Havana, Cuba

[floridarob]

Just back from Havana and wanted to let everyone know that things are still good down there. (for tourist at least)

 

If you've never been there...well you are missing out on the hotest sex available IMHO.

 

Ive been to Brazil a number of times and true, it's good there and great food and stuff...but the sex in Cuba is just sooooo hot and very few American tourist!

 

The guyz are so sweet also, they'll stay and hang around all day if you want....cost...$20.

 

If you do go, rent an apt as cuban hotels dont allow cubans to stay with tourist and also bring down a few well appreciated gifts, such as underwear, razors, cologne, hats, shirts, anything that would be taken as an American product.

 

I have some pictures if anyone is interested or if you've never been there...let me know.

[gulliver]

OK RObe, you have me intrigued. Had not been to Brazil in 20 years until I started reading this board and now I am going back for my 3rd time since Dec 1st. So, i'd like to know about havana>

 

Can you fly directly there from the US or how else do you get there. How about visas, travel agencies, airlines, ect.

 

How do you arrange the apartment? Rental Agents, web, or ?? Any leads.

How far in advance do you make arrangements?

 

How do you meet rent boys? What is necessary for you security and safety if you are staying in an apt.

 

Waiting eagerly to read your reply.

[Guest Deweywop]

Cuba. A whole 'nother story!

 

What I remember best about the boys of Cuba was their insistent drive to come. All three of the young men I was with spat out big, urgent loads, pushing me over the edge just a little before I intended, but I'm not complaining. I guess that's the difference with working in a brothel, like the Brazilian guys, and having to "save up," always, for the next customer. The Cubans weren't turning that many tricks and generally acted as if they were pleased with the opportunity to get off (in addition to earning a generous sum of money to them). There was real energy.

 

Two of the boys were, however, much needier than most guys I've met in Brazil. One of those two was rather messed up, and the situation actually got scary once, in the middle of a cafe. I didn't mind the begging for additional gifts from the other one, as he was one wild animal who left bruises on me and kept slowly going long after he sprayed my back. Which leaves the last one, who was sweet and perfect in just about every way. Wow, in typing this, I'm just now remembering how dramatic that trip was! Be careful out there.

[gulliver]

check out the lonelyplanet.com website for gay travellers. some of the posts make me feel havana is quite a bit more dangerous than rio. is it really worth the hassle of low level accomodations and street cruising? would appreciate any info.

[trilingual]

I've always been curious about Cuba, too, but from all I hear it's definitely less hassle-free than Brazil, particularly for Americans who have difficulty traveling there legally and can only get there indirectly. You'll probably end up spending as much in time and airfare getting there from the U.S. as you would going to Brazil.

 

Also, there have been recent news articles about the benighted Bush administration getting stricter about enforcing the travel ban, with some cautionary tales about little old schoolteachers being notified they were facing five-figure fines for having violated the law. You'd think they'd have more important things to do, like finding Osama, but obviously they don't. So just be aware of the risks and hassles if you go. From everything I've read and seen, a visit to Cuba can be a very rewarding experience, in all kinds of ways, but for Americans it can be problematic and people have run into trouble, and not just from the Cuban government! x( With any luck, the embargo will end in the next few years, but probably not as long as Bush is in control and in desperate need of Cuban votes in Florida.

[floridarob]

As far as safety...I've walked down the main street in downtown havana at midnight and didnt feel in any danger, there are police on every other corner. I asked a policeman a question before and he informed me that if I ever had a problem, just signal one of the police and they would be there in seconds and that NO ONE is allowed to give tourist a problem...including the police as long as you dont do anything blatently wrong.

 

Ive been through cancun and nassau to get there and nassau is easier for me from florida but since US immigration pre-clears you in the Bahamas and just seems a little more riskier although I personally have never had a problem. If you were to have a problem and they intimidated you enough to sign a form the center for constitutional rights in NYC would defend you for free...apparently they would ask for a hearing and since there's no court in the land to hear such a case, it just goes into limbo.

 

I've spoken to many tourist from other countries while there and one of the things they like most about cuba is "no Americans!"

