Visit Cuba on your own
Practice your freedom of travel!
Be part of the new movement to see Cuba on your own terms
You can visit this island without having to take a package tour and you will be just as safe and comfortable in a home in as in a fancy hotel--Enjoy the freedom of travel that we are used to!
We know Cuba and can find the dream house for your visit
We travel to Cuba regularly and know the best and the worst of the places to stay, We will work with you to set your budget and find the most incredible houses and apartments for your visit in Havana and throughout the island.
We will keep you away from the places that sound good on lodging websites but don't live up to their promises.
Meet two of the best ideas in Cuba travel.
A “Casa particular” literally means a "private house" but the term started to be used to mean “private accommodation” in 1997, when the Cuban government allowed Cubans to rent out rooms in their houses or apartments to tourists, providing Cuban families with new sources of income. Rooms are generally clean and upgraded to tourist standards. It ranges from basic accommodation of a room with a bed, to full furnished independent apartments upgraded to western standards, to Luxury accommodations in some of the country's most palatial homes and apartments.
In keeping with the similarity to B&B's, breakfast is usually included in the price, although one should ask first. Dinner is often also served, but not included in the price. The owners will usually offer extra services like laundry service, or even cigars.
Privately owned small restaurants, called "paladares" have always existed in Cuba. Until the 1990s they were illegal, but the fall of the USSR and and the economic crisis it caused forced the government to make the economic reforms of 1993. One of the items in those reforms was the legalization of privately owned small businesses as restaurants.
Over the last two decades the concept of a paladar has gone from homey meals literally in a kitchen of the house to a very high quality foodie scene that includes highly designed restaurants and high energy chefs. Today you will find a variety of private eating establishents-paladares-all over the capital city of Havana and throughout the island.
The term "paladar' has its origin in the Brazilian soap opera Vale Tudo, shown in Cuba in the early 1990s. Paladar (Portuguese and Spanish for "palate") was the name of the chain of restaurants run by Rachel Accioli, the protagonist, played by Regina Duarte. The broadcast of that soap opera coincided in time with the first issue of licenses for self-employers’ work in Cuba, so Cuban popular culture designated the then-new type establishments by this name.
We will help you with the basics
We will also provide you with ideas on how to conduct yourself as a Citizen Diplomat and suggest People to People interactions with everyday Cubans that will fulfill your US Licensing requirements. We will also share many travel tips and a great list of our favorite paladares for your dining pleasure.
Concierge Service
While you are in Cuba we will offer you an on-call private concierge that will help you make lunch and dinner reservations, get opera or Ballet tickets, do side trips, and even find a great old American car with an affable, bilingual driver, a massage or tickets to the baseball game. You don't have to rough it.
It's now easier to visit Cuba!
On January 16, 2015 President Barack Obama liberalized People to People educational travel, which now allows Americans to travel to Cuba without all of the paperwork previously needed. This makes travel to Cuba infinitely easier. People to People travel is not tourist oriented or self-directed but it is both rewarding and unique. It allows participants to visit a wide scope of organizations, institutions, and community projects that provide a deeper understanding of Cuba, its people and its culture. Our trip includes a full time schedule of educational exchange activities designed to promote meaningful interactions between Americans and the people of Cuba. Very recently the President has relaxed the rules governing People to People visits to the island by allowing you to travel on your own.
Cuba Tours and Travel
Cuba Tours and Travel has over fifteen years of experience offering expert-driven cultural travel to Cuba. Our management and program-design team, working together with a team of superb Cuban travel associates in both Havana and Miami, are uniquely suited to offer you the finest in-depth travel program to the island. We are licensed by the US and Cuba and are fully insured. Most importantly, we have an abiding love for Cuban art and culture and have strong connections to the cultural institutions on the island.
Cuba Tours and Travel is a full-service agency licensed by the U.S. Government
TSP# CU-077926-b. CST number 2073790-40. Fla. Seller of Travel Reg. No. ST39635
Long Beach, CA. Office
320 Pine Avenue. Suite 503
Long Beach, CA. 90802
Miami, FL. Office
10631 N. Kendall Drive
Suite 1208
Miami, Fl. 33176
Cover photograph. Our featured artist is Havana photographer Humberto Mayol
Please open this link for more information on this fine Cuban photographer!