Cuba Customs in port of Havana

[Luvtocruise57]

We would like to bring a suitcase full of supplies for the Cuban people. Will customs at the Havana port allow us to take the suitcase off the ship? Thank you.

[NBBaker]

We would like to bring a suitcase full of supplies for the Cuban people. Will customs at the Havana port allow us to take the suitcase off the ship? Thank you.

They likely will not. It is frowned upon, (and is in poor taste.)

[Minpiter]

We just got back and took some items. A suitcase full would probably not be allowed. There seems to be a dollar amount limit on the gifts you can bring in. $25 worth per person was the limit we were told. After going through customs you have to go through security. All of you bags have to go through x-ray, just like ship security. It is here that we found some of the agents will go through your gifts. If you have too much, they will just keep saying, “too much, too much”. In this situation, some were let through if they asked the agent if they would like anything from the gifts, some agents just took things, and a very few just told them they would have to either throw the stuff away or take it back to the ship.

We had a back pack each filled with zip lock bags filled with toiletries, gum, candy, and dish soap. Ours didn’t apear to be “too much” and we were allowed through. Security did take some gum for themselves.

The Cuban people were so happy and greatful for our gifts. Our guide helped us distribute our gifts as we walked our tour. It was definitely appreciated. You can give them money all day long, but when the items that they need just aren’t available for purchase, it does not help them.

I would just suggest you scale the amount of items you bring down to a small back pack each.

[Luvtocruise57]

Thank you Minpiter for your reply. I appreciate your suggestions and information.