1st trip to Havana - Trip Report.


gmoney

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Thanks for posting gmoney

sounds like you had a blast hope to make there one day my self "it's on the bucket list "Glad you had a good time and your right you have to look after the good people 

Cheers 

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Great report, thanks! Looks like you had a great time. The ISOM is a mystical place, wish I get a chance to see it one day.

 

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Thanks for sharing.  A few questions...

- "..go as soon as possible." - For any specific reasons?

- Thinking of trying to swing Cuba as a honeymoon destination.  Any ammo/advice you have to strengthen my argument would be helpful.

- Who is the Steelers fan? 

Best,

Brody

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18 minutes ago, bnasse9900 said:

Thanks for sharing.  A few questions...

- "..go as soon as possible." - For any specific reasons?

- Thinking of trying to swing Cuba as a honeymoon destination.  Any ammo/advice you have to strengthen my argument would be helpful.

- Who is the Steelers fan? 

Best,

Brody

Hi Brody!

Both of us in the photo are Steeler fans.  Shout out to my friend Bill who brought his TT.  Could not get the Cuban official to crack a smile, but he was very gracious to pose and hold up the towel for the photo  

I say go ASAP bc in my opinion Havana needs to be enjoyed before there is a McDonalds on the  corner and things of that nature.  Also speaking with the locals and a gent I met on the return flight who had been traveling there the past 12 years said a few things.  

1. They city doesn't have the infrastructure to support a massive amount of tourists.  We saw one cruise shipped dock. Imainage if there's 10 or 12. Where are there going to put them, feed them, house them, etc

2. Costs there were  relatively cheap.  You can find a nice place on Airbnb for $30 a night.  Food and drinks were cheap.  But the law of supply and demand dictates as the number of tourists increases(and it is increasing) all the costs associated with that will increase as well.  

3.  I was told things were even cheaper 5 years ago when hotels and such were constantly half empty. 

4.  We were only there for 3 nights so only spent time in Havana.  But there are beautiful beaches to be enjoyed as well so on a longer trip there is more to see than just Havana.  

Hope that answered your question. 

Honestly it's an amazing place with amazing people. 

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I'm not so sure the tourism boom is coming.  What they need desperately is infrastructure and cooperation with foreign investors and governments, which can only come about by creating a positive climate for foreign investment.  I went to Cuba because I was fascinated and I think that is part of the allure right now, but ultimately that will fade, and if they are going to compete long-term with other tourism areas, it will require...

 

1. Infrastructure investments in the BILLIONS, I'm talking roads, plumbing, street lights, electrical, internet, buildings, etc.

2. Hotel capacity.  Right now, there are a handful of resorts in Havana that are even competitive with comparable resorts in the Caribbean.  Even Melia Habana, where I spent a week, was average by Caribbean tourism standards.  I could've stayed somewhere much nicer for much less money elsewhere. 

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE fan of Cuba and I intend to return as soon as circumstances allow, but much like how most of the folks on FOH aren't indicative of the average cigar smoker, we also aren't indicative of the average vacationer.  Your average vacationer doesn't want to stay in someone's house for $30 a night.  They want a resort with amenities and conveniences, not pay internet cards.  It is going to take major shifts in attitudes of the Cuban government in order to attract foreign investment, which is unlikely to change until there are assurances that Cuba will respect property rights and allow foreigners to own land, which they don't have a great history of. 

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20 minutes ago, JohnInCleveland said:

Also thanks for sharing your experiences gmoney, with the exception of the Terrible Towel.

Haha Thanks John!!

I whole heartedly agree with the infrastructure needs and it's a different type of vacation/Travel then the avg person takes.  

 

Speaking of property rights I was in awe of house after house build with beautiful architecture just run down and vacant.  With so many of them sitting on the coast just waiting to be remolded.  

Ive always said I won't get married again. I joked while in Cuba that maybe I'll marry a Cuban girl so I can buy and remodeld one of those fantastic houses.  Then you all would have a place to stay when you come visit me  ?

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3 hours ago, El Presidente said:

She will certainly end up with a beautiful house :D

 

Thanks for a great trip report! :ok:

Hahaha.  It's one of those things where the fantasy is probably better than the reality. ?

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On 08/02/2017 at 3:14 PM, bnasse9900 said:

Thanks for sharing.  A few questions...

- "..go as soon as possible." - For any specific reasons?

- Thinking of trying to swing Cuba as a honeymoon destination.  Any ammo/advice you have to strengthen my argument would be helpful.

- Who is the Steelers fan? 

Best,

Brody

If you spend your honeymoon there try to go to Cayo Largo.

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I just got back from a trip of my own. I won't hijack the thread from @gmoney but would like to echo many of the things that he said. Overall, I had a great experience. The city of Havana has a certain charm to it but the people that you meet are the highlight. Amazing to see the outlook some of the people have despite their current situation.

I took a trip to Vinales and it was amazing. I can't recommend it enough.Got to visit a plantation, curing barn, sorting factory and got to chat with a local farmer. A great experience all around.

If anyone has specific questions, feel free to PM me.

 

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Cuba as a honeymoon destination is a little "iffy" unless your bride is very adventuresome and open minded.  My wife, who is adventuresome, didn't quite appreciate the two days in the hotel with no hot water, a day and night with no a/c and no window or fan to help the situation, very spotty food quality.  On top of that, she came back with a parasite we named Jose who stayed with her for the better part of three weeks.

Me, I'm going back as soon as I can, but she won't be with me.

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