{"id":534,"date":"2015-12-06T17:50:34","date_gmt":"2015-12-07T00:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/blog\/?p=534"},"modified":"2017-01-20T10:55:38","modified_gmt":"2017-01-20T17:55:38","slug":"getting-ready-for-cuba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/?p=534","title":{"rendered":"Get ready for Cuba!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
A lone US flag in Havana, Cuba<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are some tips for the LenkaTraveler group’s trip to Cuba (December 2015 – January 2016):<\/p>\n

The Dual\u00a0Currency<\/strong>
\nThere are two\u00a0types of currency in Cuba: CUP (the regular peso) is used by the locals, but foreigners pay for everything in the second currency called the CUC. The dual currency system ensures that foreigners pay about 25 times more for the\u00a0goods and services than do the locals. Basically, be prepared to pay the US prices while in Cuba.<\/p>\n

Money Exchange<\/strong>
\nThe official exchange rate is 1 CUC = 1 USD = 0.94 Euro. We hear that the exchange offices charge 10% – 12% commission to change USD into CUC’s. The main exchange place in located in the Havana airport and we will try and change some cash upon\u00a0our arrival. Your USD banknotes should be undamaged, unmarked and clean. Make sure to bring\u00a0different denominations, including plenty of singles for tips and small transactions.<\/p>\n

Credit \/ ATM Cards<\/strong>
\nThe US credit and ATM cards do\u00a0NOT work\u00a0in Cuba at this time.<\/p>\n

How much cash\u00a0to bring?<\/strong>
\nMost of our expenses in Cuba had been pre-paid. These\u00a0include lodging, tours, New Year’s Gala, breakfasts, etc. We should allocate some money for the tips, personal purchases, some dinners \/ drinks, etc. We estimate that each couple should bring\u00a0at least<\/span>\u00a0$500 USD.<\/p>\n

Valuables<\/strong>
\nPlease\u00a0leave your jewelry and other valuables at home!<\/p>\n

Mobile Phones<\/strong>
\nThe US mobile phones do\u00a0NOT work in Cuba, which precludes us from using\u00a0voice \/ data roaming\u00a0and\u00a0text messaging. It may be\u00a0possible to purchase a local SIM card in Cuba and use it in an\u00a0“unlocked” mobile phone, which may be helpful if you must be reachable while in Cuba.<\/p>\n

Internet<\/strong>
\nOur hotel should have the Internet service. Be prepared, however, for the slow speed and unpredictable availability, at the best.<\/p>\n

Electricity
\n<\/strong>We\u00a0expect both 110 and 220 volt power supply in our hotel in Havana. The electric sockets\u00a0should be able to accommodate the US (flat 2 pin) and European (round 2 pin) plugs. It is always a good idea to bring a universal plug adapter, just in case.<\/p>\n

Clothing<\/strong>
\nThe weather should be typically Caribbean – hot and humid. Therefore, shorts and swimwear is a must. Be prepared for rain. The New Year’s Gala<\/em> and the Havana By Night<\/em> experience will require long pants for men and cocktail dress for ladies.<\/p>\n

Footwear<\/strong>
\nAs always, wear comfortable shoes on our tours.<\/p>\n

Drinking water
\n<\/strong>Drink only\u00a0bottled water – this is the safest choice. We will find out more about the water quality in our hotel when we get there.<\/p>\n

Miscellaneous Stuff<\/strong>
\nBring sunglasses, hats, sunscreen, bug repellent, and your prescription\u00a0medication.<\/p>\n

Swindlers
\n<\/strong>Be careful of the black-marketeers (jineteras<\/em>) who will try to befriend you. The\u00a0jineteras<\/em> are seemingly friendly, helpful and willing to assist\u00a0you to buy\u00a0cigars, to visit a local bar, etc. In the process, they will do their best trying to separate you from your money. The jineteras<\/em> can be found all\u00a0around Havana,\u00a0especially on Boulevard San Rafael and Boulevard Lazara Rivera\u00a0Charlotte.<\/p>\n

Let’s Be Flexible!<\/b>
\nAn enormous amount of time and effort went into preparing for this trip. Nevertheless, traveling to Cuba at this point\u00a0in history will\u00a0be more adventurous than visiting\u00a0the established destinations. Let’s remember that we actually want to see Cuba before it turns into another\u00a0Caribbean resort. As always, we’ll apply\u00a0our plentiful\u00a0sense of humor and will\u00a0enjoy the Cuban experience to the fullest!<\/p>\n

Keep on traveling!<\/p>\n

Igor and Elena Yasno
\nwww.facebook.com\/LenkaTraveler<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are some tips for the LenkaTraveler group’s trip to Cuba (December 2015 – January 2016): The Dual\u00a0Currency There are two\u00a0types of currency in Cuba: CUP (the regular peso) is used by the locals, but foreigners pay for everything in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":569,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[29],"class_list":["post-534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-guide","tag-cuba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=534"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":695,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534\/revisions\/695"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lenkatraveler.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}