Cuba Travel, What's New(s)?

By: Kathy Klofft

Photo Essay: People of Cuba by Jeff Klofft

Two gentlemen read the news on the stoop on the outskirts of Old Havana

Cuba travel has been in the news again.  The President of the United States recently announced some changes in the policy of rapprochement that had been set by his predecessor in December 2014.  I'm not going to get political, because I've never been one to determine whether a place I travel to is "right" or wrong" (or even "Right" or "Left", for that matter)  We travel to experience the people and the place as it is and hope that our connection to other people helps bridge the gaps of our differences.  If we refuse to visit places where we disagree with the way they are governed, we'd probably not even be able to leave our own back yard!   Since the announcement about changes to Cuban American relations, I've had many readers and friends ask about how to go about seeing Cuba now.  They wonder if they should go before things change again, and what is the best way to do it.  So I'm revisiting our experiences and giving advice based on what I've heard and read in the last week. If you don't plan to go, you may enjoy Jeff's photos of the people we met in Cuba!

A young man shares his art and a smile with visitors

We decided to visit in June 2016, shortly after the announcement and posted about it here:

Cuba Posts

As for the latest news, no one can predict what will happen next, but the President has asked the Treasury Department to revisit the current rules.  It appears from emails travelers I know have received from their cruise lines with itineraries to Cuba, that they have been assured they can still make Cuba ports of call.  As i understand it, individual travel that is not part of a cruise or People to People program will be examined in a different way and possibly restricted.  So with this scanty information and not knowing what the Treasury Department rules will eventually look like, here is what I'm telling my friends.

 A couple entertains during a visit to a state run restaurant in Old Habana

1- Nothing appears to be happening immediately.

It seems it will be some time before new rules are made and implemented.  If Cuba is on your list, I would definitely not hesitate to go as soon as possible.  The issue with Cuban travel is not safety, we felt Cuba was very safe, safer than most major cities we have visited anywhere in the world.  The problem seems to be the change in the political approach to the island nation by the United States, and Americans ability to visit freely or do business there.

Dancers perform during the cabaret at the Hotel Nacionale in Havana

2-I would not go to Cuba "illegally" right now.

While many Americans have gone to South or Central America and simply visited Cuba from there without getting any approvals or passport stamps.  I would not do that now. There is no way to predict how immigration officials will react upon return to the United States. Also, there is no predicting that over the next 4 to 8, or more years how an "illegal" visit to Cuba might affect your ability to receive government clearances, or government benefits of any kind. We simply don't know.

Children from an arts school in Matanzas pose just before leaving for summer break

3-I would take a cruise that has Cuba on the itinerary

.Cuba is likely just one of the places you'll visit on a cruise, and the whole vacation wouldn't be canceled if things change rapidly.  Also, I've read that the uptick in tourism since rapprochement has lead to some food shortages for people in Cuba.  Cruises, which carry their own food on board, are a good way to lessen any of those effects. Our experience with Cuban food was that it is not very varied or spiced; most of the food we ate in both paladares (privately owned home restaurants) and state run restaurants was fairly bland, but filling.

A man on the beach expresses his enthusiasm for Americans with his shirt and his gestures!

4-I would take a well established People to People Trip

If I wanted to take a trip to Cuba now, and didn't want to cruise or had a special interest, I would go with one of the outfitters that have offered People To People tour for years.  These trips usually revolve around meaningful connections between people with similar interests. Our trip was focused on Jazz and Art, which was of interest to our family.  Other trips involve bird watching and nature. With rapprochement, many new travel companies applied for and were approved to travel to Cuba with less developed programs.  However, the ones that were doing it first have the best connections and resources in Cuba.  If things are changing rapidly, a well established outfitter will have a better handle on how to adapt to changes than a newcomer.

Three men struggle to maneuver a fruit cart in the streets.

5-Check the rules frequently.  

What is allowed in and out of Cuba could change at any time.  Another reason to travel with an experienced outfitter is that they stay on top of these rule changes for you.  If the limits of cigars, art or rum change, they can let you know before you invest in something that could just be confiscated. They will also stay ahead of any itinerary changes required by either government. 

