Cuba Revealed
Go Learn
January 27-February 03, 2024
Double Occupancy: $5500 per person
Single Occupancy: $6000 per person
Airfare is not included.
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The entire trip left me with many wonderful memories of Cuba...The Cuban people we met revealed the soul of Cuba by generously sharing their passion, creativity and knowledge with us. I especially enjoyed the last night in Havana when we gathered at the very cool tapas bar at sunset. Two authentic troubadours serenaded us with song and acoustic guitars. Wow! — Go Learn Traveler, Cuba 2017
Al Campbell, U Professor Emeritus in Economics, will lead an incredible Go Learn journey to Cuba, where he has researched, lived and played for the past thirty years. The trip starts in Miami, where the group will meet before boarding a flight to Havana the following morning. When in Cuba, we have included all ground transportation, entrances and local guides, and some of the most amazing hotels and scrumptious meals Cuba has to offer. This meticulously planned and executed trip was created in partnership with Cuba Educational Travel, who holds a license from the U.S. Treasury Department (CT-2013-303986-1) to arrange educational trips to the island, meaning your memorable visit to Cuba is fully sanctioned by the U.S. government. We hope you join us on this trip of a lifetime!
Trip highlights include:
Cuba is known world-wide for its distinctive socio-political-economic system, but as any of the 2 million non-American tourists who go there every year would confirm, it’s fascinating for many reason in addition to that. Cuba is its art, its music and dance, its architecture, its natural attractions, its history and its culture. Cuba above all is its people. Come sample a bit of all of these in the most remote and unknown of our next-door neighbors.
Travel to Miami today. Because each guest will arrive at different times, we will have our first get-together in Havana tomorrow. Today, check into the hotel, explore Miami, and get ready for Cuba in the morning.
Hotel: The Sonesta
Meals: On your own
Depart Miami and arrive in Havana around noon. After a welcome lunch at Río Mar, a private restaurant located in the luxurious Miramar neighborhood with a beautiful terrace overlooking the Almendares River flowing into the sea, we will coffee with a family of artists, at AltaMira art loft. Dinner we’ll be at Paladar La Habanera. This house was built in 1930 and has been rescued and preserved with hydraulic tile floors, French windows, marble staircase and outstanding elements of its elegant architecture. We will be joined by Cuban experts in politics, foreign policy and media for a dinner discussion about 21st century Cuba.
Hotel: Private Hotels such as the Hotel Candil
Meals: B, L
We’ll spend the morning with urban planners, who will provide insight into housing, infrastructure, investment, and restoration programs in the city. Then, we will explore Havana’s beautiful old city and interact with families and private vendors, even entering family homes and side streets to get an underground look at socio-economic issues and daily Cuba life. We will lunch at Doña Eutimia paladar, famous for its ropa vieja and frozen mojitos (this cozy paladar made Newsweek Magazine’s top 100 restaurants in the world in 2012). We will then visit the Museum of Cuban Art, with art historians and curators who will provide an overview of Cuban art and artists over the last four centuries. We will enjoy a performance by Habana Compás Dance, which encompasses the rich rhythm and flow of the island, performing traditional and modern dances born from their Spanish, Cuban and Afro-Cuban heritage. Afterwards, we will step inside a stately centuries-old mansion in the Vedado neighborhood to discover what lies behind the crumbling facades of Havana’s impressive mansions.
Hotel: Private Hotels such as the Hotel Candil
Meals: B, L
We’ll enjoy a breakfast discussion with professor Al Campbell, who is a leading expert on the Cuban economy, the discussion provides great insight into the current state of the Cuban economy, political & economic reforms, and how this affects the Cuban population. Then we explore Havana in classic cars from the 1950’sand visit artist galleries and studios throughout the city, including Fusterlandia in Jaimanitas. We will enjoy lunch at Paladar Atelier, equally known for its atmosphere and exquisite cuisine. We will be joined by medical professionals to better understand Cuba’s healthcare system, COVID’s impacts on the island, and more. Spend the late afternoon with some of Havana’s top thinkers and startups. Depending on your interests and experience, we’ll arrange visits with some great private businesses and the creatives that run them. We will finish the day spending the early evening at Café Madrigal with Frank Delgado, renowned singer and songwriter, for a discussion about the nueva trova movement in Cuba, followed by a musical performance.
Hotel: Private Hotels such as the Hotel Candil
Meals: B,L,D
We will check-out of our hotel and depart for Playa Larga, home to the Zapata Peninsula’s best beaches, located in the southern part of the Matanzas province. Most of the peninsula is a protected zone that is part of Gran Parque Natural Montemar, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Along the way we will visit the Organopónico Vivero Farming Cooperative in Alamar (UBPC) and Playa Girón, the site where the famous Bay of Pigs invasion took place in 1961, including and meet with survivors of Bay of Pigs and other community members. Upon arrival, we will check-in at bed and breakfasts, known as “casas particulares,” or “private homes.” Since the 1990s Cuban families have been permitted to rent rooms out of their family homes to foreigners. Featuring comfortable accommodations and ample privacy, it’s a great way to interact with everyday Cubans. That night we will enjoy a home cooked meal prepared by your hosts.