 

 

you could look on thorntree.lonelyplanet.com they have a cuba section as well as http://www.cubanonet.com and look at the "green screen" lots of info there.

 

Like someone told me, if you're too afraid to go...then dont! and after ive taken several friends there they couldnt believe how easy it was....and oh by the way, the cubans including police customs and immigration like having americans visit and they are not currently stamping passports (doesnt really matter since its a nondescipt green square with no mention of where it is from)

[Guest Deweywop]

Cuba is definitely a "project." I went about 2 yrs ago (how time flies) through Mexico City/Cancun, and it did take about as much time and money as a trip to South America. You do have to learn and rehearse the song and dance for dodging the American embargo. Once in Cuba, you'll find that the amenities are spare, the food not so great, and things are much more expensive than you'd expect for what you get (due to the dual economy). But tourists can live a pretty comfortable if artificial existence during their time on the island. Out in the country there are more opportunities to mingle with the locals, as many are licensed to rent rooms in their houses to tourists.

 

I concur that Havana is about the safest city I've ever been in. You can walk down the darkest, dingiest street at any hour and not even conceive of any danger. Totalitarianism is like that!

 

What Cuba does have in its favor is a unique cultural opportunity. Havana is frozen in time (about 1958) and held together since then by chewing gum and shoelaces. You get to see an actual Communist country, probably the last one left, though dollar capitalism is creeping in. The prostitution is rampant and rather brazen, with an enormous number of stunningly beautiful women plying the tourist areas and a huge number of male "hustlers" who offer to find you a girl, a cigar, a restaurant, anything you like, even, as I was able to test once, themselves if they knew you swing that way. It's a little crazier than Brazil.

 

I have become much more ambivalent about the US trade embargo. If lifted, the entire island would turn overnight into an American strip shopping center.

[BillyZ]

Nice to see a Cuba discussion that (with only one exception above) does not degenerate into political name-calling like so many of the old GreenScreen and ThornThree posts about Cuba do.

 

My four visits there were fascinating. I highly recommend seeing Cuba now before El Jeffe dies. Previous posters are exactly right: It's like a trip into a time machine. And, yes, gay-for-pay is common (to get dollars), even among "middle class" guys like accountants and teachers. I too was surprised at how many of the macho guys were willing to bottom.

 

I've gone to Havana via Montreal, via Toronto, via Cancun, and via Jamaica. I get my airline tickets mailed from Canada using the Cuba specialist (Jury) at Nash Travel: http://www.nashtravel.com/cubahome.html (The US leg is not on the same ticket as the flights in and out of Havana.)

 

From the mid-Atlantic area where I live, I like the short flight to Toronto or Montreal to grab the nonstop flight to Havana. If Baltimore were closer I'd just fly BWI to Jamaica nonstop and then nonstop to Havana.

 

If it is your first trip, I'd recommend booking at least three nights in the Vedado section of Havana in a nice hotel like the Hotel Nacional or Habana Libre. But, since you don't want to even think about bringing a trick to your hotel room, you need to find a good "casa particular" (a room in a house) for the rest of your stay at $20 or $30 per night. They vary a lot in terms of privacy, but only a few have separate entrances that allow you to avoid having to march with your new friend through the family room to get to your bedroom. Yet, as long as you are paying them in US dollars, most (but not all) Cubans seem to be indifferent as to who-you-do in their bedroom.

 

If someone you trust has a casa to recommend, go for it, but casas do not always honor reservations made in advance if someone shows up with money in hand before you do. You can get lists of casas on the web to check out when you get to Havana.

http://www.geocities.com/allhavana/

http://www.netssa.com/rentroom.htm

http://www.geocities.com/vedadohabana/list.html

See also http://www.cubanonet.com/casa.html

 

Along with Nash Travel, several other Canadian travel agencies also specialize in Cuba, such as http://www.netssa.com/travel.html

 

For the GreenScreen Message Board...

http://www.cubanonet.com/cgi-bin/bbs/index.cgi

 

Other helpful sites include...

http://www.cubatravel.com.mx/

http://www.timeout.com/havana/

http://usacubatravel.com/

 

For your first trip, stick to Havana. There is plenty to see and do there without needing to go to another part of the island. Cruising is pervasive. Some tourists are attracted to the Cubanos who hang around the Yara Cine and seem to be full-time hustlers. But I prefer eye-contact with guys who are, for example, walking home after work or taking their girlfriend out for a beer. When I was last there in 2001, the standard expected tip was US$20.

