Cards & Cuba

stuartbennett

Hi

I am going on holiday to Cuba in July and according to tripadvisor:

"With regard to the use of credit or debit cards in Cuba the following applies. No card issued by a bank that has any connection with the United States will be accepted in Cuba. Therefore Capital One, American Express and MBNA cards will not work in Cuba. UK debit cards with the VISA logo are usually accepted by your tour rep to pay for trips but will NOT be accepted to purchase goods. They can, however, be used in ATM's (if you can find one and it is working) or to draw money from a Cadeca. "

therefore it immediately tells me that my MBNA card can't be used out there but what about my M&S card or my barclaycard which of them can i use in cuba? the reason i need cards out there is because of paying for things like excursions etc and for bringing back souverneirs.

Dreamscometrue

I travel to Cuba every few months & NEVER use a credit card. I always carry lots of cash in a moneysafe & have debit cards with me for emergencies. Withdrawal charges at cash machines are astronomical (Cuban charge alone) and it can be hard to find a machine. There are a few machines in Santiago, Holguin & Havana but not many. I'm not sure whether you'll be able to pay for the trips on a card.

Wannabedebtfree

I've always taken cash as any card that has a link to an American company (even a small one) was a no go and was declined. There were a lot of people who were unable to use their cards and had no cash to change.

taxi73

I'vealso also always took cash with me.
Souveneirs are really cheap and there's no reason not to pay cash to tour operators.
If I remember rightly they don't like scottish £20 notes either.
I just used to exchange cash at the hotel desk with no problems.

mum2one

Sorry to but in on the thread, I'm off to Cuba in April, all in 2 weeks, thinking of £100 sterling, £300 travellers chqs £100 changed into currency? Whats the best to buy?
Credit card - for trips upto £300 - staying in Veradero, want to do the Hemming way overnight tour, with the posh nightclub in the trip, do you have a rough idea what that would cost.

Open to ideas, tips and suggestions plz.x

My travel agent said they have sorted out my tourist card, do I need to do anything else

never-in-doubt

stuartbennett wrote: »

Hi

I am going on holiday to Cuba in July and according to tripadvisor:

"With regard to the use of credit or debit cards in Cuba the following applies. No card issued by a bank that has any connection with the United States will be accepted in Cuba. Therefore Capital One, American Express and MBNA cards will not work in Cuba. UK debit cards with the VISA logo are usually accepted by your tour rep to pay for trips but will NOT be accepted to purchase goods. They can, however, be used in ATM's (if you can find one and it is working) or to draw money from a Cadeca. "

therefore it immediately tells me that my MBNA card can't be used out there but what about my M&S card or my barclaycard which of them can i use in cuba? the reason i need cards out there is because of paying for things like excursions etc and for bringing back souverneirs.

M&S is fine as it is HSBC - I go to Cuba a lot and my HSBC card works just fine, as did my debit card. M&S is issued by HSBC so you're fine, failing that then HBOS is another that is fine (thus meaning Lloyds is as well)

never-in-doubt

mum2one wrote: »

Sorry to but in on the thread, I'm off to Cuba in April, all in 2 weeks, thinking of £100 sterling, £300 travellers chqs £100 changed into currency? Whats the best to buy?
Credit card - for trips upto £300 - staying in Veradero, want to do the Hemming way overnight tour, with the posh nightclub in the trip, do you have a rough idea what that would cost.

Open to ideas, tips and suggestions plz.x

My travel agent said they have sorted out my tourist card, do I need to do anything else

Take cash - 100 sterling will get you a few hundred CUC (cuban peso).... if you're in all inclusive you won;t need that much money anyway - trips (depends where you go and what you like) are great! I usually head to the Coco's (Cayo Guillermo) and do the speedboats - amazing fun!

Enjoy - and avoid the local women with hairy armpits - they will want your body! :rotfl: :rotfl: