Welcome to Part 2 of our travels along the south coast of Cuba. We posted details of our trip previously, but could only send you text using the SSB radio. Hear are the photos with some ‘hopefully’ helpful tips at the end for any other cruisers.
We left off in the rain on the Jardines del la Reina. We had a brisk and bumpy sail south west towards our next cay. But at least the rain had cleared!
Cayo Zara de Fuera (Uninhabited)
Cayo Machos de Fuera (A friendly care taker)
Cienfuegos (Mainland Cuba with a Marina and Guarda Frontera)
Things we liked about Cienfuegos
-Easy walking distance into town. We used our bikes to make quick runs, but a cycle taxi is only 1 CUC/person
-Nice marina bar.
-Officials come out to your boat and are very prompt and pleasant.
-The city has a nice central square with a real artistic flare.
-Safe location to leave your boat and explore inland in Cuba.
-Good availability of food stocks. CUC and peso food stores and the central open market.
Things we did not like about Cienfuegos
-Noise every night from the variety of night clubs that line the Punta Gorda here by the Marina.
-Waters are very polluted.
-Marina toilets and showers both poorly maintained and dirty.
Cayo Sal of the Cayos de Dios (uninhabited)
Cayo Largo of the Archipielago los Canarreos(Marina and Guarda Frontera station, but you can anchor up off the beaches not far from both)
Cayo Rosario of the Archipielago los Canarreos (Unhabituated)
Cayo Hicacos and Campus of the Archipielago los Canarreos (Cayo Hicacos is uninhabited but there are friendly wardens on Cayo Campus)
Cayo Matias of the Archipielago los Canarreos ((Uninhabited)
Ensenada Puerto Frances on the south coast of the Isla de la Juventud (inhabited and you are expected to check into the local Guarda Frontera station before coming ashore)
Cayo Juan Garcia of the Cayos de San Felipe (Uninhabited but there are friendly wardens) Our last stop on Cuba’s south coast
And that was the last of our travels along Cuba’s south coast. From here we sailed across the Yucatan Channel to Mexico, and yes they did wonder why it took us over two weeks to get there after checking out at Cayo Largo. We just told them ‘engine troubles’ and they were happy. But more on that in the next blog.
I promised to add a few pointers for other cruisers at the end of the review, so family and friends you can ‘tune out’ of the rest of this bog if you want.
Things we were told and things we learned from our visit to Cuba’s south coast.
Cultural differences
-Cubans have a strong Spanish like culture. Take a little time to be courteous and friendly as Cuban’s put pleasantries before efficiency.
-Family will always come first and many Cubans prefer to keep evenings and weekends free to spend with their children.
-Cubans do not queue. Ask who is the last person and wait until they are served.
-Learn Spanish. Cuban are both friendly and inquisitive and are disappointed when they can not converse freely with you.
-Barter. Very rarely is the price what you are quoted. The actual price is some where between what they think you can afford and what you can actually afford. Another reason to learn Spanish.
Money
-It is much easier to exchange cash for the local currency. The best exchange rates are for Canadian or Euros. Cadeca, cash exchange outlets, are scattered everywhere, just ask someone for your closest one. Banks will be found in the centre of town.
-Pay marina bills with your credit card. Most providers give you a good exchange rate.
-$1 US = 1 CUC = 24 pesos. You need CUCs to visit tourist locations, restaurants, pay for services and most boat supplies. You need pesos to purchase locally grown fruits and veg. and ‘street’ food. We found having two wallets helped, especially to separate the change.
Bureaucracy
-There is a lot of bureaucracy and paperwork while cruising along mainland Cuba, but none of it you have to fill out yourselves. There are no officials or paperwork to visit the uninhabited cays.
-Officials have a lot of paperwork to fill out, on your behalf, upon entry and exit of any mainland ports (and Cayo Largo and Isla Juventud) so be courteous, offer them a cold drink and perhaps a small gratuity for their time and effort. We brought some USB memory sticks, large fishing hooks and cans of beer. We would give each official one gift when they left and they really appreciated it. It seemed to make the check out process, with the same officials, fast and easier. Electronics are very very expensive here in Cuba. So is any fishing gear or line. Some of the officials in ‘out lying’ areas asked if we had any old mobile phones, MP3 players or used fishing gear we could part with for trade. Locals will also trade these, liquid soap and clothes for services such as laundry, propane fills and food.
