Anyone going to Cuba?

Hi we've booked for Cuba next year . It sounds a great itinerary - is anyone else here going?

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Hi - Are you doing one of the 7 day cruises or the longer ones? I have my eye on one of these - February is such a great month to get away from the UK.

I'm doing the 7 day one in February in a package with hotels at either end. Can't wait!

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We're off on SC on the Yachtsman's Paradise (Istanbul - Athens) on Wednesday. Enjoy Cuba!

Hi,

Yes we are 4 people booked on the cruise next February with hotels at either end. When do you go.

We are on first sailing on 26th feb with stays before and after at the Saratoga hotel.

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Sorry that should have been 16th feb 2014

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I'm doing the 7 day one in February in a package with hotels at either end. Can't wait!

 

 

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Hi,

Can you tell me who you booked the package through, what else it includes and how much it costs? We've thought about Star Clippers many times, but always do something else instead as we're never sure.

Thanks!

We booked it through trailfinders with star clippers Direct which in the UK is through the Fred Olsen. The package included three nights at the hotel Saratoga in Havanna All transfers to the ship which is docked at Trinidad and then transfer back to Havana and one night at the end at Havana it also included flights to and from the UK on virgin. I think the base rate going in February was 2390 pounds sterling but we upgraded one of the flights so it was more and we've also travelled with star clippers before so we got an an extra discount. Hope that this helps please PM me if you want more information thanks.

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we are booked on the 16th Feb too.

Looking forward to meeting you!

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we arrive in Cuba on 27th January for a three week tour prior to the sailing, looking forward to being on the Star Flyer again, see you on board

Looking forward to our first Star Clipper experience.

Have done two river cruises and two Azamara as well as one Windstar.

Usually it is minus 20 Celsius in Ottawa in February.

Looking forward to our first Star Clipper experience.

Have done two river cruises and two Azamara as well as one Windstar.

Usually it is minus 20 Celsius in Ottawa in February.

I am sure you will have a brilliant time, we are looking forward to being on the good ship Star Flyer again. We have been on Azamara and Silversea and it is a very different experience. Minus 20 sounds cold it will be a bit warmer here in sunny Brighton (UK).

This will be our fourth sc cruise - and our second on the flyer. It's a great experience. We've also done river cruises with croisieurope, as well going with traditional lines silversea and seabourn - each has its own unique character. We look forward to meeting you!

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Hi all. We are on star flyer on 23rd feb for 7 nights. Booked through virgin holidays with stays either side. Can't wait!

We have been to Cuba 3 times through the only legal means available to a US citizen, a people to people cultural group. We've been to 14 of the 15 provinces. If I can answer any questions about your upcoming Cuban experience, you can email me at ritalou1125 at att dot net. Please put CC Cuba in the subject line.

Hi we are on the star flyer from 16th February as well. Look forward to meeting you then..

Wow Cuba, how fun. Wish we could go but we're Americans.

Let us know how it goes :)

Paddy-O, We are Canadians who might be interested in the Star Clipper's cruise to Cuba. Just curious who you booked this through? It seems it is not being marketed in North America at all. Thanks.

ckcruise - We booked thru Exclusive Tours, Toronto. But went thru my TA here in Ottawa

Hi,

I have a cruise booked for September 2014 through my travel agent here in Ottawa from Athens to Istanbul. That is with Voyages to Antiquity. My travel agent went through Exclusive Tours to book that. While looking at the Exclusive website, I noticed they also offered Star Clippers cruises, & could not resist it.

So - I will be on the Star Flyer 16th Feb for 7 days round the south coast of Cuba. Only 7 days to see if I am ok with sailing & to get my feet wet.

Under the stars, under canvas - wonderful. Hope they have hammocks on deck.

Steve

I have never seen hammocks on the Clippers - sorry about that. How about the "free upgrade" to lying in the net alongside the bowsprit - now, that is quite something!!

Would probably be in the way on deck but, maybe I could buy one ashore & hang it in my cabin.

I could not find anything on line about excursions or approximate arrival & departure times so I asked.

These are the replies for anyone interested....

Star Flyer winter 2014 – REVISED SEPTEMBER 2014

Cienfuegos, Cuba – Cayo Blanco, Cuba – Casilda, Cuba – Cayman Brac, Cayman islands – Grand Cayman , Cayman islands - Cayo Largo, Cuba – Archipelago de los Canarreos, Cuba (sailing) – Cienfuegos, Cuba

Duration of tours is approximate and may vary depending on traffic and weather conditions. Time spent on site is also given on an indicative basis only.Minimum number of participants indicated per coach or group.

