Cuba question!

I am still trying to find out if they will allow you to bring candy as gifts for the kids we might run into or just for adults. Some say yes, some say no. Does anyone know for sure? Has anyone that has already cruised to Cuba done this? Is there anything else I should know of what to do or not to do in Cuba! Thanks for any help.

We brought stuff as gifts, but not candy. We have been to places where they ask you not to bring candy for general distribution because it promotes dental problems. Even though they have health care, you still don’t know how the dental services are. Just something to be aware of. Small toys from the dollar store were very appreciated and small school supplies and toiletries.

Mary Ann

We went to Cuba last month. Honestly, we didn't run into any kids. We toured with Blexie and we saw a lot, but they really try to steer you away from the "real" areas. We were taken to several plazas, the Malecon, a wonderful paladar, the statue of Christ ("Cuban Jesus"), a church, the memorial to the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a store to buy rum -- because we asked, El Floridita, El Capitolio, Fusterlandia, and we passed by the US Embassy.

Of note, there are reports of immigration officials saying you cannot have such-and-such and confiscating it, only to take it home themselves.

Change more money than you think you need. Get Euros (or British pounds or Canadian dollars) before you go. Changing US dollars incurs a 10% tax on top of the 3% change fee. On your way out, you will receive US dollars, but there's no additional tax. Yes, the whole money exchange area and process looks and feels shady, but just go with it.

A working knowledge of Spanish is helpful.

Study a little bit about the two currencies. The tourist money (which the Cuban government says trades 1:1 with the US dollar) is different and worth 10x what the regular money is. When you get change, be sure you are getting the right bills. On the other hand, there's really not a lot to buy, so other than your tour, any meals/drinks, and any souvenirs you buy (rum, cigars, a few small trinkets), you won't be making a lot of purchases. Cash is king and they don't take American credit cards.

We stopped in a very poor village somewhere in South America. The kids all came running up to us. One woman was handing out school supplies and I saw some kids throw them down on the ground as they walked away. Maybe I should have looked at it differently but all they wanted was US$.

We went in June and candy was one of the things that we did bring for the kids and they loved it!! My daughter-in-law in from Cuba and she highly suggested it.

As noted above, make sure you look up and know the difference between the two different currencies used.

On our Sun cruise the ship made announcements that we could not take any gifts ashore....they also announced we had to use official NCL excursions. Both are false. While you may run the risk of Customs searching your bags, they only xrayed ours. We had bought Halloween sized Hersheys and Mars chocolate bars but we took them out of the original bags and put them in a gallon ziplock as we were prepared to say they were for our personal snacks. We also booked our own tours...

That said, the only kids we saw were school aged on a school day so there was no fraternization. These kids are not running loose on the street. I would assume their parents would not appreciate strangers approaching them, just like anywhere. We gave our candy bars to our tour guide, for his family, but only because I had found out here on CC that his wife liked chocolates. If you book a tour online you can always ask that tour operator ahead of time what they might need.

As for exchanging US dollars into Euros, it would depend on how much you are going to exchange vs. the trouble it would take to do the change beforehand. Figure you’ll lose 13% using dollars and 9% using Euros. Personally for me it wasn’t worth it as I have too much on my plate and I wasn’t going to exchange that much.

Royal Caribbean will also tell you that you have to book a RC tour to go ashore, but if you ask them directly, they will admit that that is not true. We booked our own tour, as well. On docking, however, they made everyone without a RC tour line up and would let 25 or so off at a time "so we don't overwhelm the customs people."

For exchanging money, you will lose at total of 16% if you use US dollars (3% exchange fee, 10% US dollar tax, and another 3% exchange fee on the way out). Use any other currency and you will lose a total of 6% -- 3% exchange fee each way. They are still upset about that pesky embargo thing, hence the 10% tax. You might try tipping your tour guide in US dollars, but our tour guide told us that the Cuban government is very much against ordinary citizens possessing or using US dollars. Why? US dollars are accepted worldwide, while Cuban currency only has value in Cuba.

The amount you lose using Euros will vary according to any fees you incur changing dollars to Euros, which is why I listed 9%. If you have access to a no fee exchange then of course that is better....

There is nothing “shady” about the currency exchange. Cuba has been hit with an economic embargo by the US since the early 1960s. The 10% surcharge on US dollars is in response to that.

The ratio between the two Cuban currencies is not 10:1, it is 24:1.

Gifting is not a good idea. The people you are apt to meet are in the tourism industry and are fairly well off. Your dollar store trinkets are likely to end up on the black market. Cubans are not impoverished in the same sense as people in Haiti or Jamaica. They don’t have a lot of money but their system provides food, health care, education, etc. There are periodic shortages of things but the dark period of the 80s when Soviet aid ended is behind them.

