Quarantine-free Cuba confirms reopening of whole island – excluding Havana – to tourists
Minty mojitos, indigo seas, sparkling waterfalls, aromatic cigars, and bubblegum pink classic cars... the Caribbean island of Cuba has opened its beaches, B&Bs, hotels, nature reserves and city sights to international tourists this week after six months of lockdown.
Cuba’s international airports are open for independent travel and package tours but Havana, its international airport, and two central provinces remain off-limits to visitors.
Varadero, the island’s main beach resort three hours’ east of capital Havana, opened its all-inclusive hotels to visitors last week. It had been assigned a special travel corridor. That no longer applies. Off-resort travel is now green-lighted.
Cuba is on the UK ‘travel corridor’ list, with no quarantine needed on return to the UK. Furthermore, it is the only country in the Caribbean not requiring a pre-flight Covid test. Tourists must fill out a health form on arrival, have their temperature taken, and undergo a free-of-charge PCR test with results delivered in 48 hours.
“Visitors can go to their accommodation and be able to enjoy their holidays normally,” Joel Hernández, London’s Cuba Tourist Office Director told Telegraph Travel.
“If the result is positive, tourists will be visited by doctors and be isolated in a Cuban hospital with all the conditions and attention needed until their complete recovery.”
Travellers must also have Covid travel insurance before they fly; a Cuban policy can be purchased on arrival for £25, Mr Hernández advised.
Longing to feel the 30-degree tropical sun and warm sand as Britain heads into winter? You can fly direct to the 13-mile golden strip at Varadero from Manchester or London Gatwick. Holiday firm Tui offers packages and flight-only bookings twice a week from October 25 starting at a very reasonable £299. Tui offers Covid cover to holidaymakers and a free amends policy on bookings made before December 31 for departures from November 1 to the end of April 2021. Germany’s Condor will fly from October 31 from Frankfurt to Varadero three times a week; connecting flights with Lufthansa from London Heathrow can be found on condor.com. A tourist card, a compulsory entry requirement for Cuba, is available from visacuba.com.
Tourists are free to roam the island, soaking up pristine nature, turquoise seas, colonial cities, and 1959 Revolution monuments. Hotels and tourism bureaux will offer excursions. Havana is off-limits, as is the pretty city of Trinidad, famed for its Florence-in-the-Caribbean decor.
Hoping to explore? WoWCuba, a Canadian-Cuban firm, working in Cuba since 1994, offers car rentals. Minimum hire period is three days; and 72 hours is needed to confirm the reservation. TUIcars is also available in Cuba but requires 10 days’ notice to confirm a booking.
Independent travellers can stay at B&Bs in boho beachfront chalets, farms, art deco apartments, and sumptuous villas. In Baracoa, in the jungly far east, Roberto Jovel, co-host of Villa Paradiso, a flower-filled oasis with ocean views, welcomed the news: “We’re looking forward to welcoming travellers back. Baracoa awaits with its lush forests, adventure, wild beaches, eco farms and deliciously unique cuisine."
B&B owners will wear masks and maintain social distancing. Guests will be offered hand sanitisers, and rooms will be thoroughly cleaned. Meals will be distanced from other guests, or served at a different time. Travellers will need to inform B&B hosts of any coronavirus symptoms and hosts are expected to report any possible cases to medical authorities.
Book B&Bs on UK-owned www.cubacasa.co.uk or Airbnb; book hotels via meliacuba.com (also enticing visitors with long-stay WFH pricing), and iberostar.com. Alternatively, contact the UK’s Cubaism on havana@cubaism.uk
UK-based companies offering tours and tailor-made options – Cuba Direct, Cubanía Travel, and Journey Latin America – are pinning their hopes on the reopening of Havana’s airport. Sources say it is expected to open soon.
Cuba’s pro-active measures have meant 6,258 infections and 127 deaths, in a population of 11.3 million, since its first March outbreak. Tourism Minister Juan Carlos García Granda said Cuba was willing to “take on the challenge” of preventing an outbreak of the virus in tourism facilities, and reopen its borders – international tourists will bring a much needed injection of cash.
