Using miles for Cuba?
 

So AC flies there, I have plenty of MP miles, and I'd love to visit. But as a U.S. passport holder, it's not legal under most circumstances to go to Cuba (more specifically to spend money there).

My question is: is it even possible to make a booking to Havana using miles, and if so, what sort of information is registered?

Or just buy the ex-Canada fare?

You can't use UA miles to fly to Cuba, period.

MP won't let you.

AA specifically says that you can't redeem Lan (as in Lan Chile) awards that stop in Cuba. Lan has a flight from somewhere (Cancun or nearby) to Cuba that eventually ends or starts in Chile.

I think the attraction of Cuba for some people is that you can't go there.

You CAN go to CUBA...you just have to know HOW to get through the 'issues'! ;)


Although, from what I have "heard", Cuba is not really a-cheap anymore, or b-a good place to visit..with so many other GREAT tropical destinations...now the cigars..thats another story!

You can definitely get there with a little work. Hint: buy the AC ticket in Toronto.

Be ready, however, for *a lot* of hassle crossing the US border with a Cuba stamp in your passport.

That might be why the cuban passport agents have BLANK slips of paper to "slide" into your passport! :D

Cuban officials don't want their tourists to get in trouble... no one gets a stamp! I wouldn't worry about that.

Moving this to TravelBuzz!

iluv2fly
Moderator, UA

They make it very hard but not impossible to get to Cuba.

If you are booking a flight to a city with the intention of getting a connecting flight to Cuba and you tell the person booking your flight this, then they are not supposed to book the flight.

As mentioned, buy and fly from Toronto. No issues with passport since the stamp is on a blank piece of paper (just don't lose the paper until you've left Cuba :cool: ). Great trip.. but no, no MP miles awarded.

I went to Cuba and had a great time! I'm just curious as to why you would want to go there illegally? Since they are going after people they find going through other countries and sticking them them with very hefty fines ($22,000. is hefty in my book), why not go the legal route?

As a US passport holder, there are very few legal ways to go to Cuba, no?

There is a great trip report by Jailer detailing his trip to Cuba.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=715144

The US government sells a license to certain operators for travel to Cuba. I know when I went there were 9 flights a day between Miami and Havana. I saw a United sitting on the tarmac when I arrived. I was on a Continental flight, that was classified as a charter. Cuba is expensive for the operators of these trip because of the restrictions our wonderful government puts on them related to financial transactions and of what the operators cost of doing business in Cuba runs them. To me it was worth it. Off the top of my head, Eldertreks was a company that had trips going to Cuba, check with them...it would be much cheaper than a huge fine if you were caught going illegally. When we came back to the US, customs gave us no problem, just their usual welcome home.