Thanks so much for all of your responses! I am taking an excursion through the ship. Maybe I will just take some candy with me and give it to the tour guides and those taking the excursion with me. Thanks for the advice on putting it in a zip lock bag!

One more thing! I have a few people that want me to bring them some cigars. I have no idea what to look for to make sure it’s a good one and not fake. Can I buy them and they will stay good in a zip lock bag until I get home? Also, does anyone know what would be a good rum to buy? Would I have enough with $200 to buy rum and cigars, with the exchange of money?

I am so sorry for all the questions! I do appreciate all of your help! Thanks so much!

Anyone? ;)

Not everyone will agree, but Havana Club is an excellent rum. There is a rum museum sponsored by Havana Club that has a store a few blocks from the cruise terminal. Cross the street and turn left, walk a couple of blocks until you see Museo del Ron Havana Club. The 7 year old is 16.90 for a 700 ML bottle. The Seleccion Maestro is 40.00. Here is a price list for rum and cigars that will be followed at reputable stores.

http://yulcigars.blogspot.com/

WOW! Thank you so much! I will bring this list with me. Would you happen to know what kind of cigars would be good to bring back for friends? I don't smoke,so have no clue! :confused: I don't want to spend too much on them, because I need to bring back a few. Also, do you know or anyone know anything about the coffee? Can we bring some back? Kind, flavor etc...

I didn't buy either coffee or cigars. You would get a better response in the Cuba forum I think.

Ok, thanks so much for the help!

Ok, thanks so much for the help!

Our guide took us to a store that had rum, cigars and coffee. The prices were pretty much the same wherever we went, I think set by the government. Be prepared as the stores are crowded with tourists and the service quick, meaning it was confusing. They have all price points. We bought the 7 year and Anejo Havana Club rum and a $50 5 cigar sampler pack for our son but there were less expensive packs. Don’t buy off the street as you may be getting old butts rerolled :eek:

Thanks so much for all of your responses! I am taking an excursion through the ship. Maybe I will just take some candy with me and give it to the tour guides and those taking the excursion with me. Thanks for the advice on putting it in a zip lock bag!

One more thing! I have a few people that want me to bring them some cigars. I have no idea what to look for to make sure it’s a good one and not fake. Can I buy them and they will stay good in a zip lock bag until I get home? Also, does anyone know what would be a good rum to buy? Would I have enough with $200 to buy rum and cigars, with the exchange of money?

I am so sorry for all the questions! I do appreciate all of your help! Thanks so much!

I asked our guide about Cuban cigars and rum:

Cuban rum is cheap (and good).The bottles of 1 litter go from 5.20 cuc to 20 cuc depending if it is 2 years old (white rum) or 7 years (dark).Prices in between are :6.25,6.90 and 10 cuc.

Cigars are more expensive cohibas go from 6.90 to 24 cuc a pieces depending on the size.Montecristos go from 5.55 to 14 cuc.Romeo and Julieta go from 4.74 to 10.15 cuc.Therr are other brands and Raül you can find once you visit the cigars shop.

Blexie

The Havana Club rum seemed to be pretty good and they had some higher end ones that were great!

A friend of ours wanted cigars- but he knows his cigars, so he asked for something specific. To get a box of decent cigars was pricey (around 130 cuc for the cigars our friend wanted). So, if your friends want a cuban cigar because they know cigars, ask them specifically what they want and what they are willing to pay.

Regarding bringing things for the children of Cuba- all the children we saw were in school uniforms and going about their days as any child in a country with compulsory public education would. You can bring special things for your guide etc. if you would like- but your tour guide is probably one of the better compensated more affluent Cubans, as they are paid in CUC rather than the pittance of a government salary.

Pencils and paracetamol are most needed in Cuba, I took both

Thank y’all so much! This is why I love Cruise Critic! I am still trying to find out if we can bring back coffee! I would think so, but want to make sure!

Thank y’all so much! This is why I love Cruise Critic! I am still trying to find out if we can bring back coffee! I would think so, but want to make sure!

Yes. One of our party brought back coffee. The rest of us stuck with rum and cigars!:D

I didn't buy either coffee or cigars. You would get a better response in the Cuba forum I think.

Got a link for that please? Thank you....

I'm not good at links, however, if you click on Boards at the top of the page, they scroll down to Ports of Call, Click on Caribbean, then click on Cuba. The Cuba Port of Call threads have some good info!

Thank you! Now I am sure I can bring back coffee, cigars and rum! :D

Got a link for that please? Thank you....

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=-1&f=1009