Hi all !
I'm a uk citizen travelling around Usa , the Caribbean and Central America soon . We cannot obtain a Cuban visa from the U.K. as we are not flying directly there . We are unable to get a tourist one from the states from what I can gather . Can anyone tell me the chances of purchasing a visa and travelling from another country such a Mexico ? Everything I read seems to contradict itself . Hank you !
Three airlines fly from Mexico City and Cancun to Habana. They are Aeromexico, Cubana and Interjet. All three sell tourist cards at the airport. Inquire about purchasing your tourist cards before you purchase your roundtrip ticket to Habana. UK passport holders do not need visas to arrive in Cuba, only a simple tourist card which you fill out yourself, just like the tourist cards required by Mexican Immigration. Nothing is difficult or complicated about Cuban tourist cards.
We cannot obtain a Cuban visa from the U.K. as we are not flying directly there .
Yes you can - you do not need to be flying direct to use the tourist cards that you can get in the UK. They are fine for flights from anywhere except the US.
We are unable to get a tourist one from the states from what I can gather .
Where did you gather that misinformation ? For flights from the US you buy the tourist cards from the airlines or agencies appointed by them. (You also have to make a declaration under the US OFAC rules.)
Can anyone tell me the chances of purchasing a visa and travelling from another country such a Mexico ? Everything I read seems to contradict itself .
From most places in the Caribbean and Central America with flights to Cuba you buy the tourist cards in the departure airport. Where have you seen anything saying that you can't ?
Where does all the misinformation come from, that tourists can not buy tourist cards from the airlines flying from the USA to Cuba? It seems to be endemic. Maybe it has something to do with a lack of tourist cards on the part of European airlines. I have been to Cuba almost sixty times, but never from Europe and only once from the USA. It was a forty minute flight from Miami to Habana and was very expensive. I will stick with Cancun and Mexico City as my gateway. No problemas.
Thanks all ! I thought Mexico would be fine but just wanted to confirm before we get there .
Our Gov website requires us to apply for a Cuban tourist visa via post or in person at the London embassy before we leave , but only if we are flying directly to Cuba from here .
I checked the Cuba gov website and it said they do not allow tourists from the USA - you have to fit under 12 caretgories such as spouse , volunteer , etc etc but not tourist - as we planned to fly from Miami originally .
But I thought Mexico would be okay , so thanks for confirming ! I knew we could fly in - just wanted to make sure we could get there visa from the airport , rather than a tour operator beforehand as some people have written
It's so odd ! I found it on the government website , then contacted the Cuban consulate and they told me the same . That I cannot fly from the states ! Bit as you said - Miami is expensive anyway , so we will change our route a little and go from Mexico :)
Hello !
I emailed the Cuban consulate in London and the response I got was that I'd have to go through a third party operator in the states - and if I didn't fit under the 12 categories (tourism not being one ) then I could not obtain a visa .
They told me a visa obtained here was valid if I had a flight going via the states - but I am flying to Mexico - then driving through the States - then planned to fly from Miami to Cuba .
Response from the Cuban consulate -
Due to the laws and regulations of the US economic and commercial blockade against Cuba, the US migration authorities do not allow you, regardless of your nationality, to travel to Cuba through or from the USA with the Cuban Tourist Card (Visa) issued in your country of origin.
According to those regulations, people travelling to Cuba through or from the USA must fill in a form (affidavit) declaring the reason of your travel to Cuba under the 12 categories approved by the US Government which permits its citizens to travel to Cuba - currently excluding tourism .
3.The Cuban Tourist Card (Visa) issued in our Consulates is valid for flying to Cuba directly from any country of the world, except through or from the USA, according to its regulation
