How did it all started?
In the past Cuba has always had a rusty relationship with USA but amazingly enough the currency that could have been used around to pay goods in Cuba were the National Peso (CUP) and US dollar (USD).
In 1994, the Cuban government introduced a new currency named the Cuban Convertible Peso (CUC) which was aimed to substitute the dollars in the country. Due to the CUC having a conversion 1:1 with the US dollar by 2004 in Cuba you were not able to use dollars in stores anymore. From the 2004 on, Cuba was left with only two currencies, the CUP used to buy low-tier household items and everything considered to be non-luxury goods & the CUC that because of its currency power (consider that 1CUC=24CUP) was used only in the tourism and luxury sector.
On 2013 the Cuban government decided to start unifying the old CUP and the new CUC into a single currency but both currencies still not-so-peacefully co-exist inside the country.
The current situation during our trip
Whilst travelling throughout Cuba we relentlessly tried more and more to understand how the two currencies were co-existing and how did this affect locals. The way most people put it down to us is that even though the “official” change from CUC to CUP is at the ratio 1:24, several local businesses seem not to accept that and still consider a 1:1 ratio.
For example, you might buy a meal for 5 CUC at an average restaurant but buy it for 5CUP at a small local restaurant only frequented by cubans. In terms of US dollars, you would be spending 5USD at one but just 20cents at the other!!!
Now, finding places where you can still pay in CUP is somewhat rare especially if you’re buzzing around the tourist places within Cuba. On the other hand, when taking city buses (in Havana) or buying food at markets paying with CUP will be the usual thing to do. HINT: In Guardalavaca, we did happen to find a small “comedor” that still had prices in CUP and in al honesty was the cheapest place we’ve ended up eating in Cuba.
Exchanging Money: CUC, CUP & USD
Currently, exchanging money at banks is pretty straightforward as long as you specify which currency you wanna buy, whether CUC or CUP. Be aware that since 2004, when changing dollars a 10% tax fee will be applied so you might rather buy some Euros in cash back home and exchange those free of charge whilst in the country.
Sometimes you might be approached by street money changers which will offer you (sometimes) better exchange rates than banks. If you’re up for that, make sure to know well the difference between the CUC and CUP notes cause most of the times that’s the typical tourist scam.
Suggestions & Interesting Facts
Once again make sure to get aquatinted with the difference between the two currencies ASAP and this could avoid a plentiful of scams that could occur all throughout your trip.
Although the CUP are not used much, we would always make sure to have the equivalent of 50USD in CUP in our pockets in case we were lucky and found a place displaying prices in CUP (this saved us a lot of money in more than one occasion).
Funnily enough, the 3CUP note and 1CUP coin both show the face of Che Guevara and are a unique “cheap” souvenir to bring back home to your family and friends. Just go to a bank tell them you want to change your currency in CUP but only in in 3 notes and 1 coins. That’s what it means a truly cuban souvenir!
PLANNING A TRIP TO CUBA? CHECK MORE GUIDES BELOW!
[pt_view id=”b4ab420t7e”]