Planning Your Trip to Cuba
Cuba Touring
Updated May 2024
Cuba is a wonderful place to visit but is one of the most complicated for independent travelers. I just returned from a trip to Cuba. Here you can find everything you need to know to plan your trip.
The photo shows a tourist bus travelling on the Malecon (seaside road and sidewalk) in Havana with the ancient fort and lighthouse.
Who Goes to Cuba?
Canadians make up the vast majority of tourists in Cuba, accounting for about 45% of the tourist population. The various countries of Europe make up another 45%, with the majority being from Germany and the Netherlands. Still, I also met people from Switzerland, the UK, France, Italy, Spain and Russia. The rest of the world provides the remaining 10%. There are very few Americans due to the travel embargo that the USA has against Cuba. Some Americans go to Cuba from Canada or Mexico. It is possible for Americans to go to Cuba if they have a special reason, such as visiting a sick relative, for sports, education, culture, etc. – but not simply for tourism. We did meet one group of Americans on a cultural tour. They were travelling as a group with a guide.
This is a little-known but important law. The travel restriction on Cuba applies to anyone living in the United States, including Canadians and any other nationality who lives in the USA, not only American citizens.
How to Travel to Cuba
There are two methods of travel to Cuba. The first one is the all-inclusive beach holiday. You pay for your trip in advance with a travel agent or internet. The price includes airfare, hotel, food and drinks. Everything is arranged for you, and you don’t need Cuban money except for souvenirs and tours. You will stay at a fancy hotel near the beach in one of Cuba’s tourist resorts, such as Varadero. The vast majority of tourists in Cuba are on this type of arrangement. These tourists spend most of their time at the resort towns and beaches but usually, go on a short bus tour to Havana or some other part of Cuba. If you enjoy a carefree time at the beach, which most people want, this is the type of trip for you.
The other option is off-the-beaten-path independent travel. For this type of trip, you make all the arrangements yourself. You travel around the country and see things that people on the all-inclusive holidays do not see. You will get to experience Cuba and its people. This type of trip is complicated to arrange due to Cuba’s lack of internet and tourist structure. However, lots of people are doing it. This is how I travel, and I will explain how to do it.
See your travel agent or book online for the all-inclusive beach resort holiday. For the more adventurous independent travelers, read on.
The Cuban Visa and Tourist Card
What is the difference between a visa and a tourist card? Both give you permission to enter a country. A visa involves a background check to see if you are a criminal and what political or military activity you have engaged in. It might take several days. The Tourist Card, on the other hand, it simply an entrance ticket. Anyone can get one.
So, do you need a visa or a tourist care? That depends upon your citizenship. Citizens of the USA fall into a special category and need permission from their government to go to Cuba. Click here for more information if you are American.
If you are not American
Other than American Citizens, there are about 20 countries that need a visa to enter Cuba. Except for Haiti, all of them are in Africa or Asia.
If you are from Australia or New Zealand, you don’t need a visa, however there are some restrictions. See below.
For the rest of the world, you will need a tourist card, not a visa. For most people, the cost of the tourist card is included with your airfare and it will be given to you during your flight. Ask your airline if you are not sure.
Citizens of Russia, China, Vietnam, Mongolia, Namibia, several Caribbean islands and a few other small countries do not require a visa or tourist card.
I travelled to Cuba from Mexico, so I had to purchase a tourist card. There are no questions other than your identity, and anyone can get one if you have the money and an air ticket. The price is the equivalent of about $25 paid in your local currency. You can buy them from a Cuban embassy or the airline where you booked your flight. Unlike a visa, the tourist card is mostly a method of getting money from tourists but also to count how many people enter the country.
If you are Canadian
For all countries except Canada, the tourist card is good for 30 days. Canadians can stay for 90 days. It is renewable for an additional 30 days at any immigration office or a further 90 days for Canadians (one-time only). Why don’t they make the tourist card good for 60 days in the first place? Because this is just one of many methods of getting money from tourists as you will see.
Mythatchedhut Travel Tip
The 90-day tourist card is available only for Canadians who were born in Canada and purchased in Canada. Canadian citizens who were born in some other country can only get a 30-day visa even if they have a Canadian passport. If you fall into this category and get a 90-day visa in Canada, it will be changed to a 30-day visa when you arrive in Cuba. Your passport names your place of birth. I am Canadian, but I purchased my tourist card in Mexico, so it was only good for 30 days. The 90-day tourist cards are available only in Canada.
The card is in two parts. Fill out both the left and right sides identically. It says on the back to use block letters or a typewriter. What’s a typewriter? The first half goes to immigration officials upon arrival in Cuba. Do not lose the other half. They will want it when you leave the country.
The tourist card is used in Cuba, Mexico and many other countries. In Mexico it is called an FMM card but the procedure is the same. You purchase it upon entry or from your airline and you need to return it when you leave.
