Insider’s Tips

German Miguel studied sociology and is now a successful BnB and entreprenuer. He has many years of experience in helping gay tourists explore the LGBT culture in Cuba. Now he shares with us his favourite tips! You can book a stay at his place on his website or Booking.com.

German, tell us about yourself!

I am German Miguel, sociologist. My partner and I at some point decided to buy a house so that we could start renting it out to tourists on Airbnb and other online platforms. That is how our project of Casa Viola was born. I enjoy working with people, and its a good business: its not very complicated in terms of logistics like a restaurant.

However, when we started, there were 2000 casas particulares in our neighbourhood of Centro Habana. I said well, when we position ourselves online we need to stand out somehow. What makes us different from all the 5 other casas particulares on my block? I did some research and discovered MisterBnb and Gay Homeestay. Perfect, then I’ll sell the idea of a gay person staying with a gay host. The first people that came to stay with us was a gay couple who were very afraid of discrimination in Cuba. They were glad to be staying with a gay host.

Should tourists visiting Cuba be worried about discrimination against LGBT people?

Well aparently that’s what travel agencies tell them. Last year 2000 Cubans asked for asylum in Holland because they said they were opppressed in Cuba. Of course, we have a lot of political and migration problems here. A lot of it is related to the politics between the US and Cuba. Many Americans still think they can’t come to Cuba, there is a lot of ambiguity and misinformation going around, not just for LGBT travellers. The US government pushes the narrative that people here are oppressed.

In my opinion and experience Cuba is actually quite open minded. Of course, there are always people who aren’t. We recently had a referendum on the constitution, and the government tried to create a national debate about gay marriage. But most people I spoke to weren’t interested, they wanted to talk about economic matters. My opinion is that heterosexuals pushed the gay marriage thing more than the gay community in Cuba, because it could lead to all sorts of sneaky business opportunities. You can get married with your buddy and sort out your papers, that sort of thing.

Is it safe on the street in Cuba then?

Kids here play on the street till midnight, which tells you a lot about the violence on the street. I don’t know any foreigners who have been robbed in Havana, the largest danger is car accidents. Hearing of friends getting mugged is very rare. We’ve never had any of our guests get mugged on the street in the 4 years we operate.

Of course, we’ve had clients who get into stuff that is risky all over the world who end up having a hard time, but unless you’re out looking for trouble it won’t find you.

Are there any gay bars, restaurants, places you recommend?

What kind of gay bars? Luckily, there are a lot of places you can go to. If you want something more high end and expensive, I can recommend Cafe Cantante or Tablado (in the Gran Teatro de la Habana). It depends on the day of week, both of them its on Thursday. If you want to spend a bit less money you could go to Las Vegas. They have drag queen shows every day of the week. Drag queens are fun to talk to, some of them have the most masculine day jobs. There are a few private bars too, like XY (Thursdays there is a comedian there, lots of gay jokes), El Essencia and El Bar Pasillo.

If you are really really low on funds go to the corner of Infanta and 23 close to Las Vegas. Saturdays and Sundays people go to Las Vegas, and when people go out of the club they go to chat there. Mobile internet exists since November, we don’t have Grinder and other gay apps. Grinder is actually blocked in Cuba, not because of the Cuban government, but because of the US government! If you wanna meet someone, you can meet there on the street.

If you’re travelling with hetero friends you should know gay bars in Cuba are hetero-friendly places. For example King Bar started as a gay place, then the hetero crowd started going there, so many of the gays started going elsewhere, but now they’ve come back and its a good mix.

In terms of gay restaurants, there is a place in front of Hotel Vedado, I don’t remember the name but it has a gay flag so you can find it easily. Every day a new place opens up, I’ve heard CubaLibro also has a gay flag out.

Gay beaches also exist. For example, Mi Cayito in Boca Ciega has a gay flag next to the Cuban flag. It has about 10 km of beach. I also heard from someone that in Cayo Santa Maria a new hotel opened, just for gay tourism.

