Restrictions On Cuba Travel

Above, our ship, Royal Caribbean's Majesty of the Seas in Havana Port. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

About the time I went on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Havana, Cuba, the Trump Administration issued new restrictions on Americans traveling to the island. Much of this has to do with the growing crisis in Venezuela.

According to an April 22 article in the New York Times:

The Trump administration said it would crack down on ‘veiled tourism’ to Cuba. Here’s what that could mean for U.S. travelers.

For Americans who want to visit Cuba, things got even murkier as the Trump administration last week said that it would further restrict nonfamily travel to the island. 

The new restrictions are part of a tougher policy toward Nicaragua, Venezuela and Cuba, said John Bolton, the president’s national security adviser, who called the three countries “the troika of tyranny” in a speech to veterans of the Bay of Pigs invasion, the failed 1961 attempt to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro. 

“The Department of the Treasury will implement further regulatory changes to restrict nonfamily travel to Cuba,” he said. “These new measures will help steer Americans’ dollars away from the Cuban regime.” 

The statement suggests that the government will increasingly restrict travel to the island, but it was vague enough to leave travelers wondering if their trips to Cuba would suddenly be canceled.

According to the article, permitted travel to Cuba consists of 12 categories:

The 12 categories are: family visits; support for the Cuban people; educational, religious or journalistic activities; humanitarian projects; professional research and professional meetings; activities of private foundations, research or educational institutes; public performances, clinics, workshops, athletic and other competitions, and exhibitions; official business of the United States government, foreign governments and certain intergovernmental organizations; exportation, importation or transmission of information or informational materials; and certain authorized export transactions. 

Mr. Bolton said that at least some of the travel to Cuba was “veiled tourism,” and that the government would be cracking down on it.

Above, a vintage 1950s Chevrolet in Havana. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I found the trip to Cuba to be very interesting and would recommend a trip. Obviously, my trip was 100% tourism. But anyone contemplating a trip to Cuba should keep track on current and upcoming changes on Cuban travel.

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