TRAVEL GUIDE to HAVANA, Cuba for Americans

Looking for a weekend getaway filled with tastes of authentic culture, historical significance, live music, great dancing, welcoming locals and stunning sites? Look no further than Havana, Cuba.

In early 2017 J + I jet set to Havana to escape the frigid New York winter. Upon our return to the states I received an almost overwhelming amount of requests for every travel tip and detail about our adventures. So here we are.

First, let’s talk about actually getting to Cuba. I flew direct from JFK to Havana and JetBlue made the experience a breeze. Before Obama left office, he loosened travel restrictions to this iconic—and at times infamous—island nation. As soon travel restrictions were eased up on airlines major companies such as JetBlue, Delta, and Southwest quickly jumped at the opportunity to capitalize, coordinating easy travel to Havana for Americans. On August 31, 2016 a JetBlue flight touched down in in Havana, marking the first commercial flight from the U.S. to Cuba in five decades.

Since then, with Trump in office, there has since been some confusion around tourist travel to Cuba. And while technically tourist travel to Cuba is still not sanctioned, it’s not too difficult to make your way to the land of Havana Club Rum and late-night Salsa dancing (for now). Here’s what you need to know:

TRAVELING TO HAVANA

If you're flying, I recommend booking with JetBlue, Delta or Southwest. As mentioned above, I flew with JetBlue. No matter who you book your flight through, you're required to get a travel visa before you depart. The JetBlue team at JFK in NYC has this process down to a science. J + I arrived about two hours before our flight, which was more than enough time to get our visas and get to our gate.

If you prefer to travel by water, cruise lines including Carnival and Norwegian have Havana stops on some of their Caribbean routes.

ACCOMODATIONS

Regardless of where my travels take me, Airbnb remains to be one of my top choices for accomodations. While in Havana, J + I stayed with a local family in their home near Central Havana. The location was amazing: ten minute walk to Old Havana, one minute from the Malecon and just one short block from Paseo del Prado!

Our Airbnb definitely wasn't the Ritz, but our host family was amazing and our room was comfortable. We had airconditioning and a refrigerator (very useful when traveling with insulin). Our host, Miriam, offered to make us a traditional Cuban breakfast one of the mornings we were with her—it was fairly basic but very good and filling! One of my fellow world travelers and pals, Stephanie, also had an incredible stay at her Havana Airbnb. Her host, Mr. Martinez, greeted her and her husband with a bottle of rum. His spot was totally booked by the time J + I planned our own travels. Knowing what I know now though, I prefer the location where we stayed.

CASH IS KING

Leave the plastic in the US, because cash is king in Cuba (and pretty much the only form of payment accepted anywhere). Exchanging USD to CUC comes with a heavy tax. At the time of our travels the exchange was about a 1:1 ratio, USD:CUC. We changed our money from USD to EUR first though, to avoid the 10% additional fee Cuba tacks on for the US. We then exchanged our EUR to CUC and, despite fees, still came out with a near 1:1 exchange. That said, travel to Havana with euro NOT US dollars.

Another, lesser known, pro tip on currency exchange: JetBlue (because they are literal angels) will exchange your CUC back to USD at the check in desk when you're preparing to leave Havana at a 1:1 ratio, no exchange fees! We exchanged 80 CUC back to $80 when we checked in for our flight—so helpful!

HAVANA MUST-SEES

This city is chalk full of interesting sites, but a few of the must-sees I recommend include:

Fabrica del Arte Cubano (FAC): An abandoned space crafted into Havana's hottest nightlife destination. FAC is an absolute must-see when visiting Havana. J + I started our adventures at FAC, which opens at 8PM, on the rooftop restaurant above FAC, Tierra Arte Culinario. Our food was absolutely delicious and the views were breathtaking. Our reservation was for 6:30PM and we wrapped up around 8:15PM. By the time we made it down the steps to the entrance of FAC the line was already around the block. I was told by many of my travel pals that we had better line up early to get in, as many of them didn't make it into FAC at all. We finally got into FAC around 9PM and woah... it was DEFINITELY worth the wait. A maze of interactive art, culture, multiple stages with live bands, fashion, cinema and design. There was no shortage of activities, or of booze. We stayed until FAC shut down and then cabbed it back to our Airbnb. Overall, truly an incredible experience. I am so glad we dedicated a full night to FAC.

La Cabaña Fortress: Each night at 9PM in this 18th century fortress complex built by the Spaniards to control the access of the Havana Port they hold a canon ceremony. This is a unique experience specific to Havana and I highly recommend! Entrance to the fort will cost about 6 or 7 CUC. Plan on arriving around 7 or 7:30PM so you can enjoy some time walking around the fort and learning more of its history and significance. Start to find your spot to watch the ceremony around 8:30PM. We paid an extra CUC to get access to the top of the fort for an amazing view, and some extra exploring of the fort from a different vantage point after the ceremony.
Museo del Ron Havana Club: Inspired by Conan O'Brien's visit, J + I made visiting the Havana Club museum a must. We had SO MUCH FUN. Yes, it does feel like a complete tourist trap, but I am so glad we went! You start out by taking a relatively quick tour of the staged distillery, then you have a tasting, and then finish at their bar, which was an absolute blast—live music, dancing, happy people, and strong drinks. We ended up staying longer than we originally planned and it carried us into an afternoon of exploring Old Havana.

