Starting this fall, Apple Vacations will be offering tour packages to the previously off-limits island of Cuba. The packages fall under the “educational activities” or “people-to-people” travel categories, which are two of the 12 purposes approved by the U.S. Department of Treasury.
Apple Vacations, which is one of KHM Travel’s preferred travel suppliers, is partnering with the US-based Cuba Travel Services to carry out the tours. The first departures are set for September, with flights operating by American Airlines and Sun Country Airlines taking off from Miami.
Packages include a five-night “Havana Getaway” tour featuring musical performances, culinary experiences, and even a cigar-rolling demonstration in Cuba’s historic capital city. Apple is also offering a seven-night “Colors of Cuba” package, in which visitors will spend two days in the colonial village of Trinidad, in addition to five nights in Havana.
“We are very excited to launch tours to Cuba to a wider US travel audience, offering affordable prices and a length of stay conducive to most Americans’ schedules,” said Apple Vacations President Tim Mullen in an interview with USA Today.
Package prices include Cuban health insurance, fare for the charter flights departing from Miami, the Cuban tourist visa processing fee, and U.S. taxes and fees. A Cuban departure tax of $25 will be collected separately.
In a post on the Apple Vacations’ blog, The Juice, Eileen Herncane recaps her recent people-to-people tour of Cuba:
“I felt like I took a step back into history for a few days, and almost felt like I was in a movie.”
As regulations on Americans’ access to Cuba continue to relax, the landscape of the tourism industry there will continue to evolve. Travelers who wish to get a glimpse of the island before the floodgates open will find a vibrant music and arts scene, hospitable locals, and plenty of charming architecture, according to Herncane.
Apple Vacations’s Cuba packages offer our home-based travel agents the opportunity to confidently sell a new destination through one of the industry’s most trusted, well-respected tour companies.
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