Salsaville Dance Studios

Something new! Salsaville's 4 or 5-day immersive Havana, Cuba experience.

This trip is for those who have always wanted to visit and experience Cuba, but just don't have time in their schedules to take an extended length trip. We will experience many of the highlights of Cuba in a very compact time-frame.

Basically there are two options. First option involves taking only two vacation days from work. The second option involves taking just a single vacation day.

Option #1: Fly out early in the morning, Thursday Feb. 15th, and arrive that afternoon to Havana. You will then have Thursday evening, all day Friday, all day Saturday, all day Sunday in Havana. You will also have a part of Monday, especially if you choose the later flight option leaving at 5:50pm, which arrives back to Denver at 11:41pm*. Amazingly, this involves taking off only two days from work - Thursday and Friday. (Monday is a federal holiday.)

Option #2: Fly out late Thursday night, Feb. 15th after being able to do a full day's work. This would involve a red-eye flight. Flight leaves at 12:46am from Denver*, and you get into Havana Friday morning at 9:30am. You should be all checked in and ready to start activities around noon time so you can still do all the scheduled dance classes for that day. Your time there will be most of Friday, all day Saturday, all day Sunday, and part of Monday (returning the same way as mentioned in Option#1.) This option involves taking off just one day from work - Friday. (Monday is a federal holiday.)

* Flight times are to/from Denver, but we should be able to find something similar from whatever city you are flying from.

Basic activities which are scheduled and all included in the package price:

Dance Activities:

• 5 hours of group classes over two days, with each person assigned their own Cuban dance instructor the entire time.
• 1 hour of a private dance lesson (with option to do more time permitting.)
• Dancing each night in Havana's best clubs, catching the concert of at least one super famous salsa band, all with having our instructors along to hang out with and dance all night.
• On our first night all together, Friday, we will have our own dance school welcome dinner & dance party with all of our instructors. During the evening we watch a salsa and son dance demonstration, along with an extended Afro-Cuban & Folkloric music & dance performance. (And possibly a live salsa band to dance to as well.)
• Time permitting: Visiting the backyard of a famous salsa band where they rehearse. We end up having the band play for us, learn about the various instruments and basic rhythms of salsa, all while directly interacting with the band members. (Private performance and interactive lecture about various genres of Cuban music.)

• Afternoon trip to the gorgeous beach in Playas del Este along with a sailboat (catamaran) ride on the ocean, plus a little surprise. (Weather cooperating.)
• Downtown city-tour with professional English-speaking Cuban guide.
• Group dinners at several of Havana's best restaurants.
• Walking the famous Malecón of Havana (Seaside Promenade), and other iconic parts of Havana.
• Visit to the famous Hotel Nacional and other impressive sites.

Should you choose to leave Havana on the later flight at 5:50pm (which is actually less money and a little faster, only you will arrive failrly late that evening), you will have the option to:

• Take an additional group dance lesson (styling or Rumba) and/or a private dance lesson.
• Or, we can take you to see another not-yet-seen alluring site in Havana.

It will be music and dance all over the place … but we'll also experience the best of what Havana has to offer outside of the music & dance world as well. All along the way, we'll be meeting all sorts of Cubans, dancers, musicians, and others from many walks of life. After having run 16 trips there now, we are feeling confident that we can offer all of the above compacted in this short time-frame so you can come home with having had an unforgettable, satisfying experience.

Total trip cost:

• Single occupancy $1,450 plus airfare
• Double occupancy $1,390 plus airfare

Roundtrip airfare is currently running between $649 and $709 from Denver.

Airline ticket will be purchased by Salsaville in a very timely matter after receiving your deposit. If you want to use your airline points, you may purchase your own ticket in consultation with Salsaville. (Ticket would need to be purchased within one week of signing up for the trip.)

If have more time off from work, and would like to stay in Cuba for additional days, please let me know. We may be able to work out additional organized experiences including traveling outside of Havana to some beautiful towns, etc.

Testimonials from Salsaville's 1st Music & Dance trip to Cuba - November 2015
Testimonials from Salsaville's 2nd Music & Dance trip to Cuba - January 2016
Testimonials from Salsaville's 3rd Music & Dance trip to Cuba - March 2016
Testimonials from Salsaville's 4th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - November 2016
Testimonials from Salsaville's 5th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - January 2017

And the trips just keep getting better and better each time. Here are some testimonials from more recent trips:

Testimonials from Salsaville's 11th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - January 2019
Testimonials from Salsaville's 12th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - November 2019
Testimonials from Salsaville's 14th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - November 2022
Testimonials from Salsaville's 15th Music & Dance trip to Cuba - February 2023

Any questions or concerns? Please just email me, or call me directly at 720-336-1239.

