Cuba Travel Guide

Wow. All I can say is WOW. If you're thinking of going to Cuba, GO. If you need a travel planner, use this company. It will be among the most memorable and excellent trips of your life. My daughter and I just returned from 9 days in Cuba. It was truly a life-changing experience. We genuinely got a deep immersion into the culture, the people, the country and the amazing things it has to offer. The agenda put together by this travel team was spectacular. We visited a tobacco farm and learned how to roll cigars and how to smoke them, we had a session with the young dancers at a Dance school, had Cuban cooking lessons, visited an organic farm, a mosaic city, hiked into the rain forest, visited museums and learned so much. I am truly only scratching the surface. The food was AMAZING - far better than I expected. Prepare to skip or share meals because there is so much delicious food. The accommodations were excellent - in family homes but with private baths, breakfast and comfortable surroundings. But the best part of the trip was the excellent partnership planning by the travel planner (and her extremely knowledgeable son). I don't think I ever emailed my planner where she didn't respond within 10 minutes and was ALWAYS flexible in accommodating our needs. Here advice was priceless and I felt so safe with her plans and style. And...I can't say enough about our guide and our driver. They were with us the entire trip, always with a smile, a helpful hand, super flexible and just plain good fun. It made all the difference. Cuba is not an easy trip. The distances are far and the infrastructure is difficult. But don't let that stop you. You can have the best of both worlds through this travel team. Immerse in Cuba but at a comfort level you're used to in the U.S. Be prepared for long distances in a '53 Chevy or the like. There is no other way to see the country. DON'T limit yourself to Havana. We loved Trinidad and Vinales so much. Be flexible...the restroom situation is not like the U.S. but with a little flexibility you can manage that. We didn't drink tap water but bottled water was very accessible and reasonable. The food is unbelievable. Bring good walking shoes, layers for unexpected weather and a flexible attitude. Listen before you "tell". You'll hear the Cuban perspective which is why you're there!!  AMAZING!!! 

If you are looking for a first class Cuban vacation, you should absolutely book with this travel team!!!  The travel planner will customize a very thoughtful itinerary based on your wants and needs.  From the moment we contacted the planner we felt that she really cared about providing excellent service.  After discussing the type of vacation we were looking for, she was able to put together an amazing itinerary that met all of our requests within our budget. The travel team staff are very professional and thoughtful. They made us feel very special throughout our Cuban adventure. We were able to learn about the Cuban culture and history from their very knowledgeable staff. The guide is very responsible and courteous.  He is well informed and was able to describe the history and the way of life for the Cuban people.  We had many wonderful discussions about the culture we were immersed. He made us feel very safe and at home in Cuba.  The B&B’s we stayed were all very welcoming, clean, and comfortable.  The people were so accommodating and friendly and the breakfasts were wonderful.  Speaking of the Cuban food, the meals at the local paladares were amazing!  We are foodies and were continually impressed by the quality of the service and food we experienced. Most of all we really enjoyed traveling in the Classic cars to tour around Havana, Vinales, and the Bay of Pigs!  We felt as though we stepped back into time. Our drivers were fantastic and excellent drivers.  We always felt very comfortable and safe. We cannot say enough about the service we received from the travel team's staff.  It was first class all the way!  We would 100% book with them for our next trip to Cuba!!!  Travel team thank you very much for sharing your beautiful culture and country with us, the memories will remain with us forever!

Everything went exactly as planned. Eli listened to us and executed perfectly. From the hotels to the guides, the sites and restaurants. We were met at the airport in Havana by a driver of a classic car and a guide. Both stayed with us for 5 days. They were very knowledgeable and we were completely comfortable in their presence and enjoyed their company and learned a great deal from them. Everything we were told was prepaid in advance was indeed included and even a last minute lunch place change didn't cause any issues. The places we stayed matched our criteria completely including safety, locations and cleanliness. The people that own and work at each establishment were fabulous and made us great breakfast every morning.The dinner restaurants that Eli planned for us were beyond fabulous. She nailed it! We ate in a farm to table home that is top rated in Vinales where the owners came and spoke to us and in Havana the superb, cool and delicious meals were literally highlights of our trip. Each evening after dinner we experienced local music in a different club.

Hi Travel planner, We're back from our Cuba trip -- thank you for the thought that went into the planning of the trip -- it was terrific!  Everything worked out beautifully.  Trinidad:**Our guide was wonderful - she was knowledgeable, personable, and very focused on making sure our needs were met.  We had a terrific time with her and a lot of great discussions. Our driver was also engaging and informative on our way from the airport to Trinidad.**Our host was wonderful.  Her home is quite comfortable, beautiful, and the location couldn't be beat.  She is quite engaging, and we had terrific breakfast conversations (the breakfasts were delicious!).  She was one of the gems of the trip.**Great driver - always there when we were ready to go from one spot to another.Havana**Our guide was terrific -- very knowledgeable, very engaged in our discussions with her, very willing to share information about life in Cuba.  She was flexible about several changes we made to our days.  We really enjoyed the time we spent with her.  Of all of the guides we've had in our various travels in other countries, I'd have to say she was one of the best because of her knowledge and her willingness to engage.**Apartment - the apartment was quite comfortable and spotless.  We enjoyed the breakfasts in the apartment.**Villa in Trinidad - one of the highlights of the trip.  The farm is beautiful, and Iris (the agricultural director) was a terrific host.  **The National Zoo - another highlight, particularly for our daughter.  We all loved seeing the zoo (it's quite impressive) and the highlight for our daughter was holding a baby monkey in the nursery (thanks for letting us know about the formula and the bottles; they were very appreciative).  **Other activities we especially enjoyed:  Walking tour in Old Trinidad and Old Havana, seeing the National Ballet practice session and the sugar plantation tour.  We liked everything we did, we just wanted to highlight some of those we enjoyed the most.All in all, we had a great trip to Cuba and it exceeded our expectations. Thanks for all of your work on it! 

The travel company and Eli were nothing short of fantastic. The trip Eli curated for us to Cuba was perfect. Everything was taken care of - from accommodation, to food, drinks, sight seeing, and transport. She arranged a fantastic guide and private driver/car. Both the guide and the driver were great and took care of every need we had - even going so far as to wait in line at high demand restaurants so we had a table ready when we arrived. We stayed in Casa Particulars in Havana, Trinidad and Varadero. Eli personally inspects all the Casa Particulars that she will put her clients in - and they were all fantastic - clean, spacious and with the most gracious hosts. In addition to the accommodation, Eli also books at the best restaurants in each town hence we had some memorable meals which turned into not just eating but culinary experiences. The itinerary was packed with great tours and excursions - we enjoyed them all, which is a rarity! We visited Cuba over the Christmas / New Year's period, which is great weather-wise. The highlight of our trip was meeting Eli for a New Year's Eve party she organized for all her guests - the cherry on top of a spectacular trip!