Custom designed private tours to Cuba for 2, 3, 4 or more people.
Go to tour request form.
Go to tour request form.
I've been bringing groups of Americans to Cuba since 2016 and will continue working with groups. I am also offering private, custom designed tours for smaller groups of 2, 3 or 4.
- Tell me what your interest is in coming to Cuba.
- We will work on the very best itinerary just for you!
- Art, dance, music, history, medicine, food, religion - the list is really unlimited.
- I work with the incoming local guides I've trusted for years.
- Stay in private homes and dine at the best restaurants.
- I will help you get the Cuba Tourist Visa, required medical insurance card. work with you on the best airfare, help you with currency exchange, travel insurance and more.
- You will be picked up at the airport in Havana by your guide and taken to your lodging. The local guides I work with are fluent in English and have been working with me for years.
As a first-time traveler to Cuba, you probably have many questions about the Cuban currency: What’s the official Cuban currency? Can you use US dollars in Cuba? Can you pay with a credit card or debit card? Do they even have ATMs in Cuba?
The official currency in Cuba is the Cuban Peso (CUP). However, Cuban residents can also use a digital currency called MLC. This is like our debit card. A Cuban deposits money in their bank and draws against it in stores. We don't have that option. The CUP is available in bills of 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, and 1000. The exchange rate changes from time to time, but most recently the rate for us visitors was 120 CUP to $1, which is about 4-5 times higher than the official exchange rate between Cuban companies. You can see that if you want to bring let's say $500 to spend, you would be getting 60,000 CUP! That's a lot to carry. The good news for us is that our dollar is highly desired and can be used in many places. So I would recommend planning to have at least 1/2 in US dollars and 1/2 in CUP. Want to know something odd? Some places prefer the dollar to the CUP!
You can get Cuban Pesos from CADECA's which are exchange places, some hotels, banks and at the airport.
The Euro is still the best currency to bring to Cuba. It’s convenient, widely accepted on the island, and it’s subject to the lowest bank fee (2% and opposed to the 8% fee for the dollar) when exchanging them in cash. However, it could be a slight pain to bring Euros because first you have to buy them and then sell the remainder back when you leave the island.
Tipping is HUGELY important in Cuba. More so than just anywhere else that I know of. Salaries are extraordinarily low for service industries. Tipping is where Cubans will receive the overwhelmingly large percentage of their pay.
The official currency in Cuba is the Cuban Peso (CUP). However, Cuban residents can also use a digital currency called MLC. This is like our debit card. A Cuban deposits money in their bank and draws against it in stores. We don't have that option. The CUP is available in bills of 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, and 1000. The exchange rate changes from time to time, but most recently the rate for us visitors was 120 CUP to $1, which is about 4-5 times higher than the official exchange rate between Cuban companies. You can see that if you want to bring let's say $500 to spend, you would be getting 60,000 CUP! That's a lot to carry. The good news for us is that our dollar is highly desired and can be used in many places. So I would recommend planning to have at least 1/2 in US dollars and 1/2 in CUP. Want to know something odd? Some places prefer the dollar to the CUP!
You can get Cuban Pesos from CADECA's which are exchange places, some hotels, banks and at the airport.
The Euro is still the best currency to bring to Cuba. It’s convenient, widely accepted on the island, and it’s subject to the lowest bank fee (2% and opposed to the 8% fee for the dollar) when exchanging them in cash. However, it could be a slight pain to bring Euros because first you have to buy them and then sell the remainder back when you leave the island.
Tipping is HUGELY important in Cuba. More so than just anywhere else that I know of. Salaries are extraordinarily low for service industries. Tipping is where Cubans will receive the overwhelmingly large percentage of their pay.
Havana was, in the words of Ernest Hemmingway, one of the most beautiful cities in the world, along with Paris and Venice. Today you can see that beauty now hiding behind fading facades. I’ve organized tours for hundreds of Americans during the Obama administration and the beginning of the next administration. Somehow, we got the idea that travel there was no longer legal. That was NEVER the case, but that belief coupled with the effects of the pandemic slowed visits to a trickle. Things are slowly beginning to pick up again so this is the perfect time to plan a special visit. The best times of year to come are November through April. Minimum rain and not the high heat of the summer.
You will be lodging in private homes with the amenities that you're used to at home.
Click here to see slide shows of several such home in Havana.
Click here to see slide shows of several such home in Havana.