What is the Best Cruise Line to Cuba for 2019?

I’m wanting to plan a 4 day cruise to Cuba in 2019. Looking for feedback on the best cruise line for this. When is the best time to travel and what are the must do’s and must never do when traveling to Cuba. All suggestions/recommendations appreciated.

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I’m wanting to plan a 4 day cruise to Cuba in 2019. Looking for feedback on the best cruise line for this. When is the best time to travel and what are the must do’s and must never do when traveling to Cuba. All suggestions/recommendations appreciated.

I'm not sure if you're meaning that you want 4 days spent in Cuba or if you want to just take a 4 day cruise that will stop in Cuba. Not sure if I've ever heard of a 4 day long cruise that goes there.

Temperature-wise, I think November to March would likely be the most comfortable. Cuba (and other Caribbean countries) are very hot and humid in the summer months, although the shoulder months might be OK. I went in December and it was very pleasant.....dry and in the low-mid 70's.

As far as what to do, you can read the many, many threads on this Cuba board for suggestions.....Cuba is amazing and the people are very friendly and welcoming.

Which cruiseline?......well, again, there are many, many threads with passengers describing their experiences, so you should check them out. I'm a bit biased, but I loved Oceania.....for it's itinerary, it's ship, it's excellent food, as well as being treated like an adult who doesn't need to be bullied into buying their ship tours. I've read so many posts about the trouble that Royal Caribbean, NCL, Carnival, Azamara, HAL, Viking and Pearl Seas are giving their passengers in regards to ship tours. Many are scaring and confusing them by saying that they can't get off the ship if they haven't booked a ship tour.....that's nonsense and shows their greed. But you make your own decision after doing alot of research. Best wishes on a great trip!!

I have been looking as well for early 2019 and the NCL website does not have any cruises listed for that time. Wonder if they pulled the plug on Cuba?

We just booked on the Carnival Paradise to Cuba in April 2019. It's a 5 day cruise that visits Key West (12PM-6PM) and Havana (8AM-2AM). We really wanted to maximize our time in Havana so this one caught our eye. We will have plenty of time to satisfy the people-to-people requirements and then explore on our own. I also like that we get to see Havana by day and by night. With the length of time that we are in Cuba, we have to do 6-7 hours of tours/activities that meet the people-to-people requirements. All of Carnival's daytime excursions to meet those requirements, but my understanding is that you can book private tours as well. I've seen a few private tour companies recommended on this board that we might check out!

As far as best times to go, I've always thought the best weather in the Caribbean is in late April. But that's just my experience. It seems like it's not yet blazing hot and it doesn't seem to be really rainy.

If you check out the Carnival board, Nicole721 just did a review of her Cuba cruise. Her pictures are amazing and she provided lots of good info on how cruises to Cuba work.

We were looking at 4 night cruises to Cuba and an itinerary on Royal Caribbean’s Empress of the Seas caught our attention. The ship arrives in Havana around 3pm and stays in port until the next night at 8pm. Even though other 4 night itineraries (specially on NCL) are advertised as overnighting in Havana, the hours aren’t as good. Those itineraries usually arrive at 8am and then leaves at 6am the next morning which means you have to do your daytime and nighttime activities in one day.

The Royal Caribbean itinerary that we selected also stops in Nassau which we have visited way too many times, but we see it as a necessary evil. Another great thing about the sailing that we selected is that our kids will be sailing for only $100 (plus taxes). NCL was charging almost $500 for 3rd and 4th passengers.

There are several other itineraries and cruise lines which are much better than what we selected, but we had a very small window of time to work with. But if you have a bit more flexibility, time and money, you can find much better options. Usually the longer itineraries will give you more time in Cuba. Some will include other ports like Cienfuegos and Santiago. Our ideal cruise would’ve been a 7 night itinerary on Oceania visiting all Cubs ports, but unfortunately this itinerary is only offered a handful of times during the year and none of the dates worked for us.

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There are both 4 day and 5 day Royal Caribbean cruises. The ship will be in Key West 8am-5pm and Havana from 8am to 1pm the following day. Price-wise, the 5 day cruise which has a sea day on day 1 is only $7 more than the 4 day cruise. We booked for January 14, 2019 (hoping we will still be able to go to Cuba then).

There is some misunderstanding about the NCL Cuba cruises. We are on the Triumph the first week in April. We arrive at 8, spend the night, then do not leave til 5 the next day. That's plenty of time to spend in Havana to my way of thinking.

There is some misunderstanding about the NCL Cuba cruises. We are on the Triumph the first week in April. We arrive at 8, spend the night, then do not leave til 5 the next day. That's plenty of time to spend in Havana to my way of thinking.

Are you on the Sky?

I see that itinerary. And, I agree that that’s a much better timeframe. However during the summer months (which is when I’ll be traveling), NCL changes to the 8am to 6am timeframe for both the Sky out of Miami and for the Sun out of Port Canaveral. Not as good.

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There is some misunderstanding about the NCL Cuba cruises. We are on the Triumph the first week in April. We arrive at 8, spend the night, then do not leave til 5 the next day. That's plenty of time to spend in Havana to my way of thinking.

Sorry, but NCL just announced that they will now be in Cuba in March and April from 9AM to 2PM the next day. They have shortened the time in Cuba by 4 hours. And by the way, Triumph is a Carnival ship and it does not go to Cuba. The Sky is the ship that stays overnight and part of the next day.

Just off the Azamara Quest 9 day Cuba Intensive cruise. We stopped at Labadee, then on to Santiago de Cuba. We took a ships tour there, but were not told we could not get off the boat otherwise, as has been suggested. The next port was Cienfuegos, where we took another ships's tour out to Trinidad, a beautiful old town. We chose to take the ships tours mainly because you could pay with your credit card or onboard credit, thus needing less Cuban cash. Next we arrived in Havana at 2 pm and did not leave until 3 pm two days later, so overnight for 2 nights. Azamara put on an Azamazing Evening excursion, taking 17 busloads of passengers to the Heredia Theater in Santiago (boat did not leave that port until 6 am...) which was extremely well organized and a great opportunity to see the theater and experience the local music and dance. Azamara may be more expensive but the price includes the drinks and gratuities, as well as the Azamazing Evening, White Night, chocolate buffet, etc.