Cruise to Cuba with Viking

My husband and I have booked a cruise to Cuba for November 2018. We will be docked in Cienfuegos for 3 days. The listed excursions are not that great and we would like to get off the ship and walk around and/or use a local travel agency to see more of the city. Can we do this with the group visa that we get from Viking? Does Viking have any ability to book local tours?

I can't speak for Viking but we cruised to Cuba on Oceania in June. We were told repeatedly that we had to follow a US rule that we only travel with a US owned tour when we were off the ship. This was Oceania's way of selling tours I guess. They worked hard to scare us, but we never went on a Oceania tour, so expensive. I arranged tours beforehand with Cuban companies, both in Havana and Santiago de Cuba. We also just walked off the ship, hired a taxi and did whatever we wished. As we overnighted in both cities, we went out to hear local music both nights. Your cruise ship issued visa and passport must be with you. In Havana, they checked it the first time off, but waved us through after that... how did they know we had already been checked? It was checked every time in Santiago de Cuba and taken from us there as it was our last stop. Getting off and on ship was always an easy process.

Cienfuegos had just been hit by a tropical storm and our captain said we wouldn't go there because the harbor was unsafe. We loved our Cuba visit and highly recommend both cities.

Dear jbeeg,

Thanks so much for your answer to my questions. This is exactly what I wanted to know. I'm not sure we will make other arrangements beforehand but I am very interested in making arrangements to see more than what Viking offers.

Carolyn

Carolyn-

I think you need to write to Viking for their opinion. I'm happy to hear what Jbeeg wrote but it differs from the Viking explanation of their group visa. We are also 3 days in one Cuban port and at this point Viking is only offering one included tour.

I wrote Viking and I'm waiting for their reply.

I have been wondering the same thing .I was really disappointed that we could not even get on a free included tour, already booked up, and even the expensive ones were pretty much gone by the first day of availability . We did get the overnight to Havana but that's it. I wish I had a clear picture of what we are allowed to do..

We are on the November trip to Cuba. I am surprised that even the free tours were booked and unavailable to you. I will make sure I book as soon as they open up the process. I am interested in a private tour but confused with what is allowed.

Thank you for your replies to my question. I will certainly pay attention to when the Viking tours open for booking. Also if you receive a reply to you message to Viking I would love to hear their response. I think the cruise companies are very pushy about their own tours. We took a Baltic cruise with Holland America a few years ago and they were really promoting their tours to St. Petersburg. We contracted (via the internet) with a private company (Denruss) and had a great two days in the city.

Carolyn

I am going to post again about my experience on Oceania because I think its quite relevant. I have done a bit of research on the topic of Cuban visas or tourist cards for US citizens. As far as I can tell, they are all the same. They tell Cuban authorities that you have an definite arrival and departure date. That's the entire purpose except for money for whomever collects the fee. They all look alike if you are a US citizen. I have read that NCL & RCCL also steer passengers to buying their tours because they HAVE to tour with a US company. We were actually told on Oceania that when disembarking in Havana, we had to go down the left stairs to find the Oceania tours. If we went down the right stairs, well.... we might not be seen again. No joke. Of course, we went down the right stairs and there we were... in Havana. Along with Americans off the ship and Americans who flew to Cuba.

You will or already have checked a box in a form stating why you are going to Cuba. You have to keep this form and proof of what you did in the country for 5 years. Unless of course, you don't have any proof. Who exactly is going to ask for that? I doubt you will get a reply from Viking that is anything other than rote- you have to go with a US tour.

I know how worried we were about all of this, it was beginning to sour the Cuba experience. So we just went for it and were very happy with our trip. With both the private tours we took, we committed to them through email, but did not make any deposit. We paid in cash either before or after the tour started. We also just walked off the ship to go to music venues at night. Walked to one, taxied to the other. Cuba is a very safe place!