Cayo Blanco, Cuba

Every once in a while Star Clippers find an idyllic private island that offers everything a beach lover could possibly want. Cayo Blanco, located just off the southern coast of Cuba near Trinidad, is just such a Hedonist’s paradise.

Leisure Time

Casilda, Cuba

Trinidad & the Hacienda Iznaga

By air-conditioned motor coach and on foot

Duration: 6h30/7h

Minimum number of participants*:15, no Maximum

Lunch included

Price €89

The departure point for this excursion is the Port of Casilda; from here you will drive to the “Valle de los Ingenios” (Valley of the Sugar Mills or ingenios). Right up until the 19th century the valley was Cuba’s most important sugar producing region. Many of the sugar mills and estate houses remain, albeit mostly in ruins.

The quaint village of Iznaga, 14 kilometres east of Trinidad, is chiefly known for the Hacienda Iznaga built between 1835-1845 by Alejo Maria del Carmen e Iznaga, once one of the wealthiest sugar planters in Cuba.

The hacienda features a 43.5 metre tower which, according to legend, was built as a wager.

Alejo was to build a tower while his brother Pedro dug a well, the winner would be whoever achieved the greatest height or depth. As no well has been found, it is safe to assume that Alejo won the bet.

The tower has seven levels, each one smaller than the one below, and is crowned by a watch tower. From this vantage point Iznaga could survey his vast sugar plantations and 15 of the valley’s 57 mills. Three bells in the tower, each with a different chime, were used to ring out messages to the surrounding countryside.

After the visit to the Hacienda you will drive to Trinidad, Cuba’s oldest and most enchanting “outdoor museum”, declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1988 because of its exceptional colonial architecture. The combination of lovingly restored houses with cool, tiled courtyards and a spectacularly beautiful natural environment, between the Sierra del Escambray and the Caribbean, creates a unique atmosphere which will be long remembered by visitors.

The buildings surrounding the central square “Plaza Mayor”, in the historical town centre, date from the 18th and 19th centuries when trade in sugar (from Valle de los Ingenios) and slaves brought great riches to the area. They were once owned by wealthy landowners, but nowadays most of them house museums.

There is a timeless quality about the place; old ladies in rocking chairs listen to their caged canaries on Colonial porches, and mark the passage of time as they have done for centuries.

- a buffet lunch will be served in a local Trinidadian restaurant (one drink included with lunch)

- during the walking tour you will be offered a typical Cuban cocktail, the “Chanchancarra” made from Honey and Rum, visit the Architect museum and the Holy Trinity church

- there will be some leisure time in Trinidad, time permitting

Please see below the itinerary, knowing the times can change because of the weather, the wind…:

(Port tendered in red)

Sun

16-Feb-14

Cienfuegos, Cuba

ETA 07.00 ETD 22.00

Mon

17-Feb-14

Cayo Blanco de Casilda, Cuba

ETA 12.00 ETD 17.00

Tue

18-Feb-14

Casilda (Trinidad), Cuba

ETA 08.00 ETD 17.00

Wed

19-Feb-14

Cayman Brac (U.K.)

ETD 11.00 ETD 19.30

Thu

20-Feb-14

George Town, Grand Cayman (U.K.)

ETA 07.30 ETD 16.00

Fri

21-Feb-14

Cayo Largo, Cuba

ETA 11.00 ETD 22.00

Sat

22-Feb-14

Sailing in Archipelago de los Canarreos

Sun

23-Feb-14

Cienfuegos, Cuba

ETA 07.00 ETD 22.00

Hope this may be helpful to someone.

Steve

heres some more of the excursions on offer...I am not too sure how to go about booking these but I would just send a note to my travel agent & let her organise it..

Cayman Brac

Christopher Columbus discovered Cayman Brac and Little Cayman quite by chance when his ship was blown off course while sailing from Hispaniola to Panama during his fourth trip to the New World in the year of grace 1503.

These two low lying islands were host to a thriving community of sea turtles which prompted Columbus to name them “Las Tortugas”.

By the time the first recorded English visitor, Sir Francis Drake, landed on the islands in 1585, they were known collectively as the “Caimanas” (from the Caribbean Indian word for sea crocodile); indeed that intrepid explorer reported seeing “great serpents called Caymanas” roaming the island (although rumour has it that these were merely the Rock igunanas that inhabit the island to this day).

The islands’ fresh water springs and abundant wild life made them particularly attractive to marauding pirates who would stop off there to replenish their supplies of food and water before setting out again on their swashbuckling adventures.

Cayman Brac lies about 143 km north east of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean sea. It is 12 miles/19km long with an average width of 1.25 miles (2 km) making a total surface area of approximately 15 square miles (38 km2).

