Havana, Cuba

[papirico]

The CUC is an invention of Castro.
It's not recognized anywhere outside the island. It was created for the government to get a hold of all the real US dollars in circulation there.
La Habana is about 70 kms. away from Varadero. If you wanna travel cheap, the bus is the option. If you don't wanna travel cheap, a taxi is the way to go. There are also guided tours that take you there for even more money.
It's all in how thick is your wallet there.

 

[tink23]

You can't get CUC in Canada... we exchanged our money at the airport when we arrived.
Can't help you out on the remaining questions as I haven't been to Varadero in 13 years. Last vacations in Cuba were in Cayo Santa Maria
Have a great trip!!!

You can't get CUC in Canada... we exchanged our money at the airport when we arrived.
Can't help you out on the remaining questions as I haven't been to Varadero in 13 years. Last vacations in Cuba were in Cayo Santa Maria
Have a great trip!!!

Thank you both for your help. We will try to exchange the money at the airport then because I would imagine on the resort that it would be even worse. We should exchange from Canadian to CUC, correct?? Also, 1 more question: Is there a departure tax to pay?? I remember when I was there years ago it was $25 or $30 USD. Is this still the case? If so does the departure tax have to be paid in CUC? Or is this hopefully just included in the price of the resort/ plane ticket when purchased? THANK YOU AGAIN!!!

Havana might happen or not... it would be by bus, so I guess we will have to wait and see if our money is plentiful (probably not hahaha) and if I feel like I could handle a crazy bus ride. With it being 70 km, I would imagine that it would probably take close to 2 hours or more, esp if by public bus, as if it is anything like the Dominican public bus, it will have frequent stops whenever people feel like getting on and off.

Thank you!!!

 

[papirico]

The US dollar is king there (as it is in any other country in Latin America).
If you take loonies, the exchange is not as "good". I took Mexican pesos in my first trip and indeed it was a lower exchange rate than if I had taken mighty dollars with me.
That's why the public bus is cheap. You don't want the stops, there are taxis.

 

[cdnmom]

Thank you both for your help. We will try to exchange the money at the airport then because I would imagine on the resort that it would be even worse. We should exchange from Canadian to CUC, correct?? Also, 1 more question: Is there a departure tax to pay?? I remember when I was there years ago it was $25 or $30 USD. Is this still the case? If so does the departure tax have to be paid in CUC? Or is this hopefully just included in the price of the resort/ plane ticket when purchased? THANK YOU AGAIN!!!

Havana might happen or not... it would be by bus, so I guess we will have to wait and see if our money is plentiful (probably not hahaha) and if I feel like I could handle a crazy bus ride. With it being 70 km, I would imagine that it would probably take close to 2 hours or more, esp if by public bus, as if it is anything like the Dominican public bus, it will have frequent stops whenever people feel like getting on and off.

Thank you!!!

Hi

Best to take Canadian Dollars for the exchange as if you buy US dollars to take you are paying to exchange money twice. And currently the US dollar is a little more expensive than the Canadian dollar

If I remember correctly the cost to leave Cuba is $25 CUC.

Enjoy your trip!!

 

[Brooksee]

This is mine And my wife's story, I went to Cuba on vacation back in April 2012. I met my wife at the Beatles restaurant in Varadero Cuba. I was just sitting there having lunch and her and her friend came and sat down and we started to talk. I then seen her three more times after that the same week I was there. I knew right then and there she was the love of my life. We corresponded until I decided to go back in June for her birthday. We then stayed for one week in a hotel and one week in her home town. We then corresponded until September but in that meantime we had decided to get married. So we planned the wedding and she decided that we would do it on my 40th birthday so we did so and I stayed for three weeks at that time. Throughout the whole time. We have been working on the sponsorship application. It was submitted on Valentine's Day 2013 and I was approved on the sponsorship application in 25 days. Our application was submitted to the Canadian Embassy in Cuba and they started to process and look at our application on April 2, 2013. At this point we are still waiting for the final word of when she can come to Canada. I do not regret one thing I have done since I met my wife. I love her with all my heart and soul and she loves me in the same way. It does get harder each time I have to leave her but we both know that we are really not that far apart because we are in each others hearts every day and every night. We correspond by emails and telephone calls. It is much cheaper for her to call me as where it is for me to call her. She can pay up to only $.20 or $.40 a minute to call. Whereas it cost me $10 to talk for 12 minutes to her on a 20/20 international phone card. I did hire a lawyer to help us through this process and she is through immigroup out of Ontario, Canada. She has been a very great help and she figures that my wife will be here in Canada after only 2 to 3 months of the visa office processing our application as of April 2/13. But we will have to wait and see. I have gone through every step and all processes the correct way if there are any questions or needing feedback please forward

 

[LiaJoi]

This is mine And my wife's story, I went to Cuba on vacation back in April 2012. I met my wife at the Beatles restaurant in Varadero Cuba. I was just sitting there having lunch and her and her friend came and sat down and we started to talk. I then seen her three more times after that the same week I was there. I knew right then and there she was the love of my life. We corresponded until I decided to go back in June for her birthday. We then stayed for one week in a hotel and one week in her home town. We then corresponded until September but in that meantime we had decided to get married. So we planned the wedding and she decided that we would do it on my 40th birthday so we did so and I stayed for three weeks at that time. Throughout the whole time. We have been working on the sponsorship application. It was submitted on Valentine's Day 2013 and I was approved on the sponsorship application in 25 days. Our application was submitted to the Canadian Embassy in Cuba and they started to process and look at our application on April 2, 2013. At this point we are still waiting for the final word of when she can come to Canada. I do not regret one thing I have done since I met my wife. I love her with all my heart and soul and she loves me in the same way. It does get harder each time I have to leave her but we both know that we are really not that far apart because we are in each others hearts every day and every night. We correspond by emails and telephone calls. It is much cheaper for her to call me as where it is for me to call her. She can pay up to only $.20 or $.40 a minute to call. Whereas it cost me $10 to talk for 12 minutes to her on a 20/20 international phone card. I did hire a lawyer to help us through this process and she is through immigroup out of Ontario, Canada. She has been a very great help and she figures that my wife will be here in Canada after only 2 to 3 months of the visa office processing our application as of April 2/13. But we will have to wait and see. I have gone through every step and all processes the correct way if there are any questions or needing feedback please forward

Hello thanks for sharing your story here,keep us posted about the process, my file is in havana as well since early may , all we gotta do is pray and wait to finally be with the one we loves!! goodluckk with the process!

