Cuban Cruise Review - May 1st, 2017 - The very FIRST Norwegian sailing!!!

[CruiseGal999]

This post is from TripAdvisor. It is VERY long, but VERY detailed. Might answer any question people have about $ in Cuba.

 

On Monday 14th March 2011 Cuba’s Central Bank devaluated the Convertible Peso or CUC by 8% against all foreign currencies.This measure now pegs the CUC at 1 x 1 with the US Dollar where it used to be pre April 2005.

The Convertible Peso is a closed currency, which means it cannot be purchased outside of Cuba. You can change your money at the Cadeca (Money Exchange Bureau) at the Airport on landing in Cuba or at your hotel.

If you reside in the UK you should take Sterling; clean, untorn bills with no writing on them, in £10, £20 or £50 denominations. Please note that Scottish notes are not acceptable. Canadians should take Canadian dollars and if you are from a European destination that uses the Euro, then take Euros. Since the UK voted to leave the European Union on June 23rd Sterling has taken a mighty hit on the foreign echange markets. The exchange rate varies on a daily basis and on Tuesday October 18th 2016 the rate for Sterling was at an time low of 1.1766 CUC's to £1. If you were exchanging Canadian dollars $100 CAD would have bought you 73.73 CUC's and for euros the rate was 1.0642 CUC's for 1 euro.

You can check the daily rate by clicking on this link:

Cuban Bank Website.

This site gives you the accurate tourist rate of exchange you will receive at a Bank, it will be slightly lower at a Cadeca. The cashier at the Cadeca will examine each note carefully sometimes by use of ultra violet light and also by manual inspection so it is very important that all your UK sterling notes are in good condition, with no rips or tears or damage to the metallic strip. Please note that no foreign coinage can be exchanged, notes only. You are now required to present your passport at all Cadecas and Banks when exchanging money into CUC's.

A good recommendation is that you only exchange £10 or £20 at the Airport Cadeca as their rates are SOMETIMES lower than those at the Cadecas at your hotel. Also check the cashier's calculation, plus ask for a receipt and check the money you receive carefully and make sure it tallies with the amount shown on the receipt. Several instances of scams by the cashiers at the Cadecas (particularly the ones at the Airport) are reported regularly on this forum. Taking your own calculator, or using the one on your mobile phone, and doing your own calculation is a particularly wise move.

At some Cuban Airports the Cadeca is not in the Arrivals Hall so if you wish to exchange some money there you may have to walk to the Departure Hall and use the Cadeca there. Do not take travellers cheques because, not only will you pay a commission when exchanging them, but if you lose them you cannot get them replaced in Cuba, you will have to wait until you return home. Also do NOT take US dollars as there is still a 10% surcharge on exchanging them. This is the ONLY currency that is penalised in this way. Also avoid using the front desk of hotels to exchange money as their rate is not regulated by the banks.

The other currency in use in Cuba is the Cuban Peso (CUP). There are 24 CUP's to 1 CUC. As a tourist staying at a resort hotel you are unlikely to come across them. In fact they cannot be bought at hotel Cadecas, so have no fear you will not be palmed off with Cuban Pesos instead of CUC's. Tourists can use the CUP, but it is mostly used by Cubans to pay for their rations, their electricity and water, to buy food in the markets and from stallholders in the streets and to eat or drink in 'peso' bars and restaurants. Basically, as a tourist, you do not have to worry at all about the Cuban peso.

Credit and Debit Cards:

With regard to the use of Credit or Debit cards in Cuba the following applies. No card issued by a bank that has any connection with the United States will be accepted in Cuba, although MasterCard now say say it will lift a block on U.S. bank-card transactions in Cuba, but to date I do not believe that they have done so..

Mastercard statement

Debit cards with the VISA logo are usually accepted by your tour rep to pay for trips as well as purchasing goods at outlets that accept debit cards. They can be used in ATM's or to draw money from a Cadeca or Bank. MASTERCARDS will not be accepted in ATM's but, as with VISA cards, so long as they are issued by a non US based bank, can be used to draw cash at the counter of a Cadeca or Bank.

As the CUC is not traded internationally, any transaction in CUC's has first of all to be converted into $US in order for it to be charged to your card. Therefore if you spend 100 CUC the amount actually billed to your credit card will be $103.00 as an exchange fee of 3% is added to the original spend. When you receive your credit card statement the rate used to convert from US dollars to Sterling is the business rate which is higher than the tourist rate so that helps reduce the total transaction costs. The 10% surcharge for using US currency does NOT apply on a credit or debit card transaction, it only applies when exchanging US dollars cash.

