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Hinda
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Shatters the leftist romantic notions about him...,

Picking myself up off the floor from laughing so hard! I'm about as far right of a leftist as you can get! :')

 

But I enjoy talking to locals wherever I go and get a feel for their lives and thoughts. I was sharing that.

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I would appreciate any info on the ships tours in Cuba. I am on the Dec 17 cruise out of Miami. Has anyone done any of the tours and if so how were they.

 

Hinda

Yes. We just came back from an 8 day cruise to Cuba on Sirena. First time sailing with Oceania, and first time to Cuba. The shore excursions were excellent, but expensive, IMO. Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Havana. We walked around on our own in Havana on day 2. Cuba is very safe to walk around on your own day and night. I enjoy interacting with locals, and Cubans are friendly, warm, and welcoming towards Americans, which we are.

Enjoyed the cruise and Cuba so much, that we booked Cuba for 2019.

Enjoy your cruise. :)

Edited by Kingofcool1947
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Yes. We just came back from an 8 day cruise to Cuba on Sirena. First time sailing with Oceania, and first time to Cuba. The shore excursions were excellent, but expensive, IMO. Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Havana. We walked around on our own in Havana on day 2. Cuba is very safe to walk around on your own day and night. I enjoy interacting with locals, and Cubans are friendly, warm, and welcoming towards Americans, which we are.

Enjoyed the cruise and Cuba so much, that we booked Cuba for 2019.

Enjoy your cruise. :)

 

Forgot to add, all ship sponsored tours. We went to an inspiring cultural music presentation in Santiago de Cuba, went to a Music and Artist tour in Cienfuegos. Met some very talented young musicians and artists. In Havana we did a walking tour of Old Havana, and a night tour of the Tropicana Night Club Show. Fabulous if you like that kind of Las Vegas type show. Price includes a guided bus tour of the neighborhood, the transportation to Tropicana from ship and back. Show includes a complimentary cigar, beer, wine, or soft drink, snacks for all guests. Bottle of rum for each 2 guests.

Enjoy.

Edited by Kingofcool1947
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I would appreciate any info on the ships tours in Cuba. I am on the Dec 17 cruise out of Miami. Has anyone done any of the tours and if so how were they.

 

Hinda

 

Hello Hinda,

Nice to see you back on these boards.

We are on the Cuba/Sirena cruise for 12/27.

 

Meme & Joel

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Just found this on the Melia Cohiba hotel website:

 

HABANA CAFÉ

 

 

 

  • Party room with bar, cabaret and dance music.
  • Decorated in a Hard Rock style and reminiscent of 1950s Havana, with motorbikes, vintage cars and a plane and brilliant live entertainment every night with invited guests and the classic Buena Vista Social Club, who invite you to enjoy your best night in Havana.
  • Located on the ground floor with separate entrance.
  • This nightclub with bar and cabaret, independent entrance and located on the ground floor lobby, offers a la carte dinner (9pm to 2:30am). Capacity for 280 diners. Smart dress required.

Must still play there, but maybe not every night.

Yes - it has more than one venue. I had edited my post. It was a highlight of my time in Havana as was wandering the area called Old Havana

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Hello Hinda,

Nice to see you back on these boards.

We are on the Cuba/Sirena cruise for 12/27.

 

Meme & Joel

 

 

Nice to hear from you. I sent you an email.

 

Hinda

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We are going to Cuba for four days of the Sirena, Oct. 10 cruise, and I am sure we will enjoy the Cubans we meet. We are looking forward to the experience, That being said, any Cuban who is caught complaining about their government will no doubt end up punished severely, perhaps residing in their version of a gulag. As tourists, we are all experiencing to some degree the Cuban version of a Potemkin Village.

 

To reiterate, if Cuba is so wonderful why are Cuban-Americans not returning to reside there and why are Cubans prohibited from emigrating freely to other countries? The very friendliest and happiest people we have encountered were in a free democratic nation not very far away: Costa Rica.

