Please note the tour price reflected on the brochure is subject to change. Due to seasonality, and taxes prices of the tour are subject to change without due notice. Please consult with the operator directly for the recent price.


Cuba: People to People

Overview
Highlights (Bullets)
- mmerse yourself in Cuban culture, exploring its architecture, agriculture, music and dining during intimate, one-on-one experiences with residents
- Discover Cuba's and America's great shared passion, baseball, at a game where you meet and engage with the players, and even have the opportunity to play a few innings with them
- Engage in a stimulating discussion of the history of U.S.-Cuba relations with a Cuba policy expert in Havana
- Join a local architect for an educational walk through Havana, discussing its historic styles, ongoing restoration efforts and their impact on the community
- Visit a local artist in his home, with the chance to gain firsthand insight into the role art plays in Cuban culture
- Meet with local dancers after a performance at Habana Compas Dance Studio
Short Description
Discover the many facets of Cuban culture through the eyes of locals - including its fascinating arts, architecture and initiatives - on a people-to-people journey filled with immersive, interactive experiences alongside residents from all walks of life.
Destinations
CubaActivities & Interests
Cooking Culture Educational/ learning Festivals & Special Events Historic sightseeing History Nature Ruins & ArchaeologyAge Requirement
18Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive Miami, Florida
Accommodation: Ritz-Carlton Coconut Grove
Arrive at Miami International Airport, where you are met and transferred to your hotel. Meet your accompanying Abercrombie & Kent Program Director and fellow guests at your reception and briefing this evening.
Day 2: Havana, Cuba / Experiencing a Paladar
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Habana
Transfer to Miami International Airport and check in at the dedicated A&K counter for your short charter flight to Cuba. Upon arrival at José Martí International Airport in Havana, complete immigration and customs formalities and meet your local Cuban guide. Embark on an informative tour of Havana’s historic and culturally rich neighborhoods. Later, transfer to the historic Hotel Nacional for a narrative on its fascinating past. Considered a national monument, the hotel was built in 1930 and overlooks the Malecon (seaside promenade) and Havana Harbor. After lunch, check in to your hotel. This evening, sit down to dinner in a private paladar (family-run restaurant), a unique, welcoming Cuban enterprise.
Day 3: Havana / Immersive Experiences
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Habana
This morning at your hotel, meet a local physician and engage in a talk on Cuba’s well-regarded public health care system, followed by an illuminating question and answer session. Visit a day care center, where you meet the teachers and get to know the students. Continue to Finca La Vigia, Ernest Hemingway’s former home, where The Old Man and the Sea and For Whom the Bell Tolls were penned. As you look through the windows and open doors of this remarkably preserved home, visualize the author’s life during the more than 20 years he lived there. After lunch, return to the hotel. This evening, visit a local artist in his home, with a chance to gain deep insight into not only Cuban art but home and family life as well. Light appetizers and drinks will be served. After this visit, sit down to dinner at a local paladar.
Day 4: Las Terrazas / Art & Nature
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch
Accommodation: Meliá Habana
Today, visit Las Terrazas community, just 45 minutes outside of Havana. Visit a coffee plantation and meet its staff to learn about the economic role of the coffee industry and its impact on Cuban society. Later in the town center, visit the bodega (convenience store), where locals use ration books to purchase specific amounts of limited items. Discuss the rationing system with the shop’s owner before visiting local artists and musicians in the community. Enjoy a typical farmhouse lunch with the opportunity to see how everything is prepared on a wood burning stove. Return to Havana in the afternoon, stopping at the whimsical studio of José Fuster, a renowned Cuban painter and ceramicist. Take part in a discussion about the artist’s work and the role the arts play in contemporary Cuba. Enjoy dinner on your own this evening.
Day 5: Havana / Cuba’s Capital
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Habana
Today’s introduction to historic Havana begins with a brief presentation by a Cuba policy expert, during which you are immersed in the history of Cuba-U.S. relations, from the colonial era to the present day. Take part in a thought-provoking question and answer session. Then, pay a private visit to the Habana Compas Dance Studio, where you see a performance. Afterward, meet firsthand with the artists for a chance to learn about the Afro-Cuban rhythms, which meld flamenco and native salsa and rumba movements with percussion instruments. Then, enjoy a visit to Hotel Conde de Villanueva, featuring one of the city’s best cigar shops, dedicated to the history of tobacco. Later, learn how to create mojitos and other Cuban favorites during an interactive demonstration. Then, meet a local salsa teacher to talk about the history of this native rhythm and the importance of dance in Cuban life, followed by a lesson under your instructor’s attentive eye.