Are there gay tours or tour guides that cater to the LGBT community?

Some guests ask for tours with people who understand and know about LGBT life. There are some guys who run a project called Cuba Cubano Cubaneando who are quite flexible, they’ll take clients wherever they want to go. If you want to see the historic sights of Old Havana they’ll take you there, but if you want to know all about the Havana nightlife they’ll show you.

They’ll say, hey today is the day to do this, to do that, if you wanna meet a few friends of ours we can go to this place etc. I can highly recommend them.

What places are there for the LGBT community outside Havana?

With time you start meeting other gay hosts. Being gay is like part of being a country, a culture. I usually recommend to people Pavel y Guido, two artists with a rent house in Santa Clara. In Trinidad is Valentin who is an older man who lives with his couple and Amanda in Viñales. I’ve heard MogoteArt in Viñales is also an interesting project.

Is LGBT sex tourism a thing in Cuba?

Normally our guests are couples, but sometimes we have someone who is here to meet people. We have strict rules for safety reasons, as do most Casa Particular hosts. When a person comes in, we need to take their ID. Normally there are no problems, but once we had an issue with a guy that brought someone in without letting us know. That’s clearly against the rules.

Gay jineteros (prostitutes) are called pingeros. There will be pingueros in Las Vegas. If you wanna go to a bar without being stalked by pingueros go to XY because you have to spend more money, and that’s expensive for someone looking for work. Go to Cafe Cantante, which has a 5 dollar entry fee. There you’ll meet professionals: lawyers, doctors, architects and the like.

Anything else we should know?

There are a lot of more gay friendly houses in Havana. Cuba is all for gay tourism! The government has realised this is a good investment because gays are wonderful guests, they don’t haggle and buy the most expensive drinks on the menu.

The WhyNotCuba team spoke with one of the most secretive travel bloggers in Cuba, the person behind the underground Cuba travel guide. He also offers bespoke itineraries at TripUniq. This is what we found out.

We love your blog and it has interesting information but why is it anonymous?

Well, Cuba is a socialist state and opinions or information can damage people. I’m very happy with my residence here and want to protect everybody around me. Hence my identity will remain undisclosed.

We Googled your real name and you are rather famous in your home country. How come?

I wrote some books about some things and before you know it people start to talk about those things and soon thereafter you’re one of those talking heads on TV they call ‘experts’. I seem to have a keen eye on things and strong opinions about them.

Why so vague?

See my first answer.

How did you end up in Havana?

A long story very short: I came here for the first time 16 years ago with a friend that did business in Cuba. That’s a different entrance than a normal tourist. Fell in love with the country, studied Spanish at the university, kept coming back a bit longer every year and now live here 8 months per year since 2010. Things just grow you know.

What do you like to do in Havana?

I don’t like to muddle in the middle. I like high society so I have lunch with our ambassador and other important people in fine restaurants, ballet and opera, which are an experience in Cuba, openings of art galleries and the likes. But I also like to mingle with the riffraff. Have friends that are hookers and pimps. Actually, once they accept you, they are fun to hang out with.

You also design trips for tourists in Havana. Can you give us an example?

People that read my book and get my drift want to see more than just the highlights. So in Old Havana I show them what you have to see. You cannot miss Plaza Vieja, Prado and the like! But also the things nobody sees. I show people the ‘hole in the wall’ places to eat, the Ministry of Infrastructure, the first drive-through hamburger place where it is impossible to drive through. The real local stuff! I’ve got some bike itineraries too.

Can you give an example trip?

Have a Moneda Nacional day.

Get on the 222 bus on Parque de Fraternidad (and there is a trick to get a seat) and stay on it until the terminal in La Lisa. You will see how big Havana really is! Then once in La Lisa see the real Cuban life and you can only buy stuff that is sold in MN. Live like a Cuban for a day, stroll about, eat in a cafeteria, enjoy the scenery from the only terrace in town and then get on the bus back. Takes half a day and teaches you a lot and it is a really interesting experience.

