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Uhh, maybe you are too young to remember, but we HAD an immense amount of investment in the Cuban economy back in the 1950's and before, and the US owned businesses were forcibly nationalized by the Castro government.
Fulgencio Batista was a bit of a dictator himself, so it's not like Fidel was the first. With U.S. Government and Mafia help, Cuba was Vegas before Vegas...our little playground so-to-speak.
Apparently, Cuban nationalists didn't like the idea of that. I'm guessing Americans wouldn't like Trump and the Mafia teaming up with Russia to make the U.S. a playground for Eastern Europeans.
I have no idea why anyone would want to go to a 3rd world country. I guess because they can afford it and say they've been there. Waste of money.
Likewise, I don't know why anyone would spend valuable money and time to go to Disney or be cooped up on a cruise ship. Diff'rent strokes.
I went to Cuba on Spirit last January - the flights there/back from FLL were about 30% full. It's just going to take a long time for the routes to catch on due to confusion about the OFAC rules and the lack of tourist infrastructure. The airlines that stick with their routes to Cuba are making a long-term investment.
I loved every second of the trip (Havana, Vinales, Cienfuegos and Trinidad) - friendly people, music everywhere, amazing art, cheap mojitos, being disconnected from wifi and social media.
Ok folks, just try to remember the rest of the world visits Cuba and has done so for at least the last decade.
Cuba is just poor, and not developed for tourists, thus they don't get big numbers. Americans showing up and expecting Mexico will be disappointed
Our first trip to Cuba was a few years before Obama began lifting your embargo and on the charter flight it was full. One passenger was on his 19th trip there. I say our first as we expect to return there and explore the southern portion of the island. But people are correct in that Cuba is not as built up as Las Vegas so if you are wishing to see the typical tourist city Havana is not it. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into a little shop and found souvenir fridge magnets, hand made not made in China by the way. One thing to understand when in Havana is they still have not got onto the idea of store signs. There were probably too many airlines too soon on the trips to Cuba. I was not aware that you still need documentation to fly there.
Cuba has been a popular tourist destination for Canadians for 40 years. We never had a embargo, and that is one of the reasons why we are invested in their economy. We sell lots of industrial equipment, medical equipment and construction equipment to them.
In return we welcome their Medical Doctors who come to Canada to do their specialisation training.
Air Canada flies direct to Havana twice daily , from a number of Canadian cities, as does Sun wing and other charter operators.
Fulgencio Batista was a bit of a dictator himself, so it's not like Fidel was the first. With U.S. Government and Mafia help, Cuba was Vegas before Vegas...our little playground so-to-speak.
Apparently, Cuban nationalists didn't like the idea of that. I'm guessing Americans wouldn't like Trump and the Mafia teaming up with Russia to make the U.S. a playground for Eastern Europeans.
Don't get me wrong, I didn't say we were the good guys done wrong, just that the embargo had what seems to be some legitimate justification at the time.
Our first trip to Cuba was a few years before Obama began lifting your embargo and on the charter flight it was full. One passenger was on his 19th trip there. I say our first as we expect to return there and explore the southern portion of the island. But people are correct in that Cuba is not as built up as Las Vegas so if you are wishing to see the typical tourist city Havana is not it. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into a little shop and found souvenir fridge magnets, hand made not made in China by the way. One thing to understand when in Havana is they still have not got onto the idea of store signs. There were probably too many airlines too soon on the trips to Cuba. I was not aware that you still need documentation to fly there.
American citizens can travel there under 12 categories without needing to apply for a permit or go on one of those expensive "People to People" tours. One of the categories ("support of the Cuban people") is so broad it could mean anything. When booking your flight, the website makes you choose one of the categories and that's it. Well of course besides getting the Cuban tourist card/visa. However, there's conflicting information out there and some confusion still.
Plus even for me as a seasoned traveler, not having access to ATMs or credit cards was intimidating when planning the trip.
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Originally Posted by wasel
I'm not surprised, given the over capacity. Also, I'm not sure how many tourists are willing to go through the "documentation" that is still required to visit Cuba. We were looking at going a couple of months ago but you still have to prove that you are there for a valid reason (journalism, educational tour etc) and you supposedly have to show your itinerary proving you did these activities, etc. It seemed to be a bit of a hassle. You had to certify with the airline that you could document a valid reason before you bought your ticket.
There are organized tours you can take but it is a planned agenda and we are not up for planned agendas when traveling. But that's just us.
Can't you still go yhrough another country like Mexico with no problems? I know someone who went a number of times long before there was even talk of lifting travel restrictions from the US.
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