Back to the Cuba Trip home page

Read on for many more details ...

The Application Form is at bottom of this page.

This trip will be run under a legal "Support for the Cuban People" license (31 CFR § 515.574)

The group size will be limited to 18 or so travelers.
Please note that this will be run as a "semi-boutique" tour, meaning that the group size will kept on the small side, and each member of the trip should receive some individual attention. In addition, we are staying in upscale accommodations, but as a home-stay or an independent apartment, not in hotels. The group will be able to move around more efficiently and do more than a larger group could. This way we can all achieve my goal of making sure that each person has an amazing experience.

Included in the package price is:

Basic Travel:

• All airport transfers in Cuba.
• Cuban tourist visa (Currently costs $85 or $100 depending on the airline, but is included as part of the package price.)
• Cuban medical insurance
• "Support for the Cuban People" license.
• Every night at a very nice B&B, with a private room, AC, and en-suite bathroom.
• Chauffeur-driven cars available in all locations for the group every day & night to take us wherever we need to go.

The following is now included in the cost of the travel package:

• Cell phone service along with your very own Cuba phone line/number:
  • This comes with a number of minutes for placing local calls, text messaging, and unlimited mobile data access so you can access the internet (email, Facebook, WhatsApp, browsing, etc.) from anywhere there is a good signal.
  • This cell phone service would work on one of the following phones:
    • Your own regular phone (must be carrier unlocked)
    • An alternate phone you bring (must be carrier unlocked)
    • A rental phone I provide you with. It would be a very good phone (Samsung Galaxy S10) that I can rent to you for the duration of the trip (at a cost of $70) that is already been proven to work very well in Cuba without significant issues. (Although whatever phone you bring should work as well in the end as well.)

The only things that are not included in the package price and for which you should bring money to Cuba are:

• Meals:
  • Breakfasts: usually available in your casa/apartment. $5-$7 is usually the cost for a full breakfast. Can go out for breakfast as well for a similar price.
  • Lunches: $3 to $12.
  • Dinners: $4 to $20. (We will usually go to fancier places, which will cost $10-$15 without drinks.)
  • All above mentioned prices are for Havana. For Santiago and Baracoa, prices are generally about one third less.
• Drinks at clubs: alcohol, etc.
• Medical care if needed (However, likely any medical care needed will be covered by your included medical insurance.)
• Gifts and souvenirs
• Gratuities - leaving tips

. We have some options for deluxe rooms in Havana:

• Spectacular room in penthouse apartment with king-size bed with total ocean view and cityline view @ additional cost of $35 per night. (1 available total.)
• Spectacular room in penthouse apartment with king-size bed with total ocean view @ additional cost of $30 per night. (1 available total.)
• Deluxe room in penthouse apartment with city-line view @ additional cost of $15 per night. (1 available total.)
• Extra-Deluxe room in penthouse apartment with city-line view @ additional cost of $25 per night. (1 available total.)
• Upscale independent one bedroom apartment with kitchen, living room, and enclosed balcony overlooking ocean @ additional cost of $40 per night. (1 available total.)
• Upgraded room, with your own spectacular outdoor balcony overlooking ocean and city @ additional cost of $15 per night. (1 available total.)
• These prices are per room, not per person. So if you are doing double occupancy, then the additional cost is only half that per person.
• It's first come, first serve with reserving these rooms. Additional upgrade options might become available later on.

Payment schedule is as follows:

• $1,500 up front to reserve your spot on the trip and to have the funds to purchase your round-trip plane ticket.
• The remainder of the total trip cost minus $300 is due on February 1st.
• Final $300 due upon arrival in Cuba.
• Late fees are $50 per day for any late payment.

If you need to cancel for whatever reason, I'm afraid none of the payments are refundable, except for a partial refund if we can find a replacement traveler and transfer the plane tickets into their name.

Why travel with Eric "El Cubanito" Freeman?
Eric has been traveling to Cuba since 1995. He has traveled there 31 times, and spent a total of over 31 months on the island. In addition, Eric has previously run a total of 16 group trips there, and is well-versed in the ins and outs of navigating Cuba and providing an amazing experience for all who choose to go on a Salsaville trip to Cuba. He has studied dance there extensively and has developed numerous connections over the years. Join him to explore and experience the amazing things Cuba has to offer. The focus of the trip will be dancing and music, but the tour includes exploring Cuba's history, architecture, beaches, and their fascinating people.

