Cuba, what money to take
Discussion
I just took Sterling and changed up. There are usually cash machines in the big Hotels in Havana. I seem to remember getting money out in the Hotel Nacional (which you'll want to go to just so you can sit on the lawn and drink Mojitos!) and I don't remember it being particularly expensive. Certainly not enough to warrant carrying 100/1000s of sterling notes around with you.
Besides, there really isn't much to spend your money on in Cuba anyway, besides Rum and Cigars! They don't exactly encourage free enterprise so there aren't many opportunities to spend your readies.
Besides, there really isn't much to spend your money on in Cuba anyway, besides Rum and Cigars! They don't exactly encourage free enterprise so there aren't many opportunities to spend your readies.
There aren't many cash points in Cuba (hardly any outside of Havanna). Banks will change your money/allow you to withdraw money for an extortionate percentage.
Even if you are going AI, rent a car for a few of days and see the real Cuba (If you do this the non tourist pesos would be useful, otherwise you'll be paying over the odds for everything.). Spending ten hours on a plane to do something that is available only 3 hours away in Spain (except for the added excitement of various nasties living in the warmer sea) seems a bit of a waste to me.
Even if you are going AI, rent a car for a few of days and see the real Cuba (If you do this the non tourist pesos would be useful, otherwise you'll be paying over the odds for everything.). Spending ten hours on a plane to do something that is available only 3 hours away in Spain (except for the added excitement of various nasties living in the warmer sea) seems a bit of a waste to me.
Edited by JimexPL on Monday 16th May 16:45
Perhaps things have changed in the years since I went because US dollars were king and people were keen to get their hands on them.
I spent a week at the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, a truly outstanding piece of 1930s art Deco. As hotels go it is very grand bursting with character but at the same time so outdated, there are some odd period features. Someone else mentioned the cocktails on the Bay View bar and pool area being quite good, it certainly is!!! Id also recommend a trip to "La Bodeguita del Medio" where you can get rather refreshing Mojitos before strolling around the old town+China town.
I also spent a couple of weeks in Varadero which although is a tourist area I did find that having a few paesos was useful especially for tips.
I spent a week at the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, a truly outstanding piece of 1930s art Deco. As hotels go it is very grand bursting with character but at the same time so outdated, there are some odd period features. Someone else mentioned the cocktails on the Bay View bar and pool area being quite good, it certainly is!!! Id also recommend a trip to "La Bodeguita del Medio" where you can get rather refreshing Mojitos before strolling around the old town+China town.
I also spent a couple of weeks in Varadero which although is a tourist area I did find that having a few paesos was useful especially for tips.
Take sterling, if you need to use a cashpoint then the one I had most success with is the bank on Obispo in Havana Vieja.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=firefox-a&...
On your right hand side as you head down from Parque Central, close-ish to Cafe de Paris.
Some cashpoints are 6 digit, so if you bang in 4 and it doesn't work then you need to stick 00 at the start or end.
Finding out which it is is pure luck!
It was about 6 Pesos for a cocktail and 2 for a beer in Havana when I was there 4 years ago.
Meal is about 25-30 most places.
Taberna La Muralla in Plaza Vieja brews it's own beer so worth a visit.
Drink Cristal rather than Bucanero.
DO NOT MIX BUCANERO MAX & COCKTAILS. It all goes a bit wrong.
You've been warned.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=firefox-a&...
On your right hand side as you head down from Parque Central, close-ish to Cafe de Paris.
Some cashpoints are 6 digit, so if you bang in 4 and it doesn't work then you need to stick 00 at the start or end.
Finding out which it is is pure luck!
It was about 6 Pesos for a cocktail and 2 for a beer in Havana when I was there 4 years ago.
Meal is about 25-30 most places.
Taberna La Muralla in Plaza Vieja brews it's own beer so worth a visit.
Drink Cristal rather than Bucanero.
DO NOT MIX BUCANERO MAX & COCKTAILS. It all goes a bit wrong.
You've been warned.
Literally just got back from Cuba, so any questions, let me know!
Cash points - agreed with the ones on Obispo being the most reliable - signed as a Cadeca (Currency exchange) rather than a bank, but about 5 of them, inside, with a guard!
Drinks - if you go to the 'Hemmingway' bars, then yes, they are a little bit more money. Over the last couple of weeks the most I paid for a beer was 2.75 (in a 5* hotel) but the majority of places were 1.10 - 1.65 each. Cocktails a little more, averaging around 3.5 (but some of the better ones I had were on 2.50 each!). All those prices are in Convertibles (CUC), and with an exchange rate of 1.55CUC to the £, it all worked out quite cheap!
If you're a smoker, be prepared!! If you like Lucky Strike you'll be fine, but if you like any other western ciggie, you'll struggle to find them! Lucky Strikes are about CUC2.75 a pack of 20. But, go for the local smokes, and you'll save a fortune (just might end up with advanced lung cancer after a week of them!) - you can get packs of 20 for as little as CUC0.30 if you really don't care what you are smoking!
Also, they have two currencies there, Convertibles and National. 1 convertible is the same as 24 National Pesos. You can find some amazing value if using National Pesos, like an all you can eat place in Vinales for 24 Pesos (CUC1)!! There are also a few markets in and around the Obispo area which are National money - don't go getting mixed up between them! The notes are clearly marked, and CUC coins are silver, whilst national are bronze. Oh and don't be surprised by the 3CUC notes....!!!
