Alycia and I’s first trip together was to Cuba. I had vacation to burn and had been searching for an easy destination that would be quick. I asked her to go with me after only dating for a couple months and she said yes. The rest is history. We spent five days and four nights there which I think is sufficient for a good Cuba experience. A visa is required to enter, and conveniently United offers which offers them when checking in for the flight at the service counter. If you want to learn more about what’s needed for travel to Cuba, read this post. I was able to connect with someone I knew from Cuba to have their family help me out when I touched down there. They picked us up from the airport and showed us around a bit, giving us some tips on what to see. They took us to our Airbnb which was in Old Havana on Obispo St. Our host Maria was the best! She prepared breakfast every morning for a small fee and was a great resource for recommendations and questions we had about anything. Her breakfast hit the spot at the beginning of the day as she cut up fresh fruit and served fresh bread, eggs and other things in a different mixture daily. The neighborhood was nice. Shops and markets along the street and in walking distance of areas that you should explore. We lined up a few experiences through Airbnb before we got there and also left time open for exploring to really get a feel for Cuba. During our first night there we made a connection with a guy named Enzo who became our unofficial tour guide and Cuba liaison. On the streets in Cuba there will be a lot of locals who will approach you to take you to certain restaurants or shops, this is simply a part of their hustle. The companies and shops pay them in some way to do this, just be careful about the information you tell them and if you allow them to direct you,B be sure to tip them. Several people will approach you and be aggressive, not everyone has good intentions or your best interest in mind so, as always, be careful and alert. I recommend connecting with Enzo, he’s your best choice. Click this link to find his travel page!

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The first night we were there we visited a couple local bars, there’s a street near the shore in old Havana with a few night clubs if you want to salsa the night away after eating. If you’re lucky, or just a smart planner, you’ll go around Santiago De Cuba which is their carnavales celebration. The streets by the shore are lined with bleachers for the festive parades. Prior to the trip we booked a bike ride through Havana and a horseback tour of a tobacco farm. The bike tour ($50 total) took about half of the day and the tobacco farm ($190 total) was an entire day due to travel outside the city of Havana to Viñales. Both were great experiences and booked through Airbnb experiences. The bike tour was very informative, we learned a lot of interesting facts about landmarks, vegetation, and cultural/societal practices past and present. It was also good fun physical activity, plus we are fans of bike riding. The tour of the tobacco farm was very interesting and informative as well, it was the highlight of my trip. It is a must do when visiting Cuba.The views were amazing, our guides really engaged us in learning, and it was fun to ride the horses through the fields of tobacco. We also got a taste of a special drink named a Guaraton, made with sugar cane juice, guava, and a special Cuban rum. And the cigars I was able to purchase from the farm were great to smoke and made good gifts to bring back. They were better than the Cohibas I was swindled into purchasing off the street. Side note, don’t let that happen to you. You get warned about purchasing from people off the street, it’s a decision you have to make and every experience may be different, but I definitely wouldn’t do it again. The tour was the complete experience. In addition to the tobacco farm, we toured a cave on a boat and then proceeded to the farm where we rode on horseback through the fields and spoke with the owners and workers about their stories. We had lunch on our return trip atop some mountains with a beautiful view of rolling hills of tobacco farms in Mogotes valley.

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There are two beaches that most people frequent. For the “better” beach Varadero, you have to arrange transportation with someone who has permission for the day to travel there and can get back. The government has strict stipulations in which I’ll speak to a little before the end.It is about 2 hours away from Havana. The other beach, Santa Maria Del Mar which is the one we visited due to transportation not coming through, is a $5/person bus ride that picks up in Parque Central, round trip. You’ll also want to pick a day to schedule a vintage car tour. Cuba is known for having vintage cars in mint condition, so for tourists one of the things to do is to take a tour in one of these cars or just prop up on one for a photo shoot. They won’t be hard to find as we saw them as soon as we touched down. It was like living in the 70s or being on the set of Grease. The cars were cherry, mint condition. As for night life, the go to spot is Fábrica De Arte. It’s an art museum that functions as a club. And of course as I mentioned before there will be bars with plenty of salsa dancing going on. There was a plaza type area in walking distance that we found most of our dinner and lunch spots in. And of course we researched a few spots to try and asked around.

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For the most part things are really accessible and services are fairly priced. As I mentioned earlier you want to be careful who you deal with because some people are out just to get over. There are so many regulations and stipulations for everything that people are trying to beat the system by any means and tourist are prime targets. On the other hand sources are limited there and conditions are a reflection of that. So if you can I’d suggest taking non perishable personal hygiene products and clothes you wouldn’t mind getting rid of with you. Things like hand sanitizer, travel size soap and shampoo, and other toiletries. I read it in a few post I came across before my trip and ending up purchasing some to give away, and that was one of the best parts of my trips.

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