...FAQ's... Cubalinda.com-Your Travel to Cuba!!!...

Major credit cards like Visa and Mastercard are accepted for payments and cash withdrawals, except when issued by U.S. banks, which obviously completely eliminates American Express. The same conditions apply for Traveller�s Cheques, so cash is the only solution for U.S. visitors who do not have an account in a non-American bank.

What is the method of payment at Cubalinda.com?

Our Reservations Department will process your request and, within 48 hours, will send you any information you requested and make temporary reservations with our local providers. Once we get your final confirmation of what services you want, we will send you an invoice for the full amount, with instructions on how to make your payment. You will be asked to have your bank wire the money to our bank account in Hamburg, Germany. As soon as we receive confirmation of your payment, we will prepay the local providers.

On your arrival at the gateway airport you will be able to pick up your pre-paid ticket for your flight to Cuba and your Tourist Card for Cuban immigration. On your arrival in Cuba we will meet you at the airport with our Cubalinda welcome sign and give you pre-paid vouchers for the various services you have purchased. We will also be available to you for consultation and other services during the entire time you are in Cuba.

Regulations for Travel to Cuba

The following is a list of the Cuban immigration requirements for people wanting to visit Cuba as tourists:

Valid Passport or equivalent document
Visa (Tourist Card): At the request of the traveller on arrival, Cuban officials will stamp only the Tourist Card and not the passport.
- The Tourist Card is valid for 30 days, beginning the day you arrive. It can be extended, once in Cuba, for another 30 days but no longer. The Tourist Card can be purchased in any travel agency promoting tourism to Cuba, in any Cuban consulate, or in foreign airports with flights to Cuba. If you are an American citizen travelling without a license, the card can be purchased in the airport of the third country through which you are travelling, e.g.. Mexico, Jamaica, Canada etc. The cost of the card depends on the country in which it is purchased (usually $15 -25 US). The 30 day extension costs $25 US and can be arranged at the offices of the Cuban immigration services here in Cuba, with a stamp that must be purchased at an international bank before going to the immigration office.
Exit and entrance permits for citizens of those countries with which Cuba has a specific agreement pertaining to the exemption of visa requirements, or in cases where a visa is already part of your passport document.
Return ticket or ticket of continuation of travel out of Cuba.
Minimum of $50 US for every day you will be in Cuba.

Travel Regulations for Cubans Residing Abroad

The Cuban government does not recognize renunciation of Cuban citizenship by anyone born in Cuba. Thus all emigrants from Cuba are considered Cuban citizens for life no matter what other citizenship they may have acquired. Requirements for entering Cuba for Cuban-born people residing outside the country are as follows:

Current Cuban passport or equivalent document with one exception - those Cubans who emigrated before the 31st of December, 1970 and enter with the TC permit may use a valid non-Cuban passport.

Those Cubans who hold a Vigencia de Viaje (VV), a Permiso de Residencia en el Exterior (PRE) or a Permiso Especial de Residencia en el Exterior (PRE-especial), do not need to apply for an entrance permit.

All other Cuban citizens, including those who have acquired Cuban citizenship, must request one of two types of entrance permits: Turistas Comunitario (TC); or Permiso de Entrada (PE).

The TC entrance permit must be requested abroad, in the offices of Havanatur S.A., or, in the US, in the offices of travel agencies that promote travel to Cuba. In countries where these agencies do not exist, the request must be made in the Cuban consulate. If there is no Cuban consulate in your country of residence, you must contact the closest country that has one.

Requirements for family members of Cuban citizens (children or spouses): Current passport or equivalent document and visa type A2 (not a Tourist Card). This can be acquired at the Cuban consulate or at a travel agency that works with Havanatur (the official travel agency of Cuba).

How do I get to Cuba from the United States?

You come by air from any of several cities or by ocean liner from Cancun, Mexico. No visa is needed if you are not a Cuban citizen. You only need a valid U.S. passport and a Cuban Tourist Card. Click Flights to and from Cuba for schedules and more information.

What about restrictions on travel of U.S. citizens to Cuba?

The U.S. government prohibits its citizens from traveling to Cuba by forbiding the spending of money in Cuba under the Trading with the Enemy Act. Visiting Cuba is legal, however, under certain conditions (see next question). Please see Special Information for U.S. Citizens under General Info for the current situation and for legal assistance available from the National Lawyers Guild and the Center for Constitutional Rights. Also see Hot News under General Info for the latest legislative initiatives to end the travel ban. An estimated 200,000 U.S. citizens visited Cuba in the year 2000. About 120,000 were Cuba-Americans legally visiting relatives, and the rest were about equally divided between travelers with government licenses and travelers without. Thus about 40,000 Americans came to Cuba, simply ignoring the law. More than half of our American clients come to Cuba without license, disregarding the ban, and we encourage this.The Cubans do not normally stamp U.S. passports, and certainly will not if you ask them not to.

