Best Of

MM Wash did a good summary of the Tauck tour in Cuba. Our trip tan from 1/19-1/25/25. We also had Ronny, a Tico, who did an excellent job as have of all of our Tauck tour directors on our now three trips with Tauck. Our local guide, Edél, was fantastic and extremely open and honest, (and knowledgeable) about his life in Cuba and life there in general. Alberto, our bus driver was as nice as he could be and an excellent driver in sometimes sub-par conditions, and even though he isn't bilingual, I speak Spanish and he did a huge favor for me which he probably would have done for anybody had they only spoken to him in English as I am sure he has picked up quite a lot of English by now. Flexibility is the name of the game when in Cuba but things worked out fine. The worst part of the trip and it was something that Tauck cannot control was the weather. I am 'firing' my 4 weather apps since their long-range forecasts were completely wrong! It was cold and rainy but shame on me for forgetting that because of its proximity to the mainland US, it can still be under the influence of its weather patterns. The other only negative but it was not too bad, was the mustiness in the rooms of the hotel we stayed in: Hotel Parque Central aka Marques de la Torre. The name change has to do with hotels on the list where Americans can't stay and it is a way to get around that. (Make sure that you remember the hotel's name(s) as my daughter and I forgot both while lost in the nearby Old Town Havana on the one night that is free, but luckily we were helped by a lovely young woman in a government hotel we were close to. The hotel name is not on the key or the key envelope and frankly, since it was our only night on our own, I had just relied on Ronny to shepherd us wherever we were going that day/night.) When we lunched at the excellent Italian restaurant at the waterfront Melia´, I was curious as to what their rooms were like especially those with a sea view and beautiful grounds and lobby but it is on the no-Yanks list so...Think of this tour not as a vacation but rather as an intense, rich, and jam-packed seminar. You will learn a lot and I am still digesting all that we saw, heard, and experienced. We never had to change our money and even after tips, which Tauck will tell you are included for a special reason, I still felt that I needed to tip, albeit not my normal amounts since I ran out of dollars, given the top served received by all. One expression that you will hear a lot when the guides are asked about specific things going on in Cuba regarding the government and all things related to their daily lives and things in general is this: "It's complicated'! Indeed it is. This trip will change you in a good way. You will feel that no matter happens in our country or in your life, if the Cuban people can remain so positive and strong and continue to push forward, so can you.