Getting there & away
Contents
Sea
Marinas around Cuba accepting foreign vessels include María la Gorda, Cabo de San Antonio, Marina Hemingway (Havana), Cienfuegos, Varadero, Trinidad and Santiago de Cuba. Harbor anchorage fees are CUC$10 per day or 45 centavos per foot for a pier slip with water and electric hookups. There are no scheduled ferry services to Cuba.
Entering the destination
Entering Cuba
For a country with such a fearsome reputation as a communist prison, Cuba’s a very straightforward place to enter. The key thing is to have your passport, onward ticket and tourist card, and know where you’re staying (at least for your first night). Ensure you’ve filled out your tourist card before you arrive at the immigration counter, and if you don’t know where you’ll be staying make something up.
Air
Despite the best efforts of the US to isolate Cuba, the island remains well connected throughout the Caribbean and beyond.
Cuba’s national airline is Cubana de Aviación (www.cubana.cu). Its modern fleet flies major routes and its fares are usually the cheapest. Still, overbooking and delays are nagging problems and it charges stiffly for every kilo above the 20kg luggage allowance.
José Martí International Airport (649-5666, 649-0410; Av de la Independencia) is 25km southwest of Havana. Terminal 1, southeast of the runway, handles domestic Cubana flights. A few kilometers away on Av de la Independencia is Terminal 2, which receives direct charter flights from the US. Most international flights use the excellent Terminal 3, a modern facility 2.5km west of Terminal 2. Aerocaribbean and Aerogaviota use Terminal 5 (aka the Caribbean Terminal).
Jamaica is a major transportation hub to Cuba. Cubana flies from Kingston and Montego Bay to Havana daily, as does Air Jamaica.
Cubana also flies twice a week to Havana from Guadeloupe, Martinique, Santo Domingo and Puerto Príncipe. The latter two flights stop in Santiago de Cuba first. From the Bahamas, Cubana flies daily between Nassau and Havana; Bahamasair flies three times a week. US citizens cannot purchase Nassau–Havana tickets online or anywhere in the US.
The following airlines fly to/from Cuba:
Aerocaribbean (833-3621; www.aero-caribbean.com)
Aeroflot (204-3200; www.aeroflot.com) Moscow
Air Canada (836-3226/27; www.aircanada.com) Toronto
Air France (833-2642; www.airfrance.com) Paris
Air Jamaica (833-3636; www.airjamaica.com) Montego Bay
Air Transat (204-3802/04; www.airtransat.com) Toronto
Bahamasair (833-3114; www.bahamasair.com) Nassau
Cayman Airways (www.caymanairways.com) Grand Cayman
Copa Airlines (204-1111; www.copaair.com) Panama City
Cubana de Aviación (834-4949; www.cubana.cu) London, Mexico City, Montego Bay, Montreal, Paris, Santo Domingo, Toronto, plus other destinations
Iberia Mexicana de Aviación (204-3454; www.iberia.com) Cancún, Mexico City
TACA (833-3114; www.taca.com) San Salvador
Virgin Atlantic (7-207-0747; www.virginatlantic.com) London
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