COMMISSION+ TOUR OF CUBA
WHOLESALE 5 DAY HAVANA PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE TOUR
DAY 1 “HELLO HAVANA”
· Depart U.S. from MIA or FTL International Airport for Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, Cuba.
· Meet & greet with guide at Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport.
· Guide will accompany guests for the duration of their stay.
· Accommodation in exclusive Bed&Breakfast for 4 nights with breakfast included.
· Driving City Tour of Havana, including a drive along the famous Havana malecon seawall, Vedado neighborhood, 5th Avenue in the suburb of Miramar, and stops at the Plaza of the Revolution, Almendares Park, Fusterlandia in the suburbs of Havana, and La Lavanderia, the studio and workshop of Cuban painter and sculptor Rafael Perez Alonso. You will have the opportunity to explore this most unique workplace in the Havana suburb of Miramar, and meet the artist. (3 hours)
· Welcome lunch at private restaurant.
· Transfer to B&B.
· Dinner at a private restaurant Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion.
· Live music at la Zorra y el Cuervo.
DAY 2 “OLD HAVANA & ART”
· Breakfast at B&B.
· 9:00am Old Havana Encounter, our walking tour through Old Havana, La Habana Vieja, and its five main plazas, Plaza Vieja, Plaza de Armas, Plaza de la Catedral, Plaza de San Francisco, and Plaza del Cristo, with stops at the residence of the colonial era Captain General of the island, the Havana Cathedral, Obispo Street, and the Cuba’s capitol building. You will stop at the L’Antigua Habana book store, right across the street from Sloppy Joe’s, where you just may find a first edition of “The Old Man and the Sea,” or just a simple postcard. Old Havana gives you a taste of the island and will make you feel as if you had travelled back in time. Old Havana has some of the oldest buildings and streets in the Americas, with buildings and structures dating to the 16th century. These ancient buildings still house a significant number of Havana’s inhabitants. Old Havana features the first church built on the island, a street paved with wooden bricks, palatial residences, the hotel where Ernest Hemingway wrote “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” the beautiful Bacardi building, and the Cuba’s former presidential palace. Some of the notable buildings you will see during this tour include the house built by Ponce de Leon’s grandson, a section of Havana’s original colonial era sewer system, and the beautiful Palacio Viena Hotel, which like many structures in Old Havana has been undergoing a never-ending renovation. Our tour of Old Havana includes stops at Ernest Hemingway’s favorite bars, El Floridita and La Bodeguita del Medio. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1982, Old Havana is the largest, oldest, and most authentic colonial area in the western hemisphere. (4 hours)
· Lunch at a private restaurant. Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion
· 2:30pm Museum experience, visit to the Havana Museo de Bellas Atres, this includes a visit the national Cuban Museum of Art, and the International Museum of Art, both located in old Havana, 4 hours. The national and international branches of the Cuban Museo de Bellas Artes feature the highest quality artwork on the island, in strikingly different settings. The international branch is housed in the ornate former Centro Asturiano, which house a society of Spaniards from the province of Asturias who resided on the island, and is located steps away from the capitol building. The national branch is housed in a strikingly looking modern building, considering that it was built before the revolution in the 1950s.
· Dinner at a private restaurant Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion.
· 9:00pm Live music at El Diablo Tun Tun or La Casa de la Musica.
DAY 3 “RESOLVIENDO & SANTERIA”
· Breakfast at B&B.
· 9:00am RESOLVIENDO Workshop, through this workshop we attempt to give our guests a peek into the life of a regular Cuban citizen. You will see an actual tarjeta de abastecimiento, which roughly translates to provisions card. These are the small notebooks that every Cuban citizen is given at birth, and which entitles them to five chicken eggs, a quarter chicken, coffee, cooking oil, and other items every month. The provision card also entitles its’ bearer to purchase select items that are deemed to be necessities at discounted prices. You will visit what is known in Cuba as an agricultural market, agro, and is basically the produce section of a supermarket, where most people buy their fresh produce. You will visit a bread distribution point, where bread is distributed through the provision card at discounted prices. Depending on schedule and other factors you may also visit a grocery store, meat market, and other markets where meats are sold. This workshop will show visitors some of the daily rituals most Cubans deal with, it will be presented by your guide, and sometimes we have invited guests who are experts in certain areas of the food distribution chain in Cuba. The history of the provisions card will also be covered. (4 hours)
· Lunch at a private restaurant. Not included in tour price. At client’s own expenses and with guide/driver suggestion
· 2:00pm Santeria workshop, this workshop covers the basics of the Afro-Cuban religion Santeria, and includes such topics as the syncretism of Catholicism and African religions, and the role and significance of drums in the religion. The religion is a syncretism of African religions and Catholicism, and is currently practiced by a large percentage of the island’s population. This workshop covers the main deities of the religion, their origin myths, the colors and vestments associated with them, and their roles in human life. A visit to the Casa de Africa is included, and there you will see African musical instruments, artifacts, and a room dedicated to the orishas, the Yoruba deities. Guests are usually amazed after attending this workshop that the multicolored wristbands and necklaces worn by many Cubans are associated with the religion. (3 hours)
· Dinner at a private restaurant Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion.