A local musician who connects young jazz acts with Americans coming to learn about Cuban Jazz reacts with joy to his protegees set.

6-If you do travel to Cuba with a cruise or tour company, be sure to keep the paperwork

The tour outfitter or cruise line will provide official paperwork that explains the legal reason for your trip to Cuba. You will need this when you return home and for future travel.   I keep mine with my passport, but remove it when passing through immigration in any country, including my own until someone asks to see it.  No one has asked to see it yet, but we never know when they might ask, so I have it ready to show that I traveled to Cuba on a legal, Treasury Department approved People to People trip.

A young couple enjoys the sunset on the malecon in Havana

One of the reasons we travel is to see places that are different from where we live, to connect with people in a way that emphasizes our similarities, and seeks to understand our differences. We found the people of Cuba to be open to meeting Americans, and excited for the future. Hopefully, all your travels will be the same!

Pura Vida with the Feifer Family in Costa Rica

A Go See It People Interview

We can't be everywhere, though goodness knows we've tried!  So we love to tell other people where to go! Occasionally, they even listen to us!  Let me re frame that. The Feifer's are a wonderful family of 4 from New England, Two busy professionals and their teen son and daughter who love adventures where they can take time to connect and be active.  We met the Feifers in Ecuador, on an adventure to the Galapagos Islands.  At the time, I referred to them as the "brochure family"; meaning that their family looks like they match perfectly and are always having such great fun, that they could be used on a travel brochure to advertise the destination! So when Mom Marianne approached me about an idea for their next big trip, I could just picture them on a brochure for a trip to Costa Rica!  I gave Marianne some advice on her itinerary and she very generously shared her story and photos of her family's adventure. I hope you enjoy all the vicarious thrills the Feifer Family did, and we thank them for sharing their adventures with us!

How did you decide on this destination? Why did you want to go?

Over the years, we have discovered that we really enjoy active vacations and seeing wildlife.  Can you say Galapagos?

Ed. Note: We met the Feifer Family when we shared an amazing Galapagos adventure together...if they weren't into wildlife before that trip, they certainly were afterwards!) 

We were also looking for a location that did not take a day to get to as we only had about 6 days to spend anywhere. We thought about Yosemite, as well, but we couldn’t find either a group tour or a private guide whose timing worked.
 

2- How did you plan your trip? Did you use a travel agent or tour?

We had some good friends who recommended a private guide and tour company.  It worked well since they were able to accommodate our timeline and activity level. We spoke with the tour company owner who came up with an itinerary for us. Costa Rican Resource

 

3- What did you do while you were on this trip?

Oh boy...what didn’t we do?

●     Rafting down the Pacuare River to the ecolodge. (Short hike up from the river to the lodge)

●     Stayed over at the tour company’s private ecolodge, no electricity. (Woke up to seeing toucans on the porch and turkey vultures sunning themselves.)

It's not all adventure...the Feifer teens had time to relax in a hammock with a good book!

●     Ziplining under the canopy.

●     Full day of rafting down the Pacuare on class III and IV rapids. (This is where I got the black eye.)

●     Stay at the beautiful Nayara Resort in Arenal

●     Canyoneering Adventure included repelling down waterfalls, some hiking in water, and a few zip lines over the water. I LOVED this as it required physical fitness and using your brain to figure out where to put your foot next.

Despite getting a shiner while rafting the Pacuare, Marianne tells us, she loved the active adventure offered in Costa Rica.

●     Trip to Danaus Reserve where we saw sloths, red eyed tree frogs, and many different birds

●     In the evening, we visited a Hotspring.

●     Ziplining above the canopy where we could see the Arenal Volcano.

●     Hike in Manuel Antonio National Park.  We saw sloths, spider monkeys, howler monkeys, capuchin monkeys.

●     At our hotel (Arenas del Mar), we got very close to a sloth and were able to watch him move and were greeted by capuchin monkeys.

Marianne's son spotted something rarely seen, a sloth headed to the ground, which they do to defecate. 

