Tour packages to Italy from Cuba 2022: What do you need to know?
Many Cubans are wondering when package tours to Europe from Cuba will return. Those offers were, more than anything else, a way to reach the European Union during 2018, 2019 and early 2020.
This Europe tour from Cuba allowed to visit countries such as Italy, France, the Czech Republic and Spain, through national agencies such as Havanatur or international ones such as Daiquiri Tours.
The 2020 pandemic caused international travel to decrease drastically and these offers were no longer available.
However, with the decrease in COVID-19 infections, several countries have reopened their borders to tourism, and tour packages to Europe are starting to resume.
Cuba News offers you a series of articles so that you can learn how to access these tourist packages and be aware of their reopening.
In this case we are going to focus on Cuba to Italy tourist packages, so that you have all the information available and necessary in the same place.
How much do tour packages from Cuba to Italy cost?
The price of the tourist packages to Italy depends on the number of days of these offers and the services included in them.
A multi-destination tour package offered by the agencies Daiquiri Tours and Havanatur, for nine nights and 10 days, varies depending on the rooms booked. If they are doubles or singles, the price varies between 1260 USD and 1490 USD, respectively. Children under 12 years of age have a differential price of USD 910.
There are other tour packages managed by international agencies whose prices are cheaper. These packages can be booked from March 2022 to March 2023. Prices vary according to the number of days included in the tour. Those shorter ones of two days and one night range from 256 USD to 450 USD.
However, it is recommended to access the tour packages offered by tour operators based in Cuba. That way there are greater guarantees for visa approval at the Italian embassy in Havana.
Where can they be purchased?
These tourist packages can be purchased at Havanatur offices throughout the country or online at the websites of the agencies that offer them. In the case of Cuba, payment must be made electronically either by means of freely convertible currency (MLC) cards or other international cards not issued by U.S. banks.
How long do they last?
Although the duration varies depending on the offer, they are almost always longer than six nights and 7 days.
What is included in the package tours from Cuba to Italy?
This is a question often asked by those who wish to access a tourist package from Cuba to Italy or to another European country.
Although the agencies help and facilitate the procedure for the request of a visa, the tourist packages to Europe from Cuba DO NOT INCLUDE VISA.
In some cases, they do not include airfare or transportation from the airport to the lodging.
They also do not include travel or health insurance.
Do I have to apply for a visa?
Yes, all package tours require a visa. In some cases the agencies process the Schengen visa, but it is always necessary to have a visa stamped in the passport to be able to enter Italian territory.
Currently the Italian embassy in Cuba is only processing study, work or humanitarian visas, so tourist visas are not being granted.
It is important for you to know that the opening hours of the Embassy of Italy in Cuba are from Monday to Friday, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., always by appointment.
Appointments must be requested online through the Prenota Online portal. This appointment booking method was changed due to the pandemic and in order to maintain sanitary measures and avoid contagion. To apply, it is necessary to register, provide contact information and indicate the reason for the appointment and the type of visa to be applied for.
Appointments for tourist visas, as explained above, are not currently available.
These visas have a short duration of, at most, 90 days, but it is the embassy that is in charge of estimating the time that you will be allowed to do tourism in Italy. It usually coincides with the duration of the tourist package.
This type of visa, moreover, allows you to move around all the countries belonging to the Schengen area.
What are the requirements of the Italian embassy in Havana?
The Italian government has several requirements for granting visas to Cubans. Although in some previous cases, the agencies themselves were in charge of filling out the visa application form, there are packages that do NOT include these procedures and, therefore, it is necessary that you know what to do.
The visa has a consular fee of 80 euros and, in order to be approved, the following documentation must be submitted (original + photocopy):
- Application form.
- Passport photo 35×40 mm.
- National passport valid for at least 3 months after the planned date of departure from the territory of the Schengen States.
- Declaration of accommodation filled in by the guest, dated not earlier than 3 months prior to the time of submission to the office.
- Photocopy of the guest’s identity card.
- Medical insurance valid for all the countries of the Schengen territory for the whole period of the stay (minimum coverage 30000 €).
- Proof of sufficient financial means.
- Round-trip airline reservation.
- Photocopies of previously obtained visas.
- Proof of family or other personal ties to the inviting party.
- Proof of real estate or other assets (cars, motorcycles, etc.).
- Authorization to travel (Letter of authorization from the work center where it is specified: number of days and dates, data of the worker, function performed, monthly salary, start date of work).
- When the inviting party is mentioned, it refers to the travel agency through which the trip will be made.
- All documentation must be presented and delivered on the day of the appointment. Incomplete or erroneous documentation will lead directly to the denial of the visa.
- Payment of the consular fee must be made in cash on the day of the appointment, no torn or marked bills will be accepted.
- The visa application must be made in person by the applicant no earlier than 180 days before the planned date of travel.
Can I travel with a minor?
Yes, it is possible to make a tourist trip to Italy from Cuba, accompanied by a minor. In that case it is necessary to present a series of documents and all of them will have to be translated and legalized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba (MINREX) and by the Consular Office of the Diplomatic Representation of Italy, that is, at the embassy.
The documents to be presented are:
- Birth certificate.
- Act of consent of both parents or the legal guardian for the departure of the minor from the country formalized before a notary. The consent of the holders of parental authority is only required if the minor is traveling alone or only with one of the parents (this condition does not apply if the traveling parent can prove that he/she is the sole parent or that he/she exercises exclusive parental authority).
- The minor must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian or if this is not possible by an older person with a special power of attorney legalized by MINREX.
- The consular fee for children between 6 and 12 years of age is 40 € and free of charge for children under 6 years of age.
Are there currently package tours to Italy?
Yes, Italy currently offers package tours to foreign citizens, but tourism from Cuba is not yet allowed. According to the most recent Italian Official Gazette, Cuba remains on the E list of countries, those that are only allowed entry for health, study, work, humanitarian or residence purposes.
However, in statements to the press in December, the Italian Minister of Tourism Massimo Garavaglia, said that they are considering removing this restriction for Cubans and declaring the island as a “COVID-19 free corridor, so it is necessary to be attentive to these changes. In Cuba News we will be aware of this update and will let you know. Do not forget to follow us on our social networks or subscribe to our Youtube channel, where we will publish an explanatory video on these procedures.
Will there be package tours to Italy in 2022?
The Italian embassy in Havana is clear on its website that it is currently not possible to travel from Cuba to Italy for tourism. However, depending on the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic, these restrictions could change at any time.
How can I find out when the packages open?
There are several ways to find out when package tours from Cuba to Italy or other European countries will be reopened. One of the ways is to follow on their social networks the tourist agencies and tour operators that offer this kind of trips, follow the Italian Embassy in Havana on their Facebook and Twitter accounts. In Cuba News we also offer you the possibility to be updated and know these options as soon as they open. For them you just have to subscribe to our Youtube Channel or follow us on Facebook.
