The Sky to Cuba May 8th Review

[corley05]

I wanted to add my review on the Cuba sailing on the Sky. We got off on Friday and I have to say it was an amazing trip. This was not our first time on the Sky so we knew what to expect. The Sky is an older ship. She doesn't have a ton of things like the newer, bigger ships but we like how simple life is on the Sky. One thing we noticed was that Gentleman Jack is no longer included in the free drinks list but my husband survived.

 

We arrived Monday at 11:30 and went through security, check in and boarded in less than an hour. The rooms were ready at 1:30 (which is the normal time). We had lunch at Crossing, the main dining room aft on 5.

 

We spent the afternoon drinking cocktails with new friends. We had dinner in the MDR and the food and service was excellent.

 

Tuesday:

We were told to go to the outrigger lounge at 7am for tickets to disembark on Tuesday. They told us we would be getting off around 9-10 if not on a ship excursion. Since we had a private tour meeting at 10a one of went got tickets for all 8 of us at 7. We planned to meet up for breakfast at 8. At 8:20 they called the first group off. *on a side note we arranged a group off our roll call through locally sourced havana tours.

 

We finished eating quickly and by 9 we were off the ship, through customs, exchanged money and were ready to wander around till our tour started at 10. The tour we had was amazing. I can't recommend Locally Sourced Havana Tours enough. We walked around old havana till lunch, got time to shop at a govt store for cigars and rum. Lunch at a Paladar was included in the price. The paladar was on a roof top with amazing views. Two mojitos were included and the food was incredible. It was served family style: chicken, fish, sweet potatoes, veggies and desert. After lunch we took a ride in vintage car stopping for pictures a couple times and ended with drinks at the Hotel National de Cuba. We had the freshest pina colada there. We got to wander around a see the bunkers and cannons. After that they put us in a taxi back to the port.

[corley05]

Tuesday evening:

We ate dinner at the MDR after a shower and got ready for an excursion we booked that night through NCL. We booked the Parisien Cabaret through the ship. We were supposed to meet at 730 for the show. What we didn't know was that the show didn't start till 10p. We got on a bus and drove around for 45m then went to the hotel. We had time for drinks but had to meet up at 9 to go in to the show. In hindsight we should have not planned two things in one day. We were so tired. Having to wait around for 2.5 hours for the show to start just wore us out. The show was good but if I could do it again I would book it on my own. We were too tired to enjoy the show.

 

Wednesday:

We booked another ship excursion (rum, cigars, and art tour) with a 930 am time. We had to be at the stardust at 8a. We did leave by 830. We drove around havana for an hour but the first place we were supposed to go we couldn't go to. In fact everything scheduled was changed. We knew it might not be perfect so we just rolled with it. We did end up leaving the tour early because were were starving (at noon) and the guide said we still a few stops and we wouldn't finish till almost 2. Way too long without food for us. We did have a cigar and rum pairing and that was excellent. They also took us to Fusterlandia which was so cool (artist community).

 

*we heard that several tours were either changed or canceled and they weren't too good at letting people know what was going on. We expected it to be a little 'bumpy' since this was only the second week. I highly recommend you book private tours (cheaper and easier).

 

We found another Paladar to eat at La Familia and the food was so good. They even had a couple guys playing guitars and singing. This one was also rooftop. We wandered around more and bought some cigars, coffee and rum. We got back on the ship around 3. We spent all the money we exchanged.

 

We found we spent most of our money tipping people. There wasn't too much to buy.

 

We spent sail away in the pool drinking cocktails.

 

Thursday:

GSC is always a good time. I would say only half the ship got off and getting off was easy. We got on the first tender without much effort. Not many were waiting for tickets early.

 

Friday:

Disembarkation was easy. We walked off at 845 and got a uber to ft lauderdale.

 

 

This trip was great. We did hear a lot of the seasoned cruisers complaining about the ship. I get it. But honestly the ship is clean and the staff is so great. We like that its simple without a zillion things going on. We enjoy the pool, hot tub, and outdoor bars.

 

The itinerary was great and we would definitely take this one again.

[ballarinamom]

Thanks for the review! We leave on July 3. We aren't too worried about the ship, we're there for Cuba. So glad to hear Locally Sourced Havana is great because we are using them. I have a couple of questions- is was the pool open on the first day of embarkation? My 15 year old would like a little pool time.

How hard was it to exchange the money? Many options or just one main place?

Thanks so much!

[corley05]

Thanks for the review! We leave on July 3. We aren't too worried about the ship, we're there for Cuba. So glad to hear Locally Sourced Havana is great because we are using them. I have a couple of questions- is was the pool open on the first day of embarkation? My 15 year old would like a little pool time.

How hard was it to exchange the money? Many options or just one main place?