 

The "scene" often changes depending on government crackdowns. The late-night orgies along the Malecon across from Cafe Fiat are, alas, a thing of the past, as are the drag-show bars. The locale where the rent-boys congregate moves around too, but usually somewhere in the Vedado area.

 

Don't know if the moveable weekend gay "fiesta" (always a different outdoor location each time) is still going strong but each one I attended was always a sight to behold: over one hundred hot, horny, fit, often shirtless Cubanos (teens, 20s, early 30s) dancing and drinking late into the night at some open-air venue on the edge of Havana. If you pick up the taxi and entrance fee (and perhaps a round of beer), one or more of your new friends (and the clued-in taxi drivers by the Cine Yara) will be able to get you to the fiesta.

 

The only "issue" I ever had was money. I needed to bring enough cash because I could not rely on ATMs, etc. So, be sure to research that matter before you go.

 

If you can handle the little vagaries of Rio, you should have enough street-smart travel savvy to do fine in Havana. But I think the guys who would most love Havana are those who like adventure and the thrill of "do it yourself" street connections -- rather than the ease of making stunning "off-the-shelf" selections in a Rio sauna. Me, I like both! :9

 

Adios, Billy

[Luv2play]

Thanks Billy, for a great message. Lots of useful info. I'm a Canadian living in South Florida and have wanted to go to Cuba for some time. However I was nervous that I would get there and then on the way back be stopped by INS for having visited there, even tho I'm not an American. Someone stated that the Cubans do not stamp passports and that would be helpful, but I also heard that INS also checks who gets off flights from Cuba even in places like Toronto and maybe in the Bahamas. Is this all starting to sound paranoid??? Anyway since 9/11 things have gotten hairier at the borders and one has to exercise caution.

[Luv2play]

Thanks Billy, for a great message. Lots of useful info. I'm a Canadian living in South Florida and have wanted to go to Cuba for some time. However I was nervous that I would get there and then on the way back be stopped by INS for having visited there, even tho I'm not an American. Someone stated that the Cubans do not stamp passports and that would be helpful, but I also heard that INS also checks who gets off flights from Cuba even in places like Toronto and maybe in the Bahamas. Is this all starting to sound paranoid??? Anyway since 9/11 things have gotten hairier at the borders and one has to exercise caution.

[BillyZ]

Embargo & the ballet

 

Canadians who have been to Cuba enter the US all the time. The legal prohibition is against US citizens spending money in Cuba. Unless you have an "I love Osama" sticker on your suitcase, you ought to have smooth sailing.

 

In three of my four trips, I *did* get my passport stamped at the airport in Cuba with the tiny little square (may one-eighth of an inch square) with no lettering. I have re-entered the US at least a dozen times since my first Cuba stamp and never had it/them questioned.

 

If you want to be extra cautious when you re-enter, you can always wear your (airport bought) t-shirt from Canada, Mexico, or Jamaica (i.e. a conspicuous souvenir) to underscore your holiday there! You probably would want to avoid big boxes of cigars, etc. But, by my third trip there I was fearlessly bringing back cigars and Cuban-logo souvenirs.

 

Estimates are that at least 60,000 Americans visit Cuba annually, most of them without any official authorization. Only a handful of really stupid, careless returnees ever get in any sort of trouble with the INS.

 

""I also heard that INS checks who gets off flights

from Cuba even in places like Toronto and maybe in

the Bahamas. Is this all starting to sound paranoid?""

