With diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba warming, American yacht owners and charter guests have been inquiring about cruising to the long-forbidden country. Travel there is now legal, though only under certain circumstances and with official government approval. Paul Madden, president of Paul Madden Associates, has spent many months researching the possibilities for cruisers. Paul Madden Associates is now licensed by the U.S. Treasury Department to conduct yacht charters to Cuba from U.S. ports, carrying American citizens under guidelines issued by the Treasury as well as Commerce and State Departments and the U.S. Coast Guard. Paul Madden Associates offers selected crewed yachts for charter from American shores that have been inspected and surveyed by Madden himself and technical staff. The yacht, captain, and crew are qualified under the licenses, regulations, and legal requirements specified by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the U.S. Coast Guard (7th District). In addition, the company’s yacht fleet is currently being registered with the relevant authorities in the Republic of Cuba, including the Cuban Coast Guard (MGR).
Madden recently returned from a megayacht charter from the United States to Cuba aboard the 78-foot Stillwater. Here’s his account.
On August 5th I had the pleasure of accompanying the first legal yacht charter to Cuba in 50 years, departing from the Galleon Marina in Key West. The 12 charterers hailed from Colorado, New York, Michigan, Texas, and Florida, aboard a yacht and crew dispatched from Miami. After three hours at 23 knots, we saw mountains looming on the horizon. This is a surprise for mariners who are used to the flat terrain of other Gulf Stream destinations. It was the first of many wonderful surprises…
The sun was setting to starboard by now, and the hills behind Havana were just lighting up above the necklace of streetlights along the Malecon. As our yacht sped along the coast west of Havana, we announced our arrival on Channel 16; no response. Our biggest concern was Customs would be closed and we would be playing cards in quarantine for our first night. But soon the VHF crackled with a request to go to ‘seven-seven’ (in perfect English). The same voice told us that we were expected and that the office would remain open 24 hours a day until we landed. Lucky for us, and the radio fellow, it was only another 30 minutes until we entered the well-marked channel into Marina Hemingway. Strangely, a TV news crew was standing on the breakwater waving to us, and we all waved back. Turns out it was the main news channel from China—go figure.
Illuminated on the dock were uniformed Republic of Cuba Customs & Immigrations officers. By the time the lines were secured and all 15 of our passports were neatly lined up on the dining table, three Cuban officials were welcomed board, including a friendly doctor and two officers. The ‘Doc’ recruited NY corporate lawyer Liz Friedlander to be his “nurse,“ and we all had our temperatures taken—the universal procedure aimed at keeping infected visitors from joining your population. Luckily, no one was overheated. We then were issued our Cuban visas, and individually we were welcomed to Cuba by the cheerful officer in charge. Our passports were not stamped, which takes away the worry about being quizzed by U.S. Customs, especially if you enter through Miami, as I often do. Frankly, some onboard were not expecting a friendly reception, for a variety of reasons.
Each of us was given a wristband to identify us as tourist travelers. We then floated on to a slip in front of the marina hotel, where there was a marinero standing by at every cleat, plus an electrician who hooked up our shorepower. Lots of handshakes and warm greetings from the locals. We had entered the “forbidden land,” and we were liking it. Cocktails all around and then early to bed, since our excursions were due to commence at 7am the following day.
Bright sunshine as we filed onto our new Chinese mini-bus at 7am sharp and met our guide David, who also happened to be a lawyer and the son of Cuban diplomats. No beret, no beard, and no cigar–and yet David was an enthusiastic promoter of all things Cubano, especially when it came to music, art, architecture, and history. He also had a few words to say about education, health, and cuisine. But we were not there to talk; we were there to experience and interact, and we certainly did a lot of that. Our first stop was the Hotel Saratoga, where Secretary of State John Kerry is staying, probably sitting in the very overstuffed lobby bar chairs that we were in. In a private conference room, we enjoyed a fascinating presentation from a Cuban diplomat/politician, whose experience in Cuban politics reached back to pre-revolution times. As a former Under-Secretary Minister of the Interior and a career diplomat, he had inside knowledge of how the Cuban economy works, and doesn’t work, and was able to frame it in historic geo-political terms. How communism failed, and how the embargo has crippled them; and most interesting of all, he outlined for us the near-future plans for elections, a re-tooling of the currency, and a handover of power from his generation to the next. He answered our direct questions in a forthright manner. Amongst ourselves, there were whispers along the lines of, “…I never knew that.” Some of us could remember taking cover under our school desks during the Cuban Missile Crisis and Civil Defense drills, so his historical perspective was poignant and much appreciated.
