Hi Donna,

No need to worry about MP4 player , I took a PSP , Ipod etc and had no problems

You will need the same plugs as you took to Mexico

And finally , Take cash!! I have never seen an ATM in Cuba and would think even if you found one then service would be
unreliable at best. You really wont need much as there is not much to spend your money on, Trips etc can be paid on your card.

Enjoy your trip J......

1. Take sterling (or Euros) and change them at either a local bank or a cadeca at your hotel -DON'T TAKE $ US.You will probably only need ~ £250 for tipping,local purchases,tax etc.
2. You can pay for trips using a UK credit card - make sure it is UK backed - some British credit cards are now issued by part of an American bank.
3. Don't forget to keep enough CUCs back for the depature tax (only payable in local currency) I think it is 30 CUC per person (about £22 at current exchange rates)

Where are you going? I'm sure you'll have a good time

That's strange, I'm sure I read that from 1st May 2007 Cuban Customs had lifted certain restrictions and you are now allowed to bring DVD/Video players into the country.

Hello Donna,

Re your various questions:

You can now take nearly all sorts of personal electronic equipment into the country quite freely but you will have to declare it as you arrive and must be able to produce it on departure if asked. This is to ensure that you don't sell it on via the black market. There used to be restrictions on taking in high power usage appliances eg electric kettles but these seems to have been dropped too - in July I took the chance on taking a cheap travel kettle with me because Cuban hotels don't usually provide tea and coffee making facilities in the rooms and had no problems.

You are best advised to take adaptors for both flat 2 pin US style plugs and European round 2 pin plugs. It is common for the standard 110v supply to be based on US style sockets and for the 220v supply to be via European style round pin sockets. Both types of sockets are hence often to be found in the same room. Occasionally you will find other styles of socket too but these are rare in the hotels aimed at foreign tourists.

Most Cuban banks now have ATMs that you can use British debit cards in, Visa usually being preferable to Mastercard and they are reliable and issue only CUCs. As long as your card isn't one issued by a bank that is American owned, you would have no problem using the ATMs at branches of the Banco Credito y Comercio for example. Credit Unions have branches like banks but their ATMs can only be used by members and are likely to issue national pesos which are close to useless for tourists. If you want to draw money against a credit card then this often has to be done as an over the counter transaction rather than via an ATM. Personally, whilst I take a credit card with me to Cuba, I would never use a credit card except in an emergency because at the end of the day, by the time the transaction appears on your card statement you are going to have paid anything up to a 20% surcharge for the privilege. So I always pay for what I can in cash, then if needs be in order of preference: drawing CUCs from an ATM, paying by debit card and only as a last resort paying with a credit card.

But depending on where in Varadero your hotel is you could be a long way from a bank or cadeca. The hotels are strung out along the whole peninsula and you could find yourself a taxi ride from the town of Varadero. So best to take cash in £ Sterling - you'll be able to change it easily at your hotel for the same exchange rate as the banks and Cadecas use. There's bound to be a safe deposit box in your room and I've never heard of people having things robbed from their rooms in Cuba. I never bother with travellers cheques now because findng anything other than Amercian Express ones is a pain and Cuban cashiers are so fraud conscious that they will refuse to cash them unless the signatures are absolutely identical.

Finally, the departure tax is 25 CUCs - you have to pay this after checking-in and they'll want to see your boarding card, passport and the other half of your visa from when you arrived. This has to then be presented at Immigration and Passport control, followed by going through security into the departures area. If you brought in electronic equipment that falls into the controlled categories then it is at Security that you'll be asked to produce it to prove that you have not left it behind.

SM