Double-decker tour buses hit Havana

[Jimmy2]

Double-decker tour buses hit Havana; buses are sometimes used by locals, too

3 hours ago

HAVANA — Red-and-blue, double-decker buses have begun bouncing down the Cuban capital's potholed streets on sightseeing tours inspired by those in locales from London to Mexico City.

But instead of Piccadilly Circus or the Eiffel Tower, this ride lets visitors cruise past crumbling buildings frozen in the 1950s and gawk at billboards featuring Fidel Castro and the likeness of Ernesto "Che" Guevara that looms over Revolution Plaza. Stops include the Havana Hilton - which Castro seized and renamed the Havana Libre, or "Free Havana" hotel, when he took power in 1959 - and Ernest Hemingway's favourite watering hole, El Floridita.

Fitting on an island plagued by woeful public transportation, the tourist fleet features just 12 buses - three of them double-decker. Still, Havana residents have begun to hop aboard just to get from place to place, since the tour buses offer some of the few direct rides from downtown to public beaches east of Havana.

"It gives you a good overview of the city," Argentine tourists Karina and Carlos Oxandaburu said almost in unison aboard the upper deck of a tour bus on a recent Saturday.

The were looking forward to touring Revolution Plaza, a sprawling, square of concrete where Fidel Castro and his brother Raul have offices. The towering Guevara sculpture is affixed to an Interior Ministry building nearby.

Stenciled with the English phrase "Hop on! Hop off!," the tour buses cover 150 kilometres along three routes. One leaves the plaza and heads to the historic district, stopping at La Floridita and the nearby Capitolio, a replica of the U.S. Capitol that's slightly taller than Washington's version.

Another route goes down the beach-front Malecon boulevard, while the third leaves from Central Park and ends at Santa Maria, a beach east of the city.

All three double-decker buses ply the Malecon. Two were special orders from China and the other is on loan from the beach resort of Varadero, 140 kilometres east of Havana.

Gretel Gomez, commercial director for the state-run concern that handles transportation for tourists, said officials plan to add more double-decker buses by the end of the year.

More than two million visitors come to Cuba a year, even though Washington's trade embargo prohibits American tourists. Gomez said more than 20,000 people have ridden tour buses since they began running May 6.

She said officials first proposed double-decker buses for Havana in 2002, but tabled the plan because public transportation was so spotty that snazzy tour buses might have insulted ordinary Cubans.

"We had to wait until transportation got better," she said.

While problems persist, the government is spending US$2 billion to import 3,000 modern, accordion-style buses from China. That opened the door for double-decker tours.

Tour bus tickets cost five convertible pesos, about $6, and allow riders to get on and off at 44 stops. That's a lot of ground for not a lot of money - so much so that some Cubans who live east of the city have begun climbing aboard as if they were normal buses.

"Every day it's more Cubans," said tour bus driver Ernesto ***.

Still, almost everyone in Cuba works for the government, and the average state salary is US$19.50 per month, meaning the trip is a luxury for many.

"It's ideal for getting to know the city," said Edelma Rodriguez, a 54-year-old housewife who was riding a tour bus during a recent visit from her home in Matanzas province. "It's a little expensive for Cubans, but once a year you can afford to have this kind of fun."