"All reservations or purchase of tickets for flights with a destination to or departure from Havana, must be made with a credit card issued in Mexico by a Mexican company. You must contact a Mexicana phone representative to reserve or purchase such tickets with a credit card issued by a non-Mexican company." - Mexicana Airlines

OK guys, I am enticed by the latino babes in Cuba with the smaller asses to make a trip. However, our government has their panties in a bunch about Fidel and doesn't want US citizens there. What is the secret to sampling some native Cuban pussy down there?

Fly in from Mexico? Well, according to Mexicana Airlines, even if you buy your tickets while in Mexico, your credit card must be from somewhere other than the USA. Well, one could bring cash, it's not that much money from CUN-HAV. Correct assumption? Is the last line in the above statement a loophole to call in a reservation instead of doing it online?

What about the passport? How does one get around setting off a US Customs private party for them triggered by a matching pair of Cuban stamps on the passport? Two passports? Very risky.

OK Cuban mongers, time to chime in and share your experience on these concerns.

Did someone order some paranoia with a side of panic, hold the adventure..?

If your that freaked out about going when this board repeatedly says you don't get stamped, and you won't be caught. You have panic in your blood and you will most likely try to infect the rest of us with it.

Your better off in Thailand...

(Message edited by jonesie on July 06, 2008)

Can you give details on how this can be accomplished after I fly into Panama City on Copa? How to handle one piece of checked lugguage? How much cash to bring for a week-long trip? I am assuming using US issued ATM, Credit and/or debit cards are a no-no? I apologize for the newbie questions but your recent trip report rocked my head!

Jonesie, guess you haven't read the State Department website talking about the sort of crime American citizens are charged with for a Cuba stamp on their American passport. Read.

Top,

Spending dollars in Cuba is illegal, so if you plan on going you need to go all-cash. If you were to pay for a flight on a credit card, do you not think that a credit charge for a flight into Cuba would raise a red flag?

Fcbkpr, You just underscored my point. Your scared of shit just for the sake of being scared.

I'm probably wasting my time, but here goes...

First, there will be no stamp on ANY passport from ANY country because they don't do it.

Second, Congress stripped I.C.E. of the Embargo enforcement budget. Unless you tell them, they won't ask. As any time spent is misappropriation of resources.

Third, There is no court in existence to hear any such cases.

Fourth, If there were a court, The U.N. General Assembly deemed the embargo illegal, therefore against international law.

As I said, Your infected with fear and your trying very hard to infect the rest of us with it. How about you take a couple of chill pills and don't call me in the morning...

Top, I'm not sure about Copa, but I know Taca accepts credit cards for travel to Havana. Your statement will simply state "Taca Group, Panama". Taca flies many other places and is an El Salvadorian airline. Don't worry about it.

If your worried about spending dollars, Buy Euros before you go. They get a better exchange rate anyhow...

There are lawyers who'll fight your case for free if your prosecuted by US Gov., because the embargo is illegal.

How to contact them is somewhere here on the site, or try to google it.

Probably a more important point to make is that over the past few years, Cuba has severely gone downhill as a place to monger. Guys who used to go quite a bit have moved on to other locals, so I would go back to the trip reports from 2002-2004 and ping those guys on the latest on Cuba.

Latest on Cuba? Jonesie has been posting the latest
reports on Cuba for some time, which is why all the renewed interest on going.

It's hard to compare Cuba to places like Thailand or Rio because the layout is different. In places like Thailand, it's a volume thing. In Rio, not that I've been. But by the reports, I'd say it's for the pure sexual energy of the girls. In Cuba, ass is available EVERYWHERE. You can take a waitress into the bathroom if you catch her on the right day. It's also alot closer...

Yeah Cat, I agree with CFK. Some of those old reporters have moved on to other locales such as getting an american girlfriend, etc... However, many reports from other boards do state that it has gone downhill but these new Jonesie reports are certainly giving me a different opinion. I will check it out again soon and report back. I have not been there since 2002.

Well, Backdraft 12 did post a recent report on Cuba as well, although in retrospect we believe he was really just at a Taco Bell in Toronto. But, my point is, you want to get multiple data points, from this board and others, on the current scene in Cuba. The OP didn't seem that familiar with the scene/situation so my point was to do some research before flying off to Cancun and trying to get a ticket into Havana - without doing some serious planning.

>>First, there will be no stamp on ANY passport from ANY country because they don't do it.>>

It would have been easy to just forget your ego and answer the question like you did in one sentence. My only concern was the passport stamp. The rest of it I already knew. However, having checked my own passport, I see that countries with entry stamps do indeed also have departing stamp in passports. Are you trying to say that Cuba is the ONLY nation that will not stamp a US passport, entering or departing? As above, only one sentence needed for a valid response to actually answer the question.

When I was there, they just stamped a tourist card that the airline provided. Didnt stamp anything on the way out. Of course, that was like 5 years ago.

I wonder what is the best place to purchase a flight in Tijuana...I know there are several travel agents that used to cater to guys wanting to go to Cuba.

I wrote a pretty extensive guide to avoid having to answer many of the same questions you've been asking. Every single question you've asked is in the guide.

Blazers, When I lived in LA, I looked for those, but I just decided to call Mexicana and put it on hold, then go to Rodriguez (TJ airport) and buy it. Once, I went via Mexico City, that was an experience. Another couple of times, I went from LAX to CUN, then across on Mexican click. Good Luck, let me know how it works out...

There's a charter airline called Sunwing.ca which flies very regularly out of major Canadian cities. I flew from Toronto to Varadero for $275 ALL IN.

Wnose is that one way or round trip???

I don't recall the exact details but there was some controversy in the news fairly recently about the US Government doing something nefarious with the passenger lists the Canadians are required to submit to the US for any flights that overfly US airspace en-route to Cuba. Not sure if it is an issue or not but worth looking into.

ALL IN. As in return.

IAS, it's true. If you're an american citizen vs a canadian citizen, they will turn over their flight logs/passenger list to the US government.