If there is one thing you want people to understand about Cuba, what would that be?

Cuba and the Cubans are not living in the past.

Everybody that thinks that Cuba is 60 years back in time did not see ‘Back to the Future’. Changes in the past change the present. Cuba changed it system 60 years ago and took a different direction.

But it is the present. Due to that change in the past Cuba is now in a completely different dimension than ours.

Nothing is what you think it is from your Western reference frame and you are always mistaken.

Cuba Conga

Cuba is a tough country for the clueless and the ‘clueless tax’ can be very high. I wrote my book to give people a clue because Cuba is not ‘just another tropical destination’ it is a different universe!

Patricia is a member of Knocking on Cuba, a group of individuals affiliated to the University of Havana who help tourists make the most of Cuba.

Tell us more about yourself and your team, who are you guys?

I am Patricia. In order of importance: I am a mom, an economist and an entrepreneur. I’ve been experiencing the unbelievable sensation of motherhood for 10 months now, so I cannot help but talk about it, because right now it’s the inspiration to everything that I do.

With my husband, we are co-founders of Knocking On Cuba. Knocking on Cuba is a group of young professionals with links to the University of Havana. We started off working on accommodation for tourists by helping our friends and family rent out their places on Airbnb. This is known as property management in the rest of the world, but it was new in Cuba when we started.

We’ve now expanded to all things tourism: helping plan itineraries, tourism experiences on Airbnb and city tours. Our tours aren’t your typical tours: we are actively trying to bring tourists closer to the Cuban reality, which is often quite far from theirs.

Knocking on Cuba has grown become a sort of hub of opportunity for young professionals from the University of Havana. It has allowed us to put into practice our knowledge, in a relatively “virgin” area (property management in Cuba). It is a way of making extra-income, but has become a personal and professional way of self-realisation, making friends and gaining financial autonomy.

But also we are contributing to make a country that is closer to our expectations. Meanwhile, we’ve stayed true to our roots as academics, teaching young professionals at the University of Havana.

Tell us about what your team does?

Understanding the uniqueness of Cuba is hard, specially if someone is visiting for only a few days. All of our experiences aim to show visitors how Cubans live in everyday life, experiences a bit hard to grasp for a tourist that arrives with the obsession of riding in an old convertible from the 50s.

How did you start the whole thing? What are the activities you run?

The tours came through Airbnb, we hosted the first Airbnb Experience in Cuba. You can still book it today, it is called: Being Cuban.  Since then Our little group has since launched 10 experiences, including:

• Habana on foot
• Habana Insight
• Life in the countryside.

In both Havana on Foot and Havana Insight we talk about education, health, the characteristics of markets, the restricted economy, the dual currency, the rationing book, and everything our visitors want, without any restriction whatsoever. We also talk politics if the clients wants to.  Why is modern Havana from the 1950s? What is the relationship with the US like? We answer questions like these and aim to provide experiences that put Cuban reality into context.

This walking conference we do it through the veins of the city, mostly though Central Havana, taking public transport, eating the “local” ice cream at the Coppelia which most tourists are unable to get.

Life in the countryside is the same goal, but showing life out of Havana. We go into a cave, full of bats with flashlights. Makes it interesting and fun. There’s a river ,animals in the farm, a family there shows us their lives, shares with us their coffee. The lunch is fish that was fished right there. Many people feel its a highlight of their trip. Plus, as it’s a nearly 2 hour drive to the village in Pinar del Rio called San Diego de los Baños, we have ample time to chat with the clients.

Being Cuban is an Airbnb Experience which is bigger,  has more activities, and is longer than a day. Basically, it is almost a combination of Havana on Foot with activity in the countryside. We also do something fun at night, go to a bar or cabaret where you can drink, dance and have fun. You got to know Cuban society, meet people, now you come dance and have fun.

