Anyone been to Cuba? Need some help

[bungleboy69]

Booked flights for Cuba back end of September, coming back mid October. 2 weeks in all. Flying into and out of Havana.

 

Not interested in beach holidays or swimming with dolphins, more interested in the culture, architecture, history and politics of the place.

 

Haven't booked any accommodation and would prefer not to until we get there.

 

Anyway, a couple of questions if anyone can help.

 

Can we get a visa without pre-booked accommodation?

Is the train network any good?

What are the options regarding car hire?

Will we be able to turn up in places and get a place to sleep without being ripped off?

Is it OK for vegetarians?

 

I have ordered a Rough Guide to Cuba, just doing some thinking / planning before it arrives.

 

Any tips or advice from people who have been would be most welcome.

[Andy]

I can't help with that, but I remember a few years ago when I used to deal with foreign currency, there were certain currencies and cards which were not acceptable in Cuba. I can't tell you what to take because I can't remember the rules, but please check this before you go as I know of a couple of people who got caught out.

[Oldtrout]

Not entirely sure, but I think there are 2 types of currency in Cuba. Check it out!

[anywebsite]

Car hire could be hard to find & expensive. The train network looks poor too. A train from Santiago to Havana takes 14 hours & there's no restaurant car or sleeper cars or anything - they also recommend you take a torch & watch your bags. I think meat is rationed for Cubans, they eat a lot of rice & beans. Transport could be difficult, it's a large island with mountains down the middle, the US trade embargo, poverty & lack of manufacturing make it harder for them to buy new vehicles. Buses will be your best option. You can get a visa without pre-booked accommodation.

[the_rudeboy]

My boss went last year and I'm pretty sure he said they had to have accommodation booked for at least the first night.

[Chris_Sleeps]

Lots of information on wikitravel.

[shirker]

I've only been on a package hol.

 

There is a two tier monetary system, and the tourists generally cannot use the local currency. Prices for tourists didn't appear very cheap at all, if anything, more on the expensive side.

I know private accomodation is available, but I cannot expand on the availability or cost.

 

Remember its a similar sized country to the UK

[callippo]

Cuba is not anything like a similar size to the UK, it is in fact 42% of the land area of the UK.

 

Cuba is supposed to be a rather expensive destination, to go independently as opposed to on a package deal, compared to many of the neighbouring central American countries. Bear in mind you can't use the internet, facebook etc to contact the vast majority of people in Cuba who are not party bigwigs, ahead of time like you can these days in 90% of the world's countries, because the internet is banned.

[anywebsite]

The internet isn't banned for tourists, but it may be slow & expensive. Cuba is a long thin Island, so the land area is smaller than the UK, but it's a similar length from one end to the other as the UK & the transport is much worse.

[callippo]

I researched it years ago, mid 90s, and Lonely Planet was saying that then at least, it basically cost fifty dollars a day for just basics, when somewhere like Honduras only cost twenty dollars a day. It's just not geared to independent tourism.