 

Yes, it is. Plus, that tale makes no sense. The INS would not bother to photograph the hundreds of people (mostly Canadians) filing into a terminal from daily flights to Cuba and then somehow distribute those hundreds of photographs to hundreds of immigration agents at dozens of re-entry cities across the United States! And, if the INS was somehow pulling off this trick, there would be plenty of news stories and web site accounts of the hundreds of tourists they had caught!

 

As for departing from the Bahamas, avoid it. I've heard nothing but bad things about that airline connection and its numerous problems.

 

To get some of the flavor of Havana, click on "Tourismo" at http://www.tv.cubaweb.cu/ Another travel site is: http://www.1click2cuba.com/menu.html

 

One final Havana tip: After you check in and as soon as you catch your breath and calm down, go to the National Theater and buy tickets for the ballet. The Cuban Ballet (still under the direction of ancient but amazing Alica Alanzo) is one of the best in the world. Great orchestra tickets are $10 (and you are expected to go to the head of the line past the locals paying about 50 cents per ticket). The corps de ballet is so incredible (and gorgeous) any one of them could easily be the star. Bonus: The ballet is also, at intermission especially, the most upscale cruisy venue in Havana.

[BillyZ]

Embargo & the ballet

 

Canadians who have been to Cuba enter the US all the time. The legal prohibition is against US citizens spending money in Cuba. Unless you have an "I love Osama" sticker on your suitcase, you ought to have smooth sailing.

 

In three of my four trips, I *did* get my passport stamped at the airport in Cuba with the tiny little square (may one-eighth of an inch square) with no lettering. I have re-entered the US at least a dozen times since my first Cuba stamp and never had it/them questioned.

 

If you want to be extra cautious when you re-enter, you can always wear your (airport bought) t-shirt from Canada, Mexico, or Jamaica (i.e. a conspicuous souvenir) to underscore your holiday there! You probably would want to avoid big boxes of cigars, etc. But, by my third trip there I was fearlessly bringing back cigars and Cuban-logo souvenirs.

 

Estimates are that at least 60,000 Americans visit Cuba annually, most of them without any official authorization. Only a handful of really stupid, careless returnees ever get in any sort of trouble with the INS.

 

""I also heard that INS checks who gets off flights

from Cuba even in places like Toronto and maybe in

the Bahamas. Is this all starting to sound paranoid?""

 

Yes, it is. Plus, that tale makes no sense. The INS would not bother to photograph the hundreds of people (mostly Canadians) filing into a terminal from daily flights to Cuba and then somehow distribute those hundreds of photographs to hundreds of immigration agents at dozens of re-entry cities across the United States! And, if the INS was somehow pulling off this trick, there would be plenty of news stories and web site accounts of the hundreds of tourists they had caught!

 

As for departing from the Bahamas, avoid it. I've heard nothing but bad things about that airline connection and its numerous problems.

 

To get some of the flavor of Havana, click on "Tourismo" at http://www.tv.cubaweb.cu/ Another travel site is: http://www.1click2cuba.com/menu.html

 

One final Havana tip: After you check in and as soon as you catch your breath and calm down, go to the National Theater and buy tickets for the ballet. The Cuban Ballet (still under the direction of ancient but amazing Alica Alanzo) is one of the best in the world. Great orchestra tickets are $10 (and you are expected to go to the head of the line past the locals paying about 50 cents per ticket). The corps de ballet is so incredible (and gorgeous) any one of them could easily be the star. Bonus: The ballet is also, at intermission especially, the most upscale cruisy venue in Havana.

[BillyZ]

Winter Tan

 

I suppose if you return to the US from Canada in January with a bright glowing tan, it might strain INS credibility if you say you were just visiting old friends in Toronto. My skin damaging bake-in-the-sun days are over, but a buddy who does like to fry himself a bit just makes a reference to the excellent cross-country skiing in Ontario.

[BillyZ]

Winter Tan

 

I suppose if you return to the US from Canada in January with a bright glowing tan, it might strain INS credibility if you say you were just visiting old friends in Toronto. My skin damaging bake-in-the-sun days are over, but a buddy who does like to fry himself a bit just makes a reference to the excellent cross-country skiing in Ontario.