-Your first port of call in Cuba needs to be at a Marina. You can tie up or anchor off. The Marina calls up all the officials, some travel in from outlying areas, and the Marina pays all their bills. You then settle this bill with the Marina when you depart. This is great, as you have plenty of time to get your money exchanged, and less chance of being bribed. At Santiago de Cuba you have to pick up officials in your own dingy, officials in Cienfuegos have their own dingy, and Cayo Largo you have to come in and tie up to the Marina, at least upon departure.
– If you can print off a ‘cheat sheet’ for officials with all your details translated into Spanish, that will really help officials who often have limited English. Besides all your passport information, vessel registration, they have to list almost everything you have aboard your boat. Details of boat, main engine, dingy make, outboard engine, radio makes, GPS makes ect.
-Despite all the warnings we got about restricted foods, the health inspector took none of our food. Ok, he did ask if he could have a can of tuna (very expensive in Cuba). He did check all our cupboards to see the food was stored properly and was free of ‘bugs’. He even inspected our fridge. We would have stocked up with more food before coming had we known this.
-You have to have health insurance! As soon as they see some printed proof that you have health insurance they are happy. They were happy with my pet passport, with proof of rabies vaccination, and my health certificate from our departure from the US. They like dogs in Cuba.
Moving from port to port
-Once you check in to Cuba you are issued a ‘despacho’. Think of it like a cruising permit. Everyone is going to want to check it. Eventually it will have all the ports you visit, dates you arrived and dates you left any mainland ports including Cayo Largo and Isla Juventud.
-They like to keep an eye on you when you visit the mainland. They say it is for your safety, and in some ways it is. You have to moor or anchor up within view of the Marina or Guarda Frontera station. You than need to bring your despacho, passports and boat paperwork either to them or they will come and visit you. They fill out a load of paperwork and then hold onto your despacho until you leave. They usually ask that you give them 24 hours advance notice that you are leaving. They will come and check the boat (for any smuggled Cubans) and give you back your signed despacho.
-They ask that you only land your dingy in front of the Guarda Frontera station or Marina and then you are free to travel where every you like on land.
-They ask you do not take any Cubans onto your boat. The locals and fisherman know this. You can get special written permission if arranged well in advance.
-You do not have to do any of this in the Cays as they are uninhabited. But we were called up on the radio once while anchored up at Cayo Rahihorcado. They just wanted to check we were not having any engine problems and were OK. It is not that bad having ‘Big Brother’ checking up on you if you did have problems.
Fuel, water and propane
-Diesel fuel is usually available at Marinas while you have to pick up petrol from a local garage. Both are best filtered.
-Water is available at Marinas. Santiago de Cuba was free while Cienfuegos asked for 5 CUC/1000L. We did not take any water at Cayo Largo because other cruisers warned us it had a foul smell and taste. We were warned by the health inspector that the water pipes were not the best in Cuba and contamination can occur. Some cruisers drank the water direct while we added a little bleach. I would not recommend running a water maker in any of the mainland ports. Stock up before coming in. Bottled water is readily available at Marinas and in the cities.
-Propane is a problem. You have to have a monthly ration card to get propane they can not sell it. You have to find a local, or mediator, who is willing to sell you some of their monthly supply. They siphon propane from their bottles into yours. The marina staff will know someone locally that you can talk to. You are best to try and fill up before arriving.
Toilets, showers, toiletries and paper products.
-You have to travel everywhere with your own toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Hotel toilets are the best, but soap and toilet paper is expensive, so they do not provide these things.
-There is rarely a toilet seat, paper can not be flushed and must go in a rubbish bin and there is not always any running water.
-Water pressure in Cuba is highly variable and bathroom fittings are very expensive to replace. Showers are often poorly maintained.
-We found we could purchase toilet paper in Cuba, despite being told we could not. It was not cheap but the quality was. We could not find any other paper products like kitchen towel.