Thanks so much!

The pool and hot tubs are open as soon as you get on.

You'll love locally sourced. I hope you get to go to the same paladar we did. Our guide said they use different ones.

 

Money exchange was super quick. We did it right after customs, took 5 minutes.

 

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[iceokie]

How the trip back through customs coming home? Any issues?

[corley05]

How the trip back through customs coming home? Any issues?

Super easy. Took less than 5m. Didn't ask us anything.

 

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[hawkeyetlse]

One thing we noticed was that Gentleman Jack is no longer included in the free drinks list but my husband survived.

:D I was wondering about that, ever since I saw the first bar menus from the new Sky-with-Open-Bar, with Gentleman Jack for free but regular JD for an extra charge. It sounds like it stayed that way for a while, but all good things must come to an end. Did they at least move regular JD Black into the "included" category?

[TheTruth79]

can you post a link to the tour company? I'm having trouble finding the same one...

[corley05]

:D I was wondering about that, ever since I saw the first bar menus from the new Sky-with-Open-Bar, with Gentleman Jack for free but regular JD for an extra charge. It sounds like it stayed that way for a while, but all good things must come to an end. Did they at least move regular JD Black into the "included" category?

 

 

Nope. You can get crown, johnny walker red and jack honey. That is what my hubby remembers. We still drank plenty.

 

 

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[corley05]

can you post a link to the tour company? I'm having trouble finding the same one...

 

 

http://havanatourcompany.com/

 

I asked them to do the full day Havana tour but private. I asked for meeting place closer to the port and a later start time.

 

The more people the better the price. We had 8 total. We found other people from our roll call. Best choice we made!

 

 

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[TheTruth79]

Thanks!!!

[corley05]

Thanks!!!

 

 

And the cars were convertible. Huge bonus! We totally got our money's worth.

 

 

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[ballarinamom]

Be patient with them as internet is intermittent. They will get back with you

[jigger]

Great insight !! Waiting for our Cuba trip in June, 2017 !!

[easyboy]

Thanks for the review.

 

 

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[sjbdtz]

I wanted to add my review on the Cuba sailing on the Sky. We got off on Friday and I have to say it was an amazing trip. This was not our first time on the Sky so we knew what to expect. The Sky is an older ship. She doesn't have a ton of things like the newer, bigger ships but we like how simple life is on the Sky. One thing we noticed was that Gentleman Jack is no longer included in the free drinks list but my husband survived.

 

We arrived Monday at 11:30 and went through security, check in and boarded in less than an hour. The rooms were ready at 1:30 (which is the normal time). We had lunch at Crossing, the main dining room aft on 5.

 

We spent the afternoon drinking cocktails with new friends. We had dinner in the MDR and the food and service was excellent.

 

Tuesday:

We were told to go to the outrigger lounge at 7am for tickets to disembark on Tuesday. They told us we would be getting off around 9-10 if not on a ship excursion. Since we had a private tour meeting at 10a one of went got tickets for all 8 of us at 7. We planned to meet up for breakfast at 8. At 8:20 they called the first group off. *on a side note we arranged a group off our roll call through locally sourced havana tours.

 

We finished eating quickly and by 9 we were off the ship, through customs, exchanged money and were ready to wander around till our tour started at 10. The tour we had was amazing. I can't recommend Locally Sourced Havana Tours enough. We walked around old havana till lunch, got time to shop at a govt store for cigars and rum. Lunch at a Paladar was included in the price. The paladar was on a roof top with amazing views. Two mojitos were included and the food was incredible. It was served family style: chicken, fish, sweet potatoes, veggies and desert. After lunch we took a ride in vintage car stopping for pictures a couple times and ended with drinks at the Hotel National de Cuba. We had the freshest pina colada there. We got to wander around a see the bunkers and cannons. After that they put us in a taxi back to the port.

 

 

That sounds like fun. I'm booked in October, and am really confused about shore excursions / private tours, and how either one complies with the people-to-people requirement which forbids tourism.

 

Did any of your tours include 'meaningful contact with the Cuban people'? I'm Canadian, so it shouldn't apply to me - but my spouse isn't - and I don't want to be signing affidavits unless we can comply with them.

 

 

Anything you (or anybody) can offer to help me understand this better, would be very appreciated. I'm soaking up everything I can, about this trip.

 

Thanks,

Stephen

 

.

[corley05]

That sounds like fun. I'm booked in October, and am really confused about shore excursions / private tours, and how either one complies with the people-to-people requirement which forbids tourism.

 

Did any of your tours include 'meaningful contact with the Cuban people'? I'm Canadian, so it shouldn't apply to me - but my spouse isn't - and I don't want to be signing affidavits unless we can comply with them.

