Transportation in Cuba
Transportation in Cuba
All of our Locally Sourced Cuba Tours include transportation – whether it be the group or private tours we run in Cuba. We also include the transportation to any of the activities or excursions we include as part of our Cuba tours as well. The transportation we use on our Cuba Tours depends on a number of factors including a) Type of tour b) number of people on tour c) distance travelled and d) road and weather conditions. For our private and group Cuba tours we use private air-conditioned cars, minivans or small buses to travel between destinations. Within destinations we might use a variety of transportation options including classic cars, taxis, bici-taxis, coco-taxis and bicycles. Where possible, we also encourage our tour participants to walk around the cities and towns they visit. For our tours that go as far as Sanitago de Cuba or Baracoa, we generally also use the domestic flight service operated by either Aerogaviota or Cubana.
UNDERSTANDING THE CUBA TRANSPORT SYSTEM
Because of Cuba’s economic and political background, the transportation system works slightly differently to other places around the world. Local Transportation laws permit Cuban tourists to travel on government-subsidised transportation which might include buses, trucks and horse-drawn carriages. The government has however set-up a separate bus service that toursits can used called Viazul. These buses are relatively modern and air-conditioned. They are comfortable to travel on and often stop a number of times between destinations for food and refreshments. You can view the Viazul Bus Schedule here.
PRIVATE CUBA TOUR TRANSPORTATION
For both our small group tours and private tours, we use ‘private’ transportation between destinations. This might consist of an air-conditioned private car or mini-bus to transport our tour participants between destinations. This type of transportation allows us to make many unscheduled stops at various points of interest on your journey. We are also able to be more flexible with our arrival and departure times. We leave it with our Local Cuba guides to determine the best mode of transport for each tour they run (unless already finalised as part of a Private Cuba Tour booking). There might be occasions where taking an authentic bicycle taxi or Classic American Car is the best way to explore the city. Or the Viazul bus service might be the best option due to road and weather conditions. Of most importance to us is your comfort and well being, so you can rest-assured we have your best interests at heart.
DOMESTIC FLIGHTS IN CUBA
On our 15 and 20 Day Cuba Group Tour and some of our Private Cuba Tours, we travel east to destinations such as Baracoa and Santiago de Cuba. Because of the significant drive times involved in getting to these places, we almost always use a domestic flights to get our tour participants back to Havana. The airlines used for these domestic flights is normally Aerogaviota or Cubana. Flight times are generally around the 1.5 hour mark. Unfortunately internal flights in Cuba are often delayed (and on rare occasions they can be cancelled). This is unfortunately outside of our control and we will do our best to make suitable alternative arrangements if any delays or cancellations are encountered.
AIRPORT ARRIVAL TRANSFER
For almost all of the Cuba tours we run, we include an airport transfer on arrival – for your peace of mind and comfort. A Locally Sourced Cuba Tours representative will be waiting outside of the Terminal doors, with a sign with your name on it. It is however very easy to catch your own taxi from the airport. It should cost you 25CUC (remember 1USD = 1CUC) and take around 30-40 minutes dependent on traffic.