cruising to cuba aboard the oceania sirena in sept 2018

With the recent State Department pronouncement on traveling to Cuba as"reconsider travel", is it safe to go there on a cruise ship and venture off the ship at night to attend shows sponsored by the ship as an excursion? If anyone has experienced this subsequent to the State Department pronouncement of March 2, 2018, please advise concerning safety.

Read the State Department advisory in detail. Says if you do go to avoid the Hotel Nacional and one other due to concerns about the possible auditory attacks on U.S. Embassy personnel. I don’t see anything related to risks to cruise ship passengers. Oceania and other cruise lines are careful about the tours they book, and well reviewed private excursions should be fine too.

Check on the Cuba forum under ports of call

lots of information there

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1009

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We'll be getting off the ship at night in October for a show but not doing it through a ship excursion. Not concerned a bit.

Read the State Department advisory in detail. Says if you do go to avoid the Hotel Nacional and one other due to concerns about the possible auditory attacks on U.S. Embassy personnel. I don’t see anything related to risks to cruise ship passengers. Oceania and other cruise lines are careful about the tours they book, and well reviewed private excursions should be fine too.

It's really unfortunate that the Hotel Nacional appears on the warning list with no clarification. The other destinations are residences, including residences in hotels, but the Nacional warning makes no distinction between public spaces and residential spaces. It illogical for the folks who are behind the auditory attacks to target the public areas. That's where the Cuban nationals work and other tourists of every nationality visit when dealing with the check-in desk, money exchange desk, or enjoying restaurants and bars. Very likely, US tourists could visit the public ground floor of the hotel with no risk. And the ground floor, especially the lobby and the Bay View Bar (AKA Hall of Fame Bar), is absolutely worth visiting.

I'm making a logical inference; your mileage may vary. But it's worth noting that neither the British Foreign Office's web site nor the Canadian Government's web site makes any mention of risk from auditory attacks in any location. Their web sites only mention garden variety risks common in any country.

With the recent State Department pronouncement on traveling to Cuba as"reconsider travel", is it safe to go there on a cruise ship and venture off the ship at night to attend shows sponsored by the ship as an excursion? If anyone has experienced this subsequent to the State Department pronouncement of March 2, 2018, please advise concerning safety.

We just came back from an 8 day cruise to Cuba on Sirena. First time sailing with Oceania, and first time to Cuba. The Oceania shore excursions were excellenf. 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.

In Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Havana , we also walked around on our own. And in Havana on day 2. went to the Hotel Nationals

to look inside. No problems.

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.

We ennoyed the cruise so much, that we booked 2 more cruises on Oceania for 2019.

IMO, Oceania is so much a cut above mass market cruise lines we have sailed on. The cuisine, service, and ship ambiance were outstanding. PAXs were friendly and interesting to talk with. No drama about Dress Codes, or Chair Hogs, that you find on mass market lines. Really a wonderful cruising experience for us newbies to Oceania.

Hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did. :)

King

we were on Serena recently and found the tours not very good. Rum was the best buy in Havana. Havana club 7 & 9 yr old was priced at $7 & $9. Young rum was as cheap as $1 and $3. T shirts were $15 and cut very small. Some passengers spent $1000 on cigars. No customs forms or questions upon returning. The ship kept stressing not to drink any drinks on land with ice but the guides said that the hotels and restaurants use bottled water to make ice.I guess they wanted you to spend your drink money on the ship. The balcony cabin had the smallest shower we have ever had on a cruise.

The balcony cabin had the smallest shower we have ever had on a cruise.

Yes people are shocked when they 1st sail on an R ship in the A to G cabins :D

Hi King, we will be on this itinerary in mid September. If you are a US citizen did you have issues getting off the ship? We booked our own excursions and listed Support the Cuban People. Also, did you convert currency ptior; we've been told to convert US to Canadian before the cruise. Any items of experience would be helpful. This is our first on Oceania. Thanks, Billie Unik, Springdale, PA

[quotme=Kingofcool1947;56310356]We just came back from an 8 day cruise to Cuba on Sirena. First time sailing with Oceania, and first time to Cuba. The Oceania shore excursions were excellenf. 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.

In Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Havana , we also walked around on our own. And in Havana on day 2. went to the Hotel Nationals

to look inside. No problems.

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.

We ennoyed the cruise so much, that we booked 2 more cruises on Oceania for 2019.

IMO, Oceania is so much a cut above mass market cruise lines we have sailed on. The cuisine, service, and ship ambiance were outstanding. PAXs were friendly and interesting to talk with. No drama about Dress Codes, or Chair Hogs, that you find on mass market lines. Really a wonderful cruising experience for us newbies to Oceania.

Hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did. :)

King

Hi King, we will be on this itinerary in mid September. If you are a US citizen did you have issues getting off the ship? We booked our own excursions and listed Support the Cuban People. Also, did you convert currency ptior; we've been told to convert US to Canadian before the cruise. Any items of experience would be helpful. This is our first on Oceania. Thanks, Billie Unik, Springdale, PA

The folks telling you to convert US currency to Canadian may or may not be giving you good advice. Without knowing more information, that advice is simply too sweeping.

If you exchange 100 USD in Cuba, you'll receive 87 CUC, a hit of 13%. When converting Euro, GBP, Canadian Dollars, etc, into CUC, everyone pays a 3% exchange fee but those currencies don't pay the 10% penalty US citizens pay. That makes it tempting to consider converting USD to some other currency to bring into Cuba. But that would mean two exchanges -- two sets of fees -- for US citizens. First exchange: USD to some other currency. Second exchange: the "other: currency into CUC.

Bottom line: If you're thinking about converting your money twice, make sure you check the conversion rate you'll be offered at your hometown bank. Depending on your relationship with your bank, on the amount of money you'll be converting, different people may be offered different exchange rates. Get a good rate and it MAY make sense to go through this double conversion process. If you aren't able to get a good rate, whether there's sufficient benefit ought to include your time and effort.

If you already have other currencies from past travels, then the scenario changes. Definitely bring those major non-US currencies and enjoy a beneficial exchange rate.

For us if we go again we will not exchange our US dollars. The tour guides and bus drivers were happy to take them. We could have also paid for the cigars we bought at a 1to1 rate with the CUC price with US dollars. We had Euros and no CUCs and never ran into any issues with buying stuff. However, when we found out they take US dollars, we kept our euros on our pocket. But, that’s what we did. Others may have a different view. But one thing is for sure they did not accept US credit cards when we went in May.

Hi King, we will be on this itinerary in mid September. If you are a US citizen did you have issues getting off the ship? We booked our own excursions and listed Support the Cuban People. Also, did you convert currency ptior; we've been told to convert US to Canadian before the cruise. Any items of experience would be helpful. This is our first on Oceania. Thanks, Billie Unik, Springdale, PA

 

 

 

[quotme=Kingofcool1947;56310356]We just came back from an 8 day cruise to Cuba on Sirena. First time sailing with Oceania, and first time to Cuba. The Oceania shore excursions were excellenf. 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.

In Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Havana , we also walked around on our own. And in Havana on day 2. went to the Hotel Nationals

to look inside. No problems.

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.

We ennoyed the cruise so much, that we booked 2 more cruises on Oceania for 2019.

IMO, Oceania is so much a cut above mass market cruise lines we have sailed on. The cuisine, service, and ship ambiance were outstanding. PAXs were friendly and interesting to talk with. No drama about Dress Codes, or Chair Hogs, that you find on mass market lines. Really a wonderful cruising experience for us newbies to Oceania.

Hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did. :)

King

BillieUnik,

Yes, we are US citizens. We had no problems getting off the ship, since Oceania took care of our visa, and we completed the declaration prior to our cruise. Once you get off at each port of call, go through immigration, each there will a government exchange window to change your currency to CUCs. There is a slight exchange fee. I believe they will exchange Canadain dollars and Euros but am not sure. Before leaving Cuba, we exchanged our CUCs back to US dollars. No fee. Since we are US citizens we exchanged some US dollars to CUCs for purchasing small items, eating and tipping at restaurants and cafes, tipping tour guides and bus driver, car taxis, bike taxis. Our private 3 hour tour in the pink Cadillac convertible , the driver took US dollars.

Enjoy Cuba. I like to interact with locals,wherever we travel, and found the Cuban people welcoming, warm, and friendly. We made no judgements on the Cuban government, in let the way of enjoying Cuba.

Hope you will appreciate Cuba as much as we did.

King

We brought an instant camera to take and give pics of the Cubans we met. A great icebreaker.

Brought a Spanish-English newspaper from this vendor. 1 US dollar.

Brought some Marde Gras beads for the kids.

Brought a couple of baseballs to give out to a couple of kids.

M and M candy packs for everyone.

The folks telling you to convert US currency to Canadian may or may not be giving you good advice. Without knowing more information, that advice is simply too sweeping.

 

If you exchange 100 USD in Cuba, you'll receive 87 CUC, a hit of 13%. When converting Euro, GBP, Canadian Dollars, etc, into CUC, everyone pays a 3% exchange fee but those currencies don't pay the 10% penalty US citizens pay. That makes it tempting to consider converting USD to some other currency to bring into Cuba. But that would mean two exchanges -- two sets of fees -- for US citizens. First exchange: USD to some other currency. Second exchange: the "other: currency into CUC.

 

Bottom line: If you're thinking about converting your money twice, make sure you check the conversion rate you'll be offered at your hometown bank. Depending on your relationship with your bank, on the amount of money you'll be converting, different people may be offered different exchange rates. Get a good rate and it MAY make sense to go through this double conversion process. If you aren't able to get a good rate, whether there's sufficient benefit ought to include your time and effort.

 

If you already have other currencies from past travels, then the scenario changes. Definitely bring those major non-US currencies and enjoy a beneficial exchange rate.

We're Americans....exchanged for Canadian dollars with no fee....bought CUC's and needed them cuz we walked around in local neighborhoods and shopped in small local places.....changed back to US dollars when we left. Loved Cuba!

Great photos King. Thanks for posting!

Great photos King. Thanks for posting!

Queen,

Your’re welcome!

If you’re the kind of traveler, like me, who enjoys connecting with locals, consider bringing some small items from home to give out to the Cuban people you meet. Especially for the kids. If you do, Cuban’s will really warm up to you, and appreciate your interest in them and their culture. Taking and giving them their photo with my instant camera is always an icebreaker with the local people we meet wherever we travel. Besides Mardi Gras beads, a couple of baseballs, baseball cards, promotional pens, M & M candy packs, we gave postcards of various icons of USA, like NYC, Statue of Liberty, San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge, US National Parks, photos of the city where we live, etc. I consider these small tokens of our appreciation as guests in their country

Enjoy your cruise and Cuba. We did. (y)(y)

King