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You really need to talk to people that actually have lived in a true dictatorship!

 

Or see it yourself. Definitely eye opening to talk to the locals about the restrictions they live with. They are hopeful that change is coming but it can’t happen soon enough.

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I would appreciate any info on the ships tours in Cuba. I am on the Dec 17 cruise out of Miami. Has anyone done any of the tours and if so how were they.

 

Hinda

 

It just breaks my heart to see people talk about cruise ship excursions when going to Cuba.

 

Do private tours ... the money goes directly into the Cuban people's hands/pockets! NOT the cruise line.

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We are going to Cuba for four days of the Sirena, Oct. 10 cruise, and I am sure we will enjoy the Cubans we meet. We are looking forward to the experience, That being said, any Cuban who is caught complaining about their government will no doubt end up punished severely, perhaps residing in their version of a gulag. As tourists, we are all experiencing to some degree the Cuban version of a Potemkin Village.

 

To reiterate, if Cuba is so wonderful why are Cuban-Americans not returning to reside there and why are Cubans prohibited from emigrating freely to other countries? The very friendliest and happiest people we have encountered were in a free democratic nation not very far away: Costa Rica.

 

Cuban government/rule is NOT wonderful. The Cuban PEOPLE are wonderful. I LOVED my cruise and experience last year. The people were amazing. I never felt so safe travelling alone (I'm a 55 year old female who travels alone).

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I don’t disagree. And the Cuban people are extremely tolerant, obviously, since there have never had free elections or the freedom to travel. Or freedom of speech; any Cuban who complains likely ends up in prison.

 

In that regard, PatriciaF, thank you for responding appropriately to SeaBand’s laughably hyperbolic one-liner....

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...any Cuban who complains likely ends up in prison.

Our guides and other locals who we met were honest with us about life in their country and didn't sugarcoat their answers. Must not have been afraid of prison. ;)

 

Did the Cuban locals who YOU met say that if they complain they'll end up in prison??

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The dissidents and Cuban Americans support the embargo. It will be lifted with human rights concessions that the “new regime” is unwilling to make. The new president is an unelected Castro acolyte Marxist. Please do some research. Beware of Potemkin Villages...

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The dissidents and Cuban Americans support the embargo. It will be lifted with human rights concessions that the “new regime” is unwilling to make. The new president is an unelected Castro acolyte Marxist. Please do some research. Beware of Potemkin Villages...

 

Oceania cruisers visit ports in China, Myanmar, Russia and other countries with questionable human rights policies. Yet a thread about Cuba gets filled with a disproportionate number political statements. Why bother with the inevitable and predictable posts for each side's point of view? Neither side is going to convince the other. Each thread is a clone of the previous one and a preview of future ones. Sigh.

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Oceania cruisers visit ports in China, Myanmar, Russia and other countries with questionable human rights policies. Yet a thread about Cuba gets filled with a disproportionate number political statements. Why bother with the inevitable and predictable posts for each side's point of view? Neither side is going to convince the other. Each thread is a clone of the previous one and a preview of future ones. Sigh.

(y)

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For those having done Cuba, what tours would you recommend?

In May we had a very informative and fun time on our Oceania excursion to Trinidad. We also had a great time when we went on an Oceania excursion to El Cobre (when we were docked in Santiago de Cuba) where we got to listen to a fantastic metal drum band.

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For those having done Cuba, what tours would you recommend?

 

See post #28?

May 8 day Cuba cruise on Oceania Sirena.

We also did own our own in Havana, a private 3 hour tour in a pink Cadillac covertable @ $45. :cool: (y)(y)

Enjoy. Don’t let whatever your opinion of Cuban politics get in the way of enjoying Cuba. Keep an open mind. We interacted with warm, and friendly Cuban locals.

Good luck.

King

Edited by Kingofcool1947
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So nothing has changed.

We went on four private tours , used four different cars and drivers ate in two privately owned restaurants.

Every penny we spent went directly to the Cuban people.

No nothing has changed.

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