Most UK credit cards charge a foreign transaction fee of at least 2.5% which they disguise in the exchange rate back to Sterling. The Halifax Clarity Card is probably the best credit card to use in Cuba as it does not levy a foreign exchange fee on purchases, but on a cash withdrawal it does charge interest from the date that the withdrawal is made As it is a Mastercard it will not work in an ATM but it will work at a Bank or Cadeca. The Post Office now say that their Mastercard, which used to work in Cuba and also did not charge a foreign exchange fee, will not now be accepted in Cuba. Furthermore they will not allow you to register it for use in Cuba either by phone or on their website. Finally it is always wise to inform your credit card company of your dates of travel and to which country you are travelling to save any problems with your transactions whilst abroad.

To find out the rate that Visa use on any given day to convert a transaction from US dollars to your native currency, click on this link:

Visa exchange rates

Should you use your bank debit card or credit card to withdraw cash, the rates at participating Cadeca exchange counters are processed at a rate of 1.0336 You should also be aware of the charges most UK banks apply. The following is the policy of Lloyds Bank:

Whenever you use your debit card abroad, they convert the amount to sterling using their exchange rate on the date they take the money from your account. They will also include a 2.99% foreign exchange administration fee for every overseas transaction. When withdrawing cash abroad, either at a bank or an ATM they will charge you 1.5% of the amount withdrawn. The minimum transaction charge for this is £2.00 and the most they will charge you for each transaction is £4.50. This applies to all foreign cash transactions.

[E@syPe@zy]

I think our OP must be having a blast. Which of course I understand with such a short sailing, time speeds by and before you know it, the cruise is over. But it sure would be cool to see some pic.s and hear some details.

[CTCruiser001]

I think our OP must be having a blast. Which of course I understand with such a short sailing, time speeds by and before you know it, the cruise is over. But it sure would be cool to see some pic.s and hear some details.

We are having a blast! I have typed up much of the report after having technological issues many times this afternoon during sailaway. I still have a bit more to write, but will work on that later. We are currently at dinner in the MDR. Once we are done I will start posting along with adding photos as I edit them. Sorry for keeping everyone on the edge of your seats!

 

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[CTCruiser001]

My DW went to the outrigger lounge early morning around 6:15 am thinking we would be able to beat most crowds. We did – She reported that it got busier around 6:45 am but many people there were folks who had shore excursions through the cruise line and did not need to be there. Once it was straightened out, it went pretty quickly as the great majority of folks have organized shore excursions with the ship.

We received disembarkation ticket number 1. Shortly afterwards I made my way to outrigger to get to the open space in front and take photos of our arrival into the port of Havana.

[CTCruiser001]

 

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[twopizz]

We are having a blast! I have typed up much of the report after having technological issues many times this afternoon during sailaway. I still have a bit more to write, but will work on that later. We are currently at dinner in the MDR. Once we are done I will start posting along with adding photos as I edit them. Sorry for keeping everyone on the edge of your seats!

 

 

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Can't wait! 😃

[CTCruiser001]

The internet is VERY VERY slow...Please bare with me.

[CTCruiser001]

 

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[CTCruiser001]

 

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[CTCruiser001]

 

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[Bella O]

Thanks for taking time from your cruise to post such a great review - loving it!

[CTCruiser001]

Since we weren’t expecting to get off the ship as early as planned, we ended up going to the MDR Crossings for breakfast and enjoyed ourselves in a rear view window seat where we were able to see a bit of Cuba. Not too long afterwards, we made our way to sit in Captain Cook’s Lounge while waiting to hear for our number to be called. While waiting we were visited by the assistant cruise director and asked when she thought they might be starting to call numbers. She admitted they thought briefly about calling numbers much earlier in the morning when they had a gap between shore excursion folks, but decided not to less they overwhelm customs. But she did say she was hopeful they would be calling numbers soon.

[CTCruiser001]

It was 9:15 am when we heard the PA chimes and our number was called!!! Much better than the expected 10:30 – 11:00 am we were told by the CD Tom last night! We grabbed our things and made our way to the theater where we were told to meet – Only to be re-directed BACK through were we were to the atrium where they had the gangway set up and were scanning people off the cruise ship. We joined the short line and made our way off – CUBA! What an exciting feeling it was, but it was also a bit lackluster – Again there was no fanfare, aside from an American and Cuban flag standing side by side. We entered the terminal and turned to see the lines for customs…Oh boy...