Havana pub crawling is an experience to get to know the nightlife of the city, you will go to at least 3 bars.

Afro-Cuban culture guide, where you get to know the AfroCaribbean culture of Cuba. The religion. The music, the food. Very relevant topic in Cuba, as afro caribbean religion plays a big part. This has a lot of American interest, mostly African Americans.

Another kitchen experience, Cuban flavours, to teach people about food with an excellent chef.

Another person who organises fishing along the Malecon, which has super interesting to add to our package of experiences.

Are there any new experiences/activities coming up?

New experiences: there always will be. We have new ideas, many things in mind. We don’t want to give everything away, as it should be a surprise.

We are now thinking about the Cuban woman, something that enhances the role of the woman in history, with a focus on gender. This is important, as there have been many women in the history of Cuba who have had an impact. The guides will be Cuban women as well, entrepreneurs and mothers who have various roles.

How have things (in Cuba/ in tourism) changed since you started?

There’s definitely been a change. Trump has been a change. Obama was also a change, towards the expansion of tourism. But also policies in Cuba since 2010 have been pushing towards more liberalised cuentapropista work (the ability to work for yourself). But Trump’s policy changes have made Americans scared of coming here, not so much because of the policy itself, but rather because of the media impact they made. That, and the hurricanes Irma and Maria have caused a decline in tourism.  

What do you think is lacking in the tourism industry in Cuba?

The industry is lacking the same things and faces the same problems as Cuban society: bad transportation connections, bad internet connection (although it has improved compared to 3 years ago). Not that long ago 3G was started. But still, we are limited in connectivity. On the other hand, we are also lacking basic products in markets. Beer, bottled water. Things people are not used to going without. It might scare a few visitors away.

What are some unique challenges of doing what you do in Cuba ?

The  main challenge for Cuba as a society, but specially tourism, has to do with the bloqueo. The simplest thing in the world for an entrepreneur out of Cuba, such as having an international bank account, a debit or credit card or the ability to charge credit cards, is impossible for us. In tourism this makes it harder for you to compete, as you cannot get certain channel managers or booking platform. So then you have to invent stuff, find someone who can do it outside of Cuba, who of course wants money for it, so Cuba ends up being a more expensive destination for international visitors.

What places (restaurants/locations/activities) do you think are overrated by tourists?

I think many people would agree that one of the most overrated places is La Guarida restaurant. It is overrated as a restaurant, however it is lucky to represent what it does, being the location of one of the most famous Cuban films of all time, Fresa y Chocolate. It deserves a visit if you liked the film and are interested in its history, but as a restaurant it is overrated.

What places (restaurants/locations/activities) do you think are underrated by tourists?

Hard question, it’s obviously very personal and is tainted by my personal preferences. Many tourists go the cannon shots, casa de la musica, for Varadero, but some beautiful places are ignored, like Canasi (just before Matanzas), which we joke that hasn’t been discovered by foreigner.It is a mix of rivers and coasts. Other sites, which are not touristy at all, like the Coppelia ice-cream, which is an experience. A perfect way to understand the market logic of Cuba. Makes you think about economics. Getting an ice-cream in Cuba is actually a hands on lesson in economics!

Also, lets not forget the Havana malecon, which is a great spot to sit and drink. Just relax, soak in atmosphere and enjoy.

The tourist cliche is Cuba as the land of “tobacco, rum, salsa, and sun”. How is Cuba more than that?

Cuba is a lot more than that! But that’s the marketing image…

From my point of view, what’s the difference between Cuba and other Caribbean destinations or in Latin America? Costa Rica, Bahamas? Having travelled a bit, I think it’s the spirit of the people.

Maybe the historical circumstances have caused this, but there is something that you can only really pick up if you have spent significant time here (or as a Cuban, significant time abroad). You feel like the distance between neighbours, friends is a lot larger in other countries than it is in Cuba.Many tourists pick up on this, and this keeps them hooked and keeps coming back.