At the Airport
When you arrive in Cuba and exit your aircraft, follow the crowd to the immigration area, where you will experience your first of many times of waiting in a slow-moving line. Avoid the line that is for Cubans and resident foreigners. The sign for this is small and not very noticeable in the dim light (depending on which airport you use for arrival).
When you get to the immigration officer, you will be photographed, and your passport will be examined very carefully. You will be compared to the photo in the passport. I have been to several countries where they barely glance at the passport, but in Cuba, every detail is scrutinized. If you are travelling with a companion, only one person at a time will be allowed to approach the immigration officer.
Once you get past immigration, you and your luggage will again be x-rayed like when you entered the airport at your home location. I don’t know how anyone could have picked up anything illegal between the aircraft and the immigration area, but they check anyway.
You will be required to have a forwarding air ticket to prove that you don’t intend to stay in Cuba. You are also required to have health insurance, but no one asked me for these two things. (More on health insurance below).
You will be photographed again when you leave to make sure the person leaving is the same one that entered.
For Australians and New Zealanders
As Australian and NZ currencies are not accepted, you will need to exchange some money for one of the accepted currencies before leaving home. Also, your credit and debit cards will not work, so you should open an account with a British bank.
There are no Australian or NZ embassies in Cuba. Therefore, if you have problems, New Zealanders should go to the British Embassy and Australians to the Canadian embassy, where they will try to help you with government problems.
I did not meet any tourists in Cuba from Australia or NZ, so it seems this is not a popular tourist destination for people from these countries.
Currency
See my previous post on Cuban currency. It is unlike any other country I have been to. Cuban currency is not traded internationally, so you cannot purchase any in advance, and it is worthless outside of Cuba. Click this link for more info.
Health Insurance
You must have health insurance for your stay in Cuba, but no one at the airport asked me to show proof of it.
You are supposed to be able to buy it at the airport, but I was unable to locate any place that sold it. Neither could my taxi driver or other people that we asked. So what to do?
The best method is to buy it in advance. Canadians have several companies that sell health insurance. I got mine from a company called Medipac.
If buying insurance online, be sure that the company is not American owned or affiliated. Any insurance from an American company is not valid in Cuba.
The other option is to purchase health insurance after you arrive in Cuba.
If they ask for proof of it at the airport, ask them where to purchase it.
If they don’t ask, you can buy it in Havana or other cities.
Buying Health Insurance in Cuba
Before buying health insurance in Cuba, you need to go to a bank and buy a stamp that will be affixed to your policy. This is a type of health insurance tax for the government coffers.
Take the stamp and go to the office that sells health insurance. In Havana, it is located on the prada (wide walkway to the capital building). When walking towards the capital building from the coast, look on your right for the health care symbol painting on the wall of a building. It is a red heart within a blue triangle. (A bank where you can buy the stamp is located on the opposite side, further towards the capital. You need to get the stamp first.)
Your policy will be valid for illness or accident while travelling in approved taxis and busses in Cuba. This means government-owned transportation. You may not be covered if you are involved in an accident while travelling in a private-owed taxi. For this reason and convenience, it is better to purchase your health insurance before arriving in Cuba. Just make sure you don’t buy it online from an American company.
The insurance stamp costs $5.00, and the insurance policy costs $2.50 per day.
Note that the symbol for the peso is the same as the symbol for the dollar. Thus, $5 means five Pesos.
Crime in Cuba
Cuba is reasonably safe for tourists, much safer than most Caribbean or Latin-American countries – but no country is crime-free. Violent crime is rare, and it is unlikely that you will be harmed. However, petty theft does happen. Sunglasses, cameras and other attractive items might disappear from your hotel room. Don’t leave valuables in your room. When you go for a swim, items left unattended on the beach, such as towels, shoes, sunglasses, etc., might not be there when you get back.
Purse and camera snatching on the streets of Cuba and other large cities is a possibility but is not common. I saw hundreds of tourists, including myself, walking around Havana with expensive cameras. It is mostly safe, but I know one person who had her camera snatched from her hands.
The expensive high-end hotels and private houses (casas particulares) are the safest. (There is a post about Cuban accommodations). Cheap budget hotels are the most likely to have things disappear from your room. For women, don’t use a purse. It is better to have a pouch or something that is strapped to your body and not easy to snatch. Use the camera strap wrapped around your wrist or neck so that it is not easy to snatch. Keep it in a pouch, out of sight, when not actually using it. Be aware of who is around you. Look for anyone who is staying too close to you or watching you.
During my three weeks in Cuba, the only crime I heard about was one person who had her sunglasses stolen from her room. Another person left her sunglasses on a table in a restaurant, and they were not there when she went back. Sunglasses are a very attractive item for people in Cuba and are difficult to get. Therefore, keep yours with you at all times.
Enjoy
So you have arrived in Cuba and have some Cuban currency and health care. Enjoy this wonderful country and try to overlook the frustrations.
Links
Other posts 0n My Thatched Hut describe finding accommodations, things to see in Havana and some other locations.