their prices are slightly lower than those of state taxi drivers, but there are no guarantees of quality.
Arroyo Naranjo (8.47km)
San Miguel del Padrón (4.56km)
Matanzas (81.19km)
Cerro (2.14km)
Cuban convertible peso, $
Cuban peso, $
1.46 $
5 $
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