-The availability of soaps and shampoos is limited and a bit expensive. Bring a supply of all toiletries you regularly use plus a few extra for tips and trades. We were constantly asked for liquid soap.
Communication
-We did not have much luck here.
-If you really need internet you will have to go to an international hotel and pay by the hour for the service. I will warn you it is incredibly slow. You may be able to send and receive text, but struggle to download any pictures or weather forecasts.
-SSB really comes in handy here. Chris Barker broadcastes a regular weather forecast at 9 am for Cuba’s south coast. If you add a Pactor modem you will be able to download weather and send text emails.
-You will be able to connect with other cruisers in Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos and Cayo Largo. Here you can exchange information, get forecasts off each other and someone will be able to get some messages off for you if you need it.
Navigation and Buoyage
-We found all the major channels to be well buoyed. They may not be exactly where they are charted, but then many sand bars have moved over the years with storms and hurricanes.
-Charts and navigational programs are very out dated for Cuba. You really need a recent edition of a cruising guide, but then still expect some shallowing. Our Garmin chart plotter was useless, but the Navionics program for tablets was more helpful, but still had may inaccuracies.
-We would highly recommend that you rely heavily on eyeball navigation. This means travelling during the day and reaching anchorages when you still have good overhead light, even better on a rising tide. We ran into trouble trying to make an anchorage in the dark despite having waypoints from the cruising guide and being told the entry was straight forward. We met another boat that hit an uncharted reef during a night pasaage.
Travelling about inland
-We found that hiring a car and driver was much cheaper than renting a car. It was nice to have a chauffer/tour guide at hand. The maximum a driver will charge is 50 CUC/day. This is 5x the national monthly income and 2x what a good doctor makes a month. So this covers petrol, your drivers food and he will find himself a cheap local place to stay if you want him to tour you around the island for several days.
-Shorter trips and half days are much cheaper. We paid 15 CUC for the driver for the day to run us all around Santiago de Cuba and back to the Marina for the day. We split this fair with another couple. 50 CUC/day for the Botanical Gardens and Trinadad from Cienfuegos. Again we split this with another couple. 40 CUC for the day up into the Sierra del Escambray Mountains.
-Bicycle taxis from Cienfuegos town centre to the Marina are 1 CUC per person. Horse carts usually charge double to the tourists.
What to stock up on?
-The answer is everything you are likely to need for the duration of your stay, especially any spares. You really need to be self sufficient.
-There is no pet food available.
-There are big distances between the cities where you can purchase any food products. For this reason stock up on any long life, canned or jarred products before you come. Frozen goods if you have a freezer. The selection of these products is limited and expensive in Cuba. The only places you can get any food on the south coast of Cuba is Santiago de Cuba, Cienfuegos and Nueva Gerona. So little is available in Cayo Largo that I would not consider it worth mentioning.
-Thankfully produce in Cuba is locally grown and not refrigerated so it lasts much longer than the produce you are used to buying in supermarkets. Buy lots and lots when you can. Excess can be traded with local fisherman.
-It is easier to tell you what we found available, rather than tell you what you can’t find. We found we could usually purchase baked bread, flour, rice, spaghetti pasta, soft drinks, beer, rum, bottled water, pickles, olives, dried beans and lentils. Eggs, cheese (young salty mozzarella like), butter (unsalted), tomato sauce, crisps, soda crackers, pork and pork products. Seasonal vegetables and fruit.
We just stocked up on anything that went with lobster!
If we missed out on anything just send your question in comments.
We also promised to add a few pictures of our temporary placement of our depth gauge transducer.
Now you have fitted a new transducer with out having to have the boat lifted out of the water. Hope you never need it!
Happy cruising everyone!
2 thoughts on “Review of Southern Cuba Part 2 -including the pictures you missed”
Wow, Cuba looks amazing and Cain you are looking healthy and fit, keep up the good work.
I had to zoom in on the Cowboys as I thought you may have been in the back of one!!!
Stay safe
Tony
Cuba looks fantastic great to see you are all doing well.
All the best
Dunc