Havana on a Sunday

We did Havana on the Oceania Insignia last Sunday.

Our Ship Excursion was the Classic car tour. Sunday was positive since there was no traffic in Havana and we covered a lot of territory. Did revolution square, the monuments, the cemetery, neighborhoods, the National Hotel. At the hotel we got a free mojito. The museum portion of the hotel is fascinating with photos of the guests from the 20's to present day. The ice at the hotel is ok, we had no issue after the mojito.

Our ship excursion (Oceania) bus dropped us off at the National Hotel parking lot with 15-20 classic cars and we chose our classic car. My wife spotte a cherry red 55 Chevy with white top and white interior (covered in plastic!). Just like my dads car in 55! We were a bit disappointed since there were no convertibles to chose from, but ... we had strong air conditioning and it was hot. With the big windows in classic cars there was a great view never the less. and so roomy.

Our car and driver was normally a taxi, but the driver was meticulous and keep his vehicle in great mint condition. Caution not all classic cars here are that nice. Some looked like they are in the middle of restoration. Thus it was nice to be able to choose your ride from a prescreened fleet.

Overall a great value for the money, even at Ship prices.

We had anticipated seeing Christmas decorations, but there were none. Our driver explained that the population is Christian in majority and have decoration at home, but none outside. Any such decoration is a splurge and people have to choose between buying basics such as food, clothing, furnishings, etc and buying celebratory paraphernalia.

The people are taken care of with regard to health, education, etc, but have to fend for themselves for essentials. They seem to be capitalistic at heart and have high hopes for more tourism and trade.

A great day.

We saw lots of Christmas decorations and trees, both inside and outside, but most were inside. 2 churches had decorations too. Even the beauty salon (where we got our hair trimmed) was decorated and had a tree. We did alot of walking around on our own, going into small shops, restaurants and other places.

We'll be there with the Azamara Quest for Easter Sunday so it will be interesting what is the 'go' then. We have two nights, in Havana (three days) and one day in Cienfuegos and another in Santiago De Cuba. We can't believe the price that the ship is asking for excursions so we're picking some private and some ship run ones. It's a once in a lifetime experience so we've got a private convertible for the first day, a private classic car for the second. There's three couples and it was so cheap by comparison that we have got a car each.

I know this is a 'strange' question but other than giving our (financial) business to the locals under the 'support the Cuban people' visa arrangement is there anything that I could bring from home as a gift to our driver and guide. Invariably we usually find the day is an amicable arrangement and may well wish to acknowledge their professionalism and helpfulness as we know times have been tough for them. Though we do not want to offend, is tipping common, we as Australians do find it very confusing. Any assistance with answers would be welcome.

Tipping is common and very appreciated. Cash is king. Dollars are preferred.

CUC's are taken at the gov't stores.

Tipping is common and very appreciated. Cash is king. Dollars are preferred.

 

 

 

CUC's are taken at the gov't stores.

Thanks so much for his information, greatly appreciated!

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Invariably we usually find the day is an amicable arrangement and may well wish to acknowledge their professionalism and helpfulness as we know times have been tough for them. Though we do not want to offend, is tipping common, we as Australians do find it very confusing. Any assistance with answers would be welcome.

Tip in cash - no one wants an item. Cash lets them use it however they need. We in the USA are used to tipping 15-20% for good service so we gave most people 15%. But when we had our hair trimmed in a little local beauty shop, the cost of the haircut was $3 each! We felt like we were stealing at that price, so we gave him $10 each. He went to get change but we told him that the extra $7pp was for him - he got tears in his eyes and was so thankful!! It was so nice to help the very friendly Cuban people.

Tip in cash - no one wants an item. Cash lets them use it however they need. We in the USA are used to tipping 15-20% for good service so we gave most people 15%. But when we had our hair trimmed in a little local beauty shop, the cost of the haircut was $3 each! We felt like we were stealing at that price, so we gave him $10 each. He went to get change but we told him that the extra $7pp was for him - he got tears in his eyes and was so thankful!! It was so nice to help the very friendly Cuban people.

Yes thanks, we’ve had experiences like that in China, we know how much it means to them. Thanks for your time in responding to my question!

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