Visit To Cuba

[KARL]

My wife and I are interested in visiting Cuba sometime in the coming 18 months, departing from somewhere in Europe and staying for a period up to 17 days or so. We might consider a package including accommodation and trips and/or on the contrary finding our accommodation and making our own way around. Does anyone have advice to offer on how to get to comprehensively know about the options, including which departure point might be best in terms of convenience, variety of choices and costs ? A longer total trip, say, via Mexico or elsewhere are something we would consider. All advice will be gratefully looked at.

[Buenchico]

Well worth a read. (I've enjoyed looking through it and I'm not going!):
http://wikitravel.org/en/Cuba

[Jennykenny]

I went a couple of years ago with Virgin Airlines and based myself in Havana.
I thoroughly enjoyed myself, loved talking to and meeting locals, who were very kind and interested in me and where I was from.
I did notice that it was fairly difficult to get round the island. Not many people hired cars. Local/ public transport is very limited and hard for locals so there are not many opportunities for foreigners. Having said that, most of the big 'foreign' hotels have day trips out to the countryside.
I'd get along to your local library and dig out both the Rough Guides and Lonely planet and take it from there.
But whatever you do, you'll have an amazing time.

[KARL]

Chris, Having read through the item I am more intrigued than before - beats most/all prospects in a certain country I could mention but don't need to mention. I went to South Africa before the end of apartheid so got a certain education there, but unfortunately I missed experiencing the uniqueness of the USSR/DDR. Cuba seems a fascinatingly idiosyncratic time-warp of a place, never mind having to adjust to unconventional situations.