Cuban Shore Excursions

[CariD]

My husband and I are booked on an overnight in Havana cruise. I'm wondering if anyone has done the different excisions which ones are the best and which ones to avoid. Also, are we required to do the excursions to go in Cuba ? After the excursion can we go off on our own of have to go back to ship?

[JLMoran]

Hi, @CariD. Welcome to the RCBlog forums!

I can't answer your question as I haven't been to Cuba, but I wanted to ask if you are booked on a Royal Caribbean ship or one of Celebrity's ships. If it's a Royal Caribbean ship, your question would be better-asked in the Shore Excursions forum. This particular forum is specifically for folks sailing on Celebrity or Azamara, and you might not get as many people looking here.

This site overall is primarily focused on Royal Caribbean, but the admin (@Matt) was nice enough to put this forum here for those of us who were exploring Royal's sister lines and wanted to ask questions or give reviews without having to go a... umm.. certain other web site that isn't known for being as friendly as this one.

[tiny260]

2 hours ago, CariD said:

My husband and I are booked on an overnight in Havana cruise. I'm wondering if anyone has done the different excisions which ones are the best and which ones to avoid. Also, are we required to do the excursions to go in Cuba ? After the excursion can we go off on our own of have to go back to ship?

I had a co-worker cruise to Cuba, his experience was positive, he went on a basic explore all of Havana bus tour, my understanding form him and I believe @Matt has also posted this, yes you can leave the ship on your own.

[twangster]

You can read about my day in Cuba in this live blog:

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/8865-empress-73018-5-nights-inc-cuba/&do=findComment&comment=79537

Royal has created some webpages specific to Cuba:

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/guides/a-quick-guide-to-cruising-to-cuba

As far as the requirement for an excursion, the US government has regulations in place that govern a visit to Cuba.  From this Royal Caribbean FAQ:

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/how-do-changes-in-cuba-regulations-affect-my-travel

• Q.  How do recent changes in Cuba regulations affect my travel plans?
• A.  The recently amended regulations do not affect any of our sailings to Cuba. However, “self-guided people-to-people” travel is no longer allowed for any guest that booked on June 16, 2017 or after. This means that guests will need to choose a group “people-to-people” tour that complies with the new regulations, unless they qualify for other categories of authorized travel or hold a specific license issued by OFAC. All Royal Caribbean tours are designed to comply with the regulations.
• In addition to the “self-guided people-to-people” travel amendment, OFAC prohibits direct financial transactions with a published a list of hotels, stores and other prohibited entities. For more information, see the where direct financial transactions are not permitted. The list can be found on OFAC’s Cuba Restricted List. 

As long as you are compliant with OFAC regulations you don't explicitly need an excursion but understanding the regulations and staying within their limits often means an excursion is the safe and easy way to explore Cuba. 

Azamara has a similar FAQ

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/destinations/cuba/faq

• What are the new Cuba regulations?
• The new regulations do not affect any of our sailings to Cuba. However, self-guided “people-to-people” travel will no longer be allowed for any guest that booked on June 16, 2017 or after. This means that in order to enjoy Cuba, guests will need to participate in a group “people-to-people” tour that complies with the new regulations if they do not qualify for the other categories of authorized travel or hold a specific license issued by OFAC. All Azamara Club Cruises shore excursions have been designed to comply with the regulations.
• In addition, OFAC published a list of prohibited hotels, stores, and other entities where direct financial transactions are not permitted. The list can be found on OFAC’s Cuba Restricted List.

[twangster]

To answer your question about visiting Cuba.  When you arrive into Cuba you will reach Cuban immigration no different than someone flying into America and reaching USCIS or CBP at the airport.  You walk off the ship and reach Cuban immigration. They will review your VISA and passport and you are cleared to enter Cuba.   You are now able to walk onto the streets of Cuba.  Within the cruise terminal is a currency exchange where you can convert your money into the CUC that tourists can use in Cuba. 

If you have purchased a ship excursion there will be signs directing to the waiting area for ship excursions.  

If you have have not purchased a ship excursion, you are able to walk onto the streets of Cuba.

The US Government's OFAC agency (Office of Foreign Asset Control) has established regulations that US visitors must comply with when visiting Cuba.  It is every US visitor's responsibility to follow OFAC requirements.  The ship or cruise line is not responsible to follow you onto the streets of Cuba and ensure you do not violate OFAC regulations.  

In this manner you are able to visit Cuba without an excursion, if you meet OFAC regulations.  If you don't want to research those regulations the "easy" approach is to take a ship excursion that meets OFAC regulations.  They've done the research to make sure that excursion is compliant with OFAC requirements.