This may turn into a longer than usual report because the trip was nothing like anything we had done before. It was not the typical dive vacation I had hoped for, bur more of a Cuban vacation with some diving thrown in. This was our first trip to Cuba so I'm no expert. Also, I don't care about the politics involved but part of the reason I wanted to go was to see the conditions the people live in. IF YOURE JUST INTERESTED IN THE DIVING...SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM.
GETTING THERE- We had purchased our tickets before the Trump restrictions had gone into effect. We were supposedly grandfathered in under "People to People" but our Visa was converted to Humanitarian Aid and Conservation before we left. We flew Southwest out of fort Lauderdale and typical of southwest, there were no issues what so ever. The hurricane was still making up its mind which direction to go, but it zigged instead of zagged and we had no weather issues other than a raised eyebrow of concern and a little more attention to the weather channel during the trip. 5 of the 7 days had afternoon showers typical of tropical afternoons, but nothing that altered our plans in any way. The weather was beautiful, but there is no hot like Havana Hot.
I converted US Dollars to Canadian at my local bank, once at the Hotel in Havana, I converted Canadian to Cuban.
Once on the ground in Havana, you walked down the portable steps from the plane to the tarmac. The heat and humidity punch you in the face, but once you convince yourself you are not going to die, its doable. The walk into the terminal was about 100 yards. The terminal was air conditioned-ish and not uncomfortable. There were little individual rooms that you had to go into alone for customs processing. The agents were friendly and other than not being able to exit the little room until you were buzzed out, the process was completely worry free. We purchased our visa's in advance so they were stamped along with out passports and we were buzzed out to baggage claim.
Baggage claim was slow and some of our bags were on one belt, and others were on Belt #2. No big deal. Once we cleared baggage, our guide was waiting for us for the short ride to the Havana National Hotel. Old 50's model American cars are everywhere along with a Russian made car that looks like a boxy BMW. The model started with I...maybe ICAA or ISAA...something like that. Our driver spoke limited English but between my Spanish and his English, we made do. He was friendly and did his best to hold a conversation.
HAVANA- The Havana National hotel was finished in 1930. Until the revolution, it was frequented by Hollywood stars, and mafia kingpins alike. Much of the hotel remains just as it was in those days. The air conditioning feels wonderful and the outlets in the rooms are a mixture of 220 and 110, so bring a converter if you have lots of devices. The $10 walmart "all in one" converter worked fine for us.
The biggest adjustment for me was that there is no convenience store to get a bottle of water, Tylenol, or any other needs at. You need to carry your own toilet paper when not at the hotel, and any public bathrooms at a business or restaurant will usually have an attendant that it is customary to tip. I usually left 1 Cuban peso. Our guide had to go to several bodegas to come up with 8 1-liter bottles of water for the group for the next day. We definitely weren't in Kansas anymore so to speak.
We did a walking tour of Old Havana and the history of a 500 year old Caribbean city was more interesting than I had expected. The architecture was amazing. Old Havana reminded me more of a European city (Warsaw comes to mind) than anything. Cut stone building and cobblestone streets were beautiful. If you have never seen the sun set orange glow on old Havana from the patio by the cannons at the National Hotel, put it on your bucket list. It's one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen.
We did the convertible tour in Havana in 50's model American cars. Most of the cars had been converted to Russian/Chinese/Japanese diesel engines with mismatched transmissions. Their ability to keep these cars on the road with no American parts is impressive. Our guide was working on a 1950 Chevrolet that the gas engine had been sleeved using cast sewer drain pipe.
The people in Havana were generally friendly. Supposedly about half the Cuban people would like to become an American Protectorate, while the other half believes the state media that America is the root of all of Cuba's problems. The media also reports that Venezuela is a solid and thriving country. It was easy to tell what people believe by the way we were treated. Many Cubans were surprised to see Americans after the cruise travel elimination.
Breakfast was included in our rate and was very good. Excellent coffee as well.
VERADERA- After a day in Havana, we traveled to the Melia Veradera resort. We arrived just as the lunch buffet was opening and our rooms weren't ready yet. We went to lunch and it was more like a mixed martial arts fight in the buffet line. Waiting in line was not a concept many could grasp. People would cut in line and if you stood your ground, they would try an push you out of their way. The servers were less than friendly and we could not decide if this was directed at Americans or all people in general. Luckily, our dive schedule put us returning at the end of the lunch rush so the line issues were not anywhere as bad. We had dinner in the ala-carte restaurants so lines were not an issue. Most of the wait staff was friendly. The resort was nice, but crowded. drinks were watered down and they were likely to be out of limes or mint at any given point for Mojitos. The beer was Chrystal(typical light beer) and Buchanero (darker), not bad but not particularly memorable either. The coffee was the home run, double expresso with milk and a half shot of Havana Club 7 year...it will touch your soul...
DIVING- I told you all of that so I could tell you this.... Diving in Havana was not great, it wasn't bad either. The reefs were pretty sparse with few solid lines coral and lots of sand. They do not control the lionfish and were not allowed to take them so LF are everywhere. Seas were rough and we were diving off of a yacht type boat with a swim platform with a small ladder in Havana. Getting back on in gear sucked and the crew wasn't really game to help. Due to the small boat size, we assembled our gear on land. My first fill was 2200psi, they acted like that was plenty. In Veradero, we were on traditional dive boats with 10-to 20 divers per day. The seas were rough, some day 5 foot swells picking the ladder up out of the water. We had multiple o-ring issues, we had O-rings but for what ever reason they were hesitant to change them out. bring lots of yoke type O-rings and a pick to change them. We were also told before we left that we needed to have inserts to convert din to yoke. it was not an issue for 22 tanks a day. All were yoke. Other than short fills and O-rings, we didn't have any trouble, although I had the "dive shop in a box" handy if needed. If you think you may need it...bring it. I didn't use rental equipment but what I saw seemed acceptable for rental stuff. Several others did have short fill issues. One guy's second tank was 1900 psi but it was a 25 foot dive so not that big of a deal. Dives were 45 minutes unless everyone had air and they would stretch to an hour.
I was not expecting the amount of wreck diving in Cuba, there are multiple wreck options, including a 300 foot Russian Patrol Boat with the guns still on it at 100 FSW. These dives may not be available based on the fuel allotted by the govt.
GETTING BACK- We had been told that we needed to be prepared to be questioned by customs about our trip upon returning to Fort Lauderdale. It was actually easier than many of our Mexico trips. We went to the customs computer screen, checked "No" on the 5 boxes, took our printed receipt to the man collecting them and walked to baggage claim. I brought back $80 of assorted cigars for a friend so I had nothing to declare. I wish I would have brought back a couple of bottles of Havana Club 7 year, but maybe on the next trip.
All in all, I'm glad we went. It was an educational and eye opening experience and damn sure makes you appreciate many things we take for granted every day in America.
Safe travels,
Jay
GETTING THERE- We had purchased our tickets before the Trump restrictions had gone into effect. We were supposedly grandfathered in under "People to People" but our Visa was converted to Humanitarian Aid and Conservation before we left. We flew Southwest out of fort Lauderdale and typical of southwest, there were no issues what so ever. The hurricane was still making up its mind which direction to go, but it zigged instead of zagged and we had no weather issues other than a raised eyebrow of concern and a little more attention to the weather channel during the trip. 5 of the 7 days had afternoon showers typical of tropical afternoons, but nothing that altered our plans in any way. The weather was beautiful, but there is no hot like Havana Hot.
I converted US Dollars to Canadian at my local bank, once at the Hotel in Havana, I converted Canadian to Cuban.
Once on the ground in Havana, you walked down the portable steps from the plane to the tarmac. The heat and humidity punch you in the face, but once you convince yourself you are not going to die, its doable. The walk into the terminal was about 100 yards. The terminal was air conditioned-ish and not uncomfortable. There were little individual rooms that you had to go into alone for customs processing. The agents were friendly and other than not being able to exit the little room until you were buzzed out, the process was completely worry free. We purchased our visa's in advance so they were stamped along with out passports and we were buzzed out to baggage claim.
Baggage claim was slow and some of our bags were on one belt, and others were on Belt #2. No big deal. Once we cleared baggage, our guide was waiting for us for the short ride to the Havana National Hotel. Old 50's model American cars are everywhere along with a Russian made car that looks like a boxy BMW. The model started with I...maybe ICAA or ISAA...something like that. Our driver spoke limited English but between my Spanish and his English, we made do. He was friendly and did his best to hold a conversation.
HAVANA- The Havana National hotel was finished in 1930. Until the revolution, it was frequented by Hollywood stars, and mafia kingpins alike. Much of the hotel remains just as it was in those days. The air conditioning feels wonderful and the outlets in the rooms are a mixture of 220 and 110, so bring a converter if you have lots of devices. The $10 walmart "all in one" converter worked fine for us.
