Capital: Havana

Language: Spanish, English in tourist areas

Population: 11,100,000

Religion: Catholic

Location

The Cuban archipelago consists of the island of Cuba and thousands of other small cays and islets. It lies in the Gulf of Mexico, just over 100 miles south of Florida. The main island is over 700 miles long.

Visa

All UK citizens require a visa to enter Cuba. I went down to the Cuban Embassy in High Holborn, London and purchased my visa in just a few minutes. It cost 15GBP.

Please check with the Cuban Embassy for the latest visa requirements.

Weather and Time

Cuba is 5 hours behind the UK.

The climate in Cuba makes it an ideal holiday location with around 330 sunny days every year. The average air temperature is around 25^o C. (78^o F) although the humidity can be high during the rainy season (May to October).

August to November is hurricane season in the Caribbean and while we were in Cuba, Hurricane Dean made its way across the Atlantic and hit St Lucia and Martinique in the Eastern Caribbean. Our flight was due to leave on the Sunday by which time, Dean had moved towards Jamaica and looked likely to head onto Mexico as it builds to a Category 5 storm (winds of more than 155mph).

Airports

Cuba is served by a number of international and domestic airports with flights to many different countries. We flew direct from London Gatwick (LGW) to Havana International (HAV) with Virgin Atlantic. The charter planes fly into Varadero (VRA), the main beach resort.

We found Havana airport to be very efficient. We were fortunate to be one of the first passengers off the plane and in addition, our luggage was delivered quickly. We were actually in our pre-arranged car 40 minutes after the plane touched down.

Please note, all Cuban airports charge a departure fee of 25CUC which is payable in cash.

Currency and Banks

The currency of Cuba is the Peso although there are 2 versions of it. One is for use by locals only and the other, Convertible Pesos (CUC) is for the tourists. The exchange rate was fixed to the US Dollar a while ago but now the USD is much weaker. You can exchange Sterling (or Euros) at your hotel and we ended up with an exchange rate of 1.3CUC to the pound. However, if you use your credit card, they will charge it in USD so you will get the exchange rate of the USD (minus around 10% commission). Given that the USD is currently around £1 = $2, it is far better to take money from your card than to exchange cash.

For any transactions in the bank, you will need to show your passport. There are a few cash machines but they will only take Visa and Mastercard cards, not Switch/Maestro. You should also be aware that some UK issued cards will not be accepted. Check with your card issuer before you travel.

Electricity

Cuba has mixture of 110v and 220v power outlets with both the standard European fitting (2 round pins) and the US fitting of 2 flat pins. Be sure to bring your adaptors with you as buying them in Cuba may prove to be a challenge.

Brief History

Cuba's documented history goes back over 500 years when Christopher Columbus reported the existence of the island in 1492. In the early 1500's, most of the existing inhabitants had been killed by the Spanish and the new landowners started to bring over their African slaves.

Spanish rule continued until the first war of independence in the late 1800's. The Cuban's had the Spanish on the verge of surrender when the United States intervened and took away their victory. US soldiers occupied the island and their control lasted until in the 1950s, Fidel Castro led an attack on the Moncada Garrison in Santiago de Cuba. It was the action that initiated the struggle and the revolution triumphed in 1959.

Castro's close ties to the Soviet Union which have caused problems with the United States and a number of economic sanctions and other restrictive measures still remain in place today.

Politics

Fidel Castro has ruled Cuba since the 1950s and although he had strong communist ties in his early years, the country claims to be socialist. More recently, his brother Raul has taken temporary control due to Fidel's poor health.

You will see political signs all over the place in Havana and to a lesser extent in Varadero. One thing that did surprise me was that there are pictures, t-shirts, etc of Che Guevara everywhere.

Personally, I don't know what to make the political setup in Cuba and I didn't really discuss it with any of the locals. However, a couple of the local people I spoke to did think that things would dramatically change in the next 5-10 years.

Cigars and Rum

Cuban cigars are acknowledged to be the finest and most sought after cigars in the world. In Cuba, you will find no shortage of people trying to sell them to you. However, you need to be aware of the Cuban export restrictions when you try to take the cigars out of the country.

Havana Club rum is available everywhere and is very good. They were even giving away litre bottles as prizes for some of the games in our hotel in Varadero so there was no shortage of rum in out luggage on the way home.

1950s American Cars

One of the many effects the US has made on Cuba was that in during the time it controlled Cuba, it obviously imported a number of things including cars. Since the trade restrictions, vehicles have been harder to get hold of but the Cubans are very resourceful and a large number of these wonderful 1950s cars can still be seen on the streets all over Cuba today.

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