10 Tips for Traveling Solo in Cuba

Cuba might not strike you as the safest place to be traveling solo, but after walking around Havana and the beaches by myself for two weeks, I can say that I really wasn’t worried the whole time. Well, besides when a guard stopped me and asked what country I was from. Definitely thought I was going to jail for being unaccompanied for a second there.
But regardless, with any solo traveling expedition, you should always take some pre-cautions, and research what it’s like to be alone in places like Cuba…where no one speaks English, credit and debit cards are not accepted, and Wifi is almost non-existent. Here’s what I gathered from traveling solo in Cuba!

1. Learn Basic Spanish Phrases

If you don’t at least know a few basic phrases in Spanish, you are going to have a really tough time solo traveling in Cuba. Aside from helping you get around, knowing basic Spanish phrases will also help anti-target you as a tourist, and prevent you from getting over-charged or hustled.

2. Stay in a Casa Particular

Casa Particulars are people’s homes that rent out rooms to travelers and tourists. Many of them house exchange students from the U.S. so are a great way to meet other people, learn about the area you’re in, how and where to go, and even can help you with translations.
Casa Particulars are also much cheaper than staying at a hotel, and usually include the option for home cooked meals! It’s a lot easier now too to find them because most big travel-finder sites list them, and even offer deals since it’s a relatively new concept!

Save up to 25% on Hotels in Cuba!

3. Don’t Wear a Fedora or Che Hat

It’s slightly embarrassing to see tourists wearing the souvenir Cuban fedora or Che hats for some reason. Actually, it’s kind of funny to see the Che barets that people wear because they look cool, when they have no idea that they are basically representing Communism. Anyway, don’t wear a souvenir hat. You’ll look like a tourist, and get treated like one.

4. Know Where to Find Wifi

The only way you’ll be able to communicate with anyone back home (without spending a crap load of money) is by using Wifi, but it’s not always easy to find. Most hotels will let you buy an hour of Wifi per day, but I learned that if you go to the cellular stores, you can find the same Wifi cards for cheaper, and then can just bring them to the hotels to use.

5. Use Tourist Buses for Transportation

Towards the end of my trip I started running low on cash, and since there are no ATM’s or ways to withdraw money from American banks in Cuba…that kind of sucked…a lot. Cabs usually range from 5-10 CUC, and while I had no problem walking…that limits you to the main areas of Havana.
Then I discovered that you can take those touristy double decker red buses, or the air conditioned charter buses from Parque Central in Havana Vieja for only 5 CUC and they will take you all over town and even further out to the beach!

6. Prepare to be Lonely at Night

Someone asked me about what my opinion was on solo traveling in Cuba and I said I wasn’t scared the whole time, and she said, “I was thinking more because it gets lonely”. This is true. I didn’t even have anyone to miss back home besides my dog, and my friends, but the fact that I couldn’t use my phone, or even connect to Wifi after 6PM was a huge bummer.
I ended up watching a lot of Telanovelas, super old American movies, Baliwood movies, and writing enough content to get me through a year of blog posts.

7. Avoid Interacting with Officials

Although most people are extremely happy about relations in the U.S. improving…there’s still kind of this rule where U.S. citizens are not allowed to have “free time” or be in Cuba for “touristic purposes”. As I mentioned before, I almost started crying when the guard came up to me and asked where I was from, not to mention the three people at the airport who asked to see my passport when I arrived. I’m sure the most punishment you’d get is a fine, but I’d suggest avoiding dealing with the government as much as possible.

UPDATE: Now that relations have improved and most touristic activities are allowed in Cuba, you really don’t have to worry about this one. In fact, the government officials will probably love you.

8. See More Than Havana

Havana is great and all, but there are so many other places in Cuba that it would be a shame to go all the way there and just stay in one place! As I mentioned before, you can take the tourist bus to nearby beaches, or take a tour of the outskirts of Havana. If you have time, you can even go see the tobacco fields in Viñales or the resort beaches in Varadero!

9. Make Friends With Locals

Most taxi drivers will offer you their card or number after giving you a ride in case you need one later, it’s pretty much like marketing to them, and they really will come get you if you call them. Also if you happen to make friends with a local, (like a young, non-threatening-looking one) take their number in case you want someone to potentially hang out with or ask advice on things to do.

10. Eat at “Paladares”

“Paladares” translates to “house-restaurant”, and is kind of the same concept as a Casa Particular. A family converts part of their home into a restaurant and they are able to keep the profit from it. What makes them unique though is that you get to see these great houses, even mansions, and get an authentic meal for not nearly as much as a restaurant would charge you!