Cuba divides opinions before you've even packed your bag. Everyone has something to say about it. What I'll tell you is this: it's one of the most musical, culturally rich places in the Caribbean, and for Black travelers the Afro-Cuban connection runs deep.
Is Cuba a good luxury trip for Black travelers? Yes, if your idea of luxury is culture, music and a beautiful base rather than marble lobbies. African heritage runs through Cuba's rumba, religion and food. Americans can't go as tourists, so you travel under an approved category and stay in a hotel the State Department allows.
Key facts
- Best months: November to April, the drier season.
- Getting there: fly into José Martí International Airport in Havana (HAV).
- Entry for Americans: tourism is banned, so you travel under one of 12 OFAC general license categories. You also need a tourist card, about $85 to $100 as of October 2026. My Cuba travel tips for Americans walk you through it.
- Where to stay: Voya Boutique Hotel in Vedado, where we stay on our trip. Check any other hotel against the Cuba Prohibited Accommodations List first.
- Our trip: the Cuba Experience, six days in Havana and Viñales, planned as a private trip.
The Afro-Cuban Connection
African heritage shaped Cuba's music, religion, food and identity, and you feel it everywhere from a Sunday rumba in a Havana alley to a drum circle in Trinidad. Rumba itself is on UNESCO's list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, inscribed in 2016.
Photo: Ban Yido / Unsplash
Afro-Cuban Cultural Experiences
| Experience | Location | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Callejón de Hamel | Havana | Street art, Sunday rumba, Santería symbolism |
| Guanabacoa | Havana | A historic center of Afro-Cuban religion and culture |
| Conjunto Folklórico Nacional | Havana | Professional Afro-Cuban dance company |
| Santiago de Cuba carnival | Santiago | Cuba's best-known carnival, held in July |
| Palenque de los Congos Reales | Trinidad | Afro-Cuban drumming and dance |
On our trip, a Babalawo (a Santería priest) leads a traditional cleansing ceremony in Guanabacoa, followed by lunch beneath a sacred ceiba tree. Please treat any ceremony as an invitation into someone's faith, and follow your guide's lead.
If the drums in Trinidad call to you, my guide to Trinidad, Cuba's colonial gem shows you where to hear them.
The Luxury Question, Answered Honestly
Cuba won't give you the polish of Bali or Dubai. Five-star hotels are fewer, power cuts happen, and service runs on island time. What you get instead is a place that hasn't been dressed up for visitors, and that's the reason to go.
Photo: Jennifer Chen / Unsplash
For Americans there's one more filter. The US State Department keeps a Cuba Prohibited Accommodations List of hotels you can't legally stay in, and several of Havana's best-known luxury hotels are on it, including the Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski and the Iberostar Grand Packard. The list changes, so check it before you book anything yourself. On our Cuba Experience you stay at the Voya Boutique Hotel in Vedado, with a rooftop bar over the city.
Music Is Everywhere
Son, rumba, danzón, mambo, cha-cha-chá and timba all grew up here, and their echoes run through salsa and Latin jazz. Nobody stages it for you. It drifts out of doorways and courtyards all evening, and you'll find yourself dancing before you've decided to.
Photo: Ronny Sison / Unsplash
For where to spend your Havana evenings, read my Havana guide beyond the classic cars.
Come feel it with us on the Cuba Experience, or plan your trip. You deserve a week where the soundtrack takes care of itself.
Destination Guide
Destination Guide
Destination Guide