Let me know where you are going, and if I've been there (Havana, Trinidad, Vinales) I'll try and make some recommendations for places to eat/drink/visit etc. Just in the middle of uploading photos at the moment - was an awesome holiday!!
Edit to add - I found Cristal a bit tasteless, whereas Bucanero was the choice of drink for our group! (didn't get to try the MAX tho!) There's a song called Guantanamero.... well... its our new song for ordering beers there - Dos Bucanero.... lol!! And food - you can have a full meal including a drink for as little as 10CUC if you look around, although the best meal we had was on Oprada for about 30CUC a head - gorgeous steak!)
Cash points - agreed with the ones on Obispo being the most reliable - signed as a Cadeca (Currency exchange) rather than a bank, but about 5 of them, inside, with a guard!
Drinks - if you go to the 'Hemmingway' bars, then yes, they are a little bit more money. Over the last couple of weeks the most I paid for a beer was 2.75 (in a 5* hotel) but the majority of places were 1.10 - 1.65 each. Cocktails a little more, averaging around 3.5 (but some of the better ones I had were on 2.50 each!). All those prices are in Convertibles (CUC), and with an exchange rate of 1.55CUC to the £, it all worked out quite cheap!
If you're a smoker, be prepared!! If you like Lucky Strike you'll be fine, but if you like any other western ciggie, you'll struggle to find them! Lucky Strikes are about CUC2.75 a pack of 20. But, go for the local smokes, and you'll save a fortune (just might end up with advanced lung cancer after a week of them!) - you can get packs of 20 for as little as CUC0.30 if you really don't care what you are smoking!
Also, they have two currencies there, Convertibles and National. 1 convertible is the same as 24 National Pesos. You can find some amazing value if using National Pesos, like an all you can eat place in Vinales for 24 Pesos (CUC1)!! There are also a few markets in and around the Obispo area which are National money - don't go getting mixed up between them! The notes are clearly marked, and CUC coins are silver, whilst national are bronze. Oh and don't be surprised by the 3CUC notes....!!!
Let me know where you are going, and if I've been there (Havana, Trinidad, Vinales) I'll try and make some recommendations for places to eat/drink/visit etc. Just in the middle of uploading photos at the moment - was an awesome holiday!!
Edit to add - I found Cristal a bit tasteless, whereas Bucanero was the choice of drink for our group! (didn't get to try the MAX tho!) There's a song called Guantanamero.... well... its our new song for ordering beers there - Dos Bucanero.... lol!! And food - you can have a full meal including a drink for as little as 10CUC if you look around, although the best meal we had was on Oprada for about 30CUC a head - gorgeous steak!)
Edited by Wolff on Friday 20th May 18:17
The_Burg said:
We are heading off to Varedero. Hope to do a Havana trip too.
According to customs you can take 400 cigarettes per person so will have plenty without resorting to local lung busters.
Guess we'll get £100 ish of local and £2 or 300 CUC.
I was in Varadero. My bro and I hired some scooters and went off on a "Wrong way round" down the coast towards Havanna. Brilliant stuff. Foxholes along the coast quite a lot. There isn't THAt much to do in varadero, to be honest. The beach in nice enough, but not much in the way of culture. We also hired some cars and went for a jolly. There are VERY few roadsigns, so easy to get lost. According to customs you can take 400 cigarettes per person so will have plenty without resorting to local lung busters.
Guess we'll get £100 ish of local and £2 or 300 CUC.
ChiChoAndy said:
I was in Varadero. My bro and I hired some scooters and went off on a "Wrong way round" down the coast towards Havanna. Brilliant stuff. Foxholes along the coast quite a lot. There isn't THAt much to do in varadero, to be honest. The beach in nice enough, but not much in the way of culture. We also hired some cars and went for a jolly. There are VERY few roadsigns, so easy to get lost.
Now that i like the sound of, its safe enough to do this sort of thing then?Scooting down to Havana, how far is it and how much to hire a scooter? I assume there ones bigger than 50cc.
We could only find 50cc scooters. However they were pretty cheap if I recall. The road to Havanna is pretty easy. Just head out on the main road, past the Go Karting track, and keep going. There is one bit I'd recommend. The road veers to the left and there is a road that follows the coast, (small, crappily paved road) that carries on. Stay on the crappy road. It goes right next to the beach so you can get off and have an explore of the foxholes, and hope there isn't an angry hobo in them. Nice place to stop on the way is the bridge over the valley bit. Has a bar and restaurent, as well as a bunch of shops to buy tata for people back home. It's quite a peg to Havanna, but we managed it. Slower is good anyway, I've got some hardcopy pictures somewhere.
PS, the gokarting track is pretty decent, and they have 2 seaters when I was there, (great for scaring the old folk, as we were there for a wedding).
Buccaneero was a decent beer when we were there.
PS, the gokarting track is pretty decent, and they have 2 seaters when I was there, (great for scaring the old folk, as we were there for a wedding).
Buccaneero was a decent beer when we were there.
BigAlinEmbra said:
Bucanero has a pirate on the side, and Cristal a palm tree.
Sums the two beers up to me!
If you're in a lying under a palm tree mood, go Cristal.
If you're feeling piratical, then it's Bucanero.
You will want to walk the plank after a night on the MAX though.
I never tried cristal. Me and my bro were really quite adept at saying "Dos mas bucaneero, por favor". Pretty much the only Spanish/pour to we knew! Sums the two beers up to me!
If you're in a lying under a palm tree mood, go Cristal.
If you're feeling piratical, then it's Bucanero.
You will want to walk the plank after a night on the MAX though.
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