 

 

Anything you (or anybody) can offer to help me understand this better, would be very appreciated. I'm soaking up everything I can, about this trip.

 

Thanks,

Stephen

 

.

 

Our tourguide (through locally sourced havana tours) spent the entire day educating and interacting with us. We did get a few minutes to shop at a govt store but it was definitely an educational experience. We spent lots of time talking about everything with him, it was definitely meaningful.

 

We made record of what we saw and where we went. The cruiseline says their excursions are certified. Honestly, we got more info from the private tour. Just keep a record. No one asked us when we came back into miami.

 

I hope this was helpful.

[hawkeyetlse]

Did any of your tours include 'meaningful contact with the Cuban people'? I'm Canadian, so it shouldn't apply to me - but my spouse isn't - and I don't want to be signing affidavits unless we can comply with them.

Good for you for taking this more seriously than just about everyone else, but at the same time, you're probably taking this too seriously. Since you've read the guidelines, you know that it's completely up to you to characterize the nature of your activities: if you say it was meaningful for you, it was meaningful.

 

If you have a tour guide and a driver all day, take a selfie with them and you're done. That is your record of a meaningful interaction with individuals in Cuba (technically, you must also make sure that they are not government officials or high-ranking Communist Party members). If you only do a half-day tour, you can repeat the process with a taxi driver, a cigar vendor, a bartender, a random Cuban on the street that you ask for directions, etc. until you have enough interactions to add up to a full-time schedule.

 

I'm Canadian, so it shouldn't apply to me

That's unclear to me, too, but since your travel begins in the US, you are subject to US jurisdiction at the beginning of your trip, so you have to be authorized to travel under the same regulations as US citizens and residents. That means agreeing to the terms of the people-to-people license etc. I don't know if that agreement becomes meaningless once the ship leaves US waters, but I guess it comes back into effect when the ship returns to Miami.

 

I would actually take this a bit more seriously as a non-US citizen, because you have the additional risk of problems with US immigration in the future.

Edited May 15, 2017 by hawkeyetlse

[sjbdtz]

Good for you for taking this more seriously than just about everyone else, but at the same time, you're probably taking this too seriously. Since you've read the guidelines, you know that it's completely up to you to characterize the nature of your activities: if you say it was meaningful for you, it was meaningful.

 

If you have a tour guide and a driver all day, take a selfie with them and you're done. That is your record of a meaningful interaction with individuals in Cuba (technically, you must also make sure that they are not government officials or high-ranking Communist Party members). If you only do a half-day tour, you can repeat the process with a taxi driver, a cigar vendor, a bartender, a random Cuban on the street that you ask for directions, etc. until you have enough interactions to add up to a full-time schedule.

 

 

Thanks. Exactly what I was looking for. Much appreciated. (Thanks also to other poster Corley, I forgot to double-quote).

 

 

Stephen

[solar panels]

Thanks for the review. Very helpful. Others on the boards have said you don't have to exchange US dollars. Do you agree? would you have been able to purchase with US dollars? I'm also doing the hotel Parisian. Other than taking a nap prior to the excursion do you have any other suggestions. I just noticed that NCL took the Tropicana and the Buena Vista social club off my possible excursions on 8/7/17 sailing. Any idea why?

[www3traveler]

corley05:

 

Did any of the staff stand out to you?

[corley05]

Thanks for the review. Very helpful. Others on the boards have said you don't have to exchange US dollars. Do you agree? would you have been able to purchase with US dollars? I'm also doing the hotel Parisian. Other than taking a nap prior to the excursion do you have any other suggestions. I just noticed that NCL took the Tropicana and the Buena Vista social club off my possible excursions on 8/7/17 sailing. Any idea why?

Only one place did i see where they had usd listed. Exchanging to cuc was really easy. I would exchange at the port.

 

A nap would have helped. If you did it through the hotel is also much cheaper.

 

I would expect if it's not listed for your cruise is probably sold out.

 

There are lots of places to go for dinner and live music that aren't hard to find.

 

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[corley05]

corley05:

 

Did any of the staff stand out to you?

I love tom the cruise director. He's leaving the sky on july 3. I can't remember the name of the other stand out staff but so many are so friendly. One of the waiters always seemed to know when i needed a drink. Our room steward was really good too.

 

I'm horrible with names...

 

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[www3traveler]

I love tom the cruise director. He's leaving the sky on july 3. I can't remember the name of the other stand out staff but so many are so friendly. One of the waiters always seemed to know when i needed a drink. Our room steward was really good too.

 

I'm horrible with names...

 

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Thank you I have several friends who are on board as staff members including Captain Zeljko Jurac (in his very first contact as Captain).

[psufanatic]

Thanks for the review! Helpful!:D