· Live music at venue to be determined.
DAY 4 “CIGARS RUM & REVOLUTION”
· Breakfast at B&B.
· 9:00am Havana Cigar and Rum experience, this is a walking tour that traverses Old Havana, with visits to the Rum Museum, and the Cigar Museum, and stops at a cigar factory and warehouse. The Rum Museum illustrates the history of the sugar industry in Cuba, and includes a replica of a colonial era rum distillery, and a presentation of the culture and tradition of Cuban rum production. The Rum Museum displays contemporary Cuban painter’s works, so you just may see the early works of Cuba’s next Wilfredo Lam. The Habano Museum illustrates the history of tobacco cultivation, and cigar making on in Cuba. Guests will have an opportunity to sample both fine Cuban rums and cigars during this event. Depending on schedule you may see a demonstration by a master cigar roller. (3 hours)
· Lunch at a private restaurant. Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion
· 2:00pm Museo de la Revolucion Tour, housed in what was Cuba’s presidential palace before the Cuban revolution of 1959, the Museum of the Cuban Revolution bears to the violent events that shook Cuba throughout the 1950s. Bullet holes from attempted coups are visible on both exterior and interior walls. Located in Old Havana, facing the malecon, the Museum displays both civilian and military items that record the history of Cuba from the time the 26 of July Movement began its struggle against the Batista dictatorship, through Bay of Pigs invasion, and the early years of the revolution. Among the items on display are letters, photos, bloody shirts, pistols, and even the motor yacht Granma, which ferried Fidel Castro and the members of the 26 of July Movement to Cuba from Mexico in 1956. Military vehicles that were used during the fighting in the late 1950’s are on display, including tanks, jeeps, airplanes, and tractors that were converted into armored fighting vehicles. (2 hours)
· Cuban Revolution 101 Workshop, covers the history of Cuba since the revolution of 1959 to the present day. (2 hours)
· Dinner at a private restaurant Not included in tour price. At client’s own expense and with guide/driver suggestion.
· Live music at Sarao or El Diablo Tun Tun.
DAY 5 “Bye, Cuba”
· Breakfast at B&B.
· Transfer to Jose Marti International Airport for return flight to U.S.
· The pickup time will be set 3 hours prior to flight departure time.
Package price
Price per person in double occupancy……. 1420 USD (Taxes Included)
Price per person in single occupancy……... 1533 USD (Taxes Included)
$200 COMMISSION PER PERSON, OR CONTACT US FOR CUSTOM SMALL GROUP TOUR
CONTACT US AT [email protected]
The price includes:
- Guide′s assistance at disposition during the tours in Havana
- Car & driver at disposition on day 1.
- All transfers, activities and excursions described in the program. EXPECT LATE NIGHT TRANSFERS TO RETURN TO B&B.
- Accommodation according to the program description.
-Cuban Entry Visas
-Welcome Lunch on day 1 and 4 breakfasts
The price DOES NOT include:
- All other lunches and dinners which are at client’s own expense.
-Tips for guides & drivers.
- Roundtrip airfare
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For confirmation it will be necessary to provide the following information:
- Arrival and departure flight details (Dates, time, flight number and airline).
- Any other information we may require in order to proceed with trip confirmation such as:
Special accommodations, diet preferences, special celebrations during the trip (Honeymoon, birthdays, etc).
Notice: Between 9 am to 9 pm during the time the guide / driver will be accompanying, guests will be able to readjust the program according to their wishes and interests, and if they would like to visit other places not included in itinerary, they may do so and would only have to pay any fees over the scheduled entrance or other admittance fees.
This People-to-People Cultural Exchange Tour of Cuba is allowed by General License 31 CFR 515.565 and 31 CFR 515.560(c).
Minimum group size is 3 guests and maximum is 16.
Night time activity schedule subject to change depending on travel dates and venue schedules.