No longer available. See new versions below.
Cuba: People to People tour

Cuba: People to People

Abercrombie & Kent Preferred
Has very high quality customer experiences and demonstrated commitment to responsible travel practices. read more
4.2 . Great
78%
Travel Style: Array Mixed
Physical Level: Walking or physical activity half to most of day - no carrying equipment. Easy
Lodging Level: The highest level of comfort and service. All accomodations are in four or five star hotels, boutique lodges or high-end homestays. Luxury (5*)
10 days
From: $ 8,195 $ 820 / day
Checking price

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.

Style Small group tour
Off the beaten track trips will stretch your comfort zone. They don't always feature tourist highlights, but dive deeper into local life and culture.
Itinerary Focus Off the Beaten Path
The highest level of comfort and service. All accomodations are in four or five star hotels, boutique lodges or high-end homestays.
Lodging Level Luxury (5*)
Flight & Transport Inclusions All internal ground transport
Start City Miami
End City Santa Clara

Itinerary

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

Checking price
Price From $ 8,195
Price Per Day: $ 820 per day
Checking price
  • Single Supplement: $ 3,195

Check Current Availability, prices, specials with Abercrombie & Kent.

Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.

58 Abercrombie & Kent Travel Reviews & Ratings

78%
4.2 out of 5 (100+ reviews)
Excellent 45
Great 0
Average 2
Disappointing 1
Terrible 10
Value
4.1
Guide
4.2
Activities
4.2
Lodging
4.3
Transportation
4.2
Meals
4.2

Cuba: People to People

No reviews yet for this trip. Be the first one to write a review

Company Reviews

High Fees with Low Quality Experience

1.0
Details
Value1.0
Guide1.0
Activities1.0
Lodging3.0
Transportation2.0
Meals2.0
Recently traveled throughout Japan coordinated by A & K. Two couples, paid $4k per day for excursions alone (hotel not included). Experience FAR below what one would expect for this fee. Lunch at a food court in a mall. Nothing unique or helpful to elevate the experience. Booking the activities ourself would have cost less than half the total fee we paid. Guides were pleasant but certainly not insightful or highly knowledgable. Called A & K and spoke with Julie Skrei, director of sales, to explain our experience. She was highly defensive and rude. I would caution you strongly about using this company for any travel. Looked online and they actually rank 1.8 out of 5 stars on Yelp with similar experiences described there. Wish I had read those before agreeing to using their service.
Read more

Best tour; from the guides to the hotels to the sites - absolutely top notch

5.0
Details
Value4.0
Guide5.0
Activities5.0
Lodging5.0
Transportation5.0
Meals5.0
We did a private tour of Peru with A&K for our 30th wedding anniversary. It was truly remarkable. The attention to detail, sites we visited, hotels we stayed at and meals were absolutely fantastic. From the moment we arrived at the airport to the moment dropped off at the end of our tour we were made to feel special. Fantastic guide who told us the history and showed us the parts other tours miss. Highly recommended
Read more

Overpriced, too much crammed into each day, and important aspects of the trip dropped....with no advance notice

3.0
Details
Value2.0
Guide3.0
Activities3.0
Lodging3.0
Transportation3.0
Meals3.0
Wings over Mediterranean Sept 2022. Other than the intra-city flights which were first class private jet, the rest was......average. Tour buses with windows too small to see any passing points of interest. A 250 sq ft "luxury" hotel room---thought I was in a Motel 8. Museum tours led by local experts who over-talked so long that they cut into anything that was planned for the remainder of that day. Restaurants....3 in particular very small, crowded, and not even remotely above average. Written itinerary says "and then return to your host city and enjoy the rest of the afternoon at your leisure." No way...we usually got back to the hotel around 5:30 after already passing up at least one planned exhibit. We had no special tour group privileges...we were just part of the pack and were overrun by tourists at every stop. $40,000 per person....a big huge "ouch"
Read more

Exceptional Tour of Italy's Treasures

5.0
Details
Value5.0
Guide5.0
Activities5.0
Lodging5.0
Transportation5.0
Meals5.0
We took the A & K Small Group Tour to Rome, Florence & Venice. The experience exceeded expectations! Wonderful itinerary (with the ability to flex to the group's unique needs & requests!). Our guide (Emmanuela) was exceptional! Fun, extremely organized, considerate of all group members & always making sure that we had a 5-Star experience. Highly recommend this company (& this tour) - we will travel with A & K again!
Read more

COMPANY IS IN REAL FINACIAL TROUBLE

1.0
Details
Value1.0
Guide1.0
Activities1.0
Lodging1.0
Transportation1.0
Meals1.0
THIS COMPANY HELD ME FINACIALLY HOSTAGE FOR A AFRICAN MAY 2021 SAFARI. I HAD TO CANCELL THE SEPTEMBER 2021 TRIP BECAUSE THEY BASCIALLY STEALLING MONEY FROM ME. DO NOT BOOK WITH THEM.
Read more

We are just returning from our African safari and it was amazing!

5.0
Details
Value5.0
Guide5.0
Activities5.0
Lodging5.0
Transportation5.0
Meals5.0
We are just returning from our African safari and it was amazing! It exceeded our every expectation. The best part was spending time with our excellent A&K guides Ngochi and Ngige. We learned so much from them and they were excellent spotters. I loved seeing their excitement when we spotted something new. It is obvious they love what they do even after 20 years in the business.
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!
Read more

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

×
Great Choice!

You can access members-only savings of up to $700 on over 6,000 Travelstride Select trips.

Sign in to see trip eligibility

or
or
Provide email and password

With your FREE membership you get to:

  • Save up to $700 per person!*
  • Access private deals and offers
  • See personalized trip recommendations
  • Save favorite trips
*See Member Savings Program details
Already a member?

We respect your privacy and take great care to protect your information. By joining you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

×

You could save $ 600 per person on this trip!

TripSaver
Flexible travel vouchers redeemable on thousands of trips like this one!
×
×
×
Sign in to Save Trips
Welcome back! We're so happy to see you. ? Forgot Password?
Don't have an account? Join
  • Bookmark trips you like
  • Share with your travel companions
  • Track price changes
  • Access private discounts on trips you save
×
Sign in to see your results

TripFinder is a member-only feature. Don’t worry, it’s free!

With a membership you:

  • Save up to $700 per person!*
  • Access private deals and offers
  • See personalized trip recommendations
  • Save favorite trips
*See Member Savings Program details
×
Activate your free Travelstride membership

Just use the email address and password provided in the email we sent.

? Forgot Password?

With your free membership you:

  • Save up to $700 per person!*
  • Access private deals and offers
  • See personalized trip recommendations
  • Save favorite trips
*See Member Savings Program details
×
To Follow, sign in or sign up (it's free) ? Forgot Password?
Don't have an account? Join
member benefits

By signing in, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use

First name is required!
Last name is required!
First name is not valid!
Last name is not valid!
This is not an email address!
Email address is required!
This email is already registered!
Please enter valid email address
Password is required!
Enter a valid password!
Please enter 6 or more characters!
Please enter 32 or less characters!
Passwords are not the same!
Terms and Conditions are required!
Email or Password is wrong!
Please select the captcha checkbox!
Please select the valid captcha!
Something went wrong! Try again later!

"Nobody can discover the world for somebody else. Only when we discover it for ourselves does it become common ground and a common bond and we cease to be alone."
Wendell Berry
x
x
Download your brochure

Enter your email to get the "" brochure.

x
Brochure successfully sent!

We've sent the "" brochure to "". Check your inbox!