It is the most dramatic of the Cayman islands with a massive central limestone outcrop, known as The Bluff, rising steadily along the length of the island up to 140 feet (43 m) above sea level at the eastern end. The island owes its name to this geological feature, “brac” being the Gaelic term for a bluff.

Georgetown, Grand Cayman

Cayman bicycle tour & Tiki beach

Duration : 4 hours

Minimum number of participants: 8, maximum 16

Price : €49

Participants will be transported to Seven Mile beach. On arrival you will be issued with your mountain bikes and safety gear and will receive a short orientation and safety briefing.

The first leg of the adventure will take you along quaint country lanes and roads as you wind your way through the West Bay area.

Explore the rugged coastline of Boatswain Bay and the palm covered lanes of Cobalt coast.

The excursion continues to the Cayman Island’s Turtle Farm, the Rum Cake Factory and an unusual rock formation to be found at “Hell”, before returning back to the departure point where you will have approximately an hour and a half to enjoy snorkelling at the reef or just relax and admire the peaceful tropical setting before boarding their air-conditioned bus for the journey back.

Stingray City Sandbar by catamaran

Duration: 3 hours

Minimum number of participants*:20, Maximum 50

Price*: €49

A not to be missed experience! Just off Grand Cayman’s north shore lies a sandbar inhabited by stingrays. Locals have been feeding these graceful creatures for years and now they are so tame that they will eat right out of your hand. Put on your mask and snorkel and swim freely among the rays, meeting such characters as “Ray Charles”, “Sugar Ray” and other members of the Southern Ray family.

Refreshments will be offered onboard.

Turtles and Stingrays; a Land and Sea Adventure

Duration: 4 hours

Minimum number of participants: 20, maximum :40

Price*: €55

Guests will board air-conditioned buses in Georgetown and set off for a combined Island Sightseeing Tour and Stingray City Snorkel experience.

The excursion starts with a sightseeing drive along Seven Mile Beach and the Hotel Zone. The buses will stop outside the Governor’s Residence for a photo opportunity prior to arriving at the Cayman Island’s Turtle Farm.

Afterwards you will be taken to the rock formation and post office of “Hell”, where you will be able to send a post card to your friends stamped “from Hell”. Then it’s on to the Cayman Islands Yacht Club, where passengers will board a purpose built snorkel boat and cruise out to Stingray City. Here you will get a unique opportunity to interact and even feed one of the Caribbean’s most graceful creatures, the Southern Stingray.

After this truly memorable experience you will cruise back to your transport and return to the cruise ship pier.

Stingray city one tank dive

Duration: 2.5 hours

Minimum number of participants: 6, maximum 16

Price: €66

After a short bus ride to the Cayman Islands Yacht Club, guests will board a purpose built dive boat and cruise out to the original Stingray City Location. Just sit back and relax, your Captain and crew are on hand to pamper you and take care of all the diving gear.

Once the boat is securely anchored, there will be a short briefing and the Dive Team will introduce you to the amazingly friendly Southern Stingray family. Follow in the footsteps of National Geographic reporters and Discovery Channel and enjoy a close encounter with these enchanting creatures.

Regularly voted as the world’s best 12-15ft Dive experience.

The Stingray City dive lasts for 40 minutes and afterwards you will cruise back to shore and return to the cruise ship pier.

Cayo Largo del Sur, Cuba

Cayo Largo, only 3 kilometres wide with 28 kilometres of white sandy beach and very few resorts, is how the Caribbean used to be in days gone by.

The second largest island of the Canarreos Archipelago is a marine wildlife sanctuary which is home to many different species. You will find turtle kraals where hatchlings no bigger than the palm of your hand are raised to adulthood and released to the sea, visit the island where iguanas roam freely, and bathe in a natural swimming pool formed by the ocean, surrounded by dunes of flour-fine sand.

Leisure time

Archipelago de los Canarreos, Cuba

This chain of 350 islands, both big and small, stretches 100 miles westward from the Gulf of Batabano on Cuba’s South Coast. Ranging from unnamed sand specks to the 850 square mile Isla de la Juventud, it is an unspoilt paradise waiting to be discovered by divers and beachcombers. Star Flyer will sail in the archipelago.

Cienfuegos, Cuba

The lovely neo-classical residences and elegant public buildings lining the Prado, Cienfuego’s mile long boulevard, bear witness to the Empire origins of this gracious city on the Bahia de Cienfuegos, founded in 1819 by French immigrants.

Cienfuegos, a World Heritage Site, has escaped the ravages of many modern cities thanks to its relative isolation. Architectural highlights of the city and nearby Punta Gorda include the remarkable Palacio de Valle, the Jagua Forgress the luxuriant Jardin Botanico, the Cathedral and the Victorian era yacht club.

Transfers to Havana.