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- Traveling to Cuba is different from vacationing in most other countries.
- Many of the best and most reasonably priced lodging and activities are only available on the island because of the lack of internet.
- If you don't book ahead of time and instead book things on the island, you will likely save money and make sure more of your tourism dollars go to actual Cubans.
Travel to any country on vacation and you almost always have to plan ahead. As you get closer, hotels get booked, events sell out, and prices go up. There's a huge advantage to planning everything.
Not in Cuba.
On a recent trip to the island, I discovered that while you can certainly plan ahead, there are distinct advantages to arriving on the island with nothing but your return plane ticket, plenty of cash, and a vague idea what you want to see and do.
Here's why.
SEE ALSO: I traveled to Cuba after Fidel Castro's death — and it was far different from what I expected
Not booking ahead of time will save you money and direct more of your tourism dollars to actual Cubans, rather than the Communist Party or American corporations.
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Because of the scarcity of the internet and the island's general isolation, most lodgings, car services, and tourist activities aren't listed online. The ones that are listed likely have a very basic booking system, are run by the most privileged Cubans, and have inflated prices.
You are paying extra for the convenience of internet booking.
While some lodgings are listed on services like Airbnb, you are then paying an American company 15% of money that should go to Cubans, with little benefit to you. The official hotels, meanwhile, are generally government-run, overpriced, and not nearly as nice as pictures would suggest.
Once you get to Cuba, however, you realize the system actually works efficiently if you don’t book ahead. That’s because of the "casa particulare" system.
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The casa particulare system allows certain Cubans to rent out rooms in their houses or apartments to tourists for 20 to 40 CUC per night in a sort of proto-Airbnb. (In fact, Airbnb has latched onto this system to rapidly expand in the country.)
The system has been around officially since 1997, when the government allowed casa hosts to register with the government as legal businesses, though reports say Cubans rented out rooms under the table for years before.
The casa system is like a home-stay, where tourists can stay with actual Cubans (although most are on the wealthier or more privileged side, and pay heavy taxes to the government).
"Casa particulares" are everywhere, marked by this blue insignia on the front of houses.
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If you are looking for a place to stay, just walk around the neighborhood you want to stay in, find one of those signs and knock on the door. They'll usually have a room open.
If they don't, they'll be happy to find you a room with a friend of theirs (for a small commission), or you can just walk a little further until you find another one.
If the room they have available seems overpriced or not to your liking, either ask for them to arrange a different room or head back out to search on your own.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider