I’ve been to Myanmar, India, Cambodia, Vietnam, Bosnia Herzegovina. There is nothing about Cuba that worries me in the slightest. In all my travels the nation most difficult to get into is my own. I am worried about the bullshit I will have to deal with getting back.
What would I be in for?
I’ve heard Cuba issues entry visas on a piece of paper you tuck in your passport for Americans, so they don’t stamp it and there would be no evidence of the visit.
Start here.
I’m sure it will be fine.
And if you’re looking for comments from here, you might want to see some of the many threads which have been on this topic recently:
I’ve reported this thread for possible closure, since the legality is murky. That is not to say I agree that it should be.
Moderator Action
I will admit that I am a little fuzzy on the legal aspects of all of this. I’m not sure if there is a legal way for the OP to do what they want or not. However, since the OP seems to indicate that they will knowingly bend or break the rules if they think that they can minimize the “bullshit” that they have to deal with when they get back to the U.S., I’m going to have to shut this down.
If someone wants to PM me with a legal method for the OP to do what they want, then I can open this back up and that legal method can be discussed. Until then, this thread is closed.
ETA:
I have received word that there are legal ways for an American to travel to Cuba, so I am re-opening this thread.
Just a friendly reminder, let’s keep all answers legal. Note that you are allowed to question if a particular method is legal or not.
Thread re-opened.
I see this as an exemption:
§515.564 Professional research and professional meetings in Cuba.
So, say I am an attorney, and I want to go to Cuba to research by seeing first hand how Cuban law differs from U.S. law (and, of course, drink rum and smoke cigars during my down time. Plus, I am generally lazy and work 2 hours per day–say I leave that part out). Would I be granted a license?
My mother visited Cuba a couple of weeks ago. There are “educational” tours out of Miami – all perfectly legal. You don’t roam freely, of course, but you can see Havana and its area.
The easiest answer seems to be a “people to people” licensed cultural-exchange tour. These can be purchased off the shelf like any other packaged tour. It seems like they keep tourists on a pretty tight leash and require full-time engagement in cultural activities (going to the beach seems to be forbidden), but the experiences they offer- home stays, etc.- seem genuinely interesting.
There are also exceptions for academics, students, people attending professional events, people visiting family, etc. I’m guessing the regulations on these vary, but will require some substantial proof of what you are doing. A researcher, for example, would probably have to show their funding, academic support, work plan, contacts, etc. I’m sure with some dedication it’d be possible to fake it, but it’d surely be more trouble than it’s worth.
This is correct. You fill out a form in the airplane on the way to Cuba, which is an application for an entry visa. You present your passport to Customs on arrival, and the form. The Customs guard issues you a visa, which you are supposed to keep with you passport. When you leave, they tear off half the visa to show that you’ve left, and you keep the other half. No stamp in the passport. However, this is not specifically for Americans. It’s the way they do it for all, as far as I could tell.
The rule says the research must be of “a noncommercial, academic nature” and “the research comprises a full work schedule in Cuba” so probably not.
The tour my mother was on was pretty much a plain tourist tour. The rationalization was that you were learning about Cuban culture, but that’s what any tour is. She saw the sights – including an organic farm – attended a few cultural events, and ate in a Cuban restaurant (private restaurants are technically not allowed in Cuba, but where there’s an underground economy and where Cuban officials don’t crack down on). No free time, of course, but they didn’t just show off Potemkin villages – she commended on how many buildings were run down and falling down.
Thy couldn’t possible hide all the decaying buildings. Havana is full of decrepit buildings, some collapsed or in other stages of falling down.
We were there over Christmas with the Cub. At one point we were driving in Havana in our tour bus, and passed a building that had collapsed at one end. The Cub said “oh my goodness! That building is broken! Why would they let their building break like that? Good thing no-one is living there.” Just then the door of the next unit in the building opened and a little girl the Cub’s age came out. We could see someone watching TV inside. The Cub was very quiet, pondering.
Here are some options, in fact it is a great website regardless of where you want to go.
Note that these rules apply to all legal residents of the US. My friend, who is a Canadian citizen, and would otherwise have no problem going to Cuba, is a permanent resident of the States, and therefore falls under the rules.
Other than see how a nation is under decades of Communism- why?
Why not PR?
I ask this seriously.
Why not Cuba? I’ve never been to a country that wasn’t interesting in one way or another. Every place on Earth where they aren’t actively shooting at you has plenty to recommended itself, it’s just matter of what catches your fancy.
Yes. For example, Havana has an amazing music scene–there’s nothing else like it (definitely not PR). That’s why I go there.