[Guest Deweywop]

RE: Winter Tan

 

BillyZ, it sounds as if you have lots of info about Cuba. I did not go to Varadero, the country's major resort development, but I thought it could get exciting. Is there any kind of hustling activity there? I too like my fun in both the adventurous and off-the-shelf kinds. I generally don't like beach resorts, but I can imagine me under an umbrella if there were something cute under it with me.

[BillyZ]

Playa Mi Cayito, SI -- Varadero, NO!

 

Varadero is the tourist enclave that the Cuban government created a couple of hours east of Havana and away from other major cities so that Canadians and Europeans could have a nice warm beach (and not contaminate ordinary Cubans). It even has its own airport.

 

The Cubans you get to see are hotel staff who are under tight restrictions -- and you cannot easily go "off campus" and sneak a local through security and back to your room.

 

IMHO: Forget the artificial Cuba of Varadero unless you want hetero, sun-burned Canadians -- not necessarily bad (eh?) but why go to Cuba for them, unless you like their skin raw! I'm not saying it is impossible to have a Cubano banana there, but you'd be missing the whole huge banana plantation back in Havana!

 

Deweywop, you can, however, both immerse yourself in the sights and sounds and sons of Havana *and* realize your fantasy of relaxing under an umbrella with "something cute under it" with you...

 

If you want fun in the Cuban sun with palm trees, fine sand, and warm crystal clear water, head for the cruisy Playa Mi Cayito. It is only about 30 minutes and a $15 taxi west of Havana. And it is filled, especially on weekends, with horny Cubanos (yes I know that is redundant) who are both gay-for-pay and gay-but-still-pay. Even those who are there with their novios and/or buddies are still often up for a good romp with a tipping Norte Americano.

[BillyZ]

''Big, urgent loads...''

 

"spat out big, urgent loads.." Hot line. Makes me want more porn details (Cuban or Brazilian) from Deweywop! (Bring it on please.) :9

 

That (their energy, iron erections, and drive to cum) was exactly my experience in Cuba too. I agree with your theory that they were figuring you'd be their sole sex experience that day. Some guys said it had been several days since they had shot a load, and (even though they were young and handsome) given the amazing volume I did not doubt it. Plus, about half the time my guys were eager to cuddle and kiss until they were rock hard again and ready for round two.

 

There are obviously pros and cons about the freelancers and moonlighters in Cuba -- but Deweywop sure identified the top feature on the plus side!

 

P.S.

Your life will be much easier and safer if you bring plenty of condoms with you. There won't be any corner 7-11 selling high quality Trojans.

[floridarob]

anyone want to go soon?

 

I just got layed off from work last week, so was wondering since i have plenty of time but little money...anyone afraid of going? pay my way and I'll show you around...serious. I dont want to sound cheap but just making an offer guyz...Im a nice funny guy in his mid thirties...thanks

[Mavica]

Not necessarily so

 

Well, this board is for the discussion of "escorts" south of the border, and, as a hustler, you fit the bill. To give the impression that few Americans are hanging around Cuba is misinformation. Yes, there are fewer than the idiot Canadians who're chasing the girls, and boys, around the place, and fewer than the Germans who plow around . . . but many people from the U.S. do visit.

[BillyZ]

? ? ?

 

Most of the messages in this thread have been by Americans who have gone to Cuba (with tips on how to do it) and the thread includes references to the thousands of Americans who go. So I don't understand why M. (whose extensive posts elsewhere on Mexico have been so helpful) thinks the thread conveys misinformation.

 

The only misinformation I see would be if a reader took literally the one sentence in Floridarob's (post #2951) quoting other tourists making an anti-American wisecrack about being happy not to see Americans. Actually, I also heard versions of that remark a couple of times from a few radical chic Europeans flaunting their Che t-shirts.

 

Anyway, clearly some Americans (e.g. Luv2play) are relectant to ignore the ban.

 

Given the many messages we have had on this board by and about guides (not all of whom sell their bodies) in Brazil and Argentina, I'll give Floridarob credit for his candor at suggesting that he too is available as a guide! And (I guess I'm really slow today) why are Canadians in Cuba "idiots"? (I'd only called them "sun-burned.")