[CTCruiser001]

Lines at customs.

 

Sorry for such a poor photo...We were told not to take photos, but I went and snapped this one quickly on the sly.

 

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[CTCruiser001]

There were 12 lines forming to allow in front of booths. Each customs agent was sitting secluded in an enclosed box when we had to enter, one person at a time, opening and closing a swinging door behind us. The agent was sitting down and asked for my passport and visa, both which were promptly turned over to her. She asked me to remove my hat and prescription eye glasses and then directed me to look towards a camera set up between us.

 

 

 

My image was captured and she spent a few moments looking through my pages of stamps on my passport. No other comments were made with the exception of her stamping my passport and returning it while directing me to the next door out of the customs booth. I asked about getting the other half of my visa since I was under the assumption that we were supposed to receive this and keep it until our departure from Cuba. No she said, the entire visa remains with her, and directed me out the door.

 

 

 

So, there was no taking of my temperature, or any probing questions. In all, the waiting in line and getting through the customs booth took about 20-25 minutes. It was painless.

[E@syPe@zy]

Really Cool! I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it really looks great!

Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us. And keep having a blast!!

[Sunburg1]

It was 9:15 am when we heard the PA chimes and our number was called!!! Much better than the expected 10:30 – 11:00 am we were told by the CD Tom last night! We grabbed our things and made our way to the theater where we were told to meet – Only to be re-directed BACK through were we were to the atrium where they had the gangway set up and were scanning people off the cruise ship. We joined the short line and made our way off – CUBA! What an exciting feeling it was, but it was also a bit lackluster – Again there was no fanfare, aside from an American and Cuban flag standing side by side. We entered the terminal and turned to see the lines for customs…Oh boy...

 

Please is his for the second day? Or the first. I had hoped the second day would be faster.

thanks

[CTCruiser001]

Right after the customs booths, there were 4 metal detectors set up with x-ray machines. We were asked to remove all belongings and place them on the provided trays. These, along with my backpack went through the x-ray scanner, while the DW and I each went through the metal detectors. Other than the stern looking monitors (security) holding portable wand metal detectors as weapons, this section was pretty harmless as well – No different than going through TSA at any American airport.I later told my wife I was afraid to take a photo of the monitors - If you google this, you'll see what I mean. Think dolled up woman with a uniform and out of place patterned fishnet stockings!

 

It would end up that we had to pass through these machines every time we entered and exited Cuba. Every other cruise I have been on saw the cruise line security team setting up x-rays and metal detectors - Not here...Cuba does it for Norwegian, so when returning, you'll go through security, go through customs (again) and then walk right onto the ship as you did the day of embarkation.

[CTCruiser001]

 

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[Sunburg1]

Lines at customs.

 

Sorry for such a poor photo...We were told not to take photos, but I went and snapped this one quickly on the sly.

 

In Cuba it is probably best to follow the rules.

[CTCruiser001]

Next up we have to exchange our Euros for CUC (Kook). We lined up what looked like a very long line, but it actually moved fairly quickly. There are many tellers available and each was working at a fast pace to get the currency exchanged quickly. I have posted an image of the rates for while we were there – This did not change the two days our ship was in port.

Next up…Our private tour day in Cuba. Unfortunately this will need to wait for tomorrow - The internet speeds here are killing me with the upload times. Hopefully tomorrow when we are at GSC and most folks are off the ship, we will see faster internet.

[CTCruiser001]

Tellers for currency exchange and the exchange rates are posted.

 

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[CruiseGal999]

 

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Great photos. Did NCL tender or dock? I thought I read we have to tender to the dock. Also, I am travelling alone, could you tell me if the people seem nice? I am thinking safety wise ... I have scheduled 2 tours with Old Car Tours and I am hoping it'll be safe for me to be alone with a driver AND a guide.

[Havasammy]

What time would you advise scheduling a private tour. Right now I have one for 9.30 but that now seems impossible. What did it cost to take a taxi from the pier to the National hotel?. Thanks so much for your info

[Yunah]

Hi there, thanks so much for all the info you've provided! Just a few more weeks for us.. Can't wait :eek:

 

I do have a question however, which you might answer later sorry if that's the case. You've told us about entering the country and leaving half of your visa with the customs officer. Upon entering and leaving the country you need to go through customs and X rays. But when do you leave the other half of your visa with customs? And what about when you enter for the second time (on day 2)? Sorry full of questions :)

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip!