Al and Chuck cruise to Cuba?

[Two Boys Cruising]

I did not see a thread specifically for this cruise, nor do I see a roll call thread for Celestyal Cruises at all. Al and Chuck has three of these scheduled, and we are booked on the February 26th cruise...very excited to be going to Cuba. Hope we have some CC friends going along!

[Rotterdam]

How exciting for you...please do post a review upon your return....I too am looking forward to going to Cuba in the near future!

[Rotterdam]

Tomorrow morning CBS is doing a short piece on Cuba and tourism...looks interesting. Probably short piece but interesting for those that wish to travel to Cuba....

[cirman52]

We did Cuba on Celestial on 1/1/16 with AquaFest, 264 LGBT on that ship & had a ball.

Ship's food is just soso, but crew was good.

Ports were great, we did get away on our own for the 2nd day in Havana and loved the city. The whole Island is a place that time forgot.

BE CAREFULL. 3 of our small group of locals ( 10 in all ) got sick starting with the last night on ship. My hubby went to the hospital on tuesday with a high fever & total weakness and is still ther. And no, we ate / drank nothing in Cuba, did eat / drink in Jamaica before flight home.

[ONT-CA]

Although not applicable to your groups experience, we sometimes overlook the fact that the ice used in drinks is made of the same water that we would not touch out of a tap. We only drink cold canned beer and/or soft drinks . And we can't emphasize enough the need of washing hands whenever returning to your cabin especially after having been ashore. Hope everyone gets past this nasty but all too common travel affliction.

[camusboy1]

I'm going on the Cuba Cruise January 22. Going with my parents and a straight friend. Looks to be a fun trip.

[Two Boys Cruising]

Getting excited now...almost here.

[2seattleguys]

Hey, there's a group of seven of us guys on the February al and chuck cruise. A couple from Arkansas, a threesome and my partner and I all from seattle, can't wait

[Two Boys Cruising]

Great! As of Friday there were 123 booked with the Al and Chuck group. I have no idea how many are booked in total but it seems from the reviews to never be sold out. So excited!

[pidroelpirata]

Please post your experience! We are new to cruising and interested in the upcoming Al & Chuck cruise to Cuba in April 2017. We are US Citizens. How was the P2P program? Did you have much free time / alone time? We are honeymooning and nervous about the unknown variables related to Cuba excursions and US tourism restrictions. Thanks!

[hejiranyc]

Please post your experience! We are new to cruising and interested in the upcoming Al & Chuck cruise to Cuba in April 2017. We are US Citizens. How was the P2P program? Did you have much free time / alone time? We are honeymooning and nervous about the unknown variables related to Cuba excursions and US tourism restrictions. Thanks!

 

I went on the A&C Cuba cruise in January and it definitely ranked up there as one of the most amazing experiences of my life. You can read about Cuba and view lots of pictures, but nothing quite prepares you for the reality. It is life-changing.

 

The P2P program was EXCELLENT, especially the lectures provided onboard the Celestyal Crystal during days at sea. Admittedly, some of the program was quite loaded with propaganda (e.g., Castro ELIMINATED illiteracy within one year!), but as long as you can distinguish fact from fiction, it is a fascinating glimpse into Cuban culture. The nightly Cuban-themed shows were surprisingly entertaining as well, especially the unintentionally campy musical on The Revolution.

 

The highlight of the trip, not surprisingly, was overnighting in Havana. For the first day, you are on a pretty tight leash in terms of the P2P tours (again, be prepared for the propaganda) and shopping/drinking sidetrips. Somewhat at the last minute, Al organized an evening outing consisting of dinner and a glimpse into the gay nightlife of Havana, which was fascinating if not a bit sad (local hustlers are on tourists like white on... well, you get the gist). But the second day, you are pretty much on your own to wander about. I'm not sure if much has changed, but there seemed to be a genuine curiosity of Americans. And being Asian American, I was a particularly exotic bird for the locals; I could definitely sense every eyeball trained on me no matter where I walked in the city. That being said, I never felt unsafe or in danger, even when walking through the city alone at 2AM.

 

Unless you are fluent in Spanish, I think Americans will have a difficult time blending in and experiencing Cuba like a local; just getting the convertible Cuban peso can be challenging, let alone the "regular" Cuban peso. Don't expect to go to Cuba to find bargains; there is a dual economy with different prices for Cubans vs. tourists.

 

Anyway, congratulations on your wedding and good luck on planning your honeymoon. By all means, go on this trip; you will never be the same.

[mlbcruiser]

hejiranyc, I just posted some questions about this cruise to Two Boys Cruising (Al & Chuck, I guess it is) on another thread, a couple of lines down. If you see this and have time, please add your 2 cents! It's SO annoying how difficult it is to find roll calls and to some extent reviews on this ship. However, I imagine when she starts the Nov. sailings that may improve. Thanks for the info. you posted about the cruise already.