Cuba

[seal4sail@tds.net]

We're planning on sailing from the Dry Tortugas and to the west end of Cuba for a stopping place to HOnduras, Guatemala, Belize, & Yucatan. Anyone know why this would be a problem to stop in Cuba and not return directly to the U.s for 6 months?
Thanks,
seal4sail

 

[Rick D]

Well, yes. If you are a US citizen, you can't enter Cuba without US specific and personal permission. That isn't easy to get. There can be some permission granted for cultural, religious, educational or humanitarian reasons, but those definitions are much narrower than they sound as applied. We went a couple of years ago and it took us a year to get both Cuban and US permission. There are also expenditure limits per day on the part of the US and travel and lodging restrictions in Cuba. Further, there is an onerous, and required, exchange rate for Dollars to Convertible Pesos. US citizens do go in illegally all the time. Having been there, I would not.

PS: your boat would be subject to impoundment and you to severe fines at minimum if you were found to have visited. I don't mean to sound paranoid, but there are these spy satellite thingies...

 

[Stu Jackson]

In one of the more unfortunate Executive Orders issued by this administration, your boat can be impounded even if you're even only THINKING of going. You can find the executive order on the White House home page. It is very scary...

It'd almost be easier to become a Canadian citizen so you can go legally, although your boat'd have to change nationalities, too.

 

[Capt Rick]

Re Cuba

I do not think it is a good time to go to Cuba there is just too much to lose.
We made the same trip 2 years ago. We left Ft. Jefferson direct to the west end of Cuba, and turned towards Isla Mujeres when we could see the Cabo San Antonio light. Once you get to Isla Mujeres you can day sail all the way down to Rio Dulce.


Rick
SV Prime Time

 

[Grizz]

I'm thinking...

about thinking of going to Cuba. Have I risked impoundment? What if I claim it was a dream?

 

[sailingdog]

Another problem is if you go from an American port, you can have problems even if your boat is flagged in a different country.

 

[Ken13531]

Give it a break.

We should all be allowed to sail unhindered to Cuba or any other country for that matter without threats or intimidation.

 

[Benny]

Is not worth it; your goverment will attain by power and intimidation what they have failed to secure by the courts. If you really want to go to Cuba take a flight from Mexico and ask that your passport not be stamped. Do not take your boat unless you may want to get rid of it

 

[Larry Neese]

you can go to Cuba, but you need a sponsor in Cuba, we went to a meeting in Key West put on by the Treasury, CG, Homeland, etc. a few years ago as we were planning on going, had a sponsor ecerything we needed, many attended, we all left scared from what we had to go through when we returned, most of us never went.

 

[sailaway78]

One alternative

I would love to visit Cuba, but it just isn't worth the risk. But it can be done. As someone else mentioned, best way is to fly in from Mexico, and ask them not to stamp your passport. From what llittle I know, this seems to work fairly well, at least as far as being nailed by our gummit is concerned. Another way you may get away with it, is to head for Isla Mujeras, get close to the west end of Cuba, and have an " emergency" on board the boat. Even our gummit can't get you for that, if you are convincing enough. All I all, my thought would be to just by-pass Cuba and go on to Mujeras.

 

[Retcoastie]

The other option is to go on planning. By the time you are ready, Obama will have relaxed the restrictions and you will have NO problems.

The restrictions on Cuban travel are a joke anyway. I mean, whats the problem? We lost to Vietnam but you can go there without an hassles.

 

[Franklin]

I don't like that we can't go to Cuba but lets get the facts straight. Bush didn't create the law, he just descided to inforce it as he felt it was the right thing to do. It's not meant to punish anybody, just put pressure on the people of Cuba to overthrow Castro. After 40+ years of mild inforcement, it didn't work. Bush hoped that infocing it more, then he hoped it would work. It didn't but once Fidel passes on, his brother might conceed if Obama doesn't. My bet is Obama does though as he is weaker then the Castro brothers and he will use the economy as his excuse.

If would be nice to be on good terms with our neighbors but there has to be something wrong with the country when half the population wants to leave and what else can we do?

 

[Fairwind]

Ken Mac has the right idea.. I suspect our relations with Cuba will be normalized quickly once Hillary takes charge of the State Department. Michael Moore took several boats to Cuba a couple of years ago without going to jail. The political establishment in the States still hasn't recovered from the Bay Of Pigs fiasco. Control through fear.