Just Off the Paradise Overnight Cuba Cruise!

[Djptcp]

Had a great time. Having sailed on the Paradise in Nov, Jan. and Feb., I can report that the new and improved Paradise since dry dock is wonderful. The updates are very evident and the ship is in great shape. The Elation dining room (YTD dining) has new carpeting, lighting, and beautiful new fabric on chairs and the banquettes. There is a Red Frog Pub, Guy's Burger Joint, Blue Iguana Cantina and Blue Iguana Bar on the Lido Deck. There are new balcony, junior suite cabins and scenic ocean view cabins. The casino is totally changed for the better allowing for more space to get around, along with lots new slots. We reconnected with several crew members and it was fun to see and talk with them again - they remembered us which was very nice. If you are going to do this cruise, be very aware of the restrictions. If you booked the cruise before

June 17, 2017 when

Trump clamped down on President Obama's opening up of Cuba, you can get off the ship and do your own thing. However, if you booked after that date, as we did, you have to check the People to People option on the affidavit and book excursions that comply with these restrictions, including 7-8 hours with some sort of connection to the Cuban people. There is an excellent talk by the Cruise Director on embarkation afternoon that you should definitely attend to get the skinny on what to expect in Havana. Unfortunately, I hurt my Achilles Heel last week and had difficulty walking, so I borrowed a rollator with a seat to get around. However, even the excursions marked Easy had warnings that people in wheelchairs and walkers/rollators are not recommended for those tours because of the walking on very uneven surfaces - ADA is not in Cuba! I didn't go on an excursion, but DH did the Hemingway Haunts tour and had a great time. You receive your Visa at check in and the $75 pp is charged to your cabin. Mine was refunded since I couldn't go ashore. Going to Havana is not like going to any other Caribbean destination - DH had trouble finding stores to buy t-shirts, visors, and some pottery for me. He was able to buy cigars and Havana Rum 7 and ended up buying t-shirts in the terminal and onboard the Paradise. You have to change your American dollars to Cucs in the terminal (10% fee changing and then a 3% fee when changing back to dollars). You cannot talk to or take photos of police or military personnel, eat in government run restaurants, and American credit cards/debit cards are not accepted. We plan on returning to Cuba when I can walk around and see it all! Watching the old cars from Deck 11 was amazing. Any questions?

[HTownMC]

Thanks for taking the time to post. We will be on the Paradise in June to Cozumel and Mahogany B.. We will have 2 sons - 18 & 21 and 7 yr old daughter. We are on the grand deck - JR suite for us and scenic ocean for the boys. This is our 1st time on this smaller class. This will be our fist time in a JR suite (we've cursed a lot and always been in a larger ocean or grand suite). Even though we are in a smaller suite/not what we are use to, I think I've seen enough reviews to think that we will be OK. I think my daughter will be OK with kids club. I'm a little concern with the boys. They are 6-2 and 6-4. They always play a lot of basketball and volley ball when we are on cruises. I didn't found out until after we booked that we found out that this class of ships does not have basketball or volleyball. If I had know we would have gone with the Victory (the only other options we had with our dates/needs/requirements/etc.) Did you see many teens on the ship? What other types of activities do they have for teens (besides the slides). How is the game room? Do they have a good variety of games?

Thanks!

[Djptcp]

There were only 74 kids on this cruise because of the Cuba itinerary I think. Not your usual Carnival Caribbean cruise because going to Cuba is not like going to any other Caribbean island. DH and I don't have kids, so we don't know anything about cruising with kids or what is available for them to do. Have no idea about a game room on the ship. Maybe someone else with kids who has sailed on the Paradise will jump in with answers for you, or just start a thread with your questions about kids and this ship.

[nutterbutter818]

I'm glad we went last year and booked before 06/17/17. For those who plan on going to Cuba, change your USD to euros before you exchange currency in Cuba. You will get more for your money because they don't penalize (10%) other currencies like they do USD. We stayed outside of Havana and were able to find a small exchange place that would sell us Cuban pesos. You will save A LOT of money if you can do that. Paying in Cuban pesos enabled us to pay the equivalent of $6-7 USD for dinner for two. In Havana, I didn't find any place that would take Cuban pesos.....only CUCs. It is in their best interest because 1 CUC = 25 CUP (approximately).

[sbcatcher1]

" In Havana, I didn't find any place that would take Cuban pesos.....only CUCs. It is in their best interest because 1 CUC = 25 CUP"

 

What is a CUC?

[nutterbutter818]

CUC is the Cuban convertible peso which is what tourist use. CUP is a Cuban peso that locals use. It is kind of confusing with a two currency system. We stayed outside of Havana, in Jaimanitas, so we were able to find places that used CUPs. It saved us a ton of money. Since that is not really possible in touristy areas, the best you can do is to convert to Euros before you go and then convert Euros to CUCs. That way you bypass the 10% penalty on USD.

[riclop]

Thanks for the report.

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[crusing48/51]

We found out this morning, through an email sent by Carnival, that we are going to Cuba in January 2020 on the Sunshine leaving from Charleston. Could not be more pleased and excited! Bucket list travel for DH.

 

Does Carnival provide the travel affidavit I read about, or is that included when you book the people to people excursion?

 

Also, cannot wait to try authentic Cuban cuisine. Are there restaurants we are allowed to purchase food? Read that there restrictions where we may spend money.

 

Appreciate any answers, thanks!

[sbcatcher1]

Thank you. We are going to Havana on the Paradise in October.

[Bookster99]

Thank you for your comments on the ship. We are going in July. We already have Cuba excursions booked, so no worries their. Between the approved excursion and the Tropicana, and the Visa charges, this will be an expensive stop! I have heard they now have USB ports in the room convenient to the bed, so we can plug in our phones and still play with them before falling asleep. Is that true? I have also heard there is a market about a block away that you can get t-shirts, rum, coffee, cigars, magnets, etc...