DON'T chance it with CUBALINDA!!!

Hello all,

I recently arrived back from an absolutely fantastic trip in Cuba. Any American planning a trip to Cuba knows that there are a ton of proverbial questions about getting to Cuba, travelling in Cuba, leaving Cuba and so forth. I found out about a website called Cubalinda.com that said they could purchase my ticket through Cubana airlines for me, roundtrip from Cancun to Cuba. I was in correspondence with a man named Sam Coleman for about two months before I was set to leave. He requested payment of about $200 which should be promptly wired to a bank in Germany and then he would have a representative meet me at my gate in Cancun with my tickets. If the representative was not there than I should go to the Cubana counter and find the representative named Mario. I told Sam that I did not feel comfortable wiring the money to the bank in Germany and asked if it would be possible for me to purchase the tickets when I landed in Cancun (I had one whole day in Cancun before I wanted to leave for Cuba). He told me this would not be problem and I was all set. Well, I landed in Cancun and looked for Mario or any resemblance of a man who worked for Cubalinda. After 5-10 minutes I did not see anyone. I moved on to immigration and baggage claim. I then showed up at the Cubana counter looking for Mario, they never heard of him. I inquired about Sam Coleman, they never heard of him. Lastly, I asked about Cubalinda, they never heard of the company name or website.

I have seen other posts that claim Cubalinda is legit but they are few and far between. I also realize that anyone could be posting these good references in Cubalinda's name. In my humble opinion I would not work with Cubalinda in any capacity. Outside of claiming to provide me with a ticket they were not able to offer any solid information regarding Cuba, it was either grossly incorrect or totally non-existent.

After dealing with this charade put on by Cubalinda I spoke with several people at the airport (none of them heard of Cubalinda) and found out that it is relatively easy to purchase the tickets at Cancun airport. Cubana flies for about $200 (not sure if this includes all the costs) and operates one flight a day at 2:00pm. They do not have the best track record, I heard and I quote "a crash every once in awhile". Aerocaribe flies for $290 including all taxes, fees and Cuban entry costs. The fly twice daily at 12:50pm and 7:45pm. I purchased mine through Aercaribe that morning and flew on the 12:50pm flight.

If you have any questions about Cubalinda or even Cuba please feel free to pm me. I can offer some excellent advice on places to stay and things to do and see. Safe travels!

This is the same old same old SPAM posted on Lonely Planet and other forums. Does any one take this miami masia seriously?