JOINING THE TRIP

The general process of joining the trip is:

     1. You submit the application just below.
     2. I read over it and likely accept it. (I will probably ring you up on the phone to have a brief conversation.)
     3. I send you and then you read over and electronically sign the standard liability wavier, and then sumbit your intial deposit.
         (Via Zelle normally, but there are other ways to pay.)
     4. You will receive additional information about preparing for the trip.
     5. I set up a time that we can all make for a critical orientation meeting.
     6. We have the Zoom-based orientation meeting.

APPLICATION FORM:

Please copy & paste the below text into an email, fill in, and send to eric@salsaville.com.
(Please avoid printing out this form and writing in answers by hand.)

1. Which dates/flights are you signing up for:
Option #1: Feb 15th - Feb 19th (departing on an early flight, Thursday morning 2/15)
Option #2: Feb 16th - Feb 19th (departing on a red-eye flight, Thursday night 2/15)
Option #3: interested in getting my own flights

2. Would you like single or double occupancy?
If double occupancy, tell me the number of beds needed and the name of the person you are sharing a room with.
(Or, although tricky, let me know if you would like me to attempt to match you with another traveler to share a room with.)

Note: All rooms have AC and en-suite bathrooms (i.e. the bathroom is directly connected to your bedroom.)

3. Do you want any room upgrades? (This is on a space-available basis only.)

We have some options for room upgrades, which include ocean-views, and/or deluxe apartments. Prices will be from $10-$40 per night extra. Please indicate if you're interested, and if looking for a lower or higher-end upgrade. (Or you can copy & paste which room you'd like from the list that appears about 7 paragraphs above.)

(These prices are per room, not per person. So if you are doing double occupancy, then the additional cost is only half that per person.)

4. Please indicate your origin and return airports:

Do you generally prefer window or aisle seats? (This could always be changed later on.)

5. Your email address:

6. Your cell phone number with the ability to receive text messages:

7. Fill in the info below as it appears on your passport:
First name:
Middle name:
Last Name:
Date of Birth:
Gender:
Passport #:
Passport date of expiration:

8. Contact info for any emergency:
Name of person:
Relationship:
Phone number:

9. Your mailing address:

10. Attach a good quality scan of your passport. (Taking a photo with a smartphone camera works fine.)

11. Do you have any physical and/or psychological issues that could impede your ability to successfully participate in this trip?

12. This tour will involve walking a total of 1-3 miles per day. Are you able to do this while maintaining an average moderate pace? (If not, it does not mean you cannot come on the trip. I would just need to know this ahead of time in order to possibly make some adjustments.)

In addition, on several days, we will be doing 2 to 3 hours a day of dance lessons in well-ventilated, but non-airconditioned rooms. Some evenings we will be going out dancing for 2-3 hours. All activities are optional. If you are tired at any point, you can always opt-out and go back to your room to relax, rest, etc.

13. You will need to sign a fairly standard liability waiver to sign which will be delivered to you upon accepting of your application.

14. From time to time you will be asked for your input on some aspect of planning the trip. You will sometimes be asked to respond in as little as 24 hours. (Examples include RSVP'ing to a proposed group orientation meeting time, and getting your go-ahead in purchasing specific airline flights.) I will need your response in a timely manner in order to help effectively plan the trip. Do you agree to do your best to respond in a timely manner and understand that a pattern of not responding within the time requested may result in monetary penalties being assessed?

15. We will be using WhatsApp as the primary means of communciation (both before and during the trip) to plan/accounce various details about each days' events when we are not all together as a group. Do you agree to making sure you are comfortable using WhatsApp, and agree to bring or rent a carrier-unlocked phone in order to have appropriate access to WhatsApp?

(Unlocking your phone should be easy, but needs to done ahead of time.) (You can use your U.S.-carrier based service while in Cuba if you like, but it is not recommended as it would be normally very expensive to do so.)

16. Let me know if you have any particular expectations for this trip.

17. Please list any dietary restrictions that could be relevant to this trip - like if you don't eat red meat, poultry, fish, dairy, etc.

18. Please indicate if you are interested in tacking on additional days in Cuba (perhaps through Sunday, February 25th) to experience more of Cuba.



Eric "El Cubanito" Freeman
Owner, Salsaville Dance Studios
www.Salsaville.com
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