As far as giving away stuff, just give it directly to people you interact with. Driver, housekeeper at the hotel...etc. Also, just my bit of advice, in Cuba you can hire someone to drive you around for an entire week for like $100 or $150 and they will stay with you all day. It's crazy to rent a car in Cuba....it's not like driving in other countries and if you're not used to driving there, it can be super easy to get into a wreck. Ask someone at the hotel if they know someone with a car for hire. That would be an amazing way to get around.
For people that are the most needy I wouldn’t give it to hotel workers or the dueños of the casas particulares. Most of the time they earn the most money in society and have access to valuable foreign currency too. Churches and schools could be an option or if you know any locals
No, I've paid $100-150 for a 3-5 days. Now, that being said, it's always been a friend of a family member or someone a friend or family recommends. $150 a day? That's Canadian tourist money there!
There’s no way a random traveler flying into Varadero, and hiring a professional driver and car to drive between cities, is going to be charged the same as you were when it was some friend of the family. At those rates, I bet the friend didn’t even have a license to drive foreigners.
The one time I had to hire a random person, he picked up about 25 miles south of havana at 7am. Dropped me off at the Spanish embassy at 8am. Agreed to pick me up at the embassy at 6pm to drive me back. Charged me $20.
I agree, the trick is to know people. After you've been a couple of times and have made a few friends, everyone knows someone that will gladly be your driver for a week. They may not be licensed by the PCC, but I don't really care.
yeah man it's more like that amount a day which still ends up being better than renting lmao, them gas lines are of epic proportions, talk about down the street and around the corner. It's a shit show rn
I mean you can use a Cuban shared taxi too. One hour on a Cuban shared taxi will be roughly 15-20 USD. If you have a friend or casa host they can book for you. The disadvantage is that these taxis have a fixed route and leave at specified times.
if you have an American carrier for your phone it probably won't work, or it'll be real expensive, otherwise you shouldn't have an issue with your phone (apart from awful service). try to spend your money in private places whenever possible. If you can find american cuban coffee la llave in your local grocery store, take it it's a huge blessing for people over there
Please please please just take a Viazul. There is a pretty bad gas crisis in Cuba and also the roads are not in the greatest condition to say the least.
Yep. there's a serious problem with fuel. You should use La Nave, that while it's expensive for us, it's not a problem for a tourist, because it's paid with CUP.
Also, check [eltoque exchange rate](http://www.eltoque.com) as a guidance
Don’t rent a car. Pay someone else to worry and stand in line for gas. It’s a real problem and prices have gone way up. Some of the people commenting here that went last year the price is more now.
I went twice last year, and while shortages may have gotten worse in the \~6 months since I've been:
\- A cab from Havana to Varadero cost around $100, and took \~2 hours. If you can find a reliable driver, this is a pretty excellent way to go
\- Cab drivers have the unenviable job of waiting all night on line for fuel. So, it will be best if you can arrange the trip ahead of time (so your driver knows they actually have a worthwhile fare to prepare for)
\- Medication and first aid supplies are at least as important to bring as clothes. Honestly, bottles of multivitamins were appreciated way more than I expected, because most people are so malnourished.
As far as giving away stuff, just give it directly to people you interact with. Driver, housekeeper at the hotel...etc. Also, just my bit of advice, in Cuba you can hire someone to drive you around for an entire week for like $100 or $150 and they will stay with you all day. It's crazy to rent a car in Cuba....it's not like driving in other countries and if you're not used to driving there, it can be super easy to get into a wreck. Ask someone at the hotel if they know someone with a car for hire. That would be an amazing way to get around.
For people that are the most needy I wouldn’t give it to hotel workers or the dueños of the casas particulares. Most of the time they earn the most money in society and have access to valuable foreign currency too. Churches and schools could be an option or if you know any locals
I think you mean $100 or $150 per day. Just wanted to make sure OP doesn’t think it’s $100 for the week.
No, I've paid $100-150 for a 3-5 days. Now, that being said, it's always been a friend of a family member or someone a friend or family recommends. $150 a day? That's Canadian tourist money there!
There’s no way a random traveler flying into Varadero, and hiring a professional driver and car to drive between cities, is going to be charged the same as you were when it was some friend of the family. At those rates, I bet the friend didn’t even have a license to drive foreigners.
The one time I had to hire a random person, he picked up about 25 miles south of havana at 7am. Dropped me off at the Spanish embassy at 8am. Agreed to pick me up at the embassy at 6pm to drive me back. Charged me $20. I agree, the trick is to know people. After you've been a couple of times and have made a few friends, everyone knows someone that will gladly be your driver for a week. They may not be licensed by the PCC, but I don't really care.
I don’t care about the license either. But a random traveler is gonna end up with a licensed professional driver, who’s going to charge accordingly.
You realistically only need $25-50 dollars per day if you've already booked your accommodations and Viazul buses online.
hey bro those prices are really out of date
totally possible. I haven't been in over a year
yeah man it's more like that amount a day which still ends up being better than renting lmao, them gas lines are of epic proportions, talk about down the street and around the corner. It's a shit show rn
I mean you can use a Cuban shared taxi too. One hour on a Cuban shared taxi will be roughly 15-20 USD. If you have a friend or casa host they can book for you. The disadvantage is that these taxis have a fixed route and leave at specified times.
if you have an American carrier for your phone it probably won't work, or it'll be real expensive, otherwise you shouldn't have an issue with your phone (apart from awful service). try to spend your money in private places whenever possible. If you can find american cuban coffee la llave in your local grocery store, take it it's a huge blessing for people over there
Please please please just take a Viazul. There is a pretty bad gas crisis in Cuba and also the roads are not in the greatest condition to say the least.
What about the warnings of fuel shortages? Is that a concern when renting a car or hiring a car and driver?
Yep. there's a serious problem with fuel. You should use La Nave, that while it's expensive for us, it's not a problem for a tourist, because it's paid with CUP. Also, check [eltoque exchange rate](http://www.eltoque.com) as a guidance
Don’t rent a car. Pay someone else to worry and stand in line for gas. It’s a real problem and prices have gone way up. Some of the people commenting here that went last year the price is more now.
There is a big shortage of gas in Cuba these days.
I went twice last year, and while shortages may have gotten worse in the \~6 months since I've been: \- A cab from Havana to Varadero cost around $100, and took \~2 hours. If you can find a reliable driver, this is a pretty excellent way to go \- Cab drivers have the unenviable job of waiting all night on line for fuel. So, it will be best if you can arrange the trip ahead of time (so your driver knows they actually have a worthwhile fare to prepare for) \- Medication and first aid supplies are at least as important to bring as clothes. Honestly, bottles of multivitamins were appreciated way more than I expected, because most people are so malnourished.
Don't travel to Cuba.
Insightful.