4- What surprised you about this place? Is there a "don't miss it" attraction?

There’s more than one don’t miss it.

●     Stay at an ecolodge.

●     Raft down the Pacuare

●     Canyoneering (adventuresome!)

●     Manuel Antonio National Park

5- What tips would you give for someone who wants to visit? Anything special you should pack?

●     Mosquito Repellant! Well, you are travelling into a rain forest!  Given the recent rise in Zika (although we weren’t in areas that were especially effected at the time). Before the trip we bought a product that you sprayed on your clothes to make them bug repellent.  And, we still brought lots of bug repellent and sun screen. 

●     Also, we checked CDC recommendations for vaccinations.  We were able to use the oral typhoid vaccine.

●     Water shoes that you are comfortable hiking in.

●     Light rain gear.

●     Pack light

●     Be prepared to get wet and wear helmets. :)

6- is there anything else you'd like to tell us about your trip?

Our guide is also a known birder in the area.  He had a fabulous camera as well as binoculars that we could use.  He shared pictures with us AND showed us how you can take really great pictures with your iphone through binoculars. He also got as excited as we did when we saw some wildlife - like the spider monkeys!

Diego Birding & Nature

If you’ve never had it, try the guanabana juice.

(Ed. Note: This is a delicious fruit we discovered while traveling with the Feifers in Ecuador.  I had a terrible time pronouncing it- I bet you were about to google it too!  Here's a hint, it rhymes with the lyric in this Muppet Show song, which Marianne and her family would sing out loud whenever I would struggle to order may favorite fruit juice!)

Say “Pura Vida” a lot! 

 

Marianne enjoying the Pura Vida, (good life) in Costa Rica!  

Thank you Marianne, and the Feifer family, for sharing your adventures with us!  For more on Costa Rica see more GoSeeItTravel posts here...

http://www.goseeittravel.com/travel-blog/2015/10/26/planning-a-trip-to-costa-rica

Costa Rica: You just can't stump these guides!

“Having had at least a dozen different guides in CR we have yet to run into one who mailed it in...”

Randall helped us find all kinds of wildlife in the canopy, including crawling under the underbrush to find a sleeping Baird's tapir (Photos in our trip report) 

Costa Rica is a place where they run out of superlatives...is that a great frigate bird, or a magnificent frigate bird? Yes, it's hot and it's a jungle, teaming with things that creep and crawl, but it's also a place of amazing beauty and diversity. It's truly unbelievable how much wildlife can be seen during a day walking in a national park, or out on a boat. It's not just what you see but what you hear, the roar of the ocean, the bark of the howler monkeys, constant bird calls and cicadas, seemingly a different one trilling every hour. It's hard to see all this life all all around because of the dense foliage.

They not only know what it is, but what kind of behaviors to expect and why it matters to the ecosystem. (oh, BTW, it's a Purple Gallinule, I asked, and Carlos knew!!)

That's where Costa Rica's fabulous guides come in. A professional guide in CR is a highly trained naturalist who also specializes in hospitality. Having had at least a dozen different guides in CR we have yet to run into one who mailed it in. To a man (and one woman) our guides have been as passionate and enthusiastic about our tour of the sea or canopy, as if it was the first time they were seeing it. Sharing that passion is not just their job, but their life's work, and I have yet to stump one with a question! In the rare case a ready answer isn't available, out comes a dog eared wildlife guide and the matter is certain. Through excellent public education, Costa Rica has in one generation turned out a small army of environmentalists, many who told me their parents or even they as children caught iguanas to sell for meat or dug turtle eggs to eat and used the shells as dishes. Today they are the most passionate defenders and teachers of this amazing biodiverse, beautiful country. 

Carlos not only pointed out the birds in the mangrove, he also pointed them out in the guide book so i could spell their names!

Click here to see our full trip report about our recent trip to La Paloma Lodge in Drake Bay on the Osa Peninsula, gateway to the Corcovado National Park. it's multi media, with lots of exciting drama, excess luggage, civil unrest, and earthquakes, oh my!