As an American should I go to Cuba legally or not?

You decide. The governing documents are at www.treas.gov/ofac/t11cuba.pdf. You will see the catergories of people permitted travel to Cuba under General Licenses, e.g., bona fide journalists, and Specific Licenses, e.g., universities for student and faculty travel.

Visitors from the States come in one of three ways: 1) fully hosted; 2) with a license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Treasury Department; or 3) without a license. Cuba accepts all three categories.

Fully hosted means that the person is invited and need spend no money in Cuba. No license is needed for a fully hosted visit, but after your trip you might have to prove to OFAC that you were fully hosted with a letter from your host.

An OFAC license is a permission to spend money in Cuba, issued on request for certain permitted activities such as delivery of humanitarian assistance, people-to-people contact, and educational pursuits. No licenses are issued for tourism but hey, you're here, and apart from doing what you were licensed to do, you can see the sites and do what you want.

Otherwise, you can come like thousands of other Americans without a license and do what you want. Just program your trip on our website or contact us at info@cublinda.com.

What can you do to help me visit Cuba?

We arrange travel for both licensed and unlicensed groups. For example we bring groups with solidarity donations to the Jewish community, others with general medical supplies, and still others with sports equipment. We also can make arrangements for groups that have or wish to establish sister city arrangements. And of course we arrange many visits for people who simply want to get to know this marvelous island and who don't accept the government telling them they can't travel to a country that is no threat to the United States.

Can I travel legally to study in Cuba?

Yes, of course. According to press reports there are more than 300 U.S. universities and organizations that have Specific Licenses for travel to Cuba. These institutional licenses can cover travel to Cuba for people outside the licensed institution. For example, a university can set up a licensed program for study in Cuba and can include students from any other university as well as its own. We make arrangements for students and faculty under these licenses. If you are a faculty member or student at a university that does not have a license, get in touch with us at info@cubalinda.com. We can set up a study program for credit with any of several Cuban institutions that will give you a very good introduction to Cuban life, with classroom instruction in the mornings and socio-cultural excursions in the afternoons.

Can Cubalinda.com provide legal travel services to Cuba?

There are a number of travel agencies in the U.S. that are licensed by OFAC to provide travel services to Cuba. They all must make their arrangements through one or another Havana-based agency. However, there is no requirement that licensed travelers use a licensed U.S. travel service provider. We are not a government-licensed agency, but we are the only U.S.-owned and operated travel agency in Cuba. By using our online services you eliminate a U.S.-based intermediary. Repeatedly Americans have found that dealing online with our office in Havana is far more efficient than with licensed U.S.-based agencies.

And what about the flights and cruise liner?

For those traveling with licenses, there are daily charter flights from Miami to Havana, on Fridays from New York, and on Saturdays from Los Angeles. For fully hosted clients (not allowed to take direct charters) and those traveling without licenses there are flights several times a week to and from Havana via gateway cities: Toronto, Mexico City, Cancun, Montego Bay, and Nassau.. There are also flights from and to Grand Cayman on Fridays and Sundays and Tijuana on Saturdays. Tourist Cards ($15-20 US) can be bought at the check-in counter of any airline flying from one of the gateway cities to Cuba. Our clients coming through gateways cities, normally arrange their flights from point of origin to the gateway city. For the flight from the gateway city to Havana and back, we can make reservations and pre-pay tickets that the client picks up, along with the Tourist Card, at the airline check-in counter of the gateway city airport. It's a very simple and reliable procedure. See Flights to and from Cuba for schedules and more information.

How do I pay if I decide to travel to Cuba with you?

Once you agree to a given program and itinerary, we send you an invoice and ask that you send an electronic bank transfer to our account in Hamburg, Germany. The details will be in in the invoice we send you. You should also read Terms and Conditions for payment and cancellation conditions.

Should I pay any airport tax at my departure from Havana?

During your visit to Cuba, keep aside $20 US in cash as everyone must pay the airport tax at the time of departure. It has to be paid after you check in and before you go through immigration, and must be in cash as no credit cards are accepted (even from non-U.S. banks).

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