Speaking of cash, take Canadian or Euros (get them at a US bank) to exchange for Pesos to avoid the extra 10% surcharge to exchange US money (there is also a 3% charge on any currency exchange). Is there a thread on this?

A funny thing- as we were leaving Cuba in Santiago de Cuba, we had some Pesos to spend. There were some souvenir vendors right at the ship, after passing through customs. I guess they had taken some US dollars from tourists and now offered them to us straight exchange for our Pesos. We avoided buying stuff we didn't really want, they avoided paying 13% to exchange at currency offices. Wow!

We did a Cuba cruise in spring with Azamara. Like you we read all the info on being required to use the organized ship tours. All ships give you the same info because it comes from the US govt. But we too found that once we reached Cuba there were no restrictions. We enjoyed our shore excursions, but in our free time we wandered around Havana on our own, took a hop on hop off bus, etc. Many people hired local taxis for tours or prearranged things with locals. Never any guarantees that this will continue to be the case, but if we took another Cuba cruise we would do more on our own.

I want to emphasize the idea of taking Canadian money or Euros to change--much better deal than US. There were money exchanges easily available at every port.

Enjoy the trip

Jay

I have been wondering the same thing .I was really disappointed that we could not even get on a free included tour, already booked up, and even the expensive ones were pretty much gone by the first day of availability . We did get the overnight to Havana but that's it. I wish I had a clear picture of what we are allowed to do..

Viking have to offer a free included tour to everyone although you may not get your preferred time slot. if there are no slots available contact Viking and also keep checking on My Viking Journey as it sounds as if they will have to open up some more slots.

This has become a very useful discussion. I think that ships going to Cuba is still so new that a lot of information is not available. Also, we will take some Euros with us to exchange. I continue to explore what is available in Cienfuegos and even the "official" tourist office does not have much more than Viking is offering. The tour to Trinidad looks interesting but not the 3 hr round trip on bad roads. I think right now we may just plan to walk around on our own and not do anything in advance. Also it's good advice to book the included tour as early as possible. Thanks for all the comments.

I'm also on a November Cuba cruise on Viking. I thought I read some where that we tender not dock for three days and the tenders only come when the tours are over. If that's true we won't be able get on and off the ship at our leasure. If anyone is on the Nov 1st cruise please post.

We are cruising with Viking Ocean to Cuba in February. They state that you must book their tours but we have zero intention of doing so. We will likely take the included tours in each port and then explore on our own.

Their Havana tour (we are not interested in this) is 699 pp and 6 hours in a bus.

I am interested in visiting Trinidad and am researching.

Ouch! I see that Viking does anchor off Cienfuegos and tender to shore. They certainly could restrict access. That would be really a tough one. On the sunnier side, Viking does dock in Santiago de Cuba. Some direct communication to the right person at Viking is needed to determine if you can go ashore in Cienfuegos without a Viking tour!

I'm going to call my Viking rep tomorrow to ask just this question about docking in Cienfuegos. I also had a question about the air reservations because I'm thinking about upgrading our flights. By the way, Viking did a very good job in booking our flights. I would have booked the same flights myself. It's a little less critical in Santiago because we only really have time for the included tour before leaving.

Carolyn, I’d love to hear what Viking says. We called our Viking guy on Friday with many of the same questions that everyone here has asked. He said he’d get back to us the next day - nothing. I left him a message this morning telling him we needed answers or we were considering canceling the cruise.

From other things I’ve read here, it sounds like the tenders run on a regular schedule and that crew and passengers can get on and off the ship without a problem. Someone also mentioned that the Viking TAs are saying that you have to be on a Viking excursion, but the reps on board the ship are saying you’re free to come and go.