El Floridita: If you're traveling to Havana and you're a Hemingway fan, ordering a daiquiri at El Floridita is a must. In addition to strong daiquiris they also feature live music and a festive vibe. Unsurprisingly, you'll find the drinks are overpriced (compared to the other bars in Havana, that is) so sip slowly, enjoy the ambience and take it all in. You'll also find it's crowded, so you won't mind slipping out after a drink or two.
La Bodeguita del Medio: Another must on the Hemingway inspired rum tour is La Bodeguita del Medio for a house made, and house perfected, mojito. What I love about La Bodeguita is it retains the feel of an authentic Havana watering hole. J + I scored two stools at the bar midday and stayed for awhile. We loved the live band (J even bought their CD from them), the bartenders were friendly, the sun was shining and the rum was flowing. All the makings for an exciting afternoon in Old Havana!

Car Tour of Havana: It's totally cheesy but definitely a great way to see more of the city than you would on foot. You can find a car and tour guide right on Paseo de Marti across from Parque Central. We opted for a more compact convertible to save some money. I think we paid about $20-$25 USD for an hour long tour—well worth it.
Hotel Ambos Mundos: Havana is not known for their food. In fact, I had two close friends return from Cuba with stomach parasites (not a fun souvenir!) resulting from questionable pork they ingested. That said, one spot with incredible eats that J + I stumbled upon as we were strolling the streets of Old Havana is Hotel Ambos Mundos. This historic landmark, built in the 1920s, has a gorgeous rooftop bar and restaurant. The elevator operator told us the bar was "totally full" and refused to take us up. But we were skeptical, so we hoofed it up the seven (?) flights of steps to the roof and found there was plenty of room. We had an amazing seafood paella and some cheap brews.
Walk the streets of Old Havana: Walking city streets is my favorite way to explore. You come across markets, shops, locals, restaurants, bars and all sorts of interesting sites and stops. Spend an afternoon walking around Old Havana, you never know what you'll find! (Our best find was probably the amazing—and amazingly cheap—churros (~1 CUC + .50 cents for chocolate syrup) freshly made in a food cart just outside the Museo del Chocolate.

Stroll the Malecon: If you have time, take a sunset stroll on the Malecon. This seawall and road stretches for about 5 miles/8 km. You'll find local musicians, smashing waves, views of vintage cars and old buildings. Be aware, this is a popular spot for panhandlers, but it is safe overall.
People watch at Plaza Vieja: A popular hub that hustles and bustles. Head here to sip on freshly cut coconuts and people watch. We saw kids playing street games, ladies dancing in traditional garb, people reading, people coming and people going.

ODDS + ENDS

What would a good adventure be without a few hiccups. A couple of things to keep in mind when traveling to Cuba:

Brush up on your Spanish. This island nation doesn't have many English speakers.
Prepare to unplug and go completely offline. Access to wifi is rare, so download any maps or docs you think you may need before you get on your flight. I put all the important details of my trip—think flight information, hotel address, confirmation numbers, important phone numbers (including that of the US Embassy), and other itinerary details—into a Google doc that I downloaded to access offline. I also recommend using Galileo Pro app, which is a map app that lets you save address in cities around the world and then access the map offline, while still using your GPS location to help you navigate.
You're an American, so the locals will expect you to pay them more for their services. Most of the time I found it wasn't worth the haggling. I didn't really care that I was paying $5 CUC for a cab when locals going the same distance were paying $2 CUC. Honestly, I can afford the extra $3 CUC and am (perhaps blindly) optimistic that the extra cash gets to be kept by the locals and will help them more than it would be of use to me.
You will be solicited, and at times you may just give in. J got roped into buying milk formula for a man rocking a full belly tattoo of his baby. The man helped us find a shop we were looking for and was very kind to us. We're still not sure if he had some deal with the shop owner where J bought him the baby formula to swindle tourists and then split the profits. We hope the formula went to use as intended, but honestly, we'll never really know. What we do know is that we'd rather take the chance and potentially feed a child than have a baby go hungry.
There are TWO airport terminals. When you are getting ready to head back to the US (or onward in your travels) don't depend on the cab driver to drop you at the correct terminal. Research this beforehand and know where you're going, otherwise you're likely going to get dropped off at the wrong terminal and then be conned into paying a crazy amount of money for another cab to take you to the other terminal (trust us, we know).