And now for the fun part: We jumped into four brightly painted ‘50s convertibles and blasted through Old Havana, passing their equivalent of Grand Central Station, which had some steam engines on display, and then through a tunnel under the harbor to emerge at Morro Castle, a great photo-op and shopping stop. Our convertible motorcade then delivered us to an ornate, four-story colonial residence downtown, where we climbed the stone stairs to the rooftop. The homeowners had created a fantastic palador restaurant. This was one of the top “private” restaurants that have sprung up throughout Havana where first-class food, drink, and yes, cigars are served by emerging entrepreneurs. It wasn’t until dessert, and after we had chatted with the restaurant owner about his “private enterprise” while we were being serenaded by a guitar trio, that I learned I was sitting in the very chair where Beyoncé had sat not so long ago. And yes, I did have to ask which “superstar” Beyoncé was, and that is why my daughters don’t really like being around me that much.
After lunch it was off to the Hemingway House, which has been left exactly as it was when Hemingway left for his final trip out of Cuba. Fascinating, and eerie at the same time for someone like me who hero-worshipped this old-fashioned sexist animal assassin. I did a quick survey of Pilar (at top), and decided she was still seaworthy. I tried to get the listing, but no luck there.
After another great meal, we hit the world-famous Tropicana. It starts a little bit like a Vegas retro-review, but then they surprise you with some classic ballet, a Latina Ella Fitzgerald with great chops, some Cirque du Soleil acrobatics, and finally the Three Tenors—only this was seven opera singers, and they were world-class.
After too little sleep, on day two, we found ourselves blasting down a modern highway to Varadero (above), which my maritime friends had told me was “worth a miss.” The latest dock talk was that the marina was unfinished and badly executed. Those who think this are mistaken. I consult for marina developers, and I have seen just about every marina in the U.S. and the Med. In my opinion, Varadero is bigger, better, cleaner, and newer than any marina in Florida. Don’t believe me? Then go see for yourself. I might even bet you a Monte Cristo #4 that I am right. And another surprise: Varadero has a 100-ton TraveLift, and the stores are full of supplies, food, and wine. This is all contrary to everything I was told to expect.
That same day we dove further into Cuba’s culture. We went to an artist’s cooperative studio in the ancient seaport town of Matanzas. These artists also show their work in an upscale gallery in Amsterdam, so we weren’t exactly discovering them. Nonetheless, we had lively discussions with them about art, politics, what was the meaning of a sculpture of man whose head was being squeezed in a vice… 
Next stop was a picturesque colonial chapel on a hilltop overlooking this port. Inside, Jim Friedlander, CEO of Academic Arrangements Abroad, who made all our arrangements, had told us we were going to meet some Cuban farmers (yawn). As we admired the architecture, the choral company Coro de Camara de Matanzas quietly entered the chapel and began singing. We were captivated and enchanted by a 30-minute performance that left us moved. And then, they thanked us for coming to Cuba on our yacht and for making the effort to come to their chapel to hear them. This was an appropriate bookend to our amazing visit. The one common refrain on the trip back to Key West was, “How soon can we go back to Cuba with our friends and families?”
Note: A traditional yacht charter to Cuba is illegal! The penalties for “sneaking to Cuba” and enjoying a yacht holiday are severe and can include fines, jail time, and seizure of your boat. See: U.S. Treasury FAQ’s CUBA.
Mary
Just wanted to let you know that I been cruising the last 6 yrs or more and lots of my cruising friends have been to Cuba over the years. Some are Canadian and some or American they go in needing parts for their boats to visit. A loose page is stamped in their passport books and never any any problem for they love tourist.