Insurance

Travel insurance is strongly recommended. Click on the following link to use our recommended insurer SURESAVE STANDARD (MAY 2008)

Visa

You must obtain a tourist visa to enter Cuba and this can be obtained from the Cuban Consulate. In Australia the consulate is in Sydney. The visa allows you to stay 30 days in Cuba and can be extended for another 30 days from within Cuba.

Language

Spanish is the Cuban language. There is enough English in Cuba for you to get by, but for more complex communication you might need an interpreter.

Airport

The main international airport is Jose Marti in Havana. It is about 35 mins drive from the city centre. There are also international airports at Varadero and Camaguey and quite a number of domestic airports.

Money

Cuba has two currencies, which could be confusing – The Cuban Peso and the Cuban Convertible Peso.
Cubans mainly handle Cuban Pesos, which have a very low value. Foreign visitors should use the Convertible Peso and the conversion rate is about 1.5 Australian dollars per Peso. You can change your currency at the Airport or at most banks. American dollars are not allowed in Cuba.
The Cuban government charges a tax of about 10% for converting foreign currencies into Convertible Peso. The best cash currency to bring to Cuba is Euros.

Credit Cards

Visa and MasterCard are accepted in Cuba and can be used at many retail outlets.
Many other cards are not accepted and Visa and MasterCard are the only ones you should use.
There are ATMs in major cities and towns and you can withdraw up to 400 convertible pesos at a time. At international banks and some of the larger hotels you can withdraw larger sums. but you need your passport for identification.