The biggest adjustment for me was that there is no convenience store to get a bottle of water, Tylenol, or any other needs at. You need to carry your own toilet paper when not at the hotel, and any public bathrooms at a business or restaurant will usually have an attendant that it is customary to tip. I usually left 1 Cuban peso. Our guide had to go to several bodegas to come up with 8 1-liter bottles of water for the group for the next day. We definitely weren't in Kansas anymore so to speak.
We did a walking tour of Old Havana and the history of a 500 year old Caribbean city was more interesting than I had expected. The architecture was amazing. Old Havana reminded me more of a European city (Warsaw comes to mind) than anything. Cut stone building and cobblestone streets were beautiful. If you have never seen the sun set orange glow on old Havana from the patio by the cannons at the National Hotel, put it on your bucket list. It's one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen.
We did the convertible tour in Havana in 50's model American cars. Most of the cars had been converted to Russian/Chinese/Japanese diesel engines with mismatched transmissions. Their ability to keep these cars on the road with no American parts is impressive. Our guide was working on a 1950 Chevrolet that the gas engine had been sleeved using cast sewer drain pipe.
The people in Havana were generally friendly. Supposedly about half the Cuban people would like to become an American Protectorate, while the other half believes the state media that America is the root of all of Cuba's problems. The media also reports that Venezuela is a solid and thriving country. It was easy to tell what people believe by the way we were treated. Many Cubans were surprised to see Americans after the cruise travel elimination.
Breakfast was included in our rate and was very good. Excellent coffee as well.
VERADERA- After a day in Havana, we traveled to the Melia Veradera resort. We arrived just as the lunch buffet was opening and our rooms weren't ready yet. We went to lunch and it was more like a mixed martial arts fight in the buffet line. Waiting in line was not a concept many could grasp. People would cut in line and if you stood your ground, they would try an push you out of their way. The servers were less than friendly and we could not decide if this was directed at Americans or all people in general. Luckily, our dive schedule put us returning at the end of the lunch rush so the line issues were not anywhere as bad. We had dinner in the ala-carte restaurants so lines were not an issue. Most of the wait staff was friendly. The resort was nice, but crowded. drinks were watered down and they were likely to be out of limes or mint at any given point for Mojitos. The beer was Chrystal(typical light beer) and Buchanero (darker), not bad but not particularly memorable either. The coffee was the home run, double expresso with milk and a half shot of Havana Club 7 year...it will touch your soul...
DIVING- I told you all of that so I could tell you this.... Diving in Havana was not great, it wasn't bad either. The reefs were pretty sparse with few solid lines coral and lots of sand. They do not control the lionfish and were not allowed to take them so LF are everywhere. Seas were rough and we were diving off of a yacht type boat with a swim platform with a small ladder in Havana. Getting back on in gear sucked and the crew wasn't really game to help. Due to the small boat size, we assembled our gear on land. My first fill was 2200psi, they acted like that was plenty. In Veradero, we were on traditional dive boats with 10-to 20 divers per day. The seas were rough, some day 5 foot swells picking the ladder up out of the water. We had multiple o-ring issues, we had O-rings but for what ever reason they were hesitant to change them out. bring lots of yoke type O-rings and a pick to change them. We were also told before we left that we needed to have inserts to convert din to yoke. it was not an issue for 22 tanks a day. All were yoke. Other than short fills and O-rings, we didn't have any trouble, although I had the "dive shop in a box" handy if needed. If you think you may need it...bring it. I didn't use rental equipment but what I saw seemed acceptable for rental stuff. Several others did have short fill issues. One guy's second tank was 1900 psi but it was a 25 foot dive so not that big of a deal. Dives were 45 minutes unless everyone had air and they would stretch to an hour.
I was not expecting the amount of wreck diving in Cuba, there are multiple wreck options, including a 300 foot Russian Patrol Boat with the guns still on it at 100 FSW. These dives may not be available based on the fuel allotted by the govt.
GETTING BACK- We had been told that we needed to be prepared to be questioned by customs about our trip upon returning to Fort Lauderdale. It was actually easier than many of our Mexico trips. We went to the customs computer screen, checked "No" on the 5 boxes, took our printed receipt to the man collecting them and walked to baggage claim. I brought back $80 of assorted cigars for a friend so I had nothing to declare. I wish I would have brought back a couple of bottles of Havana Club 7 year, but maybe on the next trip.
All in all, I'm glad we went. It was an educational and eye opening experience and damn sure makes you appreciate many things we take for granted every day in America.
Safe travels,
Jay