Day 6: Havana / Architecture & the Arts
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Habana
This morning, witness the storied Colón Cemetery. Founded in 1876, it is the site of more than 800,000 graves and one million interments. Under the guidance of a local specialist, gain insight into the cemetery’s history and significance to the local community and pilgrims. Then stroll through Old Havana with a local architect, discussing the challenges and successes of city reconstruction projects, all the while absorbing the vibrant, extraordinary architecture that surrounds you. Early this evening, take a drive in the iconic “Yank tanks” (vintage cars) along the Malecón to the Magic Flute for an impressive view of the city. Here, enjoy a private concert of Buena Vista Social Club-style music, sponsored by the Cuban Institute of Music. Then, engage in a post-performance discussion with the musicians — a great opportunity to learn about the impact music has had on Cuban culture and the ways in which it has influenced music in the United States and beyond.
Day 7: Cienfuegos / Alluring Waterfront City
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Buenavista
Depart early from Havana. Arrive in Cienfuegos, the “Pearl of the South,” so-called for its stunningly beautiful bay. Set out on an informative city tour through this UNESCO World Heritage Site, with a stop at the Teatro Tomas Terry. Meanwhile, take the opportunity to talk with your local guide about Cuban life, be it about the two currencies used or the cost of living on the island. Take a stroll down the Paseo del Prado, the longest tree-lined boulevard in Cuba. After lunch, enjoy an orchestral performance at the Colonial Museum. Then, head to Cayo Santa Maria.
Day 8: Caibarién & Remedios / Cuban Industries Up Close
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Buenavista
This morning, travel to Remedios, considered one of the oldest settlements in the country. Take a ride by bicitaxi (pedicab or rickshaw) through the town and into the main square. Join the bicitaxi owners at a local coffee shop, gaining insight into their day-to-day routines and the ways in which they maintain their vehicles. Depart Remedios to the Sugar Museum in Caibarién, housed in the historically significant Marcelo Salado Azucarera (Sugar Mill), where you learn about the role the sugar industry played in Cuba’s history. Then, board an old steam train (formerly used to transport sugar cane to the factory), and travel to El Curujey for a traditional, authentic Cuban farm lunch. See a typical farmhouse as well as a demonstration of palm climbing. Return to your hotel for dinner.
Day 9: Santa Clara / Cuba’s Vibrant Arts
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Meliá Buenavista
Drive to Santa Clara, stopping at the local stadium, where you engage in a shared pastime with Cuban residents: baseball. During the event, you meet and talk with the players about sports in Cuban life, with the opportunity to play a few innings together. In the small town of Camajuani, visit a cigar factory, where you delve deeper into the history of Cuba’s tobacco industry and learn about the rolling process from workers themselves. Upon arrival in Santa Clara, proceed to the Casa de la Cultura, where members of the Cuban musical group Melodias Antillanas perform traditional music on antique instruments. Hear a concert of Cuban classics, followed by a talk about traditional music and its role in local culture. After lunch, tour Santa Clara, before returning to your hotel for a farewell dinner.
Day 10: Depart Santa Clara
Meals: Breakfast
Transfer to the airport to board your return flight to Miami.
Availability
- Single Supplement: $ 3,195
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58 Abercrombie & Kent Travel Reviews & Ratings
Cuba: People to People
Company Reviews
High Fees with Low Quality Experience
Best tour; from the guides to the hotels to the sites - absolutely top notch
Overpriced, too much crammed into each day, and important aspects of the trip dropped....with no advance notice
Exceptional Tour of Italy's Treasures
COMPANY IS IN REAL FINACIAL TROUBLE
We are just returning from our African safari and it was amazing!
This trip should be on everyone’s bucket list and I would highly recommend A&K and encourage you to request Ngochi and Ngige.
Covid threw us a few curves (mandatory Covid tests, masks, etc) but it is a great time to travel. We felt completely safe and were on our own private safari!
Details
Flight & Transport Inclusions
All internal ground transport
Group Size
Small Group - 24 max
Maximum Number of People in Group: 24
Limited to 24 guests
Cancellation policy
Cancellation fees per person
Luxury Small Group Journeys, Marco Polo Journeys, Connections Land Journeys, and related Group Pre- and Post-Tour Extensions
- If 91 days prior to departure or more cancellation fee is $500
- Is 90-61 days prior to departure cancellation fee is 20% of program price
- If 60-31 days prior to departure cancellation fee is 50% of program price
- If 30 days prior to departure or less cancellation fee is 100% of the program price
Age Notes :
Min. Age: 18
Trip ID#:
CubPeoAbe
What's excluded
- International and internal airfare
- Passport and Visa Charges
- Excess baggage charges
- Gratuities to the A&K Tour Director
- Personal Expenses
Meals Included
9 Breakfasts, 8 Lunches and 7 Dinners
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