Mark in Cuba

I wanted to see what Cuban Travel Agent can do so I sent Jorge an email outlining what I would like to see and he responded via email with suggested activities and itinerary. It included 3 nights stay in a Casa Particular in Old Havana and a 3 nights stay in Trinidad. My seventh night would be in Hotel Nacional back in Havana. I would get taxi transfer to and from the airport and a guided tour through Havana and fancy dinner in La Guarida and La Fontana restaurants. So basically Jorge could make arrangements for me to see and do what I would like in Cuba. That was his job. I’d tell him what I need, he makes it happen. He charges little commission so the trip as described above would be just a tad over $600 CUC (CUC is Cuban Convertible Pesos – an official Cuban currency for tourists, roughly 1:1 with US dollar).

That looked really good. Jorge obviously knew what he was talking about and had connections all over the country. He also knew entire Cuba backwards. After crappy experience talking to travel agents in Edmonton back when I was looking to purchase a vacation in Cuba, talking to Jorge was really refreshing. He was always to the point with each and every response he sent, always addressing my questions with direct answers – no BS, no messing around. I felt really confident talking to him.

Jorge mentioned up front that he would need some form of advance payment via bank transfer should he proceed with bookings of services chosen, which was the part that was worrying me the most. However he mentioned it right up front and sounded really trustworthy. I have not sent any payment yet, I was still somewhat deciding on what exactly to do in Cuba. And I had a major task on my shoulders – purchasing plane ticket from Edmonton to Havana. The prices were so high, I started playing with an alternative option of entering Cuba – via Varadero. Read on to see how I got to Havana via Varadero for cheap.

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