[Muscle Lover]

RE: ? ? ?

 

Appreciate this thread. Vacationing in Cuba is on my "must do" list

[floridarob]

cuba guyz

 

someone must have taken their camera and release forms with them to cuba because if you look at the website http://www.latinguyz.com and look at the free photo sets you will see a lot of guyz from cuba, this will give you an idea of what to expect...I wasnt trying to hustle myself and Im sorry if thats how it came across, I have spoken to several people that would love to go to cuba if only they had someone to show them around a little bit. I was suggesting if someone was well off enough and could afford to pay my way I'd be happy to go with them thats all guys, really, Im a good guy to travel with and if I havent travelled so extensively the last 5 years maybe I wouldnt be as tight on money I guess.

 

anyway, dont be afraid to go alone either if youd like to go, its an awesome place with awesome guys!

[Luv2play]

RE: ? ? ?

 

Thanks for the info, altho you misread my previous post which indicated I am a Canadian. However I have a winter home in South Florida and as winter is the obvious time to go to Cuba, I was wondering how to get there in a hassle-free way. You say "forget the Bahamas" but that happens to be the closest direct link. Otherwise I would have to fly from Miami to Mexico and then double back. Why bother? As for INS checking "aliens" residing in the US, in case you hadn't noticed it is getting a lot more tense, even for us Caucasian Canuks. The new visa regulations leave it to the whim of individual border officials to decide your fate about whether you get into the US or not. For me it is just not worth the risk to screw up. I know I would have no problems flying from Montreal or Toronto at some other time of the year but, believe it or not, summers are actually quite nice up North so why travel to a sun destination then?

[Guest Deweywop]

RE: Legal Ways to go to Cuba

 

Let's not forget that you can go to Cuba without violating the US embargo. While I was there, I ran into a large group affiliated with Harvard University on a spring break study trip/symposium. Various educational, cultural, and humanitarian groups organize legitimate program trips to Cuba. I don't know which ones especially or how you find out about them, but you can probably investigate with a local college or agency or on the Internet. I suspect these tours are very expensive, controlled, and supervised. The better cost and freedom made it worth the hassle and risk of me becoming a reverse "undocumented alien."

[Guest Deweywop]

RE: ''Big, urgent loads...''

 

Thanks Billy. I thought I was pretty much done with Cuba, having traveled the island from West to East, but your comments on DIY street cruising piqued my interest. Nothing gets me more excited than the thought of being able to take a chance with any stud you see on the street. (One of the reasons I like Arab countries.) I definitely saw gorgeous, masculine guys everywhere but I figured the world was divided into the "hustlers" (which in Cuba means more generally the hangers on always trying to sell tourists something) and the good Communists going about their business, which I thought to be off-limits. But there are few countries I've been to where I so sensed the possibility that everything and everybody is on the table. Next time, if hopefully there is a next time, I'll take another stab.

 

You want more porno stories? You got another. On my last day in Havana, as I was walking back up to my rented room, where I was already packed and ready to leave in one minute, a skinny but not uncute boy started following me. I was nervous about him following me into the private apartment building, but he seemed amusing and harmless. He asked if I wanted to be introduced to a "nice" girl, his sister. I was flabbergasted. Your sister? You're trying to sell me your sister? Well then he just goes on about how nice she was and how he's sure I would like her and she would like me. After almost two weeks of seeing a lot of things in Cuba, I'm surprised that I was surprised, but the sheer audacity and corruption of the sales pitch floored me. Not knowing what else to say, I told him I didn't like girls. I liked boys. Maybe that would be his turn to be flabbergasted. Instead, he changed horses like a rodeo cowboy. Oh, well then maybe you'd like me, he said. I was still climbing the stairs and reeling in internal laughter at the hilarious situation. I explained I had to go to the airport. Nothing would deter this boy. He basically negotiated down to $5 to do it in the stairwell. I played with his cute dick, which he took out as a further enticement. It would have been an even better story to tell -- but really, I literally had a plane to catch.