 

[Brooksee]

Yes! good luck to you as well and we just have to keep praying. Do you know what the acronyms for AOR & PRE are? can you share with me on having or getting dual citizenship? If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask. And do yoou know all what is required at the airport when it is time for departure for my wife? I have an idea, I believe that all she will need is passport and permenant resident visa. Hope to hear from you soon, thank you

 

[LiaJoi]

Yes! good luck to you as well and we just have to keep praying. Do you know what the acronyms for AOR & PRE are? can you share with me on having or getting dual citizenship? If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask. And do yoou know all what is required at the airport when it is time for departure for my wife? I have an idea, I believe that all she will need is passport and permenant resident visa. Hope to hear from you soon, thank you

the AOR IS THE ACKNOWLEDGED OF RECEIPT AND YOUR WIFE CAN APPLY FOR THE PRE ONCE SHE IS HERE IN CANADA, THEY DONT DO THE PRE IN CUBA ANYMORE, and its like a permit to own properties in cuba and to go back anytime you want to, for example people with no PRE have to go back every 2 years in order not to lose their cuban citizenship.
About what your wife will need to leave cuba after the new law its only valid passport and the visa, but i recomend you to tell her to go to the emmigration and extranjeria office in her province and they will tell her all she needs,just to make sure

 

[Brooksee]

Excellent, Thank you so much. Do you know when the actual time starts for the time period of the first month to the tenth month? Because they say it can take up to ten months. Does it start when the Cuban embassy starts to look at your application? Because they started to look at my app on Apirl 2/13. We do plan to travel back and forth every few months to see the family if we can, what should I know about going back and forth? I also would like to purchase a vacation home somewhere near her home town. Thank you again, sounds like you know your info.

 

[LiaJoi]

Excellent, Thank you so much. Do you know when the actual time starts for the time period of the first month to the tenth month? Because they say it can take up to ten months. Does it start when the Cuban embassy starts to look at your application? Because they started to look at my app on Apirl 2/13. We do plan to travel back and forth every few months to see the family if we can, what should I know about going back and forth? I also would like to purchase a vacation home somewhere near her home town. Thank you again, sounds like you know your info.

i think the period time starts when they start processing your application,and after shes here she will need her cuban passport and the pr card thats all, im cuban too and thats all i need, even when she becomes a citizen she still need her cuban passport to enter and leave cuba.And nice about owing a home, so its good for her to apply for PRE once shes here so she can have properties down there and all that, and yes people always go back before the 2 years time but well you never know when your gonna have a problems so PRE is a good thing to have i think ))

 

[Brooksee]

What can you tell me about citizenship? My wife and I would like to be a dual citizens. Do you the steps for that? Or is it easier to just maybe get a Cuban passport and for her to get her Canadian passport once she is a citizen here in Canada. Wow! you have been such help for me in trying to understand everything and you have answered some questions that I have had for sometime now. If there is something eles that you may have to share with me that would be great. Thank you very much once again. God bless

 

[LiaJoi]

What can you tell me about citizenship? My wife and I would like to be a dual citizens. Do you the steps for that? Or is it easier to just maybe get a Cuban passport and for her to get her Canadian passport once she is a citizen here in Canada. Wow! you have been such help for me in trying to understand everything and you have answered some questions that I have had for sometime now. If there is something eles that you may have to share with me that would be great. Thank you very much once again. God bless

my english is not really good so im not really sure what do you mean by dual citizens i just know thay even when she get her canadian passport she still needs her cuban passport in order to go to cuba to enter and leave cuban she have to present her cuban passport sorry if i dont have all the answers to your questions lol i dont really know about immigrations everything i can tell you is gonna be based on my personals experiences

 

[Brooksee]

Do you know How hard it would be for me to obtain a Cuban passport? Thank you again

 

[Brooksee]

I want to be able for her to have her citizenship here and keep hers from cuba and for me to have mine from cuba and to be able to travel back and forth though out the years. I know that she can't get her citizenship for 3 years here in Canada but am I able to get my citizenship for Cuba? If you have any answers for me that would be great? That's what I mean by dual citizenship. Thank you again and god bless you. Where do you live? I live in Edmonton, AB

 

[LiaJoi]

I want to be able for her to have her citizenship here and keep hers from cuba and for me to have mine from cuba and to be able to travel back and forth though out the years. I know that she can't get her citizenship for 3 years here in Canada but am I able to get my citizenship for Cuba? If you have any answers for me that would be great? That's what I mean by dual citizenship. Thank you again and god bless you. Where do you live? I live in Edmonton, AB

ahh now i know what you mean thanks for explaining me lol she will keep hers from cuba and after the 3 years she will get hers here in canada about you getting a cuban passport i dont know if that is possible but you can go to cuba anytime you want you dont need a cuban passport for that but i dont know i know tourist with cuban passports but they live in cuba they moved there to live