Hotel: Casas Particulares/bed and breakfasts
Meals: B, L, D
The Ciénaga de Zapata swamp is home to countless species of birds, plants, and wildlife, and we will visit this morning looking for flamingos, bromeliads, deer, and ibises. We will then depart for Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, known for its cobble stoned streets, pastel-colored homes and small-town feel. Boxed lunch en route. Again, here we will be staying in “casas particulares.”
Hotel: Casas Particulares/bed and breakfasts
Meals: B, L, D
We’ll start with a morning walking tour of Trinidad’s historic center, known for its cobble-stoned streets, pastel colored homes and small-town feel. Afterwards, we will visit the archeological site San Isidro de los Destiladeros and the local community. Near the city of Trinidad, it was a typical sugar plantation, operated with slave labor in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Understanding the sugar cane industry’s history and slavery in the area is valuable to helping understand how wealth and society was shaped in the region. For lunch we will visit to the local Afro-Cuban village “Manaca Iznaga”, that still demonstrates cultural traits of the first groups of freed slaves. In the afternoon, we will visit artisans in the famous Sugar Mills Valley, located in the outskirts of Trinidad where there was an extraordinary development of the Cuban sugar cane industry in the 18th and 19th century. We will end the day with a farewell dinner at Paladar Café Real, a historically restored building that is off the beaten path, that boasts some of the best cuisine in Trinidad.
Hotel: Casas Particulares/bed and breakfasts
Meals: B, L, D
Today we check-out early and depart for Havana.
Meals: B
Al Campbell is a retired Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Utah. The Cuban economy has been one of his central research areas throughout his career. Being engaged in professional research there has allowed him to visit the island yearly since 1991, and hence to follow in person the deep changes in Cuban society that have occurred over the last three decades in a way that has not been possible for most Americans. In 2013 he published an edited collection of works by Cubans on their economy titled Cuban Economists on the Cuban Economy. He is currently a co-editor of the International Journal of Cuban Studies out of London, and is working on a book, now delayed for two years by Covid, on the cooperative part of the Cuban economy.
In Partnership with:
Run by Collin Laverty, a leading expert on Cuba and U.S.-Cuba relations, Cuba Educational Travel organizes educational exchange programs and people-to-people travel for U.S. citizens and residents to Cuba. We believe our two countries have much to learn from each other and meaningful exchanges that foster dialogue can be highly beneficial to strengthening the artistic, environmental, medical, scientific, and social science communities in the U.S. and Cuba. Most importantly, increased travel and people-to-people contact will strengthen ties between ordinary Americans and Cubans.
Cuba Educational Travel's mission is to connect the people of the United States and Cuba. This is done through coordinating travel between both countries – in both directions – to facilitate two-way learning; as well as producing studies and publications about issues of mutual concern and organizing events in the United States that deal with issues related to Cuba and U.S.-Cuba relations.
Pre-departure
Like all Go Learn journeys, the adventure begins at home. We will meet about a month before the trip to discuss travel logistics and packing. This trip may appeal to travelers from all over the U.S. and we are happy to send you information you’ll need ahead of time if you cannot join us in person.Our program starts in Miami, and the tour price includes airfare to and from Cuba as well as all ground transportation.
Visa to Cuba
Our partner, Cuba Educational Travel, who hold a license from the U.S. Treasury Department (CT-2013-303986-1) to arrange educational trips to the island, is taking care of our visa to Cuba. Please make sure your passport is valid for more than six months after our return date of February 8, 2015. Visa processing fees are included in the tour price.
Weather: Let's escape the cold and inversions in Utah! Mild and pleasant weather is inviting us to Cuba. The average daytime high of 81°F and average low temperatures of 63°F make for great vacation weather. It may rain occasionally, so pack a light rain jacket, but expect mild and sunny skies!
Activity levels and restrictions
In order to fully explore the sights on our itinerary, we will be walking every day. Most city walking is flat on paved surfaces. When visiting museums and sites, we may be walking long distances or stand on our feet for prolonged times. Be sure to bring comfortable walking shoes! We often will start our days early and continue until sundown. Our exciting itinerary and daily learning adventures will keep you happily exhausted.
Dates
January 27 - February 3, 2024
Size
Trip is limited to 20 participants
Cost
Double occupancy: $5500 per person
Single occupancy: $6000
See for payment and cancellation details.
Included
Not included