My rep called my back today about the port/tender situation. After some checking he told me that they dock at the port. According to him the size of the Viking ships are designed so that they don't have to tender at the ports at which they call. I hope he is right. Carolyn

Thanks for the info, Carolyn! You’ll have to report back after your cruise. I found this link on a Facebook page for tours in Cienfuegos. The prices are a lot more reasonable. Some tours need a minimum number of people, others don’t. They also have a list of things to see in Cienfuegos if you just want to a walk around.

https://www.cubatravel.cu/en/destinations/cienfuegos/excursions

....You will or already have checked a box in a form stating why you are going to Cuba. You have to keep this form and proof of what you did in the country for 5 years. Unless of course, you don't have any proof. Who exactly is going to ask for that? ...

With regard to documentation you are provided as part of your visit to Cuba, I would definitely advise that you keep it for the period required. I just had my Global Entry status renewed, and had to go in for another face-to-face interview. I was specifically asked about my trip to Cuba, and without any pause, I stated it was a people-to-people trip for cultural purposes (which it was, a land tour last year). Since I was able to provide the "right" answer, the CBP officer didn't require any other info, but stated that often they do require people to bring in a copy of their Cuba visit documentation.

So... it is important to keep your documentation!

Also, just FYI... here is a fairly clear guide from Carnival for their Cuba cruises:

https://www.carnival.com/awaywego/cruising-fun/how-to-plan/everything-you-need-to-know-before-cruising-to-cuba

My rep called my back today about the port/tender situation. After some checking he told me that they dock at the port. According to him the size of the Viking ships are designed so that they don't have to tender at the ports at which they call. I hope he is right. Carolyn

Your invoice from Viking will show which ports are tender ports. Look on the itinerary page, the tender ports have an anchor out to the right.

On our trip to Cienfuegos last December on the Sun, it was a tender port.

I don't see an anchor,so hopefully they dock now. I wish they docked in Havana. I don't see why they instead have a 3 hour bus trip there. We are doing it since this will probably be our only trip to Cuba and I really want to see Havana. I do wish I researched it more and had booked a cruise that docked overnight in Havana. The upside I guess of the bus trip is seeing more of Cuba.

My email with Jaden of Viking about the visa.

Me: Just checking, Viking does provide all required visas?

Jaden: We do provide the required Visas. You do need to fill outthe form at this link: https://cubavisaservices.com/cruise-registration/

You will need to stay with Vikingon a shore excursion in order to get off the ship in Cuba.

Me: You are stating the Viking does not allow anyone off theship unless they are on an excursion provided by Viking?

Jaden: It is actually something that Cuba enforces. We can offer ablanket Visa for you to visit but you do have to stay with us as tour guides. Iam unsure if it is possible to obtain a visa on your own to explore Cubawithout taking a pre-planned tour.

My email with Jaden of Viking about the visa.

 

 

 

Me: Just checking, Viking does provide all required visas?

 

Jaden: We do provide the required Visas. You do need to fill outthe form at this link: https://cubavisaservices.com/cruise-registration/

You will need to stay with Vikingon a shore excursion in order to get off the ship in Cuba.

 

Me: You are stating the Viking does not allow anyone off theship unless they are on an excursion provided by Viking?

 

Jaden: It is actually something that Cuba enforces. We can offer ablanket Visa for you to visit but you do have to stay with us as tour guides. Iam unsure if it is possible to obtain a visa on your own to explore Cubawithout taking a pre-planned tour.

That is total BS. We are taking tours with non Viking companies and they all say that the cruise lines use this tactic to intimidate people into buying their overpriced excursions.

CUBA most certainly does not put this requirement on tourists - to stay with Viking.

https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/OFAC-Enforcement/Documents/cuba_ppl.pdf

I second that Caviargal. My phone calls to Oceania resulted in the same... "Cuba is a communist country and they have restrictions on travel. You have to stay with a US guide" NOT TRUE! (the latter part, that is)

Good point though, RJ2002, to be ready to report on your Cuba trip during a Global Entry interview.

I understand for our January Viking Cruise to Cuba that we have two options to visit Havana from our port in Cienfuegos. One is a day trip, the other is an overnight in a hotel. I would be interested in hearing of your experiences and recommendations. Thank you!