Cuba

Cuba
Information
Language:	Spanish
Capital:	Havana
Population:	11,394,043
Currency:	Cuban Peso (CUP) but tourists use the Cuban Convertible Peso (CUC)
Hitchability:	<rating country='cu' />
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<map lat='21.23' lng='-79.55' zoom='5' view='0' country='Cuba'/>

Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean.

In Cuba there may be more hitchhikers than cars. Private cars are very rare and consequently almost everyone hitchhikes. You will see hitchhikers at nearly every crossing, bridge or highway junction. Cuban hitchhikers never use a sign.

If you look like a western tourist everybody want to work as a private taxi for you (which can be expensive). Therefore, before you enter a car, either agree on a price with the driver or tell him that you cannot pay. Your chances of getting a free ride are low especially if don't speak good Spanish. In fact, there is not much traffic in Cuba and there are also a lot of other hitchers on the road, which can make waiting times long. Furthermore hitchers will often be picked up on the back of trucks (together with many other people). The trucks go slow and the roads are sometimes in a bad state.

In Cuba, theoretically, cars are required to pick up hitchhikers. In reality, most cars will not stop (even for Cubans) unless you demonstrate your willingness to pay for the ride by waiving some bills - about 20 pesos (~1 dollar) for every 100km, so you will see many people standing at the highways waiving money. The best locations to be picked up are the "puntos amarillos", which are well-established hitch-hiking spots outside the cities named after yellow officers ("amarillos") who stop cars and oblige the driver to give a lift to the people waiting on the street. Do not rely on the officers, as they often are not present, or, if they are physically present, are not helpful at all. Nevertheless you always find many Cubans at the punto amarillos who can help you. The easiest way to find the punto amarillo is to ask Cubans, even in big cities everyone should know where the puntos are. In La Habana, you can take the P7 going from Parque central and after about 30-40 mins you will be close to the punto amarillo on the carretera nacional heading east.

Fabzgy took this pictures while hitchhiking in Cuba, the two guys dressed in yellow pants and shirts are the "amarillos"

Cities

• Havana
• Santa Clara

Hitchhiking a boat out of Cuba

You can search at the Marina Hemingway (Tel: 204 5088 from La Habana) in Jamanitas, La Habana. You can get there by taking the P1 Bus to Playa and change there to a Bus to Santa Fe (420). The round trip should cost not more then 0.80 Moneda Nacional.

There are boats leaving to Florida, Mexico and other Caribbean Islands. High Season is from December to March/April but there are always some boats. Ask around at the Port office, these people know who is in the marina and who is planing to leave.

Note: The Emigration requires you to go with your captain 72 hours before departure to the Imigration office to enrol you on the list of passengers. If you can't make it 72 hours before departure a little tip might do the trick as well.

External links

Hitchhikers Katja and Augustas on the road in Cuba

• Hitchhiking My Way Around Cuba: Cubans are required to pick up hitchhikers, August 31, 2006
• Hitch a Boat from Cuba to Mexico: Fabzgy's experience in 2008.
• Waiting On A Deserted Road For Whatever Comes Next [1]

nomad:Cuba